this is bbc news. the headlines: calls for unity in spain has a huge rally ta kes calls for unity in spain has a huge rally takes place in madrid following last weekend's disputed referendum for catalan independence. concerns for one of northern ireland's biggest employers after us authorities impose more heavy ta riffs authorities impose more heavy tariffs on bombardier planes. senior conservatives rally around the pm as borisjohnson conservatives rally around the pm as boris johnson tells conservatives rally around the pm as borisjohnson tells mps to get behind theresa may and turn the fire onjeremy corbyn. also in the next hour, questions over whether travel firms are giving accurate information on holiday protection. a study finds in eight out of ten cases staff couldn't confirm whether customers were at all protected. and in halfan customers were at all protected. and in half an hour, however band from the 60s are still paying for a controversial publicity stunt involving harold wilson. good afternoon and welcome to bbc

news. huge rallies are taking place gci’oss news. huge rallies are taking place across spain as tensions continue over catalonia's demand for independence. in madrid, tens of thousands of people are showing their support for spanish unity. across the country campaigners calling for dialogue between madrid and barcelona have gathered outside town halls, as gavin lee reports. madrid, this morning. tens of thousands of people, responding to the spanish government's call to take to the streets and show support to try to keep their country together. three days from an expected announcement by the catalan government to separate the region. this is barcelona, protests of a different kind. dressed in white, thousands who call themselves the silent majority, feeling caught in the middle

and scared of what comes next. the movement was born by social media, under the hashtag, less talk. iam here, personally, as i feel we need a dialogue. politicians have not been doing theirjob really well. our sole objective is that people and above all, politicians talk to each other. we are seen for too long this confrontation between both sides, and we think that now the people must show that we want dialogue. the same on the streets of alicante too, and elsewhere, the movement shows a wider sense of the frays but while there is no sign of dialogue between the spanish and the catalan governments there are sides that those on both sides could be willing to soften their position. gavin joins gavinjoins me now. do you sense that there is much including

catalonia as well as the rest of spain for some sort of dialogue to defuse the situation? yeah, it has quietened down a bit here. but it was full here of thousands of people saying there must be a need to talk, not just here but saying there must be a need to talk, notjust here but in seville, madrid and alica nte, massive notjust here but in seville, madrid and alicante, massive crowds turning out. the one thing worth saying is whilst there is a call for dialogue, what we are hearing from the catalan government at the moment is that if there is going to be a delay until tuesday before carlos pigem on speech to parliament, there will be a 48—hour period after that where he describes how unilateral independence would work, and that ta kes independence would work, and that takes us to thursday. their preferences mediation, whether somewhere else in europe, possibly having unofficial referendum. so not

going through it like this but seeing the spanish godmother will talk. at the moment there is no sign of that. he marched his followers to the top of the hill. what will he do next? will any sign of goodwill, any sign of give and take from the government of marianna roy? two things to bear in mind. the spanish government has kept a pretty consistent and hard line when it comes to any type of negotiation, saying it is against the constitution, that they are agitators. why do you negotiate? as soon as agitators. why do you negotiate? as soon as you agitators. why do you negotiate? as soon as you lead in the swiss, who offered to mediate yesterday, you expect both parties to give some room for manoeuvre, and that puts the spanish government on a difficult footing. i am told behind closed doors there may be some private negotiation that they may be looking at, but nothing confirmed by the spanish government. briefly, we

are hearing some voices from the past in catalonia. the old president saying to the newspapers yesterday he believes there are ministers who feel it is not the moment for independence. they need to work out how they do this with fiscal and judicial powers. that could take time. that may explain the slight delay until next week. nothing really clear at the moment. thank you. there are renewed fears for the future of jobs thank you. there are renewed fears for the future ofjobs at thank you. there are renewed fears for the future of jobs at the bombardier aerospace factory in belfast. the us government has announced a further increase of ta riffs announced a further increase of tariffs on planes made by the company, making it prohibitively expensive to import them. the united states claims bombardier has received unfair financial support from the uk and canada, where the planes are assembled. john vine reports. —— jawline. bombardier and its predecessor, shorts, have been at the heart of the manufacturing economy in belfast for decades. 4,000 skilled workers make hi—tech

