this is bbc news. the headlines at 3pm. russia expels 23 british diplomats from moscow, in the row over the nerve agent attack on a former russian spy. the prime minister incest russia must account for its actions —— the prime minister insists. we will never tolerate a threat to the life of british citizens and others on british soil from the russian government. police investigating the murder of a businessman in london have begun contacting other russian exiles in britain to discuss their personal safety. a man's been arrested on suspicion of murder after two women were shot dead at a house in st leonards in east sussex. the beast from the east makes a brief return — amber weather warnings are in place for large parts of the uk. also in the next hour. ireland are on the brink of a rugby grand slam. they need to beat england at twickenham. and in half an hour

here on bbc news — click looks at the future of work — and asks which jobs will go to the robots. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. russia says it will expel 23 british diplomats. the move is one of the measures in response to britain's decision to throw out the same number of russian officials, following the nerve agent attack in salisbury. theresa may says russia's response doesn't change the facts of what happened. our moscow correspondent sarah rainsford reports. moscow took its time to respond. three days after london announced the expulsion of russian diplomats, britain's ambassador here was summoned

to the foreign ministry. forced to end all activity here. targeting the british council will affect russian citizens, though, not their government. it helps stage british cultural events here and promotes language learning. its work was restricted, though, a decade ago after the last crisis over the poisoning of alexander litvinenko. now sergei skripal, anotherformer russian spy, has been poisoned, this time by a nerve agent. theresa may has blamed russia directly. the attempted assassination of two people on british soil, for which there was no alternative conclusion other than that the russian state was culpable. it is russia that is in flagrant breach of international law and the chemical weapons convention.

the response by the foreign ministry here in moscow is robust and it does go beyond the measures announced in the uk. given the mood and the language here in recent days, moscow might have gone even further. officials here call the poisoning in salisbury a provocation, and they say comments linking vladimir putin directly to attempted murder were unforgivable. but this row could yet escalate. moscow will continue to deny everything, and officials here warn that they are ready to impose further sanctions and match any moves made by the uk. sarah rainsford, bbc news, moscow. jeremy corbyn is in newcastle at the regional labour conference, from where he gave this reaction to the latest news from russia of the expulsions. we have to have relations with governments. therefore, there has to be a limit

to how far you go with that. clearly, there has to be a relationship where we can talk to the russian government. i challenge the russian government on human rights in russia, on lgbt rights, on chechnya and much of its foreign policy. does that mean we don't talk to them? absolutely not. we have to talk to them and assert all of those values. which we would do. borisjohnson yesterday named putin as being responsible. do you think it's wise for the foreign secretary to antagonise the russians by naming putin as the culprit? the basis of any assertion or allegation has to be based on evidence. i'd be very interested if the foreign secretary has evidence that wasn't revealed during the week by the prime minister in two statements to the house of commons. i think we need cool heads. we need people that are going to be serious about this and not shoot from the hip. earlier our news correspondent in moscow, richard galpin, told me that there is anger in russia over how britain is portraying what happened in salisbury. they are still denying

they had any involvement. they are saying that britain has not produced any evidence so there is real anger about that. historically, over the many years in which mr putin has been in power he has played this card of basically the west being strongly opposed to russia and trying to close it in and encircle it, and that works, it works for him and has done for quite a few years, he's running now for his fourth term. he knows the narrative works. people respond to that. they agree with what he says, and they do believe that they face a real problem from the west. mrs may was speaking earlier today. there's a lot of talk of taking further action. how is that perceived in russia? also, is the narrative of the west really being

mr putin and the country believed wholeheartedly? if there is further measures from britain, there is no doubt russia will respond in kind again. they have made that absolutely clear in their announcements today, following when they made the announcement about their retaliatory action. so absolutely, it will carry on. if britain goes further, which they have hinted they might, russia will respond. you could see the whole thing ratcheting up and already it is a febrile atmosphere between the countries — the relationship is absolutely at rock bottom. but at least they say they want to maintain some kind of relationship despite everything that has happened —

they don't want to break the relationship completely which is critical. because then it would leave a very precarious situation between the countries. our news correspondent kathryn stanczyszyn is outside the foreign office in london. richard mentioned the possibility of the next diplomatic moves, what is the next diplomatic moves, what is the possibility of those once the meeting takes place later this week with the government? the foreign office and the prime minister has spoken about the next apps and we will find out what they are after the national security meeting —— the next steps. the foreign office updated its advice to travellers to russia, saying anyone going there should be aware that because of the heightened political tensions between the uk and russia they may experience the anti—british

