this is bbc news. i'm christian fraser live in brussels, where eu leaders are expected to approve moving brexit talks forward. european leaders are expected to formally agree to move onto the next phase of brexit talks but they warn stage two will not be easy. the transition period and a new relationship that will exist between the eu and the uk. a lot of thinking is to be done about that and there seem to be quite divergent opinions on what that should look like. join me for the latest developments. and in other news: scotland yard carry out an urgent assessment after a rape trial collapses. 22—year—old student liam allan was cleared after it emerged. 22—year—old student liam allan was cleared after it emerged police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case against him. this young man would have been sent

to prison for 12 years and would have been on a sex offenders register for the rest of his life, with precious little chance of appeal. three people are charged with the murder of people in a house fire. nasa discovers a whole new star system in a galaxy far far away. it's the first solar system with as many planets as our own. welcome to brussels, where european leaders are meeting for the second day of a crucial summit — this time without the british prime minister, theresa may.

they're expected to formally agree to start the next phase of brexit negotiations at their meeting in brussels today. it will mean talks can move on to the long—term relationship between the uk and eu. translation: i have extraordinary faith in the british prime minister. she has agreed with me and mr barnier that the withdrawal agreement will first be formalised and will be voted on and then we will see. the second phase will be significantly harder than the first, and the first was very difficult. the irish prime minister leo varadkar has said that he hopes that the future relationship between the uk and ireland would remain as close as possible as the current one. we want to talk about moving on from phase one to phase two, the transition period and the new relationship that will exist between the eu and the uk.

a lot of thinking needs to be done about that and there does seem to be quite divergent opinions on what this should look like. from an irish point of view, we'd like it look as much like the current relationship as possible. but that wouldn't necessarily be the view of everyone. the thoughts of the irish taoiseach. plenty to go on your podcast today. let's talk about the meeting. they are discussing brexit. it seems obvious that they will rubber—stamp the withdrawal project and negotiation. what's next? i'm hearing that the withdrawal discussion hasn't started yet. they are talking about the rows. they are having a technical break, people are speculating whether this is brussels speakfor going speculating whether this is brussels speak for going to the toilet. then there will be discussion for those

that are still here. the symbolism and a substance. the symbolism is the decision that sufficient progress has been made. the substance will come in the document known as the godless, three pages about 12 paragraphs setting out the principles of how phase two will be conducted. this is the talks about the docks. the guidelines for the transition, not necessarily the framework for the future trading. —— the talks about the box. this place i’u ns the talks about the box. this place runs on paper as much as a dozen politics. the pieces of paper matter, this document will have three parts, a reminder to degrade that commitments made in phase one have to be kept if those two will work. —— to the uk that commitments. then talking about the transition period, with the uk will follow the eu's rolls and followed the rules.

then talking about the principles for the future relationship. they will not get into detail about that last pa rt will not get into detail about that last part abdull texture because they want theresa may after a cabinet to talk about what they think this relationship will look like. only when there is more government clarity, will the eu provide more clarity. —— when there is more uk government clarity. theresa may seems to have said that she will accept that we are part of the customs union and losing market, but they want to talk about the fishery, registry for eu citizens. will that be wiggle room? we will find out what will find out what we re find out what will find out what were governed might be on offer next week because michel barnier, now that he has the red light, —— the green light, he will publish another document about his recommendations to readers and how the transition

should work. we have identified some of the potential sticking points. everybody says that in the reorganising the transition deal is easy, sign up, thank you very much. but the common fisheries policy. if the uk remains a member, but doesn't have a seat at the table when the frigid waters are agreed in december 2019, is this politically palatable? —— when the fishing quotas are a great. is this acceptable to the uk? just before you go, are you surprised by the dynamic that surrounded theresa may yesterday, the round of applause? looking back a year, she was a the round of applause? looking back a year, she was a nervous the round of applause? looking back a year, she was a nervous looking character among all the easier —— among all these leaders. a combination of things have gone on. sheer relief from the eu leaders

that significant progress has been done. they can do about the future rather than the bad—tempered stuff from the past. there could be more visionary stuff now. the memo has gone out, support theresa may. she has a difficult political situation at. if the final brexit deal is to be delivered, she needs help. thirdly, the professional politicians. many of them the head of minority coalition government. even less stable than theresa may's of red. they know what it is like to be embattled in the national parliament. there is always some downtime in these summits. i hear you had been dressing the christmas tree. show us your past. —— your pass. this will a snowman on it. there is a lot of festive spirit. including robbie brexit

negotiations. thank you very much. let's speak to our political correspondent eleanor garnier, who's in westminster. a lot of what theresa may to come back with. as adam said, a couple of inches. number one, they want a legal text. they want is to be legally binding. they want to know what kind of relationship she visited the uk and the eu will have. we have been told by the prime minister's official spokesperson that the cabinet will discuss the end stage before christmas. there is only one week left of the parliamentary term before christmas. at next week's cabinet, we expect theresa may at her most senior ministers to be fleshing out a bit more about what exactly that final position that the uk wants to strike with the eu will look likely. she will be pleased at what the cheer from the other eu 27 metres at last i's dinner when she said she wanted

to and was committed to brexit. —— 27 leaders at last night's dinner. we had one to feature on the brexit bill this week going through parliament. —— one defeat here. her first defeat over this huge piece of legislation, effectively transposing all of eu law into uk law. one defeat and it looks like there is more tricky times in the future. the government was to put the date of brexit day into law. the 29th of march 2000 and 90. but the opposition parties and some adorable is think this is not a good idea. —— some conservative rebels. they say that being crystal clear is going to get the most certainty they can for

people outside the eu. the rebels and the opposition parties say, will thus not just and the opposition parties say, will thus notjust try and the opposition parties say, will thus not just try your hand and the opposition parties say, will thus notjust try your hand in the negotiating box? —— negotiating box? what if you need to extend the time that we can negotiate if you put it into law that date, then your hands might be tried. there have been highs and lows of the last couple of weeks. they might be a bit of a high today and a sigh of relief in downing street but there will be difficult times to come and difficult times to come and difficult questions still to be answered. 0k, thank you very much for the moment. there is a technical break under way at the moment. when they reconvene to drug buddy brexit paper and we get some idea of whether they have approved the draft bill, we will bring that to you. —— to talk about the brexit paper.

let's go back to london. ajudge has called for an inquiry after a student was cleared of rape, when police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case. 22—year—old liam allan spent two—years on bail before his trial at croydon crown court was halted when it was revealed that his accuser had sent him messages, expressing fantasies about violent sex. the prosecuting lawyer, jerry hayes, told bbc news the information didn't come to light until he specifically asked the police to give the defence team a list of the woman's phone messages. if they hadn't had that disclosure, this young man would have been sent to prison for 12 years and would have been on a sex offenders register for the rest of his life. precious little chance of appeal. this was a massive, massive

miscarriage of justice, this was a massive, massive miscarriage ofjustice, which thank heavens was avoided. here we have the prosecutor in this case, supposed to be putting liam allan pine forests, come on to his aid. how did the trial even get to the point of trial? we don't have a system where the prosecution case must succeed at all costs. it is the job of the prosecutor to ensure that criminal justice is done in the right way. the prosecution or under and ongoing duty to disclose to defence anything that undermines it case —— undermines its case, or anything that advances the defence case. the defence team had been asking repeatedly by the messages because clearly mr liam allan, the defendant, had said that there were m essa 9 es defendant, had said that there were messages that effectively assist his defence. effectively pulled the case

out of the water. but what is troubling is that consistently those telephone messages were not disclosed to the defence. that is why thejudge has disclosed to the defence. that is why the judge has called for an enquiry because it is absolutely a cornerstone of the system for the boss addition to disclose evidence that undermines on case or assist the defence. —— for the prosecution to disclose. there was a damning report about this in july and they found that in 22% of the crisis that they looked at, the schedules were found, the schedules of this culture we re found, the schedules of this culture were found to be wholly inadequate and a lack of proper case supervision by the police was significantly a cause for concern and 78% of the files examined, either pro orfair. this would seem to be a prime example of what this report was talking about. —— poor orfair. what

are the met or product that mike edition service? the met say that the good look into this and they are aware that it has happened. the waiting for the grant was efficient service to give a fuller response. —— the crown prosecution service to give a fuller response. lawyers are telling me that this has been a major issue for a long time. the way this works is as follows. you have a disclosure officer in every big investigation. it's not a particularly glamorous role but they must be given the chance to do the disclosure properly. they must look at all the evidence and make a judgment. in a case like this, where the evidence seems to be as exelby to for the defendant, what is being

shown is that officers don't have the time to do the disclosure properly or don't disclose what is clearly helpful evidence to the defence. thank you very much, clive. let's look at some other stories. a firefighter has been killed in california as he tackled a blaze which has spread across nearly 400 square miles. the wildfire north—west of los angeles began 11 days ago and has already destroyed an area bigger than new york city and paris combined. a report from an influential committee of mps says that unauthorised redundancy payments made by the state—owned company managing the hs2 rail project were a shocking waste of taxpayers' money. the public accounts committee said the company overseeing the high—speed rail project had staff numbers well in excess of authorised levels. a spokesperson for hs2 confirmed a serious error had been made. rail staff on the west coast main line are carrying out a 24—hour strike in a row with the operator virgin trains over pay.

