hello, this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. britain's ultimatum to russia — explain your role in the salisbury spy attack or face the consequences. the kremlin has until midnight to spell out what happened or theresa may says she'll take action. it comes as tests conclude the former double agent sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned by a military grade nerve agent made only in russia. good morning, it's tuesday the 13th of march. also this morning: the chancellor prepares to unveil his spring statement. yes, good morning from this flower wholesalers where we're looking at

whether the economy is blossoming or not ahead of the chancellor's spring statement. we've gathered together people from all parts of the business world to find out what they think. i had no hope in the world and now i'm going to be 21 and i've got my life back. and in the last of our special reports we catch up with tee as prepares to leave one of britain's biggest secure psychiatric hospitals. in sport, sky sports pundit jamie carragher is backed by his colleague gary neville. former liverpool and england defender carragher has been suspended from hisjob after he was filmed spitting from his car towards a girl in another vehicle. matt has the weather. good morning. steph may have the spring statement later but for me we're talking winter towards the end of the week. before we get there, some warmth in the sunshine today, fewer showers around as well, most of you will stay dry. your full forecast in around 15 minutes. thanks, matt, see you later on. good morning. first, our main story.

moscow has until midnight tonight to give the government an explanation about the poisoning of former spy sergei skripal and his daughter last week. president macron of france has condemned the attack and the us secretary of state rex tillerson called it a really egregious act after theresa may said russian involvement was highly likely. caroline davies reports. a supermarket car park shut down to search for a lethal chemical. hundreds of police are still at work in salisbury, trying to find out who poisoned a former russian spy. sergei skripal and his daughter yulia are still critically ill in hospital. they were attacked with a rare nerve agent. we now know it's a type only developed by russia, called novishok. yesterday, the prime minister gave an ultimatum to the kremlin — explain how this happened or there will be consequences. either this was a direct act by the russian state against our country, or the russian government lost control of its potentially catastrophically damaging nerve agent and allowed it to get into the hands of others. the russian ambassador has until midnight tonight to return

with an answer. russia has denied being involved. president putin brushed off questions about the attack. translation: we are busy with agriculture here, to create good conditions for people's lives. and you talk to me about some tragedies. first, work out what actually happened there and then we'll talk about it. if there's no credible response, the uk government has said it will take action against russia for what happened here. but how far they can go will depend on whether they can get the backing of other countries. this diplomatic stand—off between russia and the uk could yet turn into a crisis. caroline davies, bbc news. later today the home secretary amber rudd will chair a meeting of the government's cobra committee. downing street will be considering its next steps and possible action against russia. our political correspondent

alex forsythe is outside number 10 for us this morning. we know that this countdown to midnight, the russians have to respond, and then what? that is the key question, because up until this point, theresa may and her government have been very cautious, saying they want to establish the facts of this case before a portion in any blame and taking action. all of that changed yesterday when theresa may stood up in the house of commons and delivered that strong statement with this crucial or ultimatum, saying we wa nt to this crucial or ultimatum, saying we want to know what happened here, you've got a deadline of midnight tonight and then we will consider what action will take. the key is what options are available to the government. we know in the past there have been sanctions on russia, some things they could perhaps do this time, they could expel russian diplomats and stop russian oligarchs from accessing mansions in the city of london and we've had pulled from

the foreign secretary, boris johnson, about perhaps stopping dignitaries and officials from taking part in the world cup. the question now is which or any of those will theresa may choose to do and key to this will be getting the backing of other countries. we've heard expressions of solidarity from the us and france over this, so now it's a waiting game, see the russian response and so far they have said nothing to do with that, after that it will be back to the prime minister to take some sort of action. and away from that we're expecting the spring statement later today, what can we hope to see in that? normally around this time of year we expect to see the chancellor marching out here with his red box and have a spring budget but not this year. this is a slimmed down version. philip hammond will stand up version. philip hammond will stand up in the house of commons and give a short assessment of the state of the economy. things he will say, things looking better than predicted, growth up, borrowing down, but don't expect him to splash

