this is bbc news. i'm carrie gracie. the headlines at 4. a shift of policy on europe by labour. shadow brexit secretary sir kier starmer confirms the party would keep britain in a customs union. it is the only way we are realistically to get tariff free access and is really important for our manufacturing base. nobody can answer the question about keeping no hard border with northern ireland without a customs union. the winter olympic games have ended with the closing ceremony at pyeongchang olympic stadium. team gb took a record tally of five medals at the games. china's president xijinping could serve for many, many years to come, under changes that the communist party is proposing to the country's constitution. one of bollywood's most famous actresses, sridevi kapoor, who starred in more than a hundred and fifty films — has died suddenly at the age of 5a. and in half an hour, witness brings you stories behind important moments in history

from around the world. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. labour would keep britain in a customs union with the eu, according to the party's brexit spokesman. sir keir starmer told the bbc‘s andrew marr show that a new treaty, replicating the existing customs arrangement, would be best for the economy and would respect the referendum result. the prime minister is committed to leaving both the single market and the customs union. she's expected to outline the government's position in more detail this week. our political correspondent emma vardy reports. after months of uncertainty over labour's position, now the party is moving decisively away from a so—called hard brexit.

it has been unanimously agreed, according to the shadow brexit secretary. sir keir starmer said jeremy corbyn will announce tomorrow that a labour government's policy would be for the uk to enter a new customs union with the eu after brexit. we've long championed being in a customs union with the eu and the benefits of that, it is the only way realistically to get tariff—free access, really important for our manufacturing base and nobody can answer the question of how you keep your commitment to no hard border in northern ireland without a customs union. staying in a customs union would mean britain continuing to trade freely with other eu countries. this, says sir keir starmer, would be best for britain's manufacturers. but it would limit our ability to strike new trade deals outside europe. brexit—supporting labour mps say staying so closely tied to the eu does not keep to the spirit of the referendum result. what is wrong with it is the country voted to leave and while it is

really important we negotiate a free—trade agreement with europe, the eu is a bankrupt organisation, it has never had its accounts signed off, it needs our money. the conservatives have been warned it is crunch time for theresa may. the pro—eu mps could defeat the government in the commons when parliament votes on the terms of the final brexit deal. but the trade secretary, liam fox, encouraged remain supporting tories to unite behind theresa may when she sets out the government's plans for the future relationship with the eu next week. i think when the rest of the parliamentary party hears on friday as the prime minister sets it out at... she will win over anna soubry, do you think? i hope they will have an open mind and listen to what the prime minister says. labour's efforts to persuade conservative rebels to resist the government's plans are set to intensify. now there is a clear

difference between the tories and labour on brexit. earlier she explained there had been some uncertainty over the position of labour. for some time, theresa may has been pushed to set out the government's vision for ourfuture relationship with the eu but labour has been pushed as well. there has been uncertainty of the clear position of the labour party after transition. with both of them making big speeches this week and the rebels being encouraged to come out of the woodwork or get back on side were they will be, are we going to get a clear sense of the parliamentary arithmetic? as journalists we tot up numbers all the time. when it comes to the crunch, are rebels on the conservative side prepared potentially to bring down the government? it looks this way at the moment. we know the former tory minister, anna soubry, has tabled

this house of commons amendment backing membership of the customs union. there are ten conservative mps on paper willing to back that and that could overturn the slim majority of theresa may. when it comes to the crunch, conservative rebels bringing down the government, it could pave the way for a general election and may be a labour win. will they want to do that? number 10 does not think that is desirable at the moment. theresa may had the chance to watch the speech byjeremy corbyn and rewrite hers and charm rebels back onside. you could say that is the benefit of going second. she has been walking a tightrope and has been acting very carefully to try to keep leavers and remainer is on side. —— remainers.

what we will hear next week will be the product and whatever was agreed at the meeting at chequers. managed divergence, the form of words which seems to be keeping people happy. whether we will remain close to the eu in some areas but pull away from them and have separate rules in others. that is the vision of the cabinet and something that has to be agreed with the rest of the eu. noises from that side are not looking too favourable at the moment. the closing ceremony of the winter olympics has taken place in pyongchang. russian athletes were banned from parading under their flag because of drug violations but the international olympic committee says it could allow the country to compete at the next games, providing no more of its competitors are found to have committed doping violations. andy swiss reports. the sound of defiance. over a neutral anthem, the russian anthem being sung by the gold—medal—winning ice hockey team of the olympic athletes from russia on the very day their nation was getting a reprieve.

