this is bbc news. the headlines at 11pm: theresa may says no to vat rises if she wins the election, but signals scrapping a pledge not to increase income tax national insurance. on the tenth anniversary of madeleine mccann‘s disappearance, her parents say they still have hope she'll be found. donald trump says he hasn't ruled out military action against north korea after the country's second ballistic missile test in two weeks. one of the world's best—known mountaineers, ueli steck, has died in an accident on mount everest. and we'll cast an eye over tomorrow's front pages in half an hour. the telegraph reports on calls for facebook to pay for policing digital crimes. good evening and welcome to bbc news.

theresa may says there'll be no increase in vat if the conservatives win the general election, with labour saying it wouldn't increase the tax either. but the prime minister did signal she may scrap a pledge made by david cameron not to raise income tax or national insurance. mrs may has also made it clear she expects hard talks with the european union over brexit. it follows comments from the german chancellor angela merkel that britain must not delude itself about the outcome of the negotiations. here's our political correspondent ben wright. working people in this country have paid enough tax. as this economy recovers, i want you to be able to keep more of your own money to spend as you choose. it was a startling policy, a solemn promise made days before the 2015 general election. david cameron said three key taxes, vat, income tax and national insurance, would not go up for a five—year parliament. so will theresa may repeat that pledge in her manifesto? we have absolutely no plans

to increase the level of tax but i'm also very clear that i don't want to make specific proposals on taxes unless i'm absolutely sure that i can deliver on those. a pretty strong hint the prime minister does not think the existing tax freeze can be continued. and remember, just last month the chancellor's plan to raise the national insurance rate in the budget was criticised for breaking the manifesto tax pledge and the move was ditched. why does all this matter? because public services cost money. politicians need to decide how to balance the growing demands of hospitals, schools, social care and defence with voters‘ willingness to pay. today, there was clarity from the prime minister on one part of the conservatives‘ tax pledge. we won't be increasing vat. but no matching promise on national insurance or income tax, the other big revenue raisers. i know i'm going to get told off for overlong answers so this won't be an overlong answer.

labour has also promised not to raise vat and is making a lot of spending promises, which it says will be costed in their manifesto. we're the party that wants low taxes for low and medium earners. the conservative party are the party that wants low taxes for the higher earners. we look at things the other way round. so, yes, there will be changes but they will be very much at the top end. over the next couple of weeks we will get the party manifestos, when rhetoric over tax and spending may crystallise into policy. but of all the uncertainties facing britain over the next few years, the biggest is brexit. and there seems to be a divide between theresa may and the rest of the eu over how the negotiations should happen. yesterday, eu leaders dismissed the idea of a quick trade deal and said there had to be progress on the terms of the divorce first, including the money britain owes. but theresa may has other ideas. yes, they do want to start discussions about money. i'm very clear that at the end

of the negotiations, we need to be clear notjust about the brexit arrangement, the exit, how we withdraw, but also what our future relationship is going to be. opposition parties said the government was kidding itself. the prime minister is not in charge of the agenda. there are 27 member states in the european union, apart from the uk. they're absolutely united, they're holding a common line and theresa may is not going to be able to tell them what to do. but the eu will not begin to negotiate with us until after polling day and a new westminster government is in place. ben wright, bbc news. president trump says he hasn't ruled out military action against north korea after another unsuccessful ballistic missile test this weekend by the country. he says he isn't happy about it, but wouldn't be drawn on speculation that the failure of the test was down to a possible us cyber attack. earlier, it was the american media he had in his sights,

attacking them at a rally marking 100 days in office. our north america editor jon sopel reports. there's no doubt this is where donald trump is happiest, and on his 100th day, he had a choice. bathe in the warmth of his still adoring base or do what presidents have done for decades and stay in washington for the annual journalists' shindig? given his toxic relationship with the media, that turned out to be no contest. they are gathered together for the white house correspondents' dinner without the president. and i could not possibly be more thrilled than to be more than 100 miles away from washington's swamp, spending my evening with all of you. back in washington, it was a very different atmosphere. more serious.

