welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: britain's prime minister theresa may sacks her deputy, one of her closest allies, over allegations that he lied about pornography on his work computer. he's calling it "a big, beautiful tax cut". donald trump gets his first major legislative win as republicans approve the biggest tax overhaul in a generation. we report from barcelona ahead of crucial elections, that could decide the catalan independence debate. mps in uganda vote to scrap age limits for the presidency, meaning yoweri museveni may be able to run for a sixth term in office. hello to you. a senior member of the british cabinet has been sacked for breaching the ministerial code.

damian green was deputy to the prime minister theresa may, and one of her closest allies. an inquiry has concluded he made inaccurate and misleading statements about pornography found on a computer in his office. he's also being investigated over claims he behaved inappropriately towards a female activist. this report from our political editor, laura kuenssberg. sharing a joke, right by her side, only hours ago. prime minister... damian green, until this afternoon the second—most powerful politician in the country, his old friend theresa may's deputy in government. not anymore. is it right that downing street investigate you? all the allegations are completely false. thank you. he's always denied doing anything wrong, but number ten asked for an investigation into him after claims from a female journalist that he'd behaved inappropriately to her, and allegations he'd downloaded porn on his computer in parliament. he still denies he had anything to do with the porn that police found when they raided his office

in the commons back in 2008. but the inquiry found, and he accepts, that he wasn't honest when he said he knew nothing about it, admitting his lawyers had been told in 2008, and it was raised again in a phone call in 2013. he wrote tonight... and, on kate maltby‘s belief that he made unwanted advances, the report found it impossible to reach a definitive conclusion. she wouldn't comment tonight, but her family said they were proud of her for speaking out. but mr green wrote... it's not just about the end of his ministerial career, but his closeness to the prime minister. a friend since university,

an ally for a leader who keeps a close circle tight. as first secretary of state, my overall — one of my overall responsibilities is for the oversight of intergovernmental relations within. .. and, as a minister on brexit and other issues, his unofficialjob was keeping the show on the road. the prime minister in black and white tonight, clearly sorry to see him go. she wrote... those affectionate words do not make this an elegant departure. many of his colleagues will be furious on his behalf, but damian green himself has accepted that he was misleading, so the prime minister has lost one of the few politicians she could trust to watch her back. and more details from our correspondent at westminster,

alex forsyth. this resignation followed a long—running inquiry into two different elements, the first that damian green had made inappropriate advances towards a conservative activist, the second concerning allegations that pornography was found on his computer. now, he's consistently denied any wrongdoing when it comes to the substance of those allegations, and the inquiry hasn't reached a conclusion on either. what this is about is whether or not damian green was misleading when he said he wasn't told about those allegations of pornography. the inquiry found he was, and he's apologised for it, and so resigned. now, this is important because he's a very close ally of the prime minister, theresa may. they went to university together, they're very good friends, and so her decision—making in this process was being very closely watched. and what we're hearing tonight, the reaction really is that theresa may is getting a lot of support from conservative mps, mps in her own party, who say the fact that she has asked such a close friend and ally to resign is a show of strength, rather than a show of weakness.

now, you may expect them to say that, because they're her own mps. but there is also some anger among some at what they see as the way this inquiry was handled by the police. so i think the reaction is going to develop over the course of coming days. but at this point, despite the fact that there have been questions over the stability of theresa may's government throughout the last few months, really, this particular resignation doesn't seem to have dented her in that respect, so far. a quick roundup for you of how the uk papers are covering such a high—profile departure from government. "green out" is the front page headline on the metro. the paper notes that mr green has described allegations that he downloaded or viewed the pornography on his parliamentary computer as unfounded. the guardian says this is a huge personal blow for prime minister theresa may. damian green was one of her oldest political allies. she said she was "extremely sad" to have to ask

for and accept his resignation. the daily telegraph has a photo of damian green leaving his home on wednesday. the paper points out this is the third cabinet departure in two months, just as the uk government is in a crucial phase of the brexit negotiations. the daily mirror — not normally a fan of the conservative party — says the prime minister is in crisis. "may axes her deputy over porn lies" is the headline. the daily mail has a slightly more sympathetic take on the news, describing it as a "sad way to go". the paper says the pm is unhappy with the metropolitan police over the initial parliamentary raid and leaks made to the media. south korean troops have opened fire at north korean soldiers hunting a defector, who crossed the heavily fortified demilitarised zone between the two countries. reports from south korea say the troops fired around 20 shots, when north koreans came close to the fence marking the boundary of the dmz. the defector apparently managed to escape when fog covered the area.