virgin trains has confirmed it will run the majority of its service today. further walk—outs are expected over christmas and the new year. a rescue operation is underway to help a cargo ship that has lost power of the island of currency in the western isles. the alarm was raised shortly after half past five yesterday evening. the coast guard's emergency towing vessel is only seen and some helicopters. those on the scene along with some helicopters. for a full summary of the news you can go to our website where you'll be able to get more details. three people charged with the murder of four children in a house fire

in salford are due to appear in court shortly. more from correspondent that is outside manchester crown court. take us outside manchester crown court. take us through what has happened there. this relates to the tragic house fire this monday. porto drinkard, demerara —— four children died and mother was injured. what we saw in court today was an appearance by three people, 23, 20—year—old and a 25. they are charged with forecasts of murder. demi pearson and her three siblings. three old sister lia survived for several days after the fire but then died. 16—year—old boys managed to get out of the fire. it

isa managed to get out of the fire. it is a short hearing this morning, the judge heard some details briefly about the case. the defendants spoke only to confirm their names, ages, actresses and nationalities. he then reminded them in custody. there will bea reminded them in custody. there will be a further hearing in march of next year, a plea hearing, and more about the case will be discussed. it will be likely to go to trial at the end of april. it is still in its early stages at the moment, the legal process, we have seen the first stage this morning, the three defendants facing charges and been granted in custody until next year. european leaders are expected to formally agree to move onto the next phase brexit talks but they have warned that stage two will not be easy. ajudge has called easy. a judge has called for an easy. ajudge has called for an enquiry after a student was clute of rape

when police failed to disclose evidence. three people charged with the murder of four georgian and has fired in greater manchester have appeared in court. children in a house fire in greater manchester. as taylor are behind in the ashes. -- is as taylor are behind in the ashes. —— is surely a man. england were all out for 403. he has switched allegiance and represented his home country of slovenia. he was to play in the davis cup. —— he wants to play. the wife of bradley wiggins recalling so chris froome a slithering reptile in the wake of his recent drugs charges on twitter. she later deleted the post and said that she had spoken in the heat of the moment. one in six parents in the uk

gives their children alcohol by the age of 14, according to new research. that's despite medical advice which says children should not drink until they are at least a year older. researchers from university college london also found white, well—educated parents were most likely to have a relaxed attitude to young people drinking. philippa roxby reports. this christmastime many teenagers will enjoy theirfirst tipple of alcohol. but a new study suggests this may not be a good idea, because it's harmful to children and their bodies aren't ready for it. the research team from university college london and pennsylvania state university found 17% of parents have let their children drink alcohol by the age of 14. well—educated parents of white children were more likely to allow their adolescent children to drink than unemployed and ethnic minority parents. half of all 14—year—olds said they had tried more than a few sips of alcohol.

people at a young age tend to think it is the right thing to do and obviously it is not really the right thing to do. it depends on the child really. on the parents. and how responsible they are, really. if they are encouraging it, like it is a good thing, then they might do it on their own all the time and think it is ok... obviously there is a limit. the study also found that light or moderate drinking parents were just as likely to let their children have alcohol as heavy drinking parents. parents of socially advantage children might believe it's teaching them responsible alcohol use and inoculating them against the future dangers of alcohol, but we have no evidence to support this view — and the chief medical officer recommends an alcohol—free childhood, so no drinking before the age of 15, because it can be harmful to their growth and development. alcohol charities said parents needed more guidance from schools and doctors on how to talk to their children about alcohol. their advice is to set the rules

for teenagers on alcohol and to be open and honest with them about its effects. britain's most senior military officer has warned of a new threat posed by russia to communications cables that run under the sea. the head of the defence staff, said britain and nato must avoid the risk of a potentially "catastrophic" effect on the economy if the cables were cut. in addition to new ships and submarines, russia continued to affect information warfare and new intellectual abilities. there is a new risk aware of love, the vulnerability of the cables that go across the sea bed. can you imagine a scenario where those cables are cut or disrupted, which would immediately

and potentially catastrophically affect both our economy and other ways of living if they were disrupted? therefore, we must continue to develop our maritime forces with our allies, with whom we are working very closely, to match and understand russian fleet modernisation. with me is our defence correspondent jonathan beale. good morning. talking about a new risk to our way of life. he is talking about imagining a scenario where these undersea cables are cut. but there's so —— but as intelligence that somebody is trying to do this. us intelligence has spoken about russian submarines aggressively brittle in the area where some of these undersea cables are, so there are hundreds of thousands of miles of cable under the atlantic. between europe and america. the financial transactions that take place using these fibre—optic cables, as much as ten

truly in dollars, £7 trillion. every day. it's her to say it would be catastrophic. —— it's fair to say. thinking about russia's wish and behaviour over crimea, secondly that russian as —— that russia is modernising its navy. a tenfold increase of submarine activity in the north atlantic. he is also worried about the way that russia is behaving in premier, it used information warfare. —— behaving in crimea. is is information warfare. —— behaving in crimea. isis partly information warfare. —— behaving in crimea. is is partly a information warfare. —— behaving in crimea. isis partly a page information warfare. —— behaving in crimea. is is partly a page for more investment in the naval fleet?“ so, he was not doing it very well. is this partly a pitch for more investment. we already know that it needs more money for equipment

already altered. the fall and the value of the pound closed at that. if you look at what you need to cover this activity, the uk has 700 killer submarines. unique anti—submarine warfare forgets, we have eight of those, one is usually looking for russian submarine activity. we don't have any maritime patrol aircraft. we rely on nato allies. this is notjust a problem for the allies. this is notjust a problem forthe uk, he allies. this is notjust a problem for the uk, he is saying this is an issue for the will of the nato alliance. clearly the uk must do more. the whole of the nato allies. how would one disable this? would it be an explosive device? we do both. in the past, cables have been broken by accident. anchors, fishing nets, something like that. in the early 70s, the americans try to tap into a

russian undersea cable. there have been examples of this kind of behaviour. it's not just been examples of this kind of behaviour. it's notjust cutting, is disrupting and saskia intelligence. —— sucking out intelligence. disrupting and saskia intelligence. -- sucking out intelligence. thank you very much. a report published in the past few minutes says the church of england failed to recognise the rights of a bishop, who was accused, decades after his death, of abusing a child. the former bishop of chichester george bell, who died in 1958, was alleged to have repeatedly abused a young girl. she made a formal complaint in 1995 and ten years later won an apology and compensation from the church of england. today's report says there was a rush to judgment. our correspondentjon donnison is outside church house in central london. tell herself what about the background and how the church carried out its original

investigation. george bell was the bishop of chichester between 1928 doctors before his death in 1958. he had a impeccable reputation, well—known for his effort to rescue jewish children from that to germany during the second world war. —— from nancy germany. a woman came forward a furious ago and said that she had been seriously sexually abused during the 1940s and 50s. —— came forward some years ago. the church did an investigation and quickly decided to give her compensation of £16,000. this investigation has been by independent review and has been very damning of this initial investigation by the church. he has said that george bell had been hung out to dry. he said the initial investigation by the church was weak, concluded all too easy that

the woman was telling the truth. it said that the church made no effort to co nta ct said that the church made no effort to contact his family and that for george bell's repetition to be so catastrophic effect it was just plain wrong. speaking this morning, lord carlile said that george bell had in effect been hung out to dry. a statement from the archbishop of canterbury. what has he said? we have had a number of statements from the church of england, apologies, from the current bishop of chichester. also the bishop of bath and wells. in this segment from archbishop and will be, he said that no human being is entirely good or bad. bishop bell is accused of great

wickedness. put ads do not diminish evil ones, not the evil ones make it important to forget the good. —— good acts do not diminish evil ones. thank you very much. reporting. some breaking news coming injust reporting. some breaking news coming in just now. donald tusk says that eu leaders have approved the second phase of brexit talks after sufficient progress. this is the key phrase in all of this, sufficient progress has been made in the three areas of the first days of talks to allow e—readers to approve this second phase of brexit talks, dealing with trade and other issues, security and so on. —— to allow eu leaders to approve. this is just in from donald tusk, the head of the rabin parliament. it was expected.

