hello and welcome to bbc news, i'm gavin grey. eu leaders have confirmed that brexit negotiations can move on to the next stage, but they have warned the talks will be even harder. theresa may called it an important step on the road to a smooth and orderly brexit. here is laura kuenssberg. the men with the message — part one is done. the european union is ready to grant the prime minister's wish and move on. she was a tough, smart, polite and friendly negotiator. and so we were able to conclude that sufficient progress has been made. to get this far on brexit, there has been some conflict and a lot of compromise. what is needed to get to the end of the next phase, and is theresa may's goal of a full agreement by march 2019 realistic? still realistic and, of course, dramatically difficult. the real negotiations on the second phase will start in march next year.

i cannot say when these negotiations will be concluded. but i don't hope that i will have to have as early morning meeting with the british prime minister than the one i had last week. hopefully, with fewer last—minute trips to brussels in the middle of the night, the negotiations step up. it has been a slog to get this far, but their words this morning are part of our history now, the official end of the beginning of our departure from the european union. it has taken time, but at last, the government's negotiating team can crack on with initial talks about how we do business in future, and vitally, the transition a couple of years after brexit itself. the uk and the eu have shown what can be achieved by commitment and perseverance on both sides. i'm pleased that it's been agreed we should make rapid progress

on an implementation period, which will give certainty to businesses and individuals. the eu's brokers believe the cabinet at home must bury their differences, though, to give a clearer picture of how they want the future to look, before getting a decent hearing. the divide within the conservative party is going to make it very difficult for us to negotiate a way through, as a country. and theresa may, ultimately, has to be able to deliver for business here. business need that certainty now. the 27 we are leaving behind don't agree with much of what the uk has already put on the table, especially during the transition period. they want the european court to be in charge during that whole time, for the uk to accept any changes, without a say, and for immigration to stay the same. this is a big junction. phase two will be even tougher, she warned. we'd like it to look as much like the current relationship as possible, but that wouldn't

necessarily be the view of everyone. it's a marathon race. we have just finished the first mile. given how far apart the two sides were, and the distance between the different wings of the tory party, the prime minister might feel entitled tonight to take a pause for breath, a moment to savour having reached this junction. but, with clashes in the commons to come, in the cabinet, and contradictions between the european union and the uk, still, she has little time or energy to waste on celebration. and, to reach this point, not even halfway, she has already had to yield so much. indeed, at times, it felt like the prime minister simply might not make it even this far. it is a very long way still until the end of this whole journey. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, brussels. let's take a look at some of the other stories making

the news: austria looks poised to become the only country in western europe to have a far—right party in government. the conservative austrian people's party has struck a coalition deal with the smaller anti—immigration freedom party. austria's president has invited the two party leaders to talks on saturday about forming a new administration. military police in the netherlands have shot and wounded a man who had threatened officers with a knife at amsterdam's schiphol. the main entrance to the airport was evacuated, but later reopened. the authorities say the situation is now under control, and no other injuries have been reported. a senior un official has strongly criticised the wealth gap between rich and poor people in america. philip alston said the us government's tax reform bill, together with the health and welfare reforms proposed to pay for it, could produce a dramatic increase in inequality. relatives of the four children who died in a house fire in salford have said they don't know how they will be able to tell the children's mother, who is in a medically induced coma and likely to remain that

way for several weeks. 15—year—old demi pearson, three—year—old lia, lacie, aged seven, and brandon, who was eight, died following the fire on monday, which police are calling a targeted attack. the child ren‘s grandfather says the family had been harassed before, and the police had been called on sunday night, but left. the house was set alight a few hours later. three people have been charged with murder. judith moritz reports. brandon and lacie was running up and down the street. theyjust — they were so happy that it was snowing. brother and sister playing in the snow last week. brandon and lacie pearson were inseparable. lia was the baby of the family. everyone doted on her. she melted your heart. you couldn't have a serious face on with that child. she was — she brought you so much happiness.

