this is bbc news. i'm julian worricker. the headlines at 8pm... scotland yard is to review dozens of sex offence cases after the collapse of two prosecutions because police failed to hand over evidence helpful to their defence. the danger here is that people will lose years of their lives locked up in prison for crimes they haven't committed, evidence that could have revealed this being suppressed, and not disclosed to their lawyers, and years of their lives wasted. theresa may plays down the eu's calls for a shorter transition period after brexit. she claims it's open to negotiation. we will obviously need to discuss because this is a practical issue about how long certain changes need to take to be put in place. the international monetary fund downgrades its forecast for britain's economic growth, blaming uncertainly over brexit. the stepfather of five—year—old charlie dunn, who drowned at a water park, is jailed for seven—and—a—half years for manslaughter by gross negligence.

also in the next hour... the extent of homelessness in england is described as a ‘national crisis' by a group of mps. the number of rough sleepers more than doubles in six years. 9000 people are thought to be living on the streets. and the super—agers, cheer—leading in their seventies and eighties, so what's the secret to a long and healthy life? good evening and welcome to bbc news. britain's biggest police force, the metropolitan police, is reviewing all its current sex offence investigations after the collapse of two rape cases

in the space of a week. both prosecutions were halted because the police had failed to disclose key evidence which might have helped the defence. several legal experts are now warning that this may reflect a wider issue across england, wales and northern ireland. we will bring you more on that later but first i want to take you to these pictures in washington. in a few moments, in fact i'm told he is making his way through the crowd and the president of the united states, donald trump, is making his way towards that podium you saw a moment ago. it has been a key day for him today with confirmation of that sweeping change in the tax law in the united states is making its way through the legislative process. and

he is about to speak on that subject in the next few moments. enjoying the congratulations of those around him before speaking about what he has achieved politically. thank you very much. these are the people right behind me who have worked so long and so hard. it has been an amazing experience, i have to tell you. it hasn't been done in sa years but actually hasn't been done because we broke every record. it is the largest, i always to say the most massive but it's the largest tax cut in the history of our country and reform, but tax cuts, really something special. and this just came out two minutes ago, they handed it to me, at&t plans to increase us capital spending $1 billion and provide $1000 special

bonus to more than 200,000 us employees because of what we are doing. that's pretty good. that's pretty good. and i have a whole list of accomplishments that the group behind me have done in terms of this administration and congress. you have heard it before, records all over the place and that will continue and then some because of what we did. $3.2 trillion in tax cuts for american families including doubling the standard deduction and doubling the standard deduction and doubling the standard deduction and doubling the child tax credit. the typicalfamily of doubling the child tax credit. the typical family of four earning $75,000 will see an income tax cut of more than $2000 and that is going to be less than the average in my opinion, you're going to have more than that. one very important thing for the farmers, the great farmers

and the small business owners that we re and the small business owners that were forced to sell their businesses at bargain basement numbers, we have provided for the most part estate tax is wiped out so they can keep their farmed tax is wiped out so they can keep theirfarmed in the tax is wiped out so they can keep their farmed in the family and that isa their farmed in the family and that is a very big factor to me, very big. this is going to mean companies are going to be coming back, and i campaigned on the fact that we would not lose our companies any more, they would stay in our country and they would stay in our country and they will stay in our country and you have seen what has been happening even at this prospect. they have tremendous enthusiasm right now in this company and we have companies pouring back into our country and that means jobs and the formation of new, young, beautiful, strong companies and that's going to be very important. you know all about the small businesses, they will be big beneficiaries. we will bring at least $4 trillion back into this country, money that was frozen

overseas and in part of the world and some of them don't even like that and they had the money but they won't have it for longer. it's very simple. when you think you haven't heard this expression, but we are making america great again. you haven't heard that, have you? i want to have them get up and get the glamour and the glory i want to have a few of them come up and they will speakfor a a few of them come up and they will speak for a little while, the shorter the better, that weight we can get everybody up! —— that way. i wa nt to can get everybody up! —— that way. i want to thank mitch mcconnell, what a job. what a job. and i want to thank paul, they are going to say a few words, but paul ryan and mitch ama few words, but paul ryan and mitch am a little team and we got together and we worked very hard. it seems like it was a lot of fun, it's

a lwa ys like it was a lot of fun, it's always a lot of fun when you win will stop if you work hard and lose that's not acceptable. i will name a few na m es that's not acceptable. i will name a few names and some will come up but people i've sought so much over the last month and almost the last year. when you think of it, we have even a year and we when you think of it, we have even a yearand we did when you think of it, we have even a year and we did the largest tax cut in our history. i hate to say this but we sensually repealed 0bamacare because we got rid of the individual mandate which was terrible. —— essentially repealed. that was a primary source of funding for 0bamacare. and anwar, a friend of mine, congratulations and dan, where is he? i'll tell you, between dan and don and lisa, you've done a greatjob. a friend of mine called up greatjob. a friend of mine called up about anwar, he said, you didn't