—— the european parliament. let's find out what's happening in the weather. there is some wind chill out and about but for many others there is lots of blue sky and sunshine. still some snow over the higher ground and we will continue to see some snow showers across the higher ground of scotla nd showers across the higher ground of scotland perhaps for a time around the north pennines, north york moors, a few showers in pembrokeshire and cornwall, but dry and sunny for most. it will feel more chilly than the temperatures suggest. showers continuing down the eastern side of the uk tonight and on the western coasts, and then there is a risk of ice. into the weekend, a frosty start on saturday but lots of sunshine around. on sunday, a significant change. the

wind is coming from the south—west so wind is coming from the south—west so it will turn milder but there will be lots of cloud and outbreaks of rainfall. this is bbc news. our latest headlines. eu leaders meeting in brussels have approved moving onto the second stage of brexit talks after sufficient progress has been after sufficient progress has been made. but there are warnings that the next stage of negotiations, which cover transition and trade, will not be easy.. scotland yard is carrying out an urgent assessment after a rape trial collapses. 22—year—old student liam allan was cleared after it emerged police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case against him. britain's most senior military officer has warned of a new threat posed by russia to communications cables that run under the sea. the head of the defence staff, said britain and nato must avoid the risk of a potentially "catastrophic" effect on the economy if the cables were cut. nasa, says it's discovered an eighth planet circling a distant sun, making it the first solar system found to have the same number of planets as our own. now, the sport.

england were left frustrated by a captain's innings from steve smith as australia closed 200 runs behind at the end of the second day of the third test in perth. england who cant afford to lose this match were all out for 403, australia in reply 203 for three at the close. a couple of centuries on the board for england at last. one of those from johnny bairstow, who refernced the recent head—butting incident he was involved in, as he celebrated his century. bairstow‘s 119 and dawid malan's14o left england set for a big score. but their last five wickets fell for less than 30 runs, all out for 403. in only his second test match, craig overton took two wickets, removing both openers.

but if the home fans sensed trouble, captain steve smith restored calm. he's closing in on another century. you can look at it both ways and say, look, it was a fantastic recovery and we have 400 on the board or you can look at it and say we have let the position slip but at the same time ourjob when we come backin the same time ourjob when we come back in the morning is to say we have the capability to take five or six wickets a session, as we have shown previously, so there is no reason we cannot do that now. now to tennis. aliaz bedene, britain's number two, has announced his intention to revert to play for slovenia, his home country. a surprise considering the backing he's received from the lta. our tennis correspondent russell fullerjoins us now. for people who do not know his career, he moved to great britain

with the aim of representing great britain and competing in the davis cup. why has he made the decision to revert to his country of birth? he was unsuccessful in his attempt to persuade the international tennis federation that he should be allowed to play team competitions for more than one country. they introduced a real just before his than one country. they introduced a realjust before his british passport came through in 2015. it said that he played the davis cup or olympics for one country view could not play for another country. there have been legal challenges since which up proved unsuccessful. his personal situation has changed as well. he got married in the last six months. his wife, a pop star, didn't settle in the uk and wanted to build her career in slovenia. and tennis slovenia have been lobbying hard. there was bad blood when he switched to britain. one of his friends who was at his wedding this year is now

the captain of the davis cup team. i guess some frustrations from the lta as well who invested heavily in his career. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in the next hour. let's return to the breaking news that eu leaders have approved moving the second phase of brexit parks after sufficient progress on the divorce bill. that is from donald tusk. he has tweeted in last few minutes saying that eu leaders have agreed to move onto the second phase of brexit talks. expected but significant with a well done to theresa may. let's get more with my colleague in brussels. that tweet is

interesting. it appears they're giving personal credibility to theresa may from what has happened. theresa may from what has happened. there was speculation she would be bruised and undermined by what happened in the commons. they are perfectly aware of the difficult mathematics back home in the house of commons and the difficult time she will have bringing leave and remain supporters together. they think she was instrumental in getting the deal along the line. have helped along the way as well which tells us that you do want a deal. there were concessions made on the eu said. concessions also on the uk said. a lot of credit going to theresa may and she got a round of polite applause in the room last night. we can now speak to maria demertzis is deputy director at the brussels—based economics think—thank bruegel. good to see you. they have got past

rubber—stamping the agreement right at the beginning of the two—hour meeting and now they move on to the next pa rt meeting and now they move on to the next part of the discussion, setting the terms for the next phase of negotiation and principally the transition. what do you expect they will agree on? in terms of options available to us, i think there are two options. the first is the kind of relationship that we have with canada, but the only thing about that agreement is it does not allow for a relationship on the financial services, and the uk will be looking for something like that. if the uk wanted to negotiate that type of agreement it would require something additional. or we could have a type of relationship like we do with norway and lichtenstein, which is a

lot more inclusive but has the additional point of the full liberties of the eu needs to be respected, including free movement of people. i am not sure how that will play in the uk conversation. and there is the additional problem with what happens with northern ireland. let's take the transition pa rt ireland. let's take the transition part first of all. given that they wa nt to part first of all. given that they want to keep theresa may in place, they have set down fairly narrow para meters they have set down fairly narrow parameters for the transition, that britain will continue to abide by the rules of the single market, the eu and the jurisdiction of the european court but given this will go until 2021 they also have to give us go until 2021 they also have to give us something to be able to sell to brexit supporters. well there be wiggle room? i suppose there is room to negotiate everything but to be honest with you i find there is

little willingness to invest capital in anything other than the final agreement. therefore spending time on negotiating something that will la st on negotiating something that will last for on negotiating something that will la st for two on negotiating something that will last for two years, i don't think people are waiting for this. we now have about one year to negotiate the broad agreement, that will take us to october 2018, then the rest of the time is needed to ratify the agreement, and that isjust procedural. after that it is about putting the details on the future agreement, which will not be easy and will have a lot of discussion. to think of changing the traditional deal as a transitory recess, i find it difficult to believe. i am not surprised the eu is insisting on the uk following all the rules while they are in the transitional phase. at the other side of the transition period in 2021, there is then a

cliff edge and the uk i presumably saying in negotiations that you have to enable us to hold discussions on future trade deals with other countries and we have to put things in place for registering eu migrants. there are things the uk would want to do so that they can go forward at the end of the transition period. i agree that it is a reasonable request and i hope it would be part of the discussion but it would be starting from a very negative position. i hope some of it happens. the eu gave some concessions, important ones for reasonable demands from the uk and i hope that spirit continues. in terms of investing capital on achieving certain things, i think there will be very little of that. theresa may, for all the confusion over what she actually wants, some people will say she has been very consistent all the way back to lancaster house. she

said the uk is leading the single market and customs union. michel barnier said that that means it can only mean canada plus. so does that mean that you can stay in full alignment with the eu?|j mean that you can stay in full alignment with the eu? i think you can. the interesting thing about this option is what happens to services? i think this is the bit that the uk will be seeking to clarify because that agreement is really only about goods and not services and this is an important component of the british economy that it would be very difficult to give up. i think this is the sticking point, as far as i can see. thank you very much for your thoughts. they have moved past the first part of the negotiation, the test of sufficient progress has been met. we have seen a tweet from the eu council president donald tusk who said eu leaders agreed to move on to

the second phase of brexit hocks. congratulations prime minister theresa may. we expect our press conference later from donald tusk and jean—claude juncker and also angela merkel and emmanuel macron will have a joint conference later also. let's stay with this story because with eu leaders having just approved regressing brexit talks to the next phase on the transition in future relationship, what does that mean? chris morris is here from the reality checking. so the other 27 countries have now agreed it is time to move on to phase two of these negotiations while continuing to finalise all those issues from phase one. first there will be talks about a transition period of about two yea rs a transition period of about two years after brexit during which the uk will operate under all eu rules

and regulations. some of the detail about what that means will be controversial. then next spring if all goes to plan, negotiators will also begin to consider the future relationship between the uk and eu, on security, foreign policy and trade. the aim of the eu is to produce a broad political agreement and outlines of a future deal before brexit actually happens. retail trade talks will take a lot longer, they say. part of the problem is that at the moment to the eu has no idea what the uk actually wants. a deep and special partnership is a government's preferred phrase but what does it actually mean? there has been talk about this, the canada model. the eu and canada signed a free drink agreement which came into effect this year giving canada preferential access to do the eu single market and eliminates most

