today at 5 — theresa may says donald trump was wrong to retweet posts from a british far—right group. president trump has hit back at theresa may for criticising him — but she says the special relationship is still important. it's an enduring relationship that is there because it is both of our national interests for that relationship to be there. we'll have the latest from westminster and washington — and i'll be talking to breitbart‘s london editor. the other main stories on bbc news at 5. a sharp fall in immigration since britain voted to leave the eu — as net migration drops by almost a third. as the dup warns their deal to support the conservative government could be jeopardised by the brexit negotiations, we take a look at the key issue of the irish border. and hope for some of the 8 million migraine sufferers in the uk after trials of new treatment show some dramatic results. good evening and welcome

to the bbc news at 5. our main story: theresa may has said president trump was wrong to retweet videos posted by the far—right group britain first. but despite donald trump hitting back at the prime minister in a tweet for criticising him, she stressed the special relationship between britain and the us is in both nations‘ interests, and should continue. she has continued to reject calls to cancel a state visit by the us president. our political correspondent iain watson has the latest. i'd like to start by saying how delighted i am that as the leader of the free world you took the time to tweet out three of my videos on twitter today.

this is jayda fransen, deputy leader of britain first, an organisation established by former members of the far right bmp. her posts that donald trump re—tweeted included footage that a dutch man was attacked by a muslim. l it is special relationship we have. it is an endearing relationship that is there because it is in both our national interests for that relationship to be there. and using the president's preferred of communication, the ambassador said: british people overwhelmingly rejected the edges rhetoric of the far right which seek to divide communities and arrayed decency, tolerance and respect. british

muslims are peaceful and law—abiding citizens. and i raised these concerns with the white house yesterday. critics have said it was a mistake for theresa may to get so close and a state visit should never be on the agenda. she should never have invited him within a few weeks of him being elected. every other american president has have to wait for years, they have had to settle down, and we have to be sure about who we are inviting, with the queen is inviting. the home secretary didn't seem certain about when he would come. an invitation for the visit has been extended and accept that, but the dates and precise arrangements have yet to be agreed. the prime minister has been backed into a corner. she wants a post brexit trade deal with the us, but she will face huge criticism at westminster if she hadn't distanced herself from a president who has in effect distributed british far right material to his 43 million followers on twitter. it is difficult to see how you can defuse a diplomatic, perhaps i should say undiplomatic row like this.

tensions between the two traditional transatlantic allies remain strained than when president and prime first met. ian watson, bbc news. in a moment we can get reaction from washington with our correspondent barbara plett usher, but first to our chief political correspondent vicki young at westminster. there has been criticism across the political divide. where does this it this evening? is itjust about the state visit or is it about more than that? it was pretty stored ferri listening to the debate in the house of commons earlier. the kind of language being used about an american president. he was called evil by some, racist by others, stupid and accused of pandering to the far right. there can be no doubt about how strongly people feel about

this. this is notjust labour mps. this is the liberal democrats, the snp and also several conservatives as well, some taking to twitter about how completely appalled they are by what has happened. theresa may was left with no choice but to speak out publicly about all of this. interesting that amber rudd the home secretary and theresa may are talking about the bigger picture. trying to say to people this is about a decades long relationship with america. we have been close allies. the special relationship has to continue no matter who is in office. the problem is many people here do not seem to be able to see beyond the 45th president of the united states. as for that state visit, it is re—clear, the offer has been made, the invitation has been accepted, but the timings and date, none of

that has been decided. it seems unlikely it will happen in the foreseeable future. it reminds me of one of those engagements where there isa one of those engagements where there is a proposal, and acceptance and yet the couple never quite find the time to arrange the date. thank you for now. let's head to the white house and talk to barbara plett usher. the president was that use of social media has always caused comments. i remember you and social media has always caused comments. i rememberyou and i is saying during the campaign, if you have an elected will his advisers force in the rain in on that? nothing has changed. our people at all surprised where you are at what he has done here? well, i don't live surprised is the right word. i think his tweeting is consistent with the way he has tweeted before, and also with his personality and his temperament. but i think maybe dismay is more the better word, and that has to do with the wider issue, why he re—tweeted these in century videos, and what effect that will

have. even some of his allies in congress are saying he shouldn't have done it, that it is a red flag to bigotry but also the wider issue, what about our muslim allies that we need for counterterrorism operations and so on? what message does that send to them? and also the relationship with the uk. the feeling with theresa may is there is a long—time relationship, the transatlantic commitment is very strong, we see the value of it and wa nt to strong, we see the value of it and want to keep it, but here the president has chosen to have a fight with their closest ally with no apparent reason that it advances national security interests here. that is the criticism. i think especially among the foreign policy diplomatic community this is a new low. all right, we will continue to discuss this in a moment. in other matters, there has been a lot of