defensive, yes. but in no way apologetic. it is ourjob to report on facts and to hold leaders accountable. that is who we are. we are not fake news. and for the comedian, an absent president was a rich seam forjokes. the leader of our country is not here. and that's because he lives in moscow, it's a very long flight. it'd be hard for vlad to make it, vlad cannot make it on a saturday, it's a saturday! as for the other guy, i think he's in pennsylvania because he can't take a joke. but this is the noise of the presidency. there is deadly serious stuff, like north korea, and real tension as pyongyang continues to defy the international community and a lot of what if scenarios as america tries to intensify the pressure on kimjong—un. if he does a nuclear test,

i will not be happy. and i can tell you also, i don't believe that the president of china, who is a very respected man, will be happy either. will there be military action? i don't know. we'll see. there is a great belief in washington that the failure of the last two rocket launches in north korea is down to an american cyber—attack. a woman who was shot by police and wounded during a counter—terrorism operation in north—west london last week has now been arrested after she was discharged from hospital. police are still questioning six other suspects. meanwhile, officers have been given more time to question another man, khalid mohammed omar ali, who was taken into custody on thursday afternoon near parliament square. dorset police have begun a murder investigation after a man was shot dead at his home in the early hours of the morning. officers had responded to reports of intruders at the property in st ives near ringwood. the victim, who was in his

60s, died in hospital. ten years after the disappearance of madeleine mccann, her parents have told the bbc they'll do whatever it takes and for as long as it takes to find their daughter. madeleine was three years old when she went missing while on a family holiday in portugal. speaking to fiona bruce, kate and gerry mccann say the pain never leaves them after a decade of uncertainty. every day is another day without madeleine... i think it's just that number. that ten—year mark makes it more significant. it's a reminder of how much time has gone by and obviously ten is a big number. i think that the day and the poignancy of it... we don't tend to go back because it's so draining. but inevitably on anniversaries and birthdays, they're by far the hardest. how different is your life now

to what you must have imagined all those years ago? it's a hard one. such a long time. i think before madeleine was taken we felt we'd managed to achieve a perfect, nuclear family of five. we had that for a short period. you adapt. you have a new normality. unfortunately for us, the new normality at the moment is a family of four. last time we talked, you told me how you were still buying birthday presents and christmas presents for madeleine... are you still doing that? yes, i still do that. you go round the shops and you think, madeleine would be this age, what would she want? that is it. i obviously have to think about what age she is and something that... whenever we find her,

will it still be appropriate? a lot of thought goes into it. i couldn't not. she'll always be our daughter. one of the police officers in portugal has been a thorn in your side for many years. he wrote a book which implicates you and you fought it through the courts. at the moment, you've lost and he has won. the last judgement was terrible. so we will be appealing. we haven't lodged that yet. he was effectively suggesting that you were involved? i think people really need to realise, and assistant commissioner riley has said it again this week and the portuguese have said it in the final report, there is no evidence that madeleine is dead. and the prosecutor said that there was no evidence that we were involved in any crime. the police have talked about one significant lead that they're still pursuing.

can you tell me anything about that? we're very much... the investigation is in the hands of the met police. there clearly are ongoing enquiries. we've come a long way and there is progress, there are some very credible lines of enquiry the police are working on, and while there's no evidence to give us any negative news, that hope is still there. it really is there, in your hearts? that one day you'll be reunited with your daughter? no parent's going to give up on their child unless they know for certain their child is dead. we just don't have any evidence. my hope of madeleine being out there is no less than it was ten years ago. apart from those first 48 hours, nothing actually has changed since then. i mean, i think the difficult thing has always been, how will we find her? you know, because you rely on the police doing everything they can.

and you are relying on somebody with information coming forward. kate and gerry mccann speaking to fiona bruce. french regional forces in the west african country of mali have killed or captured about 20 militants in an operation near its border with burkina faso. it followed the death of a french soldier earlier this month. mali suffers regularjihadist attacks in spite of operations to force militants out of northern cities they seized in 2013. france has deployed about 4,000 soldiers in the region. at least five people have been killed and nearly 50 others injured after several tornados hit texas yesterday evening. as the search for missing people continues emergency services say they fear the death toll may rise. the winds flipped over cars, destroyed houses and left roads strewn with debris and fallen power lines. the american midwest has been struck by an intensive weather system that has caused damage across several states. we'll have a full paper review at 11:30pm, but let's have a quick look at some of the front pages.

