welcome to the programme convoys co nvoys of convoys of lorries controlled by one driver will be tested on england's motorways. up to three lorries will be connected by wireless technology. is it safe? to reassure people, we will start with a whole range of trials, and carefully staged off—road testing that will allow is to assess what we have done to give us to assess what we have done to give us the confidence it will work in the uk. we'll have details on how the uk. we'll have details on how the scheme will work. women who have left the armed forces say the government isn't doing enough to help them with mental health problems. you are not capable of doing thejob you problems. you are not capable of doing the job you absolutely love. and then you get discharged. and then they tell you, it's ok, you have these injuries. when you get out you will have this compensation and have this money and this support. and you get none of it. we will have the full report shortly. get in touch if you have experience of this. and...

# i of this. and... #iwas of this. and... # i was busy thinking about boys #. 22 million singles sold worldwide, some with taylor swift and has written songs for rhianna. we will bejoined in the written songs for rhianna. we will be joined in the studio by charlie xcx. hello... welcome to the programme, we're live until 11 this morning. we'd love to hear from you this morning if you're a lorry driver. would you drive in convoy controlled by another vehicle? please also get in touch with your questions for charlie xcx. we'll be talking to her before 10 o'clock. use the hashtag victoria live and if you text, you will be charged at the standard network rate. wi—fi controlled convoys of lorries could be on major british roads by the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three

wi relessly transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together with drivers in each to steer, but the speed will be controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa says it has major concerns about the safety of the idea. andy gill reports. they call it platooning, trucks travelling in wi—fi connected convoy with much less space between them than normal. this dutch project is with two vehicles. a trial just announced here will be with three. it would be more efficient, take up less space on the network, improve fuel efficiency and hopefully help improve costs and savings to the consumer. each lorry has a driver, but the lead cab has control. to think about how three trucks can travel down a road in a platoon, imagine that the lead truck is a giant wi—fi hub, sending out signals on the precise distances and speeds the two need to travel at. and the wi—fi on the trailing two trucks can react much more quickly

to signals than a human being can. the funding announcement was made at a lancashire truck factory. researchers say because vehicles in platoon are in each other‘s slipstream, fuel consumption and pollution fall. but one road user's body is sceptical. uk motorways are the most congested in europe. we have more entrances and exits. and if you have a platoon of driverless lorries, it's very difficult to see road signs. it will be difficult to exit the motorway. there will be rigorous safety checks before any platoons are allowed on the road. they will compare real delivery journeys made by platoon trucks with ones made in the traditional way. andy gill, bbc news, lancashire. our reporter lewis vaughan jones is here. lewis, tell us more about how this could work. people will be watching and thinking

about safety. this is either an exciting prospect or slightly disconcerting, depending on where you come from. as a driver, but not a lorry driver, driving along the road, you will see banks, essentially like railway carriages passing through. as you heard, it could block road signs. that might seem inconvenient, but what if it blocks your exit? and it's also about driver reaction. could we see drivers speeding up to try to get around them, or braking suddenly and the human driver behind not having the human driver behind not having the reactions of computers and safety concerns over that. and even cutting in between the lorries. that's something in the tests they will look at to see what the appropriate distance is. these are not the first tests, there have been tests in places like texas with big open roads and long distances. the issueis open roads and long distances. the issue is that conditions in the uk are very different, lots of exits on the motorway with shorter distances. the technology company say that when

they carry out the tests they will test the specific uk road conditions and the reactions of drivers and others around them, and as we heard from andy we should hear this being on the road in test form by the end of 2018. annita mcveigh is in the bbc newsroom with a summary of the rest of the day's news. south wales police missed a number of opportunities to bring convicted paedophile ian watkins to justice sooner. paedophile ian watkins to justice sooner. an investigation by the police watchdog has found. the independent police complaints commission says that from 2008 the force failed to act on allegations made by seven people about the then lead singer of the lostprophets. the public face of ian watkins was that of a global star. privately, he was a child abuser whose behaviour, in the words of the judge who sentenced him, "plumbed the depths of the depravity." his eventual arrest in 2012,

initially for drug offences, came after years of missed opportunities. the police watchdog, the ipcc, found disturbing failures in the way south wales police responded to complaints. the main complainant was his former partner, joanne mjadzelics. the ipcc says a lack of open—mindedness meant she wasn't taken seriously. she was not a lone voice. between december 2008 and june 2012, six people raised concerns. it led to eighth reports and three intelligence logs. in that time, watkins was not arrested, questioned, or required to respond to allegations. south wales police admit they failed to listen or investigate properly and say they are "truly sorry." a disciplinary hearing has cleared a detective sergeant of gross misconduct. last week, the ipcc also accused the south yorkshire force of inaction in investigating watkins. he is now four years into a 29—yearjail sentence. today's report highlights major shortcomings that allowed him to lead a sickening double life for so long. the billionaire vice—chairman of

samsung has been found guilty of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to five years in prison. jay y lee was accused of making inappropriate donations worth around $6 million to the close confidant of the country's former president park in exchange for government favours. those accusations also helped trigger the dismissal of the president from office. the foreign secretary boris johnson president from office. the foreign secretary borisjohnson has said a us presidential visit to britain is more likely in 2018 than this year. previously he has said he sees no reason to rescind the invitation to donald trump for a state visit although no date had been fixed and all mention of the trip was left out of the queen's speech. radical action is needed to help integrate immigrants into radical action is needed to help integrate immigrants into society, according to a group of mps.

in a new report, the all—party—parliamentary group on ‘social integration‘ warns that the immigration debate has become polarised. it's renewing calls for the government to make english lessons compulsory. the home office says it already funds community cohesion projects, including some focused on language. women who've left the armed forces have told this programme the government is not doing enough to support them with mental health problems. campaigners have told us there's a ‘hidden‘ population of ex—service women who are suffering similar problems to male veterans — such as post—traumatic stress, substance misuse and unemployment — but no—one knows how many there are, or where they live. the thai supreme court has issued an arrest warrant for the former prime minister, yingluck shinawatra, after she failed to turn up for the verdict in her criminal negligence trial. sources close to her party say she made the decision to leave thailand unexpectedly shortly before the verdict was delivered. it's not clear which country she is now in. texas is bracing itself for hurricane harvey,

which could be the worst storm to hit the us mainland in 12 years. the category—three storm is expected to make landfall along the state's central coast tonight. there are concerns that torrential rain could bring life—threatening flooding to some parts. that's a summary of the latest bbc news — more at 9.30. you are already getting in touch with us about wi—fi controlled lorries. anthony asks on facebook, what would happen if the leading lorry was involved in an accident or had a blow out? or drivers in the other lorries take control quickly enough? that's exactly the point i put to the man behind this technology and we will play that interview at around 9:30am. you will getan interview at around 9:30am. you will get an answer to that question. if you have any other questions about these wi—fi controlled lorries, get in touch. if you do text you will be charged that stand at the standard

network rate. women who've left the armed forces have told this programme the government is not doing enough to support them with mental—health problems. around 10% of those exiting the army, the navy and the royal air force are women, but we've heard a far lower proportion are accessing available help than men, because it's not tailored for them. campaigners have told us there's a hidden population of ex—service women who are suffering similar problems to male veterans, such as post—traumatic stress, substance misuse and unemployment, but no—one knows how many there are or where they live. we've been to see the work of one of the few charities providing support just for female veterans. i am denise kidger, and i served 22—and—a—half years in the army. afghanistan a couple of times, germany, cyprus, falklands, northern ireland, bosnia three times. it was tough because you were

a woman but you had to act like a man and so i find it quite tough outside, mentally, trying to figure out who i am. the ptsd is a weird one, because sometimes at first you don't understand, you just think something's not right, why am i — why do i not want to go out of the house? why is it such a struggle to get out of bed? you have nightmares, you have flashbacks. and i've got this anger that i've never had in my life. i keep myself to myself now, whereas i've always been a public person. i've always had a life and soul of the party kind of thing. i thought the best thing to do was stay in the house and not engage and then i was introduced to forward

assist. what we found was the women felt that they weren't represented in the charity sector so it was very male—orientated and and very male—dominated. so we do consultation sessions to find out what exactly their needs are. we offer a lot of one—to—one support and we also do female—only activities, as well. you're crawling in a black pit and you're trying to get out sort of thing, know what i mean. sometimes you get out and you walk around and you think i'm normal. ah, that's not me, that's somebody else sort of thing. noi's no 1's normal! it's been left to the charities

and i think it's a disgrace that the mod, you know, we are prepared to serve. but when you come back there's nothing there for you. you know, like they tell you you're not capable of doing the job that you absolutely love and then you get discharged and they tell you, but it's ok, you've got these injuries, when you get out you're going to have this compensation. you're going to have this money. you're going to have this support. you got none of it. three years on, no wonder i'm a head case. you're not a head case at all, darling. i served as a dog handler in the royal army veterinary corps. i guess you could say it was the front line. my feeling was pretty much what i would call being chewed up and spat out. once they're done with you, they're done with you. do you think female

veterans are ignored? not so much ignored. i think we're invisible because we feel like we just have to get on with things and the veteran charities are more open to men. so we're just heading to see one of our other female veterans, trish, who was, sadly, in her words, kicked out of the air force, due to falling pregnant a number of years ago in the 805. they gave me a choice, i could either abort the baby or keep it. and they had me booked in for an abortion on the tuesday already, and i had until monday

morning to let them know what my decision was. and i have a son and i'm out here. when you say "out here", you mean in civilian life? i've always classed it as out here. sorry, that's how i think, i'm out here. this is when i got my wings! oh, my god, yeah. it was the day my son flew the nest and went to university that i think the real shock hit me that i was a mother — i still am a mother — but now what do i do? it's me now, who was i? there's a civilian part of me,