get anwar? he said, we have been trying to get that past the whole country, the world, they tried in ronald reagan, with the bushes, with everybody, they never got anwar but we have it in the will and we have mandate and the tax cut and the reform. when you add up the size of this bill it's great. lisa, thank you very much. there is the president of the united states in very buoyant mood at the white house asa very buoyant mood at the white house as a result of that legislative success as a result of that legislative success he has had, the biggest rewrite of the us tax code in a generation is how he and his supporters have been describing it. it is slashing taxes for corporations and the wealthy while offering mixed temporary relief to working people. his supporters there are all delighted by this measure. equally aware that there are critics of it, on the democrat side they

have been talking about it as government for sale with prominent democrat elizabeth warren describing this as a heist. but it has gone through so president trump has cause for celebration out at the white house and we will talk to our correspondence shortly on what he has achieved. in the meantime, to matters closer to home and that news about britain's biggest police force, the met police, reviewing all of its current six offence investigations after the collapse of two rate cases in the space of a week. both prosecutions were halted because the police failed to disclose key evidence which might have helped the defence. several legal experts are warning this might reflect a wider issue across the whole country. here is our legal correspondent, clive coleman. are the scales ofjustice being unfairly tipped against defendants, because the police are not sharing evidence that could help their case? one of the founding principles of the criminaljustice system is beset by problems. the bbc understands isaac itiary

spent months injail, awaiting trial on charges of sexual activity with a child. the case against him was dropped yesterday, when text messages from his alleged teenage victim's phone, showed she routinely lied about her age. a few days earlier, the case against liam allan was stopped because text messages showed his alleged victims enjoyed having sex with him. in the last year i have not concentrated on anything so it has ripped apart my normal personal life. the metropolitan police is now carrying out a review into what happened to liam allan, and of the evidence in its current rape and sex abuse cases. that review is being conducted jointly with the cps and our investigating officers, to make sure those cases are safe to go to trial. 0ur priority are the 30—something where trials are about to start. i have no reason to believe

there are problems with any cases, but it is a pragmatic step to conduct that check now. the police and crown prosecution service have made huge efforts in recent years to right the wrongs of the past and ensure that alleged victims in rape and sexual assault cases are treated properly, but some fear that the process of disclosing evidence to the defence has been damaged as a result. the attorney general has started a review into disclosure. he thinks part of the problem is the sheer weight of evidence. we have very large amounts now of mostly digital information in a whole range of trials that is very hard to filter it effectively so you can find the evidence that ought to be disclosed. that is a problem we are encountering in fraud cases, terrorism cases and others as well. but there have been many damaging reviews of the disclosure

process in recent years, and some of those working in the criminal courts believe the system's integrity is now under threat. the danger here is people can lose years of their lives locked up in prison for crimes they have not committed. evidence that could show they are innocent is not disclosed to them or their lawyers, and therefore there are great miscarriages ofjustice. the prosecution's duty to pass evidence to the defence which assists the defence underpins ourjustice system. that duty is now under scrutiny as never before. now to the brexit talks and a new challenge from the eu's chief negotiator. michel barnier says he wants the transition period after britain legally leaves the eu to be shorter. the government wants around two years for businesses to adjust to any deal but the eu now says the cut—off point should be the end of december 2020 — that's three months less than the government expected.

the prime minister said today that the timeline was a matter for negotiation. tonight mps are voting on whether to put the precise time and date of brexit into law. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg, reports. she made it this far. the prime minister leaving her house today for work. still in number ten after a year when that did not always look certain. are you looking forward to break, prime minister? no easy answers on her government's biggestjob, how we leave the eu. can the government have the trade deal ready before we leave? that is what we are working to and that is what i believe we can do. everybody wants to know on what basis they are going to be operating the future. operating in the future. there are big doubts in brussels about that, and the tories' expectation that it will take about two years to make the changes we need after brexit, a transition, and there is nothing

surprising about the european union getting its arguments in early. the chief negotiator saying today we would have to stick to all of the rules during transition and that period would have to be over by the end of 2020, earlier than she believes. it is notjust the government. labour thinks two years is about right. we need at least two years. we need clarity about what that transition deal means and i think membership of the customs union and single market for that period but there needs to be more flexibility. but don't be fooled, there is no real outbreak of christmas cheer between the two main parties. last year the prime minister told the radio times that on christmas day she likes to prepare and cook her own goose. laughter