the cash. this won't be a big unveiling of new tax and spending plans, more an assessment of where we are at, and you can expect the chancellor to say we might have more money but we still have to get the debt down, is urging caution. one thing to watch out for, we hear ministers are looking anyways to fund the nhs and so we may hear more about that today. interesting. alex, thank you very much. we'll be speaking to a former kremlin advisor after 6:30am. two victims of black cab rapist john worboys begin a high court challenge today against what they have called the irrational decision to release him from jail. the judicial review is expected to hear for the first time why the parole board plan to free the sex attacker. the board and worboys, who will appear via videolink from prison, oppose the legal challenge. an agreement was last night reached between lecturers' leaders and university officials over their bitter pensions dispute, potentially paving the way for strike action to be called off. a deal would mean a new, independent re—evaluation

of the pension deficit and temporary arrangements to tackle the funding gap. the strike has disrupted action at more than 60 universities. doctors in northern ireland have seen 100 ricketts cases over a two—year period since 2015. tim muffet will have a report on that throughout the programme for you. we are going to look at some of the front pages of the papers this morning. we were talking about ken dodd yesterday, sad news about him, he passed away at the age of 90, so ma ny lovely he passed away at the age of 90, so many lovely tributes coming from people he worked with and so many of oui’ people he worked with and so many of our viewers and he's on the front page of the guardian this morning. the main story on many of the front pages, theresa may points the finger at russia over reckless poisoning of

spy at russia over reckless poisoning of spy and we will speak to a former kremlin adviser about that just after 6:30am to find out what the russian responses to that. we will come to something else in a minute but let's look at a couple of other front pages. the times, minute but let's look at a couple of otherfront pages. the times, we have talked about the deadline to explain the spy poisoning. also lots of the papers looking today at what could be the response, they are talking about british retaliation including a cyber attack. the mail, they are asking the question, which we will put to someone from the conservative party and labour later on, they have asked about boris johnson, he has talked about the world cup. the daily mail are asking that. a few more of the front pages and the back pages in a moment with kat. mps will vote today on planned cuts to free school meals for the children of parents receiving universal credit. families earning more than £7,1100

per year will have to pay for school dinners under new proposals but only if they live in england. in northern ireland, where the government has just taken control of spending, the threshold has already been set at £14,000. salt content in takeaway dishes must be urgently reduced in a bid to tackle strokes and heart disease, campaigners have warned. a study by action on salt found some chinese meals including sides like prawn crackers contain more than double the recommended daily intake. the survey also revealed a selection of ready meals were high in salt. it should only be seen as a treat, but i think in this day and age more and more people are eating out and about, whether it's going to restau ra nts about, whether it's going to restaurants directly ordering in. it's becoming a much more regular occurrence. people may perhaps consider the calorie content but not necessarily the salt, because a lot of the time these dishes don't all taste extremely salty, particularly when you're accumulating them all to

create a meal, it adds up to a significant amount for your date. remember paul the psychic octopus, who correctly predicted the winners of different games in the 2010 world cup? i remember him. now russia has named a deaf cat as its official fortune—teller for this summer's world cup. here he is! meet achilles the cat, who lives in saint petersburg's historic hermitage museum. 0h, he is white against a white floor! he will have two bowls of food representing either side, and whichever he eats first will be this cat's favourite to win the game. he doesn't look happy at all. back in 2010, paul the octopus made headlines when he successfully predicted all seven wins for world cup hosts germany, he picked a mussel from a box with the country's flag on. i believe they have a day of mourning when he passed away after the world cup. i remember that, too much! the death of paul. more on the world cup, but not of

