this is this is bbc news, i'm annita mcveigh. the headlines at 2pm. absolutely explosive news out of washington tonight... political shockwaves as president trump tells his fbi director: you're fired. he says it's over hillary clinton's emails, but critics see a cover up over russia. mr president, with all due respect you are making a big mistake. but president trump claims james comey had lost the confidence of almost everyone in washington, republican and democrat alike. the 11 year old girl who died on a school trip to a theme park in staffordshire — her family say their world has been torn apart. no conservatives will face charges for breaches of expenses rules over the 2015 general election — says the crown prosecution service. labour and the lib—dems pledge billions of pounds of investment in schools over the next four years. the tories accuse their rivals of ‘made up promises‘. i'm ben brown. in the next hour, a

special investigation into human trafficking into britain. we know there are three girls currently missing who are back in the uk in glasgow? yes. and 50 years after pink floyd's debut album — the new exhibition at london's victoria and albert museum. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. president trump has defended his decision to sack the head of the fbi without warning saying he'd lost the confidence of almost everyone in washington. james comey learned of his fate last night when he was handed a note as he briefed fbi agents in los

angeles. mr comey had been leading an investigation into alleged links between mr trump's election campaign last year and russia. but the white house insists he was dismissed for mishandling an inquiry into hillary clinton's emails last year. from washington, here's aleem maqbool. absolutely explosive news out of washington tonight... this is a fox news alert. fbi directorjames comey has been fired by the president of the united states. americans have learned to expect almost anything from their president, but this really was high drama. fbi directorjames comey wasn't even in washington. he was addressing fbi staff in los angeles when he learned he had been sacked. a short while later, a letter arrived at fbi headquarters. "you are hereby terminated and removed from office, effective immediately. while i greatly appreciate you informing me on three separate occasions that i'm not

under investigation, i nevertheless concur with the judgment of the department ofjustice that you're not able to effectively lead the bureau." and it was signed, donald trump. except the trump campaign was being investigated by the fbi for its links to russia. james comey was leading the investigation, and now he's gone. are people going to suspect cover—up? absolutely. if an independent special prosecutor is appointed, there still can be some faith that we can get to the bottom of this. if not, everyone will suspect cover—up. speaking on us tv, the president's adviser dismissed that notion. this has nothing to do with russia, it has everything to do with whether the current fbi director has the president's confidence. and can faithfully and capably execute his duties. the shock waves from this decision are notjust being felt here at the fbi, but across the city and beyond. for his supporters this

is evidence that donald trump is a strong leader. but for many others this just adds to the perception that this country is now being run by a man who is intolerant of those who disagree with him and who do not entirely do his bidding. aleem maqbool, bbc news, in washington. lets cross to washington and speak to our correspondent gary o'donoghue gary, this is quite extraordinary, even by the standards we have become used to in the trump administration. was there any suggestion before this sacking president trump was deeply unhappy with director comey‘s performance? there was some suggestion he wasn't very happy about being investigated, that's certainly true. about a week ago there were social media activities in which he sort of suggested james comey had given hillary clinton what he described as "a pass" a free pass

on her e—mails. even now hillary clinton blames james comey for losing her the election by announcing the reopening of that investigation just ten days before polling day. donald trump is sort of revered in both directions over his attitude to james comey. he once said he'd had a great deal of guts for taking that decision to reopen the investigation. now he says he doesn't have the confidence of anyone in washington and he needs someone anyone in washington and he needs someone else to lead the fbi. he's been on twitter this morning, llambias the democrats in particular. talking about them now sort of playing very sad because james comey has gone even though they criticised in the past, talked about getting a new face in here in the building behind me too when the fbi. it's an extraordinary situation, you have to pinch yourself. the reason people are talking about richard nixon is fired his special prosecutor looking into

the white house burglary. fbi directors are meant to be above that, they are meant to be above being targeted by the executive, that's why they are given ten years terms, james comey was less than four years into his. do you think donald trump and his closest aides will have given any due consideration to the fact that they would be accused of trying to instigate some sort of cover—up over this investigation into russia?|j think this investigation into russia?” think it will take an extraordinary degree of political naivete not to think that would be the thing immediately thrown at them. yes of course they will have known that will be the immediate thing they will be the immediate thing they will be the immediate thing they will be accused of. i think the calculation they will have made is, look, is this something we can ride out? they think they can. mr trump said this morning on twitter, when it all dies down people will thank

me for having done this. but they will also know he has the power to do this. he might not like the fact he's done it, but he knows he can do it and he's done it. for some of those people out there in the country this will be the smack of firm leadership they voted for. a lot of people will be pleased, a lot of people in washington will be very unhappy, the democrats certainly unhappy, the democrats certainly unhappy about it. the calculation has been made and they think they can ride it out. with me is frank langfitt, international and london correspondent for the american radio news network npr. put this into context, how unusual is it for a president to fire and fbi director? it's extraordinaire recover the last time this happened was 1993, president bill clinton. to do it under these circumstances, at an incredibly politicised time in the capital, as we were just hearing