the ft leads on warnings from leader bankers that interest—free credit cards are ticking time bombs. the i reports thatjeremy corbyn will invest three billion pounds in education, reversing conservative cuts to the budget. plans to make social media firms like facebook and google pay for the cost of policing digital crimes is the lead story for the telegraph. the daily express focuses on the foreign aid budget. it says £15 million is funding anti—smoking campaigns in some of the world's most corrupt countries. the guardian leads on theresa may's comments on tax. it says the prime minister has signalled a rise in national insurance and income tax after pledging not to raise vat. the times has a similar lead to the telegraph, it reports social media giants like google and facebook have failed to handle dangerous online content. the daily mail says the prime minister is considering tax breaks

forfamilies looking after elderly relatives. and the sun has a huge picture of a beaming anthonyjoshua and says the boxing world champion hasn't forgotten his bill at his local launderette. the headlines on bbc news: theresa may says no to vat rises if she wins the election, but signals scrapping a pledge, not to increase income tax or national insurance. on the tenth anniversary of madeleine mccann‘s disappearance, her parents say they still have hope she'll be found. donald trump says he hasn't ruled out military action against north korea, after the country's second ballistic missile test in two weeks. sport now, and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's hugh. hello. good evening. chelsea have a four—point lead at the top of the premier league table after a 3—0 victory over everton at goodison park. antonio conte says his side must now turn a good season into a fantastic one by sealing the title.

goals from pedro, gary cahill and willian in the second half secured a slightly flattering scoreline in what was one of their "hardest looking" fixtures in the run in. we must be pleased, because we played a game with head. and at this pa rt played a game with head. and at this part of the season, it is important to use their head, then the heart, then the legs. i think we did this today. tottenham kept up the pressure behind chelsea in second place, after winning the last ever north london derby at white hart lane. dele alli and harry kane scored the goals in the second half. the victory guarantees spurs will finish the season above arsenal for the first time in more than two decades. in the second half, we put more pressure, we created more, i think... the team had more freedom to create chances, and we played

well. i think we fully deserved the victory, and i am very happy for the fa ns victory, and i am very happy for the fans and for the players and the rest of the title, up four points, we will see what happens. we will just try to be ready for the next derby. so this is how the top of the premier league table looks after today's action with four games left to play. chelsea are four points ahead of spurs. manchester city and united stay fourth and fifth after both were held by relegation strugglers. city drew 2—2 at middlesbrough while united against swansea finished 1—1. bolton wanderers have been promoted back to the championship. their 3—0 win over peterborough meant they pipped fleetwood to the second automatic promotion place on the final day of the league one season. phil parkinson's side have been a model of consistency this season, they haven't been out of the top four since october, their opening goal came throuthem karacan scoring his

first of the season. david wheater made it 2—0 before adam le fondre rounded things off. a year after relegation and despite financial issues off the field, it was a day to celebrate for bolton's fans and players. bad news, though, for port vale — they have been relegated to league two. anthony joshua is revelling in the limelight, 2a hours after his stunning 11th round stoppage of wladimir klitschko at wembley stadium. the former olympic champion holds the wba and ibf world heavyweight titles but says his success won't change him. but how does he feel about being seen as the next global sports superstar? global sports star? do you know what it is? i am going back to the same house, with the same family. nothing changes. do you know what i mean? perception and reached changes, but where i am and where i am based, the ground is not change. it is nice, it

is amazing, but i am still a warrior, i am still a fighter, and the need to keep that mindset right now and keep my feet firmly on the ground. finland's valtteri bottas has picked up his first victory in formula 1, winning the russian grand prix. the mercedes driver beat both the ferrari's to the first corner and held off a late charge from championship leader sebastian vettel for his maiden win. lewis hamilton could only finish fourth. world number one, mark selby, will go into the last day of the world snooker championship final trailing john higgins by 10—7. defending champion selby won the last three frames of the day to give himself a lifeline having trailed 10—4 to an inspired higgins. the four—time champion hasn't won the title at the crucible since 2011 but will still take a healthy advantage into the final day of competition in sheffield. that's all the sport for now. thank you for that hugh.

one of the world's most accomplished mountaineers, ueli steck, has been killed in an accident on mount everest. he was a0. known as the swiss machine, he was climbing alone, in preparation for a new route up the mountain. he'd won numerous awards, and was celebrated for the speed of his climbs. alexandra mackenzie reports. mount everest — dangerous and daunting, even for the most experienced climbers. the idea isjust climbing from base camp, just on the normal route... ueli steck was preparing to tackle a new and particularly difficult route without oxygen. i think it is possible, but we don't know. and that's exactly the challenge, that's exactly the interesting thing. nobody has done that before. so i think the chance is there, that it's possible, but i don't know.