cat, possibly later. we have our own kat this morning in belgium colours. maybe i would be picking belgium, not a bad shout for the world cup. couldn't go far wrong. more about jamie carragher? he has been suspended at sky sports after the video appeared of him spitting at a 14—year—old fan in a car. the story has moved on, gary neville, who he presents the football with, he sits next to him on the sofa at sky sports, football presentation, he has come out to say he should lose hisjob over this. it was a horrible and despicable thing to do but at the same time there should be no reason why they can't continue working together. it looks very much like he won't lose his job fully over this, but he's obviously facing punishment. the former liverpool and england defenderjamie carragher said he will accept any punishment that comes his way after he was filmed spitting towards another —— a girl

in another car. it was after the 2—1 victory for manchester united over liverpool, where he was working for sky sports. he has been suspended. manchester city are two wins away from the premier league after two david silva goals beat stoke city. they can win the league against local rivals manchester united on the seventh of april. southampton have sacked their manager mauricio pellegrino with just eight games of the season left to go. they sit a point and a place above the premier league relegation zone with just one league win in their last 17. world number one roger federer is the redhot favourite to win a record sixth title at indian wells. that's after he easily beat serbian filip krajinovic in less than an hour to reach the last 16. serena williams was beaten by her sister venus overnight. venus coming out on top in that latest clash of the williams

sisters, making a comeback six months after having a baby but venus wins this one. you really match the set beautifully. i have blended in beautifully. we will have a look at the papers shortly but first, the weather. the cold stuff is on the way? feeling like spring in some parts, good morning, cold weather on the way towards the end of the week. today, compared to yesterday, a dry and bright today with a few isolated showers around, mainly this morning. let's have a look at the satellite, a swirl of cloud with us yesterday, slowly edging away into northern europe, allowing the breaks in the cloud to arrive from the west. we still have the cloud in some parts of eastern england, east anglia and kent, a few showers this morning. thicker cloud in parts of western scotland, western england, producing some showers. very isolated, most will stay dry through the morning rush—hour. the cloud will break up as it goes east, allowing more sunshine in most areas into the

afternoon, some of the brightest conditions in western scotland, northern ireland and the western fringes of wales. with some much sunshine on your back, feeling pleasant, light winds, temperatures inafew pleasant, light winds, temperatures in a few spots, double figures, maybe some around 12 or 13. that bodes well for the first day of the cheltenham festival. we have a light wind and with some good sunnies brea ks wind and with some good sunnies breaks out there, which takes us into a fine evening. should be a dry commute home, clear breaks to begin with and through the night the breeze picks up in the west and more cloud arriving, patchy rain and drizzle in northern ireland, the file west of scotland and later into the west of cornwall and south—west wales. clear skies in central and eastern areas and here's where we have the greatest chance of frost into tomorrow morning. with this area of low pressure to the west of us, rain slowly edging in, what we are going to do with southerly winds is drag up milder air compared to yesterday. you will notice that especially when you get spells of hazy sunshine, that is likely to be

in central and eastern areas on wednesday so tomorrow east is best for the driest and brightest weather, in the west, more cloud. rain and result coming and going but the rain turning heavy and persistent in ireland, the far west of wales and west of cornwall later in the day. where you have the hazy sunshine, widely double figures, some in parts of the midlands, east anglia and the south—east, where we have temperatures in the teams. that area of rain goes east on wednesday night, not making too many inroads before strong easterly winds gradually develop. after a spell of mild air mid week, 15 possible in a few spots, towards the end of the week, we drop those temperatures quite markedly. colder weather will return, the sun of the beast from the east, high pressure bills across scandinavia, easterly winds developing and that will drag cold air away into the weekend and there i say it, we could see the return of some snow. back to you both. we

heard! no doubt you will mention it ain! we gave you a sneak peek of some of the papers. leisure show you more broadly what is happening. the picture of theresa may making that speech in parliament. —— let us show you. we will show you throughout the morning, vladimir putin was asked by the bbc yesterday for his response and he says he is dealing with agriculture so he said, you sort it out on your end and we will give a response. we will be speaking to a former kremlin adviser soon. and speaking about jamie carragher, former kremlin adviser soon. and speaking aboutjamie carragher, the pa rents of speaking aboutjamie carragher, the parents of the young fan who was spat at, asking them not to axe the pundits. that was quick, wasn't it? i think there may be some missing.