composite wings in a province that does not have many of those jobs. but over the past fortnight, potential american tariffs have placed a huge question mark over their future. in a new blow, the us commerce department slapped a further 80% tariff on bombardier planes, meaning all of its largest aircraft could soon face import duties of up to 300% in america. it looms very large over these workers and it is time for this british government to actually step up for british workers. we see the british government being bullied now, the british government being bullied by boeing. the eu needs to step in, because they are being bullied now, too. it needs to stop and it needs to stop now. this is the plane that the americans object to — the c series, is assembled in canada with wings made and sent from belfast. but the americans claim it's received $1 billion in subsidies from the canadians, which allows it is to undercut boeing in bidding for contracts. this all puts theresa may in a bind.

her pact with the dup keeps her in power and the bombardier factory is dup heartland. aerospace and aviation have been at the forefront of globalisation. we have no tariffs on products anywhere in the world. we have an international regulatory regime which has worked extremely well. these type of measures threaten competition and innovation and that is bad news for consumers wherever they are. but she also knows that boeing employs nearly 19,000 elsewhere in the uk and is building a factory in sheffield. these 300% tariffs are recommendations by one branch of the us government. if there is no solution, though, they will come into force in february. in that time, the nails of thousands of workers here and trade negotiators on both sides of the atlantic will be bitten down to the quick. gavin robinson is an mp from the

democratic unionist party, which is supporting theresa may's government. he says he will try to discuss the issue with fellow mps because the government needs to take more serious action. what i have found most unsettling at the bullish statements from boeing and wilbur ross, the commerce secretary. i didn't think they would be so protectionist. for that reason on monday i will be raising this in parliament, because i think what we have been doing thus far has not been enough. what should the british government now do? is it time to start looking at dropping the boeing co ntra cts ? start looking at dropping the boeing contracts? the expectation has a lwa ys contracts? the expectation has always been a negotiated settlement between boeing, bombardier and the canadian government. now they are talking tough, it is time for the british government and the canadian

government to up the game. what you mean by that? rather than talking, we have to see the colour of the money. there is a four or five—month month when we can get a resolution. that is where our efforts have to go. is it looking at contracts that have been given to boeing? the british government have a lot of cards to play in their deck, so do the canadian comment, bombardier are very much involved as well. we have to come added from all sides. the potential risks to belfast, to bombardier and to what is a world leading innovative aircraft is far too great. gavin robinson. foreign secretary boris johnson too great. gavin robinson. foreign secretary borisjohnson has become the latest senior party figure to voices support for theresa may, telling a group of conservative mps that they should get behind the pm. his intervention comes after former party chairman grant schapps said about 30 tory mps backed his call for a leadership contest. mrjohnson

said, we havejust had an for a leadership contest. mrjohnson said, we have just had an election and people are fed a up with all this malarkey. it comes after the leader of the scottish conservatives, ruth davidson, told critics of the prime minister to put up or shut up. she is being viewed by some as a potential contender to leave the party in westminster. this report from ian watson. grant schapps has received plenty of advice from colleagues, with some mps and peers literally telling him to shut up. most of the party strongly support. we can behave like knuckleheads, like grant schapps did today. knuckleheads? what else was it? it is trying to act against the

prime minister. we can unite and support the parameter. ruth davidson has added her voice, suggesting if the plot against the prime minister had been serious it would have been led by somebody more serious. but she had a wider message for the party, too. advising them to settle down. jeremy corbyn is eminently beatable. it can be daunting when you people chanting in the streets the name of somebody else. but that doesn't mean you don't knuckle down, get stuck in, show the drive, the energy and ambition for the country, make sure people understand what it is you are trying to do in politics, why you are to do it, how it is going to benefit your lives. that is what the party should be doing it. she placed on support now and in the future. there has been a very public closing of the ranks at the top of the party following the perceived threat from mr sharps. he doesn't have enough support to force a leadership contest. but one of his

