this programme contains flashing images from the start. unfairly blamed for recent events. translation: we will react to what the british are doing to us, forcing everyone against russia and we want to establish the truth. in salisbury, the condition of yulia skripal — poisoned in the russian chemical attack — has rapidly improved, but her father sergei remains critically ill. we'll have the latest on the diplomatic expulsions from russia. washington says it's proof that moscow is not interested in dialogue. also tonight. theresa may visits all nations of the uk, one year ahead of brexit day, raising the prospect of more money for schools and the nhs. after the cheating scandal in south africa, australia's sacked cricket captain makes a tearful apology. any time you think about making a questionable decision, think about who you're affecting.

you're affecting your parents and to see the way my old man has been... gkn, one of britain's oldest engineering firms, is bought in a hostile takeover, raising concerns about thousands ofjobs in the uk. and why the city of beijing is claiming a victory against air pollution. and coming up on sportsday, an emotional and tearful day for australian cricket culminated with the news head coach darren lehmann will quit after the test series against south africa. good evening. russia has responded to the recent explusion of 60 of its diplomats from the united states by sending home an equal number of american diplomats from moscow and st petersburg.

it's the latest twist in the international dispute, following the poisoning of a former russian agent and his daughter in salisbury. the us ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry in moscow earlier today, to be told that the us consulate in st petersburg would be forced to close. russia is still denying any involvement in the chemical attack. live to moscow for the latest, from our correspondent steve rosenberg. well, what happened in moscow today was no surprise, but it is significant. in effect, the mass expulsion of western diplomats following the expulsion of so many russians by so many countries, and what it does is increase the divide between russia and the west. the diplomatic pressure has been unprecedented. russian diplomats expelled, foreign ambassadors recalled, after the salisbury attack. it was never a question of whether moscow would respond, but when. tonight, russia expelled 60 us

diplomats for the 60 russians america had ordered out. translation: as we speak the us ambassador is visiting our ministry, where my doug beattie is informing him of the measures. they include the expulsion of the equivalent number of diplomats. russia is also shutting the us consulate in st petersburg, staff given until saturday to vacate the building and there will be other measures as well. as i understand it russia plans to take the same unjustified actions against 28 other countries that stood in solidarity with the uk. russia is further isolating itself following the brazen chemical attack. an attack that left sergei skripal and his daughter yulia fighting for their lives, but the bbc understands that yulia is now conscious and talking will stop her father though remains critically

ill. earlier the us ambassador to moscow told me he was in no doubt who had targeted them. how certain are you that the russian state was behind the attack in salisbury? there's been enough that not only convince the united states but about 25 other countries that have taken similar actions that there's enough evidence to believe that the russian state was behind this action in salisbury. america has expelled 60 russian diplomats, part of this coordinated international action. what signal does that send to moscow, do you think? you cannot use a military grade nerve agent on the streets of salisbury against a british citizen and his daughter without a response. this is an expression of outrage about what happened, on the soil of the united kingdom. moscow continues to insist that its innocent, that it had nothing whatsoever to do with the salisbury poisoning. tonight's tit—for—tat was expected

but it comes with a warning, that if there are further hostile steps against moscow, russia will take more measures against the west. some in moscow fear a spiralling diplomatic war with the west could end in military conflict. this is not the way for a solution, it is a way to hell. if you have not so many diplomats as you have, you have a lack of information, you have a lack of trust. you can react in the wrong way, from the wrong point of view and this is the way to hell. the west sent a strong message here over salisbury. moscow has its own message for the west. don't push russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. doctors treating yulia skripal, one of the victims of the salisbury chemical attack, say her condition is improving rapidly. the bbc has been told she is conscious and talking.