sentiment or even harassment, the foreign office was quick to put out a statement after the news of the russian sanctions against british diplomats. it basically said that whatever russia has done today, the fa ct whatever russia has done today, the fact remains the same, russia must a nswer fact remains the same, russia must answer for its actions and the attempted as a hash assassination —— the attempted assassination of the skripal per macro. —— skripals. the prime minister has said they don't wa nt to prime minister has said they don't want to cut off relations completely but they are thinking about the next apps. but they are thinking about the next apps, and that is whatjeremy corbyn is urging caution over. —— the next steps. we are expected to hear from vladimir putin later this week in response to the security council meeting taking place but also we have the elections taking place this

weekend. indeed. you heard richard talking about the outrage amongst some people in russia about how this is being portrayed. sarah also talking about how there is more career going on in russia about the way this is being portrayed —— there is mockery. it is a key time. we are not sure about the next steps, russia following that with great interest at the moment as well. thanks forjoining us. the russian embassy has tweeted pictures of the 23 diplomats who have been expelled. they are going to leave london on tuesday. russia's ambassador to the uk,

alexander ya kovenko expressed his gratitude to his colleagues for their work. meanwhile, the metropolitan police have appealed for anyone who saw sergei skipal‘s car on the morning sunday 4th of march to get in touch. they are trying to piece together the movements of the former spy on the day of the incident by tracing movements of the burgundy red bmw with the number plate hdo9 wao. our correspondent tom burridge is in salisbury. this is the next step in the investigation, what are the police looking for in terms of identifying this vehicle and who saw it and where they saw it? one of the key questions is where sergei skripal and yulia skripal came into contact with the nerve agent before they ended up on the bench on the 4th of march. the bench is now covered by the tarpaulin. we know the police from their activities and on the information they are giving now, they are interested in sergei skripal‘s vehicle. we have been given a new photo by the

metropolitan police of the maroon bmw. we had information the police we re bmw. we had information the police were keen to hear from anyone bmw. we had information the police were keen to hearfrom anyone in salisbury who saw the bmw between one and 145 in the city centre but they are now appealing for information from anyone who might have seen sergei skripal and yulia skripal early in the morning, they have named three main roads through salisbury, and those roadsjoin sergei skripal to the cemetery where his wife and son are barry will —— are buried. the police believe that sergei skripal went to visit the graves of his family. we have seen some decontamination work going on there. how much activity is actually

taking place in the area where you are now? at this spot where the benchis are now? at this spot where the bench is there has been little activity today but there has been small movements of emergency services, at the house and the cemetery, and we saw significant activity yesterday, that was probably the busiest day in terms of police and emergency services activity this week, we saw a lot of activity this week, we saw a lot of activity in the garage where sergei skripal‘s car was towed in the early hours after they fell critically ill and the car was moved away from there by military personnel, trained in dealing with chemical weapons. they moved the car into a metal container and it has been taken away. what is also crucial, the fact downing street have said a few days ago they wrote to the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons, an international body based

in the hague, and downing street said eight delegation from the international body should come to wiltshire soon to porton down to the ministry of defence's research facility where there is a sample of the nerve agent of the idea being the nerve agent of the idea being the independent body will do its own test and verify what the nerve agent is and decide whether they agree with scientists at porton down that it was a chemical which belongs to this group of nerve agents called novichok which was developed by russia in the 80s and 90s and in theory russia were supposed to have destroyed their stockpile of chemicals and in fact have never even existed that that stockpile of novichok existed. thanks forjoining us. police have launched a murder investigation after two women were shot and killed at a house in east sussex. officers responded to reports of a shooting at an address in st leonards on sea last night.

two other women — including one who is pregnant — were taken to hospital suffering from shock. a 35 year—old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder. temporary chief superintendent jason taylor — divisional commander for east sussex police — made the following statement. i would like to begin by saying our thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims who tragically died following a shooting ata tragically died following a shooting at a house in bexhill road st leonards last at a house in bexhill road st leona rds last night. at a house in bexhill road st leonards last night. officers responded immediately to a reporting ofa responded immediately to a reporting of a shooting shortly before 745 pm. two women died at the scene. two others who were also at the house we re others who were also at the house were led to safety by police officers and were taken to hospital for shock. they are being supported by specially trained officers. a 35—year—old man who was known to the victim ‘s was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody where he remains, and a firearm has been recovered. officers and staff from the major incident team are leading the investigation supported