the capital, as we were just hearing the last time... the minute i heard this last night before i went to bed, i thought archibald cox 1973, richard nixon, the saturday night massacre. very similar. one big difference, as we were hearing, the democrats don't have the power they had on the hill back then, so it's going to be incumbent on the democrats to see how they handle this and push it forward. all sorts of people making all sorts of allegations about a cover—up and so on, about the trump campaign alleged links to russia. do you smell something rotten here? it doesn't make sense, the stated excuse is he's getting rid of him because of his handling of hillary clinton's e—mails. he was very happy when he reopened it, that's old news. from the old campaign. why would he be doing it now? if he was disturbed by this behaviour wouldn't he have fired mr comey first or second day of the administration. coming so late and when we know president trump is so frustrated with the

russian investigation, it is very suspicious, harder to see people wouldn't be suspicious. it is fishy in your view? for anybody in washington, anybody familiar with how it works, it's very fishy because it doesn't make sense, the arguments he makes don't hold up. what does it say about the trump presidency? what's really interesting, there seems to be impulsivity, his staff was not ready for this. this is an historic move, yet his white house press operation was not prepared. he'd been on the phone, was surprised democrats would be furious with him for this. then it was rolled out and they weren't prepared for it. we see repeatedly, regardless of 1's politics, the president has not been prepared. he's made rash moves like the immigration ban that have ended up not going well for him. it's interesting, some people will see comey is such a politicised four an fbi director. he had a crucial role in the election campaign itself. it's extraordinary and extraordinary

to see an fbi director on both sides being criticised by both sides. the democrats are probably genuinely concerned about this because they've moved on from the clinton e—mail investigation, that really is something from last year. now he's pursuing the russian investigation. just yesterday president trump called the investigation a hoax and said, when will it end? next day he fires his fbi director. do you think there will be long—term repercussions from this dismissal? we've learned not to predict with this administration exactly how things will play out. what's interesting is, will the democrats call for special prosecutor and will the republicans join them and call for special prosecutor and will the republicansjoin them and bring in somebody more independent? there could be a senate select committee looking into this. the next question is, how does congress respond? thank you for being with us, frank langfitt from npr. happy to do it. an 11—year—old girl who died after falling from a water ride at a theme park in staffordshire

yesterday has been named as evha jannath from leicester. she was on a school trip to drayton manor park when she fell from a boat on one of the rides. our correspondent phil mackie reports. this time yesterday you'd have heard a lot of noise. the park was filled, the roller—coasters would have been thundering around, and there would have been screams from the school children enjoying their rides. 2a hours on, things are much quieter. the park is deserted. an investigation has begun into how an 11—year—old died 2a hours ago. evha jannath had come to the park on a school trip. the emergency services arrived quickly. staff and paramedics tried to save her, but she was pronounced dead after being airlifted to hospital. today, investigators are examining the splash canyon ride and are trying to work out how she fell into the water. there is a height restriction that means that young children between three and three and a half feet tall have to be accompanied by an adult.

although people aren't strapped in, they are told to remain seated. four years ago, another young boy, patrick tracey, fell into the water on the same ride. one hand was still holding onto the bar, and he was half stood, to wave, and at that point the boat sort of bumped against the edges of the rapids, and he just was tossed headfirst into the water. i panicked and i didn't know what to do, but luckily there was a member of the public, a lovely lady next to me, thatjust said, hold on, i've got him, and jumped over this fence we were leaning on. she jumped over a second fence and dragged patrick out of the water. drayton manor says it's checking through its record and liaising with the health and safety executive. evha's school is shut today. staff and pupils have been offered counselling. she was a lovely, sweet natured girl. she was loved by everyone at the school. as a school and as a community, we are trying to make sense of this terrible tragedy. our thoughts and our prayers are with evha's family at this most difficult time. everybody's in shock, everybody's in utter shock, there's no words.

i mean myself, i couldn't sleep last night thinking of this, you know, i've got kids that probably will be in the future going to a trip like this, i probably won't send my children. the park is shut today as a mark of respect. no decision has been made on when it will reopen. we expect an announcement on the park's reopening in the next couple of hours. we've got a statement from the family. it says, yesterday our world was torn apart by the news that our daughter and sister had lost her life in tragic circumstances. evha was a beautiful girl who was full of love and always smiling. words cannot describe the pain and loss that we feel. our correspondent simon ward is at the jameah girls academy school in leicester where evha jannath was a pupil. we heard phil mentioning briefly some of the statement from her family, what other reaction has

there been there? that's why, yes, this is the school you can see behind me in these beige buildings. it's also on the other side of this block as well. it's been relatively quiet here today, though there has been lots of media activity, no pupils going in and out of school today because it has been closed all day. a few teachers coming and going. as we heard, we've heard directly from the school head as well. that family statement has been released, they released a written statement and said words cannot describe the pain and loss we feel, we are devastated we will not see our beautiful little girl again. that was the family statement released today. this is an islamic school and very close by we have the local mosque. we know special prayers were said for the 11—year—old girl last night, and her family. we've been getting further reaction from the muslim community, they are very much involved in this.