their teenage sister demi looked out for them all. demi mothered them like they was her own. they wasn't siblings, they were best friends, the lot of them. four young lives ta ken. their mother, michelle, is badly burned in a coma. she doesn't know that her children have died. how can i turn around and say, "they've gone?" i can't even turn around and say one‘s gone. all her young ones, all her babies, have gone. she's just going to say, "why have you brought me back?" "why didn't you just let me go." this is the first time her family has spoken of their pain, their loss, and their memories of the night they saw fire engulfing the house where the children and their mother were asleep. there's not words, what your eyes can describe what you see. no, you can't describe what you see. i remember going down the street, and thenjust being surrounded by police officers.

and i'm screaming at them, i'm screaming at them, and i'm calling them all sorts of names. you just wanted to go in and help, and you couldn't. little lia's life hung in the balance for two days. her auntie claire comforted her as she slipped away. they allowed me to cuddle her and hold her as she passed. did you speak to her? i spoke to her, i sang to her. that must have been so difficult. it broke me, it did. i didn't want to let that little girl go. the police say that the house was targeted. the family say michelle complained of being unsafe there. she said she'd actually been to the housing that week, and begged them to move her to a safe house, or get her out of the area. michelle's been unsafe in that

property for months and months, and the police was aware of this. the council was aware of this. and i'm sorry to say this, but... people have let her down. they've let her down. my sister and her kids would have had a chance of survival if they did theirjob properly. the family is broken, the pain is raw, and the loss is immeasurable. judith moritz, bbc news, manchester. ajudge has called for an inquiry after a university student was cleared of rape because police failed to disclose evidence which could have proven his innocence. 22—year—old liam allan spent two years on bail before his trial at croydon crown court was halted when it was revealed his accuser had sent him thousands of text messages. he has been speaking exclusively to clive coleman. the day after the case against him was dropped, liam allan is coming to terms with the end of a two—year nightmare. i was relieved for notjust myself, but everyone that's been with me

every step of the way. and everyone it has impacted. it wasjust a huge, huge relief. you sort of get your life back. you don't realise that you've lost parts of your life, until you actually have it completely done. the trial may be over, but the strain it caused remains vivid. i'll be honest, i did start to suffer from panic attacks, a couple of weeks before court, which is why i said it was probably my worst time. because you just — where it has to be internal, where you have to have your own reaction, panic attacks are an internal reaction that you can't help yourself. but it is to be expected, you can't not go through this and not panic and not fear, and remain strong through the whole thing. it could bring the strongest person in the world to their knees. liam went on trial charged with six rapes and six sexual assaults. his lawyers were repeatedly refused access to his alleged victim's phone records. they were finally handed over at the start of the trial. 40,000 phone messages included details which clearly suggested he was innocent.

his trial at croydon crown court collapsed yesterday. she said she didn't like sex with him. text messages to say she loves sex with him. there were rape fantasies, there was sex in the open air. this was a i2—count indictment. if the defence hadn't got that, that man would have been convicted, that man would have got 12 years, that man would have had his life trashed, and on a sexual offences register forever. it is a fundamental principle of our system that the prosecution must hand over any evidence that it holds that could help the person on trial. lawyers tell me that liam allan's experience is farfrom a one—off, and that there is a widespread problem. the metropolitan police are carrying out an urgent assessment of the case. but, for liam, sorry just won't do it. an apologyjust doesn't feel like enough. like, the length of time that i faced, the fact that the person remains anonymous, and i am everywhere

and got dragged through hell for the last two years, apology doesn't even slightly cut it, at all. liam's case adds to mounting concerns that the system for ensuring that those on trial receive all of the evidence that could help their defence is failing far too often. clive coleman, bbc news. ryanair has agreed to recognise pilots' unions for the very first time. the airline is urging its staff to call off industrial action which is planned for next wednesday. the head of ryanair, michael 0'leary, once said he would rather cut off his own hand than recognise unions. so it is a bit of a turnaround, as our transport correspondent richard westcott explains. i think it is a staggering turnaround, actually, for someone who was always known as one of the real tough guys of the business world. so for years, michael 0'leary had said he will not basically recognise unions, he would not let pilots negotiate through unions.