but salisbury nhs trust said herfather sergei remained in a critical condition. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford is in salisbury tonight. some more details on yulia skripal‘s condition? yes, it's been a great 24 hours for this police investigation. this afternoon came the frankly amazing news that's yulia skripal has responded so well to treatment here that she's no longer in a critical condition. it was only a week ago that a judge said she was unconscious, unable to communicate in nme meaningful way and it was unclear to what she would recover any capacity. i understand that beyond that official nhs update she's actually both conscious and talking and will therefore be able to give her accounts to counter—terrorism detectives of what happened on that sunday, three and a half weeks ago. whether she'll be able to explain how it was that she and her father became contaminated

is less clear. i understand she had nerve agent on her left hand, her father had on his right hand, and that goes along with the current theory that the novichok nerve agent had been smeared in gel form onto the door handle of the front door of sergei skripal‘s house for stock but was this does not help anyone to understand is who it was that put the nerve agent there in the first place. daniel sandford, many thanks with the latest in salisbury. one year from today, the united kingdom will leave the european union and enter a transition period. to mark the date, the prime minster toured all four nations of the uk, promising to make brexit a success for everyone and saying that leaving the eu would mean extra money for the nhs and schools. but she also refused to rule out tax rises to help fund the nhs in the years to come. labour says that time is running out to negotiate a good deal with the eu, as our political editor laura kuenssberg reports. north, south, east and west. a year left on our planned journey out of the european union.

it will change the country, every corner of it. the prime minister hasn't exactly wowed everyone with her handling of brexit so far. so can she turn the page? if you think about the children i have seen here at this school, it's about their future. we want to ensure that we get the deal that's right for the whole of the united kingdom, because there's a bright future out there for us. we want to grasp the opportunities that brexit provides and ensure we strengthen the bonds of this, the most successful union in the world. a group of voters in coventry told us this week they felt they had been made big promises in brexit about the nhs and immigration. what do you say to our viewers, some of whom are frustrated that nothing seems to be changing yet? well, i understand. i understand why people voted for leaving the european union. for a lot of people, immigration, taking back control of our borders was part of it, taking back control our laws and control of our money. this was all part of why people voted to leave the european union

and we're going to deliver on that. but it means people having to be patient? it means a smooth process. we will leave the european union on 29th of march, 2019, that's in a year's time. there are so many unresolved arguments though. will power we get back from brussels be fairly spread around the uk? in scotland, there are fears westminster will grab it and won't let go. we're absolutely committed to ensuring there is no hard border. how will the border between northern and southern ireland work after we leave? the answer won't be found in a barn in bangor. that quandry could yet upset the whole process. and what are the real chances of the eu accepting the prime minister's plan for trade? will there be different rules for different parts of the economy?

whether at this factory in wales or where the prime minister ended her tour tonight, in west london, meeting eu citizens. i've been given a polish cookbook. her rivals and critics simply don't believe she has the answers. today is perhaps the end of part one. the decisions that the prime minister makes in the next 12 months will have an impact, notjust for her, but for all of us for many years to come. you've made a big promise on the nhs. some of your colleagues believe the extra cash could come from the so—called brexit dividend. do you believe there will be a brexit dividend, or might there have to be tax rises for the nhs? that's what some people are calling for. of course, when we leave the european union we will no longer be spending vast sums of money year in and year out, sending money to the eu, so there will be money available here in the uk to spend on our priorities, priorities like the nhs and schools.

do you believe there will be a brexit dividend? would you call it that? there is going to be money that we would otherwise be sending to the eu that we will be able to spend in the uk. so you will not rule out a tax rise potentially? as part of our normal processes we will look at the funding. but we've got to look at the long—term plan. do you think brexit will be worth it? i think there are real opportunities for the uk. i think there is a bright future out there, and yes, i think brexit is going to deliver. our country will be different but i think there are real opportunities for us as an independent nation in the future. whether she's right will determine her future and all of ours too. there's nothing definite yet about the costs or the benefits. a clear decision nearly two years ago now, but what's ahead cannot be known. laura kuenssberg, bbc news. australia's former cricket captain, steve smith, has broken down

in tears while making a public statement for his role in cheating against south africa, and apologised to his country, his fans and his family for the ball—tampering scandal. during the course of the day, the australia coach darren lehmann announced his resignation, despite being cleared of any wrongdoing. from johannesburg, where australia are currently touring, our sports editor dan roan reports. from australian cricket's leader to its loneliest figure. steve smith back in sydney and facing the cameras today, having been sent home in disgrace for his team's cheating scandal. to all of my team—mates, to fans of cricket all over the world, and to all australians who are disappointed and angry, i'm sorry. supported by his father, the former captain's anguish obvious. any time you think about making a questionable decision, think about who you're affecting.