cat is busy folding things. i think there may be some missing. cat is busy folding thingslj i think there may be some missing. cat is busy folding things. i was trying to, withjust cat is busy folding things. i was trying to, with just two cat is busy folding things. i was trying to, withjust two papers, hit up trying to, withjust two papers, hit up the main stories. the two goals scored by manchester city which pushed them within two wins. they could wrap up the title. pep guardiola saying, it doesn't matter when or where it happens, they are basically going to do it. pep guardiola celebrating his own quiet way. and inside pages, more about jamie carrigan. this picture story about his 48 hours yesterday after the spitting incident. —— jamie carragher. he's taken on a motorbike to the sky news studio and given this 14 minute grilling. the irony of this piece, its punditry about punditry. they are analysing what happened yesterday. a really

interesting paragraph. in the homogenous bust and a place that foot ball homogenous bust and a place that football has become an anodyne play — — anodyne football has become an anodyne play —— anodyne players and media management, jamie carragher bring us colour. trying to analyse why this has blown up into a huge story. not just the fact that it was disgusting behaviour. and it is chalk and festival. the runners and riders. it is going to be particularly heavy going. how to pick a winner on heavy ground today if you want to win a bit of money on the opening day of the cheltenham festival. jamie carragher said it was an out of body experience. there were stats about how many times. five times he said "moment of madness". they have broken down everything. so much discussions yesterday including the actions about the guy in the other car. stanley questions about the

incident. that article there is what it says about our attitude to celebrity in football but also to society that people are filming. we will see the moment in question later. we will give people a warning. intelligence may be the key to success and health. there could even be a greater advantage for those blessed with a higher iq. genes linked to cleverness may also help to prolong life. genes which make a clever and to live longer. dyoo memorise scoffing ‘s columns on the programme yesterday?” dyoo memorise scoffing ‘s columns on the programme yesterday? i was about to say, can we move on from this column is? —— do you remember scoffing scorns. a farmer would like the phrase eat like a pig taken up

of the dictionary because it is offensive to pigs. other derogatory terms like pork, picking out to be removed. he says pigs have gotten leaner over the years and these terms are no longer fair. leaner over the years and these terms are no longerfair. he has written to the oxford english dictionary on the behalf of the country's pigs. he is from maldon nsx. the sun tried to get a response from the butcher. he says this bird has gone funny in the head. a pig can't understand. it's a very good point. obviously snowflake is quite a popular term. the headline is, sowfla kes. a popular term. the headline is, sowflakes. that's why i mentioned the scones. we were pigging out on scones. i was definitely pigging out

on scones. the scones are back. tackling drug and alcohol problems can be a long and difficult process, but in australia they've come up with a radical form of treatment to help young people with long—term addictions. they're put in control of a plane as it stalls and starts to fall through the air. the idea is that it teaches them to deal with fear. here's our sydney correspondent hywel griffith. this is how it feels to be in freefall. flying as a way of tackling addiction is unconventional but the aim is to make people take back control. flying, honestly, isjust, it's a different perspective over everything and makes anxiety look small, if you know what i mean, because you're up high. this group is from australia's largest rehab centre and the 2—day flying course is part of a 10—month step—by—step programme. gino has been fighting an addiction to the drug methamphetamine, or ice.

