this is bbc news and these are the top stories developing at 11. theresa may is updating ministers with the latest intelligence on who was behind the salisbury nerve agent attack. they meeting of the national security council is just getting under way. and i am in downing street where ministers are looking at who could be behind the attack. as theresa may ready to point the finger of blame at russia? parts of salisbury remained cordoned off — hundreds of pub goers and diners have been told to wash their possessions as a precaution. here in salisbury city centre, a number of key locations are still in play as police try to piece together how and where the former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter were targeted with that deadly nerve agent. described as one of the last musical greats, sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90. also this hour...

the shadow cabinet minister who says she's been forced out against her will. debbie abrahams claims she's the victim of a "bullying culture of the worst kind". as labour says the spokeswoman on work and pensions had stepped down. and is your bird feeder doing more harm than good? claims that bird tables could be breeding grounds for disease. good morning. it's monday 12th march. welcome to bbc newsroom live. the government's national security council is meeting now to discuss the nerve agent attack in salisbury of a former russian intelligence officer and his daughter. theresa may will chair the meeting. senior ministers, including the foreign secretary borisjohnson and the home secretay amber rudd will consider if there is enough evidence to determine who was behind the attackjust over a week ago.

meanwhile, up to 500 people who were at the same restaurant and pub as sergei and yulia skripal have been told to clean their clothes and belongings. some people have questioned why no guidance was issued until yesterday. trace amounts of the substance used to poison the pair were found on and around a table where they had eaten in zizzi — which has since been destroyed. mr skripal and his daughter remain in a critical, but stable condition in hospital. in a moment, we will talk to our home affairs correspondent leila nathoo in salisbury. but first to our chief political correspondent vicki young in downing street. what are you expecting to come out of that briefing this morning? we've seen senior figures going into downing street, including the foreign secretary, byron johnson, amber rudd, defence secretary, gavin williamson. we understand the prime minister will be the chairperson of the meeting and will be looking at

any evidence there is about who could be behind this attack. theresa may has been under pressure from some to come out openly and point the finger of blame at russia. she is waiting for the evidence. she has said in the past that you mustn't jump said in the past that you mustn't jump to any conclusions. clearly, the police and security forces are piecing together that evidence and then they are going to make the case. the question then of course is what theresa may might say. there are seniorfigures, what theresa may might say. there are senior figures, former national is advisers, senior tory mps who say it is hard to believe it can be anyone other than rush hour behind this attack. i suppose the question is then, within russia, do you point the finger of blame specifically at the finger of blame specifically at the kremlin and president putin, or could it be other kinds of groups? that is why they will be a cautious approach from the prime minister until she is absolutely certain of herfacts. until she is absolutely certain of her facts. the until she is absolutely certain of herfacts. the question until she is absolutely certain of her facts. the question then until she is absolutely certain of herfacts. the question then is, they talked about a robust response. amber rudd said that. borisjohnson

has said that. what exactly might that entail? could that be the expulsion of diplomats from the uk? more sanctions? and to what extent would britain be able to get other countries behind us to respond to a potential attack from russia. what about questions from the uk, giving asylu m about questions from the uk, giving asylum but not protecting in this case? yes, there's been a lot of talk about other cases. notjust this one. the one we all know about is alexander litvinenko. his widow said that britain did not respond roughly enough when that happened and there was proof that russia was behind it. she and others think more should have been done. borisjohnson has said very much that, actually, britain has been at the forefront of all of this. seizing the assets of russians in this country, stopping people coming here and travelling with the users. it's a matter of how much further the new google. ——

travelling with visas, and it is a matter of how much further you can go. mrjohnson said others were not prepared to stand up to russia in such a way. tory mps calling for all diplomatic ties to be called off with russia, but actually, do you have to keep diplomatic channels open? that is only way you can deliver country like russia. there is talk of a boycott of the world cup, for example. some senior advisers say wouldn't matter to president putin if england didn't turn up. they have to look at whether there is enough evidence pointing to russia for the prime minister to come and make a statement about that and then what exactly statement about that and then what exa ctly d o statement about that and then what exactly do senior ministers mean by a robust response? although to a correspondent in salisbury. what reaction has there been to the guidance put out a 500 oi’

been to the guidance put out a 500 or $0 been to the guidance put out a 500 or so people in the pub and restau ra nt or so people in the pub and restaurant at the same time as sergei skripal and julia skripal, to no cleaner clothes something after the attack? —— to now clean their clothes. there has been some confusion and anxiety about the guidance. in the aftermath of the incident, public health officials said there was nothing to worry about for the wider public and the risk of being contain. there was money for anyone to be alarmed. now, a full week on, hundreds of people getting married guidance, people in the pub and restaurant, all the way from sunday afternoon to monday evening when the two sites were cordoned off, some of the people i have spoken to today are very anxious that this should now be the case. either they say the ad at risk, in which case, why will it all need of the time, they say, what good would do wiping something down with the baby weight or putting some clothes in the wash when you're dealing with some sort of nerve agent here? —— wiping something down

with a baby wipe. authorities say this is merely a precaution and there were only traces found in the zizzi pub. but this message being relayed sometime after the event has created some confusion and anger here. thank you very much. we can talk to the conservative mp for salisbury, john glenn, live from westminster. good morning. what would you expect wa nts to good morning. what would you expect wants to emerge from the meeting this morning? i expect a proportionate response based on what we know to be the case in terms of who has directed this action. if i mightjust refer to your correspondent in salisbury, i don't accept the analysis that there's a great degree of fear on the is so bleak. proportionate addition advice was given one more information was known about the nerve agent. —— on the streets of salisbury. it's

pretty basic information to give to people. why not give it immediately rather than wait? it's better to give advice based on an understanding of what the substance was. as we heard yesterday from the chief medical officer, and i spoke to her myself last evening, it was an entirely precautionary piece of advice. the risk to the public remains low. the general public in salisbury grasp that, of course you will get some people concerned, but we now need to focus on the response. i understand the point you're making. but it was clear that obviously something had a terrible effect on the two of them and also the police officer who attended to them, who is still seriously ill in hospital, so wasn't that enough to indicate that anyone who was around the need to take some precautions? we can understand that these two

individuals and the officer who attended to them immediately afterwards, they were obviously most at risk. it was obviously targeted on mr skripal. what we're talking about subsequently is trace elements of the nerve agent we didn't know about earlier. we now know more of what it was and the appropriate precautionary action to take. we need to keep reiterating this. that is the responsible way to report this. that's what the public media that this time. i understand that they want to move on to the other issues. but if it is such a low risk, why worry about it and why even put out the advice now?“ subsequently there was even some remote risk and that was established bya remote risk and that was established by a commentator or toxicologist, there would then be a concern that there would then be a concern that there was a cover—up. so they had to do this as a precaution. most people in salisbury grasped that, given they said you just need to wash your clothes and wipe down hard edged things. it is clearly something we

are not significantly concerned about. indeed, they said the risk remains low to the public. that's the message i'm sticking to my constituents. sergei skripal and julia skripal, attacked in this way in your constituency, have they been let down by written? it's outrageous that silent assassins, apparently from state—sponsored actions, can enter our country and undertake this attempted murder. it is an outrage and people in salisbury will expect, and people in salisbury will expect, and people in salisbury will expect, and people across the country, will expect a proportionate response. i am pleased that the prime minister is carefully analysing, with the national security council, the evidence. before they decide what to do. but we needed to know what the evidence was because we can't target actions until we know who it can be attributed to. obviously it is a very politically sensitive thing to be handling. and they suppose you could say, you know, time is being

bought effectively while the analysis happens. but if the analysis happens. but if the analysis does come down in a way that those pointy finger to the russian government and the fact that it is nerve agents, and it is absolutely what many people believe is the case, should the government have any fear in terms of unleashing the toughest response? well, my view is that the public of this country would expect the government to take action. it does not do us any favours for us to not acknowledge the seriousness of this attack and the seriousness of this attack and the fact that we need to then make an appropriate and proportionate response. it is unacceptable to the vast majority of people in this country, as i say, for silent assassins to enter places like salisbury and attempt to murder somebody who is loftily living in oui’ somebody who is loftily living in our country. —— who is loftily.

it is effectively an act of terrorism. and it is an outrage and we need to show that the perpetrators are dealt with and a proportionate response is passed down by the government. thank you very much. sir ken dodd — the much loved comedian — has died at the age of 90. described by his publicist as "one of the last music hall greats," sir ken was known for his marathon stage performances and the creation of the diddy men and the tickling stick. the performerfrom liverpool had recently spent six weeks in hospital with a chest infection. on friday, he married his partner of a0 years, annejones. caroline davies looks back at his life. tickling sticks and diddy men, ken dodd was a variety performer with a gift for the surreal... what a brilliant day for going up to count von zeppelin and saying, "you'll never sell a sausage that size!"

