hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and charlie stayt. it is "russia's crime." the usjoins britain in blaming moscow for last week's nerve agent attack. at the united nations, its ambassador demands action after britain expels 23 russian officials. but the kremlin again denies any involvement in the attempted murder of former spy sergei skipral and his daughter. the lab where scientists helped identify the nerve agent used what's in our bottled water? the world health organization investigates after hundreds, even thousands, of tiny particles of plastic are discovered in a number of leading brands. openreach, the firm in charge of our broadband network is hiring will

in 23 considered . be diplomats considered to be undeclared spies will be making preparations to leave written after the decision yesterday to expel them. —— written. while russia remains defiant it was not involved

in the nerve agent attack, other world powers a re in the nerve agent attack, other world powers are backing britain. one member stands accused of using chemical weapons on the sovereign soil of another member. the credibility of this council will not survive if we fail to hold russia accountable. russia was to blame, the prime minister told mps, and thatis the prime minister told mps, and that is why action must be taken. there is no alternative conclusion other than that the russian state was culpable for the murder of sergei skripal and his daughter. this represents an unlawful use of force by the russian state against the united kingdom. the labour leader, jeremy corbyn, said the response should be based on clear evidence. russia insists it was not involved and it will retaliate. prime minister theresa may is destroying international law and international relationships. last night, the chemical weapons watchdog was asked to verify russia was

behind the attack in salisbury. there is now a fully evolved diplomatic row which is likely to escalate. as this goes on, sergei skripal and his daughter remain critically ill in hospital. and keithjoins us now from the russian embassy in london. how has russia reacted to these sanctions? in the early hours of this morning, the un were meeting. various lines from them. what is russia saying? russia is still denying any involvement. be called the uk liars, and said they will retaliate. —— they. we are waiting for the russian response in the next few days. the significant move overnight was the statement coming from the white house. that significant statement showed a lot of support for the uk. that statement said the united states stands in solidarity with its closest ally, the united kingdom.

that shows not only strength, but it comes from the white house and donald dona m. tellm37-3‘1'575 531m? 5 fittings . course, that @,f::,. is dona m. tellm37-3‘1'575 531m? 5 fittings . course, that e is for the dona m. tellm37-3‘1'575 531m? 5 fittings . course theresa $1: is for the dona m. tellm37-3‘1'575 531m? 5 fittings . course theresa % announce measures theresa may announce yesterday, ieslgéieg ' ~ measures theresa may announce yesterday, ieslzfiéieg the ~ ~ ' ~ measures theresa may announce yesterday, ieslgéiea the expulsions, yesterday, including the expulsions, banning some high—level meetings between the two countries, and of course, the fact that no ministers, members of the royal family, course, the fact that no ministers, members of the royalfamily, will go to the world cup this summer. there is new travel advice for fans going to the world cup coming from the foreign office. it says they should be aware of the possibility of anti— british sentiment and harassment and avoid any protesting or demonstrations. that is the advice from the foreign office that it is ongoing, this situation. -- foreign office. we'll be speaking to the foreign secretary, boris johnson, about this just at 7:40 this morning. the labratory where scientists helped identify the nerve agent used

in salisbury is to get more funding from the government as part of a defence modernisation programme. an extra £48 million for a new chemical weapons defence centre at porton down, will be announced by gavin williamson in his first major speech as defence secretary later today. a review into the potential impact of plastic in water is to be launched by the world health organization after particles of micro— plastics were found in ii major brands of bottled water, only two of which are available in the uk. david shukman has the details. bottles of water are feature of everyday life around world. but the new tests commissioned by journalists have found something unexpected, tiny particles of plastic in the water. at this lab in new york state, test thing was carried out on more than 250 bottles. —— testing. a special kind of dye that sticks to plastic was added. under special like it

sparkles like stars. on average, per litre, there were ten large particles, each larger than the width of a typical human hair and confirmed as being plastic. smaller particles were also found. on average, 314 per litre. they were not confirmed, but were probably plastic. at the moment, there are no rules covering these micro— plastics 01’ rules covering these micro— plastics orany rules covering these micro— plastics or any agreed way of checking for them. it is an indication that we should be concerned. it is not catastrophic, the numbers we are seeing, but it is concerning, especially if you look at... if you are drinking only bottled water and you do this every day over eight, you do this every day over eight, you know, a year, we are talking thousands of litres of plastic. ——a. we co nta cted thousands of litres of plastic. ——a. we contacted all of the companies involved. this is what nestle told us. and evian said of the study...

coca cola, which makes dasani, said this. this is the first time that cold water has been tested for plastic on this scale. —— bottled. 11 different brands bought in nine different countries. and in almost every case, they found some plastic. what does this mean for our health? the food standards agency says it is unlikely micro— plastics could cause harm. but the world health organization now wa nts but the world health organization now wants to review the evidence, and scientists say more evidence is needed. as we become more aware of the prevalence of micro— plastics and the potential harm they might cause, i think we need to start thinking now about how we safer.

this study- questions eli. in; glass; 25; gigs; : . z s— about where cci icy; ;i;;; i;.;;; ;,;;i;; : 4 4 4— about where plastic cci icy; ;i;;; i;.;;; ;,;;i;; 4— 4 44 44 about where plastic can cci icy; ;i;;; i;.;;; ;,;;i;; 4— 4 444 44 about where plastic can end up cci icy; ;i;;; i;.;;; ;,;;i;; 4— 4 44 44 about where plastic can end up and whether the chinese pieces can affect our health. —— tiniest. david shukman, bbc news, new york state. the brexit secretary, david davis, has said he's prepared to accept the eu's offer of a shortened transition period of under two years after the uk leaves the european union in march 2019. he said he would agree to a call for the transition to end in december 2020 if that helped to secure a deal at next week's eu summit. the use of food and medical supplies as a weapon of war by the syrian regime has been branded as "utterly abhorrent" by the foreign secretary boris johnson and international development secretary penny mordaunt. in a joint statement to mark the seven years of conflict which has gripped the country, they branded the war as "one of the longest and bloodiest" in recent history. a british man is standing trial in cambodia charged

with making pornography. if danieljones is convicted, he could face up to a year in prison. our south—east asia correspondent, jonathan head, is watching the trial from bangkok. jonathan, remind us of this case? it is not clear what it is about. he was arrested injanuary in a party that he was hosting. these are quite common in places near the great buddhist temple of angkor wat. tourists joint pub crawls, parties, enjoying themselves drinking. it is not clear what else was going on. the police produced images that a p pa re ntly the police produced images that apparently came from a previous party used for publicity with people in suggestive poses, though with

clothes on. it is bizarre they think it is pornography. but the authorities are saying they want to crack down on people being too loose and enjoying themselves. u nfortu nately, and enjoying themselves. unfortunately, some backpackers got targeted. only danieljones remains targeted. only danieljones remains targeted. the other have been released on bail. it is difficult to get across what is going on exactly, but thank you. ministers are being called on to introduce a faster phase—out of petrol and diesel cars, currently set for 2040. the mps have also demanded a new clean air act, and say the motor industry should finance a clean airfund. the government says it'll publish its own proposals on air pollution later in the year. here's our environment analyst, roger harrabin. the air in many of britain's cities is officially unfit to breathe. and the mps are angry that, despite a series of court cases, the government has not cleaned it up. the young are particularly at risk, and the mps' report has received support from un children's

organisation, unicef, which says that britain's children deserve to breathe clean air. the government aims to end the sales of diesel and petrol only vehicles by 2040, but the mps say it is inadequate. india will do it ten years earlier. they say government must work with local councils to stop pollution—related deaths. this really needs to be stamped out. we need to improve it. and that's why the whole report talked about bringing government, local authorities, together, so we can work across, notjust here in london, but across the country. the government says it's looking beyond cars to smokers, fuel, and wood stoves in its strategy, due later in the year. roger harrabin, bbc news. now, we told you yesterday there was a possibility copper coins could be scrapped due to a fall in demand after the treasury launched a review into the role of cash and digital payments. but don't worry, you can save your pennies. a spokesman for theresa may told a westminster briefing there were no plans to phase out one and 2p coins.

idid not i did not want to be too excited, but i was upset about this. i launched a campaign from the sofa to keep the pennies. i am not saying that is why they are being kept. keep the pennies. i am not saying that is why they are being keptm that is why they are being keptm that why they are being kept?|j that is why they are being keptm that why they are being kept? i do not think i have anything to do with it. are people panicking? charities we re it. are people panicking? charities were worried. they talked about the fa ct were worried. they talked about the fact you have those pots on counters for charity. people were saying you cannot take those away or they will not get donations. sometimes they say they will, then later, no. the point is that we are right now. tell

us point is that we are right now. tell us ofa point is that we are right now. tell us of a tale of woe for chelsea undone by messi. barcelona has announced it are incredible. they are into the champions league final eight. we are running out of hyperbole for messi. first, it was manchester united. now, chelsea have exited the competition at the hands of spanish opposition. antonio conte's side were beaten 3—0 in the nou camp by barcelona and one of the game's greatest ever players. there was a reminder of the dangers of racing at the cheltenham festival as ruby walsh was taken to hospital with a suspected broken leg after this fall. he'd only come back to the sport last week after four months out. england rugby union head coach, eddiejones, has apologised unreservedly after derogatory and offensive comments about wales and ireland made during a private event last year emerged on line. the rugby football union will also apologise to both the welsh and irish unions.

in the wheelchair curling this morning, great britain have lost to south korea. if other results go against them in the next couple of hours, it means they could be out. they have one more game of their own later in the round—robin stage, that's against china. quite a strange picture of wheelchair curling. they're just sitting still. no action. that's all we have due to rights reasons. it's a channel 4 event. can ijust say, he walked off with a suspected return leg, walsh. —— broken. they are tough. this is the picture in the papers today since you brought it up. there he is, squashed under the

horse, there's the leg as he is being carried off. the horses ok? the horse is fine, yes. it's one of the risks, if you're going to ride horses at breakneck speeds of a large fences, unfortunately you're going to break some bones along the way and ruby walsh knows that better than most. why it's called breakneck speeds! shall we look at the front pages quickly? we are talking about stephen hawking, as we did yesterday all day, lots of pictures of him in the papers and analysis about his impact on all of us. so much analysis of the russian spy story and russia threatens retaliation as theresa may expels 23 diplomats. she was talking about that in parliament yesterday. i love the quote at the top of the daily telegraph, that quote from stephen hawking. you can't hear that too many times! we must bolster our defences, these are the comments from gavin williamson, the defence secretary.

we will be speaking incidentally to foreign secretary borisjohnson this morning in connection with all developments overnight, the un talking about the russian attack overnight, we will have more on that through the morning this morning. the russian spy story makes the front page of the mirror. cold war two they are calling it, the sun talking about it and jeremy corbyn as well in the daily mail. the front page of the times, they are reflecting on the voices in connection with the attack in salisbury. these were comments from president macron's spokesman yesterday and i draw your attention to one of these quotes, he said once the elements are proven, then the time will come for a decision to be made. some voices are saying, what exactly is the evidence? we will talk to boris johnson exactly is the evidence? we will talk to borisjohnson about exactly is the evidence? we will talk to boris johnson about that later. ben, you want to talk about a massive global company and not great news for the uk? potentially not great news,

unilever, the consumer goods giant, it makes all sorts of things, you will know the brands if not the company. you open your cover... chances are it is a unilever product, persil, dove, marmite, they have said this morning they could move their headquarters to rotterdam in the netherlands. traditionally it has had two bases, one in london and one in holland, it has said they will move the base to the netherlands. willa lot of people jumping on this as a story about brexit and it is a view unilever wa nts to brexit and it is a view unilever wants to leave the uk. that's not the case. they have said this could be to do with a failed takeover bid, they were subject to a big takeover bid last yearfrom they were subject to a big takeover bid last year from american firm kraft, that didn't happen, so they wa nt to kraft, that didn't happen, so they want to slimline to make sure they are ina want to slimline to make sure they are in a good position to take on the competition in the market but it would mean they dropped out of the ftse 100, would mean they dropped out of the ftse100, the list of the uk top

would mean they dropped out of the ftse 100, the list of the uk top 100 companies. you were talking about coppers earlier, one in three adults can't calculate their change, this is in the mail, so maybe they don't need these coppers. they've done a study looking at whether we know how much we should get back when we pay in cash at the shop, one in ten can't work out the value of supermarket offers and fewer than half can't work out the most basic financial grass and one in three can't calculate the amount of change they are due —— crafts. calculate the amount of change they are due -- crafts. thanks for that, we will be talking about that with a guest later on. we will be setting a maths test for that later as well. the very thought! you are both welcome to have a go. we are asking the question, aren't we? i did check earlier, charlie, you could do this. that's the whole point, we shouldn't be afraid of numbers and numeracy and maths. very true, very true. i definitely have some kind of mental block when it comes to numbers i think. i can work out my