in the spirit of christmas, can i suggest you heard that can i suggest to her that in an order to extract the maximum pleasure from the messyjob of stuffing her goose that she names it either michael or boris. the applause gave the chancellor time to help out the prime minister with her own punch line. i think i will have to resist the temptation to call the goosejeremy. it was prime minister's questions, not the christmas panto. but for theresa may's party at least, the end of the year has brought a little cheer. that is returned to the politics across the pond and the tax legislation we heard donald trump talking about. 0ur north america correspondent, rajini vaidyanathan, is at the white house. put this into context, how big a

deal is this legislation going to be? it is a huge legislative victory for donald trump, the first major legislative victory he has had since moving into the white house in january. he has tried to reverse president 0bama's flat chick —— flagship health care reforms and failed but he has succeeded on tax reform with both the house and senate passing this bill. it is now left for him to sign it in the next couple of days for it to become law. while he is celebrating in the white house there are democrats who are hugely concerned about this. they believe that most of the advantage of this will go to wealthy americans, pointing out things like the reduction of corporation tax which will benefit businesses and also the production of the top tax bracket which will benefit wealthier

people. people like president trump believed all americans will benefit from this sweeping tax reform, the largest programme we have seen in this country for three decades. of course there are concerns about actually selling this plan to the american people as well will stop the majority of americans are sceptical about it because they believe it will be mainly the wealthy who will benefit. even the republican politicians celebrating today know that they now have to go out and sell this to people ahead of crucial congressional elections next november. and on the cost of it, it does come with a fairly hefty bill attached and there are republicans who have always resisted the idea that you add to the level of debt in the united states? we talking about a price tag of $1.5 trillion and thatis a price tag of $1.5 trillion and that is why some are surprised that many fiscal conservatives voted for this plan. but the economic ‘s bar high it is that if you cut the tax

burden on corporations and big business, it will trickle down, that theory if trickle down economics and those businesses will be able to be more productive and create morejobs and by default that will put more money into the economy will stop of course trickle down economics is something many people here debate. and you have people on the democratic side saying this is just a winfor democratic side saying this is just a win for billionaires and it will not necessarily do any good for the ordinarily working—class american, many of whom voted for donald trump. the other concern that democrats have when it comes to what you were asking about costs, is that something needs to pay for this and there are concerns from democrats that this could see the welfare programmes being slashed in the new year. thank you very much. and we'll find out how this story and many others are covered in tomorrow's front pages at 10.40pm and 11.30pm this evening in the papers. our guests joining me tonight are giles kenningham,

pr and former tory adviser, and jack blanchard from politico. the headlines on bbc news... britain's biggest police force confirms it's urgently reviewing dozens of investigations into alleged sexual offences after two cases collapse within a week. the eu's chief brexit negotiator says the uk's post—brexit transition period should end no later than the end of 2020 — less time than the prime minister wants. the international monetary fund downgrades its forecast for britain's economic growth, blaming uncertainly over brexit. sport now and time for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. to tonight's football in a moment, but we've had some breaking news in the last few minutes. swansea have sacked their manager, paul clement. the club is currently bottom

of the premier league. they have won just once in the two months and lie four poinst off safety. he has been in charge for less than a year. he had a fairly successful spell at derby county and laughed at about seven 01’ derby county and laughed at about seven or eight months and was unlucky to lose his job there perhaps but the writing has been on the wall for paul clement at swa nsea. the wall for paul clement at swansea. he cut his teeth as a very good number two as assistant to carlo ancelotti at chelsea, real madrid and bayern munich. he went to derby and then at swansea it has not worked out and they have sacked their manager with them bottom of their manager with them bottom of the premier league. more on that and any possible successors at the liberty stadium when we get it. the last of the league cup quarter—finals are underway.

the holders manchester united are at ashton gate facing bristol city who are going really well in the championship at the moment. jose mourinho has made ten changes to his team with zlatan ibrahimovic the captain tonight. just the one change for city who had an early chance on goal with this long—range free kick from josh brownhill. saved by the fingertips of romero. eight changes for chelsea, seven for bournemouth in the game at stamford bridge which kicked off at 7:45pm so they are approaching half—time and chelsea are leading 1—0, willian with an early goal. bournemouth have not won in their last six and to make matters worse, jermain defoe has limped off with an injury. a man who racially abused and assaulted manchester city's raheem sterling at the weekend has beenjailed for 16 weeks. sterling was targeted outside the club's training ground before the team's match against

tottenham later that day. karl anderson, who has a history of football related violence, verbally abused the city and england star and kicked him four times. he pleaded guilty to racially aggravated common assault. birmingham's bid to host the 2022 commonwealth games has been given the go—ahead and will be confirmed tomorrow. after seeing off competition from liverpool, and receiving government backing, their‘s was the only bid received at the end of september. the commonwealth games federation extended the deadline for other cities to come forward but none did and after offering further financial guarantees for the games, birmingham's bid, with a budget of £750 million, has been accepted. the international pa ralympic committee macro will decide next month whether or not to lift their ban on russia from taking part at the winter paralympics. an interim measure to allow russian athletes to compete as neutrals in some qualified vents will stand but the