..and the love of a catchphrase or three. how tickled i am! how tickled i am by all this goodwill. what about you, mrs? have you been tickled by goodwill? # knick—knocky, knick—knock, knick—knocky knick—knack! knicky—knacky—noo! proud of his merseyside roots, the coal merchant's son from knotty ash became a chart—topping singer, a television star, and a ventriloquist. doddy! hi—ya, doddy! although silly on stage, dodd was serious about his craft. freud said that a laugh is a sudden explosion of psychic energy. of course, the trouble with freud was he never played second house friday night at glasgow empire. he still lived in the home he grew up in and guarded his private life carefully. in 1989, that was shattered when he faced charges of massive tax evasion. he had 20 offshore bank accounts and more than £300,000 hidden around his house. he was acquitted and continued performing. last year, he was given

a knighthood in recognition of his charity and comedy work. we shall have one or two glasses of tickle tonic and then we shall go back to knotty ash up north, knotty ash on merseyside, and i shall see the diddy men there, so i'll give your regards to them. aged 90, dodd was recently hospitalised with a chest infection but he still wanted to go back on stage. i look forward to getting back to doing myjob — the onlyjob that i have ever had, the onlyjob that i know. # happiness, happiness. after more than 60 years of making others laugh, it was performing to the british public that dodd said gave him enormous happiness. happiness! the legend that was sir ken dodd. and for a look back at his life, with me the writer and broadcaster, matthew sweet, who has interviewed

the late star on many occasions. welcome. you've brought the tickling stick from the man himself. yes. that has seen action, the tickling stick. what was he like to interview? did he take himself seriously? you had him talking about freud in the clip. you had to encourage into that kind of discussion about himself. he was very well versed in the history and theory of comedy. ito about freud and the unconscious. you could talk about other theories. he had done all the reading. he tapped into the deepest of your british comedy so that when you saw him, you were on a kind of continuing. —— you were on a kind of continuing. —— you were on a kind of continuing. —— you were on a kind of continuum. he was passing something on here seen in the 1930s and 40s. it is the end of nina and the break of a tradition of a traditional old comedy. he was a sta b traditional old comedy. he was a stab at a time when the options for

what you could watch and receive one much more limited. —— he was a start ata much more limited. —— he was a start at a time. he was born into the era of variety, which has vanished. every town and city had the kind of theatre where ken dodd would be seen performing. he was also a beneficiary of television as well and became a star that way. and the recordings that as well. he sold more records than the rolling stones or spice girls. although the beatles can touch. when i read that statistics, he had the third highest selling song of the 60s, only beaten by two songs from the beatles. he had a beautiful voice. he was singing right to the end. he said something very spooky, in a way. he would throw out a lying to the audience and the audience would sing it back to him. it was almost like he was getting a measure of who was

in the room. how old they were and what their background was. what their experiences were. you had an incredible rapport with audiences. do stay with us. we can speak now to cathy roberts and peter grant, who both run a book shop in new brighton, which was opened by sir ken six years ago. he was a close friend and patron of the shop. thank you forjoining us. i think have a little bit of trouble on the line but i hope we can have a quick chat. i see that you have tickling stick as well. tell us what your religion she was with him. peter has been a friend for many years. when we opened a shop many years, ken came and opened it for us. he came dressed as charles dickens for christmas carol storytelling. we look forward to seeing you next month to read from wind in the willows. we even had a present for him, which is this. we are having trouble in the line. unfortunately, we can't see what the present was but we will try and fix it. it's

back, i'm hearing. hello. sorry, we lost 2a moment but you're just saying that you have a present, you had a present for him. and there it is. he loved jesters. he was extremely well read. a massive historian of comedy. he particularly loved jesters. we had this for him, it's about 60 years old. we miss them terribly. he was incredibly generous. he was. iasked them terribly. he was incredibly generous. he was. i asked him how he would like to be remembered going back couple of months. and he said, just one word, jester. it is a very sad day because our book shop is a new brighton and he was loved by everyone. males as i'd love to mandy lubbers back. —— merseyside loved him and he loved us back. it's brilliant. when kenneth branagh made

his version of hamlet comedy cast ken dodd as yorick. we go back into hamlet‘s childhood and we see him on his back, as hamlet describes him. he was plugged into that history. there was something wonderful about the fact that he occupies that space. he was kind of yorick to all of us. he is part of oliver pasts and history. —— he is part of all of our pasts and history. remembering sir ken dodd. the headlines on bbc newsroom live... theresa may is updating ministers on the salisbury nerve agent attack. if security meeting is under way. described as "one of the last music hall greats", sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90 shadow cabinet minister debbie abrahams said she has been subjected toa abrahams said she has been subjected to a bullying culture of the worst kind. labour says she stepped down

while an employment issue was being investigated. in sport, the trial of england all—rounder ben stokes. at driscoll crown court on august six. —— bristol crown court. that means he will miss the lord's test against india. not a great day for britain at the winter paralympics, not a great day for britain at the winter pa ralympics, with not a great day for britain at the winter paralympics, with all three contenders knocked out of the snowboard cross. the start get broken had to be replaced by a bunch of god. tiger woods needed to sink a putt but ended up finishing just one shot behind the winner, englishman paul casey. thanks very muchcam —— thanks very much, will. the former commander of the uk's maritime forces says britain's ability to "fight and win on the frontline" was being

affected by budget cuts. rear admiral alex burton said the uk is at risk of losing its status as a "credible military power". he's the latest in a long line of senior military figures to call for more spending on defence. the government said spending is growing to meet ever changing threats. what worries me, and worried me when i left the front line and was operating in headquarters, is that some of the decisions we were making, and potentially other next 12 months, some of the decisions that will be made, will affect the ability to fight and win on the front line. and the challenge is ensuring that we are still able to do that notjust over the next 12—18 months, but that we are able to do that over the next ten, 20 years. a bitter row has broken out at the top of the labour party, with a shadow cabinet minister

being removed from her post, apparently against her will. the labour party says debbie abrahams stepped down as the spokeswoman on work and pensions, while what is described as an "employment issue" is investigated. but mrs abrahams claims she's the victim of a bullying culture in the party. our political correspondent ben wright is following the story. it is pretty extraordinary, with each side giving a completely different story. it is. this erupted late yesterday evening when the labour party put out a short statement saying debbie abrahams has stepped aside so that there could be this investigation into employment issues. this concerns allegations of bullying, allegations that debbie abrahams vehemently denies herself. as soon as labour put that statement out, debbie abrahams released her own statement in which she accused the party of bullying, intimidating, aggressive behaviour. and the focus of her ire were people in the leader's offers, jeremy corbyn's own office, and said that the last ten

months, they had behaved in an intimidating way and were showing behaviour of the worst, bullying kind. she is making a formal complaint to the labour party and parliamentary authorities. i understand is this concerns complaints made by more than two people. the labour party won this investigated not within the whip's offers, determines was a —— determines discipline, but within the party's own he just rocked us. they wanted it debbie abrahams to step aside voluntarily but this erupted. now there has been this falling out between debbie abrahams and jeremy corbyn's own office. has there been any reaction from jeremy corbyn's offers? there has not been any further reaction from jeremy corbyn or debbie abrahams. i imagine this will go through the investigatory process that labour have got, to work what happened here and whether there is a case that needs to be answered. and grievances

that need to be addressed. we'll see. i will be surprised if any of the two spoke today about it. thanks, ben. i don't think that we can just end it here. we definitely need a public enquiry and the victims need justice. as was pointed out in the sunday mirror investigation, many of these victims are not going to come forward and i am extremely concerned that there have been continued failings by police and social workers. and i think a broader enquiry needs to look in depth in those issues. and potentially what we need to be looking at is we need to be

educating people in positions of authority of how to deal with these, and that victims should not be seen as criminals. five people have died after a helicopter crashed into the east river in new york last night. three of the passengers were taken to hospital after being pulled out of the water by rescuers but died later. the pilot managed to free himself. an investigation will be held to determine the cause of the crash. almost two thirds of doctors in some parts of the uk say they feel patient safety has deteriorated over the past year, according to a new report. the royal college of physicians has found growing pressures on nhs staff has led to some concerns about patient care. our health correspondent adina campbell reports. with the nhs coming out of one of the toughest winters on record, a new report by the royal college of physicians claims most areas of care have gotten worse over the last months. more than 1,500 doctors in england, wales, and northern ireland replied to the same questions they were asked during

a similar period a year ago. 64% said they felt patient care had deteriorated, 10% higher than last year. 93% said they had experienced staff shortages, up again by almost 10%. and 85% said they had experienced a rising demand for their service, 7% higher than 12 months ago. doctors crying on their way home, or distressed calls to older patients because of substandard care or delays in social care — they were some of the anonymous stories reported to the royal college of physicians. the government says it is absolutely committed to making the nhs the safest healthcare system in the world, with nearly £3 billion of extra funding allocated towards it over the next two years. but some doctors say they often feel they are having to do more for less. we've been celebrating the life and career

of sir ken dodd this morning — some fond memories from fans and people who've been to see his shows. let's just read you a few of your tweets. eddie dillion on twitter sent us a message, saying... jonathan lynch also tweets... what a great sentiment to end on there. if you've ever met him, or sat through one of his mega shows, let us know. the headlines are coming up on the bbc news channel. in a moment, we say goodbye to viewers on bbc two. first we leave you with for a look at the weather. we canjoin we can join simon we canjoin simon on the balcony. it

is not particularly pleasant out there that the moment. a lot of rainfall across england and wales. many of us have seems just like this outside their window. not a great picture with the range trimming down. that will continue for much of england and wales through the afternoon. some dry interludes by the rain is neverfar away. a few showers in northern ireland and the north—east of scotland but for much of scotla nd north—east of scotland but for much of scotland it will be dry. most bike in western areas. temperatures getting up to about seven — 11 celsius. tonight, rain and cheryl is clear from the south and east and then another band of showers moving. -- rain then another band of showers moving. —— rain and showers clear. during tuesday, rain clears away towards the east and for many others, it is much drier and brighter and better today. temperature is quite similar today. temperature is quite similar to today, about seven, 11, maybe even 12 celsius. that's it from me.