fellow rebels, a former cabinet minister, suggested privately the prime minister was one crisis away from losing herjob. ian watson, bbc news. i'm joined now by mary douglas, a spokesperson for the independent political group, grassroots conservatives. she joins me from salisbury. thank you for your time. more than anything, those conservatives circling the wagons around theresa may want to put an end to this conversation about her leadership, don't they? they don't wa nt leadership, don't they? they don't want the drifting into next week? yes, i agree. want the drifting into next week? yes, iagree. primarily want the drifting into next week? yes, i agree. primarily the reason is we have more important things to say, and important things that need to be said. i am with boris in his latest comments, and ruth davidson. i think theresa may has good policies, she has sound instinct and she is what the country needs at this time. mention ofjeremy corbyn is interesting, because he reminds me, uncomfortably, donald trump in

his ability to look at a crowd of people and see what it is they want, or hope for, and feed it to them, without any consideration of whether thatis without any consideration of whether that is deliverable, or in the end whether what they think they want really is what they want. i think thatis really is what they want. i think that is very dangerous. it is dangerous in the united states and it is very dangerous year. we need to get on and do it. when boris johnson talks about ordinary punters, is he referring to grassroots conservatives? because we are conservatives, we are not uniform. we have varying opinions. i never speakfor uniform. we have varying opinions. i never speak for everybody. how could ido never speak for everybody. how could i do that? but certainly i and many other people, i'm sure, think her speech was just fine. i was rereading her transcript yesterday and there is lots of really good stuff in there that we need to be out there doing. i also think this

has been an astonishing storm in a teacup. a woman stands up on stage, signs fall off,, teacup. a woman stands up on stage, signs fall off, , 0k, teacup. a woman stands up on stage, signs fall off,, ok, that was very for, and whoever didn't use glue needs to be severely dealt with, she speaks through a severe cold... mary, we have lost your audio. i don't know if you can still hear me. fantastic, we have got you back. i was just about to ask you if you think the nature of the attack is different because she is a woman? no, not really. i don't buy all that. women and men, clearly we are very different. but some women lead ina way very different. but some women lead in a way that people call masculine, and vice versa. no, i don't, actually, no. you mentioned that he can't speak for everyone, and you say there were some good messages in theresa may's speech, but what she has to do to be an effective leader is to articulate those messages

clearly a nd is to articulate those messages clearly and to get past all of this discussion about her leadership and bring the attention back to those. do you think that she can do that? are their any grassroots conservatives you know who actually support the point of view that is being articulated by grant schapps? i will answer the second first. no, i don't know anybody who thinks that grant schapps is correct. and i also think not only is he factually incorrect, but he is morally way out of order. so loyalty is a high value, among everybody, but especially conservatives. the concept of honouring your leader seems to have been misplaced somewhere. i'm glad that it has? backin somewhere. i'm glad that it has? back in the last 2a hours. i think he is completely out of order and i think he is wrong. a leader at all

costs ? think he is wrong. a leader at all costs? no, not -- obviously not. theresa may not —— may not be the sparkly leader. but confidence has been proven over the years. she has what it takes. i think we need to give her a chance to do that. mary douglas, thank you very much. you are welcome. danish police say they have found the head and legs of a swedish journalist two months after she disappeared, after interviewing an inventor on board his home—made submarine. peter madsen is alleged to have killed 30—year—old kim wall after she boarded his submarine on the 10th of august. her headless torso was found in the water off copenhagen nearly two weeks later. madsen says ms wall died by accident after she was struck on the head. the headlines: calls for unity in

spain asa the headlines: calls for unity in spain as a huge rally takes place in madrid following last weekend's disputed referendum for a catalan independence. concerns for one of northern ireland's biggest employers after us authorities impose more heavy tariffs on bombardier claims —— planes. senior conservatives rally around the pm. borisjohnson tells mps to get behind theresa may and turn the fire onjeremy corbyn. police investigating the las vegas shooting say they have yet to establish the motive of the gunmen, stephen patrick. he killed 58 people ata stephen patrick. he killed 58 people at a country music festival in the city last sunday. police say they have examined more than 1000 leads since then but don't have any clear explanation for his actions. six days on from stephen paddock killing 58 people and injuring hundreds at a music festival in las