final decision will be made next month and they say the russian federation has not made sufficient progress to justify their reinstatement. the international olympic committee has set out 13 guidelines for russian atheltes wanting to compete as neutrals in south korea in february. no flags, emblems, crests or anthems will be allowed with this the only logo allowed on their kit with any reference to russia. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in sportsday at 10.30pm. reaction to the sacking of paul clement and an update on those league cup games as well. thank you. the international monetary fund, one of the world's leading financial organisations, has downgraded its forecast for the uk's economic growth this year. the head of the imf, christine lagarde, said the impact of the uk's decision to leave the eu had "weighed heavily" on the economy, and that rising inflation and stagnant wages were squeezing spending power. here's our economics editor, kamal ahmed. she came before the referendum with a warning.

if britain voted brexit, then the economic risks were clear. it is going to be pretty bad to very, very bad. that is what we see. today she was back for the first time since that brexit vote, to give her analysis of where we are now. since the start of this year, growth has slowed notably. the significant depreciation of sterling that followed the referendum has pushed inflation over 3%, squeezing real incomes. how do you respond to those critics who suggest the imf is simply too gloomy on the uk economy? regrettably, the numbers we are seeing the economy deliver today are actually proving the point that we made a year and a half ago, when people said you are too gloomy, and you are one of those experts. christine lagarde came

here to the treasury to deliver her report, and let's be clear, she was not all gloomy. she said that employment was at record levels, and she welcomed progress in those brexit negotiations. but if i was to identify one big takeout from the imf today, it is this. in a world of growing global growth, the uk economy has suffered since the referendum. the imf said growth in the first nine months of the year was lower than in 2016. it said that prices had risen because of a fall in the value of the pound causing a squeeze on living standards. and called for a quick agreement on the transition phase of the brexit talks to use uncertainty and avoid crashing out of the eu. around the corner in parliament, it was the turn of the governor of the bank of england, also pushing for a free—trade deal, this time in financial services, despite grumbles from the eu that such a thing had never been achieved before. i don't accept the argument that

just because it has not been done in the past it cannot be done in the future and we would just walk away from progress is that was the approach we took to issues. the hunt for an agreement goes on, and firms like this gin manufacturer in london are keeping plans on ice until there is greater clarity. it clearly helps that the pound is not strong and becoming more expensive, but it is not a major factor. until it is clear exactly what is going to happen with brexit, it is very difficult to commit to further investment here, because if the markets are difficult to access from the uk, it will be difficult tojustify spending more money growing the business. it is now all about that clarity, clarity on any deal with the eu, and clarity with the future of the uk economy once brexit has happened. and some breaking news, reuters are

reporting an earthquake of a magnitude 5.2 which had struck the iranian capital, tehran. they are quitting state television that as having reported this. the only other line is that there are no immediate reports of damage or casualties —— they are quoting. it is an earthquake of magnitude 5.2 striking tehran and when we will have more we will bring you the details. police are continuing to search two properties, including a community centre, following anti—terror raids in sheffield and chesterfield. four men have been arrested and held over an alleged islamist terror plot that officers say could have been carried out this christmas. the stepfather of the five—year—old charlie dunn has been sentenced to seven and a half years for gross

negligence manslaughter. charlie was found ina negligence manslaughter. charlie was found in a lake in a water park in july 2016 and later died in hospital. homes and businesses will have a legal right to demand high speed broadband by 2020. the government has promised the uk should have access to speed of at least 10 megabits per second. under the plans broadband providers will be legally required to give this minimum standard to anybody who requests it as long as the costs are not too high. sterling has risen against the dollar and the euro on news the bank of england is set to unveil plans allowing european banks to operate in the uk as normal post brexit. it has been warmly received by most analysts that there are concerns that uk banks will not be given the same treatment in eu countries. homelessness in england is a ‘national crisis' according to a group of mps. more than 9,000 people are sleeping rough and a further 78,000 families are in temporary accomodation. the committee of mps says that government

efforts to tackle the issue are an ‘abject failure'. the government says it's providing more than a billion pounds, in the next two years, to reduce homelessness. andy moore reports. just go through this. when his dad was made homeless, seven—year—old billy lived part—time with him in one room of this emergency shelter. billy had his own bed, his dad used a folding bed. so how does it work, he has to fold it out every night? yes, just like this. it is tough enough for an adult to be here, but to be here with a child and remain strong is difficult. he should not be here. he shouldn't be here at all. i'm doing what i can do to be a parent to him, under these circumstances. this report says the problem of homelessness has been growing for years, with the number of people in short—term accommodation up by 60% since 2010. the mps said there is an unacceptable shortage