by local policing teams, and we are not looking for anyone else in connection with the murders but are appealing for witnesses to contact us appealing for witnesses to contact us by ringing 101 and quoting operation wenlock. the headlines on bbc news: britain's ambassador is summoned to the foreign ministry as russia announce they will expel 23 british diplomats amid tensions over the nerve agent attack in salisbury. a man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after two women were shot dead at a house in st leonards in east sussex. forecasters say snow could cause problems in large parts of the uk this weekend. an amber weather warning is due to come into force this afternoon. six nations champions ireland are taking on england and the irish have a 14-0 taking on england and the irish have a 14—0 lead after 25 minutes as they aim forthe grand a 14—0 lead after 25 minutes as they aim for the grand slam. earlier a

penalty from greg laidlaw with one minute ago gave scotland a 29—27 victory over italy which denied italy their first six nations victory since 2015. christian eriksen fired tottenham into the fa cup semifinals, soaring >> studio: —— scoring twice as they beat swa nsea —— scoring twice as they beat swansea 3—0 will stop i will have more later on. an amber weather warning is due to come into force this afternoon in north west england, yorkshire and the midlands and also london and parts of south east england. more snow has fallen across parts of the uk overnight as a cold snap dubbed the "mini beast from the east" sweeps in. more than 100 flights have been cancelled at heathrow, mostly on short—haul routes. earlier i spoke to our reporter in huddersfield in west yorkshire about the weather conditions. the snow has been coming down in flurries, some

of them quite heavy. we have another one coming in now, the snow is lying on high ground. but we are being warned this is just the beginning and the conditions are going to get worse through the afternoon into tonight and into tomorrow morning. the amber weather warnings mean many places will get about three centimetres of snow but over the hills that could be 10—15 centimetres and that will come with very strong winds. gusts of up to 70mph predicted later and that is what could cause problems, blizzard conditions possible in places, also drifting snow. we are seeing the weather causing problems already this afternoon. there was a st patrick's day celebration in sheffield which was cancelled and the boat race happening in newcastle this afternoon was also called off because of concerns about the wind. highways england is advising drivers to take extra care. if you have a journey to make, leave extra time to do it, and here in west yorkshire people

are being asked to avoid the roads, and there are already closures amongst the high roads of the pennines. many councils have got the gritters out preparing for what is to come. you mentioned the flight cancellations at heathrow, that is so the planes can be de—iced as a precaution. some good news, this cold snap should not last as long as the last one, this is more the mini beast from the east. and by tuesday we should see temperatures getting back to average for this time of year. but the bad news, those weather warnings mean before it gets better, it will get worse for some of us. the former fbi deputy director, andrew mccabe, has accused the trump administration of acting with political malice after he was fired just days before he was due to retire. an internal review said that mr mccabe leaked information and misled investigators, claims he has denied. president trump called his sacking a great day for democracy. our washington correspondent,

chris buckler, reports. as deputy director, andrew mccabe was heavily involved in some of the fbi's most controversial and politically contentious investigations. and it's one of those inquiries that's led to his dismissal. in 2016, as hillary clinton was running for president, she was being investigated because of questions about e—mails she received on a private server when she was the us secretary of state. mr mccabe authorised information to be given to the media, something the department ofjustice said he was not entitled to do. and an internal fbi investigation found he had not been completely honest when asked about it. firing him, the us attorney generaljeff sessions said: but andrew mccabe says he has been

sacked for political reasons, and he claims that president trump brought much of that pressure. in a lengthy statement, he accused the white house of declaring a war on both the fbi and the special counsel's investigation into allegations of russian interference in the election two years ago. it's less than a year since his boss, the former fbi directorjames comey, was fired by president trump. and mr mccabe claims what he witnessed event was another reason for his dismissal. andrew mccabe had served more than 20 years in the fbi, butjust over 24 hours before his retirement and his 50th birthday, he has been sacked in the full glare of publicity. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. the number of hospital admissions due to older people falling is expected to rise to nearly 1000 a day by the end of the decade. that's according to figures obtained by the local government association. it's prompted calls for more funding for adult social care.