goodbye. this is bbc news. our latest headlines — theresa may is chairing a national security council meeting to discuss who was behind the nerve agent attack on an ex—russian spy and his daughter in salisbury. parts of the city remained cordoned off. hundreds of pub goers and diners have been told to wash their possessions as a precaution. the comedian sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90. described by his publicist as "one of the last music hall greats," sir ken was known for his marathon stage performances and the creation of the diddy men and the tickling stick. debbie abrahams claims she is a victim of a bullying culture of the worst kind, as labour says the spokeswoman for work and pensions has stepped down. time now for a sports update.

we'll we' ll start we'll start with the news that ben sto kes' we'll start with the news that ben stokes' trial will begin on august the 5th. he will miss the second test against india at lord's. he has pleaded not guilty. great britain's snowboarders made the winter paralympics debut income chain today, but all three contenders were knocked out. not only that, but the event was held up by technical problems. also it's a problem here at the snowboarding here. the event was moved forward due to increasing temperatures. about 18 degrees in the middle of the day, so they had to make the event earlier. the star gate was then not dropping down and athletes were falling over them, so they could not fix the problem and

replaced it with a rope. not ideal for a paralympic games. great britain had three athletes competing, but none of them made it through to the final stages. when i spoke to one of them, he told me he was not happy with how the event had unfolded. though was talk of cancelling it and doing it another day, and i just cancelling it and doing it another day, and ijust thought, come on, it is the paralympics, we want to race. so it was really tough, and it was a shame that today has gone the way it has gone in general, because we want to put on a good show. no britain and my medals for great britain today, but the snowboarders will get another chance and the slalom later in the week. scotland and added five players to their squad for the final six nations match against italy this weekend. gregor townsend has called

up weekend. gregor townsend has called up three players from glasgow, so there could be a debut for one of them. todman said there will be no updates today on harry kane's injury after being forced off in the 4—1 victory against bournemouth yesterday. —— tottenham. they moved up yesterday. —— tottenham. they moved up to third in the premier league. arsenal manager arsenal wenger says his team need to get the fans back on the side after their recent poor form. the players did their bit yesterday, beating watford 3—0, but still plenty of empty seats at the emirates. a great glasgow derby as well. it was 2—2 at half—time, before celtic won the game through odsonne edouard. tiger woods came

close to winning his first event in almost four years at valspar in florida. he needed to sink a putt on the final hole, not paul casey won bya the final hole, not paul casey won by a single shot. and a disappointing defeat for position one kyle edmund at indian open. his first match some switching semifinal of the australian open and overtaking andy murray in the rankings, but he was beaten in straight sets by sela of israel. that's the sport news for now. some words from the kremlin now about the sergei skripal case, the

nerve agent attack consultant. president putin's press secretary has been asked byjournalists regarding sergei skripal‘s status as an active agent, and questions about russia being involved in the poisoning. this is the reaction of the journalist got. the poisoning. this is the reaction of thejournalist got. the press secretary said, we have not had any state m e nts secretary said, we have not had any statements from british politicians or official representatives that russia is involved in this affair. the thing here is about various representation agencies in the uk media which are not always known for their objectivity, so we should treat reports accordingly. we have not had any definitive statements about this. this incident happened on british soil, and it doesn't have anything to do with the russian federation whatsoever, let alone the president. right now, there is a meeting of the national security council under way, and it is being

suggested that after that, theresa may may point the finger at russia. but the official lines are at the moment is that everything is being done to carefully assess the evidence that there is. so we will wait to hear what comes out about security briefing and bring it to you as soon as it happens. let's get more on that breaking news from nepal,where a plane carrying around 70 people has crashed near kathmandu airport. the us—bangla passenger aircraft was flying in from dhaka, when it reportedly became unstable as it descended, and skidded off the eastern side of the runway. several bodies have been pulled out of the wreckage. our reporter sanjaya dhakal is in kathmandu. as many as 23 people have survived. the spokesperson has informed us

that people have died, and expressed fears of more casualties. —— at least 39 people. it was a bit uncontrolled while descending, and crashed at the eastern side of the bromley. these link there may be any survivors amongst the wreckage? —— do they think? they are not saying anything about that. people have been taken to hospitals. the rescu e rs been taken to hospitals. the rescuers are still working at the airport. we are hearing that the plane begins on stable while descending, and skidded off the ru nway descending, and skidded off the runway and crashed, and we are seeing the pictures of the immediate aftermath of the crash. is there any suggestion of what might have gone wrong? that is correct, the lost

control while it was descending at kathmandu airport and crashed at the eastern side. they are not saying anything more than that. what is the air anything more than that. what is the a i r safety anything more than that. what is the air safety record in nepal alike? since 1919, when planes began to fly in nepal, there have been numerous accidents and over 700 casualties up until now. thank you very much. northamptonshire county council may

have to return up to £10 million to public health england. in northamptonshire, there are over 1000 smoking—related deaths each year. every year, the government gives councils in england grants to spend on improving the health of local people. but now there are questions about how one council has been spending that money. we can reveal that northamptonshire county council is being investigated over claims that it spent millions of pounds of public health money on other things. if it is found to have done so, then this hard up council could be forced to repay some of that cash. northamptonshire's finances are already in dire straits. at the start of february, it became the first council in nearly 20 years to put itself into financial special measures, as

officials worried it might run out officials worried it might run out of cash. and it is cutting services, including axing bus subsidies and closing 21 libraries. opposition councillors say it is no surprise the authority may have broken the rules. i think it tells you a lot about the bigger picture northamptonshire county council, which is that money is really tight and we are having to scramble around for every penny they can find to balance the budget, and the may have pushed things too far. and potentially spending ring fenced by outside the rules, that is a big issue, isn't it? absolutely, you would expect people to know the rules and stick to them. the leader of the council acknowledges that money may have been spent on things other than public health. that money was not misappropriated. it may have

been spent in adult social care looking after people in some way or another that somebody might judge that wasn't really public health money. but at the end of the day, it has still been spent on the people in northamptonshire. some local government experts are asking whether northamptonshire's experience shows there is a need for reform. obviously councils have to obey the rules around public health grants, but i think what this illustrates is the whole absurdity of having a separate system for the nhs, social care, public health money ring fenced, all these things sitting in different pockets of money. for the last two months, a government inspector has been keeping a close eye on how the council is run. he is due to com plete council is run. he is due to complete his report at the end of this week, giving more details about what went wrong at this troubled council. if you live in eastern england, you can see more on that story on inside out at 7.30pm, and

then everywhere on bbc iplayer. you might have put a little bird food out this morning to see them through these chilly days, but did you know you could be doing more harm than good? a study by the zoological society of london and the british trust for ornithology found garden feeders can put wildlife at risk of disease. joining me now from norwich is kate risely, the co—author of the report. thank you forjoining us. it seems that almost half of householders in britain are putting out bird food, so i'm sure a lot of people will be interested to here what you have to say. tell us what you are concerned about. this is a large-scale study that we have been running in partnership with the zoological society in london and the rspb. it is called garden wildlife health, and we have asked people to tell us what part they have seen in their gardens, but also the obscene any

sick or diseased birds. vets opinion to carry out postmortems on birds people have found in their gardens, so we have been able to identify some of the diseases they are suffering from and give advice on how to prevent the spread of those diseases. tells more about the diseases, the prevalence and the birds being affected. one of the main species affected at the moment is greenfinch, and actually people would probably have noticed that we are not seeing as many greenfinches on bird feeders as we used to. we have actually lost over half of our british green french population in the last ten years, it really staggering decline. we know due to our research to a common disease that people might see at bird feeders, bus passengers to each other at the feeders. it can be passed on hygiene is not very good. so we are urging people to be aware of the signs and symptoms of these diseases. so with this one, but

might look lethargic and sit on the feeders, they might have food stuck around their beaks, and it is quite obvious that they are not well. so it is just to be aware when you see something like that that you need to ta ke something like that that you need to take action. it is obvious that of birds are gathering at the same spot, they are doing their business after eating at this spot, more birds come along and will be affected by the same things. how much would you say that concentration of birds any particular area has had to that deterioration in the population of greenfinches you mentioned?“ deterioration in the population of greenfinches you mentioned? it is ha rd to greenfinches you mentioned? it is hard to say what effect transmission at feeders are supposed to other transmissions, such as adult birds given it to checks in the next, it is hard to say what the feeders themselves has been. but we know that this disease is transmitted at bird feeders. —— chicks in the nest.