apparently, but i only knew forces life on my own. this is the day i passed out, as you call it, passing out parade. that was 1979. trish came to us around ten months ago, sadly, with quite a number of complex issues, including anxiety, depression and also an eating disorder and alcohol problems. so we talked about doing three positives things every day, writing them down and looking at trying to draw up the little positives, even if you're having a bad day. so they can be big things, little things, can you remember what some of them were? there was one of them where... so we're just slowly working with her to try to get her the help she needs from a therapy

and clinician point of view and also reducing her social isolation so she's getting out of the house a lot more now and getting better slowly. when i've got my camera, that's my coping strategy. just for you! i love watching the waves when they go and hit, coming across and just hit the actual pier and that. don't know, just calms me. and it changes all the time. i feel like i've got somebody in an organisation i can chat to sort of thing, if we're having bad days and we support each other and it's genuine. so it has a massive effect. let's talk now to sarah lattaway,

who you saw in the film there from forward assist. it's one of the few services offering women—only support grou ps for forces vetera ns. mary glindon is the labour mp for north tyneside and a supporter of the work of forward assist. she feels the ministry of defence should do more to provide help for women veterans. and lieutenant coloneljan pilgrim was awarded the royal red cross, it's the army medic‘s equivalent of the victoria cross, for her work running a field hospital in iraq. after returning from conflict, jan has suffered from ptsd and alcoholism. thank you all for speaking to us, jan, iwant thank you all for speaking to us, jan, i want to speak to you first, you were honoured for your incredible work in basra, you saw some truly horrendous things that many of us can some truly horrendous things that many of us can never some truly horrendous things that many of us can never begin to comprehend. how did that affect you

when you came back home?” comprehend. how did that affect you when you came back home? i think the effects of operational tours are very gradual. as soldiers, we do exactly what we are supposed to do, soldier on, and as women we tend to just get on with it anyway, and it was actually my previous partner that was picking up that there were things wrong. i was working extra hours, doing extra exercise, and things were going downhill fairly rapidly at some stages. but as a nurse and as an officer, and a female, ijust got on with it, and i just ignore the symptoms. i focused looking on after other people, which women and nurses specifically a very good at doing. i want to bring in sarah, iam good at doing. i want to bring in sarah, i am really interested that jan meggie point, that, well, we are women, we get on with it, we have

to, do you think that is why so many women are not coming forward for help compared to many?” women are not coming forward for help compared to many? i think that isa help compared to many? i think that is a big element of it, but with regards to the charity sector, they are male dominated and male orientated, so it is not very welcoming, it is very hard for people, male or female, and we have found women especially to ask for help. we needed to be more friendly, women friendly in so far as there are women on the websites, women case studies, and i think that will help them to come forward a lot more. jan, do you feel that you were treated differently by the armed forces because you are a woman? not specifically. if you look at it statistically, we have probably got more women on the front line in

recent conflicts than we have had in a long time. or there is no such thing as a front line, so ijust don't think that the mod had its finger on the pulse enough to actually categorise the differences between male and female, or even different jobs, between male and female, or even differentjobs, what sort of support they needed. and actually they have contracted out mental health, so we are not even looking after our own. we are the best people to look after ourselves, if you got the teaching and you have done the tour. so it is very hard, it is hard for the men, and it is much harderfor the women. mary, i know that you support the work that sarah does, how many women in yourarea, do work that sarah does, how many women in your area, do you even have an idea of how many women are affected

i have to be honest, the only people who contacted me with issues like mental health and how to survive life on civvy street have been men, andl life on civvy street have been men, and i have to say, forward assist is very forward—looking, and the work that sarah is doing is highlighting the problems that women face, and when you think about it, we expect women and men both to go forward with courage and bravery, and there is no difference there, so why is it that we are making a distinction and not helping women, or the mod is not cheating the women who serve in the forces in the same way that it is treating men. so why aren't they? is it because it is a male dominated environment, that could be at, but you know, now that we know that there is an issue, then more needs to be done about it. it shouldn't be left to fantastic voluntary organisations like forward assist, the mod themselves, the people in

there should be stepping up to the mark and listening to what is being said and reacting appropriately. sarah, how common are the stories that we saw there in the film that jan has shared with us. very common, sadly. i think what we always need to remember is that most veterans, male or female, transition really well out of the military. however, there is a significant number who still have issues like the ladies in the film, and the women that i work with, most, if not all, have some of those issues. am i right that you have worked with a woman who has had children taken away from her? yes, at one stage that did happen, and happily it was resolved through ourselves and working with social surfaces, we ourselves and working with social surfaces, we were ourselves and working with social surfaces, we were able to resolve that, and she is doing really well now. she has completed a college

course, she is now going on to a further course, and her children are thriving, which is wonderful to hear. i want to read you a couple of comments coming in, one at the moment, linda on e—mail says, comments coming in, one at the moment, linda on e—mailsays, i served in the women's royal army corps, i was medically discharged in 1986 because of an injury that was subsequently determined to be service attributable. i got my lump sum, and i'm still in receipt of my pension, i still miss it. they don't tell you that you will never feel like you will fit in anywhere, i'm 57, still depressed, who can you tell? the words of the women in the film make me shudder, they were the same as was said to me back then. jan, how depressing is that? someone who was discharged in 1986, medically discharged, says that nothing has changed to now, 2017. absolutely, and i give credit to anybody who put their hand up, the

women on the show earlier, how heartbreaking it is. the mod have lost theirfinger on the heartbreaking it is. the mod have lost their finger on the pulse with this one. it is a condition that has such a dreadful effect on your life, can be lifelong affecting, there are certain things that potentially could be done to actually improve somebody‘s life. sometimes you can't ever get rid of the demons of ptsd, but like myself, with alcohol issues and various bits and pieces, you know, there is charities out there, and there are lots of them, first light, mind, smaller charities that i have gained more support from than i ever have the mod. but there is a lot of education going on, but very little happening on the ground. so i

go out with my dog every morning, everyday, and she has got a ptsd jacket on, and everyday i get asked, what ptsd stand for? and the message is not getting through, and then the whole idea of educating people is not getting reflected on the ground with the charities all the mod care that we expect to receive. we not asking for very much to put our lives on the line. but i completely connect with the people who say they are ina connect with the people who say they are in a completely strange environment, they don't understand where to go for help, and it is just desperately sad. we have got some comments coming in, after disgrace, i would rather people did notjoin

up, but if they do put their lives on the line, they should be looked after properly, even if it does cost after properly, even if it does cost a few after properly, even if it does cost afew quid. after properly, even if it does cost a few quid. keith on a male, merry, picking up on the point you made, being the father of a male ex—servicemen who suffered for years with ptsd, i can assure you it is not just with ptsd, i can assure you it is notjust women who do not get the support they need, the issue has nothing to do with gender. do you think this is being taken seriously enough by the government?” think this is being taken seriously enough by the government? i wasjust reflecting on the military covenant, which came in five or six years ago, putting the onus on local authorities to help, but if you look at the things in there, a lot of it is about housing and physical need, andl is about housing and physical need, and i think in this country we do not value our service men and women throughout their life. i could never have been brave enough to go into the services, you know, i have great admiration for people who do, but do

we realise that isn't it the first thing of government to defend the nation and look after the nation? therefore, those people would take pa rt therefore, those people would take part in march and be given the due respect, that very fundamental right of everyone should be looked after. and i fear that, unless it shouldn't just be forward assist, all of us need to take responsibility to support our military, or any of our armed forces, who have suffered as a result of putting their lives at risk or evenjust result of putting their lives at risk or even just if they haven't been on the front line, joining the forces and being part of that life, so forces and being part of that life, sol forces and being part of that life, so i really feel strongly that, as that gentleman said, it is terrible, whether it is men or women, we should be stepping up to the mark and supporting organisations like forward assist. thank you ever so much for coming in, and thank you to sarah andjan. the ministry of defence told us

they are committed to the wellbeing of our service personnel and the vast majority of those leaving transition successfully into civilian life. they said, "we recognise that a small number of veterans struggle, and that is why we work across government and with charity partners to provide a comprehensive package of support which includes the instigation of a cross—government veterans board later this year." if you have been affected by any of theissues if you have been affected by any of the issues we have covered, there is more information on the bbc action line. there is a full list of support and organisations available on the bbc website. still to come, convoys of up to three lorries controlled by wifi could be on british roads by the end of next year. we'll be hearing from the man who's in charge of the lorries trial. she's the british singer and songwriter who's sold more than 23 million singles worldwide. we'll be speaking live

in the studio to charli xcx. here's a summary of today's news. south wales police missed a number of opportunities to bring convicted paedophile ian watkins to justice sooner, an investigation by the police watchdog has found. the independent police complaints commission says that from 2008 the force failed to act on allegations made by seven people about the then lead singer of the lostprophets. wi—fi controlled convoys of trucks could be on major british roads by the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together, with drivers in each to steer but the speed controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa says it has major safety concerns about the idea. the billionaire vice chairman of samsung has been found guilty

of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to five years in prison. jay y lee was accused of making inappropriate donations worth around $6 million to the close confidante of the country's former president park geun—hye in exchange for government favours. those accusations also helped trigger the dismissal of the president from office. major travel disruption is expected over the weekend as millions prepare for the bank holiday getaway amid engineering works on some of the country's busiest rail routes. 0perators have warned passengers to expect delays, as euston station is closed for two days and services between london, the north west and scotland are cancelled. road users have also been advised to expect longerjourneys with more traffic predicted over the course of the weekend. texas is bracing itself for hurricane harvey, which could be the worst storm to hit the us mainland in 12 years. the category—three storm is expected to make landfall along the state's central coast tonight. there are concerns that torrential

