this is bbc news. the headlines at five. on the first day of the conservative party conference, the prime minister promises to review the whole system of university funding in england. people are worried about the level of debts that the students build up so we will look at it again. french soldiers have shot dead a man who stabbed to death two people outside the main railway station in marseille. the mayor of barcelona says over 460 people have been injured by riot police sent to catalonia to stop people voting in a disputed independence referendum. also in the next hour monarch airlines has been granted a 24—hour extension on its licence to sell package holidays. that means the government will refund customers and ensure they're not stranded if the low cost travel firm collapses. and at the closing ceremony of the invictus games, founder prince harry says he wants to expand the event in the future. good afternoon and welcome to bbc

news. theresa may has announced a series of measures ahead of the conservative party conference which she is hoping will appeal to younger voters. there's to be a freeze on tuition fees and students won't have to start paying back loans until they‘ re earning over twenty five thousand pounds a year. the prime minister says these are the first steps in a wider review of university funding. labour — which has promised to abolish tuition fees — has called the proposals "desperate." our political correspondent alex forsyth reports. bruce davidson has told delegates to unite and fight for the country, in

the past hour. the first day of conference, a big day for the prime minister. reporter: happy birthday, prime minister! she has not had much to celebrate lately. theresa may knows she has a lot to prove, to her party and voters. her first pitch is to the younger generation, with the promise to look again at how tuition fees work. when we set the policy, what we expected would happen would be a range, a diversity in the system, we would see universities perhaps offering shorter courses, universities offering courses at fees under the maximum. that has not happened, we have to look at it again. in the meantime, some changes have been announced already. fees will be frozen at £9,250, instead of increasing with inflation, and the amount graduates earn before they start to repay fees will go up from £21,000 to £25,000 a year. perhaps unsurprisingly, those at conference to protest were not impressed. a tuition cap must be good,

but preferably we would not have to pay tuition fees at all. the loans should kind of be scrapped and we should bring something else in. the prime minister says that this conference will show the conservatives have something to offer everyone. the first announcements were domestic policies, but what is really likely to dominate are the divisive issues of brexit and theresa may's own future. reporter: are you launching a leadership bid, mrjohnson? borisjohnson, leaving for manchester this morning, has again been accused of undermining the prime minister with another intervention on brexit. something she was asked about this morning. is he unsackable? look... look, let's be very clear about what we have in this government, we have a government determined to build a country that works for everyone. so despite some hidden frustration among seniorfigures, there is a united front, publicly. boris and i and the rest of the cabinet are entirely behind the prime minister on brexit. we know we've got to get

the best deal for britain. we know that we've got to make sure that it's a deal that works for the rest of the eu. the prime minister's florence speech set out a road map for making that happen. but the issues and challenges facing the tory party will undoubtedly emerge, even if only on the edges of conference. alex forsyth, bbc news, manchester. 0ur chief political correspondent vicki young is at the conservative party conference in manchester. in the last hour sober leader of the scottish conservatives ruth davidson has urged her party to unite and fight. it is a slightly strange atmosphere, the conservatives were the winners in the general election but some walking around as if they had indeed lost. i'm joined by the conservative mp stephen howard. how would you rate the mood, there is a slight feeling that you've lost the election customer obviously against

expectations everyone would have been hoping we would have done considerably better. as looking at any other elections, if you had 44% of the poll you would have a majority. so it was a disappointment but what i have been surprised about is the prime minister spoke this morning and damian green set out a domestic agenda, and i think the general election is over, we need to learn those lessons. the mood on picking up a slightly more positive thanl picking up a slightly more positive than i was hoping. and do you think that you know why it did not go as well and do you think theresa may knows why? i think there were many numberof knows why? i think there were many number of reasons, some things that in the manifesto did not appeal, some not communicated in an efficient way. as i think theresa may stood up this morning and said she accepted the responsibility for calling the election and the consequences and she is going to put right. i think a number of people wa nt right. i think a number of people want to work with her to make sure