talk today about rex tillerson, the secretary of state, his position. what has been going on and what is his position tonight at this stage? he is still secretary of state. we have reports today of a plan in the white house to remove him and replace him with the head of the cia. i have to say this has been around in the rumour mill in washington for quite a long time. now the new york times is saying there is a plan to carry this out and there is a timeline in the next couple of weeks. none of that is confirmed. mrtillerson, in the couple of weeks. none of that is confirmed. mr tillerson, in the past when he has been asked about resigning or having a difficult relationship with mr trump, has said none of that is true. he said we worked together fine. none of that is true. he said we worked togetherfine. but none of that is true. he said we worked together fine. but there are tensions between them, widely reported, and the question has been whether mr trump will act on that. i would be very surprised if anything happened before mr tillerson has beenin happened before mr tillerson has been in office for at least one year

for a variety of reasons. add it has to be said, despite their differences over policy, mr tillerson taking one track while mr trump tweet something else, he is carrying out policy that mr trump has agreed to in practice on places like north korea and syria. there is something of a working relationship there, but the two men are very different and there is a personal issue there as well as a policy one. thank you for now. barbara plett usher in washington, dc. let's talk further about president trump and his re—tweets of everything by britain first and the diplomatic row that we have seen as a result of that. with me now is raheem kassam, the london editor of the right—wing news website breitbart. good evening to you. why do you think the president did re—tweet those three tweets from britain first? what was behind that?” those three tweets from britain first? what was behind that? i think he saw it in his twitter news feed.

he only follows 45 people i think. he only follows 45 people i think. he does not sit there and research who the original tweet was. by the way, jayda fransen who the original tweet was. by the way, jayda fra nsen has who the original tweet was. by the way, jayda fransen has a twitter verified symbol next to her name, saw that, saw the content, was interested in the content and thought this is something people need to know about. is this a shift, you might have heard that in diplomatic circles in washington, they think this is a new low. is that right? people will always find a way to criticise president trump. that's an ice this in real terms. we have had breathless coverage of this. the whole of the political establishment and media establishment and media establishment going into overdrive, hysterical over this, over tweets. an emergency debate in parliament. but he has 45 million followers. we scared these days of these fringe organisations that we have to have

an emergency debate in parliament, the prime minister, the archbishop of canterbury and the home secretary, these things you do in a time of war. if downing street was a serious operation, and i'm telling you now, inside downing street, they are not taken seriously by in dc. if it was a serious operation they would have gone to their ambassador and said please can you raise with the president or the white house the fa ct the president or the white house the fact that we wholeheartedly do not like these people and this is dangerous today. the ambassador has raised it so we know that has happened. in addition to everyone else. that you are saying that number ten is not taken as a serious operation, but by the same token, the president of the united states has roundly criticised the british prime minister on twitter. and by the way, so you should. if you are saying this should be done at an ambassadorial level... the rule book went out of the window on november

the 2016 when the american people decided they wanted a bombastic government. they saw it during the campaign and the elected it. for him to call at the british prime minister, when the british prime minister, when the british prime minister is using this event to that you signal and we have a situation where we need a trade deal with united states, we need that relationship, it is imperative and she is flushing it down the toilet to virtue signal over a cup of tweets. the government is saying the special relationship is still important. president trump will not view it like that at this juncture and he has not viewed it like that for some months now. the british political establishment, i guarantee you, is calculatedly using this to try and drive a wedge, because they did want brexit to happen. theresa may, don't forget, was a remainder. this is an intentional way to halt that. this row is not about brexit fundamentally. it is because he tweet is something which is

unpleasant material, it is inflammatory and racist. the ardent starts from the starting point that he sent out a tweet and why did he do that and what was he trying to do? you call it inflammatory. two of those three tweets are factual. the britain firsts of the world would not exist if the mainstream media did their coverage of this stuff, in coverage, sexual is being thrown off buildings. we have covered that story. good. and the fact that christians in the middle east are heavily persecuted. we scarcely hear about that. every day we hear a story about president trump osman tweets and we do not hear a story about real problems in that region due to radical islam. we are scared of offending muslims that most muslims are not radical is a list. they want this dealt with. president trump putting this out to his 45 million people. most muslims

