this is bbc news, i'm david eades. our top stories: china's party congress gets under way in beijing. xi jinping spells out his country's ambitious global agenda. the head of amazon studios resigns, after allegations he sexually harassed a television producer. lincoln in the bardo. and the american author george saunders wins the man booker prize for his debut novel. it has become the world's factory production line, but now the chinese communist party is trying to reshape the country into an economy fit for entrepreneurs. can this man be simultaneously president and an international business owner? that question will be posed in a federal court today. in a speech formally opening the congress of the communist party

of china, the party's leader, xijinping, has said his country has made great accomplishments in the last five years, despite challenges from a very weak global economy. president xi is still speaking, in a speech which has already lasted three hours. they are listening with great intent, and xi jinping they are listening with great intent, and xijinping has been speaking of a successful reorganisation of the chinese military to come, as well as the importance of taiwan, hong kong and macao remaining integral parts of china. the biggest applause came in

response to his discussion of tackling corruption. translation: we need to work further towards achieving socialism with chinese characteristics, to build a well off country, and to build a great power in the world. it is also the age for the party, for the people, to unite together and to strive for a better life. it is time for older generations of chinese to realise regionalisation, and to realise our chinese dream. it is time for us to take the centrestage in the world, and to make greater

contribution for humankind. mr xi also praised the rapid pace of reform within the chinese armed forces. translation: we focused on realising the chinese dream, and also a strong defence. we fully implement modernisation of the military. we have also hosted military congresses and passed down the good tradition in the army. the reform in defence and in the military have also made great progress. our china correspondent robin brant is in tiananmen square in beijing, outside the great hall of the people, where mr xi has been speaking. this is obviously wide ranging, it

is bound to be. is there, do you think... do you detect the main message coming out of this? yes, i think certainly on the campaign that has been most closely associated with xijinping has been most closely associated with xi jinping and has been most closely associated with xijinping and his leadership in the last five years, and that has been an anti— graft and corruption campaign, that has been aimed at trying to deal with a poison, really, i think, trying to deal with a poison, really, ithink, which trying to deal with a poison, really, i think, which infected the communist party. when he took over there were questions about its legitimacy going forward, its ability to maintain control over this country and he has used this anti—corruption campaign to try and make the comment is leadership what it used to be, which is a group of people that leads in this country and takes its legitimacy from that. because it is different than anyone else, it is kind of whiter than white. it has also been used as a tool of political oppression and

political control, to target his rivals. he referred in his speech abouti.5 rivals. he referred in his speech about 1.5 hours ago now, i have slightly lost track, to be honest, he referred to it as a virus which still threatens the health of the party, so clearly that campaign, which has been key to his first five yea rs which has been key to his first five years in power, does go on. it has been very wide ranging. this is a look back on the last five years, assessing how he has done, the leadership has done, on delivering on those pledges and priorities going forward. it covers pretty much everything but there has been much emphasis on the economy, maintaining growth in the economy here. it is crucial, of course, the china's future but also to the communist pa rty‘s future future but also to the communist party's future and its ability to maintain control. growth is slowing in this country but the key thing for xi jinping in this country but the key thing for xijinping has been trying to ensure it remains stable, and going forward he has to deal with an inequality of economic growth, because at the moment much of that is focused in certain areas of the

country, especially down the eastern spine. and when you are dealing with a nation of 1.4 billion people, are middle class that could hit 500 million within the next ten years, it is absolutely crucial in terms of maintaining that social stability that there is an emphasis on sharing that there is an emphasis on sharing that prosperity, so to speak. any leader would want to establish a legacy, as well. do you think part of xijinping's legacy legacy, as well. do you think part of xi jinping's legacy will be to say look how we have grown in confidence abroad, as well? yes, and you touched on something that is very important. we were talking about the next stages of progress and growth in this country outside of economic growth, and you pointed towards a further two stages culminating in 2050, whichjust happens to be the year after the people's republic of china under communist rule will celebrate its centenary, assuming at last that long. he is talking about seeing china then taking the centre of the

global stage and being the country that contributes the most. we have also had references, countless references, to china's characteristic form of socialism, lots of talk about democracy, and at one point xijinping referred to democracy here in china as being the most significant and being the most impressive on the global stage. thank you very much indeed, for giving of the latest as xi jinping continues that address. it matters not just to china continues that address. it matters notjust to china but continues that address. it matters not just to china but to continues that address. it matters notjust to china but to all of us, given the strength of the chinese economy. jamie is also looking at the people's congress in china in world business report, but specifically the economics. we are always focusing on the growth rates, it was 7% or 8% and is now about 6%. it is very important not just to stability within china but for the rest of us and the rest of