yeah, lost myjob, lost my family and came here to get it all back and i used a lot of ice with girls and for criminal activities and got lost in the wrong crowd. over radio: now, waiting for 60, here it comes, so let's ease back. they learn how to take off and fly with paul, a serving fighter pilot. in the air, the engines are deliberately stalled. now there's the stall. it's up to them to recover. over radio: we can learn to work through our stress and get the brain under control. some of them, theyjust never have anything they can hold and treasure themselves without it being broken by somebody else who's hurting themselves and doesn't want someone else to succeed. well, an experience like this is very personal and something that can never be taken away from them. before this, most of the group hadn't even been in an aeroplane before, let alone got their hands on the controls. what they're meant to learn

here is the power of self—control and when they're in the skies, some perspective on life. most have met before rehab, they were regularly in trouble with the police. their case worker argues that the flying lessons aren't a reward for bad behaviour. he says they've seen real results. when they come back down, they seem calmer and more mature. there is a flow on effect for the whole community. whether they just stop doing drugs and crime because they've been awoken to new opportunities. most of the flights are funded through donations and goodwill. the bill doesn't go back to the state. the organisers don't claim to have a magic solution but they believe learning through fear can help transform lives. i love the look of genuine shock and some of theirfaces. i love the look of genuine shock and some of their faces. it has the

device desired affect the sum. as the chancellor prepares to make his spring statement today, we've sent steph to a flower market this morning, to see if business is blooming there. i see what you did there. good morning, everybody. we think we start early. mike and natalie have beenin start early. mike and natalie have been in since two o'clock this morning. we wanted to come here to find out what's happening in the economy. we be finding out a bit later how things are doing at the moment and quite a bit barometer of what's happening in the economy is a place like this. our offer we are flying in selling flowers. robb, tells about the business. since 2007, business is very good at the moment. you've got about three quarters of the flowers coming from abroad. south america, uk when the

weather allows. the far east. you name it. what is businesslike view at the moment? we havejust name it. what is businesslike view at the moment? we have just had mother's day, valentines and christmas. the three peak periods of the year. in the next few months, it could be busy for us. very lucrative brass. it's a stupid time to in it. it's interesting because you started just before the financial crisis. what's it been like? flowers are a good barometer of how people are feeling. we had a lot of competition but would gotten through that. we are reaping the benefits. you are feeling like things are ok at the moment. it's good, there are a good range of files. i may you been in since midnight. i will let you crack on. all of the stuff you have to get

the flowers ready for all the customers. hundreds of customers coming to buy flowers. we are talking about the economy. we've got guests from lots of different parts of the business world from retail and manufacturing, exports, what is going on across the economy. we'll be hearing from them a bit later on. let's get the news, travel and weather where you are this morning. good morning from bbc london news. homeopathic medicine has been dealt a major blow in london, as the nhs has said it won't spend any more money on it at one of its major centres. the royal london hospital for integrated medicine, formerly the royal london homeopathic hospital, will stop providing nhs—funded treatment from next month. the nhs says "there is no good—quality evidence that homepathy is effective as a treatment". the hospital was founded over 150 years ago. london's meps have gotjust one

year left in theirjobs at the european parliament, before bexit means they have to come back. they admit there have been tensions since britain voted to leave the eu. labour's mary honeyball, who represents london, says she's still unsure if she'll have a role in brussels during any transition period. she's one of the longest serving meps, and says its ironic that the work they do is now in the spotlight more than ever. the consequences of brexit is that europe, the european parliament, what the eu does has suddenly shot up what the eu does has suddenly shot up the political agenda and sadly it's taken brexit for people to take an interest in it so no, i think we are getting a lot of exposure and people do know who we are and what we do. two of london's most significant mosques are being given special architectural recognition today by becoming grade 2 listed buildings. historic england says the london central mosque — better known as regent's park mosque — and the fazl mosque in southfields are to be protected

because of their architectural and cultural importance. the fazl mosque was built in the 1920's and was the first purpose—built mosque in london. let's have a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tubes this tuesday morning. the rotherhithe tunnel is currently closed because of a fault with the barriers. that's going to have knock on effects on the blackwall tunnel and tower bridge. in tooting, the high street remains closed south of tooting broadway tube station for repairs to the large water main — that burst last week. let's have a check on the weather now with kate. a bit ofa a bit of a damp feel to start the day. it is clearing away eastwards and any remaining rain will disappear to a mostly cloudy day with brighter spells developing as we head through. we could see one or two showers late on this afternoon despite a while to sunny spells as that cloud breaks up and further west, we could get some clearance on