so, he knew the dangers of everest. he had reached the summit without oxygen in 2012. in 2015, he climbed all 82 alpine peaks — over 4000 metres — injust 62 days, and he conquered the north face of the eiger in less than three hours. ueli steck was on everest to acclimatise, when it's thought that he slipped and fell. his body has been recovered, and tributes have been paid. he broke amazing records by a mixture of modesty, humility and great ability, on top of athleticism of the most amazing type. the peak again, really cool. the climbing community says it has lost a pioneer who was known for his speed and ruthlessly methodical approach, with an ability to push himself to the limits of human endurance. alexandra mckenzie, bbc news. i've been speaking to mountaineer alan hinkes and i asked him what ueli steck meant to the climbing community. i think i should first say,

you know, my heart goes out to the people of switzerland, where he is a national treasure and i think that is a great tribute. i mean he was one of the world's greatest mountaineers ever. unique in how he pushed the boundaries. climbing unroped, solo. very fast on technical ground. made his name by soloing the north face of the eiger, which most people have heard of. to put him in perspective to non—climbers listening, he was like the wayne rooney or the david beckham of the mountaineering world. he'll be a great loss. i mean he was a lovely bloke. he was just a package of talent. a coiled spring, unbelievably well honed athlete as well. incredibly fit, of course, to be able to cope with the speed at which he climbed. but he knew the risk, as you all do. he did. there's even him on camera saying that he knew the risks and that he ought to give this up before he gets killed. we do all know the risks and,

you know, i was nearly killed last winter in the lake district on an ice climb. so you don't have to be on everest for it to happen. the irony is that he wasn't on particularly technically difficult ground where he was killed, which is sadly what often happens to us mountaineers. yeah, i mean, psychologists would say we all have a little bit of cognitive dissonance, i guess, he knew the dangers but he was prepared to accept the risks and he was an outlier, he was pushing the boundaries difficulty. those of us don't climb, who don't really understand the draw of it, the risk must be some of the appeal. what you're pitting yourself against. i guess it is. sometimes it's been likened to a drug. it's our drug. we need to pit ourselves against those difficulties.

we do mitigate those risks. he was well trained and he trained himself up. he was like an olympic athlete or somebody on the tour de france. the tour de yorkshire, i should say. he knew what he was doing and those risks were mitigated. he did not have a death wish. no mountaineer has a death wish. we have a life wish — we climb to live. he was a fellow mountain guide and he loved to be in the mountains. that was where he was at home. when a member of your community dies, what impact does it have on the rest of you? this will have a big impact, even in britain. even armchair mountaineers know ueli steck. he was the man of the moment. it makes you think and realise your own mortality and it can happen to you. it doesn't put you off. just as you come across a car crash and you still drive your car. so we are very practical but this was a great loss. itjust shows that it can happened to the best of us. he doesn't, you know — the mountains don't take any prisoners, particularly big ones

like everest and k2. those that still climb, what will they take from his techniques? more people will emulate it. the way forward is to climb fast and light. there are probably 500 people attempting everest right now. most of the people that are attempting everest at the moment are going with guides, they are clients. that's not what cutting—edge climbing is about. whereas he was doing the cutting—edge of climbing on everest. he would have gone on to do things on k2, the second highest but much more difficult than everest. he's set the bar high and people will follow on. he will go down in history. mps say best—before dates on food should be scrapped, because they're unnecessary

and contribute to mounting levels of food waste. they it's a scandal that £10 billion worth of food is thrown away every year, and the government and supermarkets need to act. ass “er-fit in aft-tm there was also a mass to welcome the new occupant. it's part of a 350—year—old tradition in the town of saalfelden, as bethany bell reports. saalfelden has a new hermit. stan vanuytrecht, a divorced catholic deacon from belgium, has moved into the hermitage, cut into the cliffs. there has been a hermit here for more than 350 years. but this is the first time a non— austrian has taken up first time a non— austrian has taken upa—— first time a non— austrian has taken up a —— residence. the key was {llse’ at l 452 at a s 452 at a mass 7 452 at a mass in 7 tllfe‘ at a mass in the % handed over at a mass in the neighbouring couple of st - ——

neighbouring couple of st george. —— chapel. live neighbouring couple of st george. —— chapel. - live alone hearfrom chapel. they live alone hearfrom april to november each year. but it is not entirely solitary. hikers and visitors to come. translation: i wanted to enter the modestly because they need silent contemplation to pray. i was planning to enter one, but then i thought here in the hermitage, i can get both. in the mornings and evenings, silence and time to reflect a nd evenings, silence and time to reflect and contemplate, and during the day, i see many people who i can talk to. it will be a simple life. the hermitage has no electricity or running water. but it does have a spectacular view of the austrian alps. i quite fancy that, myself. now it is time for the weather. thanks. we have - a now it is time for the weather. thanks. we have a 25”;

contrasts in the united kindoms. of contrasts in the united kingdoms. mid—afternoon in cornwall, it was grey and wet as well. but a different look to things further north. —— in the uk. some lovely