are decent people like everyone else watching this programme. bbc polling did a poll that among 16 to 2a—year—olds in the uk, 40% of them said they wanted sharia law in the uk. we don't talk about that. why don't we talk about that? britain first get oxygen from you guys not talking about those issues. you did that poll in 2009 and you have not done a single follow—up in nearly ten years. i want britain first gone and every serious person did not wa nt and every serious person did not want them as part of the political debate, but they exist because there isa debate, but they exist because there is a vacuum because of the lack of coverage. d-link president trump should come to britain on a state visit? i don't think it matters. i do and think it matters to anyone. i don't care about that. what i care about is how much ebb time we spend

debating tweets, meantime, we are not talking serious issues. —— airtime. we are not talk about how manufacturing in the uk is down, we are not talking about our fisheries, we're not talk about serious problems, we are taught about tweets. i do not mean this as a personal attack on you and what you do, these fringe organisations, they get oxygen because you guys excess over the smallest of things. this issueis over the smallest of things. this issue is done. the topics you listed do get talked about... so small. correct me if i am wrong, i think you are saying it is a fuss about nothing, it is just something you are saying it is a fuss about nothing, it isjust something on social media, i am trying to paraphrase what you're saying, but you say just social paraphrase what you're saying, but you sayjust social media, but social media now, this is a different world from ten years ago. it is an extraordinarily powerful tool, president trump has 45 million followers and we know rightly or

oddly, lots of people get all their information just from following social media so don't we all have a responsibility to be more responsible with it, because that might be one person's only source of information? are you saying that people are not smart enough to filter information, you think people just flip like that and go that is everyone? you are not giving people due credit. people out there are smart. they know what is going on. they have friends and work collea g u es they have friends and work colleagues who are muslims. but the issue itself, we are playing the man knocked the ball here. we can agree that jayda fra nsen, knocked the ball here. we can agree that jayda fransen, the knocked the ball here. we can agree thatjayda fransen, the mosque invasions and all that stuff is desperately bad stuff, but the issues are really not dealt with. the president didn't say that was desperately bad stuff was i'm sure he didn't do any due diligence on who this verified use on twitter

was. but that will take us back to what people are saying, maybe he should be doing due diligence. that is a fine conversation, great statement to make and you have made it. that is where the issue ends. how many commentary pieces do we need, how money front pages do we need, how many mayors in london do we need coming out? by the way, sadiq khan saying he is not welcome in the united kingdom, he does not speak for the united kingdom. he is the mayor of london, democratically elected. he is not speaking for the uk. he said he was not welcome in london and he is the mayor of london. bank you for coming in. let's turn our attention is to some of our other main stories. just a

reminder of the headlines. theresa may says donald trump was "wrong" to retweet posts from a british far—right group. a sharp fall in immigration since britain voted to leave the eu — as net migration drops by almost a third. as the dup warns their deal to support the conservative government could be jeopardised by the brexit negotiations, we take a look at the key issue of the irish border. in sport, england's james anderson says their batsmen should prepare for a barrage in this began's second ashes test after complaining about dangerous australian bowling during their defeat. everton's five search for a manager ends after sam allardyce signs deal. and hadley parks will make his debut on saturday in cardiff, the same day that he qualifies to play for warren

gatland's side. i will have more on this story is after 5:30pm. —— i will have more on those stories. net migration to the uk has seen its biggest fall on record: it dropped by almost a third in the year to the end ofjune, standing at 230,000. net migration is the difference between people coming to the uk and leaving the uk for at least a year. most of the drop is because of fewer people coming here from other european union countries. our correspondent richard lister has more. at the royal lancaster hotel in central london, more than half the employees are foreign nationals. most from the eu. they are at every level, from making the beds to running the business. there aren't enough british workers to fill the positions available. managers are worried. the open borders policy we have always had has been critical. we are the fourth largest industry for uk gdp. we need 200,000 eu nationals are yearjust to stand still.

the new figures cover the years since the brexit vote. they show that 230,000 more migrants came to live in the uk than left it. but that is more than 100,000 fewer than before the brexit vote. most of that decline is due to eu nationals. fewer are coming and more are returning home. immigration has been on a roller—coaster rise. we had a record rise leading up to the referendum. then we have a record decline in net migration in the year following. it is the largest single year fall in net migration since records began in 1964. builders and other tradesmen from across the eu have been part of british life for years. but the latest figures suggest the uk is becoming less attractive to them as the pound gets weaker and other european economies get stronger. work is the main reason why eu

nationals come to the uk. we are seeing very similar numbers coming in who are arriving for a definitejob. i see no change there. where we have seen a change is a fall of 43% in those coming to look for work. at the royal lancaster, francesca from italy has noticed foreign colleagues leaving the uk. but she is hoping to stay. for me it will never change because i am still working here. i would like really to stay here and to improve my career. in fact, the figures show the number of eu nationals applying for british citizenship has doubled since brexit. the northern ireland border remains one of the major sticking points in the brexit talks. the irish government says it won't allow brexit negotiations to move on to trade, unless it's given guarantees