160 of their athletes have had to compete here under a neutralflag. while russia wasn't granted their flag for the closing ceremony, their olympic ban is now set to be lifted, despite two russian athletes, including curler alexander krushelnitsky, failing drugs tests here. these are cases of negligence, but there is no indication whatsoever for a systemic or systematic doping. as for team gb, well, it was a disappointing final day. their bobsleighers finishing 17th and 18th. but with five medals, including lizzy yarnold's gold, it's been their most successful winter games ever. we're very happy. this is a historic games for us, it's our best ever winter olympics. we have three medals in one day on that saturday, we had back—to—back gold medals with lizzy yarnold. but these games have been

about politics as well as sport. president trump's daughter ivanka among those attending the closing ceremony. while, after parading under a unified flag at the start of the games, the large contingent from team gb also enjoyed their moment. finally, a chance to relax. for the hosts, who have been widely praised for their organisation, it's been a memorable fortnight. but at last, it was time to lower the olympic flag and hand it over to beijing who will hold the next games in four years' time. it has a tough act to follow, as pyeongchang put on a dazzling spectacle. a games which has made so many headlines is saying goodbye in style. andy swiss, bbc news, pyeongchang. now, the closing ceremony was

attended by the daughter of president trump, as well as a delegation of north koreans. the us ruled out meeting any representatives from pyeongchang but north korean officials said they we re north korean officials said they were open to talks with the americans in the future. john mcdonnell has been following developments. serious developments, we are still some way off. given where we were with north korea not talking to either south korea or the united states just months ago, i think those in favour of the dialogue would say that president moon has done a good job of using this winter olympics to at least try to bring both sides together. we have heard this before from north korea. more recently we have heard it

from the vice president pense. we will have to see if the talks come to anything if they are prepared to sit down with one another. president moon was elected. he has a mandate to try and reach out to the north koreans. that is what he went to the south korean people and said he would do. i think he would probably be quite proud of what he has been able to achieve at these games. we have seen no strange situations in the stadium behind me. there is ivanka trump. she is sitting in the front row. behind her, a north korean general, who is accused of two attacks on south korea, including a torpedoing incident. that resulted in 46 south korean

people dying. lots of people think he should not even be allowed in the country. yet he is trying to bring the two camps together. it is still a very tough ask. when it comes down to it the cynics will say is north korea really going to give up its nuclear weapons? will the americans put up with anything less than them giving up their nuclear weapons? these are massive hurdles both sides must cover. at least they have potentially come some way towards talks at these games. china's state news agency says the ruling communist party has proposed a change to the constitution that would allow the president and vice—president to stay in power for more than two terms. the current president, xi jinping, is due to step down from his role in 2023. we arejoined by we are joined by timely brannigan at the guardian. she was the china correspondent that for many years. —— tanya. correspondent that for many years. -- tanya. this is very important but

not a great shock. it confirms that xijinping has not a great shock. it confirms that xi jinping has established not a great shock. it confirms that xijinping has established power in a way nobody really foresaw when he took over in 2012 and he might well continue. there is little doubt he will continue beyond two terms and question is about how long he will stay on for. do think this would be on the model of president putin or chairman mao? he is not the chairman mao figure. he has amassed power we have not seen previously. he is not a disrupter, it is about an assertion of control. mal always said he was monkey and tiger. he liked the upheavals were also liked being in charge. -- chairman mao a lwa ys being in charge. -- chairman mao always said. last autumn, when they had the big communist party congress which happens only every five years we saw him surprise some observers by getting xijinping we saw him surprise some observers by getting xi jinping thought