the world, when china sneezes the rest of us catch a cold. we used to say that of america. china is the world's second—biggest economy, and whilst it is still some way behind the united states, what happens there matters to all of us. the communist party congress is where the shape of china and its economy is set for the next five years. in the first half of this year, the economy grew at an annual rate of 6.9%. that is above the 6.5% government target, and the ruling party are keen to make sure that robust growth continues. when you couple that with population growth of 0.5%, it means living standards are on the rise. and that is good for the communist party, because it helps ensure political stability. however, there are problems. debt is one of the biggest. it is estimated to be more than 2.5 times the size of the entire economy. part of that has been driven by a huge boom in property prices. however, the latest numbers show that slowing in august, when the average increase for new homes in 70 major cities wasjust 0.2%. the idea of boosting the economy has also seen repeated pledges

to open up to foreign investors. last year, foreign direct investment was down 1%, at $134 billion. can you be president and an international business owner at the same time? donald trump is, raising the question — is he in breach of the constitution? a new yorkjudge will hear oral arguments this wednesday, in one of the first major court challenges to the us president's business empire. a lawsuit alleges that by owning businesses that take payments from foreign governments, president trump violates america's constitution, specifically the emoluments clause. we'll have more in world business report. the head of amazon's media arm has

resigned after allegations of sexual harassment. roy price was suspended by the company last week after actress rose mcgowan said he had ignored her claims that she had been raped by the disgraced hollywood movie producer harvey weinstein. amazon was working on a tv series with the weinstein company at the time. he has also been accused by a producer of making lewd advances to her. andrew plant reports. amazon executive roy price, head of its media division, another powerful player in the entertainment industry 110w player in the entertainment industry now falling from grace. price was accused of harassing a producer on one of amazon's shows. hours later, actress rose mcgowan tweeted claims that she had told roy price that she had been raped by harvey weinstein. she says she was completely ignored.

like much of the american entertainer dick industry, amazon has close ties to one steam, are now name now so has close ties to one steam, are now name now so toxic many projects are now being cancelled. while the industry pushes for a new normal, where female actors no longer stay silent. there has obviously been a really sad side to it this week, a particular tragic side, really sad side to it this week, a particulartragic side, but really sad side to it this week, a particular tragic side, but there has also been a really inspiring sight, as well. all the women banding together, and notjust women, honestly, men banding together as well, and wanting to in positive come out of something so horrible. i feel empowered that we can actually do something about it. that feels amazing. legal actions need to be put in place to protect people on film sets. and we just need to make a community of support, where people feel like they can go and find support and find help and get answers. is this normal, is this... without having to be on the cover of a magazine torquay about it. harvey weinstein has resigned

from the board of the company he formed with his brother back in 2005. now said to be considering a buyout and changing it to him. one stea m buyout and changing it to him. one steam has unequivocally denied claims of rape. he is being investigated over multiple accusations —— weinstein. a name behind so many hollywood hits now a byword for the cd, sordid past of an industry which is determined to change. —— seedy. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: portugal's president has called on the country's parliament to decide whether the government should remain in office, following what he said were grave failings in the handling of the deadly forest fires of sunday and monday. at least 41 people died and many more were injured in hundreds of fires across central and northern portugal. there have been clashes between anti—corru ption demonstrators and riot police in the ukrainian capital, kiev. several thousand protesters have been calling for a dedicated anti—corru ption court to be set up and for mps

to lose their immunity from prosecution. there have also been calls for ukraine's president, petro poroshenko, to step down. president trump's latest bid to impose travel restrictions on citizens from eight countries entering the us has suffered a court defeat, hours before it was due to be enforced. ajudge in hawaii said the new ban, like previous ones, broke us immigration law. the white house called the ruling dangerously flawed. malta is operating as a mafia state — that is the accusation made by the son of an investigative journalist killed in a car bomb attack in malta. daphne caruana galizia, 53, died when her car exploded shortly after she left her home on monday. she was known for her blog accusing top politicians of corruption. 0ur correspondent daniel sandford reports. the twisted, burnt—out chassis of daphne caruana galizia's peugeot 108 hire car, in the field

where malta's most influential investigative journalist was murdered — her body blown clean out of the vehicle by a huge explosion, ending her career of exposing political corruption and organised crime. "i saw a small explosion coming from the car, and i panicked," said frank sant, who saw the whole thing. "a few seconds later, there was another, larger explosion. the car skidded down the hill at high speed, full of fire, and into the field." daphne caruana galizia made her name writing stories in newspapers and then on her blog, that were often deeply embarrassing for those in power in malta, particularly the labour party who are currently in government. today, her son matthew said the government had been negligent in failing to protect his mother. "this was no ordinary murder and it was not tragic," he wrote. "tragic is someone being run over by a bus. we're a people at war against the state and organised