they will say special pride in her home city of leicester, there has been further reaction from the islamic world across the world and across the uk, they've been sending m essa 9 es across the uk, they've been sending m essa g es to across the uk, they've been sending messages to the local mosque in leicester saying their prayers are also with the little girl and her family. simon ward in leicester. thank you. you watching bbc news. the latest headlines: political shock waves as president trump tells his fbi director you're fired. he says it's over hillary clinton's e—mails but critics see a cover—up over russia. as we've been hearing, the 11—year—old girl who died on a school trip to a theme park in staffordshire, herfamily school trip to a theme park in staffordshire, her family say their world has been torn apart. no conservatives will face charges for breaches of expenses rules over the 2015 general election according to

the crown prosecution service. england head coach eddiejones says the rugby world cup group will be full of intensity. they've been drawn alongside france and argentina for the tournament in 2019. ireland and scotland face hosts japan, while wales are in the same group as australia. these are investigating the transfer of paul pogba to manchester united, he was the world's most expensive player when he moved from juventus last summer. even he moved from juventus last summer. eve n wa nt he moved from juventus last summer. even want to know who made what from the £83 million deal. the decision to oust the investigators of fifa's ethics committee, a setback in the fight against corruption, that is the view of somebody who won't be reappointed to his role. they helped to re m ove reappointed to his role. they helped to remove former president sepp blatter. more on those stories just after half past. labour plans to raise funds for

schools through raising corporation tax. that was mr corbyn this morning. this afternoon theresa may is out campaigning in nottinghamshire. political correspondent alex forsyth is there for us. what is the prime minister's message today? this is where the prime minister not so long ago was giving a speech to conservative party activists and candidates, the message was very similar to that we've heard from the prime minister until now, the focus on leadership and the fact the right person to sit around the negotiating table in those upcoming brexit talks. she was also asked about school funding because as you were saying labour and the lib dems have pledged to put billions of pounds more into school funding. theresa may declined to give any commitment to increase school funding per pupil, but she

did say school funding was at a record level and made the point it's not just about the amount of record level and made the point it's notjust about the amount of money that goes into schools and the quality of the education children get, saying the conservative party have plans to ensure every child has a good school plays. theresa may also asked about the decision by the crown prosecution service to not bring criminal charges in the case of the election expenses dating back to 2015. mrs may said the conservative party always filed the election expenses correctly. there was an error in 2015 and they paid the fine. this had taken up some police time and now this was resolved. beyond that it's worth making the point that theresa may is coming toa making the point that theresa may is coming to a labour marginal seat. one she believes she can take. she was asked today, did you think you can win back labour voters who have been committed to labour for many yea rs ? been committed to labour for many years? theresa may said, this isn't about how people have voted before, it's about what is right for the country. a clear signal she thinks

she can. interesting looking at the banners behind you, the weight it says theresa may's team, with conservatives almost as the small print. is that the way she is selling herself in this election, it's about her rather than the party? they think the conservative party to some extent has recognised that brands theresa may is quite a powerful one, and people on the doorsteps and streets, if you believe what conservative activists are saying, are responding well to theresa may as a prime minister and a person, that's why you see this at these events, this isn't, vote conservative, this is team that may. she's very much front and centre of this campaign message, because the conservative party want to frame this election as a choice between theresa may and jeremy corbyn as leaders. they think if it comes down to that simple fact they have the upper hand because theresa may comes across as more credible. that is why

we are across as more credible. that is why we a re consistently across as more credible. that is why we are consistently seeing this branding, that is why theresa may is front and centre of this campaign and labour conversely are trying to push this about domestic policy issues, schools and nhs funding, as we see with their promise today. the crown prosecution service has said no conservative politicians or officials will be charged with breaking rules on election campaign spending in 2015. the investigation considered evidence from 1a police forces with me is our home affairs correspondent tom symonds. what exactly has the cps said? this results from a police investigation of 1a different forces as far as we're concerned, today. what they we re we're concerned, today. what they were looking at is whether the national conservative party in 2015 had wrongly put on the ledger for local election spending assessments

the money it spent sending activists to various constituencies, putting them up overnight, in battle buses, so they could fight for the campaign. the cps had to decide whether there was a criminal prosecution here because it is illegal. the key bit of law says it is an offence to knowingly make a false declaration about election expenses. it hung on this point of whether those involved knew they we re whether those involved knew they were making a false claim. the claims were wrong in many cases. effectively the cps has decided there isn't evidence they did know. we've heard already today the conservatives had advised centrally this was national spending and therefore local officials could justifiably say this was the advice they were working on. no prosecutions. as you've heard, the conservatives have said, we move on. one outstanding issue for them, one of the files the cps is considering is about kent, the investigation there into south thanet, a key