britain into a constitution as the guiding ideology. it now looks as though xijinping guiding ideology. it now looks as though xi jinping thought is now going into the national constitution. what will that mean? that is a very good question, something that people will still try to figure out. what we have seen is this great sense of china re—emerging as a force in the world, which he has obviously promoted very strongly and very successfully and he has had a great opportunity to do so. he has had a great opportunity to do so. the great feeling with the trump administration, brexit and the rise of populism elsewhere, there is a sense of space in which china can sell its vision much more powerfully. it is also an ideal about greater purity at home and return perhaps to some of the guiding thoughts of the parties after an age in which cemetery was about cash and about economic prosperity. one of the striking

things at the moment is china is emerging as the communist party structure against state structure. earlier, deng xiaoping tried to separate those two things out, saying we must have procedures. now we seem to be welding the party back with the state. obviously, we go to a more than two term president, as well as an indefinite communist party leader. it is a recipe for that kind of strongman rule.|j party leader. it is a recipe for that kind of strongman rule. i think it is really interesting that the party made this decision to collectivise and institutionalised power. what is important to remember is she is one man. —— xi is one man. the party made a decision they wa nted the party made a decision they wanted a change full stop that reflects a sense that although there was a time when collectivise in

power was needed, there were too many power was needed, there were too ma ny vested power was needed, there were too many vested interests and corruption had crept in and perhaps a sense it was not a sustainable model anymore. i don't think anyone anticipated the changes and the speed of the changes we have seen. do you see it as a change from weakness or strength? is this because he can do it, or because they really were not making the structure work along that kind of collective leadership model? as a lwa ys of collective leadership model? as always with these things got there is pressure from both sides. he is obviously a very confident figure with a very strong family background. a very deep knowledge, deep connections right across the party. at the same time, i think there was a feeling in the party that it was not working and certainly one of the things she has tapped into very effectively is more broadly the sense that, as historians beautifully put it, the middle kingdom had lost its middle

and it had become all about money and it had become all about money and prosperity people didn't really know what they were for, what china was for, what the party was for anymore. that is something he has tapped into. a man with a compass. what about the problem with the strongman rule that china remembers for those old enough to remember the chairman row fascism chairman rule. some of the excesses of the cultural revolution. —— chairman mao rule. people remember that china lost its feedback loop. there was no way of criticising or correcting policy mistakes. is that something people observing china need to worry about. that is where you get mixed reactions. for some people, they have potent memories. they say this is exactly what we are trying to prevent from happening again. in a senseit

prevent from happening again. in a sense it is not how somebody uses power 01’ sense it is not how somebody uses power or what their intentions are: that it power or what their intentions are: thatitis power or what their intentions are: that it is inherently dangerous to have somebody who has amassed this much control. people on the other side says things were not working as they are. it is a very different age. people are much more savvy and experienced. it is just fundamentally different times what we do know is we are now in a position where any critic serra in the party will find it much more difficult to come forward. —— critics there are. the headlines on bbc news: a shift of policy on europe by labour, shadow brexit secretary sir kier starmer, confirms the party would keep britain in a customs union. the winter olympic games come to a conclusion with the closing ceremony at pyeongchang olympic stadium. team gb took their record tally of five medals at the games. china's president xijinping could serve for many, many years to come, under changes that the communist party is proposing to the country's constitution. sport now, and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre.