rain could bring life—threatening flooding to some parts. that's a summary of the latest bbc news — more at 10:00. now some sport. mo farah won his final race on the track at the british diamond league in zurich. he was chased down in the final 100 metres by muktar edris who beat farah in the 5,000 metre at the world championships last month. the olympic champ will now concentrate on road races. good news also for great britain's cj ujah who won the 100 metres clocking a seasons best of 9.97 seconds. the american — justin gatlin came fourth. two great goals in everton's europa league qualifier. the opener was from hadjuk split but new signing gylfi sigurdson made sure his was even better with this corker from 50 yards — the first for his club. everton won the tie 3—1 to reach the group stages. and england captainjoe root has told his side to be ruthless in the second test against west indies which starts

today at headingley from 11:00am. the hosts won the first test by 209 run at edgbaston. wi—fi controlled convoys of lorries could be on major british roads by the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three wi relessly transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together with drivers in each to steer, but the speed will be controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa says it has some concerns. i have been speaking to the man in charge of uk trials for self drive lorries. the system will work and by the time we get to the real road we will have three wirelessly connected trucks, the lead truck, the driver is looking at the road ahead and driving as a normal truck driver would, with the exception that the two trucks behind him are connected

to his vehicle and they are linked. so as he breaks and accelerates, those trucks will do the same. they can those trucks will do the same. they ca n rea ct those trucks will do the same. they can react to 25 times quicker than we could. by putting the trucks that close together we could see some real savings in the efficiency bills and vehicles. we start to deal with some congestion issues, we hope as well. to be clear, there is a driver in the front lorry in control of everything. in the second and third lorries there would be somebody steering but not accelerating and braking? that's absolutely right. in two and three we have drivers in there who will be steering the vehicles. that's very much part of our safety case. we always have somebody in the loop, following the law and the protocols. looking to

the future, if the technology is approved, we might not need drivers to be steering in the follow—up vehicles, but in the trials they are absolutely in the loop and in control of those vehicles. that the drivers in the vehicles behind, could they override the first lorry? people automatically think, what if the person driving the front lorry has a heart attack or passes out all the wi—fi fails. we all know that at home wi—fi fails. the wi—fi fails. we all know that at home wi-fi fails. really good questions. dealing with the wi—fi issue first, the communications we are using, we have a lot of redundant signal. the sort of wi—fi you and i use, i am sat in a cafe at the moment and it dips in and out. but these trucks will receive lots of different messages, there are different systems to make sure the m essa 9 es different systems to make sure the messages get to the trucks, so the technology is very robust. and we will test that again and again off the road before we go anywhere near the road before we go anywhere near the road before we go anywhere near the road environment. but the drivers can overwrite it in the

second and third trucks? absolutely, at any point the drivers in the second and third lorries can overwrite the system, they might not feel comfortable in the conditions, ora feel comfortable in the conditions, or a different driver could get too close. it's very easy for them to ta ke close. it's very easy for them to take back control and drive the vehicles as normal. reading reaction earlier today from the aa, edmund king says we have some of the biggest motorways in europe with many more exits and entrances. it might work in deserted freeways in arizona or nevada, but this isn't america. the first thing i would say is this will be the first ever real—world trials if we make it to the road. what we have seen in america and other parts of the world are demonstrations, manufacturers with their trucks and engineers in perfect weather conditions, with everything controlled for a day. it's just a demonstration. everything controlled for a day. it'sjust a demonstration. we everything controlled for a day. it's just a demonstration. we will give this to real companies to use and carry goods around. we can do it

on the roads with realjunctions and the difficulties. we need to make sure they can cope with junctions. for instance, if they approached junctions, they might decouple or provide wider spaces. when you go for a relatively larger sections of road between junctions, they for a relatively larger sections of road betweenjunctions, they can gather relatively close together and go back to a platoon in format. how it will work, that's what we will find out and that's why we conduct that trial. as a driver i live close toa that trial. as a driver i live close to a busy road and quite often have to a busy road and quite often have to do use a slip roads to get onto it. if i'm driving up a slip road and three lorries in platoon are driving along, if i can't get in front on the last thing you want to do is stop on a slip road. this could be dangerous, presumably the lorries can't move to the middle lane. absolutely. we will not put vehicles on the road that will put

other road users in that situation. the navigation systems, the junctions are coming up. we will have a trial that will allow the platoons to behave normally and have wider gaps as they approached junctions. you will not find a situation where you're blocked off ona slip situation where you're blocked off on a slip road. that will not happen. what can you say to reassure people and at what point will this go live on britain's roads? we are working hard to get it onto britain's roads in early trial form late next year, late 2018. what has to happen first is we have to meet all the safety cases which will be independently evaluated. we will not just pushed this out on the road without that safety case. to reassure people, we will start with a whole range of trials and carefully staged off roads testing that will get us and others to

assess what we have done to have the confidence that what we are doing will work in the uk. if it does work and we get it on the roads in the uk, what we will see is that we are keeping ahead of other international players in this area. automated vehicles, robotic vehicles and connected vehicles are the future. in the uk we need to make sure our roads are ready for these new technologies. lots of you getting in touch this morning. lara says, how will the lorries be protected against potential hacking? angela says what happens if you want to overta ke says what happens if you want to overtake and get in between them? also learner drivers will be introduced to motorways in the near future as part of their lessons. this is crazy. i value my safety and that of others around me, but also if these vehicles get into the hands of terrorists. all these things will be tested in the trial period before they get onto britain's roads at the end of next year. the tone of last year's brexit campaign was toxic and has led

to the demonisation of immigrants, according to the head of a group of mps. the group says migrants should be treated as britons—in—waiting who can eventually gain citizenship instead of being viewed as security threats — and says the government should do more to encourage "meaningful social mixing". there have also repeated the call for compulsory english lessons which they want funded through a student loan—style system. the group is chaired by anti—brexit labourmp chuka umunna. we think far too little about what actually happens when people come to our country and settle here. and too often we have immigrants who are not properly integrated into their communities and that's bad for them because it stands in the way of them being able to access all the opportunities there are. and it's bad for the overall community because there is a lack of trust there. and where there is a lack of trust and a vacuum like that that's where the peddlers of hatred and division step in and, unfortunately, we saw that far too much during the eu referendum and, frankly, front line politicians,

who should have known better, should have been far more responsible in the way they were discussing these issues. well, joining us now is sabrina huck, a german immigrant who moved to the uk three years ago. we also have the director of the organisation migrant voice, nazek ramadan. and tim swift, the leader of calderdale council in halifax, which is one town that struggles with integration. starting with tim, talk to us about the communities that make up your area and the challenges you face. the dominant minority community in our area is of pakistani origin. it's a long established community, families going back three generations. but there are challenges about the white community

and the asian community to some extent leading separate lives. i think some of the proposals in the report are very much to be welcomed and we find that as new people join that community, generally people wa nt to that community, generally people want to learn english. actually one of the issues is the lessons and courses simply are not there. forgive me for jumping courses simply are not there. forgive me forjumping in, but you say that very often pakistani communities and white communities lead very separate lives. why do you think that's happening now?” lead very separate lives. why do you think that's happening now? i think it's partly human nature. you gravitate towards areas where the facilities that serve your particular needs and interests are. i think particular needs and interests are. ithink in particular needs and interests are. i think in some ways a change in policy has made that worse, particularly around schooling. and changes in the job particularly around schooling. and changes in thejob market. many first—generation pakistani immigrants came to work in a textile

business, and they were quite well integrated. as that business disappeared, some of the opportunities for people to meet in a workplace have weakened rather than strengthened. is that something you find with your work, that generally communities across the country are very segregated? we have a bit ofa country are very segregated? we have a bit of a different picture within our membership. we have contacted researchers recently with members across the uk in london, birmingham and glasgow. just under 200 people participated. they spoke about the impact of the debate on integration and we discovered lots of people felt integrated in the local community, but what stops them getting the sense of belonging to the uk as a country was the way politicians spoke negatively about them and the way the media reported them and the way the media reported theissue them and the way the media reported the issue presented them. bringing

sabrina in, do you feel you are integrated into british society? you have been here three years.” integrated into british society? you have been here three years. i do feel integrated and part of society, but it's the case that sometimes people seem surprised when you as a foreign person take interest in, for example, a lytic sand the current affairs of the country, because everybody expects you to be focused on where you are from. they are even surprised if you know who the prime minister is sometimes. —— politics and current affairs of the country. people make certain assumptions about you. and meat coming from a western european country that is seen as respected, it's easier. —— and me coming. i wonder if coming from germany you made to feel more welcome than other nations. i think recently all europeans have been feeling and welcome, and not just those with low skills, many

academics and high skilled europeans are deciding to leave, and some of them have left and others have plans to leave because they feel unwelcome. do you feel and welcome? it makes you feel welcome when you go down to a shop and you see the headlines in the daily mail, the express macron sun, scapegoating european citizens particularly, during the referendum. i know that it makes you feel more self—conscious to use the nhs, because you see all the headlines about migrants destroying public services. i think a lot of people from europe are really considering whether or not to stay there, start a family, because it doesn't be like the right place to do that. do you think after the brexit vote, there has been less integration, people feeling they have to go back into their own communities?” feeling they have to go back into their own communities? i think it has been quite damaging, and it affected people of british asian heritage, as much as it did european

immigrants, sol heritage, as much as it did european immigrants, so i have heard stories of british citizens of asian heritage who have experienced a overtly racist comments on the street in a way that has not been happening for years before. and then of course stories like that spread in the community, and it does make people feel, you know, feel less secure in their place in society. so the idea of compulsory english lessons, that have to be paid back ina lessons, that have to be paid back in a student loans style, will that help? a lot of people are keen to learn english when they come here, but a big problem is the way that it is not very accessible, it is about, where do i go? how can i find the resources? it is really difficult to navigate the system if you don't have the language skills already.” guess you need to make the classes available before you make them compulsory, we used to have lots of