change. we will do it together. maybe today will be the turnaround. all i need is a bit of confidence in the bbc breakfast maths test. naga has volunteered to take gcse. some people have. and tim and jane. a couple of mine before we move on? you saw ruby walsh, that is the best picture. i was going to show you messi. .. go picture. i was going to show you messi... go on, hold it up! this is messi... go on, hold it up! this is messi celebrating and arsenal's women winning the continental cup for a record fifth time beating manchester city last night. got to get the sports pages in, guys! thanks very much. darren has the weather. no frost on thursday morning but more rain around, very wet in northern ireland and still some rain here first thing. here's our rain band, should be moving north away from wales and the midlands and the

south—east, heading into northern england, giving snow the mountains of scotland. behind the rain we get some sunshine, that could trigger some sunshine, that could trigger some sharp showers, potentially thundery, but lifting temperatures into double figures and underneath the wet weather further north it will be colder. the cold weather yet to arrive, the wet weather in scotland turning to sleet and snow over higher ground, heavy, thundery showers pushing north into northern england into the back of the wet weather, again affecting northern ireland for a time and more downpours and sunshine to the south we re downpours and sunshine to the south were temperatures again 12 to 13, quite a bit colder underneath the rain further north. we start obviously with some rain but as we head to the weekend it's going to get significantly colder, easterly winds could bring snow showers mainly to england and wales. thank you very much, darren. have you ever been asked to work a free trial shift? it's not unusual for an employer to ask to see you in action for a few hours before they offer you the job. but when does that cross the line

and become exploitation? tomorrow, an mp is hoping to push a bill through parliament which would ban them completely. here's our business and consumer correspondent, nina warhurst. if you cook a steak, pull a point, load a dishwasher, it is a trial not a trial. at this edinburgh pub staff are always paid for their labour but when meegan worked a full shift for a restaurant, she's edgy was effectively at staff, and at times she was left alone with children in a creche. both occasions more hard work for more than five hours for no money. ijust feel like i was work for more than five hours for no money. i just feel like i was taken advantage of because i was obviously advantage of because i was obviously a lot younger and i think theyjust saw someone that wasn't going to say anything. why did you say, hang on, work day shift here, i should be paid. they said on both occasions if you didn't go at ahead with the underpaid shift then the application

wouldn't go any further. ifill i just wouldn't go any further. ifill ijust had to do it. wouldn't go any further. ifill i just had to do it. some mps say the law must change. unpaid shifts have exploited workers for too long. tamara's bill could make that practice illegal. people are being asked to try out for a job that doesn't even exist, companies are trying to cover staff absences in other parts of the business of this is about ending that exploitation, in powering applicants and making sure when people are going for a job there is dignity right from the application process through to starting the job in the first place. there's nothing illegal about being asked to work a trial shift as long as it truly is a trial, and the difficulty comes if you need to prove you cross that line into working as an employee. lots of employers argue that trial shifts are the most effective way of finding out whether a job is the right fit for both parties. smaller businesses in particular have to be careful not to overspend

on recruitment. small businesses can sometimes be reticent about hiring or even looking to expand headcount when the work is there because they worry they're making work is there because they worry they‘ re making the work is there because they worry they're making the wrong decision, so the more we can do to make sure we're hiring the right people, the better. you just need to be very careful that that doesn't cross into what's exploitative. and here it gets tricky, because unpaid work is theoretically volu nta ry, unpaid work is theoretically voluntary, does that mean legally it is hard to prove you should be paid? there's a perception that legally this is a grey area, is it a grey area? what this is a grey area, is it a grey area ? what is this is a grey area, is it a grey area? what is illegal is to ask someone to come in, give up their time, provide services, provide revenue potentially for an employer and not pay them at least the minimum wage if they're under 25, or the national minimum wage if their 25 and above. as far as you're concerned there isn't a grey area? exactly, i wouldn't say there is a grey area , exactly, i wouldn't say there is a grey area, it's as simple as that. but when something's culturally

ingrained it is hard to be the first to make a change, and tomorrow parliament will decide whether to deliver a shift in the law that would force that change for good. nina warhurst, bbc news, edinburgh. let us know what you think about that. the department for business, energy and industrial strategy says it's already illegal to employ people on unpaid trial work periods for an excessive period of time, or where there's nojob at the end of it. the government's committed to spending £25 million on ensuring the uk's lowest paid workers get what they're owed. you're watching breakfast. still to come: we'll catch up with the radio! dj, greg james, he was forced to stop his pedal to the peaks challenge for sport relief two weeks ago because of extreme weather. he's back in the saddle now. we'll find out how he's feeling ahead of the final part of the challenge, climbing ben nevis. what strikes me is he has chosen another couple of days where there

is snow on the road. he has really bad luck in regards to that, though. quite funny, though. it will make a good programme. good luck to him. we will speak to him later. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm charlotte franks. motorcycle deaths on the capital's roads are still too high according to london assembly's transport committee. although they account for just 1% ofjourneys made in london, 27% of people killed or seriously injured on our roads are motorcyclists. among the recommendations, they're calling on the mayor and tfl to allow motorcyclists to ride in all bus lanes, activists who took over an empty building in central london to help house and feed homeless people have been told by a judge they must leave. they claim the building in great portland street has been vacant for more than five years, and they're housing more than 100 rough sleepers a night.

the government says it's investing £1 billion to tackle rough sleeping. it's being hailed as airbnb for your car, car and away is a new parking scheme that's the first of it's kind in the country. found at gatwick airport, customers don't pay to leave their car there, instead it's cleaned and rented out to a stranger. managers say their insurance policy covers all parties in the event of an accident or damage. some experts are warning travellers to think carefully before they sign up. rather than just leaving it sitting there for a week, for the sake of a few extra miles on the clock it made sense to me to be earning while i was on holiday. and have you made some money this week? i've made my money back and then a little bit more, which is as much as you can hope for really. let's have a look at

the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tube this morning. on the trains, the service is suspended on greater anglia between clacton and colchester due to a landslip near great bentley. on the roads, in limehouse, there are westbound delays through the limehouse link tunnel due to emergency water work, which continues on the highway near glamis road in shadwell. let's have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. hello, good morning. there was plenty of rain around last night, that rain pulled its way north—eastwards as we had through the morning and for the afternoon we're talking about sunny spells and some showers. a rather soggy morning rush—hour, certainly very wet underfoot, that rain will pull away, though, lasting longest in parts of essex and hertfordshire. some breaks in the cloud developing, sunny spells but watch out for afternoon showers too, some of those showers could have a rumble of thunder. top temperatures, 11 to 13. as we had through this evening, there will be some clear spells for a time and then the cloud amounts will increase

again and we'll see some outbreaks of showery rain as we had through tomorrow morning. not too chilly tonight, lows of six or seven. again tomorrow, that early rain will clear tomorrow, that early rain will clear to leave us with sunny spells and showers as we had through the afternoon. a big drop in temperature as we had through the weekend, we've got that chilly easterly wind coming back again, highs of only two mac as we get through to sunday and the met office have issued a weather warning for sunday. so stay tuned. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. now, though, it's back to charlie and louise. hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and charlie stayt. we'll bring you the latest news and sport injust a moment. coming up this morning. 4,000 trainee engineers are to be recruited by opeanreach, the national broadband provider to install its super high speed fibre network to three million properties by 2020. we'll ask the woman in charge if they are being ambitious enough. today, classrooms become newsrooms as part of the bbc‘s annual

school report news day. we'll take a look at an on—line game designed to teach youngsters to detect whether a story is fake or real. #bye, bye, miss american pie...#. ahead of the release of his new album and uk tour, the american pie singer, don mclean, willjoin us here on the sofa. good morning. here's a summary of today's main stories from bbc news. the white house has backed britain's decision to expel 23 russian diplomats in response to the nerve agent attack on a former spy and his daughter in salisbury 11 days ago. the explusions are just one of the measures thereasa may is putting in place after russia missed the deadline to explain what happened. she says there is "no alternative conclusion" than to believe they are to blame. the government is to significantly increase funding for its military research laboratory at porton down.

scientists there have already helped identify the nerve agent used in the salisbury attack. today, in his first major speech as defence secretary, gavin williamson will announce that porton down will receive an additional 48 million and that thousands of british troops are to be vaccinated against anthrax. evidence of micro—plastics have been found in some major brands of bottled water, two of which are available in the uk. a study by orb media, a group of not for profit journalists, tested bottles from 11 countries and found particles of tiny fragments of plastics in almost all of them. the world health organization now says it will launch a review into the potential impacts of plastic on human health. scientists say that there is no evidence yet to suggest it is a cause for concern. the brexit secretary, david davis, has said he is prepared to accept the offer of the eu of a short and

transition period after the uk leads the eu on march 2019. he said he would agree to end at 2020 if that helped to secure a deal at the eu summit next week. the use of food and medical supplies asa the use of food and medical supplies as a weapon of war by the syrian regime has been branded utterly abhorrent by boris johnson regime has been branded utterly abhorrent by borisjohnson and penny mordaunt. in a joint statement to mark seven yea rs mordaunt. in a joint statement to mark seven years of conflict gripping the country, they are branding the war as one of the longest and bloodiest in recent history. ministers are being called on to introduce a faster phase—out of petrol and diesel cars — currently set for 2040. (tx 00v) the mps have also demanded a new clean air act, and say the motor industry should finance a clean airfund. the government says it'll publish its own proposals on air pollution later in the year. the consumer goods giant, unilever, is set to announce its moving its british headquarters to the netherlands later. the firm that makes brands including persil,

dove, and marmite, is expected say it wants to consolidate its main base in rotterdam, rather than using two sites. the move is seen as a major blow as the government tries to uphold britain's status as a centre for business after brexit. students and teachers across the united states have staged a mass walkout to honour the lives of the 17 people killed at a school in florida. thousands of pupils and staff left classes for 17 minutes, linking arms and hugging each other to remember the victims and demand a stronger stance against gun violence. if you were watching brea kfast yesterday, you might remember we told you there was a possibility copper coins could be scrapped due to a fall in demand after the treasury launched a review into the role of cash and digital payments. however, those pennies are set to stay in the corner of your wallets and purses after a spokesman for theresa may said there were no plans to phase out one and two pence coins. fear not. they will remain. and i,

for one, am delighted. i was complaining a lot about it yesterday. if they faced them out, what would people do with the giant glass jars? people would be rushing to the bank and post office, counting them... lucky we don't have to. but the problem has gone away now. it is ok. what a relief. to. but the problem has gone away now. it is ok. what a relieflj to. but the problem has gone away now. it is ok. what a relief. i will talk about chelsea, if that's ok. they have problems, sadly, leaving the champions league. it was always going to be difficult taking on barcelona, one for the treble now, at the nou camp. there was a huge

banner that said god save the king, referring to messi. he got a good one. he nutmegged someone twice last night. chelsea have become the third english team to be knocked out of the champions league in the last 16. they were beaten 3—0 by barcelona at the nou camp thanks to two goals from one of the game's greatest ever players. but both of lionel messi's strikes slipped through the legs of the chelsea goalkeeper thibaut courtois. manchester city and liverpool are the only english sides left in the quarter finals after spurs, manchester united and now chelsea side were all beaten. it was terrible to concede a goal after only two minutes. but after this, i think we tried to play football. for a long time, we dominated the game, and created the chances to score. you were watching that closely. ouch. the first time i did not

realise. nutmegged. that is a bit embarassing for a goalkeeper. the premier league's joint top scorer harry kane won't be named in gareth southgate's england squad for two friendlies which is announced today. that's after it was confirmed kane'll be out until next month with ankle ligament damage. the tottenham striker now faces a battle to be fit for england at the summer's world cup in russia. he may return to full training just seven weeks before the tournament starts. on his twitter account, kane said he was "disappointed to be out until next month, but injuries are part of the game. will do everything i can to get back out there as soon as possible." mark hughes has been confirmed as southampton's new manager until the end of the season. the former saints player was sacked by stoke city injanuary but now takes charge on the south coast with southampton currently 17th, one place and one point above the relegation zone. to rugby union, and england head coach, eddie jones, is in a bit of trouble this morning. jones has apologised "unreservedly"

after derogatory and offensive comments about wales and ireland made during a private event last year emerged on line. the rugby football union will also apologise to both the welsh and irish unions. it's day three of the cheltenham festival but it'll be missing one racing's biggest stars. that's after a serious injury to jockey ruby walsh yesterday. made his return to racing. now he'll miss the rest of the festival, including friday's gold cup. the big race of the day though, was the queen mother chase. it was billed as a straight fight between the british trained altior and irish horse douvan. but after douvan fell with four fences to jump, the evens favourite altior ridden by nico de boinville easily came home in the end. now from a muddy track to the race track.