the league cup final between arsenal and manchester city kicks off at 4:30pm, but before that there have been some interesting results in the premier league this afternoon. manchester untied have beaten cheslea 2—1 at old trafford. willian had given chelsae the lead just after the half hour mark, but five minutes before half—time, romelu lukaku equalised for the home side. the winner came from ajesse lingard header to give united a 2—1win and move them back into second place in the premier league. tottenham kept up the pressure on both chelsea and manchester united with a hard—earned 1—0 win at crystal palace. it threatened to be a frustrating afternoon for spurs, despite their dominance. even harry kane wasn't at his lethal goal scoring best. although perhaps that miss doesn't look so bad up against serge aurier‘s bungled effort. but kane did come up with a goal for tottenham in the 88th minute, heading in christian erikssen‘s

corner for the 150th goal of his club career. i think ithink in i think in the end we achieved what they wanted. it is true we had some chances before to score and i think we fully deserved the victory. we are so we fully deserved the victory. we are so happy. i think it is important. it gives us a very good position in the table to fight for the top four. i feel really bad for the players. after the game, you see them in the dressing room you see how disappointed in flat they are and how frustrated they couldn't just see the game through the last few minutes. as a coach and manager you don't quite know what to say to them really. praising them for their performance doesn't mean much when you know the performance has not given you anything in terms of points. celtic have restored a nine—point lead at the top

of the scottish premiership after beating aberdeen 2—0 at pittodrie this afternoon. moussa dembele headed injames forrest's cross from close range to give celtic a 1—0 lead at half—time. he then set up kieran tierney for their second, giving celtic their tenth win in a row against the dons — who stay in third place in the league. the winter olympics have come to a close in pyeongchang with the union flag being carried by snowboard big air bronze medallist, billy morgan. a colourful light show and south korean music brought 16 days of action to a conclusion. ioc president thomas bach praised the joint korean hockey team for showing that sport brings people together in what he called a fragile world. this is the final medal table. norway top of the table with a record 39 medals, ahead of germany and canada. great britain have had their best winter games with five medals, including lizzy yarnold's gold. they finished in 19th place. and though britain have been criticised for investing

more in winter sports, the chair of uk sport think this performance represents good investment. there is an amazing reaction from people who see the olympic games. whether they love sport don't normally follow it, for the two weeks of the winter olympics, the summer weeks of the winter olympics, the summer olympics in the is what, people get engaged. when you tried to put a number on the values we see, it is so much more compensated than that middle class that many millions or otherwise. the money you are seeing is buying into a huge systems sport throughout the country and there are huge benefits from that. ben stokes was "delighted to be back," according to captain eoin morgan — alhtough his first england match for five months ended in a three—wicket defeat by new zealand in hamilton. england made 284—8 in the first one—day international with stokes adding just 12 with the bat.

he was more helpful with the ball, though, and tried to inspire an england fightback, taking two wickets. but new zealand won by three wickets in the end, mitchell santner finishing it in style in the final over. six nations rugby have confirmed they will investigate an incident in the tunnel between england and scotland players before yesterday's calcutta cup match which was won by scotland at murrayfield. while domestic in rugby union second—placed saracens are in action against leicester. leicester lead by 19 points to six after 38 minutes clip thanks to two tries. while earlier bottom of the table london irish beat worcester 22—9. meanwhile, in the pro 1a cardiff blues came out on top in a low scoring affair against zebre. an owen lane try and two jarrod evans kicks earning them a 10—7 win. that's all the sport for now. don't forget too — the league cup final is under way in the next ten minutes.

full commentary on 5 live, and you can follow all the action from wembley on our website bbc.co.uk/sport. we'll have more at 5:30pm. the leaders of germany and france have urged russian president vladimir putin to put "maximum" pressure on the syrian government to stop fighting in eastern ghouta. chancellor angela merkel and president emmanuel macron had a telephone call with president putin earlier today. meanwhile, syrian government forces have continued air strikes in the rebel held area, despite a un security council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire. andy moore reports. over a thousand people have taken part in a march in the centre of belfast calling for more to be done to deal with the legacy of northern ireland's troubles. the time for truth march was organised by a number of groups. they claim to the government has failed to deliver on promises around the legacy issue including a

