this is bbc news. i'm shaun ley. the headlines at ten. the african union demands an apology from president trump for derogatory remarks he reportedly made about the continent. we were quite appalled and infuriated, outraged by the comments. warnings of a tooth decay crisis amongst children in england — a record 43,000 operations to remove rotting teeth were carried out last year. a ban on credit and debit surcharges comes into force today but there are concerns companies could raise their prices in response. also in the next hour.. tributes paid to bella emberg who has died aged 80. the comedy actors became a household name on the russ abbot show, he has described her as a huge comedy talent. les dennis said she was a lovely, funny friend. the travel show team

is at the church of the nativity in bethlehem. that's in half an hour here on bbc news. good morning and welcome to bbc news. the african union has demanded an apology from president trump after he reportedly used a vulgar and disparaging term to describe nations on the continent. it was apparently made during an oval office meeting on immigration with members of congress. the union, which represents 55 african countries, expressed its "shock, dismay and outrage" and said the trump administration misunderstood africans. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes reports. it has been an extraordinary week, even by donald trump's standards. it ended with a medical, a routine checkup that all presidents undergo and word from mr trump's doctor that the commander in chief is in

excellent health. for the past two days have seen the president of my but the past two days have seen the president mired in controversy, as donald trump arrives in florida to spend the weekend at his golf resort, the international community is still fuming over his alleged use of crude language to describe african countries. as the african union we were quite appalled and infuriated, outraged, by the comments. and for a country like the united states, which is a valued partnerfor the africans, this is quite a shock. from the united nations in geneva came the stiffest of rebukes. these are shocking and shameful comments from the president of the united states. i'm sorry but there's no other word one can use but racist. you cannot dismiss entire countries and continents. the allegation has gone unanswered by the president. he had an opportunity

at this ceremony in celebration of martin luther king. but it was awkward. after signing a proclamation in honour of the civil rights leader, mr trump dodged the most uncomfortable of questions. mr president, are you a racist? he earlier tweeted that he'd used tough language in a meeting with senators but not the derogatory language attributed to him. peter bowes, bbc news. despite the furore over the president's comments, the political analyst eric ham says mr trump's words will resonate with his republican base. we know how the president feels about courting his base and making sure they stay in the fold. in fact coulter, a very conservative provocateur has said upon hearing these comments that she feels validated and now she has a reason to turn back to president trump. so we know that his base will actually find solace in these comments but

again when you look atjust how racially tinged they were, and how an entire continent is seeing these comments it does not bode well for the usa, particularly when you look at many of the emerging nations in africa and now how china is engaged on the continent, it is not a good look for the united states. particularly when the united states sees china as a competitor and we know how actively engaged china is in there. iran has said the us has crossed a "red line" by imposing sanctions on the head of itsjudiciary and vowed to retaliate. ayatollah sadeq amoli—larijani is among 14 individuals and bodies targeted. iran also rejected any changes to its nuclear deal with world powers. president trump has warned that he'll re—impose sanctions on iran

in less than four months — a move that would undermine the agreement under which tehran curbed its nuclear programme. let's speak to kasra naji from the bbc persian service. good to see you. let's start with this specific targeting the head of the judiciary. what is this specific targeting the head of thejudiciary. what is going on. it's interesting, he's the head of the judiciary, effectively the chief justice. a very big person in iran. a very close associate of the ayatolla h a very close associate of the ayatollah harmonised. and he's obviously head ofjudiciary, accused ofa obviously head ofjudiciary, accused of a range of abuses of human rights in iran. so in terms of iranians hearing this, it's a popular thing for the us to do, and the iranians are saying that this is crossing red

lines, they will retaliate, i am not sure of what they are going to do but we will wait and see. interesting, crossing a red line, because international sanctions have been applied before. this is the most high profile, if you like. it comes at a time when a time when iran's human rights situation, after the recent unrest in iran, in the news, in the forefront of everyone's minds, that is an interesting choice of targeting of sanctions. let's talk about the iran nuclear deal, it's clear from the meetings held before with ministers including borisjohnson before with ministers including boris johnson that the before with ministers including borisjohnson that the eu countries believe this is a good deal, the best deal that can be extracted after such a long process of