formula one champion lewis hamilton says he doesn't know how much longer he'll continue to race. the briton says talks with mercedes are relaxed as they look to extend his contract beyond the end of this season. but the four time world champion doesn't know for how long he'll have the hunger to compete in f1. every time you get through another season, you are like, geez, i don't wa nt to season, you are like, geez, i don't want to do that again. you are done with the year. i can't wait for my holiday break. i don't know. i do not want to stop early. i do not wa nt to not want to stop early. i do not want to stop premature, that is for sure. i do not know how long. are could stay until i am 40, maybe. two

yea rs could stay until i am 40, maybe. two years maybe. will i still have that excitement? i don't know. perhaps only a few more years of lewis hamilton. in the wheelchair curling this morning, great britain have lost to south korea. if other results go against them in the next couple of hours it means they could be out. they have one more game of their own later in the round—robin stage, that's against china. we will bring you up—to—date on that. finally, if you are the masters champion and have a new baby girl, what do you call her?|j masters champion and have a new baby girl, what do you call her? i do not go. you could go augusta. we said that. fairway... birdie? tee? garcia? sergio that. fairway... birdie? tee? garcia ? sergio garcia that. fairway... birdie? tee? garcia? sergio garcia had a baby yesterday and he has called her, there she is, azalea, because of the azaleas at the augusta national. it is famous for them. based around the

greens. they reflect on the beautiful lakes. lovely stuff, isn't it? thanks to programmes like blue planet two, we are increasingly aware of the effects of plastic pollution. the world health organization says it is launching a review into the potential impacts of plastic on human health. a study commissioned orb media found microplastics in bottled drinking water. scientists tested bottles from eight countries, including two brands available here in the uk, and found that almost all of them contained tiny fragments of plastic. let's speak to report author, sherri mason, who is in san diego this morning. good morning. thank you for your time. could you outline what we have learned from your study? that bottled water contains plastic, a lot of plastic. that is the short version. 92% of the bottled water we

tested contained plastic. for particles bigger than about 100 microns, ten pieces of plastic per litre. at smaller sizes, that's number increased to 325 particles of plastic per litre of bottled water. why is that a concern? well, each piece of plastic... i mean, we have to remember that plastic is notjust the volume, it is a mixture. —— polymer. it has all kinds of chemicals in the plastic. frequently, plastics pick up chemicals on the surface as well. in fa ct, chemicals on the surface as well. in fact, 4% chemicals on the surface as well. in fa ct, 4% of chemicals on the surface as well. in fact, 4% of the particles we found in the bottled water had industrial lubricants on the surface of the plastic. umm, and so, each one of these pieces of plastic, basically, it almost becomes a little poison

pill, transferring those chemicals into the food chain and up the food chain. i understand it has been suggested that some of these plastics may have gotten into the bottles at the moment of the opening of the bottle from the lid. can you just talk us through that? yeah, so, umm, 66% of the particles that we found within the water were fragments. so these were not fibre is coming off of clothes, which is what has been found, for example, in ourtap what has been found, for example, in our tap water study released about six months ago. —— fibres. our tap water study released about six months ago. -- fibres. these are fragments. they came from something that was a bigger item and fragmented off. and then the second thing is that we analysed the plastic for what type of plastic it was in terms of the polymer, and more than half of the pieces of plastic were polypropylene, used for plastic were polypropylene, used for plastic caps. this indicates the

very act of opening the bottle could actually be fracturing little pieces of plastic off of that cap and it could be dropping into the bottle of water itself. now, those people that make these bottled water is very clearly across the board they have all had a very different review. —— waters. they have said they are not breaking any laws and are working within regulations. that is pretty common too. i mean, there is kind of a guidebook, if you have ever read anything like merchants of doubt or followed the tobacco story or climate change, they have definite ways they go about mitigating pr disasters. that type of framing is typical. can i ask you a personal question? given the research you have done, you look through a microscope at the things in bottled

water, will you be going out today. you are in san diego. will you go out today and buy a bottle of water? i have not had a bottle of water in at least a decade. for that reason? umm, well, when you study plastic pollution, it really... you really quickly understand that each one of us quickly understand that each one of us is part of the problem because of how much we use plastic, which means that each one of us as part of the solution. and so it is really a matter of changing our daily habits. and when you study this as an area of scientific research, you start making those changes in your life pretty quickly. when you are out, even something as simple as doing a beach cleanup, and you see all of the straws and cups and bags and bottle caps and... you know, you start thinking how easy these things come into our life and how easy therefore they are to lose, and you start to find ways to remove them

from the life. and that was one of the first things i did. thank you very much for your time this morning. looking in that report on bottled water and the plastics they contain. we will speak to someone from the world health organization who will also look into this subsequent to that report later on brea kfast. 23 russian diplomats considered to be undeclared spies will be packing their bags this morning after theresa may gave them seven days to leave the uk. it's part of a list of sanctions put in place after russia failed to explain why a nerve agent was used in an attack in salisbury 11 days ago. let's get reaction to this from the russian politics lecturer, eleanor bindman, whojoins us now. good morning to you, thanks for joining us. there are still so many unknowns. first of all this getting rid of spies, sending them back to russia, how effective is that as a measure? it does get a lot of

attention, it's quite a significant number. i say spies, they are undeclared spies. absolutely. the fa ct undeclared spies. absolutely. the fact it is 23, that's a large number, the largest number that have ever been expelled, at least in the post—war era. that is significant, is likely to be met with a similar response from the russian authorities so it's likely british diplomats, may be the same number, perhaps more less, will be expelled. what impact does that have on diplomacy? it's a way of sending a signal to the other side, obviously it gets a lot of attention, lots of media attention. is really one of the few things a government in a very difficult position can actually do as very difficult position can actually doasa very difficult position can actually do as a concrete measure “— very difficult position can actually do as a concrete measure —— it's really. this phrase undeclared spies, will the uk be saying to the russian embassy, these are the names of the individuals who are leaving? is that how this works? it's hard to say because they would need to know exactly who these people are and what is quite common is they wouldn't necessarily hold a formal position within the embassy, so the

british authorities may know who they are but they may not, so they may just say, it they are but they may not, so they mayjust say, it has to be this number of people leaving. one of the issues this raises, lots of people have said the same thing, and of undeclared spy, why have we tolerated people we know to be spies for this length of time and hasn't that compounded the problem of allowing russia to carry on with the way it does its business right up until now? it's a problem but it is something the british secret services are engaged in around the world too. it is common to have undeclared covert operatives working in different countries around the world. the fact the russians are doing that isn't particularly unusual, and every government wouldn't be doing that in the uk stoppila sunzu about the fact theresa may is saying there's no alternative conclusion than to believe russia is culpable for the attempted murder of a spy and his daughter.

there's them arms for the evidence, will that be handed over? it won't probably —— there's the demands. they are likely to want to continue this situation for as long as possible. internationally, the un meeting overnight, this notion of the probably bracket attached to almost everything in connection with this, what is it now, is it an allegation or accepted fact? is it's ok for it to remain that? given the nature of the business we are in, espionage, is it anything, ever going to be anything but probably? if you look at the litvinenko case, they knew the people who physically carried out that particular attack, but they never fully identified who directly did it. over time that has become an accepted fact, is that the way you think this will play out over time? i think so, in the

absence of hard evidence, the problem is the people that can provide that evidence are the victims who aren't in a condition to do that. unless the investigation throws up something more concrete, i think we'll be stuck in that situation. eleanor bindman, fascinating talking to you, thank you so much for your time. thank you. matt is in gloucestershire for us this morning, and there are signs there that spring has finally sprung? good morning. i certainly am. we are in batsford algorithm —— batsford arboretum in the cotswolds. not the nicest of mornings but a beautiful sight, 60 ogres, not the nicest of mornings but a beautifulsight, 60 ogres, over3000 trees, and the beautiful spring flowers behind me, blooming in many parts this week, as we see the thames rising steadily —— 60 acres. —— the temperatures. a big shock

this weekend. temperatures are set to drop markedly. let's look at the forecast for the rest of the week. the big temperature drop on the way for the end of the week but to get us for the end of the week but to get us there we have windy conditions in northern areas through the rest of the day and into tomorrow, and we might see further showers and longer spells of rain. longer spells of rain that many have today. looking more closely over the next few hours into scotland, lots of dry weather, a few showers over the tops of the grampians maybe with a bit of snow, most grampians maybe with a bit of snow, m ost pla ces grampians maybe with a bit of snow, most places dry. rain into the south—west, thoroughly wet in northern ireland, minor flooding after heavy rain in the last 24 is and in much of northern england, north wales, north midlands, east anglia, expect rain through the rush—hour. south midlands, southern england, south wales, drying out, a bit of sunshine to the south—west but a few showers affecting parts of devon and cornwall. into the rest of the day, those showers will become more prevalent and they could become

heavy and thundery. many southern areas will brighten up, even though we may see showers, more sunshine into the afternoon. slowly turning drier in northern ireland, north—west england and east anglia but the north—west of england, eastern scotland, much of scotland fairly cloudy in the afternoon, further rain at times, temperatures around six in aberdeen, 12 in plymouth. the milder air with us the further south you are. into the night, throughout in fact, strong to gale force winds in the north of the country. feeding in rain to northern scotla nd country. feeding in rain to northern scotland and turning to snow over the hills. further snout, a few showers continuing, clear skies around with lighter winds in the south —— further south. some fog. temperatures holding up into tomorrow morning. just about frost free. if you're going to see a frost anywhere, likely in the north—west of scotland. into friday, predominantly cloudy for the northern half of the country. eastern scotland and north—east england, rain at times, strong to

gale force winds, snow in the grampians. further south, brightness in northern ireland, better than today, lots of sunshine in northern england and wales but more showers tomorrow were some could be heavy and thundery. temperatures are dropping on friday and more for the weekend. get ready for the big drop, weekend. get ready for the big drop, we will have strong easterly winds uk wide, a fair amount of cloud, a lot of dry weather, some sunshine but later in the day snow flurries in parts of eastern england and note the temperatures, a few degrees above freezing, 8—10 drop impaired to today on saturday and add in the wind, it will feel subzero for many. —— compared to. not the beast from the east but the mini beast is on its way for the weekend. you have been warned. back to charlie and louise. daffodils looking lovely as well. matt, thanks very much! everyone wants a faster broadband connection, isn't that right? not everyone can get it, though, we will

be talking to one of the bosses of a company who could get it for you in a moment. openreach is still owned by bt but was hived off from the telecoms giant last year but operated as a separate company. it is responsible for much of the fibres, wires and cables that connect the country. it sells the use of its infrastructre to nearly 600 telecoms service providers, including the likes of sky, talktalk, vodafone and also to bt. it's been criticised by the telecoms regulator, ministors and competitors for dragging its heels on fibre investment to enable ultrafast broadband speeds. but it recently announced that it plans to connect 3m premises in eight cities to its latest all fibre network by 2020, rising to 10m by the next decade. and this morning it's announcing a big recruitment programme to help boost its upgrade plan. kim mears, managing director for infrastructure delivery at openreach. kim, good morning. good morning. why

are you investing this money and taking on these new engineers? 3500 new engineers, obviously a great announcement. why now? just last month we announced our full fibre plan, 3 million homes with full fibre across those eight cities by december 2020 and then we have the ambition to go much further. ten million and beyond. alongside that we have a real drive around improving customer service. i want to talk about those two things, customer service in a moment, but firstly speed. great if you live in the cities that will benefit, one of the big cities that will get the investment, seven major cities, what about the most of the country? if we go to christmas time, independent analysis said 95% of the uk has access to 24 mg and above, then you can download seven hd

videos and the whole family can enjoy it, a good experience. alongside that obviously there's the 2596 alongside that obviously there's the 25% who don't have access and i understand how difficult that is. why are we so bad at improving speeds in this country? i looked at the latest rankings, the uk is ranked one of the worst countries in the world for broadband speed, 31st fastest. not good for a developed economy? it depends, ben, on the statistics we use. the uk is also ranked number one digital economy in the 620. if ranked number one digital economy in the g20. if you look at 95% of the uk, access to 24 mg and above, we're doing pretty well. but is not good enough. if you speak to most businesses and consumers they want faster because it's no longer a luxury, it's a necessity. two things, while we have the full fibre announcement that says we will go from 3—ten and hopefully beyond with full fibre, that is 100 mg and