you're affecting your parents and to see the way my old man has been... sobbing. thanks, everybody. and my mum, it hurts. smith was banned for a year for covering up a team—mate's use of sandpaper to tamper with the ball during the cape town test match last weekend. cameron bancroft admitting today he also misled match officials when he was caught. i lied about the sandpaper and i panicked, i panicked in that situation and i'm very sorry. back injohannesburg came yet another casualty of the crisis. 48 hours after being backed by his bosses to continue, coach darren lehmann quitting. i just want to let you know that this will be my last test as head coach of the australian cricket team, as i'm stepping down. after seeing events in the media today with steve smith and cameron bancroft, the feeling is that australian cricket needs to move forward

and this is the right thing to do. meanwhile the instigator of the cheating, vice captain david warner, had little to say, as he arrived back on australian soil with his family. when fans gather here at the wanderers tomorrow for the first day's action in the fourth and final test match all the talk will be about one of the most remarkable weeks in cricket history. the sandpaper plot has now cost australia its captain, vice captain and the head coach, after darren lehmann‘s dramatic resignation here just a few hours ago. rarely has a cricket tour been laid quite so low. 0nce idolised... that's the shot. ..then vilified, smith's road to redemption began today, but this fall from grace has been particularly painful. dan roan, bbc news, johannesburg. one of britain's biggest and oldest engineering firms, gkn, has been bought in a hostile take—over. melrose will pay £8.1 billion for the company, which makes parts used in half the world's cars.

labour has accused melrose of being interested in stripping the assets of gkn — something it denies — as our business editor simonjack reports. for 260 years, gkn has been at the forefront of aerospace and automotive innovation, from icons like the spitfire to components in modern—dayjets and cars. today, it was acquired by a company that likes to do its business quickly. melrose's self—declared motto is to buy, improve and then sell companies within five years. unions fear "improve" is code for cost—cutting. people are obviously concerned about their jobs. they don't know how they are going to stand. you know, guys in their 30s with young families and big mortgages, they want, like everybody, you need some sort of security, some sort of commitment. the melrose chief executive has previously told mps the company can be trusted. one of the things i'm proud about in melrose is actually, i do think we have a great track record of trying to do the right thing by everyone, actually.

we're not a charity. we are a business. but we do try to do the right thing. the business secretary said he had extracted promises from melrose. commitments have been made, including maintaining the business as a british business, including in investing in the business, and they now need to be implement it. need to be implemented. melrose has also promised not to sell the aerospace division forfive years, but there are no job guarantees. after all the attention from politicians, the intervention of the business secretary, the concerns of the unions, ultimately, it is the shareholders who have decided their interests are best served going with the short—term turnaround specialists. after all, that's the way it works. they own the company. former deputy prime minister and defence secretary lord heseltine says that approach ignores the national interest. and when you were doing... no other country of our sort would have allowed this to happen. if you have a situation where a major engineering company

is up for grabs in five years' time — to whom? under what circumstances? then how can people enter into the long—term partnerships upon which strategic investment decisions in defence are based? in theory, the takeover can still be blocked on national security grounds, but given melrose is not a foreign company, that is considered unlikely. this historic firm is about to start a new, albeit short, chapter. simon jack, bbc news. jeremy corbyn has written to labour mps to insist that the party has a "zero tolerance" approach to anti—semitism. it follows the resignation of the head of the party's disputes panel, christine shawcroft, who'd opposed the suspension of a party candidate who was accused of sharing an anti—semitic article on facebook. but christine shawcroft remains a member of labour's ruling body, the national executive committee. 0ur deputy political editor john pienaar is at westminster. is there any sign thatjeremy corbyn

has done enough with this letter to convince his critics? the short a nswer convince his critics? the short answer is no. it seems there's no escaping this row forjeremy corbyn, serious at any time but at the start ofa serious at any time but at the start of a local election campaign, it is may be doubly disruptive and it seems any spark can reignite the flame. today, it was a relatively unknown official who chairs labour's internal discipline to do you had to resign after defending a candidate who was accused of holocaust denial. a line of labourmps who was accused of holocaust denial. a line of labour mps have been demanding jeremy corbyn does more to show that he means it when he says he wants to confront anti—semitism and jeremy corbyn, as you say, has written to labour members, promising zero tolerance. to these critical mps, that should mean more expulsions and they tougher line but tojeremy expulsions and they tougher line but to jeremy corbyn‘s expulsions and they tougher line but tojeremy corbyn‘s devoted followers, they are guilty of political treachery and the roots of this argument run very deep.