vegas, and police still don't know why he did it. the 64—year—old opened fire from his hotel room before turning the gun on himself. ata before turning the gun on himself. at a press briefing, the las vegas police department said they had gone through more than a thousand leeds in the investigation. we have looked at everything, literally, including the personal —— the suspect‘s personal life, any political affiliation, his social behaviours, economic situation and any potential radicalisation that so many have claimed. we have been down each and every single one of these parts trying to determine why. to determine who else may have known of these plans. the police have ruled out the possibility there was another shooter in the room with paddock. they haven't established what he was planning to do with the £50 of explosives found in his car at the hotel. meanwhile, officials from las vegas airport say a bullet

fired during the shooting pierced a jet fuel storage tank 2000 feet from the hotel window. there was no fire or explosion. the authorities won't speculate on whether he was aiming to hit the tank. it leaves yet more questions at a time when the nation wa nts a nswers, questions at a time when the nation wants answers, when those grieving for a loved ones are trying to make sense of life. here, some councils say they are not getting the money they need to carry out urgent safety improvements on tower blocks following the grenfell disaster. a number of local authorities in england and wales say request for government funds for refurbishment are being rejected because they are deemed nonessential. angus crawford reports. it was a fire no—one thought possible. flames engulfing the building, spreading through the cladding, in minutes. raising urgent questions about

blocks across the uk. safety tests showed more than 100 were not safe. some residents had to be evacuated, leaving them fearful, confused and frustrated. just four miles from grenfell tower, towers needing millions of pounds of work, removing cladding, fitting sprinklers. the responsibility has been kicked on to the councils, having to raid money from the tenants' rents in order to provide for the fire safety works. nothing is coming from government. that means that fewer affordable homes will be built and residents are dealing with poorer repairs for the next 20 to 30 years. the local government secretary, sajid javid, was one of the first ministers to visit grenfell tower and promised action. we will take the expert advice, whatever it takes to make the buildings safe and the people safe. whatever it takes. we must be led by experts but no short cuts to this. but today, the government said that building owners were responsible and

urged councils to come forward with funding concerns. it was a national tragedy but who now will pay to make sure it never happens again? angus crawford, bbc news. travel firms often aren't giving consumers accurate information about whether their holidays are protected, according to new research. the consumer group which made dozens of calls to eight travel firms, including british airways and thomas cook. they found in eight out of ten cases staff couldn't confirm if customers were protected. let's talk to the editor of which magazine, rory beaumont. were worst offenders? if you look at the

biggest companies what sort of protection we would get if we booked with them, the most concerning ones are thomas cook, who got less than half the questions we asked them correct, which is completely unacceptable. more worryingly, when we formed british airways there are agents and is often exaggerated the cover passengers would get if they booked with them. when we talk about at all protection we are talking about financial protection and other rights if there is a problem with your holiday? that is right. the easiest way to think about it is as an insurance scheme. if any part of your holiday goes bust, the airline fails, for example, atol will either get you home for no extra fee, or if you are still in the uk and the holidays ruined, they will give you your money back. what sort of

questions for you posing? not the trickiest questions of the world. if you are a travel agent they should be easy to answer. if we booked a flight with be easy to answer. if we booked a flight with you, would we be atol protected ? flight with you, would we be atol protected? would flight with you, would we be atol protected ? would we flight with you, would we be atol protected? would we have at all protection? the answer to that question is no. there is no atol protection for that. with british airways, eight out of ten said they would —— we would be protected. advani of those firms come back to you? they have. there is lots of about how they are going to train their staff and improve their knowledge of atol. they need to do that quickly. passenger confidence is low in the wake of monarch. if you found a holiday company and asked them a question like, am i ato l asked them a question like, am i atol protected and they said yes, i would take them at their word. travel agents and holiday companies have a responsibility to make sure they are giving customers the right information. you were telling me you