english classes, but the government cut funding, and it is very difficult for a migrants now to find an english class. we have syrian refugees who say, i am desperate to learn the language, but i can't find classes, can you help us? soap i think it is important not to blame people for not wanting to learn the language, i think all migrants, the first priority is to learn english, but where do they go to get classes? what do you think would be a single thing or a couple of things that would make a massive difference in calderdale to improve integration? well, i agree with what has been said about english classes and access to them. the quality of them is also important. i think we want some certainty about policies and support, i mean too often we see short—term government initiatives, everybody dashing around trying to wina everybody dashing around trying to win a little bit of funding. actually, we need to recognise that

the situation in northern towns like halifax is very different from some of the big cities which have a very diverse and changing population. we need the flexibility to put the right policies in place to suit our community. thank you very much for joining us, i am very grateful to you. let's just read out a statement from a government spokesperson. "integration is key to making sure migrants can achieve economic stability and play a role in their local community. we have made £140 million available through the controlling migration fund to build community cohesion and encourage the integration of recent migrants, including a number of projects focusing on english language education, and we'll shortly be bringing forward plans for a new integration strategy." coming up, rugby player dan mugford speaks out about his battle with depression and how he's now working to help others. now, she's the british singer and songwriter who's sold more than 23 million singles worldwide and topped the charts here in the uk and the us. charli xcx has performed

with the likes of taylor swift and rita 0ra — and written songs for stars including rihanna, britney spears and blondie. more recently, she's moved behind the camera and directed herfirst music video. boys reflects on the sexualisation of women in the media by focusing on the men instead. so far, the video has had more than 30 million views on youtube, probably helped by the many male celebrities we'll find out how she managed that very shortly, but let's firstly take a quick look. # i was busy thinking ‘bout boys # boys, boys # i was busy dreaming ‘bout boys # boys, boys # head is spinning thinking ‘bout boys # i need that bad boy to do me right on a friday # and i need that good one to wake me up on a sunday # that one from work can come over on monday night # i want ‘em all, i want ‘em all # and when they finally leave me i'm all alone... # got wise 0k, joining us in the

studio is the british singer and songwriter charli xcx, thank you so much for coming in, we were just watching boys and saying, how hard was it to get these huge stars to ta ke was it to get these huge stars to take part? you know what? they were surprisingly up for it and! yeah, i mean, it's kind of all began with me just sort of harassing all of the quys just sort of harassing all of the guys that i have worked with or are friends with in the industry, texting them and being, like, please, be in a video, it is important for me. i think ijust annoyed them enough, and i was really open about my idea, you know, the vision that i had, the concept. talk about that, it is a good concept, flipping over what we normally see women doing, washing cars, looking very sexualised in videos. i said that to them, i was very honest, i said, this video is

about reversing the stereotypical roles that often are played out in music videos, it is about reverting the male gaze, having you guys being the male gaze, having you guys being the objects, i suppose for once in this very stereotypically pop environment. and they will all really u p environment. and they will all really up for it, they were all like, 2017, let's do it! they got it, andi like, 2017, let's do it! they got it, and i think that they thought it was a really important thing for them to do, you know? it is interesting is a 2017, i have got two young girls, i'm always very aware of what they should or should not watch, is it difficult as a woman in 2017 to make changes, do things like that? you know what, now more than ever, there is such a conversation about feminism — in my industry, but in many industries across the board, it is such a highly spoken about topic. and i

really see that in the music industry, through other female artists talking about their opinions on feminism, their experiences as a woman. but also i see it with my fans, you know, more than ever now they are so switched on, so intelligent, so kind of involved in the political landscape, what is going on with lgbt rights, feminism, it isa going on with lgbt rights, feminism, it is a constant conversation that is happening, so i think, you know, by speaking about it, things are beginning to progress. you have worked with some incredibly strong women, katy perry, taylor swift, you toured with taylor swift.” women, katy perry, taylor swift, you toured with taylor swift. i did one show with her, she invited me to toronto to perform my song boom clap with their onstage, it was really cool with their onstage, it was really cool, i had to be wrapped in one of those lives making a pose, ifelt like britney spears. who you have

written for. she didn't take the song, though, heartbroken!m written for. she didn't take the song, though, heartbroken! is that how it works? yeah, that is how it works, sometimes it is kind of like they will ask for loads of people to write songs, sometimes it will be specific, being in the room with an artist, but yeah, you know, sometimes you write with them, sometimes you write with them, sometimes without. what do prefer, performing as an artist of writing for other people? it is two such different things, i love being on stage... doing your pose! i love being creative in the studio, that is when i can really be free, you know. we have a couple of questions from people looking ahead, but i wa nt to from people looking ahead, but i want to look back at your big break — what would you say was the break for you? you know, i think the first time you view your song on the radio, it is a big deal, it

definitely was for me. i was at my pa re nts' definitely was for me. i was at my parents' house, we were sat in the kitchen, and i can't run the who played it, but they said my name com pletely played it, but they said my name completely wrong, and i was like, i can't believe it! but still, it was pretty amazing, that was good. and i think, you know, when my first big radiosonde happened, that was a moment. body were discovered on myspace? correct, i was moment. body were discovered on myspace? correct, iwas performing ata myspace? correct, iwas performing at a lot of raves, putting songs online, and people would hit me up online, and people would hit me up online, saying, can you play at this party? there was a scene growing there, like lots of different scenes, but i guess i became part of this party scene, and i was playing shows at the weekend, my parents would take me, which was very cool of them, but at the time i was like,

you are cramping my style! but they really looked after me, you can do the party, but you have to make sure you go to school and get good grades. i was a nerd, you go to school and get good grades. iwas a nerd, really. you go to school and get good grades. i was a nerd, really. were you?! big-time! so you went to raves at the weekend and studied in the week? yeah, yeah, yeah, i had to get good grades. i tried to balance both, but yeah, so that is what i was doing, that is how i got on the scene, and people started hearing about my music. i won't do as do these that have come in, when can we expect the new single? the next single, well, ijust put boys out, i will be focusing on that for a little bit, but i have been speaking with some people, rita 0ra, doing some songs together, we are mates, we always talk about releasing stuff, so maybe something will happen there. as you know, i am

a lwa ys happen there. as you know, i am always writing, i'm not sure when, but probably not soon. a retro dance big on twitter, are you planning a solo tour? iamb, it will probably be around the album release, which will be next year. but i love being on the road, so definitely at some point. and fans who are interested in getting into the industry, what piece of advice would you give them? you know, iwould just piece of advice would you give them? you know, i would just say find out what you love, and really do something that is true to you, never try to be like anybody else, you know, find what makes you inspired and makes you feel creative, makes you feel alive, follow that dream. the music industry is so open now, you can put songs on the internet in so many different ways, you can really gather a fan base without having a record label, you can do so much yourself, so i would encourage people to just go for it. it has

been a pleasure to speak to, that is charli xcx, taking some of your questions on victoria derbyshire. now let's get the latest weather update with ben. we can look forward to a lot of dry weather it weekend, a bit of a north sea —— north — south split, much of the rain across northern ireland, the rain across northern ireland, the potential for localised flooding into the afternoon, that rain band pushing its way into scotland. further south and east, enjoying the best of the sunshine, but not very nice this afternoon across northern parts, some of the rain could be country. a few showers coming into northern parts of england, otherwise it is dry, a bit more cloud across the midlands and wales, but plenty of breaks in the cloud to allow some sunny spells, but the best of the blue skies further south and east, temperatures getting up to about 23

celsius, the winds are light. through tonight, that rain band will gradually push its way north and east, breezy around that front, further south it is dry, clear skies, we might see the odd isolated shower. 0vernight, temperatures not dropping too much, remaining in double figures for all of us. as we head into tomorrow, the start of our bank holiday weekend, high pressure is building from the south, this weather front clearing through behind it, not a bad day, looking much better than today fall of us. soa much better than today fall of us. so a few showers across eastern counties, that will clear, but most of us will see some sunshine on saturday. temperatures getting up to 25, maybe even 26 celsius, the winds are light, it is not a bad day at all, and we are doing very well as we head into the second part of the weekend. again, sunday, largely dry,

a case of sunny spells larger than wall—to—wall sunshine, perhaps the odd sherrock roz weston parts of scotland, otherwise dry with temperatures up to 2a celsius. —— the odd shower up towards western parts of scotland. further north, a bit more cloud and some rain, notice the difference in temperatures, 18 celsius in edinburgh, 26 in london for bank holiday monday. and next week, well, looking rather changeable, fairly unsettled, looking forward to some sunshine, but also the risk of a few blustery showers. hello, it's friday, it's 10 o'clock, i'm chloe tilley. the police watchdog says the former singer, ian watkins, could have been arrested for child sex abuse nearly four years earlier, if police had investigated tip—offs about him. when someone comes forward with such a serious allegation, or indeed any allegation or report, it really shouldn't matter

what they look like, who they are, what their lifestyle is, what they do. what's really important is, what are they saying. we'll get the details on a damning report from the police watchdog and speak to a lawyer who was involved with the case. rugby player dan mugford battled depression which left him suicidal following being dropped by his club. he now wants to help others. in a highly anticipated fight, former world champion boxer floyd mayweather is coming out of retirement to take on mixed martial arts champion and boxing novice conor mcgregor. commentator steve bunce gives his predictions. one man is unbeaten in 49 fights. the other man is unbeaten in no fights. it gives it a farcical edge, but it's a real fight. good morning. here's annita in the bbc newsroom

with a summary of today's news. south wales police missed a number of opportunities to bring convicted paedophile ian watkins to justice sooner. the independent police complaints commission says that from 2008, the force failed to act on allegations made by seven people about the then lead singer of lostprophets. and we'll have more on this shortly from our correspondent in cardiff and we'll also speak to a lawyer who was involved with the case. wi—fi controlled convoys of trucks could be on major british roads by the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together, with drivers in each to steer but the speed controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa, says it has major safety concerns about the idea. richard cuerden is in charge of the uk trials for ‘self—drive' lorries. what the technology allows us to do, because the computers on board can