anti—semitism has often been associated with among other things, far left wingers and far left factions who are strongly supportive of palestine, bitterly critical of israel. jeremy corbyn himself today said that anti—semitism had been woven into the argument. they deny that and say they are loyal to jeremy corbyn but on any objective analysis, this is damaging tojeremy corbyn and the party. john pienaar with the latest from westminster. a brief look at some of the day's other news. barclays has been fined $2 billion in the united states, to settle claims of mortgage fraud. it had been alleged the bank misled investors about the quality of loans in the run—up to the financial crisis. the fine, from the us department ofjustice, was less than had been expected. a woman who was critically injured after being struck by debris from a crane at a building site in east london has died. 29—year—old michaela boor died in hospital this morning, two days after she was injured by falling bricks close to a building site in mile end. housing benefit is to be restored

for 18 to 21—year—olds claiming universal credit. from april last year, young people were not automatically entitled to the housing element of universal credit, the payment which brings six existing benefits into one, and is in the process of being extended across the uk. housing charities had warned the policy would lead to rising homelessness. the drinks company conviviality, which owns bargain booze and wine rack, has announced plans to file for administration within the next two weeks. the firm supplies more than 25,000 restaurants, hotels and bars. around 2,500 staff could lose theirjobs. as police investigations continue in shropshire, after reports that up to a thousand girls may have been abused over the past four decades, a woman has told the bbc that her teenage son was being groomed there until very recently. the council in telford has been meeting this evening to decide what more can be done to tackle the problem of child sexual exploitation.

0ur midlands correspondent sima kotecha reports. it's an image that telford doesn't want, a town where child abuse is common, but it's not clear how true this is. recent newspaper reports claimed hundreds of girls could have been abused here over the last four decades. a woman who doesn't want to be identified told the bbc her teenage son was being groomed in the town up until six months ago. they were giving him money, taking advantage of him, getting him drunk, giving him drugs, just really taking advantage of him, and they were using him for sex. there's no way anyone can say grooming isn't happening today because i know it is. my own son has been going through it and there are other people i know who are still going through it. in 2013, seven men were jailed after police launched an investigation into child prostitution. some of those living here said it was clear something very

disturbing was going on. we began to see guys driving up and parking in the car park with their car doors open, nice cars, music blaring, not going into anywhere or doing anything, just sort of sat there in the car park. and then as the girls were walking around the area, they would approach the girls, talk to them, ask them did they want to go to a party? it felt predatory, like there was a purpose or intent there which felt threatening. west mercia police have said a small number of victims have come forward since the new allegations have come to light. telford has been at the centre of a media storm in recent weeks. the questions being asked now are, is child sexual exploitation worse here than in other parts of the country? and if so, why has it taken this long to bring that into the spotlight? the council and its partners encourage anyone having experience of child sexual exploitation... tonight at a meeting, the local council said it was not in denial and that it would put more resources into helping victims. the independent inquiry into child

sexual abuse will be coming to telford in may to speak to those affected and now all eyes will be on what happens then. sima kotecha, bbc news, telford. china's rapid industrialisation and economic growth have produced record levels of pollution, with toxic smog responsible for over a million premature deaths a year. but in beijing, pollution levels fell by more than 50% this winter. the government has claimed success for a crackdown on factories using coal, and as our china correspondent john sudworth reports, it's not just the government trying to make a difference. beijing's skies are a strange colour of late — blue. in place of the usual toxic grey, this winter has brought prolonged bouts of days like these. and here, in part at least, is why. this factory is one of thousands