we want people to be aware of the disease. and in some cases, if you have disease in your garden, the best thing to do is to stop feeding for a little while because it means birds. congregating at one spot, and then reintroduce feeding gradually later. there are many benefits of bird feeding, so we do not want to discourage people. if you are feeding the birds, presumably you would advise people to clean it up and keep the area clean. yeah, keep the area clean, clean the feeders. hopefully you have got feeders you can take apart and clean, and try to move them around the garden a bit to stop the build—up in the one place. try not to put out too much food at the one time, so it is out there for a long time getting droppings imminent. just enough food for a day or two. and if you see any signs or find any dead birds, we want people to report them to garden wildlife

health and check the website for advice. thanks very much, kate risely. in a moment a summary of the business news this hour, but first, the headlines on bbc newsroom live. this is bbc news. theresa may is chairing a national security council meeting to discuss who was behind the nerve agent attack on an ex—russian spy and his daughter in salisbury. the comedian sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90. described by his publicist as "one of the last music hall greats," sir ken was known for his marathon stage performances debbie abrahams claims she is a victim of a bullying culture of the worst kind, as labour says the spokeswoman for work and pensions has stepped down. in the business news — uk engineering giant gkn faces an increased takeover bid. it has fought hard against the red. ——.

more ina fought hard against the red. ——. more in a moment. records numbers of customers switching electricity supplier. more than 660,000 people changed in february, the highest numbera changed in february, the highest number a at. energy uk said the figure represented a 60% rise on february 2017, and over1 million customers have switched so far this year. the recent cold weather is being cited as a reason. 2018 is set to be another challenging year for uk financial services, but the outlook is better than many expected, that's according to the latest ey item club outlook for financial services. the sector, which includes consumer credit, residential mortgages and business lending are all set to have a subdued year, but the outlook then improves. inflation is predicted to fall and interest rates to rise this year — but slowly, and from record lows. so melrose has increased its final offerfor gkn from £7.3 billion to £8.1 billion.

the uk engineering giant — which employs more than 59,000 people, 6,000 in the uk alone — became a target of takeover speculation after it issued a profit warning late last year. it has since been trying hard to fend off the hostile bid from melrose — offering to give back £2.5 billion to shareholders and agreeing to merge its car unit with us company dana. the takeover battle has even entered the political arena, with some mps calling for the bid to be blocked. joining us now is russ mould, investment director at aj bell. today, what is being told the final bid from melrose is the latest instalment in this takeover tussle. on friday, we saw this increased offer from

on friday, we saw this increased offerfrom gkn on friday, we saw this increased offer from gkn trying to fend off the bed. where are we on this? why does melrose wanted so badly advised gkn trying to fend off the so robustly? melrose has a terrific track record of identifying companies it feels as underperformed, turned around and then sold them on for a week potential of returning cash to its investors. its track record speaks the highway, which is why i thought the highway, which is why i thought the melrose bid would prevail initially. but what you have correctly identified is opposition to the bid from several sources. one is gkn itself, it says it can accelerate its own restructuring plans. secondly, you had political opposition with regards to national security and employment. and thirdly, even the pensions regulator has had a say. gkn has a £1.5 billion pension deficit, and wants to make sure that whoever owns the

business will be able to find that obligation going forward. lots of opposition to the deal, now a battle between gkn's offer of jam opposition to the deal, now a battle between gkn's offer ofjam tomorrow, and the melrose offer in terms of jam today and the bid. now it is down to the deadline on the 29th of march. gkn is still saying wait to see what we have got to say in response. given the level of opposition to the deal, particularly with mps now entering the fray, how likely you think it as the spit will actually go ahead? —— this bid. likely you think it as the spit will actually go ahead? -- this bid. he would perhaps expect the gkn share price to move more than it has, but it has barely moved. investors do not think that this is a knockout bid. whether they are concerned

about the political opposition, the pensions regulator's comments, or whether they just think that actually gkn has come up in response thatis actually gkn has come up in response that is sufficiently exciting, remains to be seen. but still two or three weeks to go, both parties will be pressing their case. but having initially thought that melrose would prevail quite comfortable, given gkn's recent performance record and share price, it is now looking like a much. call, and if anything the share prices on most telling you that gkn may be starting to get the better of the argument. we will have a look at that any moment. russ, as ever, good to get your view on this. thank you. a record 660,000 customers switched electricity supplier in february — with over a million doing so this year so far. energy uk, which released the figures today, claims the energy market has never been so competitive. earlier we spoke to clare bailey, founder of retail champion.

i think there are a couple of factors in play. with the energy switch county, we have received just that make consumers a great deal more confident in the process of switching. nine tenths of the market are already subscribed to that, which is a process that ensures that when customers choose to switch, the process is run seamlessly. is i think that part of it is very important. but also, looking at other figures out today, there are issues about consumer confidence and spending, andi issues about consumer confidence and spending, and i think people are tightening their belts. so actually looking to make some savings or move energy provider to reduce the overall costs of the gas and electric, it is kind of contextual with anything else going on in the market in terms of seeing a reduction in spending and trying to tighten their belts a bit. britain's top share has underperformed so far today. shares in the takeaway

companyjust today. shares in the takeaway company just eat today. shares in the takeaway companyjust eat are hit by a broker. in merger and a position news, gkn as we were just talking about, up1.1% news, gkn as we were just talking about, up 1.1% after melrose made the animal rights protesters got involved at crufts last night. chances are if you love dogs, you almost certainly love crufts. stretching back more than a century, canines of all creeds and all sizes compete to be best in show. this year's winner was a 2.5—year—old whippet called tease. but as she headed to the podium, this happened. two protesters emerged from the audience at the national exhibition centre in birmingham. very quickly they were chased down and subdued by security staff. no animals or owners were harmed. it is believed they were demonstrating on behalf of the animal rights group, peta. it condemns crufts for what it calls extreme dog breeding. a statement on its website said... crufts issued a statement of its own, saying the protestors had... as for tease, she seemed

entirely unfazed by the whole event, best and calmest in show. some of sir ken dodd's fans have been paying tribute. actorjohn challis said... and the actor claire sweeney said... time now to take a look at the weather forecast. a rather cloudy day for many others,

outbreaks of rain affecting parts of england and wales as well. this is one of the scenes from kent, grey skies there, and you can see where that cloud is, all rotating around an area of low pressure situated towards the south—east. a bit of brightness towards the far north and west of scotland, and actually across scotland and northern ireland, relatively dry. but for england and wales, you can see this area of rain and some heavy showers, which will probably continue for much of the afternoon, so showers on longer spells of rain for many. some of that rain edging into the far south of scotland, but otherwise looking largely dry and bright, particularly towards the west, and similar for particularly towards the west, and similarfor northern particularly towards the west, and similar for northern ireland. temperatures getting up to around 11 celsius. through this evening and tonight, the showers will gradually move away towards the south—east. you can see the air of low pressure

rotating round there. clearer skies developing later, but it will be frost free again, temperatures no lower than around two, five or seven spells is in the london area. —— seven celsius. the odd shower moving into western areas, but for many others, tuesday will be a drier and brighter day compared to today. temperatures similar as well, on the mild side again, perhaps reaching 12 celsius in one or two spots. tuesday night into wednesday, a change again. an area of high pressure will be placed by this area of low pressure moving in. going into wednesday, a windy day, and some gales around western areas. with that, some rain spreading towards south west england and wales,

eventually into northern ireland. some uncertainty into how far east that will push. for many parts, should be dry on wednesday but very breezy for the rest of us. hope to move 15 celsius. it is mild, but then going into the weekend, hence that it will turn significantly colder, temperatures dropping to around six celsius. this is bbc news and these are the top stories developing at midday. theresa may is updating ministers on the salisbury nerve agent attack — a meeting of the national security council is underway. i'm in downing street, where ministers are considering who might be behind the attack. history is a ready to point the finger of blame at russia? —— and is theresa may

ready to point the finger of blame at russia? parts of salisbury remained cordoned off — hundreds of pub goers and diners have been told to wash their possessions as a precaution. in salisbury, and number of key locations in the city remain in play. there is a police investigation into how the skripals we re investigation into how the skripals were targeted with that deadly nerve agent. also this hour... he was known for his diddy men and tickling stick. how tickled i am by all this goodwill. how about you, mrs? have you been tickled by goodwill? sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90 — his publicist describes him as "one of the last music hall greats". at least 38 people have been killed after a plane crashed at kathmandu's international airport in nepal. and is your bird feeder doing more harm than good? claims that bird tables could be breeding grounds for disease. good afternoon.