potentially up to 1 gigabyte. that's if you like the next network. over and above that we've also got a network today of 24 mg and above capable of serving 27 million homes and only 8 million customers are taking it, so we need to drive adoption as well. sorry to interrupter but there's a big issue, it's all well and good you guys can put things in the ground but there's the idea of getting it from the pavement to your house and that's when it slows down because we are relying on old copper wires —— to interrupter. how do we improve the connection to our houses? that's the difference between talking about copper, superfast connectivity or full fibre. superfast connectivity would build a new exchanges in the streets near you , build a new exchanges in the streets near you, and the final tiny it is copper. when we're talking about full fibre, that's when we're taking fibre direct from our exchange right to the home, that's the 3 million,

ten million and beyond. you will see the speeds up trading. even if you have that tiny piece left of copper, you will still get great speeds today. let's talk about competition —— upgrading. you're in a market where you have dominant position, 90% of the market, you haven't really had competition, now you have vodafone and virgin snapping at your heels, but competition is good for you because it will make you up your game? the competition has always been there. if i go back to virgin, when we first started rolling out superfast broadband, virgin had a substantial network. it didn't mean we didn't invest. there's more competition coming through and we welcome that but we don't need that to up ourgame, welcome that but we don't need that to up our game, we welcome that but we don't need that to up our game, we are welcome that but we don't need that to up our game, we are absolutely determined with respect to both our full fibre future but also around the have nots. kim, good to see you, time is against us but thanks for coming in, boss of infrastructure delivery at openreach. more on the unilever story

delivery at openreach. more on the u nilever story after delivery at openreach. more on the unilever story after 7am. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm charlotte franks. motorcycle deaths on the capital's roads are still too high according to london assembly's transport committee. a quarter of people killed or seriously injured on our roads ride a motorbike. among the recommendations, they're calling on the mayor and tfl to allow motorcyclists to ride in all bus lanes, and to develop london—standard motorcycle safety training. activists who took over an empty building in central london to help house and feed homeless people have been told by a judge they must leave. they claim the building in great portland street has been vacant for more than five years, and they're housing more than 100 rough sleepers a night. the government says it's investing £1 billion to tackle rough sleeping. it's being hailed as airbnb for your car, car and away is a new parking scheme that's the first of it's kind in the country.

found at gatwick airport, customers don't pay to leave their car there, instead it's cleaned and rented out to a stranger. the company says it has the relevant insurance cover but some experts are warning travellers to think carefully before they sign up. rather than just leaving it sitting there for a week, for the sake of a few extra miles on the clock it made sense to me to be earning while i was on holiday. and have you made some money this week? i've made my money back and then a little bit more, which is as much as you can hope for really. let's have a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tube this morning. on the trains, the service is suspended on greater anglia between clacton and colchester due to a landslip near great bentley. heathrow express and heathrow connect services are suspended due to over running engineering works at heathrow. on the roads, in limehouse, there are westbound delays through the limehouse link tunnel due to emergency water work, which continues on the highway near glamis road in shadwell. there are westbound delays

on the a20 sidcup bypass road from swanley towards sidcup following a collision at crittals corner. let's have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. hello, good morning. there was plenty of rain around last night, that rain will pull its way north—eastwards as we head through the morning, and for the afternoon we're talking about sunny spells and some showers. but it's a rather soggy morning rush—hour, certainly very wet underfoot, that rain will pull away, though, lasting longest towards parts of essex and hertfordshire. some breaks in the cloud developing, sunny spells but watch out for afternoon showers too, some of those showers could have a rumble or two of thunder. top temperatures, between 11 and maybe as high as 13. as we head through this evening, there will be some clear spells for a time and then the cloud amounts will increase again and we'll see some outbreaks of showery rain as we had through tomorrow morning. not too chilly tonight, lows of six or seven degrees. again tomorrow, that early rain will clear to leave us with sunny

spells and showers as we head through the afternoon. a big drop in temperature as we head through the weekend, we've got that chilly easterly wind coming back again, highs of only two by the time we get to sunday and the met office have issued a weather warning for sunday. so stay tuned. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. bye for now. hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and charlie stayt. it is "russia's crime." the usjoins britain in blaming moscow for last week's nerve agent attack. at the united nations, its ambassador demands action after britain expels 23 russian officials. but the kremlin again denies any involvement in the salisbury attack. it's thursday the 15th of march.

also this morning: what's in our bottled water? the world health organization investigates after hundreds, even thousands, of tiny particles of plastic are discovered in a number of leading brands. lifting the lid on bottled water. the consumer goods giant unilever is set to announce its moving its british headquarters to the netherlands. the move will be a blow to downing st. it's been in talks to avert the move. i'll have the details and look at the impact on jobs shortly. so, what, it would be £1 and five pence? yeah? one in three adults struggle to work out their change at the check out. so when it comes to sums, are you top of the class or at the back of the queue? in sport, it's a messi masterclass for chelsea. they are knocked out of the champions league after losing 3—0 on the night at barcelona. matt has the weather for us this morning. i will be in gloucestershire or

morning in among the flowers. —— all. by the end of the week, better weather is coming our way. good morning. first, our main story. the white house has backed britain's decision to expel 23 russian diplomats in response to the nerve agent attack on a former spy and his daughter in salisbury 11 days ago. the explusions are just one of the measures thereasa may is putting in place after russia missed the deadline to explain what had happened. last night, the us ambassodor to the un said russia was to blame for the attack. russia's rhyme is worthy of this council's action. —— crime. united states stands in absolute solidarity with britain. united states believes

russia is responsible for the attack on two people using a nerve agent. let's go to richard galpin in moscow. what has the reaction been there in russia? first, keith doyle. that was a few hours ago. what has been the reaction from russia? they have denied having any involvement and called the uk liars. any retaliation will come today or in the next few days. the significance of the statement from the us cannot be underestimated. saying that the us stands in solidarity with its closest ally, the united kingdom. the fact it came from the white house, donald trump, in language he has not used about russia before. it just shows the support the us has

for those measures theresa may announced yesterday, those measures that include there will be no ministers, no members of the royal family, going to russia for the world cup this summer. no mention of england fielding a team. new travel advice has come from the foreign office and at the 10,000 or 20,000 england fans that may go to the world cups. —— aimed. it says that britain should be aware of the possibility of anti— british sentiment or harassment. remain vigilant and avoid protests and demonstrations. that is the advice to anyone going to russia. thank you. and now we go to richard galpin in moscow. no response to the deadline? any reaction to the news overnight and what theresa may has led? we certainly had a strong statement from the foreign ministry. as keith doyle was saying, the

foreign minister was talking about uk officials, the foreign office, saying they have no idea about professionalism, diplomacy, and international law. they say they are fully fledged liars. it is very strong language. so far, though, nothing is being said from the kremlin. the spokesman of vladimir putin, normally we hear a lot from him. so far, silence on this issue since theresa may made a statement yesterday. meanwhile, of course, state—controlled tv channels are also being very strong in their language. of course, they are saying russia had nothing to do with the poisoning. at then some quotes from channel one, saying even fake evidence is not needed any more to level accusations against russia. it is enough to just use the phrase highly likely, of course, the original phrase used by theresa may highly likely, of course, the origir she 1rase used by theresa may

if; tfi is; sattlflatfié " " the brexit secretary, david davis, has said he's prepared to accept the eu's offer of a shortened transition period of under two years after the uk leaves the european union in march 2019.

he said he would agree to a call for the transition to end in december 2020 if that helped to secure a deal at next week's eu summit. the use of food and medical supplies as a weapon of war by the syrian regime has been branded as "utterly abhorrent" by the foreign secretary boris johnson and international development secretary penny mordaunt. in a joint statement to mark the seven years of conflict which has gripped the country, they branded the war as "one of the longest and bloodiest" in recent history. ministers are being called on to introduce a faster phase—out of petrol and diesel cars, currently set for 2040. the mps have also demanded a new clean air act, and say the motor industry should finance a clean airfund. the government says it'll publish its own proposals on air pollution later in the year. here's our environment analyst, roger harrabin. the air in many of britain's cities is officially unfit to breathe. and the mps are angry that, despite a series of court cases, support from un children's

organisation, unicef, which says that britain's children deserve to breathe clean air. the government aims to end the sales of diesel and petrol only vehicles by 2040, but the mps say it is inadequate. india will do it ten years earlier. they say government must work with local councils to stop pollution—related deaths. this really needs to be stamped out. we need to improve it. and that's why the whole report talked about bringing government, local authorities, together, so we can work across, notjust here in london, but across the country. the government says it's looking beyond cars to smokers, fuel, and wood stoves in its strategy, due later in the year. roger harrabin, bbc news. the consumer goods giant unilever is set to announce its moving its british headquarters to the netherlands. the move will be

a blow to downing st. it's been in talks to avert the move. this is a global brand. you are right. a huge company. one of the components of the ftse100. it says it will move its headquarters to rotterdam in the netherlands. many people are saying this is a decision resulting from brexit. they have been keen to point out they will keep much of their staff here. that is because last year they were subject to a takeover from an american firm and did not want it. they are keen to say this is just

consolidation, about putting things in order rather than moving because ofa in order rather than moving because of a result of the eu referendum. we just had a statement from the government. base a unilever showed long—term commitment to the uk, only moving a fewjobs. —— they say. they will keep hundreds ofjobs it is they have important business divisions here. they say the company made clear the decision to move only a small number of job made clear the decision to move only a small number ofjob is part of a long—term restructuring. you will see many headlines about whether it is related to exit. they are keen to say it is not. -- brexit. you may have seen yesterday, we were talking about this a bit, there was a possibility copper coins could be scrapped due to a fall in demand. but there is good news for those who like to count the pennies. they are

set to stay in your wallets, sofas, and cupboards, went theresa may's spokesman said they will not be phased out. i have so many. i nearly took a photo. i have a tree full of them which is about that deep. —— tray. how many? i have not counted. sport and weather coming up later on. hundreds of thousands of tiny pieces of plastic have been found in some major brands of bottled water, only two of which are available in the uk. a study by orb media, a group ofjournalists in america tested bottles from 11 countries and found particles of microplastics in almost all of them. the world health organization now says it will launch a review into the potential impacts of plastic on human health. our science editor, david shukman, has the details bottles of water are a feature of everyday life around the world. but new tests commissioned byjournalists at orb media have discovered something unexpected,

tiny particles of plastic in the water. at this lab in new york state, tests were carried out on more than 250 bottles. a special kind of dye was added that's known to stick to pieces of plastic. under certain wavelengths of light it causes them to sparkle like stars in the night sky. on average, per litre, there were ten large particles, each larger than the width of a typical human hair and confirmed as being plastic. smaller particles were also found. on average, 314 per litre. they weren't confirmed, but were probably plastic. at the moment, there are no rules covering these micro—plastics or any agreed way of checking for them. it's an indication that we should be concerned. it's not catastrophic, the numbers that we're seeing, but it's concerning, especially if you look at then, if you're drinking only bottled water and you do this every day over, you know, a year, you know, you're literally talking thousands of pieces of plastic that you are ingesting from the water that you're drinking.