decided to conduct this research before the cancellations of the flights by ryanair, before monarch airlines folded. it is very releva nt, airlines folded. it is very relevant, isn't it, because consumers, presumably there has been a drop—off in confidence about booking holidays and what to expect? i can't savour the industry as a whole, but for me and the people i speak to, there are more questions. there is more confusion. if i book a flight with there is more confusion. if i book a flight with car hire, how do i get my money back if something goes wrong? is it my debit card, my credit card, is it atol? if you phoning a travel agent, it is essential the information they give you is absolutely correct every single time. they have a responsibility to do that. very good to talk to you. thank you. ryanair‘s chief operations officer is to resign at the end of the month following the mistakes over the pile

of that led to the cancellation of more than 20,000 flights. he was responsible for the scheduling of pilots' shifts. he's the first executive to leave in the wake of the cancellations which have affected more than 700,000 passengers. us states in the gulf of mexico have been placed on a state of emergency as hurricane nate heads towards them. at least 2a people have been killed by the storm as it passed through nicaragua, costa rica and honduras. louisiana, mississippi, alabama and parts of florida are all potentially in its path. concerns are growing for the world donkey population because of a demand for their skins in china, where they are used in traditional medicine. a british charity is leading an international campaign to hold the trade in donkey skins until it can be properly regulated. africa has been particularly badly hit as the animals are vitally important for poorer communities. alastair leithead reports. across africa, donkeys are working animals.

this is a common sight in the continent, but their future is in jeopardy. carlos makes a living delivering water, earning just £3 to £4 on a good day. but now he has to rent a donkey, after his was stolen and killed for its skin. that is more than half his income. he's upset talking about the animal he looked after and worked with for four years and now it is affecting his family. translation: it is a big difference to me now. i don't have enough money. i have not paid my rent. and i have people who depend on me. donkeys are an important part of the economy, in poorer neighbourhoods particularly. here are filling up as water trucks when there is no mains supply. dropping off concrete for building works and sometimes acting as removal vans. the price of the donkey has doubled in two years, because they are in demand.

this is one of kenya's three donkey abattoirs. brought in from across the country, they are sold by live weight. chinese buyers monitor the process. that is where the skins are heading, once they are salted and dried. donkey meat is popular in china and that is exported, too. so many people benefit from the donkey today. we are happy with the chinese country. because before, there was nothing coming out of the donkey. this is the finished product. health foods and medicine containing gelatin made from boiled donkey skins. china is running out of donkeys so suppliers are looking elsewhere. the donkey sanctuary in devon has led the international campaign to have the trade stopped. this is the biggest crisis donkeys have ever faced. we are talking about millions of animals and about

suffering on a scale we have not witnessed before. over a dozen governments have taken action to stop this trade. because they know it is impoverishing their people. as well as being massively cruel to animals. with donkey prices so high, carlos cannot afford another. people across the kenya and the continent are losing their animals and livelihoods. people across the uk could be traded to the site of dozens of shooting stars when a meatier peaks this weekend. it is most likely to be clearest in the northern sky in the early evening. it is one of two meet your showers that can be seen during 0ctober. time for the weather. nick miller can tell us more about

how the skies will be looking. this says it all for most of us. 0utbreaks this says it all for most of us. outbreaks of rain into this evening. eastern scotland to north—east england are seeing some sunshine before sunset. really wet in the next few hours in parts of north—west england into the wash, norfolk, —— as an area of rain sinks south. really misty and murky. some sunny spells. eastern scotland, north—east england. clear spells to begin tonight. eastern part of the uk may see some cloud breaks. they may not last too long. temperatures not going down to four with the cloud cover. still some shaurya outbreaks of rain in the north—west of the uk through the night and into tomorrow morning. still perhaps some rain into cornwall. patchy rain into northern ireland tomorrow, edging into western scotland. elsewhere, you may some —— see some fleeting

rain. it will be brighter compared to today. if you get some sunshine it will feel warmer. especially in the east and south—east. hello. this is bbc news. the headlines... rallies are taking place across spain as tensions continue over catalonia's bid for independence. campaigners demanding dialogue between the catalan and central governments with the slogan "let's talk" have gathered at town halls around the country. the unite union has urged the government to "step up for british workers" after the us authorities announced further heavy tariffs against one of northern ireland's biggest employers, bombardier. the foreign secretary, boris johnson, has joined other senior conservatives in urging tory mps to back theresa may, insisting the public are "fed up with all this malarkey".