he is the fourth north korean soldier to defect this year. president trump is celebrating his first major legislative win — both houses of the us congress have passed a bill bringing in the biggest changes to the tax system in three decades. the bill slashes taxes for corporations, and republicans say it will boost economic growth and create jobs, helping millions of people. democrats argue it will inflate the deficit and mainly benefit rich republican donors. polls suggest a majority of americans disapprove of the changes. we're bringing the entrepreneur back into this country. we're getting rid of all the knots and all the ties, and we're going to — you're going to see what happens. and ultimately, what does it mean? it meansjobs. jobs, jobs, jobs. democrats have called the tax bill a "heist". the leader of the party in the senate said there was nothing there for most americans to celebrate.

now, we know they're popping champagne down pennsylvania avenue. there are only two places where america is popping champagne — the white house, and the corporate boardrooms, including trump tower. 0therwise, americans have a lot to regret. let's quickly round up some of the other stories making making the news... britain's most valuable company, shell, and the italian oil company, eni have been been ordered to stand trial in italy, in what has been described as one of the biggest corporate corruption cases in history. the companies and several senior officials face allegations in connection with a deal in nigeria. all deny any wrongdoing. the trial in italy is expected to start in march next year. the family of an australian woman shot dead by police in the united states earlier this year have said the official investigation has not been properly carried out. justine daymond was shot in minneapolis on july 15th, after she called police to report

an assault on another woman. the new leader of south africa's governing anc, cyril ramaphosa, has closed his party's conference with a promise to pursue a policy of radical economic transformation. he said the fight against corruption must be an urgent priority for the party. voters go to the polls in catalonia later. it's a key election that could resolve spain's political crisis. pro—independence parties are up against those who want to remain part of a unified spain. you'll remember the country was plunged into constitutional crisis when catalonia's parliament illegally declared independence in october. that was followed by madrid stripping the region of its autonomy. james reynolds reports from barcelona. pro—independence supporters are planning a revival... ..and a new strategy. declaring unilateral independence in october simply got their leaders

sacked, and even jailed. the deposed regional president, carles puigdemont, now campaigns from exile in belgium. so this time, if they win, they promise no more unilateral steps. if you win, will you make another effort to declare independence? translation: we are the people of dialogue, of agreement. the problem with the spanish government is that it is extremely weak. the strong come to an agreement, the weak impose their will. this election will test which side is stronger, pro—independence or pro—spain. unlike the disputed referendum in october, this time, both sides will vote. the pro—spain camp wants to use this election to block any more attempts to break away. the most powerful pro—spain voice

belongs to ines arrimadas, the local leader of a party called citizens. she addresses her final campaign rally in spanish, not catalan. why do you oppose independence? because ourfuture is inside spain, and inside the european union. we don't have any future outside the european union, and outside our country. because catalonia is our homeland, spain is our country, and europe is ourfuture. months of crisis are now marked by a single election. vote by vote, catalonia will count its divide. james reynolds, bbc news, barcelona. mps in uganda have voted overwhelmingly to remove the age limit for the presidency — so allowing president yoweri museveni to run for a sixth term.

they're also reintroducing a two—term limit for heads of state, that means mr museveni could stay in office until 2031. from kampala, catherine byaruhanga. the bill passes. victory is theirs, and they are relishing every moment. uganda's ruling party mps want their leader, president yoweri museveni, to stay in power. and, one by one, they voted to remove age caps for the presidency. we are enjoying peace and stability in northern uganda. it is because of the effort of president yoweri museveni. we cannot not, on a technicality, knock him out of the race. this is president museveni at his first swearing—in ceremony, in 1986. he fought a bitter civil war to seize power, and brought hopes

for a brighterfuture. over 30 years later, he has contested in five elections. he says he needs more time to develop uganda. in parliament, those opposed to extending his stay in power were outnumbered, and some say, outmanoeuvred. even though age caps for the presidency have been removed, term limits have been reintroduced. museveni could be president until 2031. the opposition says it's likely, because according to them, elections here lack legitimacy. we have broken the hearts of ugandans. it's not that we are afraid of president museveni. what we are bothered about is good governance. what we are bothered about is a free and fair election. this debate has descended into violence on several occasions.