negotiation between iran and those world powers. the president is saying, we are giving the europeans one last chance to fix it, otherwise he says he will unilaterally pull out of it. how likely is that, how likely that it can be fixed, any flaws that need fixing and what would be the impact of america did act as president chun threatens? it's a very serious situation, the americans, the europeans and the chinese are all against this, they wa nt chinese are all against this, they want this dude is five and the european countries, just a couple of days ago, it was reiterated that this is a very good deal for world security, this basically stops iran

from acquiring nuclear weapon is... at least until 2025! obviously hardliners and president 0bama not happy with this and they want to get rid of it. how far this might go and don't know but things are getting serious. president chun says this is the last time he will waive sanctions on iran because of the nuclear deal. he wants to renegotiate the deal. he wants to things done, one is to bring iran's nuclear missile programme into this deal, it isn't, it is a separate thing. and it wants a lot of limitations on the nuclear deal to be indefinite. at the moment, there are ten years duration is for each of this deal so he wants indefinite

duration is for limitations on iran is nuclear activities. they say it is nuclear activities. they say it is not negotiable. and they say the missile is not part of this, it won't be drawn into this. the fact is that the europeans are also not happy about iran's missile programme, for example. and they very much would like iran to come forward and start talking about it and find a solution to iran's missile programme. so the europeans are ina missile programme. so the europeans are in a difficult position really. and they'll say this is the best they could do in the circumstances. kasra naji thank you very much. dentists have accused the government of not doing enough to tackle tooth in children decay in england. new figures indicate there were nearly 43,000 operations to remove children's teeth last year — a i7% increase on four years ago.

ministers say a new tax on sugary drinks from april will help to reduce the number of extractions, but the british dental association says england provides a second—class service compared to scotland and wales. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes reports. tooth decay in children is distressing, painful and avoidable. dentists say sugary snacks and drinks are the biggest cause. british children drink more soft drinks than anywhere else in europe and the number of multiple extractions which have to take place in hospital under a general anaesthetic is continuing to grow. figures compiled by the local government association show there were nearly 43,000 multiple to the extractions among under—18s in england last year. that's around 170 every day of the working week. 0verall, there's been an increase of i7% in just four years. dentists say children in england are suffering and are being offered a second—rate service when compared to scotland and wales. we have seen in scotland and in wales that they have got national

programmes to try and prevent this and they have actually got reasonably good results out of it. the government has not put any money into a national prevention programme for england and that's the reason why we are seeing so many children being put under general anaesthetic. the department of health in england says the introduction says the introduction of a tax on sugary drinks was part of its plan to reduce the number of extractions and that more than half of all children have seen a dentist in the last year. and, with proper oral hygiene, good brushing and avoiding high sugar snacks and drinks, thousands of children could be saved from experiencing the pain of a rotten tooth. dominic hughes, bbc news. claire stevens, president of the british society of paediatric dentistry, joins me. thank you for being with us. thank you for inviting me. pretty depressing

statistics, do they chime with your experience? i'm afraid they do. it has been the case for some time, as you said in your vat, the numbers are steadily rising. i work as an nhs consultant in my dayjob and i am routinely removing teeth, sometimes in children aged two. dentures that teenagers? u nfortu nately dentures that teenagers? unfortunately so, when we losing aduu unfortunately so, when we losing adult teeth and insignificant numbers sometimes the only option we haveis numbers sometimes the only option we have is false teeth for i4—year—olds. have is false teeth for 14-year-olds. it sounds not quite victorian but something we might associate with the 1940s rather than these days. it shouldn't happen these days. it shouldn't happen these days. it shouldn't happen these days especially when we talk about these diseases that are preve nta ble. about these diseases that are preventable. is a simplistic to say it is all down to sugary snacks? they certainly have a part to play,