of realistic housing options. there are estimated to be 9000 people sleeping rough on the streets every night — more than double the number in 2011. there are a further 78,000 families living in temporary accommodation, often of a poor standard, and that includes 120,000 children. the committee has described the situation as shameful. it has called on the government to focus on the supply and affordability of decent housing. you need to stop being complacent about this. it is not enough also to just throw money at it. it needs to be money that is fixing the core root of the problem that looks at why people are homeless in the first place, and you need to be building more houses, yes, but they need to be truly affordable houses. the committee now wants the government to come up with a strategy for tackling the issue by the middle of next year. labour said this report showed that the conservatives had caused the crisis of rapidly rising homelessness, but had no plans to fix it.

billy and his dad have now found somewhere permanent to live. but there are many others who won't have a place they can call home over christmas. andy moore, bbc news. the weather forecast now. cloudy and murky weather will continue. we have a weak weather front brigade outbreaks of rain. gradually drifting south in the first part of the evening and overnight it anything moving northwards. southern and western areas misty with hill fog but mild. in the north—east, maybe 4 degrees in aberdeen. tomorrow, east of scotland seeing

the best of the sunshine. more cloud further south. some rain moving slowly through northern ireland into northern england. 12 the top temperature. the run—up to remaining generally mild. 0ften cloudy, some rain. particularly in the north—west. this is bbc news. i'm julian worricker. the headlines. scotland yard announces an urgent review into dozens of sexual assault investigations, after two cases collapsed within a week — because police were late to disclose evidence. we are reviewing all of those with the cps to ensure that we have complied with the disclosure process in all of those cases. theresa may plays down the eu's calls for a shorter transition period after brexit. she claims it's open to negotiation.

the international monetary fund downgrades its forecast for britain's economic growth, blaming uncertainly over brexit. the stepfather of five—year—old charlie dunn, who drowned at bosworth water park injuly last year, is jailed for seven—and—a—half years for manslaughter by gross negligence. donald trump hills of historic victory after congress passes sweeping tax reforms. the democrats argue the super—rich and big business will be the main winners. let's get more now on our main news. britain's biggest police force, the metropolitan police, is reviewing all its current six offence investigations after the collapse of two rape cases in the space of a week. joining me now is stephen wooler, who was hm chief inspector to the crown prosecution service from 1999 to 2010. good evening. what do you think lies

at the root of the problem?” good evening. what do you think lies at the root of the problem? i think the problem is long standing and is widespread, notjust relating to rape and sexual offences, it is across the spectrum of criminal cases from fraud through to ordinary robberies. the nub of the problem is that modern investigations generate large amounts of material that do have to be carefully filtered. in order to ensure not only the prosecution puts forward the strongest case but anything that will assist the defence and undermine the prosecution case is brought to light. the balance of the responsibility between this cps police is not necessarily right. pa rt police is not necessarily right.

part of the problem is resources and pa rt part of the problem is resources and part of the problem the way responsibilities are attributed between them. it is something i reported on in 2008. although the recent report has found weaknesses, the same weaknesses were there in 2008 and probably before that. put into context the significance of a lack of complete disclosure as a trial begins. how damaging is that potentially? it can be damaging in both directions to the prosecution and defendant. the defendant, if they have material that would assist they have material that would assist the defence cannot put forward the most effective defence and could be wrongly convicted. the other side is if cases fell because of improper procedures on disclosure and it may be because thejudge procedures on disclosure and it may be because the judge decides there cannot be a fair trial, stays the

process , cannot be a fair trial, stays the process, convictions are sometimes quashed, and when that happens it is sometimes the case they should have been a conviction. the public loses out because individuals who should be convicted are not convicted. out because individuals who should be convicted are not convictedm affects both parties. you have highlighted this before and others likewise you talk about the role of the cps police, what should happen 110w the cps police, what should happen now this has been highlighted?” think the attorney general suggested a wide ranging review, going beyond the specific look at individual types of case where there have been recent problems by the met police andi recent problems by the met police and i think that is necessary. 0ne of the weaknesses is the procedure whereby material is left with the police. quite often the prosecutors do not see the material. they rely on scheduling by the police and the police listing items and having to describe each individually in a way

that enables the prosecutor to take a decision without having looked at the material. that to my mind is a fundamental weakness. the police are not necessarily equipped to do the task even if they have the resources and quite often they do not have the resources to do that so that is one of the fundamental weaknesses i hope would be looked at. 0k. thank you very much indeed. as we've been hearing theresa may is making clear that brexit will only be delayed "in exceptional circumstances. mps are tonight expected to give the prime minister some flexibility if negotiations are still under way by the deadline. my colleague ben brown has spent the day following events in westminster. mps, as you say, really completing the main stages of the eu withdrawal bill today. the government's brexit legislation. theresa may has been appearing before mps both at prime minister's questions and that liaison committee.