we contacted all of the companies involved. this is what nestle told us. danone, which owns evian, said this of the study. coca cola, which makes dasani, said this. this is the first time that bottled water has been tested for plastic on this scale. 11 different brands bought in nine different countries. and in almost every case, they found some plastic. and so the big question is what this might mean for our health? the food standards agency says it's unlikely micro—plastics could cause harm. but the world health organization now wants to review the evidence, and scientists say more evidence is needed. as we become more aware of the prevalence of micro—plastics and the potential harm they might cause, i think we need to start thinking now about how we reduce

those inputs so that we're not stoking up a huge problem for the future. the advice where water supplies are dirty is that bottled water is much safer. but this study raises questions about where plastic can end up and whether the tiniest pieces can affect our health. david shukman, bbc news, new york state. bye for now. let's talk about that right now with bruce gordon, the co—ordinator of water and sanitation for the world health organization, he joins us from geneva this morning. good morning, thanks forjoining us. how concerned are you by what you've heard? we've been following the story with interest and i would say that we're

concerned in the sense that this is an environmental issue and there is an environmental issue and there is an indication that you've got plastics everywhere, this is very ubiquitous, so in some sense this was unsurprising but there's a large body of evidence that's just not there. for us to be able to definitively say, ok, this is not a problem, i think we need to work with the research community to kind of really see what the gaps are. so in that sense, we feel that it is worth discussing, it is worth reviewing what is out there and what's not out there and what the research priorities are so we can work with that community. that's what i want to pick up on, what the research priorities are, because presumably we need to know whether the plastics, as you say, are in our environment, and many of the things we use, what impact that has on human health. is that your main priority? that's right. there's many threads to this and i think exposure is one

threat, this is a bottled water story but it's likely plastics are coming from many packaged goods and many parts of the environment are being influenced. when we test for it, now we have more analytical techniques, we're finding it. so the question is how this is arriving in terms of ingestion and exposure, and an understanding what happens in the body. i think right now we have a speculative discussion about some of the possible routes of toxicity but really we don't understand it. i wa nt to really we don't understand it. i want to re—emphasise that this is something that an emerging issue, it's not the first priority in terms of known health issues, but it is something we have to respond to and consumers will be asking those questions. i think we need to do some due diligence to better understand how we can respond to the issues. when would we know the results of that? people will be waking up this morning hearing that and thinking,

what do i do? i don't think people should be worried. this is not... when we say we're going to be looking at the evidence for it, you know, we can only make any sort of risk assessment if we know that there's concentrations in drinking water of concern to human health. we're barely scratching the surface in terms of what. .. barely scratching the surface in terms of what... how barely scratching the surface in terms of what. .. how we barely scratching the surface in terms of what... how we can make a risk assessment. we have really no information in many ways to go on. i think it's going to be a long—term effort. people are not going to definitively known for quite some time, this is going to be in the realm of the researchers. but i think we can, you know, in many ways possibly do some, i guess, thought experiments and reassure the public that may be a likely outcome, or a likely outcome might be that, look, we're just likely outcome might be that, look, we'rejust going to likely outcome might be that, look, we're just going to have to wait. but i think the only thing we can do is really try to package everything thatis is really try to package everything that is known and not known and get it out there. but i don't think,

again, this is something that is, you know, people should be worried about ingesting a bottle of water or food at this point. it's very much to early to start really getting worried. bruce gordon from the world health organization. just on those companies, they say they all stand by the safety of their products, a few set their own testing hadn't found plastic above trace levels and pointed out at the moment there are no rolls on so—called microplastics orany no rolls on so—called microplastics or any agreed way of testing for them. as he pointed out, there's lots of unknowns. a lot of unknowns. we are going to speak to the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, at 7:40am. i think we need a little fresh air right now. a few nice flowers? morning, matt. good morning, plenty of those in abundance and lots of fresh air. good morning from

batsford arboretum, in the cotswolds, a delightful setting. the arboretum itself dates back to 1880. it went under a bit of this repair during the second world war but brought back to life and has got stronger ever since. in amongst the daffodils, if you been enjoying the rain at the moment, but looking at the forecast, not just rain at the moment, but looking at the forecast, notjust here but across the country, temperatures dropping markedly into the weekend. the wind will remain strong but certainly through the day, a mixture of showers to the south and longer spells of rain heading north. looking at the big picture across the uk, you can see the slice of wet weather stretching across the central swathe, that will work north. in scotland, lots of dry weather in the morning, a few showers over the hills but most places starting dry. the far south—west, rain edging in, it's been there overnight in northern ireland, minorflooding been there overnight in northern ireland, minor flooding here been there overnight in northern ireland, minorflooding here and there, big puddles elsewhere in northern england, north midlands,

east anglia where rain will continue in the rush—hour. south midlands, south wales and the south coast, some showers but gradually the skies will brighten and the odd bit of sunshine. the winds lighter further south impaired to yesterday, strong to gale force wind further north and the rain band will ease away from northern ireland, better by the end of the afternoon, the same in parts of the afternoon, the same in parts of north—west england and east anglia but the north—east england, a good part of scotland will be wet with further outbreaks of rain and the cold winds keeping temperatures in aberdeen around six. for most, a mild day for the time of year, 12 or 13 in the south with sunshine but watch out for slow—moving heavy and thundery showers. tonight, clear spells and occasional showers in the south, north—east england and eastern scotland continues with the rain and strong winds. a fair amount of cloud around, temperatures will drop overnight. holding largely above freezing, maybe the odd spot in northern scotland seeing a frost into the start of tomorrow morning.

into friday, eastern scotland, north—east england staying cloudy, outbreaks of rain and snow on the likes of the grampians and the tops of the southern uplands and maybe the far north pennines. many places to the west and south will stay dry for a time with sunshine, but while we see the best of the sunshine in the midlands, south wales and southern england, with the best of the temperatures of course, a scattering of showers as well. some heavy and thundery. the big change comes into saturday, with temperatures in the low teens in some areas in the south on friday, by saturday, cold easterly winds uk wide bringing variable amounts of cloud, and sunshine here and there and snow flurries in eastern parts of england in particular. what you will notice are the temperatures, hovering above freezing in many parts of the country. 8—10 degrees drop on what we have had of late, and add on the strong winds, we have and add on the strong winds, we have an added windchill as well. feeling cold into the weekend and the cold

weather will continue into sunday, with more in the way of snow showers in the south of the country, but things will be dry further north. that's how the weather is looking, at least here in the batsford arboretum at the moment, it is dry. the daffodils looking splendid and did you know there's over 13,000 varieties at the moment around the world ? varieties at the moment around the world? that's varieties at the moment around the world ? that's how varieties at the moment around the world? that's how it's looking. back to you both. i'm giving you warning, later on i expect a song in those surroundings, just a couple of lines, it would look nice, it would be lovely. is that's ok? i've been warned, have i? for you. maybe not poor you, maybe you are brilliant at singing? we will ask people to send in suggestion is appropriate to your circumstance. i'm looking forward to it. i'm not liking the way this is going! good luck, matt. it is happening anyway! if you watch breakfast regularly, you'll know we've challenged some of the team to go back to school and resit their maths gcse,

to give them an idea what it is like for pupils who are preparing to sit the exam. it comes as one in three adults in the uk struggle to work out change on a shopping trip, that's according to researchers from university college london and cambridge university. we decided to test the financial literacy of people in manchester. it would be £1. i think. £1.05. £1. £1. that's quite hard. it is just short

of £14 i think, so i should end up with about £6 change iss? about £6 roughly? about £7. £6.10? i agree. £7.10? if you're trying to do the maths at home, the questions were quite quick, so we will do it again later. let's talk to mike ellicock, the chief executive of national numeracy, a charity that promotes the importance of everyday maths skills. a lot of them answered with about £6, is that right, is that helpful, is that how we should be looking at

numbers? absolutely, that's fine, realistically you're not going to get york outer later out at the till so if you know roughly the answer will be this then that's fine as far as we're concerned “— will be this then that's fine as far as we're concerned —— york outer later. the big thing with this research, it is socially accessible to say i can't do maths, fold your arms, that holds you back significantly in life. you're at the till and say you have a ballpark figure so you're not walking out £10 short, it's the big numbers you're concerned with? it's the big stuff, absolutely. in terms of the biggest expenditure most people have, it is their mortgage. there's data to show lots of people are on a worse rate of mortgage than they could be so those decisions you need to get right. that comes from engaging with the numbers, you need to stop, think and engage with numbers. for example, when you're buying a mortgage they will give you the interest rate and the feed and you have to sit down and kind of

workout, actually, if i paid this the wind this interest rate it's going to make quite a difference? you have to concentrate and know what you're doing there's so much evidence to suggest aren't doing that. a third of mortgages at the moment our standard variable and the average interest is 4.5%. you can get a mortgage now on about 2%. people are giving a few thousand pounds a year to the bank for nothing. we think that is criminal and we would like people to engage with those numbers and all kinds of numbers. you referenced a moment ago some people are saying i can't bear maths, i run away from all those things, do people slightly underestimate their ability to do the kind of thing you're talking about? rather than a sum on a piece of paper, that's how they think of maths, but people underestimate their ability to do commonsense calculations? completely. the problem is for many

yea rs completely. the problem is for many years we've been focusing on the wrong kind of maths. at secondary school, the kind of things you see on the board behind you guys is complex maths in simple situations. but what we all need in daily life is simple maths in complex situations. we're all about simple maths in complex or two asians and we call that the essentials of numeracy, so we have an online tool where people can check if they have those —— complex situations. where people can check if they have those -- complex situations. what are they? it is about decision—making, problem—solving and reasoning, using the tools of maths. using the operations and calculations, understanding how the number system works, that's what we need to bring more focus on because that's the weakness in this country. i fit into the category of people we talked about earlier, they are a bit scared of it, but i have to say, the way you talk about it makes me feel more confident about its. that's the idea. it's a challenge but in a good

weight. it's about engaging your brain. —— about it. look at the obesity crisis we have, you have to be uncomfortable in the short—term to be comfortable in the long—term. naga has volunteered, tim and jane as well, to do gcse maths this year. a project ongoing. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm charlotte franks. motorcycle deaths on the capital's roads are still too high according to london assembly's transport committee. a quarter of people killed or seriously injured on our roads ride a motorbike. among the recommendations, they're calling on the mayor and tfl to allow motorcyclists to ride in all bus lanes, and to develop more advanced motorcycle safety training. activists who took over an empty building in central london to help house and feed homeless people have been told by a judge they must leave. they claim the building in great portland street has been vacant for more than five years, and they're housing more than 100

rough sleepers a night. the government says it's investing £1 billion to tackle rough sleeping. it's being hailed as airbnb for your car, car and away is a new parking scheme that's the first of it's kind in the country. found at gatwick airport, customers don't pay to leave their car there, instead it's cleaned and rented out to a stranger. the company says it has the relevant insurance cover but some experts are warning travellers to think carefully before they sign up. rather than just leaving it sitting there for a week, for the sake of a few extra miles on the clock it made sense to me to be earning while i was on holiday. and have you made some money this week? i've made my money back and then a little bit more, which is as much as you can hope for really. let's have a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tube this morning. on the trains, the service is suspended on greater anglia between clacton and colchester due to a landslip near great bentley. heathrow express and heathrow

connect services are suspended due to over running engineering works at heathrow. on the roads, in limehouse, there are westbound delays through the limehouse link tunnel due to emergency water work, which continues on the highway near glamis road in shadwell. there are westbound delays on the a20 sidcup bypass road from swanley towards sidcup following a collision at crittals corner. let's have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. hello, good morning. there was plenty of rain around last night, that rain will pull its way north—eastwards as we head through the morning, and for the afternoon we're talking about sunny spells and some showers. but it's a rather soggy morning rush—hour, certainly very wet underfoot, that rain will pull away, though, lasting longest towards parts of essex and hertfordshire. forafterfiognshoww . as we head through this evening,

there will be some clear spells for a time and then the cloud amounts will increase again and we'll see some outbreaks of showery rain as we head through tomorrow morning. not too chilly tonight, lows of six or seven degrees. again tomorrow, that early rain will clear to leave us with sunny spells and showers as we head through the afternoon. a big drop in temperature as we head through the weekend, we've got that chilly easterly wind coming back again, highs of only two by the time we get to sunday and the met office have issued a weather warning for sunday. so stay tuned. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. bye for now. hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and charlie stayt. we'll bring you the latest news and sport injust a moment. coming up this morning. the white house has backed britain's decision to expel 23 russian

diplomats in response to the nerve agent attack on a former spy and his daughter in salisbury 11 days ago. the explusions are just one of the measures thereasa may is putting in place after russia missed the deadline to explain what happened. she says there is "no alternative conclusion" than to believe they are to blame. last night, the us ambassador to the un said russia was to blame for the attack. let me make absolutely, the us stands in absolute solidarity with britain and believes russia was responsible for the attack on two people in the uk using military grade nerve agent weaponry. the government is to significantly increase funding for its military research laboratory at porton down. scientists there have already helped identify the nerve agent used in the salisbury attack. today, in his first major speech as defence secretary, gavin williamson will announce that porton down will receive an additional 48 million and that thousands of british troops are to be vaccinated against anthrax. evidence of micro—plastics have been

found in some major brands of bottled water, two of which are available in the uk. a study by orb media, a group of not for profit journalists, tested bottles from 11 countries and found particles of tiny fragments of plastics in almost all of them. the world health organization now says it will launch a review into the potential impacts of plastic on human health. scientists say that there is no evidence yet to suggest it is a cause for concern. ministers are being called on to introduce a faster phase—out of petrol and diesel cars currently set for 2040. the mps have also demanded a new clean air act, and say the motor industry should finance a clean airfund. the government says it'll publish its own proposals on air pollution later in the year. the consumer goods giant, unilever, is set to announce its moving its british headquarters to the netherlands later. the firm that makes

brands including persil, dove, and marmite, is expected say it wants to consolidate its main base in rotterdam, rather than using two sites. the move is seen as a major blow as the government tries to uphold britain's status as a centre for business after brexit. we will have the weather in ten minutes. some lovely daffodils. spring is almost in the air. minutes. some lovely daffodils. spring is almost in the airlj minutes. some lovely daffodils. spring is almost in the air. i am depressed about the snow this weekend. just enjoyed for the moment. —— enjoy it for the. tell us about chelsea and how they fared. the night of the nutmeg. the poor

goalkeeper. one of the greatest players ever put it between his legs twice. i suppose he is one of the best. it is not that shameful. yeah, but twice. there we go. through the legs. slow motion to hammer that home. 3—0 was the final score at the nou camp. manchester city in liverpool are the only sides left after spurs, united, and chelsea, all beaten. it was terrible to concede a goal after only two minutes. but after this, i think we tried to play football. for a long time, we dominated the game, and created the chances to score. the premier league's joint top scorer harry kane won't be named in gareth southgate's england squad for two friendlies which is announced today. that's after it was confirmed kane'll be out until next month with ankle ligament damage.