and we all know that we over consume these, so it's all about reducing sugar consumption and frequency of consumption, keeping sugary foods to a minimum especially before bed, it's also about getting fluoride on board. and also access. we need to encourage children into nhs dentistry as soon as the first teeth come through so the british society of paediatric dentistry is calling for a dental check by one. from your experience in talking to your collea g u es experience in talking to your colleagues in the profession, is it because their parents don't take them? we would like to encourage the whole family into nhs dentistry. it's also free for expectant mothers

and those who have just given birth toa and those who have just given birth to a baby. thank you claire stevens, president of the society of paediatric dentistry. we'll be talking about this subject throughout the morning here on bbc news. consumers can no longer be charged extra for paying by credit or debit card under new laws from today. it is hoped the ban will benefit shoppers and holidaymakers who buy goods online or in small stores — but some retailers have already said they will raise overall prices in response to the change. joe lynam reports. we've all seen them. the extra little fees added at the very end of the buying process. in percentage terms it may not sound like a lot, but card surcharges add up, until today. under a new eu directive retailers on or off—line can no longer charge customers for paying with a credit or debit card. the treasury says this surcharges cost uk consumers £166 million annually, but some companies, such as

concert venues, can still charge a booking or service fee. this is a significant win for consumers. no longer will they be penalised just for paying by credit or debit card. not all companies will increase prices. we have to wait and see how they react to the law that is being introduced and see whether or not prices go up. if prices do go up consumers can vote with their feet, and shop around and find the best deals for them. some retailers, such as this delivery firm just eat, say they will impose new costs on customers who pay by card. to cover any loss of income. so not all consumers will be better off.. joe lynam, bbc news. the headlines, the african union has demanded an apology from president trump after he made to rocketry remarks about the continent. a record 42,000 operations to remove rotting teeth from children were

carried out last year alone. a ban on credit and debit surcharges comes into force today amid concerns companies could raise their prices in response. and a full round—up of these sports news this morning with mike. how are you? have you tried out?” news this morning with mike. how are you? have you tried out? i have! great news for british tennis. johanna konta to says she has recovered from the hip injury that disrupted preparations for the australian open which begins on monday in melbourne, succeeded ninth for the tournament and plays the american madison brengle in the first round. she is aiming to reproduce the form that took to the semifinals two years ago. i'm coming into this year with very different challenges. i'm feeling conscious of really appreciating being back and playing and almost being grateful for the challenges that i have now. and also working through

the challenges i faced at the end of last year and trying to really get back into the match routine of things. try to get back into playing at the level that i want to be playing consistently. she and the other top players steered clear of the controversy around the margaret court arena. billiejean around the margaret court arena. billie jean king called around the margaret court arena. billiejean king called for the courts to be renamed because of controversial comments from margaret court about gender and sexuality. those who have to play there did not wa nt to those who have to play there did not want to get involved in this debate. i will play whenever they put me on the court. i didn't even think about it, so i am not even... if i play on margaret court this is the last thing i'm going to think about.” have been asked these questions, it's not up to me whether i say yes or no it's still not going to be up

to me, so kind of have to deal with the hand you are dealt.” to me, so kind of have to deal with the hand you are dealt. i love this tournament and i will play an any court they scheduled me on, i'm just happy to have this opportunity. novak djokovic says his injuries have not healed 100% but it has got better to the point where he can hand out cakes to the media, as this is tradition, and he's fit enough to compete at the tournament, the six time champion has ensured he will cause no further damage by competing. he said there were other long—term options he would visit after the tournament.” long—term options he would visit after the tournament. i haven't had this long break in my career so i'm just glad to be back playing tennis and having an opportunity to compete yet again, i have missed it. at the same timei yet again, i have missed it. at the same time i have had a great time playing with my family and also