we can. and damian green this afternoon in particular set up what we need to do, stop talking about brexit all the time because people are worried about schools, health service, jobs. it is only the conservative party that can deliver oi'i conservative party that can deliver on that. today she announced an extension of help to buy, talk about housing and the younger generation. is this just housing and the younger generation. is thisjust all going housing and the younger generation. is this just all going to cost more money and is any suggestion that philip hammond is ready to splash any cash? it is not going to cost more money everywhere, there is no money tree, things have to be properly costed underfunded. but when can do things for people to help themselves, such as mentoring. the key thing about housing is it is a big issue at the moment and we need to prove we have solutions. not just help to buy but other announcements later in the week on other things especially concerning freeing up the ability for councils

to build more houses. now boris johnson is about to or maybe has just arrived at this conference, there is a clamour around him as a lwa ys there is a clamour around him as always but many of your colleagues feel he is positioning himself for a leadership contest whenever that might come. what do you think # i do not think there will be a leadership contest. that is the key point. you think theresa may can last until 2022? i think she can last for the considerable future. but certainly there is no immediate demand for a leadership contest and the atmosphere here i think is showing clearly that that is the last thing people who have just bought a general election one. boris johnson clearly wa nts general election one. boris johnson clearly wants to make his position clearly wants to make his position clear on brexit, i think many have read that to be a leadership challenge, i'm not entirely sure about is the weight you should read it. borisjohnson is passionate about certain things around brexit andl about certain things around brexit and i would urge that now was not

the time for a leadership contest. you have —— you have not detected amongst your colleagues any moves for a leadership change? people always do, in my whole time at the conservative party, there have always been rumours about reshuffles, leadership challenges, and of course there is talk about it. but i do not think the talk is going to result in any action in the future. and what the conference needs to be about is how to govern britain and get on with the things that people are concerned about. thank you very much. so the mood here according to sam is upbeat despite that disappointing result. the key thing will be the analysis of what went wrong for the conservatives and what they do about trying to change it. many thanks. a man has been shot dead by the french army, after killing two women with a knife in marseille. the attack took place at the main train station in the french city. a police source says the attacker

shouted out god is great in arabic during the attack — and that the incident is likely a "terrorist act." france's counter—terrorism prosecutor has opened an investigation and the french secretary of state has said they are heading to the scene. earlier i spoke to our paris correspondent hugh schofield, who gave this update. this was at the main railway station in the centre of marseille. there was a man in his late 20s who brandished a large knife and attacked two women, one in her 20s, one in her 40s, and killed them both, i am sorry to say. one had her throat cut and the other was stabbed to death. the man was then shot by soldiers who were patrolling in the station, as they patrol in stations across france and other public places as part of the emergency measures here. he was shot, did not die immediately, they managed to

handcuff him, but he died shortly afterwards. the important thing to note is that this is being treated as a terrorist incident to the extent that the terrorist branch of the prosecutor's office in paris has taken charge of the investigation, which means they think it is a terrorist attack. there are reports the man shouted allah hu akbar before launching his attack. we do not know more than that. there is no point in speculating too much about who this man is or what he did or what his motivation was. what i will say is that in the last months there have been a steady pace of attacks carried out by people who are on the face of it loners, some of whom would be described as having mental problems of one kind or another, but who seem also to have come under the influence of islamist propaganda. and just in the last minute reuters

news agency has reported a french police source as saying that the attack suspect in marseilles was known to the authorities for more crimes. violent clashes between spanish riot police and voters in catalonia have left more than four hundred people injured. the authorities have been trying to stop an independence referendum that they say is unconstitutional. the catalan leader has condemned what he called police brutality after rubber bullets and batons were used. tonight's football match between barcelona and las palmas will be played behind closed doors because of the disturbances. gavin lee is in barcelona. spanish police smashing their way into a polling station this morning in to run. using ourfunds, rubber bullets and forced to keep back

voters who stand in their way. after how the spanish guard treated as he says, breaking into our enclosure and stealing computers and treating people the way they did, we're going to activate plan b, taking the ballots outside so all residents can vote. the spanish government has insisted that they are behaving in accordance with the law and a breakaway accordance with the law and a brea kaway vote accordance with the law and a breakaway vote of a region the size of belgium cannot go ahead. many voters here dismissed the claim. we have no choice after seeing the massive amount of people that wanted to vote, around 80% of the population of the country. they had to vote in this referendum. we are about freedom and democracy. this is exactly what the catalan government we re exactly what the catalan government were hoping for, bringing the power of politics to the streets, and legal or not people have been queueing up since friday, hiding out. the police have been and gone