marta newman reports. falling over can have a huge impact on older people, as well as adult social care and health services. it is a common but often overlooked cause of injury. it can lead to considerable distress, pain, a loss of independence and even death. nhs figures show around 300,000 people aged 65 and over were admitted to hospital last year due to falling. the number of fall—related hospital admissions is rising year—on—year, and it is expected that by 2021 there will be nearly 1000 new cases every day. around one in five falls are caused by slipping, tripping or stumbling. the local government association says it costs the nhs more than £2 billion per year. the lga, which represents 370 councils in england and wales, say putting more of that money into council services

to prevent falls would improve the quality of life of an ever increasing ageing population. we think the track record of the council programmes that are already in place is showing that we can help many older people stay in their houses for longer, enjoy a healthier life and this is about saving the taxpayer some money and enhancing their experience. the department of health and social care say they have dedicated £9.4 billion in social care funding over the next three years to support local authorities so that comprehensive fall prevention plans can be developed. the head of the organisation which hands out the oscars is reported to have been accused of sexual harassment. john bailey is the president of the academy of motion picture arts and sciences. it's confirmed a review is under way but no further details have been announced. britain's department stores used to be the height

of luxury and service. if you needed anything from clothing to electricals or food, they were the place to go. but today they face fierce competition in all categories, as online retailers offer everything a customer wants at the click of a button. radio 4's consumer reporter samantha fenwick has been finding out how department stores are fighting back. george davies has been called a serial brand creator, a fashion visionary, the king of the high street. they're very abba, these, aren't they? yes, very good. i was too young to remember abba. laughter he's the man behind next, george at asda, and m&s. when i started next in 1982, there

were 10,000 registered vehicles. by the time i got to the 1990s, when starting george and asda, i already knew parking was a real problem. so you could see that there was, at that point, decline in the high street? yes, sure. it was obvious. george left m&s in 2008, vowing never to return to the high street. he said it was no longer a place to make money. ten years on, and he's changed his mind. his new line of women's and children's clothing will be in the shops next week. so why the change of heart? rents are high, business rates are high, but dealers own a lot of their properties. probably 70%, they own it, so that takes quite a high risk out of it. but not all department stores are that lucky. this is london's oxford street. it's where all the big names have their flagship stores. but the buildings are big, with too much unprofitable space. house of fraser have asked their landlords to reduce their rent, and the likes of debenhams and marks & spencer's are closing stores completely. costs are going up for retailers,

and shoppers want to go online because it offers convenience. they can get the lowest prices, and they get the lowest prices because those operators don't have the same kind of costs as a physical store. i buy ibuya i buy a lot of things online. when i started getting into a career, i shop online more because it is easier to go through and click a bunch of stuff. i only shop in the high street, i know everyone is moving to online but the experience you get on the high street is so much better and i think online is killing the high street. to avoid that, the government has set up a special panel. to investigate how best to adapt to the changes in the way we shop. it's being led by richard pennycook, the chairman of department store fenwick.

department stores are about theatre and service, and those are things that can't be replicated online. so i think there's a real good future for department stores, but it's all about making sure that we're providing something different, which makes the visit worthwhile. it will have to be something very different to get us off the internet and into the high street. time for the weather forecast. we have all seen a significant drop in temperature and we have had snow showers widely across the uk because of the beast from the east, the bitterly cold easterly wind with air originating from siberia, significant wind—chill and some blowing snow, perhaps many parts of the country has been a dusting of snow but in essex we are in one of the met office and the warning areas. “— the met office and the warning areas. —— amber warning areas. with things set to get worse through the night and into tomorrow morning, those areas, more frequent snow

showers feeding into another and another, but we have another amber warning which has been issued for the south—west and parts of wales with heavy snowfall especially over the high ground overnight and continuing for most of tomorrow. there are snow showers around elsewhere, feeding in off the north sea on dvd cold strong wind and this is the main area —— feeding in off the cold sea along that cold strong wind. widespread frost of course, given snow showers, they will be icy conditions, as well. sunday morning, more detailed look at the forecast, we have the snow across the west country and into devon and cornwall and also across mid and south west wales. behind it ryan kalil conditions before we are back into these lines of showers —— be hind it we have these conditions. we will

probably be of the day through the south—east after the overnight snow, the snow is still there across the south—west corner even into the afternoon but by this stage it should move away from wales. not before it leaves disruption with temperatures struggling to make a couple of degrees and the bitterly cold wind it will feel more like —5 and minus six. but only briefly. this is a mini beast from the east, the high pressure will squash away the high pressure will squash away the easterly wind and dragged down the easterly wind and dragged down the northerly wind so it won't feel as cold as we head into next week with high pressure building we will lose much of the snow before it turns unsettled with atlantic winds from midweek. this is bbc news. our latest headlines: moscow announces it will expel 23 british diplomats amid tensions over the nerve agent attack in salisbury — the british consulate in st petersburg will also close