fights between mps and with security forces have made headlines around the world. the dust will settle on the decisions made here, in this parliament. but ugandans are anxious, waiting to see how this country will transition from president museveni's long stay in power. catherine byaruhanga, bbc news. to the way, are much more to come on bbc news, including this. —— don't go away. we sneak a look at the snow baby hidden away for a record 25 yea rs. we saw this enormous tidal wave approaching the beach and people started to run, and suddenly, it was complete chaos. united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship

of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said the operation had been 90% successful but it's failed in its principle objective — to capture general noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. the russian flag was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's made of the seas, nose down in the soft earth. you could see what happens when a plane eight stories high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town of shkodra, where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: britain's prime minister, theresa may, sacks her deputy and close ally, damien green, over allegations that he lied

about pornography on his work computer. sweeping tax changes have been approved by congress. donald trump says it will boost the us economy. a baby has been born from an embryo frozen for nearly 25 years, possibly the longest gap between conception and birth since ivf began. the embryo was donated by a family in the us and has become the first child for a woman who would herself have been only one when the baby was conceived. andrew plant reports. preparing for christmas in eastern tennessee. this year, tina and ben gibson got the gift they wanted. he was born from an embryo frozen 25 yea rs was born from an embryo frozen 25 years ago. i never thought this would happen, to have their pregnancy and have a baby it is a

miracle. the mother is only 26 years old. that means she and her son were conceived in the same year. they we re conceived in the same year. they were given an embryo that had been frozen in storage for a quarter of a century. if this embryo was born when it was supposed to be, we could have been friends. it is so crazy. the embryo was donated 25 years ago by an anonymous family and kept in carefully controlled conditions. they will not be genetically related, but it has become their first child. she was chosen for us. they are called snowy babies because of how long they are kept frozen.

finally, she is nice and warm and delivered in time for her very first christmas. andrew plant, bbc news. for the first time in its history, the european commission has threatened a member state with the loss of its eu voting rights. it's started disciplinary measures against poland, accusing the government of undermining the independence of the country's judges. polish ministers have dismissed the commission's actions as politically motivated. fans have been gathering to say goodbye at the funeral of south korea's k—pop star, kim jong—hyun. his death has triggered an outpouring of grief from fans around the world and three days of mourning begin today. it's thought the singer took his own life, a note believed to be from him revealed he'd been struggling with depression. sophie long is following the story for us in the south korean capital, seoul. his body left the hospital here in seoul, in a stretch black limousine. and there were hundreds of his young fans all gathered. they came here since very early this morning, and stood very respectfully, in silence, to pay their last

respects to their idol. now, he is a member, he was the lead singer of shinee, one of korea's biggest boy bands. four other members of the band were inside the hospital. but there was no hysteria here, it was a moment of great sadness. and they stood aside until the moment that the car carrying his body drove past, and then there was a huge outpouring of emotion. now, his body has been lying in rest here at the hospital in seoul for the past three days and it's estimated that some 10,000 people have come here to pay their respects. the number is so huge, in fact, that the hospital was forced to send some teenage girls, many of whom had queued for hours in sub—zero temperatures to pay their respects, home. and they came back the next day, many of them standing here today questioning what caused this successful young pop star — he was just 27 years of age — to take his own life. just after his death,

another member of a k—pop band, posted a note that jong—hyun sent to her — her name is nine — in which he spoke about how he felt broken on the inside, and how the depression that was devouring him had at last consumed him. so a lot of questions here today about how mental health is handled in this country, and the level of pressure that young celebrities in these k—pop bands, which are now huge — they have always been big here in korea, but in the last few years, k—pop has really led the korean wave, the export of korean culture, of music and culture, across asia and beyond — there will be lots of people in london, injapan, in the united states — shinee, his band, conducted theirfirst us tour earlier this year. but the level of fame, it seems, might just have been too much forjong—hyun. he was seen by his fans as a sensitive young man, who didn't really embrace the hedonism that often goes along with stardom. incredible pictures from northern

ecuador. a volcano known as troublemaker. this footage of it erupting was captured. the last recorded major activity was in 2002. it poses no imminent danger to local communities. it has been sped up to ca ptu re communities. it has been sped up to capture it with long exposures. life expectancy across the globe is rising, and scientists are wondering just how long we might live in future. most think we will see gradual gains in longevity but some suggest anti—ageing drugs could allow people to live for centuries. in the last of his special reports on the "super—agers," our medical correspondent, fergus walsh, travelled to california and arizona. i like to do things. i don't want to sit in the background. enthusiastic, engaged, optimistic.

lester dray is 101. the oldest resident at this retirement village in sun city, arizona. you're going to miss something if you just moan and groan about how horrible life is. show me your teeth... do you hear a sound? say ahhh... ahhh. he gets regular medical checks, as part of a study into longevity. it's an issue which is attracting interest from unusual quarters. in silicon valley california, some of the biggest names from google to facebook are investing hundreds of millions of dollars into defeating the diseases of ageing. so why are tech entrepreneurs suddenly interested in human health? i think silicon valley is driven by curiosity. that same curiosity that drives a 14—year—old to programme computers in his bedroom drives somebody in their 205 or 305 to really apply their minds and their cash to this problem.