and across catalonia the numbers are growing and that is exactly what this is about. whether it is legitimate or not, it is the turnout that counts. the last seven years the government has said say no and now the people here, we organised a vote and they sent thousands of police and suppressed the citizens who are peacefully waiting to vote. calls for independence in catalonia have been building for decades, young and old have taken to the streets. but there are many others who will stay at home, not wanting to see the region split. those voting have been told if large numbers vote overwhelmingly for yes, independence could be declared in 48 hours. both sides are claiming that they have the right to act and neither are backing down. and gavin gave us this update a short time ago. right now this is on the outskirts of one of the suburbs in barcelona. this is a middle—class area, a well—heeled suburb.

this is a community centre and around us hundreds of if not one or 2000 people stretching all the way around the block. the police have been to other centres, there have been flashes of violence, people are pulled away being told it is illegal. the spanish government said they are in their rights to be proportionate. we have seen rubber bullets and batons used. the catalan health magistrates say 465 people have been injured and treated in hospital. so far the police have not been here. inside the polling station, with the ballot boxes the volunteers say they have a contingency plan. if the police come to seize the boxes and stop voting they will try to hide them. i will try to speak to some people. do we have some voters? tell me why you are here and why you want to vote today.

i decided i have to be here because i think it is right and because, it is something that is easy to understand for me and it is about showing people what we want and what we deserve, maybe. i am here now because we don't want to to have police here taking our boxes. you have seen the atmosphere elsewhere, the police have come with force, they say it is illegal. are you scared the police will come here... you could be moved away very quickly. of course i am quite scared but i also think we are strong enough to protect ourselves and to protect our desires and our belief. i don't know.

how would you describe the atmosphere? i think it is kind of, we are calm, we are happy, but we are also nervous and concerned about what is happening and quite worried. thank you for talking to me. come with me this way, not everybody wants to vote yes, not everyone wants to vote. about 7.5 million people in catalonia. 5 million eligible to vote. the spanish government say they should not be voting. let's find an anti—referendum campaigner. tell me, why it is so important for you that this does not happen today and give me your sense of this. it is important because i love spain, i love catalonia and i think

catalonia and spain would be together for centuries and centuries. it is a very, very rough way to demand it, to demand some interest, other interests. do you feel uncomfortable about what is happening today, about the future of this place and spain? yes. i am very sorry. thank you for talking to me. let's look around us again. this lady, like many others who do not want to vote, they hide away. some people have come out to vote and voted no. but we will see what the turnout is tonight. this is one of about 1000 polling stations which have not yet been closed. others are still being closed. we still don't know not know how

they will count the votes because the police are watching over the communication centre. polling closes at apm. —— 8pm. if there is a high turnout, the catalonian president says they would call for independence in 48 hours. the headlines. 0n the first day of the conservative party conference theresa may says the government will look again at the whole system of student finance in england. french shoulders so —— or dead who called —— or killed two women in a knife attack outside the main railway station in marseilles. and the mayor of barcelona says more than 460 people have been injured in clashes across catalonia as police try to stop a referendum on independence from taking place. the low cost travel company monarch

has been granted a 24 hour extension to operate as a package holiday travel company. for almost as long as package holidays have been popular, there has been some form of protection in case business fails. the government scheme should ensure is that not only do you get a refund if you book ahead, but if you are already abroad, you can get home. companies need to prove they are financially robust to get a licence in the first place. under intense pressure from a weak pound and shrinking demand, monarch is trying to find a buyer for part or all of its shorthaul operation. it is engaged in talks with a large number of potential investors. a 24—hour licence extension means the airline can continue selling in the charter market and customers will

still be covered. they also needed a temporarylicence last year. ultimately, 10,000 passengers already out of the could be affected. the civil aviation authority is thought to be working on backup plans, using other airlines for the return leg. it says it will provide daily updates. the airline says it continues to work on its future on flights operating as normal. earlierjoe lynam earlier joe lynam told earlierjoe lynam told me the airline is currently facing a perfect storm of problems. airline is currently facing a perfect storm of problemsm airline is currently facing a perfect storm of problems. it could go very much down to the wire as to what happens to the package holiday pa rt what happens to the package holiday part of the business because that is what we're about now, the package business is about 5% of the total sample business. the rest of it is a low—cost airline, point—to—point flights all around europe. the danger is if for example they cannot get their licence renewed, that it