crime, which have become indistinguishable. this is where we are, a mafia state." the maltese prime minister, joseph muscat, had to call an election this year because of allegations about his wife's offshore money, which daphne caruana galizia extracted from the panama papers leak. but he has promised an unbiased investigation. translation: my duty is to make surejustice is done, and i won't have a moment's rest until that happens. the fbi has been asked to help investigate the car bomb, but trust here is shaken after one maltese police officer appeared to celebrate the killing. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: honours even at the bernabeu as tottenham hotspur draw 1—1 with real madrid. parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake

are returning to life. but in the marina area, where most of the damage was done, they're more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he's gone from being a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20—pound bomb which exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken. democracy will prevail. it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this foremost of earthly honours. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they call the 33. and then... bells toll bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue and chile let out an almighty roar. this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: china's communist party congress has begun in beijing, president xi jinping has been seplling out his country's ambitious global agenda. the head of amazon studios, roy price, has resigned after allegations he sexually harassed a television producer. as many as 200,000 pro—independence campaigners are believed to have taken to the streets of barcelona to protest against the detention of two leading catalan politicians by the spanish authorities. the men are being held on suspicion of sedition, or planning to overthrow the state, after allegedly trying to stop a police raid in the run—up to the disputed referendum on catalan independence. 0ur correspondent james reynolds reports from barcelona. these protesters have come out

here in barcelona to call for the immediate release of two pro—independence campaigners. those campaigners have been remanded into custody, accused of sedition. but to these pro—independence campaigners, those two men are political prisoners. i just wanted to show you this sign here, "freedom for political prisoners, sanchez and cuixart", this sign says in catalan. and if you look at another sign, i don't need to translate it, "independence." and people have come here to show on which side of the divide they stand. it's pretty clear this man has got the flag of an independent catalonia. it is worth saying that not every person in catalonia wants

independence, this is a divided society. but tonight, pro—independence campaigners have come out and they've filled the centre of this, their main city, and they now face an ultimatum from the government in madrid. on thursday morning, the central government says that unless the authorities here revoke or announce a declaration of independence, make it clear that they haven't declared independence, the central government may suspend self rule in this region, taking these people and everyone else in catalonia into uncharted territory. in the fight against terrorism across europe, how much can the eu itself actually achieve? as the european commission unveils a new package of counter—terrorism measures, the bbc‘s security correspondent frank gardner asked the security commissioner, sirjulian king, what the organisation could do to stop attacks on member countries, and whether brexit would affect security both in the uk and on mainland europe.

europe attacked. in brussels... in paris. in nice. developing europe's response is the job of the eu's recently created security commissioner, sirjulian king, from britain. the measures that have been put in place by member states them to go maxime to be enough to stop terrorism, do they? i don't think we can claim to be able to stop terrorism or can claim to be able to stop terrorism oi’ remove can claim to be able to stop terrorism or remove all risk of attack, but i do think that the series of measures we've taken over the last year, we've made it harder for terrorists to move around, we've made it harder for them to finance themselves, and we've restricted their access to equipment, arms, explosives, things that they use in

their attacks. what keeps you awake at night? what worries you most? we have a list of about 8000 potential foreign terrorist fighters that have been highlighted by european member states. which is held by europol and circulated across all of the eu member states' authorities to keep a watch for them. vulnerable individuals, often vulnerable young men are enticed down the route of violence through propaganda and the radicalising material that daesh in particular, islamic state, spend a lot of time broadcasting across the internet. working with the internet companies, we are trying to get better at spotting and taking down that material and we've said they've got until the end of this year to show us that they are making the necessary efforts. if not, we reserve the right at a european level to pursue legislation next year. is there a sense that if it's

going to be a hard brexit, and that involves stopping all co—operation, so involves stopping all co—operation, so be it? well, both sides, both the eu 27 and the british government have now said this is an area where they think there's an unconditional interest in pursuing corporation, which i think is a signal that, perhaps like some other issues, this isn't something that you trade or negotiate over. because these threats are so important, it is vitally important that we find ways of continuing the corporation. even though britain's leaving the european union, the uk's first and last security commissioner, who works here in this building, is determined to leave a legacy on counterterrorism cooperation. given the terrorist threats facing the whole of europe, the eu is going to continue to need britain's expertise in this area and britain will also wa nt in this area and britain will also want help from the eu. frank gardner, bbc news, in brussels.