that there won't be a hard border. the british government is refusing to comment on reports that it's looking at the possibility of allowing northern ireland to stick to some eu trading rules post—brexit — even if regulations change in the rest of the uk. our ireland correspondent, chris page has been travelling along the border, looking at the issues and options. he began hisjourney in strabane, before moving on to lisnaskae, and is currently in aughnacloy in county tyrone. we can talk to him now. yes, i am at a place which illustrates very well while the irish border is one of the trickiest issues in the brexit negotiations. that bridge marks the border. northern ireland is that way, the republic of ireland is that way. this is one of almost three hundred rd crossings across the border these days. now, hundred rd crossings across the borderthese days. now, in hundred rd crossings across the border these days. now, in terms of how this is paying into the brexit

negotiations, all sides say they wa nt to negotiations, all sides say they want to keep the border basically in the stated is that the moment, that is open, no passport checks, no barriers, no physical infrastructure of any barriers, no physical infrastructure ofany kind. barriers, no physical infrastructure of any kind. but where there is disagreement is how you achieve that. the uk is outside the customs union following one set of rules and the republic of ireland remains in the republic of ireland remains in the eu following the customs rules. the times newspaper reported that british newspapers tried to avoid checks at the border by devolving new powers to stormont which means northern ireland could continue to follow eu regulations even if the rest of the uk didn't, but that raises the possibility then that there could be checks between northern ireland and the rest of the uk. the department for exiting the eu has refused to comment on those reports. one of the difficulties if there was to be any checks is that there was to be any checks is that the conservative party's allies the democratic unionists would not stand

for it and at the moment the dup are at the parliamentary pivot point, they hold the balance of power. they are keeping theresa may in office. let's hear from the are keeping theresa may in office. let's hearfrom the dup mp sammy wilson. the one thing we are making clear is there are things to get through in the eu withdrawal bill and if there is any hint that in order to placate dublin and the eu, they are paired to have northern ireland trade differently than the re st of ireland trade differently than the rest of the uk, then they cannot rely on our vote, because they have undertaken an agreement with us, our votes for their support for the union. their support for the union diminishes then our votes will not be there. the dup making their position very clear. the crossing at the bridge was actually closed during the troubles. of the 20 so roads which we re troubles. of the 20 so roads which were opened there were army

watchtowers and major security installations. nobody thinks brexit can lead to that security again but it is still an issue which people talk about when people look at the impact of leaving the eu. tara mills explains. it was the most heavily policed area of the border, checkpoints, watchtowers, death and destruction. in 1979, the ira killed 18 soldiers at narrow water castle. this former detective reinvestigated the attack towards the end of his career. they went down as the army were shooting at them, and they ran, got onto their bikes, and that they were back up on their bikes. to him, talking about policing the border is nonsense. the border here struggles, so many different ways in and out. so you set up your checkpoints from main traffic, and those who want to go any different routes, they can do that, and it is impossible to police.

this primary school used to be sandwiched between the main border watchtower and a newly built army barracks. they even had a checkpoint outside the front door. aine attended the school during the troubles, and is now a teacher in the new building. it wasjust normalfor us, we woke up at night, the helicopters woke us up, and we went to sleep. there were army in the field while we were at school. they were tough times. they were tough times when i was at school, and we couldn't go back to that now. we deserve what we have the moment, the freedom that we have at the moment. i remember once, for example coming in one morning, and everyone thought the classroom might be blown up, because a bomb had been sent on a railway truck down the line and it had exploded outside the base.

border farmers are among the key businesses facing uncertainty. even those who voted leave don't want to see new checkpoints. we all remember what it was like. it felt like really crossing at that time the berlin wall, with checkpoints and queues, so nobody wants to get back to that. it is a problem, but nobody wants to get back to that hard border scenario. this is typical of many roads along the border. the only visible sign between north and south, a change in the road markings. the landscape here has been completely transformed, and this community wants it to stay that way. tara mills, bbc news, south armagh. on ourjourney on our journey today we have on ourjourney today we have had a wide range of opinions. we have heard about the impact on agriculture, security and the complexities of national identity and politics in this part of the world. but what nearly everyone has

said if they really want the border to stay much as it is at the moment, pretty much invisible, when you don't really know if you are crossing from one country to another. that is interesting, chris page, thank you. let's discuss the practicalities of it all. joining us from our belfast newsroom is alan mcquillan, a former assistant chief constable with the police service of northern ireland. good evening to you. you heard it there, most people, they want it to look the same and they want it to operate the same. what with your mind could be the practical difficulties or the options along that border? the model for this was actually set out by the irish customs service in may this year when they were giving evidence to a committee. they described how their ideal customs system would work post—brexit. that was very quickly slapped down frankly by the commission who reminded ireland it