she said she would expect to have completed an outline trade agreement by the time of brexit, march the 29th 2019. and she also responded to those comments from michel barnier that you've been discussing about the transition period. he's saying it should be complete by the end of 2020, and she saying that it is still open for negotiation. i think as you know full well, in my florence speech i said that i thought that probably the implementation period would be around two years. that was what the indications we had at the time. we are about to start the negotiations and obviously what we've seen today is that position coming from the european union. we will be in negotiations, quickly into negotiations, as to what the implementation period should cover. they've set that 2020 date because that covers their current budget plan period, so that has a neatness for them, if i can put it like that, but we will obviously have to you discuss, because this

is a practical issue about how long certain changes would need to take to be put in place. straight to westminster for significant breaking news. what has happened? in the past minute we had confirmation the first secretary of state, damian green, has resigned from the government. he is of course a close ally of theresa may who has recently been under investigation of allegations relating to his conduct and there has been an enquiry into that and we have been awaiting the result of the enquiry and we have had confirmation in the last minute he has resigned as a result of the findings of the enquiry. there were two separate elements into the enquiry into damian green and the first followed allegations by a

conservative activist who says he seemingly made sexual advances in return for helping her career, fleetingly touching her knee and sending suggestive text messages and damian green firmly denied any allegations of impropriety but there was an enquiry into the conduct and there was another element that was because in 2008, in a separate raid on parliamentary offices of damian green, looking at home office leaks, that allegedly found pornography on computers in damian green's office. that came to light this year and formed part of the enquiry and to gain damian green insisted it was not down to him. none the less, as a result of the enquiry into two matters he has resigned. we understand the reason he has resigned is not because he admits wrongdoing, but because of a breach of the ministerial code. we

understand it relates to the fact damian green maintained he was not told of the allegations of pornography at the time but it has emerged his lawyers told —— police lawyers told his lawyers which amounts to a breach of the code. this is significant because he is a close ally of theresa may, someone she would not have wanted to lose from the cabinet table and this is a blow to her undoubtably, but we are told disappointed as he is that damian green has tonight resigned. going back to your remark about how key a figure he is, he and the prime minister go back many years in terms of having work together.” minister go back many years in terms of having work together. i think they're higher education was when they're higher education was when they first met. in terms of losing somebody particularly at a key time, it does not come more important than this? they met at oxford university and have been friends for 40 years.

in politics as well they have been close ally. damian green has been an mp since 1997 and before that was adviser tojohn major mp since 1997 and before that was adviser to john major and before that a business journalist. adviser to john major and before that a businessjournalist. he adviser to john major and before that a business journalist. he got his first cabinet role of significance under theresa may, he was pensions secretary and then promoted to secretary of state, de fa cto promoted to secretary of state, de facto deputy prime minister. i am being passed information now, conclusions of the enquiries, a summary conclusions of the enquiries, a summary into the report regarding the allegations about his conduct. i am looking through it now. to give you key parts, it takes the background following allegations about damian green, the cabinet 0ffice tried to establish the facts and provide advice on this summarises the conclusions, the investigation focused on two issues, the allegations by the conservative

activist of inappropriate behaviour and the second relating to public state m e nts and the second relating to public statements made by damian green following reports about alleged pornography found on his office computers. the investigations it says sought to establish during his time as minister there had been suggestion of inappropriate behaviour and concluded his conduct asa behaviour and concluded his conduct as a minister has been generally professional and proper but there we re professional and proper but there were contradictory accounts of what we re were contradictory accounts of what were private meetings, it is not possible to reach a definitive conclusion on the appropriateness of mr damian green's behaviour with kate maltby. it says his statements, which suggested he was not aware of pornography found on his parliamentary computers, were misleading as the met police service has previously informed him of the existence of this material and says

the statements fall short of the honesty required by the ministerial code and mr greene accepts this. as i mentioned this is about breaching the ministerial code by issuing state m e nts the ministerial code by issuing statements claiming he was not aware of the pornography found at his computer when the police service had made him aware of it. and there are letters coming in now, the exchange of letters standard between damian green and the prime minister, when it comes to a resignation like this. damian green's letter to the prime minister goes on to talk about sharing and supporting theresa may's vision for the country and he talks about the allegations and says from the outside i have been clear i did not download or view pornography on my computers and i accept i should've been clear in my press state m e nts should've been clear in my press statements that police lawyers talk to my lawyers in 2008 about the pornography on the computers and the police raised it with me. he says the unfounded and deeply hurtful