react maybe 25 or even more times quicker than you and i ever could, we can get those trucks really close together. by putting them that close together we managed to see some real savings in the efficiency of the vehicles. we make it more aerodynamic so we save fuel and reduce c02. and we start to deal with some congestion issues, we hope as well. the billionaire vice chairman of samsung has been found guilty of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to five years in prison. jay y lee was accused of making inappropriate donations worth around $6 million to the close confidante of the country's former president park geun—hye in exchange for government favours. those accusations also helped trigger the dismissal of the president from office. the thai supreme court has issued an arrest warrant for the former prime minister, yingluck shinawatra, after she failed to turn up for the verdict in her criminal negligence trial. sources close to her party say

she made the decision to leave thailand unexpectedly, shortly before the verdict was delivered. it is not clear which country she is now in. florida state prison has executed the white supremacist mark james asay, the first white inmate put to death for killing a black man, since florida reinstated the death penalty in 1979. the lethal injection included a drug never used before in the us. asay was sentenced to death in 1988 for killing two men in separate incidents on the same day. major travel disruption is expected over the weekend as millions prepare for the bank holiday getaway amid engineering works on some of the country's busiest rail routes. 0perators have warned passengers to expect delays, as euston station is closed for two days and services between london, the north west and scotland are cancelled. road users have also been advised to expect longerjourneys with more traffic predicted over the course of the weekend. texas is bracing itself for hurricane harvey — which could be the worst storm to hit the us mainland in 12 years.

the category—three storm is expected to make landfall along the state's central coast tonight. there are concerns that torrential rain could bring life—threatening flooding to some parts. that's a summary of the latest bbc news — more at 10.30. get in touch with us this morning lots of you getting in touch still about the wi—fi lorries. how do you feel as a lorry driver, is it a good idea? let's get some sport now. mo farah finally signed off his track career with victory. the olympic champ came first in the 5,000 meters at the diamond league in zurich. but it was so tight at the end. he was chased down in the final 100 metres by muktar edris who beat farah at the world championships in london last month. narrowly winning in 13 minutes

and six seconds but farah will now concentrate on road races. it feels amazing to win.” it feels amazing to win. i have really enjoyed my career. it's been a long journey but at the same time i've enjoyed it. i will miss the track, missed the people, but now it's time for a new chapter in my life and see what i can do on the road. there was also victory for britain's cj ujah in the 100 metres. he ran a season's best of 9.97 seconds, beating american world champion justin gatlin who finished fourth. and here's a good way to start a newjob. scoring from 50 yards on your first game for your new club. this is gylfi sigurdsson showing everton why he's worth £115 million. they drew away but managed to reach the group stages of the europa league wining 3—1 overall. and just to let you know that the draw for the europa league group stages will take place in monaco at midday with arsenal also in the mix. england boss gareth southgate says he has no issue with the culture

of the fa and believes the manager of the women's side, mark sampson, is an excellent character. it's after eni aluko, who has 102 caps for england, accused sampson of bullying and discrimination, which he denies. sampson has been cleared by two investigations so far and southgate says there's no problem at the fa. my my feeling is that the culture is very good here. i can't talk about specific camps and age groups i'm not involved with, but i sense we are heading in a good direction with everything that's going on at saint georges park. i think this summer was a really good example of that across the men's and women's game. in cricket, england can seal the series against west indies with victory in the second test which starts later at headingley. the last test finished inside three days and england will start as big favourites ahead of the match.

it's one of two tests to take place before this winter's ashes and will seejoe root lead england out at his home ground. i'm lost for words a little bit on how to describe it! it's a great opportunity, to do that here at headingley where i have watched a lot of cricket played. to get the opportunity to captain england here is very exciting and a proud day for me. whether you think it's a real or not the floyd mayweather and conor mcgregor fight in las vegas this weekend is completely splitting opinion. the former boxer ricky hatton has labelled it "pure showbiz." mcgregor himself though challenges anyone who doubts it's a genuine contest. this is two men swinging blows to the temple, you know what i mean, so as to not people think with the eight ounce gloves, and i don't fight? it's disrespectful from eight ounce gloves, and i don't fight? it's disrespectfulfrom my opinion. i have witnessed it from pundits and analysts all over, as well as media. whatever, they will

see two men go at it and risk it all on saturday night. that's all the sport for now. see you again in half an hour. the police watchdog says the former singer ian watkins could have been arrested for child sex abuse nearly four years earlier, if the south wales force had investigated complaints about him. let's get more on this from our correspondent in cardiff, mark hutchings. remind us about the case. it was a truly shocking case. we had a global rock star, adored by millions who privately was carrying out the most appalling abuse. in the end it was a drugs raid that led to his arrest. but drugs offences were the very least of it. i remember being at his first court appearance at the magistrates' court, and what we didn't know them, but we know now, is there was a timeline of nearly four years of opportunity is missed

by police to get him in the dock rather sooner and to end what the judge who finally sentenced him to 29 years injail called behaviour that was plumbing the depths of depravity. there work in the alarm bells surrounding ian watkins. the ipcc report today highlights the fa ct ipcc report today highlights the fact that for so long the police turned a deaf ear to them. tell us more about the complaints. how many we re more about the complaints. how many were there and what did they say?” have a copy of the report here. it pinpoints what it calls major shortcomings in terms of the police investigation, if we can call it that, over the four—year period into ian watkins. the main complainant went to the police repeatedly. first of all in 2008. on her mobile phone she had a message from ian watkins saying he wanted to abuse children. the report found the police didn't look at the phone and simply didn't believe this woman. they didn't

believe this woman. they didn't believe she was a credible witness. in fact there were six people who went to police with concerns about ian watkins. this report finds that there were eight reports, three intelligence logged but no interviews with ian watkins. he wasn't interviewed or questioned and he wasn't asked what he thought about the allegations. we can hear from the commission and who compiled today's report. bias, unconscious or conscious, has no place in modern policing. when someone comes forward with such a serious allegation, or indeed any allegation or report, it really shouldn't matter what they look like, who they are, what their life style look like, who they are, what their lifestyle is, what they do. what's really important is, what are they saying. it's really important that is taken seriously and investigative work is done to see if there is any independent evidence to corroborate what they are saying. what has been

the police response to this? sorry, ina word. the police response to this? sorry, in a word. south wales police say they didn't listen and didn't properly investigate complaints over that time and say they are truly sorry. 0ne detective sergeant faced a disciplinary hearing over his conduct but was cleared in that hearing. there was also an ipcc report to south yorkshire police, and they criticise that force in their investigation into ian watkins. joanne mjadzelics went to that force as well. that report found that three officers would face disciplinary action at south yorkshire, they would have, but they have since retired, so they can't. looking at the south wales police force report, but at the timeline of events, the summary of complaints about him, and it says at various points, no action taken, no action

taken, no action taken. finally the police took action, but four years late. we can speak now to michael wolkind qc. he defended joanne mjadzelics, who had to clear her name when she was accused of sharing watkins' indecent images. she told us she wasn't well enough to join us today. what can you tell us about her response to this report? a degree of satisfaction. she's disappointed on a personal level. there is no apology to her. it's probably time for south wales to respond with an apology which shows their integrity and to speak with grace about how they disregarded her. it brings back these events, not that she can forget them, but every day she tells me she cries for no obvious reason. actually the reasons are obvious. she was disregarded. she was somebody who was defamed, written off because of her less than conventional lifestyle. maybe it wasn't a steady

lifestyle. maybe it wasn't a steady lifestyle. she was a former sex worker? yes, and so what? she was wrongly accused during the trial of having been mental health section. that wasn't true. to face a jury with a person who comes from that sort of background was difficult. their starting point might also be to disbelieve her. but police who had the opportunity to look for corroboration of her claims didn't do anything. they didn't have the wit to examine her phone, with a text and a wish list of abuse from ian watkins. she was enough on - off relationship with ian watkins. she got a text message from here which clearly outlined his desire to abuse children. she went to the police so why didn't they look at the phone? she went to the police with a laptop. 0ne police officer said that he or she wasn't qualified to look ata he or she wasn't qualified to look at a laptop. we could look at a la ptop at a laptop. we could look at a laptop and be alarmed when we see a

picture of an underage child. he or she wasn't interested enough because she wasn't interested enough because she wasn't interested enough because she wasn't qualified. joanne mjadzelics went back again, four times in all. she had the laptop and said, this is a picture he sent me. they denied in due course it was an underage child, it was a child of four or five. they claimed underage child, it was a child of four orfive. they claimed it underage child, it was a child of four or five. they claimed it was a child over the age of consent. they we re child over the age of consent. they were wrong, because joe child over the age of consent. they were wrong, becausejoe and didn't count for them. —— because joanne mjadzelics didn't cancel them. count for them. —— because joanne mjadzelics didn't cancel themm the report they said they were waiting for the right type of complainants to come along. that's what the ipcc commissioner says. because of her lifestyle. does this happen in other cases? it must do. in the same way police are now told to really listen to young children who claim they have been abused by groups of men. what's the difference? so she comes from an

u nsteady difference? so she comes from an unsteady background, not a conventional background. she's not posh. my interest in the case began when i saw that after ian watkins' conviction she was interviewed on television. she wasn't glorifying on it, but she was disturbed. it was weighing on her, what could she do more to stop children being in danger. she couldn't have done much more than going to the police station four times armed with a computer and e—mail in the association of chief police officers and telling everyone. 0n association of chief police officers and telling everyone. on one occasion she said to the care authorities that if he does something again, it will be on your head, not mine. she was warning them, she was right, telling the truth from the start and all the way through. paul sellers ian watkins was not treated differently because he was famous — do you believe that?” treated differently because he was famous - do you believe that? i do not accept that, i am cautious about