was not an island confidence any more it was a brussels competence. but there was a further report presented by the senate of the irish parliament about six weeks ago, which put out the same thing again, which put out the same thing again, which is a very invisible border based upon customs checks at the premises of borders, much more use of trusted companies to manage imports and exports across the border, electronic tracking of vehicles, and are completely invisible transparent and almost frictionless border. then it still needs to be some random checks, there still needs to be some inspections, but most of those are done away from the border and people's everyday lives would not see any significant change. to be possible to achieve a big visible structures? —— you think it would be possible to achieve. in

terms of crime and dishes like that, is it possible to do without disrupting people's lives?|j is it possible to do without disrupting people's lives? i believe it is, but you will never seal the border completely. we already know that dissident republicans smuggle millions of pounds worth of cigarettes every year into ireland. we have had people caught smuggling large qualities of counterfeit goods. we've had them caught smuggling garlic which is subject to a huge eu tariff. there is a lot of smuggling goes on at any border. but it can be controlled by intelligence led customs enforcement. goodness. interesting to talk to you. i'm sorry interesting to talk to you. i'm sorry we interesting to talk to you. i'm sorry we don't have longer, but i appreciate your time. thank you.

don't want to diminish any crime at all, but i did not expect that we would be talking about smuggling garlic. what is going on with all this snow? seven yea rs what is going on with all this snow? seven years ago, we had half a metre of snow in some parts of britain. but there is more snow on the way for some places. eastern parts of the uk has pretty much already had it, so there could be more on the way. anywhere from scotland down to east anglia and even london. ice will probably be more of a problem over eastern parts. outside of town centres, “4 so pretty chilly indeed.

tomorrow morning, wintry showers continuing. in the afternoon, they will slowly ease and the skies will become less cloudy. elsewhere over the uk. a bright day. through the weekend, we will lose the snow showers, becoming milder, but cloudier and a bit more drizzly. this is bbc news. the headlines: theresa may says donald trump was "wrong" to retweet posts from a british far—right group, but the president rejects the criticism. net migration fell by more than 100,000 in the year tojune — the largest annual decrease on record. one of the so—called chennai six — who was released from an indian prison on monday — has spoken of his relief and delight at regaining his freedom. the democratic unionist party warns their deal to support the conservative government could be jeopardised by the

brexit negotiations. now the sport with hugh ferris. sam allardyce has completed the formalities of signing an 18—month deal to become the clubs new manager. everton striker wayne rooney says the club are looking forward to a "new chapter" under the former england boss. rooney scored a hat—trick in yesterday's 4—0 win over west ham. sealed by this stunning long range effort. it was rooney's first premier league hat trick since 2011. and it certainly seemed to be met with approval from allardyce who was watching the match from the stands. rooney, who was captain for big sam's only match as england manager. match as england manager, had this to say afterwards. obviously i had the one

game with england. it is a new chapter for us. sam is a very good manager. i'm sure he will bring his own ideas to the football. we have our first day under him tomorrow and prepare for the game on saturday. manchester city midfielder david silva has signed a one—year contract extension. it'll keep him at the etihad until 2020. which will mark ten years at the club for the spain midfielder. he joined city from valencia for £24 million in 2010. since then he's won two premier league titles, an fa cup and two league cups. england's cricketers are bracing themesleves for another fast bowling bomabardment ahead of the second ashes test which starts in adelaide at 4am our time on saturday morning. england fast bowlerjames anderson told us today that he actually sought clarification from the umpires as to whether australia's bowling was dangerous during the first ashes test. anderson was batting,

when tail—enderjake ball received five successive bouncers in the second innings in brisbane a — match england ended up losing by ten wickets. england's leading wicket taker sez the side are expecting another barrage in adelaide. they were very clear with the fields they set and what they threw down at us they set and what they threw down at us that that is what they're going to do for foreseeable future. despite being a lot closer to australia, ben stokes is still unlikely to play in the ashes. he's arrived in new zealand to play domestic cricket for canterbury. he's still to hear if he'll be charged after his arrest, following an incident outside a bristiol nightclub. the police have handed theirfile to the crown prosecution service for a decision, which may not come

for a number of weeks. he could be here until the end of the t 20 competition. anytime you get to rub shoulders with the player of that calibre, it is an excitement for our players. that's great for us. scarlets centre hadleigh parkes will make his wales debut against south africa on saturday in cardiff. on the day he qualifies through residency the 30—year—old new zealander will line up at centre alongside scott williams. parkes joined the scarlets in 2014. but he wasn't eligible for the first three tests of the autumn — which have seen wales lose to australia and the all blacks and narrowly beat georgia. britain's gordon reid came from a set down to win his second pool match at the wheelchair tennis masters in loughbrough. the reigning paralympic men's singles champion lost the first set against frenchman nicolas peifer, but came back strongly 6—4, 6—3 to win his first match of the tournament. earlier andy lapthorne also won to qualify for the semi—finals. it is just about fighting.