he was saying it only on tuesday, when a press release came out from the company saying we will not recognise unions. and then this morning, out of the blue, they basically did an about—turn and said we will recognise unions under some circumstances. they are facing industrial actions from pilots, a strike in ireland, and in portugal next week. you may remember that they have had problems with pilots before, ryanair. it was not that long ago that i was standing right here telling you about the 20,000 flights they had to cancel all across the winter, because they messed up their pilot roster. well, that affected 700,000 passengers, people who had to rebook flights or make other plans. and so what about that strike next week, on wednesday? well, there is a bit of a twist tonight with that. so the union has said that they are happy to call off the strike, but they want to meet ryanair first. they're not going to call off the strike until they can actually meet ryanair face—to—face.

ryanair says it can only meet them on wednesday, strike day — too late. at the moment, neither side is budging. we'll have to see how that plays out. but, as it stands at the moment, that strike in ireland next wednesday is still going ahead. the mother of missing airman corrie mckeague has announced that the reward for information about his disappearance has doubled to £100,000. she believes the inquiry could become a criminal investigation. corrie disappeared during a night out in bury st edmunds, in suffolk, more than a year ago. the headlines on bbc news: theresa may says the agreement of eu leaders to begin the second phase of brexit talks is an important step on the road to a smooth and orderly withdrawal from the eu. relatives of the four children who died in a house fire in salford have said they don't know how they will be able to tell the children's mother, who is in a medically induced coma. more now on our top story, and the two sides now need to finalise the brexit withdrawal agreement and turn it

into something legally binding. but negotiations are also turning to the future. chris morris from the bbc‘s reality check team looks ahead to what the next phase of talks will be about. nearly 18 months after the referendum, the eu and uk are finally going to start talking about the future. negotiations will focus initially on a transition period of roughly two years after brexit, with the aim of giving businesses some extra certainty. this transition will take place under existing eu rules and regulations where things mostly stay the same, except the uk no longer has a seat at the decision—making table. for example, the eu says the uk will have to follow all eu rules and regulations, including new ones approved during the transition. the jurisdiction of the transition. the jurisdiction of the european court ofjustice will still apply in full and free movement of people will continue

too. the eu says that means the uk staying in the single market and customs union. reduce government doesn't agree and says we will leave both of these on the 29th of march, 2019. it could become a dispute over a form of words but politically it is important. so lots to negotiate, but time is short. if all goes to plan more eu guidelines will be issued next march, allowing talks and the future relationship to start. 0n things like security, foreign policy and of course trade. the eu says formal trade negotiations can't begin legally until after the uk has left in 2019. the government wants to be more ambitious and finnish trade talks as quickly as possible, but realistically says the eu they will continue long after brexit has actually happened. wildfires in southern california are continuing to burn out of control, scorching an area larger than new york city and paris combined. 0ne firefighter has been

killed battling the blaze. with more gusty winds expected tonight, it will be another difficult weekend for firefighters. attention is turning to the underlying conditions driving the fire. it hasn't rained in parts of california for more than eight months. the bbc‘s james cook reports from fillmore. 11 days and still it burns. more than 8000 men and women are now battling displays, saving homes one by one. not far from here to fire claimed the life of a 32—year—old firefighter, father and husband. he is survived by his wife ashleigh, his two—year—old daughter evie. they we re his two—year—old daughter evie. they were expecting a second daughter in the spring. it's not clear what went wrong here, but de terrain is steep

and dangerous and he was apparently overrun by flames after the sudden shift in the wind. the cast is destroyed homes to. almost 700 of them. two apartment blocks and two hotels also burnt down and another 18,000 buildings remain at risk. this is one of five homes in this tiny neighbourhood which was destroyed when the flames swept through here so fast that firefighters had to abandon the area. which ones survived and which we re area. which ones survived and which were destroyed was a matter of kewell lock. —— pure luck. aaron and his family were among the lucky ones. there are home was scorched but it survived, thanks in part to neighbours who lost everything but stage to fight the fire. the most rewarding thing is i think seeing them. some of the guys who lost their houses were working side—by—side with us to keep out how safe for a few days. all week the skies here have been alive with