that, i have had a quick look at the report, and i don't think the report mentions a memo that are used during the trial from one mentions a memo that are used during the trialfrom one police mentions a memo that are used during the trial from one police force to another that said, he is a famous rock star, she is a former escort who has been sectioned — there is the comparison, celebrity privilege, i know about that. i am very grateful to you for coming in. still to come, we'll be looking ahead to the highly anticipated fight between the undefeated boxer floyd mayweather and mixed martial arts champion conor mcgregor. when the rugby player dan mugford was dropped by his club earlier this year, it hit him hard. he suffered with severe depression that left him suicidal. rugby, he says, was his life, and when that disappeared, he struggled to cope. but he's since found help and a new club and now wants to help others learn how to better cope with rejection. he's with us now. thank you so much for speaking to

us, it is very brave to talk so openly about this, why did you think it was the right thing to do to talk about this? it is a subject that is not spoken about a lot, and the more we can raise the awareness, the more co mforta ble we can raise the awareness, the more comfortable people will feel and able to talk about it, and therefore will not get into that low, dark place. so you thought that the world was at your feet, you have signed for a premier league side, you were looking to the future, it was all positive, then what happened? absolutely, i was living my dream from the age of eight, i wanted to play in the premiership, and i had worked very hard to do that, and i made sport and rugby in particular my whole life, i made it define me asa my whole life, i made it define me as a person. and the season started very well, everything was going just as planned, and then i started to struggle to get in the team, not

really sure why, couldn't quite get any answers, but as time went on, i realised it was slipping away from me without a real reason for it. and slowly time went on, and i couldn't get back in the team, and then it came out that i was going to be let go at the end of the year, and there wasn't too much interest from other premiership sides, as i wasn't playing much. it hit me hard, it made me feel like a failure as a person, that i have got all the way there to live my dream, but potentially as a person i was not good enough to be doing that. how did it affect you on a day—to—day level, did it change your behaviour? absolutely, it was really hard, it's consumed me, iwouldn't absolutely, it was really hard, it's consumed me, i wouldn't do anything but go home and think about training, ididn't but go home and think about training, i didn't want to do anything, i would sit on the sofa, watch tv, i didn't want to do

anything, and it put a big stress on the relationship, which has u nfortu nately the relationship, which has unfortunately ended since. but it really did consume me, i didn't want to face anything, and it was a very ha rd to face anything, and it was a very hard time. did your then girlfriend, yourfamily and hard time. did your then girlfriend, your family and friends, notice that change anyone tried to talk to you about it? i think so, change anyone tried to talk to you about it? ithink so, it is change anyone tried to talk to you about it? i think so, it is a tough subject to bring up, and i don't necessarily know, you know, if the signs were so obvious, but they definitely tried to help. u nfortu nately, definitely tried to help. unfortunately, my knowledge of mental health is use at the time was pretty limited, and i thought that it wouldn't happen to me and that that wasn't me, you know, i think eve ryo ne that wasn't me, you know, i think everyone thinks, no, that will not happen to me, but i was living it without realising. so when they did talk to me, it was hard to accept what they were saying, and i just assumed that things would get better

or that i was wired this way and thatis or that i was wired this way and that is how it is. so it took for me to get to a really low point, to gain perspective, and then realise actually what i was going through. you hit rock bottom, you realised you needed help, but as you said, you needed help, but as you said, you didn't know much about mental health. did you know where to turn? thankfully, my girlfriend at the time, so! thankfully, my girlfriend at the time, so i had been let go from sale, and my contract in the premiership was over. i had put a strain on our relationship, which made that end, which was kind of the point where i gained that perspective and realised, actually, i need to do something about this problem. thankfully, she was incredibly supportive and helped me to look in the right direction to go to look in the right direction to go to speak to somebody. i was also very lucky to have the rugby players association on hand, that i could ring and gain support and talk to a psychologist and start going to

therapy. do you think people looking from the outside understand what you we re from the outside understand what you were going through?” from the outside understand what you were going through? i think it is a very ha rd were going through? i think it is a very hard one, i think until you are actually there, you probably never quite understand. i think a lot of people will have what they think is a good understanding, but until you get into that place, you know, really, i don't think you understand it. i know i didn't, i could be sympathetic to people that were potentially depressed or anxious, but i never quite understood it and tell i was there myself. so it is a very ha rd tell i was there myself. so it is a very hard situation, and sometimes, you know, that makes it hard to talk about, which is why i think, the more we can talk about, the easier it will become for people to get problems off their chest. you talk about the stigma, essentially, that is what you are talking about, the need for people to talk about it, and we have seen so much in the last year or so — prince harry with his own challenges on mental health,

high profile people talking about their struggles. do you think that has helped the likes of you to feel that you can come on national television and share with us?” think it is absolutely huge, which is one of the reasons i am doing this, so we can be stigmatised this, and the more we can talk about it, the more other people feel 0k to do the more other people feel 0k to do the same. i think it has helped me massively, it has helped me to realise that not being 0k is ok, and it isa realise that not being 0k is ok, and it is a temporary problem that can be solved, so yeah, i definitely think the more high—profile people that can talk about it, the better. from the outside, people might think it is quite a match show, male culture, have you had a lot of support from the sport itself, whether it is other players all the bodies there. absolutely huge, that was one of the problems i faced at the time, going through it, that it

was such a macho culture that i felt it would be very hard to open up and talk about how i felt, you know, i felt i might get laughed at, but when i took the judge to speak out about it, the support has been huge. you know, i have had a few people telling me they have been to the same things and you have done a wonderful thing in speaking out and it will help others do the same. so the support i have had from the sport and from friends and family has been massive. interesting you say that other players have come to you and said they have had problems — before you spoke out, were you aware of anybody going through the same things you were? no, absolutely not at all. again, you feel very alone, like you are the only one that has ever been through it, because people don't talk about it. so once i did talk about it, i have had numerous people talk about their previous experiences, or that they know somebody, and i think the more

i understood that, the more i was hearing that, the more accepting of myself i was as well, which is huge. so by talking about it now on tv, and in other things, hopefully people will see again that it is ok do feel that way, it is temporary and we can all work together to ove rco m e and we can all work together to overcome it. is the hardest bit at admitting to yourself that you have admitting to yourself that you have a problem? i think so, that is the huge step to getting better, that first step, and it is a really hard thing to do, you know, everyone wa nts to thing to do, you know, everyone wants to live a happy, good life, but unfortunately it is not always that way. there are things everybody goes through in different walks of life, and the stresses that come on the ball can be huge, so i say, if you're feeling down or not right in any way, the best thing you can do is talk to somebody, there is no harm in it. i bet, by doing that, you will feel better for getting it off your chest. it is a huge first step that made me feel a lot better.

we hear a lot about mental health issues with young people, young people needing support — do you think there is enough focus on young people in elite sport getting that support and being told it is there before they needed, we can support you if you ever have a problem?” think it is beginning to get better, recently there was a big push for it, which is absolutely wonderful. i still think we can do more, elite sport can have easier access, potentially, weekly, daily, to somebody there that you can go and express problems or express the way you are feeling too, so i think we can still be doing more, but having said that, i think the steps that are being taken are really good and are being taken are really good and a large leap forward into where it is probable it was a couple of years ago. and you are feeling better, you feel you are moving forward? ago. and you are feeling better, you feelyou are moving forward? yeah, i do, i still have tough times, i still have hard days, but i'm

working hard with my therapist to put things in place to change my mind set, to change my thoughts, and iam able mind set, to change my thoughts, and i am able to pull myself out of those, and that is the thing, you know, it is notjust going to be a click of the fingers and you are ok, it isa click of the fingers and you are ok, it is a work in progress, things may come back, you know, stresses may come back, you know, stresses may come on again, but what i am trying to do is equip myself as best as possible to be able to deal with those things, and ifeel like i am in the place to be able to do that. thank you for speaking so honestly and frankly this morning, i am really grateful to you. dan mugford. if you've been affected by any of the things dan has spoken about, you can find support and advice on the bbc action line. still to come, can mcgregor to beat mayweather? we will be looking add to the big fight. texas braces

itself for hurricane harvey, the worst storm to hit the us mainland in12 years, we worst storm to hit the us mainland in 12 years, we will be speaking to a meteorologist in texas about what we can expect to see. let's take an early news now with annita. thank you, chloe, good morning. south wales police missed a number of opportunities to bring convicted paedophile ian watkins to justice sooner. the independent police complaints commission says that from 2008, the force failed to act on allegations made by seven people about the then lead singer of lostprophets. 0ne one of those was joanne one of those wasjoanne mjadzelics, whose lawyer told the programme how she's feeling. the degree of satisfaction, she is disappointed on a personal level, there is no apology to her. it is probably time for south wales to respond with an apology which shows their integrity and to speak with grace about how

they disregarded her. but it brings back these events, it is not as if she forgets them, every day she tells me she cries for no obvious reason, but the reasons are obvious. the billionaire vice chairman of samsung has been found guilty of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to five years in prison. jay y lee was accused of making inappropriate donations worth around $6 million to the close confidante of the country's former president park geun—hye in exchange for government favours. those accusations also helped trigger the dismissal of the president from office. wi—fi controlled convoys of trucks could be on major british roads by the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together, with drivers in each to steer but the speed controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa says it has major safety concerns about the idea. richard cuerden is in charge of the uk trials for self—drive lorries. major travel disruption is expected

this weekend as millions prepare for the bank holiday getaway amid major engineering works on railroads. euston station is closed for two days, and services between london, the scotland are cancelled. road users have been told to expect longer journeys with users have been told to expect longerjourneys with more traffic predicted over the course of the weekend. texas is bracing itself for hurricane harvey, which could be the worst storm to hit the us mainland in 12 years. the category—three storm is expected to make landfall along the state's central coast tonight. there are concerns that torrential rain could bring life—threatening flooding to some parts. that is a summary of the latest news, join me for bbc newsroom live at 11 o'clock. some sports now. mo farah finally signed off his track career with victory. the olympic champ came