sport now and in the champions league there was a successful night for english clubs. of the three cubs in action, manchester city, liverpool and tottenham, only spurs failed to win. but it was a draw and it was against defending champions real madrid in spain. spurs took the lead with just under half an hour played, rafael va rane's own goal coming after pressure from harry kane. but a cristiano ronaldo penalty brought the hosts level. elsewhere in the group, apoel nicosia and borussia dortmund both picked up their first point of the campaign with a 1—1 draw in cyprus. manchester city may consider themselves lucky to have won 2—1 at home to napoli despite scoring two goals in the opening 13 minutes. that's because like spurs they conceded a first half penalty. but it was saved. a second penalty though gave napoli a consolation goal. city are top of their group, shakhtar donetsk move second after victory over feyenoord. the american author,

george saunders, has won this year's man booker prize, awarded to the best novel written in english and published in the uk. he won for his novel, lincoln in the bardo, which follows the us president's grief over the death of his son. saunders is the second american author to win the prize since entries were open to any writer regardless of nationality. the bbc‘s tim allman reports. the winnerfor the the winner for the 2017 man booker prize forfiction is... . as debut novels go this isn't bad. he'd only written short stories. his first full—length novel winning one of the biggest prizes in literature. a tale set in the past but the author still believes still rich in meaning for the present. as you might have noticed we live in a strange time, i've noticed it, so the question at the heart of the matter i think is pretty simple, do we respond to fear

with exclusion and negative projection and violence? 0r with exclusion and negative projection and violence? or do we ta ke projection and violence? or do we take that ancient greatly of faith and do our best to respond with love ? and do our best to respond with love? lincoln in the bardo tells the story of the american president's grief following the death of his young son. set on a single night but with hundreds of narrative voices, it explores themes of mortality, greece and the possibilities of life. everyone knows lincoln, everybody loves lincoln, so that was pa rt everybody loves lincoln, so that was part of the reason i waited because it makes you cringe a little bit to ta ke it makes you cringe a little bit to take on somebody that large. as well as the prize george saunders receives a cheque for more than $65,000. all this for a book the judges described as utterly original and deeply moving. tim allman, bbc news. utterly original, quite an achievement, isn't it this is bbc news, thanks for watching, much more to come. as we head towards the end

of the week the weather will turn more and more unsettled and at the moment the weekend looks particularly nasty across southern areas of the uk. in the short term we have a weather front across the uk, it has been drifting in the last 24 hours from the south. here is a picture in dorset where you can see the cloud increasing as the weather front moves out of the bay of biscay across france, the channel and into the uk. this weather front will bring wet weather to some areas during the course of the morning and the afternoon. initially it is just a small area of rain that you can see here, through the hours across england and wales and places farther north it can be quite chilly as temperatures dip to single figures. the average is around 11 or 13 degrees.

the rush—hour starting with scotland could be quite nippy in some of the glens with temperatures a couple of degrees above freezing early in the morning. light rain is a possibility in the lowlands of scotland, perhaps the borders as well. i think the north—west of england, yorkshire, all the way to newcastle, the weather looks relatively bright and then we have a weather front across the midlands, east of the midlands and down to the south. a lot of grey cloud her and some on and off light rain. there is a possibility of heavy rain in the morning, so for some of us it really is going to be wet during the morning and into the afternoon as well. what will happen is that this weather front will draw in some muggy and warmer air so despite the cloud and the rain, the temperature will still reach 17 in london. gathers at this weather front is much fresher in newcastle and glasgow. on thursday, initially the weather is relatively calm. certainly not clear. spots of rain around as the low pressure comes in and that will strengthen the wind in the south—west and that means that thursday night into friday there will be strong

winds, gale force wind around the coast and friday, a blustery day with cloud and rain particularly across the northern areas, even in the south there will be some showers. and as we head through friday night and into saturday we are watching this very nasty area of low pressure that has the potential to bring some very nasty weather conditions to southern areas of the uk. at this stage it looks like severe gales are likely in the south this weekend. this is bbc news. the headlines: chinese communists have begun their party congress, at which future leaders and policies are unveiled. president xi jinping told delegates in beijing the party would help improve lives and achieve the dream of national rejuvenation. the chief of amazon studios, roy price, has resigned after reports that he harassed a producer and ignored allegations of sexual assault by the disgraced film mogul harvey weinstein. there has been no comment from mr price. the flags of an anti—islamic state militia have been flying over raqqa, after it retook the syrian city from the jihadists following four

months of heavy fighting. the us says there are around 100 militants still in the city. the us author george saunders has won this year's man booker prize,