it's monday the 12th of march. welcome to bbc newsroom live. the government security council is meeting right now to discuss the nerve at attack on a russian intelligence agent and his daughter. seniorfigures including boris johnson and home secretary amber rudd will consider if there is enough evidence to determine who was behind the attackjust over one week ago. meanwhile, up to 500 people who we re ago. meanwhile, up to 500 people who were at the same restaurant or pub as surrogate and yulia skripal have been told to clean clothes and belongings. some people have questioned why no guidance was issued until yesterday. trace amounts of the substance used to poison the pair were found on and around the table where they had eaten in the zizzi restaurant. the table has since been destroyed and

mr skripal and his daughter remain and are stable but critical condition in hospital. we will speak to, —— to our home correspondent shortly, but first a correspondent in downing street. seniorfigures have been in downing street for over one hour now. foreign secretary borisjohnson is in there, amber rudd, police and members of the counter terrorism unit out there as well. it is a chance to go over what has happened since the weekend and begin to look at the evidence of who could be behind this. seniorfigures at the evidence of who could be behind this. senior figures at westminster think it and be no—one other than russia that carried out this attack, but theresa may is taking a pretty cautious approach. she wants to be absolutely sure of the fact and evidence. that has been in contrast to some figures like borisjohnson who in contrast to some figures like boris johnson who came in contrast to some figures like borisjohnson who came out last week

to say pretty strongly he believes russia was behind all of this. i think theresa may wants to have the fa cts think theresa may wants to have the facts because ultimately she will be under enough a lot of pressure to carry out the robust response that has been promised if russia is prone to be behind all this. and to make that effective, she needs to have the support of other countries and organisations. the european union, nato, of course. if that is to happen, the british government will have to show they have the evidence to prove who is behind it. that's why that response might be some time in coming because she needs to give the police and security services a chance to make the case. thank you. let's go to our correspondent in salisbury. people in the same place as the skripals have been told to wash their clothes as a precaution. that has come sometime after the attack. how are people locally reacting to this? there is no more of a timeline that

police are working with in terms of how surrogate and yulia skripal when exposed to this nerve agent. —— in terms of how sergei skripal and yulia skripal. about four o'clock was the time there were found on this bench under the police tent behind me. in the meantime, they went to a pub. in both locations, traces of deadly nerve agent were found. four people dining in the restau ra nt, found. four people dining in the restaurant, people drinking the pub where they have been, advice has been issued to people in that pub on sunday afternoon, regulatory demand the evening will their locations we re the evening will their locations were sealed off. —— rightly way through monday evening. they have been asked to wash their clothes as a precaution. officials stress that is no risk and money to be alarmed. the advice is changed as more information has come through. they are now issuing new advice. but

there is some concern amongst people who were affected and who were in the pub and restaurant, that this advice has come one week after the event. and they don't know whether that means the ad at risk. in which case, why didn't they get the advice little earlier? is there not, why do they have to take the precautions now? there has been some confusion and anxiety about that message. the priority for police remains to ascertaining certainly how and where this exposure to the nerve agent happen. if they were exposed to it, leaving traces in the zizzi restau ra nt leaving traces in the zizzi restaurant by lunchtime, so much so that the table the aegon had to be destroyed because of this contaminated, how then did they get exposed to that nerve agent? investigations are still taking place at sergei skripal‘s house and examining his car. clearly live sites of interest still for policing. —— for the police here. sir ken dodd —

the much—loved comedian — has died at the age of 90. described by his publicist as "one of the last music hall greats," sir ken was known for his marathon stage performances and the creation of the diddy men and the tickling stick. the performerfrom liverpool had recently spent six weeks in hospital with a chest infection. on friday, he married his partner of a0 years, annejones. caroline davies looks back at his life. tickling sticks and diddy men, ken dodd was a variety performer with a gift for the surreal... what a beautiful day for going up to count von zeppelin and saying, "you'll never sell a sausage that size!" ..and the love of a catchphrase or three. how tickled i am! how tickled i am by all this goodwill. what about you, mrs? have you been tickled by goodwill? # knick—knocky, knick—knock, knick—knocky knick—knack! knicky—knacky—noo! proud of his merseyside roots, the coal merchant's son from knotty ash became a chart—topping singer, a television star, and a ventriloquist. doddy! hi—ya, doddy! although silly on stage,

dodd was serious about his craft. freud said that a laugh is a sudden explosion of psychic energy. of course, the trouble with freud was he never played second house friday night at glasgow empire. he still lived in the home he grew up in and guarded his private life carefully. in 1989, that was shattered when he faced charges of massive tax evasion. he had 20 offshore bank accounts and more than £300,000 hidden around his house. he was acquitted and continued performing. last year, he was given a knighthood in recognition of his charity and comedy work. we shall have one or two glasses of tickle tonic and then we shall go back to knotty ash up north, knotty ash on merseyside, and i shall see the diddy men there, so i'll give your regards to them. aged 90, dodd was recently hospitalised with a chest infection but he still wanted to go back on stage. i look forward to getting

back to doing myjob — the onlyjob that i have ever had, the onlyjob that i know. # happiness, happiness. ..# after more than 60 years of making others laugh, it was performing to the british public that dodd said gave him enormous happiness. happiness! asi as i mentioned, on friday, sir ken dodd married his partner of a0 yea rs, dodd married his partner of a0 years, annejones, dodd married his partner of a0 years, anne jones, at dodd married his partner of a0 years, annejones, at their house, the same one he grew up in in the liverpool suburb of knotty ash. she has paid tribute to her late husband. we first met when i was in the ken dodd christmas show in 1961 at the manchester opera house. i've had the supreme joy and privilege of working and living with him as a partner for the last a0 years. the world has lost a most life

enhancing, brilliant, creative comedian, with an operatically trained voice who just wanted to make people happy. he lived to perfect his art and entertain his adoring audiences. i've been overwhelmed by love and affection, which i have already received from dearfriends and which i have already received from dear friends and the public. which i have already received from dearfriends and the public. and i thank you all for being here. sir ken dodd's twiddle. some of ken dodd's fans and former colleagues have also paid tribute to the late start. and now our staff and our, the archbishop of canterbury has tweeted, we will miss ken dodd. yet comedian gary delaney made reference to how long ken dodd's shows went on for... and the actorjohn challis has

said... claire sweeney, the actress, said... the comedian dara o briain commented on how he was inspired by ken dodd. i've just i'vejust got some i've just got some breaking news to bring you from the courts. we are just hearing that a 17—year—old youth has been jailed just hearing that a 17—year—old youth has beenjailed for ten just hearing that a 17—year—old youth has been jailed for ten and a half years for carrying out a spate of what were described in court as

despicable acid attacks against moped riders. ericjohn from croydon in south london targeted six riders in an attempt to steal vehicles in the north and east of london. —— derekjohn. he appeared at wood green crown court for you video link. thejudge at green crown court for you video link. the judge at the hearing described his grave crimes. in his sentencing remarks, thejudge said the actions were despicable. that has just the actions were despicable. that hasjust come the actions were despicable. that has just come through. the judge has ordered that although the boy is only 17 years old, it was in the public interest that derekjohn from croydon be named. the trial of ahmed hassan — the teenager accused of causing an explosion at the parsons green station — has heard evidence allegedly linking him to so—called islamic state. mr hassan denies charges of attempted murder and using a chemical to cause an explosion likely to endanger life. richard lister is at the old bailey.

he has been listening to the evidence this morning. richard, tell us evidence this morning. richard, tell us what you have heard. we've been hearing evidence this morning from a number of people who knew and ed hassan —— amit hasan from the tiny arrived in the uk until 2015 until right before this device exploded on the parsons underground train on september last year. he denies planting that device. we have details of an immigration interview during his application for asylum. notes were ta ken during his application for asylum. notes were taken in that interview by someone who knew him at the barnardo's children homeward he was resident. he was asked if he had ever been or was now a member of our terror group. she says her notes regard him as saying, yes, he had been recruited by so—called islamic state for three months and trained

to kill by islamic state. she says her notes also show that during that interview he said he had been abducted by islamic state and they threatened his uncle and brother if he didn't go with them. and that after three months or so, he had been freed by iraqi troops. we have been freed by iraqi troops. we have been getting an insight into who is alleged state of mind in the last few years he has been in this country. we have just few years he has been in this country. we havejust been hearing from a woman who mentors young people and asylum seekers. she is employed at the college where ahmed hassan was studying. she says that he made references to tony blair and iraq. she says the anger was very clear. she testified that he blamed britain for the death of his father just after the allied invasion of iraq in the early 2000s. he a p pa re ntly iraq in the early 2000s. he apparently was a taxi driver who was killed by a bomb. the court has

heard that he blames both britain and america. she said the anger was very clear. she also said there was a time she was sitting with him in a park when he received a text message which is said, she testified, is has accepted your donation. they had a conversation about iraq and she told the court he said to her, it is my duty to great britain. ahmed hassan denies attempted murder and causing an explosion likely to endanger people. and this trial continues. thank you very much, richard. at least 39 people have died after a plane crashed and caught fire while landing at the main airport of kathmandu, the capital of nepal. the aircraft, a passenger plane belonging to the bangladeshi private carrier, us—bangla, is thought to have become unstable while descending and then skidded off the eastern side of the runway. officials in kathmandu say as many as 23 people have been rescued from the plane and a number of passengers are still missing. our reporter in kathmandu says

rescue efforts are ongoing. a number of people confirmed to have died. the aeroplane belonged to us—bangla a lines and crashed in the course of landing. it was a bit uncontrolled condescending and crashed on the eastern side of the runway. —— when descending and crashed. is it possible that there are any survivors in the wreckage? they are not saying anything about that. the injured have been taken to hospitals. the rescue is still ongoing. the headlines on bbc newsroom live... theresa may is updating ministers on the salisbury nerve agent attack — a meeting of the national security council is underway.

sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90 — his wife says the world has lost a "life enhancing, brilliant, creative comedian". at least 38 people have been killed after a plane crashed at kathmandu's international airport in nepal. let'sjoin will form or let's join will form or sport. let'sjoin will form or sport. —— will for more sport. the trial of the england all—rounder ben stokes will begin on august the 6th at bristol crown court. it's expected to last for between five and seven days, so he'll miss the second test against india at lord's. stokes has today pleaded not guilty to a charge of affray, following an incident outside a bristol nightclub in september last year. great britain's snowboarders made their winter paralympics debut in pyeongchang today — but it didn't go to plan. not only were all three contenders knocked out, but the event was held up by technical problems as our reporter in south korea as kate grey explains. there's been all sorts of problems here that this noble in. first of

all, the event was moved forward get to the increasing temperatures. it was about 18 degrees in the middle of the day. they had to move the event earlier. once the event started, they had troubles with the started, they had troubles with the start gate. they were not dropping down and athletes were following over them. they couldn't fix the problem and replaced it with a rope. not idealfor the problem and replaced it with a rope. not ideal for the paralympic games. great britain has the athletes competing in the event. none of them made it through to the final stages. when i spoke to britain's flag bearer own pic, he said he was not happy with how the event add—on folder. —— had unfolded. happy with how the event add—on folder. -- had unfolded. they said they were going to cancel it and do it another day. i was like, guys, this is the paralympics, we want to race. it was tough. it was really tough. it was a shame that today has gone the way it's gone in general. because b wanted to put on a good show. no medals for great britain today but snowboarders will get another chance in the bank slalom

later in the week. here tomorrow, it will be the time of the alpine skiers again. they will go on a super combined, so hopefully more medals to come. scotland have added five players to their squad for their final six nations match against italy this weekend. coach gregor townsend has called up the glasgow trio of scott cummings, matt fagerson and adam hastings, so there could be a debut in store for one of them. he's also named matt scott and richie vernon in the squad and retained tommy seymour, who missed saturday's defeat by ireland with a back problem. and there are six new names in the scotland football squad for this month's games against costa rica and hungary. manchester united midfielder scott mctominay is among those included in alex mcleish‘s first selection of his second spell in charge of the national team. mctominay recently favoured playing for scotland despite being available for england. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more at 1.30. thank you very much, will. we will

see later. the former commander of the uk's maritime forces says britain's ability to "fight and win on the frontline" was being affected by budget cuts. rear admiral alex burton said the uk is at risk of losing its status as a "credible military power". he's the latest in a long line of senior military figures to call for more spending on defence. the government said spending is growing to meet ever—changing threats. what worries me, and worried me when i left the front line and was operating in headquarters, is that some of the decisions we were making, and potentially over next 12 months, some of the decisions that will be made, will affect the ability to fight and win on the front line. and the challenge is ensuring that we are still able to do that notjust over the next 12—18 months, but that we are able to do that over the next ten, 20 years. there are claims is to 1000 children

may have been abused in the shropshire town of telford over pegida a0 years. mps are calling for enquiry. seven men have been convicted. it is for others could escape charges. the unfolding situation in telford could be the worse the country has ever seen. kathleen hallisey is a lawyer specialising in child abuse — she thinks it's important a public inquiry does take place. i don't think that we can just end it here. we definitely need a public enquiry. the victims need justice. as was pointed out in the sunday mirror investigation, many of these victims are not going to come forward and i am extremely concerned that there have been continued failings by police and social workers. and i think a broader enquiry needs to look in depth in those issues. and potentially what we need to be looking at is we need to be educating people in positions of authority of how to deal with these, and that victims should not be seen as criminals. we can talk to the nspcc‘s header

safeguarding. thank you very much for coming in. it sounds like a familiar tale, which is a terrible thing to say, but because we've obviously had rather, rochdale, oxford as well. but the scale of this sounds even worse. this is an horrendous case. the non—was a horrifying. imagine what it is like if you're a young person being abused in this way, it can have a devastating effect. the nspcc wants to say loud and clear that if you are being section exploited and abused, it is really important these young people get help and support. therefore, yes, we do want to have an enquiry. now, we need to ensure those children young people are supportive. —— are supported. supportive. -- are supported. when you talk about the impact of this abuse, grooming and exploitation, actually, the way that it is done

makes people who are already vulnerable and victims even more vulnerable and victims even more vulnerable because they don't necessarily even understand what has happened to them. you're absolutely right. from our work, we know that young people who are sexually exploited, the abuser will establish a relationship with that young person. they built it up first of all. they will get signs of affection. very often, these people are vulnerable already, as you say. later, when they have built the relationship, it becomes abusive and there is an abuse of power. we are concerned that many people who have been sexually exploited in telford might not even realise they have been exploited. therefore it is really important to take action now, both to reassure young people that they will be listened to and her but to encourage those young people to come forward. a range of agencies can play a very important part in this. nspcc goes into schools and raises questions about child sexual abuse and child abuse in general. everybody needs to be very vigilant. if they had entered via a child who

is being abused in this way, they need to take action until somebody. and of course young people can a lwa ys and of course young people can always telephoned childline. we're here 2a hours a day. always telephoned childline. we're here 24 hours a day. one of the many shocking parts of this is the fact it has taken so long for the whole picture to be put together, and it's still not put together. there are still not put together. there are still calls an enquiry so that the whole thing can be exposed. we have this in telford, as i said, there's been rather, rochdale and oxo. is there any reason to think that there aren't many other cities we've not heard about yet we are the same story might emerge? heard about yet we are the same story might emerge ?|j heard about yet we are the same story might emerge? i think that's right. it's profoundly worrying. i've been working in child protection for a number of years and you keep on hoping that agencies will have learned the lessons and that we're going to stop this. it is worrying that cases like telford,. you're absolutely right, it could be in other places as well. we need to be vigilant and look out for young people. that's why prevention is so

important. we need to take step to ensure those children who might be at risk identified at a very early stage and they can keep themselves safe. is that happening? it is beginning to happen. i mentioned the nspcc going into schools to raise awareness but i think we need to see much more prevention. we need to see intervention before the abuse happens. thank you. let's go to a royal correspondent at westminster abbey. tell us what's happening. it is, i suppose, a day of celebration for the commonwealth. you find me at the great west door of westminster abbey. we are waiting for the royal family ona abbey. we are waiting for the royal family on a rather grey and drizzly londonderry. —— london day. we wait

for the secretary general of the commonwealth and the flag recession. 53 different countries making up the commonwealth. leading the service will be the dean of westminster abbey. tell me, you have an astonishing diversity of religious faiths here today. probably it doesn't do from faiths and six different christian churches, reflecting the different faiths and different, i suppose, reflecting the different faiths and different, isuppose, hopes reflecting the different faiths and different, i suppose, hopes of the commonwealth. we are celebrating. that's the great thing. in our diversity is strength. different faces together have always been you. —— different faiths together have a lwa ys —— different faiths together have always been you. it has been a feature for several decades now. it is an important signal as to how the faiths can work together. we're not ashamed of being christian. we are proud of being christian and we are an anglican church but we can reach out to others and bring them into

this very special place that we occupy. we talk about this as faith at the heart of the nation. they can be part of this space in the commonwealth, which has great diversity. the message of the commonwealth has evolved over decades as it has grown and grown. now it places particular emphasis on this issue of diversity. and diversity being strengthened calls for unity rather than division. exactly. and we're thinking today of a common future for the commonwealth. that is the theme today. we're bringing diversity together so that we can be together and work together to make the world and work together to make the world a better place. that usually important. it's notjust diversity of faith, race or colour, but some of faith, race or colour, but some of the largest countries in the world and some of the smallest countries in the world, the richest and poorest. what holds them together in this group? it is that wonderful diversity that is important. canada and india have

vast numbers of people in a fast space, but tiny islands in the pacific ocean, for example, are commonwealth countries. some are rich and some are poor but we are together. it is because of history. we have common language and history that us together. the role of the head of the commonwealth is very crucial. in this year, in april, the heads of the governments of various commonwealth governments will be easier working together to make the future better. thank you so much for your time. the dean of westminster abbey. it is around two hours before the service starts, in celebration of the commonwealth by all 53 countries. and of course its head, the queen. let's catch up with the weathermen with ben. —— catch up with the weather. some places got up to 15 celsius

this weekend where we saw some sunshine. today, not as bright and sunny. as you will see from the recent satellite picture, a lot of cloud around. you can see it swirling around. it was in no great rush to clear from england and will particularly. underneath the cloud, outbreaks of rain continuing through the afternoon. —— england and wales particularly. behind this, skies we re particularly. behind this, skies were clear from the west and overnight tonight, it might be called enough for a touch of frost in northern ireland. most places, particularly where we keep the cloud, will hold well above freezing. into tomorrow, a lot of dry weather around. quite a bit of cloud as well, particularly in central and eastern areas. western parts, where you don't see cloud, we will see quite a lot of sunshine. temperatures not hitting the heights of the weekend but still 7—11dc, which is not a bad if you get that sunshine. windy and very mild at