ta riffs single market and eliminates most tariffs on the trading of goods but there are shortcomings. ceta does not do much to liberalise services and services are roughly 80% of the uk economy. last year the trade surplus in services with eu was £14 billion. regulatory standards will bea billion. regulatory standards will be a vital issue for the uk but ceta only commits the sites to talk about that in the future. the brexit secretary david davis says he wants canada plus, plus, plus. we want a bespoke outcome. we will probably start with the best of japan, canada, south korea, and then add the services which is missing. the eu is cautious, arguing that the more eu is cautious, arguing that the m o re a ccess eu is cautious, arguing that the more access you get, the more responsibilities you have. the eu doesn't want to —— the uk doesn't

wa nt to doesn't want to —— the uk doesn't want to make access payments, allow the free movement of people or have the free movement of people or have the european court ofjustice. the norwegian model gets access but also agrees to the things the uk doesn't want. some argue that a bespoke deal needs to be found but there is no such thing as membership light. it is argued that the eu and uk are starting from the same point so it should be easier but this will be the first deal in history —— trade deal in history where the two sides occurring to get further apart rather than come closer together. more now on the collapse of a rape

trial... more now on the collapse of a rape trial after vital evidence came to light which the police had failed to disclose. charges against liam allen, who's 22, were dropped three days into a trial, after thousands of messages were unearthed proving his innocence. he was not expecting all of this. it is coming is quite a big shock to him and he is quite worried because his neighbours are being pestered and there are lots of people around his home and what he wants to do right now is have a little bit of headspace because as a 22—year—old you can imagine it has all been quite and irving, especially given

the two years prior in which his life was pretty much at stake. what is quite astonishing about this case, and there are many astonishing aspects, is that it was the prosecution team who were trying to put him into jail, for this alleged offence, they were the team who pointed to this evidence to you at the defence team. give us your version of events leading up to that. when he was arrested, when the complainant went to the police station she handed over her phone to the police and then liam was arrested and he gave his version of events at the police station, highlighted to the police that there would be messages available, so despite all that it appears in terms of investigating and the charging decision by the crown prosecution

service, despite all that he was still charged with very serious offences. the next stage was that the matter went to court and so we file a defence statement asking further information and the information from from the cps was that there was nothing further to disclose and was only in the first day of trial that we reedited —— reiterated this request because the crown had disclosed a few messages that they sought to rely upon, which would not be fair cos we are not seen would not be fair cos we are not seen all of them. if the prosecution could get their hands on his text messages, why could the defence not? there is a process to go through. we exhausted our processes and we had to renew the request before the judge, and it was at that stage the officer in the case was asked further and thejudge,

officer in the case was asked further and the judge, we officer in the case was asked further and thejudge, we must thank him for his patience in this matter and for paying great attention to it, because this was a young man's life at stake, so further enquiries we re life at stake, so further enquiries were made by the cps and it was taken seriously were made by the cps and it was ta ken seriously and were made by the cps and it was taken seriously and as a result the 40,000 odd messages were revealed to us. 40,000 odd messages were revealed to us. this came to light because of actions from the prosecution. do you think this highlights major problems with disclosure? is it to do with resources , with disclosure? is it to do with resources, budgets? there are several things into playing here. funding, the nature of prosecutions to go gung ho for a defendant, to not disclose things for the defence. most clients are legally aided and

with public funding policy now, cutting budgets at all costs, it subsequently means there will be miscarriages of justice subsequently means there will be miscarriages ofjustice across the country. thank you. the lawyer who represented the defendant in this trial. in a moment a summary of the business news this hour but first, the headlines on bbc newsroom live. ajudge has called for an inquiry after a student was cleared of rape, when police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case. three people charged with the murder of four children in a house fire in worsley greater manchester have appeared in court in the business news...

a committee of mps reveals claims calls redundancy payments made by the state—owned company managing the hs2 rail project, a "shocking waste of taxpayers' money", after it's revealed that overpayments totalling £1.76 million were made to 94 people. more on this in a moment. sky and bt signed a deal to sell their channels on each other‘s platforms. under the deal, bt will now supply its sports channels, which show uefa champions league and premier league football, to sky. ryanair, which is the world's fifth biggest airline by passenger numbers, says it's going to recognise pilot unions for the first time since it was founded 32 years ago. the airline hopes it will stop pilots holding a strike that was scheduled for later today over pay and conditions. earlier this year ryanair had to cancel 20,000 flights after messing up its pilots leave schedule.

as we've been hearing, the public accounts committee has released a report today on redundancy payments. it finds that during 2016—17 hs2 ltd made £1.76 million of "unauthorised payments" to staff through compulsory and voluntary redundancy schemes offered at enhanced terms in excess of those authorised by the department for transport. joining us now is anna mccaffrey, an employment lawyer at taylor wessing. this has been described as a shocking waste of taxpayer money by mps of taxpayer money by mps . what do you make of this? the payments were not authorised and thatis payments were not authorised and that is why the dispute lies. in

terms of payments above the statutory minimum required by law, many employers choose to do that voluntarily as a statutory payment is relatively limited but i think the key thing here is that hs2 chose to make those announced payments but needed the express consent of the department for transport to refuse to the consent, yet they appear to make the payments anyway. the payments are given without the proper authorities what is the legal position? these payments have now been made. i think it is a tricky issue in that obviously the people who received the redundancy payments, the employees themselves, there is no suggestion they have done anything wrong in receiving the payment. recovering the money would seem payment. recovering the money would seem to be quite difficult. that is one of the points from their paper

of the committee that they pointed out it seems recovery of the money would be quite complex. mps blame wea k would be quite complex. mps blame weak internal processes at hs2 for these payments. so it is incredibly difficult to claw back any of this money. certainly that is the focus of the report, to improve corporate governance to make sure it doesn't happen again because it is difficult to recover money from employees who have not done anything wrong and thought they were being paid payments they were due to receive. for more on the ryanair story, head to our website where we have much more on the story and we hope to talk to an aviation expert later today. that is all we have time for. us space agency nasa says it's

discovered an eighth planet circling a distant sun, making it the first solar system found to have the same number of planets as our own. the eight planets orbit a star known as kepler—90, and the latest discovery‘s shown scientists that the planets are ordered like earth and its neighbours with small planets nearest the sun and bigger planets further away. artificial intelligence by google's parent company alphabet was used to make the discovery. with me is dr elizabeth pearson, an astrophysicist and news editor of bbc sky at night magazine. she's in our bristol studio. thank you forjoining us. tell us more about what this new planet is like in terms of size, composition? what we know so far is it his around a star like what we know so far is it his around a starlike oursun. what we know so far is it his around a star like our sun. we are always looking for these in terms of habitability. this planet, known as

kepler—90i, it is about 30% larger than earth but much closer to its star and it orbits in 14 days. the temperature gets to over 400 degrees so temperature gets to over 400 degrees so it will not be great for life. researchers effectively trained a computer to spot this planet. what nasa and google did together was taught aiken peter programme how to recognise these things. they put 15,000 different detections that had been vetted and they taught the computer programme how to recognise them, they fed through a bunch of data which had already been through their systems before, and turned up this planet around kepler—90 and also on around kepler—80. this is

fantastic because it means we have lots of telescopes coming online soon lots of telescopes coming online soon generating lots of data but we can't really process the data that will, we have to have these kinds of machine learning. and you can read about that in the january issue of sky at night magazine. the headlines are coming up on the bbc news channel. in a moment we say goodbye to viewers on bbc two, first we leave you with for a look at the weather. we have some sunny weather across most parts of the uk at the moment but there are still a few showers. they are wintry over the higher ground of scotland but down the eastern side of england they are producing some nice rainbows. they will continue into the afternoon. still some snow across the higher ground of the far north of scotland, and some showers across pembroke sure in the south—west of england. sunny for most of us but if you're

stepping outside this afternoon it will feel colder than these temperatures suggest. this evening and tonight we will see the skies clearing away and there will be widespread frosts developing quite quickly. around eastern and western coasts, the risk of ice on saturday morning. more sunshine on saturday but a switch in the wind direction to south—westerly on sunday brings more cloud, higher temperatures and outbreaks of rain. this is bbc news. eu leaders meeting in brussels approve moving on to the second stage of brexit talks. in a tweet donald tusk, the president of the european council, congratulates the prime minister. and in other news. scotland yard carry out an urgent assessment after a rape trial collapses. 22—year—old student liam allan