activity as pilots battled the blaze from the air. the wildfire has now ravaged an area the size of new york city at washington, dc combined and with more gusty winds forecast, firefighters say they expect the battle to intensify this weekend. one of canada's richest men the pharmaceutical billionaire barry sherman and his wife honey have been found dead at their home in toronto. he made his fortune as the founder of the pharmaceutical company apotex. police described the deaths as suspicious, but said they were not being treated as murder. south africa's governing african national congress is preparing this weekend to pick a new party leader to replace jacob zuma, who is also the country's president. the anc is still the dominant political force, but has faced a loss of public trust. president zuma is facing corruption allegations, which he denies. the bbc‘s africa editor, fergal keane, has travelled through the anc stronghold of the eastern cape.

many dreams of freedom were born here, died here and were reborn. from its earliest days, the eastern cape was an anc stronghold. new brighton was where the party's military wing was founded, and the first south african township i visited in the years of apartheid. when i first came to this township, more than 30 years ago, the anc were still banned, mandela was in jail, jacob zuma was in exile. but to the people who live here now, that's all ancient history. what they care about is what the anc hasn't done. anger over the failure to deliver enough houses and services saw people here force the closure of this museum to the heroes of the freedom struggle. they've come in from the rural areas... paul mbewana is a lifelong anc supporter who led the community protest. he is astonished at the looting

of state resources that has burgeoned underjacob zuma. in fact, i'm disgusted with it, because it's eating all the resources which are meant for the poor, the poorest of the poor. so they can't... they can't benefit from services and all those things. but go north into still impoverished rural areas and you are reminded of an essential fact. the virus of corruption, moral and financial, was present long before zuma. here, tens of millions were squandered by the white regime to create so—called independent homelands, where black people were to be dumped far from the cities. it's partly that memory that keeps older voters, like this 77—year—old, loyal to the anc and zuma. "i like jacob zuma because he's part of the anc", she told me. "he took us to freedom. "even if they remove him,

he took us to freedom". but a culture of protest is thriving in south africa, driven by a free press and independent judiciary fighting to rein injacob zuma. i came here to fort hare university, alma mater of nelson mandela, and four other african presidents, and found students eager for change. my perception of our politicians is that they are people who are self—absorbed, who do not have the best interests of the people of this country, especially the poor people, who fought for them to be in power. do not put the leaders that are going to continue with the culture of robbing poor south africans' money. bring leaders that are progressive, that see vision, that see progress, that want to improve the lives of south africans. that's my stand. south africa's strength has always been the determination of the majority to confront injustice, whether racism or corruption. it's that spirit which will demand

accountability from whoever ends up leading the anc. a rare skeleton of a woolly mammoth goes up for auction in france tomorrow, with auctioneers expecting it to fetch up to £160,000. the skeleton was discovered around ten years ago in the siberian permafrost. according to the auctioneers it is the largest woolly mammoth skeleton in private hands, on this display in new york it stands 3.4 metres high come up with magnificent curvy tasks that reach more than three metres in length. it is also a rare example because 80% of the skeleton is the original loan come up with only 20% resin used to complete assembly. translation: if you want to put it

ina room translation: if you want to put it in a room it must be it. look here ina building in a room it must be it. look here in a building hall, it doesn't seem disproportionate. indeed, you need space. there are not 50 people in lyon who could find room for it. around the world only about a thousand who could. would it in an apartment hall, a company hall, eve ryo ne apartment hall, a company hall, everyone would be pleased and it is funny. translation: this wine cellar in one year after exhibiting the mammoth doubled its turnover and noted a 30% increase in visitors and have the opportunity to do a special mammoth vintage wine, which brought tourists to the region from all over the world because the tourist office promoted this mammoth skeleton. woolly mammoths lived alongside early man, who hunted the animals and portrayed them in cave drawings, but that came —— they became extinct