that have been forced to close. they used to make ceramic tiles here. now, the kilns that once belched acrid smoke stand idle. translation: it was all very sudden. there were no meetings or warnings. the inspection team just turned up and shut us down. beijing still sees plenty of days like this but the city's average level of pm 2.5s, the tiny particles that make up these pea—souper smogs, fell by 20% last year. and here's further evidence of the huge political will involved — new gas pipes. hundreds of villages surrounding beijing have been ordered to stop burning coal on such a scale that the price of gas

on the international market doubled. "whether we want to switch to gas or not, we have no choice", he says. local people complain about the costly changes forced on them to clean the air of the wealthy middle classes in the city. beijing's ability to launch its battle for blue skies is, it could be argued, down to its authoritarian advantage, forcing many thousands to switch energy supplies overnight and closing factories at the stroke of a pen. but it has also had something else on its side, a little bit of luck. here's a typical day last winter. that's beijing, buried beneath a blanket of smog, the reds and purples on the map. this winter, though, the city has been blessed with unusually strong northerly winds, bringing with them cleaner air, the blues, greens and yellows. in the bigger picture,

though, china's wider, continental—sized pollution problem is not going away. but even if the progress is limited, it is significant. china has begun to show that it can trade economic growth for the environment. john sudworth, bbc news, beijing. the coming 12 months, as we discussed earlier, will involve intensive negotiations and debate about the uk's future relationship with the european union. opinion in different parts of the united kingdom remains divided, on both the original decision to leave, and the nature of the future ahead. our special correspondent allan little has been to the county of kent, which voted strongly to leave the eu, to talk to people there about their hopes and fears. britain has been shaped by its proximity to continental europe. the relationship is ancient and intimate. at reculver on the kent coast, the romans built a

garrison 2000 years ago. later, saxons settled here from what is now germany. then the normans came and built these twin towers. coast guard, we have your details. two years ago, britain voted to loosen ties across this channel. kent is brexit country. like many british fishermen, steve barrett has opposed european regulation for decades. he believes the brexit he voted for is now being negotiated away. i think we are going to be betrayed because the way it is looking at the moment, on paper, we are leaving but we are not, we are still going to have all the rules and regulations and we are still going to be paying into them. we need to walk away. that is what we voted for. do you know what annoys me more than anything? these idiots that say to me, "well, you didn't realise what you were voting for when you voted to leave". i can assure you i did. i voted to leave. i didn't vote for what we getting at the minute. this map is a fantastic illustration of what a tremendous

country the uk is and what it has going for it. brexit has at its heart a vision of a new britain, radically transformed, no longer merely european but opening new and as—yet—untapped markets around the world. as britain stands tall again on the world stage, you will see that confidence growing. i think that as a society, we will be thinking more globally rather than simply on the european level. but certainly, you know, the opportunities are there, when we are able to enter into new trade deals with countries all around the world, both old friends from the commonwealth and new allies from across the growing economies from other parts of the world. you know, that can only be a good thing. but is this vision anything more than a leap of faith, based on ideological conviction rather than evidence? there's often a claim made that imperial nostalgia lies at the heart of the leave campaign. i've actually never believed that. i don't think that's true. i think a greater problem

is perhaps imperial amnesia, that there is a vague folk memory of british ships buccaneering across the seas, trading with the world. and we tend to forget that was possible because the british empire policed the sea lanes, because british power opened up markets, and that this is something very much more difficult to do as a medium—sized power in europe than it was when britain was global britain. kent is the garden of england, but its fruit is picked and processed by migrant european hands. here, some fear that the brexit vision will cut britain off from the workforce it needs. if we don't have the ability to freely move goods, people and services, then we are not going to be able to pick these orchards. it is as simple as that. and that's fine, if that's what everybody wanted and what everybody voted for, then that's absolutely fine. we do not have the workforce here in the uk that we need to have to be able to pick the fruit, to be able to harvest the fruit.

in my business, we deal with a lot of tech, digital companies, and our clients, we know that 31% of those businesses employ international workers, because they've got the digital skills that they need. we don't have them here. they are petrified that after brexit, all those people are going to disappear because trust me, france, you know, belgium, would love to have those people back. so there's going to be a massive skills gap, you know, and there's going to be jobs that are just not going to be filled. a yearfrom now, britain will embark on a journey. that journey will redefine its place in the world. there is no return ticket, and the destination remains unknown. allan little, bbc news, kent.