the tottenham striker now faces a battle to be fit for england at the summer's world cup in russia. he may return to full training just seven weeks before the tournament starts. on his twitter account, kane said he was "disappointed to be out until next month, but injuries are part of the game. will do everything i can to get back out there as soon as possible." mark hughes has been confirmed as southampton's new manager until the end of the season. the former saints player was sacked by stoke city injanuary but now takes charge on the south coast with southampton currently 17th, one place and one point above the relegation zone. great britain have lost to south korea in the curling at the paralympics. they could be out in

the next few hours. one more game against china in the round—robin stage. it's day three of the cheltenham festival but it'll be missing one racing's biggest stars. that's after a serious injury to jockey ruby walsh yesterday. he went to hospital with a suspected broken leg when he fell at the second last fence. he broke the same leg four months ago and had onlyjust made his return to racing. now he'll miss the rest of the festival, including friday's gold cup. but on a difficult day for the walsh family there was some success for ruby's sister, katy. she won on board the 25—1 shot relegate in the final race of the day. the big race of the day though, was the queen mother chase. it was billed as a straight fight between the british trained altior and irish horse douvan. but after douvan fell with four fences to jump, the evens favourite altior ridden by nico de boinville easily came home in the end.

let's return to our main story now. 23 russian diplomats considered to be undeclared spies will be packing their bags this morning after theresa may gave them seven days to leave the uk. it's part of a list of sanctions put in place after russia failed to explain why a nerve agent was used in an attack in salisbury 11 days ago. let's speak to the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, who is in our london newsroom. thank you for your time this morning. starting with some basics. we have not had a chance to ask anyone from the government in the past two days. a condition check. sergei skripal, his daughter, and sergeant nick baley. to be the best of my knowledge, both of the skripals are stable. what has happened to them is appalling. the brave police officer is himself still in hospital. i believe he is

responding to treatment. but it is a measure of the russian recklessness and brutality that they are willing to engage notjust the lives of the skripals and police officers, but anyone in the vicinity in salisbury. that is what has shocked and appalled not just this that is what has shocked and appalled notjust this country, but partners around the world supplied can you give us details this morning about who is supporting britain in their stands that russia was responsible? —— stance. i was heartened by the strength of the support from around the world. a very powerful statement of support from the white house, from nikki haley last night at the un, from across the european continent. voices have been raised in protest at what russia has done. there is very little doubting that this is a

signature act by the russian state deliberately using a nerve agent developed by russia, novichok, to punish a russian defector, as they would see it, and in the runup to the election in russia. there is global disgust. that is important. we will continue to make the case to friends and allies, that as a committee of nations, we need to stand up to russia. and you have said there is a unity over the questions marks over the evidence. that is not entirely true. look at the spokesman from president macron who said once the elements are proven, then the time will come for decisions to be made. the russians, of course, have asked for evidence. they are not the only ones. it is

not unreasonable, while being horrified at what happened in hearing what the government has dead,it hearing what the government has dead, it is possible to simultaneously say to you as foreign secretary, to theresa may, what is the direct evidence thinking what happened in salisbury to the kremlin? —— has said. happened in salisbury to the kremlin? -- has said. let's be clear. this was a former russian agent living in this country who had been singled out already by the russian state as an object for revenge and retaliation. vladimir putin was on the tv only recently saying such people deserve to be poisoned, to choke on their own 30 pieces of silver. secondly, it is the agent used, novichok, developed in russia during the cold war. russia is the only country known to have developed this type of age. i am afraid the evidence is

overwhelming that it was russia. —— agent. there is also something in the smug and sarcastic response that we have heard from the russians that to me betokens, indicates, their fundamental guilt. they want simultaneously to deny it and yet at the same time to glorify it. the reason they chose this nerve agent is to show it is russia and show people who might think in their agencies, services, of defecting, supporting another way of life, other values, to show russia will ta ke other values, to show russia will take revenge. that is fundamentally what this is about. at a time when russia is going in the wrong direction, becoming more oppressive, with the regime of vladimir putin becoming more corrupt, it is more important for him to slam down on

potential dissent and defectors. this is a way to say people look at what happens to people who stand up to our regime. the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons, they have offered to help, to get involved. talk us through that. will the british government give them a sample of what you have tested in orderfor them to sample of what you have tested in order for them to make a determination? yes, of course. i spoke a couple of days ago to the head of the office for the prohibition of chemical weapons. and we will be cooperating. that is how you do it. we will submit a sample so they can look at the novichok and make their own assessment. it is overwhelming evidence. in the statement by theresa may, she said high—level talks between the countries would not happen. how does that work? do you as foreign

secretary speak to your counterpart in russia from here on in, our policy on russia has not changed. we continue to have bilateral relationships and engage. there is a lot to beware of in how they behave. but as you may remember, i went to moscow in december because i figured that, you know, yes, things were very difficult with russia. it was myjob as the foreign secretary to talk, to do what we could to engage with the russians. that will continue. weather, of course, we are going to see sergey lavrov come to the united kingdom, i very much doubt it. certainly, he will not be invited. nor are we going to see high—level representation by this country at the world cup in moscow. on that issue... things are going to be... mayi.

on that issue... things are going to be... may i. leppings will be difficult for a while, but we should not cut off relations altogether to be in the dark as they of the cold war it was important for us to work together. —— in darkest days of the. new advice to people possibly travelling to the world cup. could you talk to us about that? and those who fear that regardless of the six steps theresa may has an ounce, nothing will make a difference to be on those two issues. —— announced. firstly, my advice to fans wanting to go to russia, look at the foreign office website, look at what we're saying about the risks you may face, but we're not changing our basic travel advice. on your question of will this make any difference, believe me, to kick out 23 undeclared agents is the biggest step this country has taken since the 1980s in our relations with moscow. it's a very serious

statement. it will do breda intelligence capabilities in this country for decades to come. it's the right thing to do. it's a measured, proportionate but robust response “— measured, proportionate but robust response —— it will do great. there are other things, like the prime minister announced in the house, that we can do and will do. in particular, what people want to see is some of the very rich people who are directly associated with vladimir putin. is very important, our croall is not with russia and the russian people, but with those people who are directly associated with vladimir putin whose wealth can be attributed to their relationship —— our quarrel. it may be the force of the law agencies, the police, will be able to put unexplained wealth orders on them, to bring them to justice for wealth orders on them, to bring them tojustice for their acts wealth orders on them, to bring them to justice for their acts of gross corruption, for anything that has prejudiced the rights, freedom, property of people in this country. mrjohnson, do you know yet what the

russians intend to do by way of a reaction? that's a matter for them. we believe what we have done is commensurate with what we have seen on the streets of salisbury. a nerve agent was used in a european country for the first time since the second world war, we believe the uk government has responded robustly, as the people of this country would expect us to respond. that should conclude the matter but the russians may think otherwise. foreign secretary, thank you very much for your time this morning. he gave us an update on the condition of sergei skripal and his daughter, saying it's now over 11 days, they are in a critical but sta ble days, they are in a critical but stable condition in hospital. matt is in gloucestershire for us this morning, and there are signs there that spring has finally sprung? look at you! good morning, louise, that's the

general story for the rest of the week but good morning from batsford arboretum, next to moreton in marsh in the cotswolds, beautiful 60 acre site of woodland, parkland and of course beautiful spring colour, we thought we would put spring colour into an otherwise dull morning. if you look at the forecast for the rest of the week, we've hinted things will turn colder with a bit of snow by the weekend but for the next few days there will be showers, even longer spells of rain, some of the wettest conditions today. the big picture, rain band extending from northern ireland to east anglia, to the south of that we will see the sky is brightening and to the north of it, if you start dry there's a chance of rain. the far north of scotland will have sunny spells, but most places staying dry, rain edging to the south—west of scotla nd scotland through the rush—hour. surface water flooding in scotland through the rush—hour. surface waterflooding in northern ireland thanks to the rain for the past 24 hours, and lots of puddles around northern england, north

wales, north midlands and east anglia, where the rain continues to be heavy and persistent. to the south of the midlands, south wales and southern england counties, things turning dry in the next few hours, a few showers in the south—west. after a murky few hours, the skies will brighten, a bit of sunshine but the showers in the south—west could be heavy and thundery and push north and east. inbetweener, much more sunshine. slowly brightening up this afternoon in northern ireland and north—west england, and east anglia, but the north—east of england and eastern scotland, cloudy and wet in the afternoon, snow in the grampians —— in between. still mild where you have the sunshine. rain continues to fall in eastern scotland and north—east england, with some snow over the hills. a few showers in the south, clear skies in between, during those clearer moments with lighter winds we could see mist and fog forming but by and large should bea fog forming but by and large should be a frost free start to friday for just about all. as for friday, northern ireland will have a better day, parts of western scotland

seeing brightness but bought used in scotla nd seeing brightness but bought used in scotland and north—east england, still cloudy, strong the gale force winds continuing with snow in the hills. —— but for eastern scotland. temperatures still holding up in the south. what you will notice is a big drop across the country as we go into saturday morning. you will wake up into saturday morning. you will wake up to into saturday morning. you will wake uptoa into saturday morning. you will wake up to a noticeable chill, cold easterly wind from the north sea. snow flurries later on in eastern parts of england but many on saturday will have a dry day with occasional glimpses of sunshine but note those temperatures, barely above freezing in many parts. ad on the effect of the wind and it will feel subzero, and it represents probably around a 10 degrees drop in temperature compared to what some will see on friday and the cold conditions continue on sunday with the risk of snow in southern parts of england in particular. another update in half an hour. back to

louise and charlie. i've been watching you for the last 2.5 minutes, seriously, most people cannot crouch down like that for that length of time. i'm seriously impressed. it might take me three hours to get up now, though, louise. i love the fact that you're not moving! i want to stay with him for a moment. talking about going to the cinema, ben? cine world, one of the biggest chains, has its results out today. profits are up. the third year in a row more have gone to the cinema but is all well in the world of blockbusters? cine world, the second largest operator in the uk with 80, 800 screens, and we spent £1.2 billion going to the pictures last year, the third increase in a row. ticket prices have more than doubled over the past decade. why are we still willing to spend on that big—screen

experience? we asked these visitors at the savoy cinema in stockport. this is a lovely cinemas. it's great to have it here on our doorstep. i brought my children here when they were young. come to the cinema once a week for the special showings, you know, on the special showings, you know, on the wednesday. i come about three times a month. some places are expensive but definitely here i have a family membership with my family so it makes it a lot cheaper, and being a student as well you get that student discount. i think going to the cinema is reasonably priced compared with going for a drink, going for a meal. the owner of the cinema is tony mundin, and you own a couple of others, we are still willing to pay for that experience even though ticket prices have gone up, is that what you see? people like the big—screen experience, there's no way to replicate that anywhere else, and we are content driven and there are great films out there. what

makes a good season, what will get people through the doors? it's a mixture, we want a film that appeals to everyone, a young audience, family audience and those looking for more edgy and challenging films. you have to pay muggy to the film companies to put them on, when you decide what you're going to show, what do you think about? variety is key, we want to offer something that will appeal to a wide audience and that's important when we make our decisions about drugrunning. netflix and amazon video and other streaming services, lots of people said that would be the demise of cinemas. —— programming. but it hasn't happened ? netflix are our allies, they're getting people to continue watching films and while they have an appetite for films, cinema will play appetite for films, cinema will play a part in film watching habits. when you're looking at getting in new audiences, is itjust about its films and family films? we have seen