first in the 5,000 meters at the diamond league in zurich. he was chased down in the final 100 metres by muktar edris who beat farah at the world championships in london last month. the olympic champion will now concentrate on road races. there was also victory for britain's cj ujah in the 100 metres. he ran a season's best of 9.97 seconds, beating american world champion justin gatlin who finished fourth. and here's a good way to start a newjob. scoring from 50 yards on your first game for your new club. this is gylfi sigurdsson showing everton why he's worth £115 million. they drew away but managed to reach the group stages of the europa league wining 3—1 overall. and just to let you know that the draw for the europa league group stages will take place in monaco at midday with arsenal also in the mix. in cricket, england can seal the series against west indies with victory in the second test which starts later at headingley. the last test finished inside three days and england will start as big favourites ahead of the match. joe root has told his side to be

ruthless. around 10% of those exiting the army, navy and air force are women. but we have heard a far lower proportion of accessing help than men because it is not tailored for them. campaigners have told us there isa them. campaigners have told us there is a hidden population of former servicewomen who are suffering similar problems to male veterans, such as post—traumatic stress, substance abuse and unemployment. but nobody knows how many there are or where they live. we have visited one of the few charities providing supportjust forfemale one of the few charities providing support just for female veterans. i am denise kidger, and i served 22—and—a—half years in the army. afghanistan a couple of times, germany, cyprus, falklands, northern ireland, bosnia three times. it was tough because you were a woman but you had to act like a man and so i find it quite tough outside, mentally, trying to figure out who i am. the ptsd is a weird one,

because sometimes at first you don't understand, you just think something's not right, why am i — why do i not want to go out of the house? why is it such a struggle to get out of bed? you have nightmares, you have flashbacks. and i've got this anger that i've never had in my life. i keep myself to myself now, whereas i've always been a public person. i've always had a life and soul of the party kind of thing. i thought the best thing to do was stay in the house and not engage and then i was introduced to forward assist. what we found was the women felt that they weren't represented

in the charity sector so it was very male—orientated and and very male—dominated. so we do consultation sessions to find out what exactly their needs are. we offer a lot of one—to—one support and we also do female—only activities, as well. you're crawling in a black pit and you're trying to get out sort of thing, know what i mean. sometimes you get out and you walk around and you think i'm normal. ah, that's not me, that's somebody else sort of thing. no one's normal! it's been left to the charities and i think it's a disgrace that the mod, you know, we are prepared to serve.

but when you come back there's nothing there for you. you know, like they tell you you're not capable of doing the job that you absolutely love and then you get discharged and they tell you, but it's ok, you've got these injuries, when you get out you're going to have this compensation. you're going to have this money. you're going to have this support. you got none of it. three years on, no wonder i'm a head case. you're not a head case at all, darling. i served as a dog handler in the royal army veterinary corps. i guess you could say it was the front line. my feeling was pretty much what i would call being chewed up and spat out. once they're done with you, they're done with you. do you think female veterans are ignored?

not so much ignored. i think we're invisible because we feel like we just have to get on with things and the veteran charities are more open to men. so we're just heading to see one of our other female veterans, trish, who was, sadly, in her words, kicked out of the air force, due to falling pregnant a number of years ago in the 805. they gave me a choice, i could either abort the baby or keep it. and they had me booked in for an abortion on the tuesday already, and i had until monday morning to let them know what my decision was. and i have a son and i'm out here. when you say "out here",

you mean in civilian life? i've always classed it as out here. sorry, that's how i think, i'm out here. this is when i got my wings! oh, my god, yeah. it was the day my son flew the nest and went to university that i think the real shock hit me that i was a mother — i still am a mother — but now what do i do? it's me now, who was i? there's a civilian part of me, apparently, but i only knew forces life on my own. this is the day i passed out,

as you call it, passing out parade. that was 1979. trish came to us around ten months ago, sadly, with quite a number of complex issues, including anxiety, depression and also an eating disorder and alcohol problems. so we talked about doing three positives things every day, writing them down and looking at trying to draw up the little positives, even if you're having a bad day. so they can be big things, little things, can you remember what some of them were? there was one of them where... so we're just slowly working with her to try to get her the help she needs from a therapy and clinician point of view and also reducing her social isolation so she's getting out of the house a lot more now and getting better slowly. when i've got my camera,

that's my coping strategy. just for you! i love watching the waves when they go and hit, coming across and just hit the actual pier and that. don't know, just calms me. and it changes all the time. i feel like i've got somebody in an organisation i can chat to sort of thing, if we're having bad days and we support each other and it's genuine. so it has a massive effect. the ministry of defence told us they are committed to the wellbeing of our service personnel and the vast majority of those leaving transition successfully into civilian life. they said, "we recognise that a small number of veterans struggle, and that is why we work

across government and with charity partners to provide a comprehensive package of support, which includes the instigation of a cross—government veterans board later this year." and if you've been affected by any of issues we've covered there's more information on the bbc action line — the number 0800 888 809 — calls are free and are open 24—hours a day and there's a full list of support and organisations available at bbc. co. uk/actionline. wi—fi controlled convoys of lorries could be on major british roads by the the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. the department for transport says up to three wirelessly connected hgvs will travel together, with drivers in each to steer but the speed controlled by the lead vehicle. the aa says it has some concerns. in a moment we'll talk live to the rac. but first i've been talking to the richard cuerden —— to richard cuerden —

who's in charge of the uk trials for ‘self—drive' lorries. we are working hard to get this live onto uk roads. in early trialform late next year in 2018. we have to meet the safety cases first, met independently evaluated. we will not push them out onto the road without that safety case. to reassure people, we will start a whole range of trials and carefully staged off—road testing that will get us and others to independently assess what we have done to have the confidence that what we have done will work in the uk. if it does work and we get it on the road in the uk, what we want to see is that we keep hopefully ahead, if not keeping up with, other international players in this area. said the automated and robotic vehicles and connected vehicles are the future. in the uk we need to make sure the roads are ready for these new technologies.

let's talk to rod dennis from the rac. do you have concerns about this? not as many concerns as others have expressed this money. driverless technology is coming. the technology is moving apace. the issues around public acceptance and public safety. people need to be aware this is not a trial that will be thrown out there and we will suddenly be faced with lorries on the roads. it will be independently run. the body responsible, trl have a fantastic international reputation in this research. it is around public safety belt, and it's around communication with people so they are aware of when the trials are happening and where. but they will start off the road anyway. we can expect a lot of the safety measures to be pretty far advanced. we've had a lot of people getting in touch through the

morning. reading some of the questions now, so what happens if somebody tries to get in between three lorries on a convoy. what happens if somebody is coming out of a slip road and the convoy is coming along. do people need to be taught how to drive with these convoys in place? i think it's a very gradual thing. this is a faced trial. it's not about suddenly putting the lorries out on the road. —— a phased trial. we can understand that as a driver it can be unnerving to be suddenly faced with lorries like this. and sure a lot of people watching who do a lot of miles will be used to seeing lorries travelling close to each other anyway. there will be an autonomous element in terms of the speed the lorries are going, but actually all the technology is around making sure the lorries and driverless cars, as we move towards those, can adapt to the environment and adapts to other drivers who are not driving autonomous vehicles, getting in their way, crossing in front of traffic. this is what technology has to be able to cope with and we think trl and the government plan gives us

a good opportunity to do that. thank you for speaking to us, rod stennis from the rac. texas is preparing for the arrival of hurricane harvey, potentially the worst storm to hit the us mainland for 12 years. it's expected to come ashore later today, with winds of more than 200 kmh. the national hurricane centre has warned of flooding, with nearly a metre of rainfall forecast over parts of texas, and a predicted surge in sea levels of more than three metres. the threat has led to evacuations along the south texas coast. jason cooley is a meteorologist for the texas storm chasers and is in the area right now where the storm is due to hit. jason, what's it like outside? any sense of what's coming? it's really not too bad right now. there have been some passing showers and even some flashes of lightning. the wind is still very tame. it's only

getting to 30 mile per hour gusts right now. but the waves are starting to crash. and it is slowly getting more windy by the minute. are people packing up and leaving their homes? what has been the advice? yes, just last night eve ryo ne advice? yes, just last night everyone was hitting the roads after work and filling up their gas tanks and getting reserve jerry work and filling up their gas tanks and getting reservejerry cans work and filling up their gas tanks and getting reserve jerry cans of gas and packing up and leaving. there are still a lot of people who will leave today, but the majority have hit the road is already. will leave today, but the majority have hit the road is alreadym will leave today, but the majority have hit the road is already. it has to be said you are looking very calm and cool. do people in texas generally take this in their stride, this is just part of life, they are and they just this is just part of life, they are and theyjust get on with it? yes, they did have a big sense of preparedness, even though it has been a long time since they have had a hurricane that hit the coast. it's been almost ten years now. so for you, i said in the

introduction that you are a storm chaser, will you stay there and sit it out? you could, yeah, some chasers live to sit through it. i will not be putting myself in any danger, i like to be conservative, andi danger, i like to be conservative, and i will be driving away from any potential three metres storm surge like that, i will be staying away from that! if we are talking about three metre storm surges, how badly will that affect the area you are in right now? the area i am in right now is only 5—10 feet above sea level, so any storm surgeon will com pletely level, so any storm surgeon will completely override that. —— storm surge. a storm surge of that magnitude will flood out any business or home that is below ten

feet above sea level, and it can carry a magnitude of dangerous items, like sewage, via ants, debris, and it willjust sit there four days and days until the pressure finally rises again and the surge recedes. jason, best of luck, stay safe, thank you for speaking to us this morning. thanks. our correspondent adina campbell is at euston station right now, what is happening? well, it has started to get a lot busier here at euston station. from tomorrow, this station will completely close for two days, and that is because, as you say, of this massive engineering project