could spark contagion, people may lose confidence in the rest of the airline if that is the case. now we have a perfect storm for the shortfall travel business. egypt and turkey where huge market for monarch before terror attacks reduced that market to almost nothing. so instead they are competing in the old traditional markets of spain, greece, portugal and italy but there is already a slew of companies operating in those markets so that makes them tough to compete with. prices are being pushed down as our profits and that means struggling airlines. air berlin has already gone to the wall and this is the market that monarch is operating in as it heads into the winter schedules. so a perfect storm going on for them. police in canada have arrested a man after a series of

violent attacks including the stabbing of a police officer in edmonton. the man is also accused of using the truck to drive into an injured a number of pedestrians during a high—speed chase with police. police say an islamic state group flag was found in the vehicle. a 17—year—old boy has been charged with several offences, in connection with two incidents on the m3 last month. the second incident last weekend caused travel chaos, as officers shut a section of the motorway for most of the day. ten days after puerto rico was devastated by hurricane maria, the situation in the american territory remains desperate. the entire island is still without power and there's a shortage of drinking water, food and fuel. there's also deepening political tension over relief efforts. while much—needed aid is now arriving, president trump has continued to angrily defend the us response on twitter. the governor of puerto rico gave this update. 0ur priorities at this juncture, keeping food delivery, delivery of gas, making sure that the hospitals are working, making sure that we get more hospitals online and that they

get their diesel and their fuel. establishing as best a mechanism for robust communication, whether it be telecoms or otherwise and the air traffic control so that we can get more assets here in puerto rico. the government is also working in conjunction and collaboration with fema. 0ur housing department, the office of the first lady, the family department are also doing efforts to distribute food and water in different areas in puerto rico and we are coordinating all of the logistics with fema so that we can make sure that they arrive at their destination. austria's law banning face veils — such as burqas — has begun. only an estimated 150 austrian women wear the full face veil. the measures are seen

as an attempt to counter the rise of the far—right, ahead of a general election next month. there are around 700,000 muslims in a country with a population of about 8 million. bethany bell reports from austria's capital vienna. austria is banning the full face veil in public places. headscarves are allowed but the tiny minority of muslim women who wear the burqa or niqab now face a fine. it is estimated only 150 women here actually wear one. the law doesn'tjust target muslim veils, it also restricts the use of medical face masks and clown make—up. this shop sells clothes for conservative muslim women. they would not let us film inside, but on their website they do show ads for the niqab. it is very rare to see muslim women wearing full faced veils, here in austria. those who do so are believed

to be young and converts. the coalition government of the social democrats and the conservatives says the law is about standing up for women's rights. in a free society, we have to protect the values of the free society, and one of the values is the equal rights of man and woman and not ban the woman from the public. we cannot accept a woman as a second—class person. this election poster by the far—right freedom party says islamisation should be stopped. fears about muslims are wide spread, although there have not been major terrorist attacks here. carla amina baghajati, from the islamic community in austria, says she is not in favour of face veils but she does not like the new law. muslims feel that populism is taking over and they are very worried that they are made responsible for attacks.

we need a feeling of us, in our society, and these laws do not help but are counter—productive. tourism officials are concerned too. they say those most likely to be affected by the ban are wealthy tourists from the gulf. arrests could be bad for business. bethany bell, bbc news, vienna. prince harry says he hopes to expand the invictus games in the future, saying the "sky's the limit". speaking at the closing ceremony of the event for injured service personnel and veterans he congratulated the competitors for the example they had shown the world, as andrew plant reports. the final day of competition in canada in the games set up by prince harry in 2014. 17 nations, over 500 participants, for a week—long event that helps wounded servicemen and women with physical

and psychological rehabilitation. the closing ceremony then, a star—studded ending with some of music's biggest names and recognition for one of the game's biggest stars the uk's mark 0rmerod, a multiple medal winner, the former royal marine commando recognised with the exceptional performance award. to the thousands who filled the stand this week and the millions who watched at home, let me issue you a challenge. do notjust move on from these games with happy memories. instead, make an invictus goal for yourself. the invictus games are not just for the already determined. these games are for those who need it most. please help us find them. as the scene sets on toronto's games, the flag was passed to the next host.