that cloud towards the end of the day saw a bright finish to the afternoon, to bridges up to 11 celsius. overnight the cloud and showers moved eastwards leaving a clear night. temperatures therefore dropping, chillier than last night. minimum between two and four celsius and maybe even lower in the countryside in sheltered spots. tomorrow morning, upright spite. quite chilly. some milder and moving in. temperatures 14 or 15 celsius, impressively mild but we pick up an easterly wind. temperatures dropped and we see things turning a little more wintry. va nessa vanessa is looking ahead to the chancellor's ‘s reinstatement and small businesses are looking at it because of the rising rents. hello, this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. we'll bring you all the latest news and sport in a moment, but also on breakfast this morning: as theresa may concludes it's highly likely that russia was responsible for the salisbury

nerve agent attack, we speak to a former kremlin aide about where this leaves the relationship between the two countries. ken dodd's been described as the last of the music hall generation. after his passing, we take a look at a tradition that stretched back to the 19th century. essentially what you're saying is mentally you're already failing. all the best! and it's the clash of the channels. teams from the bbc and itv prepare to do battle in a boat race for sport relief. dan's already in training and we'll be getting a progress report later. good morning, here's a summary of today's main stories from bbc news: moscow has until midnight tonight to give the government an explanation about the poisoning of former spy sergei skripal and his daughter last week. it was revealed yesterday the nerve

agent used in the attack against sergei skripal and his daughter was produced in russia. the us secretary of state rex tillerson said that those involved should face serious consequences. the kremlin has called the accusations unfounded. the chancellor, philip hammond, is expected to deliver some positive economic news in his first ever spring statement today. the statement, which replaces the spring budget, will include the latest official economic figures but it will not impose new taxes. labour ministers say mr hammond must take the chance to end austerity. two victims of black cab rapist john worboys begin a high court challenge today against what they have called the irrational decision to release him from jail. the judicial review is expected to hear for the first time why the parole board plan to free the sex attacker. the board and worboys, who will appear via videolink from prison, oppose the legal challenge. an agreement was last night reached between lecturers' leaders and university officials over their bitter pensions dispute, potentially paving the way for strike action to be called off. a deal would mean a new,

independent re—evaluation of the pension deficit and temporary arrangements to tackle the funding gap. the strike has disrupted action at more than 60 universities. doctors in the uk and ireland have seen 130 cases of rickets in children under 16 over a two—year period. it's the first study of its kind into the prevalence of the owners, which affects bone development. a department of health spokesman said healthcare professionals should continue to advise on the best way of getting enough vitamins d and can prescribe supplements if needed. mps will vote today on planned cuts to free school meals for the children of parents receiving universal credit. families earning more than £7,400 per year will have to pay for school dinners under new proposals but only if they live in england. in northern ireland, where the government has just taken control of spending, the threshold has already been set at £14,000.

salt content in takeaway dishes must be urgently reduced in a bid to tackle strokes and heart disease, campaigners have warned. a study by action on salt found some chinese meals including sides like prawn crackers contain more than double the recommended daily intake. the survey also revealed a selection of ready meals were high in salt. that's disappointing, i love a prawn cracker. so do i. it's great. are we agreeing on something today? do you everdip it in agreeing on something today? do you ever dip it in the hoi sin? we were close to agreement then it has all gone wrong. i went off on a tangent, sorry about that. very early to be asking about hoi sin and prawn crackers! suite chilli sauce may be! we're talking about jamie carragher, the story that's dominating the back pages and some of the front pages because the family of the girl who he spat at from the vehicle of his