marginal for the conservatives, andrew mckinlay standing there in understanding now. that case doesn't be decided and won't be before tomorrow, —— hasn't been. it's a bit ofa tomorrow, —— hasn't been. it's a bit of a headache for the conservatives, they have to continue with a candidate potentially, potentially, and there is no certainty or lack of certainty, we are in the middle, face prosecution. one to watch for tomorrow, thank you, tom symons. in any general election, the west midlands is among the most hotly—contested battlefields, with its clusters of marginal seats which have a habit of swinging back and forth between labour and the conservatives. and this one is no exception. a succession of senior politicians have already beaten a path to the region's doorsteps. but that doesn't mean this is just a re—run of any number of elections that have gone before. our west midlands political editor patrick burns joins us from erdington in north birmingham.

what's the significance of the constituency? this is one of those places that hundreds of thousands of people drive by every day without realising. that behind me is the m6. ican realising. that behind me is the m6. i can tell you lots of politicians are going to be stopping off in erdington over the next few weeks because labour have a 5000 majority to defend. there's never been a conservative mp years since before the second world war. this time they need a swing ofjust over 7%. the announcement by ukip that this is one of three north birmingham constituencies where they will not stand this time suggests many of the 6000 or so people who voted for them last time might switch the conservatives in a constituency which i can tell you has quite a history. where once they built

spitfire fighters in erdington they now make jaguar spitfire fighters in erdington they now makejaguar cars, spitfire fighters in erdington they now make jaguar cars, one reason the midlands is the only uk region running a trade surplus with china. if having a prize business asset like that on its doorstep really does much for erdington itself, there is precious little evidence of it here and around the high street, is one of the most deprived constituencies in britain. 63% of the electorate here voted leave in the electorate here voted leave in the referendum. for many voters here there is no doubt about the number one issue now. brexit's passive, it's what happens now. now we know it's what happens now. now we know it's actually going to go ahead and we've got a date... i think we should have more say. they didn't give us that, did they? you think it isa give us that, did they? you think it is a bigger issue than all the others. yeah. the election of a conservative midlands metro mayor sent out the biggest signal that some old political assumptions may need a rethink. walsall has two

major labour constituencies and voted for a tory mayor. margaret thatcher told her supporters 30 yea rs thatcher told her supporters 30 years ago they still had to win back the big cities. all but one of birmingham's ten constituencies are currently held by labour. this time, though, erdington is one of at least four seats in the city where the conservatives reckon they are in with a chance. it's also where theresa may's chief of staff nick timothy grew up. it's cold for those ordinary working people who are just about managing. in a macro more jobs, more accommodation, and more apprenticeshipsjobs, for training young people. there are too many young people. there are too many young people. there are too many young people being wasted. health, education, employment. that's another big problem. it's really strange. it's not mainly about brexit as far as you're concerned.

no, i'm not worried about brexit. you can see birmingham's changing skyline from out here, one of britain's's business hotspots. which party has the best plan to drive all that economic energy towards the places barely three miles away that need it most. forget middle england, it's in the city you will find the front line now. what you have to remember in all this is this part of the country has traditionally been much more of a two party affair than most other parts of the country. the fat lie between labour and the conservatives has tended to be in those counties shier towns in gritty industrial towns. now we're seeing the conflict right in the cities, not just birmingham, but the conflict right in the cities, notjust birmingham, but coventry, wolverhampton and stroke. what happens to former ukip voters if that vote is collapsing? it could play a very big part in all this. the liberal democrats have been hoping, as we know, for brexit, should i say anti—brexit balance.

cheltenham is their key target. they held it until the last general election. look at the shire county elections, the lib dems had 1a seats in gloucestershire going into them, coming out they have 1a seats, so that bounce looks flat at this stage. we are still a region of marginal seats, it's just where those margins are that seems to be changing. thank you very much. girls are being repeatedly trafficked to scotland by east european organised crime gangs. one slovakian girl was discovered to have been trafficked to glasgow three times. others have been sold to asian crime gangs and forced into sham marriages. the pursuit of profit has opened up diverse forms of trafficking. what you're watching ea rs of trafficking. what you're watching ears and illegal organ deal. how

much do you want? 45. thousand euros or sterling? this remaining is selling the kidney of the woman beside him, he says she's his wife. the doctor is ok, very good romanian doctor. is he? he does these transplants all the time? people are now the second most lucrative criminal commodity next to drugs, sold for labour or sexual exploitation and for their organs. we discovered criminal gangs are now targeting specific areas of scotland for the selling of women trafficked from abroad. there is a clear link between eastern european crime gangs who human trafficking is one of the things they do. and links with organised asian crime gangs and glasgow. so eastern european crime gangs provide the victims and asian crime gangs here will provide accommodation. i went to slovakia to try and track down some of the

victims, including one girl who was trafficked twice previously to glasgow. but when we get to the house we are in for a shock. maybe she is back to glasgow. you think your daughter may have been trafficked back to glasgow. other victims also appear to have been trafficked again. we know there are three girls currently missing, who are back in the uk in glasgow. yeah. inside this house, this girl was sold for sham marriage by a family member. the marriage allows the groom, commonly pakistani or indian, to apply for uk residency, as he is now married to an eu citizen. to apply for uk residency, as he is now married to an eu citizenm to apply for uk residency, as he is now married to an eu citizen. if i ask the questions i really want to ask, the men are going to get very angry? doing his business. this is a transit house where victims are kept before being transported to glasgow for sham marriages. how many girls would have come... ? five, ten, 100?