ijust try to get to the end, the last point, and make sure i win the last one. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. we'll have more for you in sportsday at 6:30pm. net migration is estimated to have fallen by nearly a third in the year tojune — the largest annual decrease on record. the office for national statistics said over three—quarters of the drop was accounted for by people from other european union countries. it's the first time that a full year of data has been available

since the uk voted to leave the eu. well, net migration is the difference between people coming to the uk for more than a year, and the number of people leaving the uk for a year oi’ more. in the 12 months tojune, 572,000 people arrived in the uk while 342,000 people emigrated. this left net migration standing at 230,000. this is a fall of 106,000 compared with the previous year, but still short of the conservatives' target to reduce the figure to the "tens of thousands." joining me now is lord andrew green, chairman of migration watch uk, a think tank calling for reduced levels of immigration to the uk. what do you make of this? well, it's good news, but of course there is a very long way to go. even know at this level, that is nearly a quarter

ofa this level, that is nearly a quarter of a million. this level, that is nearly a quarter ofa million. if this level, that is nearly a quarter of a million. if that were to continue over the next 25 years, it would add 10 million to our population. and 75% of that would be done to immigration. would have to build a city the size of birmingham every two and a half years. its massive even at this level. in terms of housing, for example, we would have to build a new home every five minutes day and night for new migrants. it's astonishing. everywhere you go in britain now, you see housing estates popping up around the place. that will continue indefinitely unless we get these numbers don't. we talk a lot about the housing problem in this country. in terms of the actual figures, a lot of this change is because the economy is not doing very well. the pound has got weaker since the eu

referendum. it's about economics and the fact our economy isn't as attractive any more. businessperson will tell you that is a bad thing. your right to say the foul in the pound has made less worthwhile for people like poles to come and work your. that is a factor. but even on these numbers we are still getting an extra 100,000 migrants from europe every year. it's not as if they are going away. starmer going, but large numbers are still coming. those were coming after the most pa rt those were coming after the most part coming because they have a job to go to. ports fallen is the number of people coming off the cuff and looking for work. it suggests various businesses need them to fill thejobs. various businesses need them to fill the jobs. that's a good point. agriculture, the service sector. that's a fair point. the reason the

industry is making a fuss is because they are making a lot of money. who would not want to have an unlimited supply of cheap labour that is ready often to live in difficult conditions? of course they like that. unless and until we limit that flow, we won't get employers to train people. i should they? why not just takes one off—the—shelf from another country? there are reports saying employers are struggling to find skilled workers. this is making it worse. employers have not been training people. apprenticeships have gone down the slope very rapidly in the last ten years. you think companies will suddenly start increasing the number of training schemes? you think that will be a direct result of what we are seeing now? these things take time. one of

the results of limiting migration from the european union will be that employers are obliged to upskill their own people and perhaps pay more and invest in equipment which will mean less labour. there is an enormous supply of labour coming from europe, so there is no point in investing. it is safer and cheaper to keep employing them. so we have to keep employing them. so we have to cut that often take a new approach. the other good news from these numbers is that it shows how brexit could work when it happens. it's not happened yet. economic factors have reduced the numbers, but when you can control the numbers and we can say we will have the highly skilled but not the others, you will get pressure on employers to upskill people, to invest, to do what they should've been doing these

last ten thank you. -- these last ten years. thank you. one of the so—called chennai six, who was released from an indian prison on monday, has spoken of his relief and delight at regaining his freedom. nick dunn, a former soldier, was among six britons acquitted of weapons charges by an indian court. he said his family would now have the best christmas ever — after missing the last four. he was talking to our india correspondent sanjoy majumder. i'm on cloud nine. there is not a word in that english dictionary that can describe how i feel at this minute. can't. former paratrooper nick dunn has just been released from an indian prison. one of six britons arrested four years ago and charged with smuggling weapons. he has now traded his squalid prison cell for a plush hotel room. his sister has come out to india to take him back home. and he just can't wait. it's going to be like four christmases that i have missed rolled in one.