car have said they don't want to see him lose hisjob, they are happy with the apology he issued yesterday and everyone has a moment of madness, which is a phrase that jamie carragher has been using a lot to talk about his own behaviour but lots of people coming out, even today, when we have been talking about it, lots of people tweeting today to say it is disgusting, he should lose hisjob, others more supportive saying everyone makes mistakes so still a very divisive topic. jamie carragher says he's apologised to the family he spat at from his car on saturday and that he can't make any excuses for his behaviour. he was involved in the incident following manchester united's 2—1 win over liverpool at old trafford. he now works as a pundit for sky sports but has been suspended from his role, including from working on last night's live premier league fixture. i have apologised over the phone. i spoke to the mother, who wasn't involved in the incident, obviously the daughter in the passenger's seat

and the father, and apologised. of course in the phone call they weren't too happy with obviously the situation. there's not any person in the world who can condone speeding no matter what has gone on before that, anything really. it looks awful and i accept that. a so a dramatic 48 hours for carragher, who'd been working at sky since his retirement from professional football in 2013. but his colleague at the broadcaster, the former manchester united defender gary neville, leapt to his defence on social media, saying that carragher‘s apology means he should be given another chance. but for anotherformer premier league player, carragher‘s actions crossed the line. robbie savage has had his own experience with spitting. i had ihada i had a running battle with this hungary player, i can't remember his name, all—night. then he came up to me and spat in my face and it was the most disgusting,

vile thing. i don't mind if someone smashes me in a tackle, i don't mind if someone head butts me like i've been head—butted on the pitch, i don't mind, but spitting for me is the lowest of the low. there's something very invasive about it, isn't there? manchester city are just two games away from being crowned premier league champions after they beat stoke 2—0 last night. city opened the scoring just ten minutes in, david silva with a lovely calm finish to beat jack butland in the stoke goal. and it was sila who scored his second and his ninth of the season in the second half. the win means they can still win the title against rivals manchester united on april seventh. so happy. the first time after 18 years manchester city is able to win at stoke city away and at home, and that means how difficult it is to come here and to win. we did well and now we are three games, two games or three to be champion. premier league strugglers southampton have sacked their manager mauricio pellegrino with the team just one point

above the relegation zone. pellegrino's side have won just one league match in their last 17, although they are into the fa cup quarterfinals. a 3—0 defeat to newcastle on saturday sealed the argnetine's fate. there are just eight premier league matches left in the season. the manchester united captain michael carrick will retire from playing at the end of the season. the 36—year—old has won every club trophy in his 12 years with united including five premier league titles and the champions league. he won 34 england caps. he has only played four times this season after having a procedure to treat an irregular heart rhythm that was detected in september. there comes a time when as much as you like it or you don't like it, your body tells you it's time to stop playing football. that's pretty much where i'm at. i wanted to finish on my own terms were at least i could decide and not be forced because of that, so i was determined to get back fit. i understood and i would be getting back fit and i probably wouldn't be playing as many games as probably i might have done that that's all been understood,

i've just been training hard and trying to keep fit and i've managed to play a few games and so far and we'll see what happens towards the end of the season. another medalfor another medal for great britain at the winter paralympics in the last few minutes. let's go to pyeongchang and talk to kate grey. cake, bring us and talk to kate grey. cake, bring us up to date. another medalfor us up to date. another medal for great britain at thejonzon another medal for great britain at the jonzon amp alpine another medal for great britain at thejonzon amp alpine centre, today it was silverfor thejonzon amp alpine centre, today it was silver for fitzpatrick and her guide —— kate. this time in the super combined, a combination of the super combined, a combination of the super gyan slalom. it started first thing this morning in the super g, the same course they did earlier this week. —— super g slalom. —— super giant slalom. they moved into the slalom. tough competition from the slalom. tough competition from the slovakian athlete, who has won every event in the visually impaired category so far here. she was the