more than 100! really? really. i searched scotland's marriage records and found numerous suspicious averages between young eastern european brides and old asian men, the same address is being used on multiple occasions, yet little trace of any of the couples living there. europol, the eu law enforcement agency, confirmed scotland was being targeted by the trafficking trade. some of the polling, bbc news. we're going to cross over to washington in the next few moments because we expect some comments in the senate. on president trump's firing of the fbi directorjames comey, which has taken washington by considerable surprise to say the least. we're expecting to hear from the senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, who is going to we think, maybe make some comments about the

dismissal of the fbi director. he did say a few words last night, saying it was a critical role, the role of director—general. so just seeing if the senate majority leader has got anything more to say on that dramatic thus that donald trump has fired his director of the fbi. right now, let's catch up with the latest weather forecast and stav has that for us. thank you very much. it's a glorious day out there. you can see how much sunshine there is across england and wales in particular including the eastern side of england which has been grey and chilly of late. across northern and western scotland, more cloud around. thick enough to be producing the odd patch of light rain too, but elsewhere, it will be a dry end to the day. turning chilly overnight under clear skies across the south. something of a change with a weather front moving in and introducing cloud and spits and spots of rab and milder. for thursday, we'll start

off on milder. for thursday, we'll start offona milder. for thursday, we'll start off on a chilly note. and quite cloudy and chilly across the north—east corner of the uk, but across the south we will see this weather front trundling northwards. generally moderate patchy rain, but it will be introducing humid air across southern areas in particular where the sunshine comes out, it pushes temperatures up to 22 or 23 celsius. quite a few areas where you get thunderstorms could see quite a bit of rain, but it is very much needed rain. this is bbc news. the headlines at 2.32pm: the fall—out from donald trumps decision to fire his fbi directorjames comey continues to cause waves in washington with critics claiming the move is part of cover up. president trump has hit back at the claims saying that mr comey had lost the confidence of almost everyone in washington, republican and democrat alike.

the family of 11—year—old evha jannath girl who died yesterday at drayton manor theme park have released a statement. they say they are devastated by her loss and their world has been torn apart they describe her as "a beautiful little girl who was full of love and always smiling". no conservative officials or politicians will face charges for breaching the rules over campaign expenses in the 2015 election says the crown prosecution service. the tories have hit back, accusing the allegations against them as "politically motivated." mr president today is my privilege to welcome a distinguished group of

kentuckians, veterans from across my home state will travel to washingtonment here they will see the memorials built to honour their service. the honour flight the memorials built to honour their service. the honourflight has brought hundreds of veterans, most of them kentucians for this purpose. honour flight works to make sure that vetera ns honour flight works to make sure that veterans have the opportunity to travel at no cost to themselves. the programme organises travel and food for the veterans, many of whom would never be able to visit our nation's capital or see the memorials at all without hander flight. the national monuments built on the mall pay tribute. i would like to add my voice to those who welcome the veterans and thank them for their service to our country. i'm glad to see many of our

democratic friends with me. yesterday they sent me a letter indicating they want to participate from obamacare. in that letter they acnobblinged the need to improve and reform the health care system. after eight years of defending this failing law and its higher costs, reduced choices and dropped coverage, i'm glad to hear... so nothing yet. no mention yet from mitch mcconnell of the sacking of fbi, ex-fbi mitch mcconnell of the sacking of fbi, ex—fbi directorjames comey, but we will be back with him if he says anything of note. now the sports news with jess. england have once again been given a tough draw, for the 2019 rugby world cup injapan. they're in the same group as france and argentina. head coach eddiejones has transformed the team since their shocking early exit at the last world cup, and he's relishing the challenge this time around. eddiejones says it's not a tough

group. it's a good group. he's embracing the challenge he feels the games against france and argentina in the pool stages will be the ideal preparation for the greater challenges coming the quarterfinals and potentially beyond, but you could forgive some england fans having a little bit of trepidation at the moment given the fate that befell england at world cup in 2015. right across the pool stages, there are mouth watering clashes, poole a, scotla nd are mouth watering clashes, poole a, scotland and ireland drawn together, they will fancy their chances of getting out of the group, but the big motive is to finish top of that pool and avoid the new zealand all blacks. new zealand have south africa and you'd back the all blacks to top that pool. as for wales, head coach warren gatland says he's relieved to have avoided the pool of death like they had back in 1015, thud they have australia, a team