was cleared after it emerged police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case against him. the central prison for 12 years and only serves offenders —— and on the sex offenders register for his life, with precious little hope of appeal. three people charged with the murder of four children in a house fire in worsley greater manchester have appeared in court. the church of england apologises to the family of a bishop for failings in the way it investigated allegations of child abuse against him more than 50—years after his death. nasa discovers a whole new star system in a galaxy far, far away. it's the first solar system with as many planets as our own. welcome to brussels,

where eu leaders have formally agreed to move the brexit talks onto the next phase. there has been a furious amount of red david de gea in the last few minutes. we have had work from the inside of the meeting. the test on sufficient progress in the first pa rt sufficient progress in the first part of the negotiation has been met and they now moved onto the second pa rt and they now moved onto the second part of the process, setting the framework for the relationship. behind me here we have the desks of reuters, sending the news around the world. there is the inside of that meeting room, donald tusk sitting

and waiting for negotiations to begin. this was tossed a few minutes ago. we have had a tweet from donald tusk, confirming that they are going to move on. he is also congratulating theresa may, reinforces the point i've been making about them giving personal reddit theresa may, giving her some support, moving deadlines, and the british side have said that there arresting copyright and both sides. the eu have had to give quite a bit in the last two weeks as well. —— that there has been quite a lot of give on both sides. it seems that younger “— give on both sides. it seems that younger —— mrjuncker was impressed with what she had achieved last night. translation: i have extraordinary faith in the british prime minister. she has agreed with me and mr barnier that the withdrawal agreement will first be formalised

and will be voted on and then we will see. the second phase will be significantly harder than the first, and the first was very difficult. there was a round of applause as theresa may last night made her comments at the dinner, saying that she wanted to ensure a smooth brexit. they are still painfully aware that she is locked in a negotiation with her cabinet on what sort of future, what a deep and special partnership with the eu actually means. this was pointed out by leo varadkar earlier on, satisfied that this deal is good but as to the colour of the future talks, he says there is a lot of disagreement. we want to talk about moving on from phase one to phase two, the transition period and the new relationship that will exist between the eu and the uk. a lot of thinking needs to be done about that and there does seem to be quite divergent opinions on what this should look like. from an irish point of view,

we'd like it look as much like the current relationship as possible. but that wouldn't necessarily be the view of everyone. let's speak to our political correspondent eleanor garnier who's in westminster. i'm sure that the prime minister was already given assurances last night that they would rubber—stamp this deal. but what they are saying in the draft proposal that they won the first part of this negotiation put into a legal text and they want much clearer ideas of what she wants. —— that they want the first part of the seclusion should. yes, the criticism is that they don't understand what type of final deal theresa may and the uk government project with the eu. from the prime minister's official spokesperson, this is going to be discussed next week at cabinet. discussions will be

ongoing. they will be a huge sigh of relief in downing street that they have managed to make to this point. it has been pretty turbulent far. there were some points where people wondered if we would get to this halfway point in the talks. huge relief on one hand butjust as theresa may welcomes that round of applause she got from the eu 27 litres last night at dinner, she comes back to westminster where she faces more difficult decisions. —— 27 eu leaders. brexit bill was debated line by line by the mps. this is the bull that effectively tra nsfers this is the bull that effectively transfers all of the eu law into eucharist —— intuit uk statute books. theresa may faced a significant defeat on that on wednesday evening. losing a crucial vote. it looks like there is trouble ahead next week as well. the

government would like to put the date of brexit, the treasure of march —— the 20th of march 2019, and to love. they say this will give everybody clarity. —— 2019 into law. summer conservative rebels say that this is wanted by the government's hands. perhaps they need to be extended but if this has been written into law, this makes things difficult. theresa may needs to face a difficult decision as to whether to push for that whether she thinks that the rebels might back down. a big sigh of relief but that doesn't mean that the difficult decisions have been decided on, the difficult answers,, questions have been decided on, the difficult answers, , questions have have been decided on, the difficult answers,, questions have been answered. this way through, celebrations but everybody knows that the hard work is still to come. when i was here a year ago, she

struck a different figure when she was in the room. some of the pictures were taken out of context but she was more hunched, looking arose about the reaction that was in the room. yesterday she strolled down the right corporate, deliberate about what you wanted to say. —— red carpet. she had won 35 out of 36's —— bookmarks in the house of commons. also knowing that the deal signed and delivered. this makes the difference. the reaction from the other eu leaders has been noticeable to the fact that theresa may faced that defeat on wednesday night and then travelled to brussels on thursday. we did not see eu leaders criticising her making it even more difficult for her. the opposite, they were very supportive of her and i think that has to do with the fact that they are also professional politicians, they know what it's like to face defeat in their own

parliament. not all of them are leading governments with majorities. there has been some sympathy with theresa may over this defeat in the house of commons. also, the eu was to get this done, they want to successfully negotiate this. —— the eu wants to get this done. they think that if she can't get it done well, then there will be delays. they want to support her in order to they’wan‘t tn snnfir’rrt'her ifl'fif’éé’i—ff‘zx ......,,, . , , may had her theresa may might have had her shoulders high and pushed back in brussels this week, she knows that coming back here, towards the end of this parliamentary term, breaking up next week ahead of christmas, things will be difficult once again. there is, quite. she is dealing with 27 year. perhaps the 28 back at home is the most difficult negotiation. —— with 27 here. let's speak now to henry newman,

director at the think—tank open europe — which is calling for eu reform. digital p. not startling news that they have agreed to move past this first phase. what we want to see from the transition? the key question is not what we want to see from the transition back from the future relationship with the eu. many people would rather have not had a position. but there was consensus among the cabinet that transition would be needed to allow was to make the preparations for leaving. the reality is that this transition period will keep things as they were, as if we were a member, but we will not be a member, we will be a third country. what about those cabinet meeting on tuesday? what have you heard about what will be there and what sort of told the prime minister will take? we know there is a crucial decision that the cabinet has to take as to what sort of country we want to be

on the outside. what sort of trading relationship we want with the eu. this decision has been deferred for too long by the prime minister. there is a spectrum of possibilities outside of europe. we could be a country like canada, a treaty with europe, or we could be outside the eu but still essentially in the thing, almost in the single market. we need more clarity as to where we land. —— in. they want to end free movement and invite budget contributions to the eu and not be under the restriction of the ecj. —— and not a budget divisions. this suggests that we are going to be like canada. we have heard similar things from the belgian prime minister yesterday.” things from the belgian prime minister yesterday. i should point out that theresa may has tweeted

thanking the eu for a smooth and orderly brexit, or the first phase of this negotiation. from what you we re of this negotiation. from what you were saying, you are quite relaxed, are you, about the way in which this negotiation receipts? some people who voted brexit thinks that full climate means that we are heading towards a soft brexit, it doesn't really pulling away? we don't yet have clarity on these answers. i'm not entirely delighted by the way that the eu has approached these talks. we should have spoken about trade and the future from the beginning. there is nothing in the law that required and to support the issues of money and northern ireland and you national from the start. but they did. lastly, we wanted to keep full limit. this was a prime example

of fudge. picking up the eu's national sport of kicking the canned on the road. it didn't clarify how theissues on the road. it didn't clarify how the issues will be resolved. —— —— kicking the canned down the road. they said they wanted to protect the bell —— belfast and good friday agreement. they've also said at the same time that we will leave the supermarket and customs union. it's not clear how these things can be squared. it is just like differing theissues squared. it is just like differing the issues to the next stage. —— it is just deferring issues. the issues to the next stage. —— it isjust deferring issues. we expect jean—claude juncker and donald tusk to come down this path in the next course of the next 20 minutes. they are running late. maybe you will see them and we will draw them a question if they come. adam fleming is here. you've been looking at the

d raft is here. you've been looking at the draft proposal that they have put out. is it still draft or agree? no, it isa out. is it still draft or agree? no, it is a real thing now. it is a real document. we have to stop being vague, this is the draft... but the d raft vague, this is the draft... but the draft guidelines! the guidelines, how will the face to talks will operate. the laboratory exactly the same as what the drafts we have been talking about this money. —— they are broadly the same. it is a reminder of the concessions, commitments, pledges of phase one have to be kept, the users. it will only be legally binding when in a treaty but they are saying to the uk, no backsliding, evenjust informally on a tv programme. the second thing is just to discuss a transition period. the uk will follow the same rules, pay into the