which is taking place. it is huge, it involves 17,000 engineers. they will be making preparations for hs2, as well as improving the tracks and signalling as well. of course, this will have a major impact on passengers. 0ne will have a major impact on passengers. one of the men services affected will be the west coast main line, and that will mean no trains into london from those parts of the country. but it is notjust london affected, other parts of the country will see engineering work, including wales, the midlands and parts of the north. network rail has said it is never ideal to do this, but it is short—term pain for long—term gain, and they say during the bank holiday 1596 and they say during the bank holiday 15% fewer people use the services, so there will be a huge benefit after this work is completed. there are some big sporting events at the weekend — of course, the rugby league challenge cup is happening at wembley, passengers are being advised to check before they travel, give themselves plenty of time, and

it is notting hill carnival as well, so plan yourjourney, give yourself plenty of time. but it is notjust the railways, there will be millions more of us using cars through the weekend, and airports are expected to bea weekend, and airports are expected to be a lot busier as well, particularly heathrow. so the advice is to check before you travel and give yourself plenty of time. a fun weekend for lots of people(!) it is one of the one of the most anticipated boxing matches in history. former world champion boxer floyd mayweather is coming out of retirement to fight mixed martial arts champion conor mcgregor. mayweather is undefeated in his professional career. mcgregor is a boxing novice who will be stepping into the ring for his first ever professional boxing match. four and a half years ago, mcgregor was collecting unemployment benefits in his native dublin, but tomorrow night he stands to earn $100 million in a battle that is expected to break all existing pay tv and purse records for any type of fight. earlier i spoke to boxing pundit

steve bunce. so first of all, you look at this on paper, conor mcgregor clearly the younger man, but floyd mayweather, he has got to do this, hasn't he? not only has he got to do it, he has got to do it in style, because it is notjust his reputation, his legacy that is at sta ke. reputation, his legacy that is at stake. there is also the case of boxing against this mma thing, this ufc thing, this giant, this ridiculous fighting, kicking, all kicking, all fighting, screaming sport, one sport against the other. there is more at stake than just the win and making a couple of hundred million dollars. so is it a fight or a farce? it is a fight, don't worry about that. there are elements of comedy, element of a freak show, circus, 100%. was it farcical in the sense of one man competing in 49 fights, the other man is unbeaten in

no fights? it is a farcical age, but it isa no fights? it is a farcical age, but it is a real fight, no fights? it is a farcical age, but it is a realfight, they no fights? it is a farcical age, but it is a real fight, they will be hitting each other very hard, so whether it lasts one minute or 36 minutes, the full 12 rounds, it will bea minutes, the full 12 rounds, it will be a genuine fight once the bell starts. a circus and a freak show, but still a fight. and huge, obscene amounts of money, i was reading that mayweather could get £230 million, mcgregor significantly less, probably 70 million — is this good for the sport at all? well, the thing is, they raise their money independent of the rest of the world of boxing, so the amateur boxers at the moment to boxing in a world championships in germany, they have nothing to do with this, most professional shows have nothing to do with this. this is almost a separate, stand—alone event, itjust happens to be boxing, but it has very little to do with boxing, other than that it is a boxing match. the sums they can make, the figures you

have given me, they could be double, isaid have given me, they could be double, i said double for both men. there might be some absolutely obscene and vulgar money raised from the pay—per—view sales in america of this fight. we have seen so much trash talk ahead of the fight, the way in is this morning, what the mood where you are? most people putting their money on mayweather? it is very strange, and i can't give you the exact sums, but 98% of bets are for conor mcgregor, this is according to the man that runs the betting office inside the famous mgm casino, 98% for conor mcgregor, and 296 casino, 98% for conor mcgregor, and 2% for mayweather. but more money is being waged on mayweather. just in the last 2a hours, two beds have been taken by the mgm, 1111 $.2 million, and one for $500,000. so the real gamblers are putting their

money on mayweather. —— one for $1.2 million. that was steve bunce speaking earlierfrom million. that was steve bunce speaking earlier from vegas. we can speak now to brad pickett, a former mma fighter who fought on the same bill as mcgregor several times in his ufc career, including the night mcgregor made his debut. and enzo maccarinelli, a former world champion boxer, is speaking to us from his home in swansea. i want to start with you, enzo, do you think, unlike steve, that actually mayweather will be absolutely fine in this fight, he might be 40, but he is undefeated?” think he will be fine. i think conor mcgregor is an amazing athlete and, you know, some of the skill set that he has in mma will go with him to boxing, but unfortunately the skill set he has, making people think a

lot, mayweather does that much better in boxing terms. does mcgregor have a chance? of course he does, if he catches mayweather flash, clean on the button come we could see mayweather get hurt, he has been hurt before but recovered well. 49 fighters before all have that same chance as well. what do you think? it is a very interesting fight. for me, mayweather has beaten 49 boxers before, but he is not fighting a boxer this time, it is someone from a different skill set. he is restricted with the skills you can use within the fight, but boxing has been around for many years, and the same techniques have always been the same techniques have always been the same. obviously, with the freedom of mixed martial arts, you have to express yourself a lot more asa have to express yourself a lot more as a fighter. just explain what it is for people who don't know. as a fighter. just explain what it is for people who don't knowm as a fighter. just explain what it is for people who don't know. if you look at olympic sports, it is like the triathlon of martial arts, you

know, you have to be good at boxing, wrestling, judo — you have to be a jack of all trades, rather than a master of one. you have to learn a lot more. but that is a misconception, that conor mcgregor, he is boxing, and a lot of my rounds have been boxing rounds. i have boxed a lot. so you think mcgregor has a chance? infighting terms, anyone who throws punches has a chance. of course. but he is fighting the best defensive boxer out there, and to knock someone out, you have to hit them, and he will find that hard, very frustrating. it all depends, for me, how mayweather wants to fight. if you want to make it exciting and, the mcgregor, it will be interesting and quite funny. but he might sit back?” will be interesting and quite funny. but he might sit back? i think he will sit back for a few rounds, try to suss out mcgregor, see what he's doing, and then i think brown six or

something like that, you will see mayweather really putting it on mcgregor. lots of people have been critical, particularly online, saying this is obscene, a farce, a fiasco, not a sporting spectacle, just obscene, two people grabbing as much money as they can. to a certain extent, yes, you know, but if you look at conor mcgregor, for example, the money he was on in ufc, he is going to quadruple his network in one fight on saturday night. how could he turn that fights down? he suggested it, didn't he? he was the one who put it out there in the first place. oh, 10096, one who put it out there in the first place. oh, 100%, he one who put it out there in the first place. oh, 10096, he is a marketing machine, and i agree with brad, mayweather was not fighting a boxer — he is fighting an mma artist, but unfortunately for mcgregor, it is boxing rules, and if it is boxing rules, i think

mayweather has seen it all before. a lot of mcgregor‘s high skill set, landing punches, twisting his hips, feints, he is not going to be able to do that on friday night, but going back to your question, how could he really turn that down? as mcgregor, he is set for life after this fight. all credit to him. what do you think, is it a farce, or is it great for future mma fighters to make the crossover and make loads more cash? i have got a feeling that a lot of people don't understand, even boxing, it is an entertainment business. people want to see fights, so if people are going to pay to watch it, people are going to put these shows on, the promoters. i think there will be a transformation with mma, because the pay—per—views we are doing, the numbers we are

getting, it is exceeding boxing... so mcgregor doesn't need to do this, then? well, he does, because why would he ever turn this down? he is going to end so much money for half a fight, only using his hands. he is going to be set for life. exactly, but he will definitely do this or something like this again. thank you something like this again. thank you so much for speaking to us. lots of you still getting in touch with us about this wi—fi lorries story that we have been talking about all morning, and then he says, wi—fi controlled lorries, what would happen if the leading lorry was involved in an accident or had a blow out? could the other drivers ta ke blow out? could the other drivers take control quickly enough? we are told the answer is yes. another tweet, big drugs are bad enough with drivers, never mind driverless, no, no, no! bbc newsroom live is coming

up no, no! bbc newsroom live is coming up next, thank you for your company, have a great day, and i will speak to you soon. a lot of dry weather to look forward to into the bank holiday weekend. today we have quite a bit of cloud across parts of the north and west, with its heavy rain for the potential localised flooding across northern ireland. further south than these, drier, less blue skies, or these, drier, less blue skies, or the west cloud, still some sunny spells coming through as we head into the afternoon. temperatures getting up to about 24, maybe even 25 celsius. tomorrow morning, we have a few showers first thing across eastern counties, they will clear, certainly a better day tomorrow for scotland and northern ireland. further south, hanging

tomorrow for scotland and northern ireland. furthersouth, hanging onto fine weather, temperatures up to 25 celsius, looking good as we head into the second part of the weekend as well. sunday is largely dry, just as well. sunday is largely dry, just a few showers into western parts of scotla nd a few showers into western parts of scotland later, temperatures still pretty warm, 60—24 celsius. bank holiday monday, rain across the north and west, but further south largely dry and sunny, temperatures up largely dry and sunny, temperatures up to 26 celsius. that is your latest forecast. this is bbc news and these are the top stories developing at 11.00: the police watchdog says paedophile ian watkins, could have been arrested nearly four years earlier, if south wales police had

investigated tip—offs about him. when someone comes forward with such a serious allegation, or indeed any allegation or report, it really shouldn't matter what they look like, who they are, what their lifestyle is, what they do. what's really important is, what are they saying? the boss of samsung is found guilty of bribery and embezzlement and sentenced to five years in prison. wifi controlled convoys of trucks could be on major british roads by the the end of next year as part of a plan to cut emissions and reduce congestion. also, major travel disruption expected over the weekend as millions prepare for the bank holiday getaway.