the dna from the special part of the cell called the mitochondrion... it's why this british scientist set up in silicon valley. aubrey de grey is probably the world's leading advocate of life extension. the idea that humans can and will live in good health for hundreds of years. there will certainly be no limit on how long people can live once we bring ageing under control. people will still die, there are still trucks to be hit by and so on. but the fact is people will on average live a lot longer unless there's some bizarre thing like we get hit by an asteroid or whatever. that's beautiful! that's a minority view. although extending life is possible in the lab, with fruit flies, yeast or worms, it gets more difficult higher up the evolutionary ladder. so, in the lab, in simple laboratory animals, we can increase life span by100%, 200, 500%, really extraordinary differences in life span.

it turns out ageing is really plastic in the simple laboratory animals. it may be more complex as we go over to mammals, the mouse, for example. we've been able to increase life span 20 or 30%. and we really don't know what's possible for humans at this point. we do know exercise is a magic formula that can keep us healthy longer. and there are no drugs yet to match it. there is probably an upper limit to life expectancy of around 115 years. so, the quest for immortality is still the stuff of science fiction. but increasing our health span, the number of years we spend free of chronic diseases, well that really could be a reality. here we go! # jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock! finding something you enjoy and staying socially engaged are key elements of healthy ageing. like the sun city poms, many of whom are in their 70s and 80s. i'm 78. born on the fourth ofjuly. so i'm still a firecracker,

still going and booming. it keeps me physically active, it keeps my brain working and helps my memory. we just get out there and do what we need to do and enjoy. we can't slow time, but we can put more life in our years, and, hopefully, become super—agers. fergus walsh, bbc news, sun city, arizona. more from his special reports on the bbc website. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter. i'm @bbcmikeembley. thank you for watching. hi there.

the cold weather that we had during the first half of december is a long way behind us, and, really, for the run—up to christmas, including christmas day, the weather looks pretty mild. at the moment we've got a weather front wiggling its way across central areas of the uk. extensive cloud being wafted across the uk on westerly winds — those winds are fairly light. and we've got some mist and fog patches around the coast and the hills across england and wales. some patches of light rain and drizzle to start the day as well. a risk of that for northern ireland, for england and wales. slightly drier weather for scotland although the far north again could see a bit of rain. so one way or another, as we start off thursday morning, it's going to be a murky start to the day with fog around the coast of wales and south—west england. up over the hills of the downs and chiltons, a few patches of light rain or drizzle tending ease away quite quickly during thursday morning. some damp weather as well, there or thereabouts in northern ireland. but further north in scotland, for many areas, it's a dry and bright start to the day. high cloud in the sky and there should be some hazey sunshine coming through

that across many areas. through the rest of thursday, this wiggling weather front is going to push its way a little bit further northwards and eastwards. it's just going to stay cloudy for most of us. the cloud perhaps thinning a little bit through the afternoon, to allow brighter spells in the east. but always, the thicker cloud across wales, north—west england, northern ireland, threatening some spots of rain. the brightest weather across scotland but this is where we've got the slightly cooler air. temperatures 6 or 7 degrees in the north. otherwise, for most of us, it's a day of double—figure temperatures. and those mild conditions continue through thursday night and on into the first part of friday morning. the cloud though is going to thicken up then through thursday night. with a bit of rain working in again across wales and southern counties of england, on into the midlands for a time, too. cooler across the far north—east of scotland. then for friday, again, it's a rather disappointingly cloudy kind of weather picture. weather becomes drier and brighter for most of us through the afternoon. with a bit more in the way of wind blowing across the mountains of scotland, it is probably the eastern side of scotland that will have the best of any limited breaks in the cloud.

for many of us it's a mild one, though. temperatures, what, 10, 11, 12 degrees celsius across western areas. that mild theme set to continue as we head into the weekend and indeed for christmas day, with the winds generally coming in from the west or the south—west. to start off the weekend, again, it's a lot of cloud around for most of us. thick enough to give us a few spots of light rain across western coasts and hills. perhaps something a little bit more wet across the north—west of scotland. slightly stronger winds, so again a better chance of seeing some cloud breaks for eastern scotland, running into eastern england and then, right up to christmas day itself, it stays mild, but often cloudy perhaps a little bit brighter for most of us for christmas day itself. the latest headlines... the british prime minister's deputy, damian green, has been sacked for making misleading statements about pornography found on his parliamentary computer. theresa may said it was with deep regret that she had asked him to resign. he's denied wrongdoing. donald trump's overhaul of the us tax system — the biggest in three decades —

has been formally approved by both houses of congress. he's been celebrating his first big legislative win. he says it will boost economic growth and create jobs. democrats argue it will inflate the deficit and mainly benefit rich republican donors. voting takes place in catalonia later, in a key election that could resolve spain's political crisis. pro—independence parties are up against those who want to remain part of a unified spain. the country was plunged into constitutional turmoil when catalonia's parliament illegally declared independence in 0ctober.