in television it's about getting everybody around the television, does that work in cinemas too?m does, we need the younger audience into keep cinemas going so we had an initiative from the bfi to encourage that and we want to introduce them to films not necessarily on their radar. there are franchises and what they naturally look at but we want to drive them to see other films. let's talk about ticket prices, it's a bit ofa let's talk about ticket prices, it's a bit of a bugbear, they have more than doubled in the past decade, why is it so expensive? people want cinemas in prime retail locations, the most expensive land in the country, business rates have gone up and that's why ticket prices have gone up. food and drink, one of the biggest things you make money on, is it so expensive, is it a way to make up it so expensive, is it a way to make up the ticket price? it's part of the business plan, there's no doubt, but the great thing is that food and drink offering is improving at all

cinemas. we offer craft beers, fine wines and home—made cakes. what's not to love? can i all can i not bring my own food and ring into the cinema? it's a bit like taking your own desert to a fine restaurant. that's a good way of looking at it. i like that. tony mundin, the owner of three cinemas, nice to see you. did you ask that because we know someone who does it?|j did you ask that because we know someone who does it? i may have been known to do that on occasion. what have you taken in? nothing smelly, nothing noisy, those are the two rules for cinemas. thank you. yes, i have taken a sandwich in. often!” have taken a sandwich in. often!” have done it! good classrooms throughout the uk are being transformed into newsrooms today for the bbc‘s school report news day. to coincide a game has been launched that challenges young people to spot fake news. breakfast‘s john maguire is in bristol with some of the students who helped to develop the interactive website. that is a really good skill, if we

could spot a fake story, that's important? absolutely essential because there is so much around today. we are at the city bristol college, some of these media stu d e nts college, some of these media students have been involved in creating this game in associating with our cannons, famous for wallace and gromit. well and simon, you understand the media because you have to get out of bed at dark o'clock, how does the game work? you play as a bbc character, it is his first day working at the bbc and you have to decipher through real news, fa ke have to decipher through real news, fake news, what to post and what not to post. is it good fun, there's a bit of humour? it's great fun and it is educational as well, which is good. let's hope so. simon, the whole concept of great news, you quys whole concept of great news, you guys as a generation are more familiar with social media and digital platforms now. how important an issue do you think it is? it is

so an issue do you think it is? it is so important for me because i'm in the process of making fracture reduction so it makes you think about however then news they has to be checked out and making sure you're not saying the wrong things because the things you say can impact on people's actions. thanks very much, both. laterwe impact on people's actions. thanks very much, both. later we will give you a run through the game, this isn't fake news, this is squeezed news, we haven't got much time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm charlotte franks. motorcycle deaths on the capital's roads are still too high according to london assembly's transport committee. a quarter of people killed or seriously injured on our roads ride a motorbike. among the recommendations, they're calling on the mayor and tfl to allow motorcyclists to ride in all bus lanes, and to develop more advanced motorcycle safety training. activists who took over an empty building in central london to help house and feed homeless people have

been told by a judge they must leave. they claim the building in great portland street has been vacant for more than five years, and they're housing more than 100 rough sleepers a night. the government says it's investing £1 billion to tackle homelessness. it's being hailed as airbnb for your car, car and away is a new parking scheme that's the first of it's kind in the country. found at gatwick airport, customers don't pay to leave their car there, instead it's cleaned and rented out to a stranger. the company says it has the relevant insurance cover but some experts are warning travellers to think carefully before they sign up. rather than just leaving it sitting there for a week, for the sake of a few extra miles on the clock it made sense to me to be earning while i was on holiday. and have you made some money this week? i've made my money back and then a little bit more, which is as much as you can hope for really. let's have a look at the travel situation now.

there's a good service on the tube this morning. on the trains, the service is suspended on greater anglia between clacton and colchester due to a landslip near great bentley. heathrow express and heathrow connect services are suspended due to over running engineering works at heathrow. on the roads, northbound traffic on the blackwall tunnel southern approach is slow from the sun in the sands at blackheath. and in westminster, great george street is blocked between storey‘s gate and birdcage walk following a collision to the west of parliament square. let's have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. hello, good morning. there was plenty of rain around last night, that rain will pull its way north—eastwards as we head through the morning, and for the afternoon we're talking about sunny spells and some showers. but it's a rather soggy morning rush—hour, certainly very wet underfoot, that rain will pull away, though, lasting longest towards parts of essex and hertfordshire. some breaks in the cloud developing, sunny spells but watch out for afternoon showers too, some of those showers could have a rumble or two of thunder. top temperatures, between 11 and maybe as high as 13.

as we head through this evening, there will be some clear spells for a time and then the cloud amounts will increase again and we'll see some outbreaks of showery rain as we head through tomorrow morning. not too chilly tonight, lows of six or seven degrees. again tomorrow, that early rain will clear to leave us with sunny spells and showers as we head through the afternoon. a big drop in temperature as we head through the weekend, we've got that chilly easterly wind coming back again, highs of only two by the time we get to sunday and the met office have issued a weather warning for sunday. so stay tuned. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. now, though, it's back to charlie and louise. bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with louise minchin and charlie stayt. it is russia's crime — the usjoins britain in blaming moscow for last week's nerve agent attack. at the united nations, its ambassador demands action after britain expels 23 russian officials. the kremlin again denies any involvement in the salisbury attack.

but the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, tells this programme the evidence is overwhelming. it isa it is a measure of the russian recklessness and brutality that they are willing to endanger notjust the lives of the skripals and a police officer that anybody who happen to be in the vicinity in salisbury. good morning, it's thursday, 15th march. also this morning... what's in our bottled water? the world health organization investigates after tests on major brands find nearly all of them contain tiny particles of plastic. good morning. the consumer goods giant unilever is set to announce its moving its british headquarters to the netherlands.

it says it wants to simplify the business. the move will be a blow to downing street — it's been in talks to avert the move. i'll have the details and look at the impact on jobs shortly. it would be £1.05, i think? when it comes to sounds, are you top of the class or at the back of the queue? a messy masterclass for chelsea, knocked out of the champions league after losing 3—0 on the night in barcelona. and the weather. we cannot hear what he is saying, but we can look at the scenery, lovely. getting colder towards the end of the week. that is pretty much what he is say. more details in 15 minutes. good morning. back to the main story this morning. the white house has backed britain's decision to expel 23 russian

diplomats in response to the nerve agent attack on a former spy and his daughter in salisbury last week. the explusions are just one of the measures theresa may is putting in place after russia missed the deadline to explain what had happened. the diplomats, who are considered to be undisclosed spies, have seven days to leave. all high—level contact between the uk and russia is also being suspended. no minister of member of the royal family will go to the world cup. and russian state assets could be frozen, with new laws to crack down on hostile states. earlier borisjohnson told us the evidence against russia was overwhelming. i'm afraid that evidence is overwhelming that it is russia and there is something, by the way, in the kind of smug, sarcastic response that we have heard from the russians that to me indicates the fundamental guilt. they want to simultaneously deny it

and yet at the same time glory in it. the reason they have chosen this nerve agent is to show it is russia and to show people who might think in their agencies, in their services, of defecting or supporting another way of life, in believing an alternative set of values, to show that russia will take revenge, that is fundamentally what this is about. let's get some reaction from our political correspondent, eleanor garnier, in westminster. iam about i am about to cough. give us your reaction to what borisjohnson has said. more strong language from the government this morning after what theresa may said yesterday in the house of commons. the government believes it has taken decisive action in the sanctions announced by theresa may yesterday. all designed to defend western values, deter another attack and punish russian aggression. we heard the foreign

secretary talking this morning of recklessness and brutality. what was interesting was that the prime minister won lots of support from across the commons, labour mps, the lib dems and the snp, all lining up to support theresa may's statement and to condemn the actions of russia. what was interesting was the labour leader prompted anger from some of his own mps as he appeared to question the evidence against russia, that is in complete contrast to what some of his own mps believe now we have got a string of them urging him to be stronger in his condemnation of russia. the government is prepared, there may be further retaliation the russian side, but what form that might come m, side, but what form that might come in, it is clear this confrontation between the uk and russia is nowhere near towards the end. for the moment, thank you. let us speak to

richard galpin in moscow. give us a sense of the reaction there from russia. overnight, the determinations, the un, among other things. yes, actually, there is the briefing note from the foreign ministry spokeswoman and she has already described what britain has done as insane, again, very strong language. yesterday, she was really very critical of the foreign office in britain, saying the diplomats have no idea about professionalism, diplomacy and international law and that they are simply liars. it is really upping the ante. very strong words from the foreign ministry and of course in the state—controlled russian tv channels, they are talking about anti—russian hysteria

in britain. richard, for the moment, thank you. in related news... the government is to significantly increase funding for its military research laboratory at porton down. scientists there have already helped identify the nerve agent used in the salisbury attack. today, in his first major speech as defence secretary, gavin williamson will announce that porton down will receive an additional £48 million and that thousands of british troops are to be vaccinated against anthrax. evidence of microplastics have been found in some major brands of bottled water, two of which are available in the uk. a study by orb media, a group of not—for—profitjournalists, tested bottles from 11 countries and found particles of tiny fragments of plastics in almost all of them. the world health organization now says it will launch a review into the potential impacts of plastic on human health. scientists say that there is no evidence yet to suggest it is a cause for concern. the companies involved say they stand by the safety of their products.

earlier on breakfast we spoke to the coordinator of water and sanitation for the world health organization who told us we need to know what plastics can do to the human body. this is bottled water story but it is likely to plastics are coming from many packaged goods and in many parts of the environment, they are influencing us. now we have more analytical techniques, when we test, we are finding it. the question is how it is arriving in terms of ingestion, exposure, and understanding what happens in body. the brexit secretary, david davis, has said he's prepared to accept the eu's offer of a shortened transition period, after the uk leaves the european union in march, 2019. he said he would agree to a call for the transition to end in december, 2020, if that helped to secure a deal at next week's eu summit. the use of food and medical supplies asa the use of food and medical supplies as a weapon of war by the syrian

regime has been described as utterly apparent. in a joint statement to mark the seven years of conflict, the foreign secretary borisjohnson and the international development secretary penny mordaunt branded the war as one of the longest and bloodiest in recent history —— utterly abhorrent. a phase—out of diesel cars has been set for 2040. they are demanding a new clea n set for 2040. they are demanding a new clean air act. the government says it will publish its own proposals on air pollution later this year. here is roger harrabin. the air in many of britain's cities is officially unfit to breathe. and the mps are angry that, despite a series of court cases, the government hasn't cleaned it up. the young are particularly at risk, and the mps' report has drawn support from un children's organisation, unicef, which says that britain's children deserve to breathe clean air. the government aims to end the sales of diesel and petrol only vehicles by 2040, but the mps say that is inadequate.