this stage on wednesday. still u nsettled this stage on wednesday. still unsettled by thursday. by the end of the week, it looks like things. to turn colder again. this is bbc newsroom live. our latest headlines — theresa may is updating ministers on the salisbury nerve agent attack. a meeting of the national security council is underway. she is facing pressure to take decisive action against who was behind it. parts of salisbury remain cordoned off — hundreds of pub goers and diners have been told to wash their possessions as a precaution. the comedian sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90. described by his publicist as "one of the last music hall greats," sir ken was known for his marathon stage performances and the creation a 17—year—old boy has been jailed for 10.5 years

for attacking six moped riders with acid while trying to steal their bikes. derryckjohn pleaded guilty to carrying out the attacks in the north and east of london injuly last year. let's speak now to our correspondent chris rogers who's at wood green crown court in north london. what you hear about what he did and why? this is a particularly shocking example of a crime that is on the rise across the country, but particularly in east london and across the city. the police and judges in these courts are under pressure to crack down on these crimes by better policing and tougher sentences. here's the background to exert what happened, july last year, around nine in the

evening, derryckjohn who was around 16 and three quarters at the time, set off his mother had with an accomplice who still not been identified, and began to attack careers on their scooters with corrosive acid, trying to get to their faces corrosive acid, trying to get to theirfaces through corrosive acid, trying to get to their faces through the open visor is on the helmet. in all, six attacks, and many people were left with facial injuries. one told the court that he is now partially blind. while all have managed to recover from their scars, they have explained how emotionally they will never recover. they have been unable to return to theirjobs as carriers, and unable to return to the mopeds. several are out of work and receiving counselling. derryckjohn trashed one of the stolen scooters into the back of a lorry and following morning. he has still not help police with their ongoing

enquiries to finding his accomplice. the sentencing is difficult, and the judge had to explain very carefully that while he wanted to send out a strong message to others thinking of conducting these kind of crimes, he had to take into account that derryckjohn is a minor. he was 16 at the time of the attack and is now 17. he said, if you were an adult, i would've put you behind bars for yea rs. would've put you behind bars for years. he received a sentence of 10.5 years with the possibility of being released early on licence, because there is a chance for him to because there is a chance for him to be rehabilitated. he was asked to ta ke be rehabilitated. he was asked to take into account that he pled guilty to the crimes of attacking with intent to harm with acid and robbery, but also that he had a very troubled childhood, and was in care at the time of the incident. sauber olasan mind, it was not the sentence that the victims wanted. one who i spotted the last two minutes, he

wa nted spotted the last two minutes, he wanted derryck john to spotted the last two minutes, he wanted derryckjohn to receive a life sentence. but he says that he forgets, because the government still needs to do much more. —— he forgives sin. the government needs to do more to stop youths from falling into this kind of crime. —— forgives him. the bbc is launching an unprecedented appeal to the united nations to protect the rights of its persian service staff and families. a report for the un human rights council says staff and their relatives in iran are being subjected to arrest, detention and travel bans. the service broadcasts from london into iran and the region. from geneva, our diplomatic correspondent, james robbins, reports. the bbc has been broadcasting its persian tv service from london since 2009. iranian authorities have never liked the challenge to their own domestic media which could easily be influenced or controlled. rana rahimpour isjust one of the many staff at bbc persian who say they and their

families in iran have been threatened or intimidated by iranian authorities trying to get them to quit. in one case, a 10—year—old and 90—year—old were interrogated. we now have an asset freeze on all the staff. all the staff are being investigated for conspiracy. in recent months, many bbc persian staff have given evidence for the latest un report on human rights in iran. according to that report, family members in iran have been arbitrarily arrested, detained, and subjected to travel bans. the iranian government has now published its response to the un human rights report. iran says that claims of threats and harassment against families of bbc staff are incorrect. iran says, "bbc persian is not independent," and what it describes as its financial affiliation with the ministry of foreign affairs — that's

britain's foreign office — and with britain's security agencies, has been very serious. iran accuses the bbc of spreading false information, strengthening world around calls the circles of terrorism and overthrow. but the bbc‘s director—general says it is vital to defend the bbc‘s journalistic freedom. it is unprecedented for us to go to the un on an issue like this, but frankly, everything else has failed. it is not right for families orjournalists or others involved in the bbc persian service to be intimidated and abused in this sort of way, and actually there is a broader principle at stake here. we want the community of nations through the un to stand up for the rights ofjournalists to report freely and fairly on what is going on around the world. the bbc hopes a senior correspondent of its service will be allowed to address the un meeting, and that the human rights council will use its influence to change iran's behaviour. the labour party says that debbie

abrahams steps down while what spain claimed as unemployment issue is being investigated. —— what they claim. debbie abrahams claims this is the result of bullying. yesterday evening, the labour party put out a short statement saying that debbie abrahams stepped aside so that could be this investigation into employment issues. this concerns allegations of bullying, allegations that debbie abrahams denies herself, but as soon as labour put that statement out, debbie abrahams boost her own statement, in which she accused the party of bullying, intimidating, and aggressive behaviour. the focus of her higher

we re behaviour. the focus of her higher were people in thejeremy corbyn's office, said that over the last ten months, they had behaved in intimidating way and work demonstrating behaviour of the worst bullying kind. she is now making a formal complaint to both the labour party and the parliamentary authorities. this concerns complaints made by more than two people. the liver party want this investigated, not within the whip's office, but within the labour pa rty‘s own hr office, but within the labour party's own hr structures. they clearly wa nted party's own hr structures. they clearly wanted to debbie abrahams to step aside voluntarily, but this erupted, and there has now been a huge following out between the debbie abrahams and jeremy corbyn's home office. has there been any further reaction from jeremy corbyn's office? no further reaction either from the labour party or debbie abrahams this morning. i imagine this will now go through the

investigative process that labour have got going to work out precisely what happened here, and whether there is a case that needs to be a nswered there is a case that needs to be answered and grievances that need to be addressed. we will see. i would be addressed. we will see. i would be surprised if either of the two spoke today about it. the national security council has finished meeting. let'sjust sorry what is happening in downing street now. “— what is happening in downing street now. —— show you what is happening. borisjohnson has already left, others are filing out as well. nobody is stopping to say anything to the media yet. if there are any comments, we will bring them to you as soon as they happen. we are waiting to see whether theresa may, comes out and says something publicly. there is a suggestion that she will point the finger to russia officially, but what is being said

is that the evidence is being weighed up carefully and no hasty moves, but it has been dealt with very seriously. we will keep you informed of what is happening at downing street. let's return now to the news that the stand up comedian ken dodd has died at the age of 90. we can speak now to robert holmes, friend and publicist of the star for almost 50 years. he's in our birmingham studio. thank you forjoining us. and as some believe it —— somebody who worked with them for 50 years, it will have gone beyond those rounds. what was your relationship like?” am glad to say that we were friends as well as him being a client of mine fora7 years, as well as him being a client of mine for a7 years, and we had a wonderful relationship. i am going to miss dreadfully, as i think the whole of the public, because this was a special man. a man who was a

genius as well as a legend, and still filling theatres right up until the end of december last year. that is extraordinary, a man who is 90 still performing in the way he was. and legendary for how long the performances went on for. what are your memories of that? lots of them, trying to escape the theatre sometimes because my wife and i went to see him many times, but i have to say, he made us laugh every time we went. and that really is or was... i can't get used to sing was. he was a special man and a genius. u nfortu nately, special man and a genius. unfortunately, the lights have been turned off the curtains drawn, and thatis turned off the curtains drawn, and that is the end of variety as we know it. that is the sad thing. as you say, variety, the sort of performer that a lot of people

around today don't, if people have not grown up with that, they will not grown up with that, they will not understand what sort of performer he was. he described as a genius. describe him, maybe for someone who has never heard of ken dodd previously, what it was about. he knew how to make people laugh and he did it without any smut, the occasional innuendo, and people flocked to see him. he said his shows that not overrun, they were value for money. i have to agree with him. but people were not used to going into the theatre at 7.30 and not coming out again until 1.00. what was the longest you ever witnessed? i think 1.30, what was the longest you ever witnessed? ithink1.30, number of

people in the foyer waiting is for taxis. he was on stage, not every minute, but he did have support acts, but he was an practically the whole time. and he loved it, you couldn't ask to cut it down, i did many times, because people used to say, why don't you take it easy or why don't you retire? he had no thought of retirement at all. sorry to interrupt, but to be on stage for that amount of time, that is a huge amount of material. was a lot of it off the cuff? that was the magic of the man, always writing new stuff. lots of material that you'd heard before, but there was new stuff going on in all the time, new material. he had writers wherever he went. he kept this wonderful giggle

map of the united kingdom, so wherever he went, he knew what made people laugh in those places. that is why i say he was a genius, because he analysed it. another amazing thing to know about him is that his single, tears, was the third highest selling some of the 19605, third highest selling some of the 1960s, only beaten by two beatles singles. he actually knocked the beatles of the top of the charter in 1965, and was at the top of the chart for six weeks. and it is still one of the biggest selling singles of all time. of course, he met them, and like all liverpudlians, we are all pals together. and unlike others, ken dodd has never moved away from liverpool, he actually died in the very house in which she