taking a different look at my game, my taking a different look at my game, d. taking a different look at my game, 'st taking a different look at my game, my body, just an overall strategy and how i want to move forward. my body, just an overall strategy and how i want to move forwardm is good to see him back. today chelsea are turned to leicester, they could go second today with a victory but they would still be 13 points behind leaders manchester city. | points behind leaders manchester city. i think points behind leaders manchester city. i think leicester are a really good team, a strong team, in really good team, a strong team, in really good form, it will be very difficult tomorrow to win the game. at this moment, they are the team to face. he's the one that they've wanted, for the top job in scotland,

since gordon strachan‘s departure in october. and they have been trying to woo him for some time. at last it seems a compensation package has been agreed, with the irish fa, and so face to face talks are now likely next week. under 0'neill‘s management, northern ireland qualified for euro 2016 — theirfirst major tournament for 30 years. scotla nd wa nt scotland want some of that, don't they! after their thrashing in the ashes, england have a chance of revenge, in the one—day version of the game. starting tomorrow in melbourne, and captain eoin morgan, says the specialist one day players, will lift the rest of the england side as they face australia again. understandably, they've been, isuppose, down with defeat of the test tour, which is disappointing, but i think with the energy that a lot of the guys have brought in, coming from big bash, at home, or playing bangladesh previously, i think it's important for the squad and the series and i suppose it always has been, given you play on the back of such a significant test match series. the guys know the responsibility that they carry, if they're feeling fresh, to pick guys up along the way. in the eurasia cup in golf europe

trailing a shirt in the singles. they had been ahead after winning the first three foursomes this morning but a shed came back strongly when ross fisher and bernd wiesberger missed this padded back at the 17th, a show went ahead 6.5-5.5. it is all at the 17th, a show went ahead 6.5—5.5. it is all set for the sunday singles. keep up—to—date with that and was bought on our website. i will have more view, without my tail, later on. we do want to see your mermaid swimming, it's definitely worth another look. lib dem leader sir vince cable says the government should not bail out the construction company carillion. it is one of the government 's key contractors. it is £1.5 million in debt and is discussing a rescue plan with investors. sir vince cable said investors shouldn't pay the bill.” think it's got 43,000 employees, and

many more thousands who work as subcontractors so it's a massive industry. it's taken an massive numbers of contracts, and the government now has a big dilemma. it can't allow all these contracts to be unfulfilled yet at the same time it can't bail out the company because then the private sector would be allowed to privatise profits but the government would nationalise the losses and that was the problem, they can'tjust bail it out, there will have to force the shareholders, then the government can take responsibility for taking the contracts fraud and making sure they are delivered. police in los

angeles say they are investigating the sexual assault allegations against the film stars steven seagal. the actor, 65, faces allegations by several actresses in the wake of increased scrutiny on hollywood since the harvey weinstein scandal broke last year. the actor denies those earlier claims. the fire at nottingham station yesterday is being treated as arson, police have confirmed the fire began yesterday morning, ten crews tackled fla mes yesterday morning, ten crews tackled flames coming from the roof of the station, the smoke filled the foyer, causing a full evacuation. it has reopened today. supporters of south africa's governing party, the african national congress, have gathered to hear the new leader give his first major speech. the south african deputy president, voted as leader last month, has called for unity in the party to bring about social change. he began his speech in the last hour and said the new leadership will be devoted to

equality and democracy for south africa. we take this opportunity to reaffirm the anc‘s commitment to the values and the principles to which so values and the principles to which so many of our legends dedicated their lives. our organisation belongs to you, the people of south africa. the anc is the parliament of the people of south africa. and it is our duty as members of the anc to safeguard and nurture this heritage that we were given by our forebears. the core ideal is the reason for the anc's the core ideal is the reason for the anc‘s existence, is the creation of