go—ahead of the slovakian but the slovakian managed to beat her time which meant the great british athletes finished in second. not such great news for nearly knight, she was in third after the super g but wasn't able to hold that position —— merely. she missed out on the medals. a silver medal for great britain. the curlers are in action, they had an unfortunate end three in their game against slovakia, dragging behind 4—1. we will keep you updated on that as the week goes on. more slovakian is causing problems. another brilliant silver medal —— more slovakian is. we are still waiting for that gold, though. world number one roger federer is the red hot favourite to win a record sixth title at indian wells, that's after he easily beat serbian filip krajinovic in less than an hour to reach the last 16. novak djokovic is already out and andy murray and rafa nadal are missing through injury. odds—on for roger federer to pick up

another title and venus williams beat her sister yesterday, another matchup, as they often do, but venus came out on top, the first time she has beaten serena since 2009 emoji has beaten serena since 2009 emoji has beaten serena since 2009 emoji has beaten her once since 2009. almost ten years. that is a good start! experiment, kat. —— thanks very much, kat. the russian ambassador has until midnight tonight to explain the country's involvement in the poisoning of a former spy and his daughter, after it was revealed a nerve agent developed in russia was used against them. moscow has dismissed claims the state was involved in the attack in salisbury last week. joining us from there now is doctor sergey markov, a former kremlin aide and mp in vladimir putin's united russia party. thank you very much forjoining us on breakfast this morning. can i start by asking, how do you think russia can explain how nova jock ended up in salisbury in the united kingdom? —— nova shock. first of all we don't know that it is nova shock —— not

the jock. know that it is nova shock —— not thejock. we know british intelligence service community are very experienced in classification, it could have been a different chemical attack, it is similarto different chemical attack, it is similar to what's been used in eastern ghouta, in syria, in the war there, there is an indication this has been made in syria as well as now in salisbury. russia is waiting on official documentation and letter from british authorities and the british authorities have no facts and no real evidence of involvement of russian authorities in the case. we will now see hysterical speeches in parliament and the media, which is part of the campaign which we have seen for years. just to

clarify, you do not accept the british government assessment that this was a russian nerve agent made only in russia? we don't trust the british authorities, we don't trust specifically british intelligence service community. i think personally our politically weak prime minister theresa may... she is hysterical. theresa may is manipulated by the politically strong british intelligence service. they may want to crash the football world cup in russia. can i ask you, do you think, given what you have said, you think this is a british ploy. said, you think this is a british ploy, is that why vladimir putin was

quite dismissive when asked by a bbc journalist about what he thought was happening in salisbury yesterday? he said he's here to talk about agriculture, you sort it out and we will decide what to say after that. it's exactly what vladimir putin wa nted it's exactly what vladimir putin wanted to save, he is trying to do something good for the country. maybe i will say more strongly and clearly, russia is in the 21st—ce ntu ry clearly, russia is in the 21st—century and russia doesn't kill political opponents. terrorists preparing terrorist attacks only on russian territory can be afraid of their lives, but russia doesn't kill political opponents. we don't demonise russia. mr skripal had already been captured by russian authorities and we didn't kill him. i understand you defending putin, i understand that, but can i say, theresa may after a week of investigation, after looking at past events and things vladimir putin has

said, and after careful analysis of this substance has come to one of two conclusions, either russia has attempted to murder to people with a deadly nerve agent on foreign soil, or someone has managed to access that nerve agent developed in russia. both of those require a nswe rs , russia. both of those require answers, don't be? yeah, absolutely agree that don't be? russian authorities should give the answer —— don't lay. this is exactly what the russian authorities... ask the us authorities... ask the us authorities about russian meddling in the us election. please give us documents, give us realfacts, not blah, blah pontificated by your intelligence services. russia is waiting for documents and letters, then let's sit down and decide how

we can do a joint investigation over this issue. you refer to it as blah, blah, blah, in your mind, when the british prime minister is making these points, specifically she is saying it looks like this was russian inspired in some way, why has there not been an official response from russia to say, for example, we will look into this and try to find out what we know from our end, rather than flat denial of anything possibly being attributed to russia in any way? i think ithinka i think a spokesman of mr putin thought that russia would have