it will be game on down under. i will see you in australia. sydney taking on the duties. now looking forward to the next invictus games. time for a look at the weather with nick miller. aduu nick miller. adult and damp sunday, something a bit brighter arriving across western parts of the uk but getting windy through the night and into monday. lots of us dry overnight, showers in western scotland and parts of northern ireland. but the wind picking up and that means temperatures not going down too far. but a blustery start to monday with some severe gales possible in exposed parts. there could be some travel disruption as a result. north

wales experiencing the odd shower but many southern areas staying dry. rain coming into south—west england towards the end of the day. then for tuesdayit towards the end of the day. then for tuesday it is quieter, the wind easing but more rain heading towards parts of scotland, northern ireland and northern england on wednesday. hello. this is bbc news. theresa may announces plans to freeze university tuition fees in england on the first day of the conservative party conference. it's part of a series of measures designed to appeal to younger voters. french soldiers have shot dead a man who stabbed two women to death outside the main railway station in marseille. a police source says the suspect was known to the authorities. the mayor of barcelona says over 460 people have been injured in clashes with riot police sent to catalonia to stop people voting in a disputed

independence referendum. the low—cost travel company monarch has been granted a 24—hour extension to its licence to sell package holidays. it means customers who book with the company until midnight will be protected in the event of a collapse. let's cross to damien over at the bbc sports centre. thanks, good afternoon to you. red bull's max verstappen has won the malaysian grand prix in a thrilling race in sa—pang. there was drama even before the race began, because kimi raikkonen's ferrari had a problem with its battery, which ruled him out of the race. lewis hamilton finished second — but extends his lead in the championship standings. tom clarkson reports. this was the 19th and last malaysian grand prix, because the race is not on the 2018 calendar. everybody wa nted on the 2018 calendar. everybody wanted to lay on a good show, and

the sport delivered with its fifth different victor of 2017. sebastian several other back of the grid, this race was lewis hamilton's to lose. but mercedes had struggled, and the briton's lead lasted just three laps. read all‘s max verstappen charged through with the confidence of the multiple world champion he overtook. with verstappen no threat to hamilton's title ambitions, that wasn't too troubling. but the surge through the field was. the german broker lap record on the weight of the fourth place. victory was the perfect birthday present for verstappen, who turned 20 yesterday. a great start to a new decade, well done! it was bittersweet for vettel, the crash damaged his ferrari and repairing it could mean a grid penalty. it wasn't the result that

hamilton hoped for, but he extended his championship lead to 34 point. we have got some work to do with the car. there is still work to do, races ahead. we've just got to keep pushing. of course he has more to lose than me in the championship. from turn one, i could do my race. the car was unbelievable. if i needed to speed up, ice by doc. it's amazing, it's a very tough race. —— i sped up. max verstappen is understandably delighted. lewis hamilton satisfied with his day's work to have increased that lead over sebastian vettel in the world championship. but ferrari, reliability really is the ricky heel at the minute. vettel hampered during qualifying, hamilton hampered during qualifying, hamilton hampered during the race. they need to solve that if the full has any chance of winning the world championship —— if vettel has any chance. it is the japanese grand prix next weekend at the world —famous suzu ka

japanese grand prix next weekend at the world—famous suzuka circuit. arsenal made it six wins and a draw in their last seven matches after a comfortable 2—0 at home to brighton. nacho monreal scored his first arsenal goal in nearly five years, while alex iwobi got the second on a special day for the club's manager. tim hague reports. arsene wenger has been coming into work at arsenalfor 21 arsene wenger has been coming into work at arsenal for 21 yesterday. and against opponents brighton, playing in the top flight for the first time since 1984, there was no substitute for experience. the home side can to knew the fine recent form straightaway. alexandre la cazette form straightaway. alexandre lacazette hitting the post inside a minute, and the pressure coming, with the ball being cleared off the line before eventually being is about falling to nacho monreal. brighton have been finding their feet over the past few weeks in the premier league, and they almost found a fantastic equaliser. the brighton goalkeeper had a busy afternoon. a stunning stop to keep it at one, yet the second would come. a beautiful touch from alexis

sanchez, the finish from alex iwobi. there might have been more for arsenal. ryan, again excellent. but 2-0 arsenal. ryan, again excellent. but 2—0 was how it ended. a decent 21st for bingo, don't party too hard tonight. we lost for the bit in our concentration. in our decision—making, then it becomes a bit harder. we tried many times to get close to score the third goal, but it didn't come. more positives than negatives. it was a difficult game for us. but that was always going to be the case. when you come to be is grounds, and certainly with the quality that they've got, the quality that they can bring off the bench. it's about making sure that you're staying in the game. burnley beat everton1—0 to increase the pressure on their under—fire manager ronald koeman.