a united non—racial, nonsexist democratic, prosperous and equitable society in our country. as its newly elected leadership we commit ourselves to you that we should remain faithful and diligent custodians of this glorious vision and heritage of our people. mr ramaphosa, leader of the anc, talking this morning. four british friends have broken the record for becoming the fastest crew to cross the and atlantic in a rowing boat. they have spent 29 years at sea and beaten the previous record by six days. dan johnson has beaten the previous record by six days. danjohnson has more. and here they go! shouting the end of an epicjourney rowed in

record time, four men who had not even been in a rowing boat 18 months ago not only challenge winners but the first to cross the atlantic less than 30 days. it feels overwhelming. the challenge as we said before is just relentless, never ending pain, just rowing, the whole thing, coming first is something that is beyond our wildest dreams. they left the canary islands 3,000 miles away and faced 40—foot waves, scorching sun and howling winds, not quite the apocalypse but a test of endurance for the four 0arsmen. surviving on rations, producing their own water, taking it in turns to eat, to sleep, and to row. it is amazing to complete the row. we set out as a charitable initiative, for two charities, mind, and spinal

research, the mind research is commemorative of my mum and her struggle with her health. to do it such justice and do it in such style and with such great support and great success is amazing. just making it to the caribbean is a fantastic achievement but they have raised more than a quarter of £1 million and have rowed their way into the record books. dan johnson, bbc news. tributes have been paid to the comedy actress bella emberg has died aged 80, she made her name in the 80s and the abbot show playing characters like blunder woman. russ abbot called her a huge comic talent, les dennis said she was a lovely fa m ily talent, les dennis said she was a lovely family friend. a number of her friends lovely family friend. a number of herfriends and lovely family friend. a number of her friends and fellow celebrities have paid their respects and twitter. the author michael moran said she was one—of—a—kind, gone but

not forgotten, posting a picture of her alongside russ abbot in her standout role. actor and songwriter bobby crush tweeted, such as sad news, my wonderfulfriend bella emberg is passed away, we have been chums since we acted together in the summer show in 1981, jenna milly nice woman and despite her fears onstage characterisations, a gentle soul. john challis, known for his role in 0nly soul. john challis, known for his role in only fools and horses tweeted a picture commenting on the side news. and bobby davro treats that it side news. and bobby davro treats thatitis side news. and bobby davro treats that it is sad to hear of the passing of bella emberg, a true comedy talent and a friend. 0ur ip, he says. bella emberg gave an interview to the daily mirror last yearin interview to the daily mirror last year in which she said that she still ta kes year in which she said that she still takes a look at the costume every few days to remind her allocation was. she appeared

alongside les dennis in the russ abbot show and in the past hour he has given his reaction to the news. she was just the loveliest person. she was just the loveliest person. she could play anything. from the straight deadpan face when everyone else was cracking up, she would keep absolutely perfectly still and deadpan. she could play that to any comic role. i think she underestimated herself. she didn't believe in her own talent. 0nce underestimated herself. she didn't believe in her own talent. once we got to know her more we used to get crossover because i got to know her more we used to get crossover because i first met her on tour, we were doing a summer season in torquay with russ abbot and i was in awe of her because she had worked with morecambe and wise and with benny hill and with russ abbot. i was quizzing her about this and she was, i'm just the stooge. we used to say, no, please believe in your talent. as she got older, i think she started to realise that body of

work was so good and that people loved her. she was a wonderful woman and wonderful talent. loved her. she was a wonderful woman and wonderfultalent. les loved her. she was a wonderful woman and wonderful talent. les dennis, talking about bella emberg whose death has been announced just now. now the weather with sarah. there is an east west split today. that theme stays through the weekend. it's mostly cloudy. we have got the rain towards the west today and it's slow—moving for the south—west of england, central and western wales, northern ireland and western wales, northern ireland and western scotland. this stays wet and windy throughout the day, although the winds will ease. further east you are more likely to stay dry. a few intervals breaking through the cloud. temperatures up to seven or eight. into the evening hours, this front slowly dies away. the rain will fizzle out. the winds fall later overnight too. with