they aren't able to beat at the moment as well as georgia and if wales and england are both to get out of their pools there could be a quarterfinal meeting between the two sides. wouldn't that be something? wow, wouldn't that be tasty indeed. what can rugby fans expect from the host country, japan? does it enjoy rugby? the viewing figures beat south africa in the world cup. they we re south africa in the world cup. they were enormous and rugby enthusiasm and everything around the game is only going to pick up as we build up to the world cup in 2019 and it was very sort of heartening to hear the prime minister of japan talk very sort of heartening to hear the prime minister ofjapan talk about how much he is looking forward to the event. how much of a rugby fan he is and with this being the first rugby world cup in asia, what a wonderful opportunity for the sport to grow in a new part of the world. fifa are investigating the transfer of paul pogba to manchester united. he was the world's most expensive player when he moved

from juventus last summer. fifa want to know who was involved in the £89.3 million deal and how much money they earned out of it. united say fifa have all the necessary documents from last august. and fifa vice—president victor montagliani has called two outgoing ethics committee officials "quite unprofessional". he's criticised investigator cornel borbely and judge hans—joachim eckert for speaking out after they were relieved of their duties. the pair claim there are "several hundred cases" of corruption still pending and borbely says the decision to replace them, is the end of fifa's efforts to reform. it's a setback for the fight against corruption. the ethics committee is

weakened and incapacitated.” corruption. the ethics committee is weakened and incapacitated. i think it is the prerogative and the right of this organisation to do those things. i think the people are proposed to replace him, from what i have seen, are of the highest standards. you've got a judge from the european court. so it's not like we're replacing them with somebody who is not of the highest standard and you know, i think, who is not of the highest standard and you know, ithink, to who is not of the highest standard and you know, i think, to be honest with you, it has been way over blown from a hype prospective. that's all the sport for now. hugh will have more in the next hour. back to the senate and mitch mcconnell. he replied, of course, yes. it's also clear what our democratic colleagues think of the man who evaluated mr comey‘s professional conduct and concluded that the bureau needed a change in leadership. the democratic leader a

few weeks ago praised mr rosen staoun for his independence and said he developed a reputation for integrity. they repeatedly and sharply criticised. that removal being done bya man criticised. that removal being done by a man whom they repeatedly praised. he recommended mr comey‘s removalfor praised. he recommended mr comey‘s removal for the reasons that they complained about. two investigations are ongoing. the senate intelligence committee's view of russian active

measures and intelligence activities and the fbi investigation disclosed director comey. today, we will no doubt hear calls for a new investigation which could only serve to impede the current work being done to not only discover what the russians may have done, also to let this body and the national security community develop counter measures and war fighting doctrine to see that it doesn't occur again. partisan calls should not delay the work of the chairman and the vice—chairman. too much is at stake. deputy attorney—general rosintine was confirmed on a vote 94 to 6 and that consideration should continue.

we will look forward to full, fair and timely confirmation process. this is a critical role that is particularly important as our country continues to face serious threats at home and abroad. that was mitch mcconnell. he said this is a ritical role at a very important time and that the congress will be looking for a full, fair and timely confirmation process for james comey‘s successor, but that dismissal of the fbi director still causing shock waves in washington. mr president there is little reason

to think that mr rosenstein's letter is the true reason that president trump fired director comey. why? because of the administration truly had objections to the way director comey handled the clinton investigation, they would have had then the minute the president got into office, but he didn't fire director comey then. the question is, why did it happen last night? we know director comey was leading an investigation in whether the trump campaign colluded with the russians, a serious offence. where those investigations getting too close to home for the president? the dismissal of director comey establishes a very troubling pattern. this administration has now removed several law enforcement officials in a position to duct independent investigations of the

president and his administration. from acting attorney—general sally yates, and now from acting attorney—general sally yates, and noinm comey. what should happen now, what must happen now, is that mr rosenstein appoints a special prosecutor to oversee this investigation. deputy attorney—general rosenstein sat in the judiciary attorney—general rosenstein sat in thejudiciary committee attorney—general rosenstein sat in the judiciary committee and promised to appoint a special prosecutor at the appropriate time. he said, "i'm willing to point a special council whenever i determine that it's appropriate. so my colleague asked him whether or not you agree that it is vital to the assurance of confidence in our democracy and law enforcement system that any investigation into these matters be fair, free, thoroughly and politically independent? mr rosenstein answered, "yes. i do." if

there was ever a time when circumstances warranted a special prosecutor, it is right now. mr rosenstein already expressed concern that director comey damaged the integrity of the fbi. the attorney—general has already had to rea ccuse attorney—general has already had to reaccuse himself from the investigation for being too close to the president. if mr rosenstein is true to his word, that he believes this investigation must be, "fair, free, thorough and politically independent." if he believes as i do that the american people must be able to have faith in the impartiality of this investigation, he must point a special prosecutor and get his investigation out of the hands of the fbi and far away from the heavy hand of this administration. mr rosenstein has the authority to appoint a special prosecutor right now. he needs no