five—year plan to complete understanding matters. what we have called is for the british government to move forward, to bring forward the consultation. most importantly to bring forward that funding for the legacy inquest so it can happen now. there is no reason whatsoever for a delay. these people should not be treated in such a disgusting way. it is the final of the league cup today. our sports correspondent natalie pirks is at wembley. a lot of the fans we have been speaking to today are very confident. this is the first meeting between arsenal manchester city in a majorfinal. it between arsenal manchester city in a major final. it would between arsenal manchester city in a majorfinal. it would be between arsenal manchester city in a major final. it would be arsene wenger‘s as ever league cup trophy. we'll wenger‘s as ever league cup trophy. we' ll start wenger‘s as ever league cup trophy. we'll start with some arsenal fans. it would be the first one for arsene wenger. no one has ever lost more

league cup finals than arsenal. are you confident? we are a bit rubbish. we lost on thursday night. but we got throughput we have good form. arsenal could pull something out hat today. since he led the club it has been directionless for me. element he has said he wants to complete the set was this cup is often derided but what would it mean? we need to be in the champions league. it is the league cup, in a nice way!m be in the champions league. it is the league cup, in a nice way! it is more than spurs have got for a bit. do you feel trepidation as today? this could salvage our season, it is fairto this could salvage our season, it is fair to say. disappointing not to win the champions league but we do have work to do. we lost against

swansea. i have been drunk for about 72 hours for the you're clearly enjoying yourself lets talk to some manchester city fans. we have been seeing around, lots of manchester city fans have been wearing yellow ribbons. pep guardiola has been charged by the fa was that he is wearing that in sympathy with the politicians imprisoned in catalonia. what do you think about it? really disappointed. they could have dealt with this discreetly. it seems intentional it is on a friday. this would be his first trophy as city boss was abused that it is not important for him but it is for the club. —— city last. simon and we

would get two, if not three. we have to bounce back. he is the man to do that, to encourage the team and get the best from today. you are out of the best from today. you are out of the fa cup and that was a big shock. if we don't win, you'll be quite a big shock. the defeat on monday was quite a big defeat. i did not have good feeling last time in the final. pep guardiola will bounce back today and we will come back fighting. some predictions? 3—1. and we will come back fighting. some predictions? 3-1. and we will beat arsenal on thursday and chelsea next sunday. you do play arsenal remarkably again in the league. you do like playing arsenal. you have w011 your do like playing arsenal. you have won your last four, the last five against them. you have lostjust one of your last five against arsenal

and they have won four of their last five league cup finals. a lot of people here really believe it is a day for manchester city. will it be pep guardiola's ‘s trophy for the clu b pep guardiola's ‘s trophy for the club or arsene wenger‘s first ever league cup? we will find out later. about an hour before kick—off. bollywood superstar sridevi kapoor has died of a heart attack at the age of 5a. the actress — who starred in almost 300 films — was considered one of the few capable of huge box office success without the support of a male hero. rajini vaidya nathan looks back at her life. for decades she was bollywood's leading lady. sridevi's combination of charisma and comic timing won herfans around the world and in a male—dominated film industry she was one of the first women to become a megastar in her own right. sridevi was attending a family wedding with her husband

and daughter in dubai when she suffered a heart attack late on saturday night. in a tweet, india's prime minister narendra modi said he was saddened by her death. i think the passing means the industry has lost a true icon who was completely and utterly a force of nature on her own. india is mourning the loss of one of its brightest stars. one film producer describe the impact, saying she was a pioneer who put the early cracks in the glass ceiling of bollywood and paid the way for today's the male film stars. it is a loss for our country. for the film industry. she was such a role model

for all women across the country. i'm sure it will impact on everything. there are a lot of famous leading ladies now in bollywood. back then in the 80s and early 90s there were not many but she was one of the first. i think that is why she matters so much. she will be remembered for the way she lit up the screen was she left the world of bollywood way too soon but her legacy is enduring. bollywood superstar sridevi kapoor who's died at the age of 5a. now for the weather. it is getting very cold. the cold snap is upon us. the snow may not reach you to later in the week. this evening and tomorrow snow showers will fall in the east. some