was born 90 years ago. quite extraordinary. it is, what did he think about that? that is something to be able to say that you basically outsold the beatles in the 1960s and you're both in the same area.“ outsold the beatles in the 1960s and you're both in the same area. it was extraordinary even for him, and following that, he did a sell—out concert at the london palladium without the back—up of any television, it was just an reputation, and he filled the place night after night after night. that was the magic of the man, he could do that. people knew that if they we re do that. people knew that if they were going to sikandar raza, they we re were going to sikandar raza, they were going to sikandar raza, they were going to sikandar raza, they were going to be entertained and not consulted. —— going to see ken dodd. he was a great comedian of the likes of which we will never see again. thank you for talking to ours, and we send you our condolences on the loss of your friend. thank you, much appreciated. we have just heard that theresa may is currently making a

statement to update mps on the nerve agent attack on the russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter yulia skripal at around a:30pm. we don't currently have any indication of what it is going to be, but at the moment we are hearing that she will be making a statement. there has been conspicuous and about how much detail she will give as a result of that national security briefing this morning, the latest intelligence and evidence being put forward to mps and others involved in looking at exactly what happened to sergei skripal and his daughter, awful happen going forward in terms of any diplomatic measures. —— what will happen. that statement will happen at a.30 this afternoon, and we will have full coverage. five people have died after a helicopter crashed into the east river in new york last night. three of the passengers were taken to hospital after being pulled out of the water by rescuers, but died later. the pilot managed to free himself.

an investigation will be held to determine the cause of the crash. jamie carragher has apologised after a video showed the former england and liverpool defender spitting at a girl in a car the footballer, who's now a tv pundit, had been covering his former side's 2—1 defeat by manchester united on saturday. footage has emerged of mr carragher spitting toward the vehicle from his own car. on twitter, he said he'd been provoked, but described his actions as "totally out of order". arriving in london this morning ahead of a meeting with sky sports bosses about his future, the former liverpool star said he was prepared to apologise again to the family. the headlines on bbc newsroom live — tourism is updated ministers on the salisbury nerve agent attack at a meeting of the national security council. —— theresa may. sir ken dodd has died at the age of 90. at least 38 people have been killed after a plane crashed at kathmandu's national airport in the poll. —— in

nepal. a council facing unprecedented financial problems is being investigated over allegations it used millions of pounds of money ring—fenced for public health to prop up other services. northamptonshire county council may have to return as much as £10 million to public health england. it comes after the authority voted for almost £a0m in budget cuts. here's our political correspondent tom barton. in northamptonshire, there are over 1,000 smoking—related deaths each year. anti—smoking drives and healthy eating campaigns. our well—being score is below the uk average. every year, the government gives councils in england grants to spend on improving the health of local people. but now there are questions over how one council has been spending that money. we can reveal that northamptonshire county council is being investigated over claims that it has spent millions of pounds of public health money on other things.

if it's found to have done so, this hard—up council could be forced to repay some of that cash. northamptonshire's finances are already in dire straits. at the start of february, it became the first council in nearly 20 years to put itself into financial special measures, as officials worried it might run out of cash. and it's cutting services, including axing bus subsidies and closing 21 libraries. opposition councillors say that it is no surprise the authority may have broken the rules. i think it tells you a lot about the bigger picture at northamptonshire county council. which is that money is really tight and they have to scrabble around for every penny they can find to balance the budget, and they may be pushing things a little too far. and potentially spending ring—fenced money outside the rules. that's a big issue, isn't it? absolutely, it's a big issue. you would expect people to know the rules and stick within them. the council's leader acknowledges that money intended for public health may have been spent on delivering adult social care services.

and she says the authority is in discussions with public health england over whether any of that spending was outside the rules. whether it was wrong, what i can assure people was that money wasn't misappropriated. it may have been spent in adult social care looking after people in some way or another, that somebody mightjudge that wasn't really public health money. but at the end of the day, it is still being spent on the people of northamptonshire. some local government experts are asking whether northamptonshire's experience shows there's room for reform. obviously, councils have to obey the rules on public health grounds, but actually what i think this illustrates is the whole absurdity of having a separate system for the nhs, separate system for social care, public health money ring—fenced. all these things sitting in different pockets of money. for the last two months, a government inspector has been keeping a close eye on how northamptonshire county council is run.

he is due to complete his report at the end of this week, giving more details about what went wrong at this troubled council. if you live in eastern england, you can see more on this story tonight on inside out on bbc one at 7:30pm, and then everywhere on the bbc iplayer. you might have put a little bird food out this morning to see them through these chilly days, but did you know you could be doing more harm than good? a study by the zoological society of london and the british trust for ornithology found garden feeders can put wildlife at risk of disease. earlier, i spoke to kate risely, the co—author of the report. this is a large—scale study that we have been running in partnership with the zoological society in london and the rspb. it is called garden wildlife health, and we have asked people to tell us

but also if they have seen any sick or diseased birds. vets have carried out out postmortems on birds people have found in their gardens, so we have been able to identify some of the diseases they are suffering from and give advice on how to prevent the spread of those diseases. tells more about the diseases, the prevalence and the birds being affected. one of the main species affected at the moment is greenfinch, and actually people would probably have noticed that we are not seeing as many greenfinches on bird feeders as we used to. we have actually lost over half of our british greenfinch population in the last ten years, it really staggering decline. we know due to our research that this is due to a common disease that people might see at bird feeders, birds pass it to each

other at the feeders. it can be passed on hygiene is not very good. so we are urging people to be aware of the signs and symptoms of these diseases. so with this one, birds might look lethargic and sit on the feeders, they might have food stuck around their beaks, and it is quite obvious that they are not well. so it is just to be aware when you see something like that that you need to take action. it is obvious that if birds are gathering at the same spot, they are doing their business after eating at this spot, more birds come along and will be affected by the same things. how much would you say that concentration of birds any particular area has had to that deterioration in the population of greenfinches you mentioned? it is hard to say what effect transmission at feeders as opposed to other transmissions, such as adult birds giving it tro chicks in the nest, it is hard to say what the feeders themselves has been.

but we know that this disease is transmitted at bird feeders. all in all the population has declined due to disease. we want people to be aware of the disease. and in some cases, if you have disease in your garden, the best thing to do is to stop feeding for a little while because it means birds are not congregating at one spot, and then reintroduce feeding gradually later. there are many benefits of bird feeding, so we do not want to discourage people. if you are feeding the birds, presumably you would advise people to clean it up and keep the area clean. yeah, keep the area clean, clean the feeders. hopefully you have got feeders you can take apart and clean, and try to move them around the garden a bit to stop the build—up in the one place. try not to put out too much food at the one time, so it is out there for a long time getting droppings in it. just put out enough

food for a day or two. and if you see any signs or find any dead birds, we want people to report them to garden wildlife health and check the website for advice. in this weekend broke ties of 15 celsius in places, but it looks like the temperatures are going to do it again by next weekend. some places will struggle to reach five celsius, and that could be some wintry showers. how they're at the moment, we have all this cloud swirling around. that is producing some outbreaks of rain across england and wales, the odd heavy burst. but going into tonight, the wet weather slowly but showery will pull away to the east. and for western areas especially, the sky is beginning to clear. perhaps for long enough

across northern ireland, the odd mixed batch as well, and the cloud further east, the temperatures holding above freezing in most places. into tomorrow, a lot of cloud around for central and eastern areas, perhaps the odd spot of rain. but for western areas, a decent amount of sunshine. northern ireland, western scotland, north—west england, wales and the south—west, plenty of sunshine around. temperatures not quite as high as the weekend, but still or 11 celsius, not too bad. but heading to the middle of the week, this low pressure coming in from the atlantic. it will be... mild air feeding across the country. wednesday's forecast shapes up like this. some rain in the west, some uncertainty about how far he the wet weather will get. strong winds, gales and western areas at times. further east, when the swell, but

here are some brightness on sunshine, and where you get that sunshine, and where you get that sunshine, temperatures can reach 1a or 15 celsius. looking towards the end of the week, staying relatively mild down towards the south, something a little colder further north. some rain at times, but then we move towards the weekend, and it looks like high pressure is going to start to build its way down from scandinavia, allowing us to bring in more of an easterly wind. that will bring the return of some pretty cold air. it will be windy as well with the risk of some wintry showers. theresa may will address mps this afternoon about the nerve agent attack on a former russian spy and his daughter. the kremlin says it's not a matter for the russian government, as hundreds of people in salisbury are told to wash their clothes in case they're contaminated. we'll have the latest on that meeting of the security council from downing street. also this lunchtime...

how tickled i am by all this goodwill. what about you, have you been tickled by goodwill? tributes for the comedy legend sir ken dodd, who's died at the age of 90 a row at the top of the labour party, as a shadow cabinet minister is removed from her post and says she's the victim of bullying. tv football pundit jamie carragher apologises, after spitting at a 1a —year—old girl.