budget. we shall pioneer will flesh this out into another more detailed document. —— michel barnier will flesh this out. he told me he reckons they will be ready to negotiate this transition period afterjanuary. negotiate this transition period after january. —— negotiate this transition period afterjanuary. —— injanuary. the future partnership on trade negotiations and security, they will not get into this into march 2018 but the wording has changed slightly from the draft document footed around. the eu 27 will continue their internal progressions for these talks. they will not stop and wait until march. some would say this is a technical victory for the uk. the people in this building, officials and politicians, will be thinking about those trade talks, not just waiting until max. thinking about those trade talks, notjust waiting until max. you can show you a copy now. -- not waiting until march. one thing that really

struck me yesterday, echoing what you said earlier, leaders do not wa nt to you said earlier, leaders do not want to talk about separation and divorce, they want to talk about big and bold plans for the future. this phase sits them far better. there has been one homogenous group in the first phase but when they were speaking about defence yesterday, the nato secretary general said that it percent of defence funding is now going to come from out of the european union. somebody said that the eastern european countries therefore want to stay very close to therefore want to stay very close to the uk and might start to split away from the rest because they have different priorities. this is what we might see from the next bit. there might be some different fracturing in the group, as the angle from what they need. this is why donald tusk, the man gratuitous summit, he said that phase two was going to be harder than phase one. but that the negotiations will be

tougher but that maintaining unity amongst the 27 is going to be harder. —— he didn't mean that the negotiations will be tougher with the uk. does the car industry affect another one in another country? what about those countries to the west that fish in lots of british waters? they will care about the negotiations about fisheries a lot more than bulgaria will, because they don't fish in british waters. it will be fascinating to see if the uk can divide and rule. they would not say that but it would help them if they could. having said that, the eu are obsessed about this idea of having a united front. will they put their money with their as when it comes to defending their four freedoms, the freedom of movement, freedoms, the freedom of movement, freed people, capital and bits? will

they be prepared to treat bits of them here and there? to get the do that individual countries want? or will they stick to the rules of sticking together? thank you very much. this is the greatest board of the afternoon at the end of the summer. it's a christmas selection box. you can choose which prescribes that you're going to. who are you going to? i'm going to go and see the taoiseach, leo varadkar. we will bring you are drunk or drugged and donald tusk. they will be europe in the next. —— we will bring you mr juncker and mr donald tusk. we will be needless detail through the course and more detail on the guidelines, no longer draft guidelines, no longer draft guidelines, set in stall for mr barnier. large duo that we have the basis ——

glad to you that we have the bases covered! ajudge has called for an inquiry after a student was cleared of rape when police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case. 22—year—old liam allan spent two years on bail before his trial at croydon crown court was halted when it was revealed that his accuser had sent him messages expressing fantasies about violent sex. the prosecuting lawyer, jerry hayes, told bbc news the information didn't come to light until he specifically asked the police to give the defence team a list of the woman's phone messages. the defence saw on this disc information that completely blew the prosecution case out of the water. if they hadn't had that disclosure, this young man would have been sent to prison for 12 years and would have been on a sex offenders register for the rest of his life, with precious little chance of appeal, so this was a massive, massive miscarriage ofjustice which, thank heavens, vans was avoided. our legal correspondent clive coleman gave us more

background to the case. it is thejob it is the job of the prosecutor to ensure that criminaljustice is done in the roadway. the prosecution or underan in the roadway. the prosecution or under an ongoing duty to disclose to the defence anything undermining its the defence anything undermining its the prosecution's goes, case. what is extraordinary is that the defence tea m is extraordinary is that the defence team had asked repeatedly for these four messages because clearly the defendant in this case had been seeing, there are these messages that assist my defence. effectively, they blow the case out of the water. but what is troubling is the fact that consistently it seems that those telephone messages were not disclosed. that is why the judge has called for an enquiry. it is an absolute cornerstone of the system that the prosecution must add you to

—— at you through their duty. there was a —— at you through their duty. there wasa damning —— at you through their duty. there was a damning report about this just injuly of this year by her majesty's inspector of constabulary. they found that in 22% against severely that the schedules of disclosure, what —— were found to be wholly inadequate and a lack of supervision by the police was in a significant cause for concern and 78% of the files examined were marked either pro orfair —— poor or fair. what i deem it and the crown prosecution service saying? —— what i deem it. the met say the good look into this. they are aware of the fa ct into this. they are aware of the fact that this has happened. —— said they are going to look into this. they are waiting for the cps to give

a fuller response. they expressed concern that this has happened in the place. warriors have said this has been a issue for a long time. —— lawyers have said to me. in every big investigation, there is a disclosure officer. they must be given the time to do the disclosure properly. they must look at all the evidence and make a judgment. in a case like this, with the evidence appears to be as by copies can be —— as exculpatory as it is. that should have slapped the officer abounding faith and should have been disclosed. sometimes officers, because of cuts, are not having time to do the disclosure properly. in the worst cases, they don't disclose clearly helpful evidence to the defence. ministers coming into us. this is

the statement from the cps comic interests. they have this week and from families of the victims of the hillsborough disaster that no charges have been brought against two individuals following investigation by the ipcc. it was investigating the conduct of the former south yorkshire police mounted officer and a civilian farrier in relation to an allegation made in 1979 that a police horse was burned with cigarettes by liverpool supporters. the mounted police officer was seen to be lashing out at fans and the allegation was that these accounts were false and given to protect the police officer from disciplinary action. the cps says that after a full file of evidence was received from the ipcc injune

and investigated and considered by cps prosecutors, it's been concluded that, in relation to the police officer, there was not a realistic prospect of conviction. the evidence threshold had not been met. in relation to the furrier, the evidential threshold was met, but the public interest in pursuing the case against the farrier was considered and it was decided that it was not in the public interest to prosecute this individual song chart has been brought a detailed statement. —— this individual, so no charge has been brought. a detailed statement in relation to the hillsborough disaster. britain's most senior military officer has warned of a new threat posed by russia to communications

cables that run under the sea. the head of the defence staff, air chief marshall sir stuart peach, said britain and nato must avoid the risk of a potentially "catastrophic" effect on the economy if the cables were cut. russia, in addition to new ships and submarines, continues to perfect both unconventional capabilities and information warfare. and there is a new risk to our way of life, which is the vulnerability of the cables that crisscross the sea bed. can you imagine a scenario where those cables are cut or disrupted, which would immediately and potentially catastrophically affect both our economy and other ways of living if they were disrupted? therefore, we must continue to develop our maritime forces with our allies, with whom we are working very closely, to match and understand russian fleet modernisation. with me is trevor taylor, research fellow at the royal united services institute. thank you forjoining us. how

significant is this threat from russia to underwater cables? these cables, there are hundreds of them around the world, they are not a specially protected. they tend to be protected against anchors, not malicious attacks. we know that russia is interested in disrupting our information systems in general. we are concerned about the wider critical national instructor, what is applied, electricity, this is pa rt is applied, electricity, this is part of a bigger picture of problems. —— water supply and it is courtesy. if that this was raised is a clear statement that this needs more resources and attention. these cables, they carry information as pa rt cables, they carry information as part of the critical infrastructure. cyber security, you say they are

exa m ples of cyber security, you say they are examples of these being accidentally being damaged but if a state was trying to deliberately damage these cables, what would they do? would it be an explosive device or would it be an explosive device or would it be more technical than that? be an explosive device or would it be more technical than that7m would have to be a physical damage. either cutting them are laura dover. one difference is that it would be easier and to distribute any attack toa easier and to distribute any attack to a specific vessel —— easier to attribute any attack on a specific vessel. technology is making it easier because we see more possibilities for underwater robots that could do this kind of thing. it is becoming more feasible but it would be more attributable than most forms of cyber attack, soulless appealing than a country —— still a

bit less appealing than a country like russia. but you have to get a submarine or a vessel. one of these cables? i ask discretion because there is talk of the allies leading to match and understand russian fleet modernisation. can this be dealt with partly by the navy, for instance? that was... he actually said, almost expressly, but this kind of problem and the protection of these assets does require more naval effort. the number of ships and submarines we have got has been reduced over decades. it is a cultural modernisation, expansion of naval assets. —— it is a call for modernisation. we have to think about how to monitor these cables better, maybe using more robots for

their protection. it is a call from resources . their protection. it is a call from resources. “— their protection. it is a call from resources. —— for resources, yes. fascinating to talk to you. three people charged with the murder of four children in a house fire in worsley greater manchester have appeared in court. we have been following the case. this relates to the tragic house fire in greater manchester commander of this week when four children died. their mother was the recently injured and two boys managed to get out. the police turned it into a modern enquiry. today it was an appearance by three people david worrall, zak bolland, courtney brierley. 20, 21 and 20 five. they are charged with four hours of moderate. the murder of demi pearson, brandon, lia, and lacie.