a goal from jeff hendrick was enough to continue burnley‘s best ever start to a premier league season. alex gulrajani reports. there's always been a sweet welcome mat goodison park, and ronald cumin is trying to make it a little less so for visitors. after new summer signings are yet to find their feet. gylfi sigurdsson guilty of letting an early chance slip by. wayne rooney could only watch on, it reunited with the everton bench for the first time since returning, and with a prime view of a burnley team far more custom to reach other. hendrick finishing off a 24 pass move. the kind of play he expected from the team in blue. yet everton we re from the team in blue. yet everton were farfrom from the team in blue. yet everton were far from offering from the team in blue. yet everton were farfrom offering up from the team in blue. yet everton were far from offering up anything similar. a tough watch for home fans picked up after the break. chances crept closer to go. three goals since returning, no chance of another today. dominik kaiser glueing got closer, but there was no way through. everton fans making

their feelings known at full—time. as did the visiting fans, a sweet start to burnley‘s premier league season continues. we've got to stay resolute and work hard for everything that we can. i thought there was a good mixture today. it was a fantastic goal. i don't know how many passes it was, but it was a lot. it culminated in a long ball. i think it was a fantastic bit of vision. and then mixing it up with a few new to gritty defending, good shape, good energy, and the will and desire to see a game through. i think that mixture is important. desire to see a game through. i think that mixture is importantlj can't think that mixture is important.” can't complain today about my players. i think we showed the right attitude. we showed really that commitment, that aggression, what we need to play and win the game. we had big chances in the beginning, then the game will be totally different. and, you know, if you

analyse your opponent of the day, if you go down in the score, that's really tough. newcastle are drawing 1—1 at half time with liverpool at st james's park in the afternoon's final premier league match. philippe countinho put jurgen klopp's side in front with another stunning long range effort. but liverpool's defensive shortcomings were exposed yet again asjoselu raced clear to equalise before the break. sheffield wednesday claimed the spoils in the yorkshire derby against leeds united winning 3—0 at hillsborough. gary hooper struck twice in the first half, but kieran lee's effort ten minutes before the end was the pick of the goals as the 0wls sealed a first win in four championship matches. it saw leeds slip to fifth on goal difference. wednesday move up to 12th. barcelona's laliga ba rcelona's laliga match barcelona's laliga match against las palmas is currently being played behind closed doors at the nou camp following violent clashes on the day of the catalan independence referendum. as spanish police attempted to shut the polls, the barca players came out wearing the catalunyan flag

in front of an entirely empty stadium. the club had wanted the fixture postponed, but la liga authorities and the spanish football federation disagreed. barcelona won 3—0. frankie dettori has won europe's richest horse race for a record fifth time. he rode the favourite enable to victory in the prix de l‘arc de triomphe. (00v) it was a dominant performance from dettori and enable who led right from the start in chantilly. thejohn gosden trained philly was priced at evens with some bookmakers before the race. 25 to one shot cloth of stars came in second just ahead of ulysses ridden byjim crowley. 0ne game in rugby union's premiership today. bath have spoiled wasps‘ 150th anniversary celebrations with a 25—9 victory at the ricoh arena. the sides were level at the end of the first half on 9—9, but bath pulled away after the break. semesa roko—de—guni raced onto a jonathanjoseph chip kick late on to grab the game's only try and seal victory. it's the first time wasps have lost three in a row in the premiership since january 2016. wembley has been hosting the second

of four nfl games this season. and there have more protests. three miami dolphin players knelt during the american national anthem, while some new orleans saints linked arms. in what was initially a really low—scoring game, the saints are dominating — 20—0 the score. they are into the final few minutes at wembley. and that is all the sport for now. you can keep up—to—date with more of those stories on the bbc‘s board website. we will have much more in sportsday tonight at 6:30pm. now it's time for me the author. —— meet the author. siri hustvedt is a prize—winning american novelist who also writes about art and philosophy, and lectures in psychiatry. so it's not surprising that in her book of essays, a woman looking at men looking at women, her mind races back and forth from the visual arts