allegations were distressing to me and my family. it was right they we re and my family. it was right they were investigated by the metropolitan police and i'm glad the enquiry has concluded my general conduct as a minister has been professional and proper. i regret deeply the distress caused to kate maltby, who made the allegations about his behaviour. he thanks his colleagues. it boils down to a statement he made when he said he was not aware of allegations of pornography and that is said to be a misleading statement and a breach of the ministerial code. i am the letter from the prime minister and notable her opening line. she says, dear damian, i am extremely sad to be writing this letter, there can be no doubt about that because of course he was a close ally of hers and the prime minister says, we have been friends and colleagues through our political life since early days at university, entering the commons at university, entering the commons

at the same election and serving alongside in opposition and in government as she talks about his wisdom and good sense he has brought to his role and the work he has done when it comes to putting through important but difficult reforms. she gives a detailed account about the allegations made against him. she says that when the allegations were made, she asked the cabinet secretary to establish the facts and he has of course produced this report. she says, she has considered the report conclusions carefully in relation to statements about not being aware of allegations of pornography which he accepts were misleading and she said it falls short of the principles of public life and is a breach of the ministerial code. while i can understand the considerable distress caused by some of the allegations i know you share my commitment to maintaining high standards the public demands, and it is therefore with deep regret and enduring

gratitude of your contribution that i ask you to resign. the length of the letter and the tone is very clear that theresa may did not want this to be the outcome of the investigation but because there was found to be a key breach of the ministerial code there was no choice, so a brief recapture. damian green the first secretary of state has resigned from the government over a breach of the ministerial code. a close ally of theresa may who says with deep regret she has asked him to resign because he did not uphold the standards of the ministerial code. we are awaiting further reaction. i suppose bauble strike people is with people having been aware of the allegations and you have outlined them with clarity, he does not end up falling on his sword because of the rights and wrongs of those, it's about the rights and wrongs of what he said he knew about the allegations and it's not the first time that has happened in politics. we need to make it

clear, it is not an acceptance of wrongdoing when it comes to the specifics of allegations by damian green and those close to him say he is disappointed he had to resign. it is disappointed he had to resign. it is down to the public statements claiming he was not made aware of the allegations of pornography. it saysin the allegations of pornography. it says in the letter from damian green here, that he apologises for any distress caused to kate maltby and it is important to separate the issues. the initial enquiry was triggered by allegations of kate maltby of inappropriate behaviour that he has denied but he does say, and it is worth mentioning, damian green is a friend of kate maltby‘s family, he says he regrets the distress caused to kate maltby because of the initial allegations, because of the initial allegations, because there was quite a backlash against her. the enquiry says it finds her account plausible but cannot offer definitive guidance on

what the outcome of what that was. the second allegation in which there has been a breach of the ministerial code on is to do with the allegations of pornography and again there is no definitive conclusion about whether or not that legal pornography belong to damian green, something he has always denied. whether breach game is he says he did not know about the allegations and it has subsequently emerged police lawyers advised his lawyers. we have been handed a statement from the parents of kate maltby. this was the parents of kate maltby. this was the conservative party activist who made the original allegations about damian green and she will not comment on the news tonight until she has had more detailfrom the cabinet office, according to this. her parents colin and victoria, friends of damian green released a statement saying, we are pleased the cabinet office has concluded the enquiry and we're not surprised to

find the enquiry mr greene to be untruthful as a minister nor that they found our daughter was a plausible witness. we join with them in admiring her fortitude plausible witness. we join with them in admiring herfortitude in plausible witness. we join with them in admiring her fortitude in the investigation and despite the attempted campaign in certain sections of the media to intimidate her and other witnesses we are proud of her. to give you context around a statement, kate maltby initially made the allegations in a long article for the times newspaper. there was quite a backlash in other newspapers in some parts of the media with people saying she was wrong to have done so. there was public debate around whether or not what had happened in this case would help or hinder other possible victims of sexual harassment coming forward. when that statement, the pa rents of kate forward. when that statement, the parents of kate maltby referred to the enquiry finding damian green to

be on truthful relates specifically to allegations about pornography and his knowledge of them. the enquiry‘s findings do not find him to be untruthful about kate maltby are not definitive in that respect it is that there are a lot of strands to this but it boils down to a significant figure in the government has resigned, a close ally of the prime minister theresa may, something she herself has said she deeply regrets that it has come to this point and it follows a period when there have been questions about the stability of cabinet government and this is something theresa may would undoubtedly have hoped to avoid. thank you. alex forsyth bringing views of the resignation from the cabinet of the first secretary of state, damian green. we will no doubt gather more reaction to that in the coming moments but as