more than 10,000 years ago. this mail was believed to be about 50 yea rs old mail was believed to be about 50 years old when he died. died to say his teeth show signs of decay which may have been a factor in his death if it was unable to graze. the date has been announced for prince harry and meghan markle's wedding. the service, at st george's chapel windsor castle, will take place on saturday may the 19th. 0ur royal correspondent nicholas witchell explained it's a break with tradition for the royal family. that's right. i'm sure there will be a great deal of attention from around the world, as there always is, to the british royalfamily, but especially on this occasion from the united states of america. and the date is saturday the 19th of may. the choice of a saturday is unusual, but certainly not unprecedented for a royal wedding. there have been royal wedding is on saturdays before and i'm sure the calculation has

been that because there is to be no public holiday in the united kingdom for this royal wedding, as there was for this royal wedding, as there was for william and kate, the fact that it is being staged on the saturday will give those who are so minded an opportunity to go out to windsor, not far from opportunity to go out to windsor, not farfrom london, opportunity to go out to windsor, not far from london, to opportunity to go out to windsor, not farfrom london, to be part of the celebration as the couple certainly wish to be the case. although the wedding itself will be in the chapel within windsor castle, there will be a carriage procession through the town i imagine, so people canjoin through the town i imagine, so people can join in. through the town i imagine, so people canjoin in. the other interesting thing is that saturday the 19th of may is the date of one of the biggest sporting events certainly in england, the fa cup final. prince william is president of the football association and he would normally attend the cup final but somehow on this occasion i suspect he will have to give it a miss. now the weather with tomasz schafernaker. it is going to be quite chilly first thing on saturday, certainly a good frost around. but the weather will turn milder over the next couple of days. in fact, by the time we get

to sunday, i suspect double—figure temperatures across the south of the uk. at the moment there is a dip in thejetstream. that's when cold air comes in from the north. here, we start to see a south—westerly flow of air, which will push the weather front and cloud in our direction and this area of milder air will be in place across the uk by the time we get to sunday. but saturday is still going to be quite a cold day across most of the uk. and the cold snap is still not quite over. in fact, look at this. we're still getting weather watcher pictures with nice, snowy scenes across the uk, mostly across the hills now. so first thing on saturday morning, a widespread frost across the country. these are the city temperatures. outside, in rural areas, it will be much colder. even as low as minus 6. saturday morning start off on a beautiful, crisp note, through plymouth and bournemouth, all the way to brighton and dover. the midlands also nice and sunny, but crisp temperatures around. —1 in nottingham.

freezing across most of yorkshire and into scotland as well. we start to see slightly milder air at this stage getting into parts of northern ireland. 0n the whole, a nice start to the day, but there will be a change on the way later in the morning on saturday. in fact, clouds will be increasing and it might turn cloudy across wales and maybe around merseyside, into the west midlands and the south—west. here, at times, it could rain. the best of the sunshine in the east and the south—east and the far southern counties. then the change happens to that milder weather through the course of saturday night into sunday. the weather fronts comes off the atlantic, we develop a south—westerly wind. so that milder air will arrive through the early hours of sunday and for many of us sunday is going to be at least starting off on a cloudy, damp note, if not wet note in many areas. quite breezy too for a time. we could even see gale force winds across the far north. look at the temperatures —

back up to double figures, even in scotland. the extreme still hanging onto around six degrees. that damp weather will last right through the course of sunday but by the time we get to monday it looks like things will be drying out. a little bit of a dip in the temperature. so into next week, it looks like the weather will dry out but it's still going to stay relatively on the mild side. this is bbc news. the headlines: the british prime minister, theresa may, said that the agreement of eu leaders to begin the second phase of brexit talks was an important step on the road to a smooth and orderly withdrawal from the eu. the next phase of negotiations is about a transition deal and the future relationship. austria's conservative party has agreed to form a coalition with the anti—immigration freedom party, which would make austria the only western european country with the far—right in government. the two party leaders will hold

talks with austria's president on saturday about forming a new administration. wildfires in california are continuing to burn out of control, scorching an area larger than new york city and paris combined. 0ne firefighter has been killed battling the blaze. the fire department said more than 8,000 firefighters were tackling the fire, using 1,000 fire engines.