congressional authorisation. this would simply be a step that he could ta ke would simply be a step that he could take as outlined in the department ofjustice guidelines and in a law passed after watergate to get an independently minded prosecutor who would be insulated from various pressures , would be insulated from various pressures, a special prosecutor is not subject to day—to—day supervision bit attorney—general or anyone else at the justice department. that means the special prosecutor would have much greater latitude in who he can subpoena, which questions ask, how to conduct an investigation. the special prosecutor can only be removed for good cause such as misconduct, not to quash the investigation. third, there is built in congressional oversight. congress is notified whenever a special council is appointed removed or finished whenever a special council is appointed removed orfinished with the investigation. the appointment ofa the investigation. the appointment of a special prosecutor would be a welcome step in the right direction,

but it is not the only action that should be taken. there are a great many outstanding questions about the circumstances of director comey‘s dismissal, the status of the executive branch investigation into the trump campaign ties to russia and what the future holds for these investigations. so i will be requesting that the majority leader call a closed and if necessary classified session, all senators briefing sorry, i will be requesting that the majority leader call a closed and if necessary, classified, all senators briefing, with the attorney—general and the deputy attorney—general and the deputy attorney—general separately at which they can be asked questions. some of they can be asked questions. some of the questions — why was attorney—general sessions who had arecused himself from the russia investigations able to influence the

firing of the man conducting the russia investigation? did deputy attorney—general rosenstein act on his own or at the direction of his superiors or the white house? reports that the president has been searching for a rational to fire the fbi directorfor weeks searching for a rational to fire the fbi director for weeks true? searching for a rational to fire the fbi directorfor weeks true? was director comey‘s making significant progress in a direction that would cause political damage for the white house? why didn't the president wait for the inspector general‘s investigation into director comey‘s handling of the clinton e—mail investigation to conclude before making his decision to fire him? was this really about something else? no doubt we'll have an opportunity to question mr comey, now a private citizen, about what happened. but we

need to hear from this administration about what happened and why and what is going to happen next and that is why again, i am requesting that the majority leader call a closed and if necessary classified all sessions briefing with the attorney—general and the deputy attorney—general separately at which they can be asked these questions. i hope the majority leader agrees with me that we need to get to the bottom of this and get a handle on all the facts so that we can grapple with them. i remind him and my republican friends that nothing less is at stake than the american people's faith in our criminaljustice system american people's faith in our criminal justice system and american people's faith in our criminaljustice system and the integrity of the executive branch of our government. well, that's strong stuff from

senate minority leader saying or asking why in the trump administration had objections about ex—fbi directorjames comey‘s handling of the investigation into hillary clinton's e—mails then why didn't they make those objections clear as soon as president trump had won the election and had been appointed as president? he asks of the timing of mr comey‘s sacking where those investigations and here he's talking about the investigations into alleged links between russia and the trump campaign, where those investigations getting too close to home? he has called for a special prosecutor to be appointed to oversee that investigation far from, be appointed to oversee that investigation farfrom, in his records, the heavy hand of this administration. well, a huge amount

of questions prompted by president trump's decision to sackjames comey and with me now to take us through some of the questions is chris morris from bbc reality check. chris, good afternoon, to you. it is an extraordinary turn of events and how unusual is it for a president to sack the head of the fbi? yeah, when we heard in the senate this is going to run and run, but underfederal law, the president has the right to do this. he has the right to point and dismiss the director of the fbi and dismiss the director of the fbi and other officials. injanuary he dismissed the acting attorney—general sally yeates. it has only happened once before. i covered the bill clinton's white housein covered the bill clinton's white house in the united states, it happened then. he dismissed the then director of the fbi william sessions in1993, director of the fbi william sessions in 1993, the difference being that was after a pretty damning report had come out issued by thejustice department saying that there were allegations of ethical wrongdoing by

then director sessions. there was no suggestion at that time that there we re suggestion at that time that there were any allegations being made against people close to the president and that was somehow a political move. that's why this is different and this is why for many observers the better comparison is not with that, but with the sacking of the special prosecutor during the watergate investigation. so now that president trump has sacked james comey, it's up to president trump presumably to appoint a new fbi director? it is, yes. the first thing that happens is he has to propose a name. the white house says that search has already begun and suggestions from washington are that will happen before the end of this week. they want to get on with it. once that happens, of course, the nominee, he or she, once that happens, of course, the nominee, he orshe, will once that happens, of course, the nominee, he or she, will be under intense pressure as we've just heard in the senate. there will have to be congressional hearings and the nominee would have to be confirmed bya simple nominee would have to be confirmed by a simple majority vote in congress. we've heard there, of course, concerns among the democrats, but there is a republican majority and if the republicans