to sex, to the science of the mind, and of course to the question of how we see ourselves. welcome. siri, you begin this book in your introduction to the essays by recalling cp snow and his famous description of two cultures — a scientific culture and an artistic culture, literary culture, which couldn't talk to each other in the ‘50s. and you seem to be suggesting that we still haven't got over that. yes, i think that that very famous lecture that caused a great deal of controversy is something that most americans and people in the uk remember, so i wanted to begin by asking that question — have we come much further?

i think the gulf continues to exist. i think what's changed is that science certainly has taken pre—eminence over what snow called literary intellectuals. literary intellectuals don't have the same clout as they may have had in the 1950s. one of the things he was lamenting at that time wasn't so much scientists' ignorance of shakespeare but the other way round. if you said to, you know, a great literary scholar, "what's the second law of thermodynamics? they wouldn't know. that's right, and i think snow has a point. becoming literate or reasonably literate in both the arts and the sciences is extremely useful. well you are... you talk about art, you talk about how we deal with visual images. many of these essays reminded me of people likejohn berger, for example, writing

in ways of seeing, which was almost a revolutionary book. he was writing from a marxist perspective but it was all about how we look at things, which most of us are often not conscious of. yes, i think the way we frame questions in the culture is vital, and i think we need multiple frames. so, if you are literate in both the sciences and the humanities, you have access to a number of different perspectives and that allows you to dance, as i call it, among those perspectives and solve problems in the particular discipline that you are working in. that's the crucial point. you are... not uniquely but you are splendidly placed to do this because you are a novelist, a very successful novelist, you love the visual arts but you also, as we speak you are on your way to deliver a paper at a neurology conference. you are making a case for the importance of thinking, of looking at an image and trying to work it out, of looking

at ourselves and peeling away the layers of superstition or falsehood in getting to the real thing. are you concerned about the kind of culture we now have? well, i think we have to be aware that our perception of anything includes bias so there is some agreement now that generally we see what we expect to see, that perception is not passive. we are notjust taking in the real world, but we are actively creating it through our expectations. and imprinting our thoughts and beliefs... yes, and that would mean that perception is, by definition, conservative. so we bring our biases to our perception of things. one way, say in a work of art, to get past that to some degree i think is to spend a very long time in front of say a single canvas or work of art, and then time begins to play.

you write about this, you know, very tellingly and almost with a sense of tension, about how long you should spend, you know, looking at a great picture. if it's a picture that will take that attention. yes. and what you get from it over time. say, if you care about an image, if you care about the work of art, two hours will give you a lot, i think, and it will change your ideas about the picture. rather than racing around a gallery and saying, how many have i seen? yes, there's a pursuit of greatness, right? and greatness will influence how we look at an image. we've had that, er, attributions are changed so a painting that was attributed to rembrandt is then discovered not to be a rembrandt, and what happens — the museum either puts it

in the basement or moves it and the spectators' experience with the painting will be changed by the attribution. we all know this is true. one of the things that i think is difficult to avoid is that you have been writing these essays in an age, particularly in the united states but not only in america, where there has been almost a deliberate attempt to say, you know, cultural complexity really doesn't matter. we shouldn't care about this stuff. and of course, with respect to the sciences, where there has been an attempt by some people to say, well, why do you believe these guys in white coats? exactly. for somebody who's going about this kind of thinking, that's a pretty depressing atmosphere. it is, so we live in the sound—bite world, everyone knows that,

but also the anti—science movement, you could almost call it. people who say, well, i simply don't believe it, i don't believe climate change. so what is science? science moves and changes and discovers new things all the time, so it's not a static reality. at the same time, there is a consensus about what is true or more true. that's what a scientific finding is. that could change over time, but to deny that scientific consensus is extremely dangerous to my mind. but it's equally important to go back to where we began, in your view, that we take artistic sensibility and thought just as seriously, so the way we apply our own minds to beauty and truth. that's right, so every discipline has its strengths and handicaps. i think that's important to understand. so scientists are not always

philosophically sophisticated about what they are doing. sometimes the work rests on paradigms that they have not interrogated. philosophers can help that, philosophers can help understand how the scientific consensus is arrived at. or, for example, historical changes. historians, i think, are invaluable in showing why some scientific ideas are accepted at a particular moment and others are discarded. we need all of these points of view to think carefully and subtly about who we are, what we are, and how we become what we are. in a sense, what you are arguing for is the release of what was called in a famous book, you know, a long time ago, the liberal imagination. not in a political sense but innocence of, you know, applying minds to problems in an open way. yes.