you reflect on that breaking news, we can bring you more now on his political career with our correspondent. he was the most powerful man in the government. at the heart of decision—making and the prime minister's closest ally in cabinet. damian green and theresa may have been friends since they we re may have been friends since they were students for two years ago, and last month he filled her shoes in the commons. i have been asked to reply on behalf of my right honourable friend the prime minister. his departure is a massive blow to theresa may's already fragile government and destroys a career built slowly over decades. let me tell mr blair it is my generation, the 30—somethings, thatcher's children, who have learned truths in our working lives. after working in journalism learned truths in our working lives. after working injournalism he was tempted into politics and was an adviser tojohn major tempted into politics and was an adviser to john major before tempted into politics and was an adviser tojohn major before winning adviser tojohn major before winning a safe tory seat in 1997. through

his party's long slog and opposition his party's long slog and opposition his unassuming profile began to rise first shadow education secretary. in 2005 he backed david davis for the tory leadership and the two are close. even though david cameron won that contest, damien was put on the front bench and it was when he was immigration spokesman he first hit the headlines when in 2008 his commons office was searched by police during an investigation into home office leaks. tory mps were furious and he was later cleared of wrongdoing. with the tories in power he became immigration minister under theresa may at the home office. david cameron dropped him as police minister in 2014. he spent the eu referendum arguing passionately for britain to stay in the eu but ironically it was britain's vote for

brexit and theresa may going into number 10 that catapulted into the cabinet at the age of 60. he was work and pensions secretary and after the election this year theresa may made him first secretary of state, effectively the deputy prime minister. at the centre of every important decision the government makes, especially brexit. his departure from the cabinet could have a big impact on where the negotiations go next. theresa may trusted damian green completely. he was a cornerstone of the government but has recently been under intense pressure because of allegations concerning his past behaviour. damian green's departure leaves the prime minister's authority bassett. —— battered. it has emerged in

westminster that the first secretary of state damian green is resigning. an official report into the conduct of damian green found statements he made about being unaware that pornographic material had been found on his computer were quite inaccurate and misleading and as a result of that, they fell short of the ministerial code. it does not mean the allegations were necessarily true, but that his response to them was the element that has caused him to lose his job. the report found although there were quote competing and contradictory accou nts quote competing and contradictory a ccou nts of quote competing and contradictory accounts of what were private meetings between himself and the conservative party activist kate maltby, quote the investigation found it was kate maltby‘s accounts we re found it was kate maltby‘s accounts were plausible. she will not comment on the news until she has received more details from the cabinet 0ffice. theresa may has written a letter to damian green which is

normal practice in these circumstances. the prime minister responds, she wrote it is with deep regret and enduring gratitude for the contribution you have made that i asked you to resign from the government and have accepted your resignation. that specifically because of the element within the report that he fell short of the ministerial code in his reaction to those allegations. damian green resigning as first secretary of state. more news and reaction to that throughout the evening. before that, we can bring you up—to—date with the weather prospects. good evening, cloud, and mist will continue to feature in the forecasts. there is some brightness to be had. this was the scene in the highlands earlier and across cumbria

the mist was associated with low cloud that produced outbreaks of rain drizzle. you can see the cloud on the satellite. underneath this we have a weather front that is meandering around central areas. some outbreaks of rain drifting further south through the night. southern and western areas, cloudy but miles. in the north—east with clear skies, a relatively cold night. tomorrow the weather front that would have been drifting south will go northwards, taking rain into northern ireland, northern england and to the south cloudy, mist. the north of the weather front is where we have the best chance of seeing sunshine. the northern part of scotland, but it will be cold here. 0utbreaks scotland, but it will be cold here. outbreaks of rain in northern ireland drifting into northern england and to the south, mild, but

there will be a lot of cloud. lucky to see much in the way of sunshine. the thickest of the cloud in wales and the south—west will produce the odd spot of drizzle. 0n and the south—west will produce the odd spot of drizzle. on friday, a cloudy start. but a slightly better chance of seeing brightness in eastern england and up into eastern scotland. north—east areas cool, but down to the south, a high of 12 degrees. the wind picking up on saturday. brisk towards the north which could lift temperatures to 14 degrees with sunshine in eastern scotland. rain in western scotland which may turn heavy and move further south on christmas eve. southern areas largely drive. pretty cloudy, ma'am. christmas day, this weather system will continue to hang around in the north—west corner bringing outbreaks of rain. to the

south, mild, breezy, but cold air sitting up to the north and as we go through christmas day, northern areas particularly will turn cold. looking quite the next few days. —— looking quiet. hello, i'm ros atkins, this is 0utside source. we will start with breaking news from westminster because in the past have an hour the first secretary, damian green, has announced that he has resigned. that is the sound of major tax reform being passed in the us. there are tax cuts coming for american companies and individuals. 0pponents says it reform for the rich. the president's having none of that. this bill means more take—home pay, it will be an incredible christmas gift for hard—working americans. the eu is taking unprecedented action against a member state as poland presses on with changes to its judicial. we'll report from brussels and warsaw. and we'll be in barcelona on the eve of crucial elections in catalonia.