stick together on that, presumably that nominee would be confirmed. so what does it mean then in terms of the investigation into the alleged links between russia and president trump's campaign? does it simply delay that investigation? and would the new fbi director, whoever that is, feel constrained in anyway about carrying out that sort of investigation? well, i think they would be in a difficult position because they would be under immense political pressure as we heard from the very start. there is no reason why the investigation within the fbi cannot continue, but as we have just heard, we've heard it before, but probably this in the strongest terms we've heard before, the democrats don't believe that's sufficient nil. they want the appointment of a special prosecutor. the irony is a special prosecutor. the irony is a special prosecutor. the irony is a special prosecutor is normally appointed by the attorney—general. the attorney—general has had to rea ccuse the attorney—general has had to reaccuse himself from the russia investigation which is why chuck shumar was saying the onus is on the deputy attorney—general. are there

any alternatives? i mean one or two. democrats in congress would like an independent commission to be appointed to look into this, but that would have to be approved in congress where there is a republican majority. it is complicated and those were incredibly strong words from chuck shumar. he talked about the heavy hand of this administration. so a huge amount of suspicion falling at the feet of president trump? we heard mitch mcconnell saying, "come on, guys you didn't like mr comey much in the first place." the chairman of the seb at committee said he was troubled by the timing and the reasoning of mr comey‘s sacking. this is a story that's not going to

go away. the democrats are looking forward. we only just go away. the democrats are looking forward. we onlyjust had a presidential election, but next year, 2018, medium—term elections, they want to win back control of congress and if they don't get what they want in terms of independent investigation, this is a subject they're going to push and push and push again. chris, thank you very much. some breaking news from our correspondent fiona trott at newcastle crown court. 36—year—old patrick denman from northumberland has been given a six month prison sentence after taking a tipper truck from work and driving towards two police cars after a row with his boss in march.

the court heard he was on his way to his ex—partner‘s home to intimidate her. he has been given five year restraining order, he has been given six months for taking a tipper truck to work and driving towards two police cars after a row with his boss at work. this happened in march. before the weather, we've got a shot from outside the bbc building here which we're going to show you. there you go. pigs do fly! is he flying? laughter just levitating perhaps rather than flying. but you can see there is sunshine and shadow as well, but beyond the confines of that image some bright blue sky out there. it's extraordinary the things you see outside this building. do we know why there is a pig outside the bbc? i have no idea why there is a

pig there. shall we send some of our top reporters out to find out? we will investigate. let's get to the weather forecast. stav, will investigate. let's get to the weatherforecast. stav, over will investigate. let's get to the weather forecast. stav, over to will investigate. let's get to the weatherforecast. stav, over to you. up up and down the east coast which has been so grey and chilly the last week or so, is bathed in sunshine like this lovely photograph. a different story for western scotland. it's pretty cloudy like this picture shows in western scotland. you can see the cloud there streaming in from the west. a little patchy cloud for northern england and into northern ireland, but the best of the sunshine for england and wales. there are signs of some rain for the next few days. gardens are parched at the moment. as we head into this evening and overnight, most places will stay dry. there could be mist and fog and maybe some frost in places. it stays damp across the far north of scotla nd damp across the far north of scotland and then signs of a change moving into the south of the country

with outbreaks of rain and increasing humidity and increasing cloud the this weather front will be moving northwards on thursday introduce cloud and spits and spots of rain.jnly introduce cloud and spits and spots of rain. jnly moderate rain. the odd heavier burst likely, but it will continue to introduce humid air and given sunshine and temperatures rising, we could see some thunderstorms braebleging out. across the north of the country it looks dry. cool on the east coast. a br chance of seeing sunshine across the north and the west of scotland than what we saw today and there will be sunny spells for southern scotla nd will be sunny spells for southern scotland in towards northern ireland. more cloud around and we will see some thundery showers breaking out. jnly along the m4 corridor. we could see temperatures rising to 23 celsius. those thunderstorms continue to move northwards, continuing to ease down into thursday evening and through the night there will be a band of

rain spreading northwards and friday looks cloudy and how old i had, outbreaks of rain. some of it thundery through wales and the midlands and northern england and towards east anglia. we could see issues with flash flooding, but it's hit and miss where you see the heaviest of the downpours. another muqqy' heaviest of the downpours. another muggy, misty feeling day with sunshine around. probably the best across southern england. into the weekend, pressure. we lose the humid air. south—westerly winds begin and it will introduce showers and it will feel warm where you have the sunshinement that's your latest weather. this is bbc news, i'm annita

mcveigh. the headlines at 3pm. absolutely explosive news out of washington tonight. political shockwaves as president trump tells his fbi director: you're fired. he says it's over hillary clinton's emails, but critics see a cover up over russia. the dismissal of director comey establishes a very troubling pattern. but president trump claims james comey had lost the confidence of almost everyone in washington, republican and democrat alike. the 11 year old girl who died on a school trip to a theme park in staffordshire — her family say their world has been torn apart. no conservatives will face charges for breaches of expenses rules over the 2015 general election — says the crown prosecution service.