i actually gave a lecture at massachusetts general hospital in january, and it was a grand rounds lecture, but i got the extra bonus of being taken into research facilities. and they presented, these young scientists presented their research to me, and at the end we began to talk about multidisciplinary approaches. and i said to them what i deeply believe — i am not telling you to read philosophy and literature and look at visual art because i think we should all be well rounded, lovely people. i'm telling you this because i think it will help you solve problems in your own work. i believe that. siri hustvedt, author of the essays in a woman looking at men looking at women. thank you very much. oh, thank you having me. a day of violence in the spanish region of catalonia as police try to prevent a referendum on independence from taking place. hundreds of people are injured after the authorities act,

saying the catalan vote is illegal. we'll have the latest from barcelona. here — as the conservative party conference gets underway — the prime minister says her cabinet is united — but how will she deal with her foreign secretary? issey unsackable. let's be very clear about what we have here in this government. we have a government that is determined to build a country that works for everyone. in england university tuition fees will now be frozen and graduates able to earn more before repayments kick in. and in sport lewis hamilton extends his lead in formula 0ne's world championship after coming second in malaysia. good evening.

there were scenes of violence and chaos on the streets of catalonia today as it held an independence vote that the spanish state had declared illegal. catalan officials say more than three hundred people have been injured in clashes with riot police who'd tried to stop the ballot from taking place. spain's deputy prime minister has insisted the security forces acted proportionally. 0ur correspondent tom burridge reports from barcelona. gunfire spanish police, not in control. chased out the neighbourhood in the barcelona. by people who wanted to vote in this region's disputed referendum. one of the policeman ta ke referendum. one of the policeman take him by the head, take out the glasses and then he started to kick

my dad here. the first one was here. he kick here. they are crazy. they had raided a school used as a polling station. catalonia's regional government which wants independence had disobeyed the spanish government and organised today's vote. and 79, maria theresa told me. ijust wanted to in peace. —— to vote in peace. these are the people facing down police. these are riot police drafted in - other today making was today 5:77 5 ixfzf stations across polling stations across catalonia. as spanish police moved to disrupt the vote. here grabbing ballot boxes inside the school. then jostling

with local catalan firemen and arguing with officers from catalonia's own regional police. spain's police in a spanish region, a foreign force today. but many did vote, savouring a precious moment. he ran catalonia's devolved government when five years ago with popular support he began pressuring spain for popular support he began pressuring spainfora popular support he began pressuring spain for a scottish style referendum. they are peaceful people trying to cast their vote and there a violent spanish state that is trying to prevent people from voting. but spain's teddy prime minister said the actions of national police were professional and proportionate. she said the regional government was responsible for organising an illegal vote. so

this evening as people continue to vote, tension across catalonia. the spanish government has tried today to exert its authority. but there is more hate here twardzik leaders in madrid now. —— towards leaders. we are yet to find out how many people have been able to vote today. the spanish government has always said it is the spanish courts telling the spanish police had it right but their strategy of physically preventing people from voting has the potential to backfire big—time. if you'd asked me whether 24 hours ago if i thought catalonia's regional government could declare independence from spain in the next couple of days without madrid's concerned i would have said it was not likely. but after today's ugly scenes i think it is a very real possibility. from barcelona, thank you. theresa may today announced changes to the repayment of tuition fees in england and help for young people to buy homes.

as the conservative conference opened in manchester, she insisted that her cabinet was united in building a country that worked for everyone, and in its approach to brexit. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg, reports ga.kjiih;éis—lé3377 after labour courted votes promising to scrap university fees in england, they'll be frozen. and there's a confirmation of a rethink, too. when we set that policy, what we expected was going to happen is there would be a range, a diversity in the system. that we'd see universities perhaps offering shorter courses, that we'd see universities offering courses at fees under the maximum.

that hasn't happened. we've got to look at it again.