it will be the best christmas. the best christmas my family could ever wish for. it has been a long, desperate wait for justice inside this prison. nick and his friends were part of a crew of 35 on board an american ship seized off the indian coast. on monday, an indian court threw out all the charges. the men were finally freed. i was out training. one of the guys shouted us over. i could hear it in his voice. it was excitement. he went, full acquittal. and i stopped in my tracks. it was like someone just slapped us. it was a shock. you know? it was an amazing feeling. the men's families led a massive

campaign back home to press for their release. they petitioned the government, including the prime minister. they are delighted and the men overcome with gratitude. you know, knowing there's lovely people out there, lovely, amazing, supportive people. i will never be able to thank them as much as what i am trying to do now. let's go back now to the brexit talks — and today on bbc news we're focusing on one of the major sticking points — the irish border. chris morris, from the bbc‘s reality check team, is here now to explain why the border has become an issue of such pressing concern in the brexit negotiations. so let's just remind ourselves what we're talking about here — the irish border is one of three

issues on which sufficient progress needs to be made before the brexit negotiations can move on. and if no—one thinks it's a good idea to re—impose a hard border with checks and inspections, why can't we all agree that — come what may — it simply won't happen? well, it's because the uk has announced that it is leaving the eu single market and the customs union. at the moment, all rules and regulations, north and south, are exactly the same — on food safety, animal welfare. you name it. it's a relationship based in large part on agreements covered byjoint membership of the eu. as soon as that changes, border checks may have to begin again. that's why the irish government wants a written guarantee from the uk that northern ireland will continue to follow eu rules — so goods can continue to move freely across the border. to put it another way, northern ireland would have to stay in the single market and the customs union. but if that were to happen, it would — in effect — push the customs border

out into the irish sea. an internal customs border, if you like, between northern ireland and great britain. would that be acceptable to the uk government, or to its unionist political allies in northern ireland, the dup? in a word, no. so what happens next — is there any compromise? the uk side has spoken of technological fixes — pre—screening, trusted trader schemes. the eu side says it's nowhere near enough to avoid the return of some border checks. but irish officials argue that there are already cases of rules and regulations being different in northern ireland than in the rest of the uk, and they point to other examples such as hong kong where there are different regulatory arrangements within sovereign states. so it's time for some creative thinking — the aim being no divergence of regulations in key areas. and the creation of some form of customs partnership on the island of ireland which doesn't threaten

the constitutional order of the uk. but if a fix emerges that seems to turn northern ireland into a back—door route into the single market, then other eu countries will cry foul. and that means that even if sufficient progress on ireland is agreed next month, there will be a long long way to go. jane. chris, thank you very much. more than eight million people suffer from migraines every year. the headaches can be completely debilitating. but now new drugs have been tested which appear to help people who suffer from migraines. they use anti—bodies to reduce the number and severity of attacks. our health and science correspondent, james gallagher, has more details. one in seven people in the uk live

with the agony of migraines. two trials have been published. one gave 955 patients the monthly injection of antibodies. imogen smith started having migraines two years ago when she was 16. imogen was having attacks every week and they forced her to take a year out of college. it was really scary so for me, when they were happening, i had no clue what they were ‘cause i thought a migraine was just a headache so we had to keep looking into more serious things.

one in seven people in the uk live with the agony of migraine. scientists have now developed new treatments that target a chemical in the nervous to prevent a migraine developing. two trials have now published. one gave 955 patients a monthly injection of antibodies. before the trial, they were having migraines eight days every month on average. around 50% of patients were able to cut their number of migraines in half. four drug companies are all developing similar treatments, and scientists say a new therapy could give patients their life back. these treatments are the first migraine—specific preventives ever for the most substantial neurological cause of disability on the planet. that is a huge advance for all of us. imogen's migraines are under control and she's now studying to be a nurse. control and she's now but currently available drugs do not work for everyone and can cause side—effects. new options for people living with migraine are desperately needed. joining me now is dr shazia afridi, consultant neurologist at guy's and st thomas' nhs trust where she also runs the headache clinic in the neurology department. how exciting is this to you? these results are exciting. m papers published today are from a new group of drugs. the existing results we

have for migraine prevention are drugs which by chance are fine to have an effect. is not really been developed specifically for migraine. the research he has been specifically for that purpose. this specifically for that purpose. this specific group is very important for that reason. the other thing that is interesting about this group of drugs is they will be administered once a month. in one case once every three months. to a single injection. again that is a different way of treating because most people with chronic migraine have tablets everyday. that is far less invasive and frequent? some of the drugs we have for migraine today are very effective, but there are a of people for which they don't work. it's good to have this extra level of armoury. the new drug were talking about today, this something that reduces the severity of each attack or

perhaps reduces the number of times a year that an individual will suffer migraine? is that what we're talking about? two studies published today, one was for episodic migraine and one for chronic migraine. episodic is anything less than 15 days per month. each of the drugs has shown efficacy in both those groups. one of those studies suggested 50% of people taking the drug had a greater than 50% reduction on the number of heady days per month. in the other study, it was 40%. so anything between 40 to 50% of people having a significant reduction in the number of headache aids. so that is quite significant and will have a really positive effect. -- headache days.