the children's mother is still in hospital. it is sure during this morning. thejudge heard some details about the case. —— it is a short meeting this morning. they confirmed the ages, nationalities and addresses of the suspects. there will be a prehearing later and then there will be a trial probably in there will be a trial probably in the end of april, last and probably 3-4 the end of april, last and probably 3—4 weeks. the legal process is still in its early stages. they have been remanded in custody until next year. let's ta ke let's take a look at the weather.

it has been pretty chilly today. temperatures around five or six to greece. we will hang onto some good spells of sunshine. one or two showers coming into northern ireland and clipping western parts of wales. the showers become fewer overnight and the wind becomes lighter. it will be drive for many of us. they widespread frost developing perhaps in the countryside coming down to —5 or minus six. in the showers around the edges of the uk there could be some icy patches. northern ireland sta rts some icy patches. northern ireland starts the day quite damp. in the north, largely dry, some sunshine but a cold day, temperatures two or three celsius. milder air eventually as the wind picks up on sunday, bringing more cloud and outbreaks of rain across the uk. temperatures in the afternoon could be as high as

nine — ten celsius. this is bbc news. our latest headlines. european leaders meeting in brussels have agreed to move on to the second phase of brexit talks. tourism is as it is a significant step to delivering a smooth and orderly brexit. —— to raise a says it isa orderly brexit. —— to raise a says it is a significant step. in a tweet, donald tusk, the president of the european council, congratulates the prime minister but has also warned the next stage of negotiations which covers transition and trade will be "considerably harder than the first". scotland yard is carrying out an urgent assessment after a rape trial collapses. 22—year—old student liam allan was cleared after it emerged police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case against him. nine million adults in the uk are chronically lonely, according to a commission set up by the mpjo cox, before her murder. it says loneliness is as harmful to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and calls for a government—led national strategy to address the problem. an inquiry into child sexual abuse in australia has made more than 400

recommendations in its final report. the royal commission said tens of thousands of children had been assaulted at more than 4000 institutions, including churches, orphanages and schools. more on our top story. eu leaders meeting in brussels have approved moving onto the second stage of brexit talks after they agreed sufficient progress had been made in the divorce settlement. christian fraser is in brussels. you are trying to talk to michel barnier. he gave me the ground—breaking statement that we move onto the next phase. he did not say what he thought of theresa may's speech last

night. ifjean—claude juncker appears behind me i will leave my guest. how significant is this, moving onto the next phase? does it mean that we have left the eu? moving onto the next phase? does it mean that we have left the 5mm means we still have to leave the eu and the precise date is still to be decided. it is significant. from one point of view you could say it is a big step forward. we finally get to the point of being ready to talk about the future relationship between the eu and uk. first the transition, which is so important to britain, and then later on to future trade, which is important to the long—term future of the uk. apologies, we are clearly having

problems with the line to brussels. let's try and move on. staying with this story... i am told we are going to try to go back to brussels. i hope we have more luck this time. we are on a remote camera and it is coming and going. you were telling us coming and going. you were telling us about how significant it is. you could call it a big step forward and you could say it has taken many months to get to the starting line ofan months to get to the starting line of an uphill marathon to get to the first base camp of what may or may not turn out to be a vertical climb toa not turn out to be a vertical climb to a deal. all of that heavy lifting still has to be done. last night theresa may was given a rare round of applause by eu leaders. i think that will be seen as an expression of fellow feeling among readers of democracies who knows what it is

like when a leader is up against it. it is not altogether an adversarial battle. there are competing interests but it is not a zero sum game. many of the leaders here would like to see theresa may carry on, if only for a few of what will happen if she is kicked out of herjob. when you speak to these leaders you are acutely aware they are following the debate in the uk. they know what david davis is saying to the andrew marr programme. but this is an intergovernmental agency. clearly from the dynamic of the elation ship these last two days they believe theresa may is their best option. that is the reason for the support we have seen last night and this morning in the tweets. they want to deal with someone they know. they can't imagine dealing with dominic

grieve or the labour party. i think they have a quantifiable quantity here. they are also aware of the complicated and difficult hole six—pack in the uk. the fact that the defeat by the government the other night in the house of commons raises questions over how the deal struck here will or will not stick. that is a big question and they will have to deal with it as they come to it. they are dealing with theresa may just now and it. they are dealing with theresa mayjust now and they're hoping for the best because they all want a deal. we will stand tight here and hopefully we might get a word with jean—claude juncker, hopefully more then we got from michel barnier. so with eu leaders having just approved progressing brexit

talks to the next phase, on the transition and future relationship, what does that mean exactly? chris morris from the bbc‘s reality check is here to explain. so the other 27 countries have now agreed it is time to move on to phase two of these negotiations while continuing to finalise all those issues from phase one. first there will be talks about a transition period of about two years after brexit during which the uk will operate under all eu rules and regulations. some of the detail about what that means will be controversial. then next spring if all goes to plan, negotiators will also begin to consider the future relationship between the uk and eu, on security, foreign policy and trade. the aim of the eu is to produce a broad political agreement on the outlines of a future deal before brexit actually happens. we are going back to brussels for

more on the discussions. i am afraid to tell you we are still having technical glitches with the line to brussels. so we are trying to get that to come good for you. not at the moment i'm afraid. we will try to get back there soon. a report published in the past few minutes says the church of england ‘failed to recognise the rights' of a bishop, who was accused, decades after his death, of abusing a child. the former bishop of chichester, george bell, who died in 1958, was alleged to have repeatedly abused a young girl. she made a formal complaint in 1995 and, ten years later, won an apology and compensation from the church of england. today's report says "there was a rush to judgment". jon donnison has the latest from church house in central london. george bell was the bishop of chichester between 1928 until just before his death in 1958. he had a

pretty impeccable reputation, well—known for his efforts to rescue jewish children from nazi germany during the second world war. the reputation took a serious blow when a couple of years ago a woman came forward and said she had been seriously sexually abused during the late 1940s and early 50s. the church carried out an investigation and pretty quickly agreed to pay compensation to this woman, of £16,000. this investigation carried out today by lord carlisle and an independent review was very damning of that initial investigation by the church. he said that george bell had been hung out to dry, and the initial investigation by the church was very initial investigation by the church was very weak and concluded all too easily that the woman in this case, who's been called carol, was telling the truth. it said the church made

almost no effort to contact george bell's family and that for his reputation to be so catastrophically affected in this way was just plain wrong. speaking this morning, lord carlile said that bishop george bell had been hung out to dry. and what has the archbishop of canterbury been saying? we have had a number of statements from the church of england. apologies from the current bishop of chichester and also the bishop of bath and wells. and the archbishop justin welby. pz george bell was also a hero but was accused of great wickedness. good acts do not diminish evil ones and nor do evil ones make its rights to forget the good. i asked ones make its rights to forget the

good. iasked lord ones make its rights to forget the good. i asked lord carlisle what he thought of the statement and the fa ct was thought of the statement and the fact was no apology and lord carlile said that statement was less than adroit. one in six parents in the uk gives their children alcohol by the age of 14, according to new research. that's despite medical advice which says children should not drink until they are at least a year older. researchers from university college london also found white, well—educated parents were most likely to have a relaxed attitude to young people drinking. philippa roxby reports. christmas can be the time of year when some parents might be tempted to let teenagers join in the festivities and perhaps taste a little bit of alcohol for the first time. but a new study suggests this may not be a good idea, because it's harmful to children and their bodies aren't ready for it. the research team from university college london and pennsylvania state university found 17% of parents have let their children drink alcohol by the age of 14. well—educated parents

of white children were more likely to allow their adolescent children to drink than unemployed and ethnic minority parents. half of all 14—year—olds said they had tried more than a few sips of alcohol. people at a young age tend to think it is the right thing to do, and obviously it is not really the right thing to do. it depends on the child really. on the parents. and how responsible they are, really. if they are encouraging it, like it is a good thing, then they might do it on their own all the time and think it is ok... obviously there is a limit. the study also found that light or moderate drinking parents were just as likely to let their children have alcohol as heavy drinking parents. parents of socially advantaged children might believe it's teaching them responsible alcohol use and inoculating them against the future dangers of alcohol, but we have no evidence to support this view — and the chief medical officer recommends an alcohol—free childhood, so no drinking before the age of 15, because it can be harmful to their growth and development.