india will do it ten years earlier. they say government must work with local councils to stop pollution—related deaths. this really needs to be stamped out. we need to improve it. and that's why the whole report talked about bringing government, local authorities together, so we can work across, notjust here in london, but across the whole country. the government says it's looking beyond cars to smokeless fuel and wood stoves in its strategy, due later in the year. roger harrabin, bbc news. in the last half an hour, unilever has confirmed it has chosen rotterdam over london for its corporate headquarters. take us through it, there was an announcement, more detail. information we were waiting for this morning. a significant announcement, unilever is huge, if you will certainly know its brands,

everything from marmite, personal, all the brands we use, dove, and it currently has headquarters in london and rotterdam, but now it is going to consolidate into one in rotterdam. it is significant not because of jobs, they rotterdam. it is significant not because ofjobs, they are keen to stress we will not see thousands of jobs moved as a result, but it is significant because of the debate around brexit. the company is very keen to point out it is not based on brexit, it is a decision based on simplifying the business. this time last year it was subject to a ta keover offer last year it was subject to a takeover offer from an american firm kraft and it wanted to get rid of the offer and it says by simplifying the business it is in a better position to defend itself. what aboutjobs? position to defend itself. what about jobs? they employ 7500 staff in the uk. the company says those jobs will not be moving to rotterdam. it will consolidate the business here when it does research and development so those jobs will

remain here, this is moving their hq. remain here, this is moving their hq, so that might mean ten jobs remain here, this is moving their hq, so that might mean tenjobs go overseas. we have had a statement from the government, they have been in talks with unilever about keeping the base here, they say unilever has shown its long—term commitment to the uk by leaving the 7500 jobs here, £1 billion every year on investment. the company says it is not connected to the uk's departure from the eu but given the political sensitivity around brexit, many people will see the headline and expect it to be brexit, the firm says it is not. many of you getting in touch about this next story, about working on a free trial shift. it's not unusual for an employer to ask to see you in action for a few hours before they offer you thejob. but when does that cross the line and become exploitation? the trade union unite says it's a growing issue and that they are contacted between 15 to 20 times a week from people who have done unpaid trial shifts. tomorrow, an mp is hoping to push a bill through parliament which would ban

these shifts completely. here's our business and consumer correspondent, nina warhurst. if you cook a steak, pull a pint, load a dishwasher, when is a trial not a trial? at this edinburgh pub, staff are always paid for their labour, but when megan worked a free shift for a restaurant, she says she effectively was staff, the same as at a creche, where at times she was left alone with children. on both occasions, hard work for more than five hours for no money. ijust feel like i was taken advantage of because i was obviously a lot younger and i think theyjust saw someone that wasn't going to say anything. why didn't you say, "hang on, i've worked a shift here, i should be paid"? they did say on both occasions if you didn't go ahead with the unpaid shift, then the application wouldn't go any further. i felt ijust had to do it. some mps say the law must change. that unpaid shifts have exploited workers for too long. and tomorrow's bill could make that practice illegal. people are being asked to try out

for a job that doesn't even exist, companies are trying to cover staff absences in other parts of the business. so this is about ending that exploitation, empowering applicants and making sure when people are going for a job, there is dignity right from the application process through to starting the job in the first place. there's nothing illegal about being asked to work a trial shift, as long as it truly is a trial, and the difficulty comes if you need to prove you crossed that line into working as an employee. lots of employers argue that trial shifts are the most effective way of finding out whether a job is the right fit for both parties. smaller businesses in particular have to be careful not to overspend on recruitment. small businesses can sometimes be reticent about hiring or even looking to expand headcount when the work is there because they worry about making the wrong decision. so the more we can do to make sure we're hiring the right people, the better.

you just need to be very careful that that doesn't cross into what's exploitative. and here it gets tricky, because unpaid work is theoretically voluntary, does that mean legally it is hard to prove that you should be paid? there's a perception that legally this is a grey area, is ita grey area? what is illegal is to ask someone to come in, give up their time, provide services, provide revenue potentially for an employer and not pay them at least the minimum wage if they're under 25, or the national living wage if they're 25 and above. as far as you're concerned there isn't a grey area? exactly, i wouldn't say there is a grey area, it's as simple as that. but when something's culturally ingrained it is hard to be the first to make a change, and tomorrow parliament will decide whether to deliver a shift in the law that would force that change for good. a really interesting subject. a lot

of people have been in touch. nina warhurstjoins us now. vicky says her daughter did a full six—hour trial shift as an italian restau ra nt six—hour trial shift as an italian restaurant and they didn't even call her back. she won't ever eat the hague. louise says she did an underpaid trial at a supermarket, and was told there wasn't a position available. she was on a waiting list and nojob available. she was on a waiting list and no job materialised available. she was on a waiting list and nojob materialised within available. she was on a waiting list and no job materialised within a year. it is commonplace. is there a line between doing a trial shift where they are genuinely looking at you and doing work? it's so hard to prove because the supermarket could say, we thought there was a job but it didn't come up and it was filled by somebody else. it's tricky to proved you have been used to fill a gap in the roster. the government has said it is illegalfor gap in the roster. the government has said it is illegal for extensive periods of time when it has no job at the end of it, but what is an excessive period of time? five

hours, 12 hours, one week, one month? we spoke to people who did four weeks at a cafe and got no payment and there was no job at the end of it. we have lots of people we have spoken to come you don't be daunted stick out your neck and say it's not right because you feel vulnerable. you want the job and think it willjeopardise your chances of getting the role if you complain. is it unreasonable for somebody to say, i want to see how you operate and if you are ok with everything, is that unfair? this is what the federation of small businesses are saying. you could pay them anyway, but with some small businesses, their profit margins are tiny and perhaps they can't afford to outlay that amount of money to trial every person who comes through the doors. if you're somebody who has been asked to do a trial shift, any sort of unpaid work, the advice is to make sure you stipulate in advance exactly how long the trials of pool b, and if you are not

co mforta ble, of pool b, and if you are not comfortable, say something. miranda says, any employer who says you have to do says, any employer who says you have todoa says, any employer who says you have to do a free trial shift if you want thejob, is showing to do a free trial shift if you want the job, is showing they will be a bad employer when you get the job. they will always exploited from then on. not a great start. matt is in gloucesterhire with a look at this morning's weather. it's so lovely that he says he will sing later on. charlie is not making me do anything! we are just outside moreton in marsh in the cotswolds. it's an atmospheric morning, the mist has descended. it's damp, but the wild flowers, mist has descended. it's damp, but the wildflowers, spring flowers, enduring boosted temperatures and rain. taking a look at the forecast for the rest of the week, some colder weather on the way by the time we hit the weekend, but to get there we have a lot of wet weather to come, particularly today. some of the heaviest of the rain extends across east anglia and the midlands,

parts of wales and northern ireland. it will continue to edge northwards. i think the rest of the rush—hour will stay dry with some sunshine to the north but already starting to rain towards the south—west. lots of surface water around in northern ireland after 24 hours of rain and big puddles if you are on yourjuri ide across northern england, wales, the midlands and east anglia. the further south ago, the raid is easing off and sunshine is breaking out in devon and cornwall. but we will see sunshine developed in the coming hours and during day. breitling skies across the south, sunshine and lighter winds. we will see thunderstorms developing the far south—west of the country. east anglia and northern england, most of northern england and ireland should brighten up, most of england's staying cloudy and wet. it will turn a bit wintry over the hills. temperatures today ranging from 6 degrees in aberdeen to 12 in

plymouth. feeling pleasant enough for the time of year when the sun is out but it will change over the next few days. into tonight, we still have mild weather and outbreaks of rain across eastern scotland and snow over the hills. further rain towards the north—east of england. head of that, many of us dry spells and a few showers across the south and a few showers across the south and largely frost free into tomorrow morning. the greater chance of frost across the far north of scotland. it could be misty and murky to start friday morning. wet and windy, as it will be today across parts of scotla nd will be today across parts of scotland and northern england, touching gale force at times. snow over the hills. away from that, brighter skies developing. the best of the sunshine will be in the south but more showers than we will see this afternoon and thunderstorms possible. temperatures still getting into double figures, if not below teens for one or two. the big change on friday night into saturday, where you will wake up to a cold easterly wind, a real bite to it. many places

dry, a bit of cloud and sunshine. snow flurries arriving across eastern england. not disruptive at this stage, but look at the temperatures, across the uk, it's only a few degrees above freezing, but a real wind—chill. snowflakes on saturday night into sunday, particularly across england and wales. i will have another update in half an hour. the un overnight, the us giving the uk its full backing saying the nerve agent attack is russia's faltering. let's speak now to the former national security advisor, lord ricketts. we have spoken to borisjohnson on the programme who described it as reckless and brutal, this attack. it has heightened the language, but what difference does it make in the real world ? what difference does it make in the real world? in what difference does it make in the realworld? in the uk what difference does it make in the real world? in the uk we what difference does it make in the realworld? in the uk we have what difference does it make in the real world? in the uk we have taken a first set of measures, i thought

it was a good, strong and clear set of measures from the prime minister yesterday. the key thing now is, can we extend that and have allies and friends around the world recognise it's not just friends around the world recognise it's notjust a localised russia and uk problem, it's a problem for all countries, that russia should choose to use chemical weapons in a country town in england, is a national security issue for other countries. i thought nicky hayley, us ambassador to the security council nailed it last night, and made it clear. i think the russians have miscalculated this. they might have thought they could keep at a local issue, but it is international and global. they have been called out and the next stage is strengthened international support. boris johnson said he was heartened by the scope of support. you think the words are a good sign. what about action? is that necessary as well? of course. we have taken action, notjust

expulsions, but going after an awful lot of russian money in london, some of it from people with pretty bad track records. that should worry the russians. the question is, what more can we do overtime? friends and allies will want to look at the evidence we present, but in nato, we have a summit coming up in a couple of months and i think people will have to calculate, can we go on dealing with russia as if it's a serious and responsible country, if it behaves like this? and if not, what are the consequences in terms of the nato approach to handling russia. you have so much expertise in all of this, what about consequences from the russian point of view, because they are not likely to not retaliate. yes, we are seeing an angry, dismissive and sarcastic reaction from the russians who will no doubt retaliate by expelling some british diplomats from moscow. but i think they have miscalculated. i think they have miscalculated. i think they have miscalculated. i think the tone we are hearing from

moscow, as your correspondence, sounds defensive. i think they have been caught on the hop by the strength of international reaction to this and the recognition this is far beyond what is acceptable not just to the uk but countries. they will throw all their rhetoric and social media action against it, but i think underlying it, they have made a major miscalculation. that's very interesting. what went wrong, is it the fact that we know what it is, we seem to know this was russia? well, yes, first of all, they have done something with a chemical agent which leaves pretty clear fingerprints. we are told its russians that invented this terrible substance. we know it's russians that invented this terrible substance. we know its former russian citizen it has been used against. all the circumstantial evidence is very strong. whether the people who thought it was a great idea to do this calculated it would get out in this way, i don't know. maybe they calculated it would send a signal that russia would reach out

after traitors wherever they are, but i think it has backfired and i think there will be a strong international reaction to this. i think over time countries will recognise that they can't go on russia the way they did before and hopefully therefore russia will not do this again and we can go back to working with russia as a serious and responsible member of the united nations. from what you say, it could lead to a de—escalation of what has happened. i think we have to strap infora bumpy happened. i think we have to strap in for a bumpy ride in the next few months, because the whole russian approach will be truculent and angry, of course. president putin has an election coming up next week. perhaps that isn't relevant but over time the russians have to work out, do they want to be treated as a serious member of the un security council and g20 group of countries? in which case i think they have to behave differently. we have to now go on from this and call out manipulation of our media, social media, the role of russian television, for example and we have

to be alert to the russians trying to be alert to the russians trying to manipulate our public opinion. fascinating to hear your insight, lord rickett ‘s, former national security adviser. and it is kind of connected to the next story. the problem is media has generally, and is included, in determining what stories are fake, and things that are true and false and how they played with in the media. as part of the bbc‘s annual school report breakfast‘s john maguire is looking at an interactive game that challenges young people to spot what is real and what is false. good morning. good morning to you both. there couldn't be a better time to talk about this on the bbc school report today. 30,000 students will take part today, including stu d e nts will take part today, including students up to the age of 18 for the first time. we are at bristol couege first time. we are at bristol college to talk two a couple of stu d e nts college to talk two a couple of students who have been involved in the creation of the game in

coordination with aardman. you go through step—by—step to decide what to post and what not to. you have been bombarded by e—mails. it's your first day so you have to make a good impression. you are acting as a bbc reporter. exactly. you want to improve your potential as you progress through the game. it's online, everybody can have a go and access it through the bbc website. georgia, this whole issue of fake news. you are a media student so how aware of it are you at how troubling do you find it? we are making manufacturing products as part of our project and we have to triple and quadruple checked all our sources. if we put out fake news and information, it makes other people liable. it can create bad problems for other people if we don't check. it warms my heart to hear young people say they will check their

facts quadruple. admirable stuff. more from slater after the local news. more rain to come for northern ireland this afternoon, pushing north and east. the far north—east of scotla nd north and east. the far north—east of scotland staying just about dry but very windy, strong winds down the north coast of england. still mild in the south, cooler further north, especially when exposed to the wind. staying on the overnight with further rain for northern england and scotland, snow over higher ground. showery rain coming into southern and south—west england and wales. further outbreaks of rain tomorrow mainly across central and northern parts of england, snow perhaps over higher ground of northern england and scotland, down to lower levels later in the day, sunny spells and showers behind this, some heavy and maybe thundery. hanging on to mild conditionsjust about for england and wales. everywhere turns much colder by the weekend. this is business live from bbc news

with rachel home and david eades. leaving london — consumer goods giant unilever says it's moving to a single headquarters in the netherlands. live from london, that's our top story on thursday, 15th march. love it or hate it, the maker of marmite and dove soap says the decision wasn't made because of brexit but out of a need to simplify the business. also in the programme... counting on kudlow. us president donald trump brings in a tv commentator as a top economics advisor. on the markets, europe is open and