what causes this or why do some people suffer from it and some don't? what are the other areas of research? we know there is a genetic component. we know it is a brain component. we know it is a brain component. it is a way that the brain processes information that is different in people who suffer migraines. there are still a lot of information we don't know. we need more research to help us. very good to talk to you. thank you for your insight. thank you. the government's setting out plans to get1 million more disabled people in work over the next ten years. ministers say that the new strategy will help those with disabilities get work and stay in a job. here's our disability affairs correspondent, nikki fox. left edge, five feet away. hr consultant anna is testing face recognition gadgets that can help her at work.

she lost her sight five years ago, and is now registered blind. during that time she found it harder to get a job. i left uni with a first—class degree in law, and i was being turned down for basic admin roles when i had quite significant experience of that kind of thing. some of them, i might not have got the job anyway. it was quite clear from some of the questions they were asking it was because of my disability. the employment gap between disabled and non—disabled people hasn't significantly changed for some years, despite a pledge back in 2015 to halve it. today, the government has published a plan that aims to see one million more disabled people in work over the next ten years. it is an ambitious programme, but is it is one we believe we can deliver. what we are setting out is some of the measures we are going to take, and also the plan to how we are going to test and learn, and how we are going to innovate in this area to ensure that we increase opportunities for disabled people and people with health conditions that, at the moment, don't get the chances that they need. it's karaoke afternoon at this

specialist training centre for people with learning difficulties. its aim is to get talented young people like ben hanson a diploma and a job. he's on a placement at a hotel, which he hopes will lead to paid work. serving customers on their tables. so what's your dream ? i want to work in a nice posh hotel. you want to work in a posh hotel?! yes. but with only around 6% of people with learning difficulties in employment, despite his energy and enthusiasm, but with only around 6% of people with learning disabilities in employment, despite his energy and enthusiasm, the odds are against him. the scale of the problem is huge. the policy change will take a while to kick in. attitudes need to change. so if we are ever going to make it to that 10—year ambition, then we really need to start acting quickly. today's announcement has a strong emphasis on helping people with mental health issues.

but there are concerns that some of those with the lowest employment rates won't benefit from the changes. much more on all of our stories with the six o'clock news with fiona bruce. before that, let's top weather again, if we can bear it! snow is currently following over parts of yorkshire, lincolnshire, the east midlands as well and the south—east as well potentially getting some flakes of snow. we've had lots of pretty pictures, some frosty ones and some snow over the course of east yorkshire. let's see what heading our way tonight. apart from the snow, there is a risk of ice. this is what it looks like right now. snow showers over many eastern parts of the uk. further west, you're not getting the snow here. clearer skies. this is what it

looks like around a pm this evening. temperatures around a degree or so above freezing. just about getting into the east midlands as well. nudging intojust into the east midlands as well. nudging into just about the north of london. in the west and south—west, a different story. by the tip of cornwall, mostly rain. tonight, the biggest risk of ice is anywhere through eastern scotland, through yorkshire and east anglia. even in towns and cities, there could be some ice around. right in the middle of the town centre, 1 degrees, in rural areas it could be below freezing. tomorrow, cloud and showers around across eastern and south—eastern areas. there will be a

tendency for the showers to die away through the course of the afternoon. lots of bright weather around. still pretty chilly in other parts. two or three degrees in glasgow. in other parts, milderair three degrees in glasgow. in other parts, milder air comes three degrees in glasgow. in other parts, milderair comes in. three degrees in glasgow. in other parts, milderaircomes in. during the weekend, high pushes them milder air in ourdirection. the weekend, high pushes them milder air in our direction. turning less cold as we head into the weekend. net migration into the uk falls sharply and it's mainly down to fewer people coming from the eu.

the difference between the number of people coming to the uk and leaving has dropped by a third compared to the previous year. but the number is still far short of the tens of thousands pledged by the government. also tonight... the special relationship under strain as theresa may criticises donald trump after his tweets about the far right and about her. i'm very clear that retweeting from britain first was the wrong thing to do. one of the six british men wrongly jailed in india for four years tells of his joy at his new freedom. i'm on cloud nine. there's not a word in the english dictionary that can describe how i'm feeling at this minute. the eu offers a special