alcohol charities said parents needed more guidance from schools and doctors on how to talk to their children about alcohol. their advice is to set the rules for teenagers on alcohol and to be open and honest with them about its effects. the headlines. eu leaders in brussels have agreed to move forward to the second phase on brexit talks but there are warnings that discussions on transition and trade will not be easy. a student was cleared of rape when police failed to disclose evidence. for people involved in a house fire

more now on one of our main stories, and scotland yard is carrying out an "urgent assessment" of a rape case which collapsed because police failed to disclose key evidence. charges against liam allen were dropped three days into his trial, after messages were unearthed proving his innocence. earlier, on the victoria derbyshire programme, tina daheley spoke tojerry hayes, the prosecuting lawyer who uncovered the messages. this was a very serious multiple rape case. the woman had made her allegations. the defence asked if there was a disc with the downloads of information. the cps had not seen it. i asked if they had it and they said yes but it is not disclosable andi said yes but it is not disclosable and i asked why and they said it was because it was personal matters. i

askedif because it was personal matters. i asked if there was anything which could undermine the prosecution are assessed the defence and they said no and! assessed the defence and they said no and i wasn't happy and i think i was right that the defence should have that desk. we adjourned the case for one day. the defence saw on this disc information that completely blew the prosecution case out of the water. if they hadn't had that disclosure, this young man would have been sent to prison for 12 years and would have been on a sex offenders register for the rest of his life, with precious little chance of appeal, so this was a massive, massive miscarriage ofjustice which, thank heavens, vans was avoided. thank heavens, that was avoided. why do you think the police repeatedly insisted there was nothing of interest for the prosecution or defence? nothing of interest for the prosecution or defence ?|j nothing of interest for the prosecution or defence? i don't think they had looked at it properly. there were 2400 pages and about 50,000 texts. i don't think they had looked at it. or lease

officers sometimes don't understand it is their duty to review these matters and then report it to the cps and the cps lawyer will get into contact with me and we will decide what to do with it. there is no question of line or misleading. it is just question of line or misleading. it isjust sheer question of line or misleading. it is just sheer incompetence, i'm afraid. we also heard that to save costs the material wasn't always handed to defence lawyers. what is your response? the judge said handed to defence lawyers. what is your response? thejudge said he had heard that to save costs material wasn't always handed to defence lawyers. i am not entirely sure about that. you have to understand that the cps and the police and all of us in the criminaljustice system are under tremendous pressure because we are running out of money. this is a system notjust creaking but about to croke. if we have any more treasury cutbacks there will be

more treasury cutbacks there will be more cases like this, except they won't come before people like you. we spoke to liam this morning and he is not ready to do interviews yet but he is so grateful to you. can you tell us about the moment found at the trial had collapsed?” actually gave advice soon as i asked for the jury actually gave advice soon as i asked for thejury to the actually gave advice soon as i asked for the jury to the discharged and we had the information available to us. we had the information available to us. i wanted that boy to know that as soon as us. i wanted that boy to know that as soon as the decision was made, which i advise the pond that there should be no further evidence given. obviously he was happy but this has been hanging over his head for two—year ‘s. young man of good character. he could have had his life totally trashed. that was fully wrong. how concerned are you that this could be in other cases? wrong. how concerned are you that this could be in other case57m wrong. how concerned are you that this could be in other cases? it has happened in other cases. i had a similar case and happened in other cases. i had a similarcase andi happened in other cases. i had a similar case and i wrote a piece in the times a few months ago. it was a firearms case. there was a

streamlined report, a mini report saying that the guy's dna was found on the magazine of a gun. when we looked at the report it said his dna was not on it. i am afraid that the more cuts come to this service, the more cuts come to this service, the more possibilities that miscarriages of justice will more possibilities that miscarriages ofjustice will come and it is unacceptable. we are going to a news conference with angela merkel and emmanuel macron. translation: i was deeply moved to hear of the plight of the families andi hear of the plight of the families and i wish them speedy recovery to all who had been injured. my deepest condolences to the relatives of those children who perished. this yeari those children who perished. this year i must say i am taking stock of the eu council. we have made significant progress on the basis of bratislava and the celebrations on

the signing of the treaties of rome. we intended to improve capacity to act both as regards the way the union presents itself to the outside world and also what we do internally. i would like to thank emmanuel macron for the fact that right after the two go office after the election, he established a close relationship with us, based on the spirit of friendship, and solutions for europe can be found most of the time when germany and france stand together and when we have a common position, not because we want to dominate others but simply because if france and germany cooperate, we make progress. we had one example yesterday for a deep and cooperation that we wish to bring forward. there was an enormous step forward and

judges yesterday, prepared by germany and france, and we were able to close something i would consider a historical gap in our defence capacity. it shows we have a willingness and capacity to defend ourselves and forge a common security policy which was confirmed yet again by the nato secretary general. also this is not considered a counterpoint to nato policy but a necessary complement. also something that enables the european union to act together and in unison in defence, foreign policy, development and cooperation. and then the second issue on the agenda yesterday, migration. we were in larger agreement with regards fighting illegal migration and trafficking and also combating the root causes of flight. we had a meeting in paris

just now, a partnership with countries is on the agenda. we are not so in agreement as internal solidarity on the migrant issue. there are are some areas where solidarity is not shown and that is something ifind solidarity is not shown and that is something i find unacceptable. solidarity is not shown and that is something ifind unacceptable. we discussed the future of the european monetary union. the president of the european central back pointed out that it european central back pointed out thatitis european central back pointed out that it is a favourable position after yea rs of that it is a favourable position after years of crisis. we can now record growth and there is a growth in the number of jobs record growth and there is a growth in the number ofjobs created but now was also the time for structural reforms. also the time for further promoting the european monetary union. there are proposals on the

table. i spoke to the french president and said by march we want to have a common position by this which is most important forfurther up which is most important forfurther up development of the european monetary union. we want to see to it that our finance ministers develop a master plan for this and mariel draggy called upon as to... i would like to congratulate emmanuel macron on the steps he has taken back home. asi on the steps he has taken back home. as i see it it would be very important for us to come to a true economic and monetary union in the sense that our competitiveness is enhanced in research and development and digitalisation and are efforts and digitalisation and are efforts and policies are more integrated in future and we have more of an economic convergence between member states. and we will have to talk

about the institutional structure and how it can be rendered fit for the future so that it is capable of meeting the challenges of the future. in the end we talked about the question of britain leaving the eu. we have made significant progress. phase two may be ushered in. that is an even more tough piece of negotiation than we had up to now. the good news is that all 27 member states so far have put in tremendous efforts and have stood together and i am very optimistic that we will continue to go forward in quite the same spirit. i would like to thank the estonian president for this very tough work put in on digitalisation. i would like to thank michel barnier together with jean—claude juncker who have made

tremendous progress. translation: thank you very much. thank you for your kind words at the beginning of this press conference. this is extremely important to me and please allow me first to say how sad i am and how sad the french nation is after the terrible accident that took place in the western pyrenees yesterday. please allow me to extend the condolences of the nation to all the condolences of the nation to all the families and tell them that the state is doing its utmost to stand by their side. state is doing its utmost to stand by theirside. i state is doing its utmost to stand by their side. i would also like to thank the government which mobilised itself immediately after this terrible accident. as well as all the services, the public services,

which reacted to support the children and the teachers. everyone was on board and are available. thank you again, madame chancellor, for your words. you have summarised our work. it was not simply dedicated to brexit. i fully agree with what was explained regarding the decisions taken on brexit and what was at stake. we managed to keep the unity of the 27 and the integrity of the single market and compliance with our rules. in future we will do what it takes to do the same andl we will do what it takes to do the same and i would like together with madame chancellor to thank michel barnier regarding the negotiations of phase one. so one of several news conferences we are expecting in

brussels as eu leaders agreed to progress to the next stage of brexit talks. we will have full coverage of everything that happens there for you on bbc news. in a moment, the news at one with jane hell but first let's get the weather forecast. cold and frosty weather on the way more widely tonight. showers become fewer towards the western most of the showers in the east of england will tend to fade away and temperatures will fall underneath clearer skies with lowest temperatures in land down to minus five. near the showers, the risk of some icy patches. a cold start on saturday. we will probably see more cloud in northern ireland. some showers running over the irish sea into wales, perhaps western parts of england. further north and east i think any showers will move offshore and we will see some sunshine. it

will still be chilly. after a chilly start free some parts on sunday we have strengthening west to south—westerly winds and outbreaks of rain and my other rare, with highs of nine or ten. —— milder air. we'll have the latest live from brussels and westminster. also this lunchtime. ajudge calls for an inquiry after a student is cleared of rape — when police failed to disclose evidence casting doubt on the case. ryanair is to recognise pilots' unions for the first time in its history — in an attempt to avert a strike in the run—up to christmas. a firefighter has died in southern california, while tackling what is on track to be the biggest wildfire in the state's history.