tonight at ten: the prime minister apologises again — this time to mp5 for the government's treatment of caribbean migrants. they came to britain between the 19405 and ‘70s — but some have faced the threat of deportation because of government failures. the prime minister offers reassu ra nce to the windrush generation, but she still faces criticism of her time as home secretary. people in the windrush generation, who came here from commonwealth countries, have built a life here, they've made a massive contribution to the country. these people are british, they are part of us. under her, the home office became heartless and hopeless and doesn't she now run a government that is both callous and incompetent? we'll be asking if the windrush controversy has any implications for eu citizens and their status in the uk after brexit. also tonight: the substance used to poison a former russian agent was a highly purified form of novichok,

according to the global chemical watchdog. many students from england, wales and northern ireland could face higher debt repayments in future because of a higher rate of interest. a special report from barrow—in—furness, where deaths from drug abuse have risen sharply in recent months. and we talk to the 83—year—old artist with two major exhibitions this year. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news, find out how manchester united got on against bournemouth as they look to keep a firm grip on second place in the premier league. good evening. theresa may has apologised once again — this time to mps — for the government's mistreatment

of caribbean migrants who came to britain between the the 19405 and 19705. some have been wrongly threatened with deportation, despite living in britain legally for decades. labour says they've been treated like criminals and blamed mrs may. but the prime minister said that a decision to destroy landing cards showing when people first came to britain was made by officials under the last labour government. our political editor laura kuenssberg has the latest. that was a long time ago. yeah, it was. that veranda, i used to slide down there. jamaica, country of his birth. britain, country of his home. nick broderick came to london as a toddler with his mother and sister in the late 19505, but decades later, he says he was threatened with deportation and even lost hisjob. one minute, i'm going back to a country, when i was a little boy, i know nothing about. as far as i know, this is my home. all because, under tightened immigration rules, he couldn't prove

he had the legal right to live here. i don't think people have realised the mental pressure it puts you under to have this on you. you feel like a criminal. it's awful, it really is awful. i've always worked and looked after my family, that's what a man does. but not like this. especially when you think there's no one there and i couldn't afford a lawyer. reporter: are you to blame for the windrush fiasco, prime minister? she was in charge at the home office for years when the laws became stricter and stricter. but the prime minister has apologised again because the windrush generation should never have been caught up in the changes. these people are british, they are part of us. and i want to be absolutely clear. i want to be absolutely clear that we have no intention of asking anyone to leave who has the right to remain here.

but what happened to records that could have avoided at least part of the problem? in 2010, the home office destroyed landing cards for a generation of commonwealth citizens and so have told people, we can't find you in our system. did the prime minister, the then home secretary, sign off that decision? the speaker: prime minister. no, the decision to destroy the landing cards was taken in 2009 under a labour government. the decision was taken by officials, not ministers, but the anxiety of those affected goes way beyond paperwork. the windrush generation came to our country after the war, to rebuild our nation that had been so devastated by war. under her, the home office became heartless and hopeless? reporter: was it theresa may? good morning. well, this home secretary has to do with an accidental mess, while this home secretary has

to deal with an accidental mess, the overall crackdown under the former home secretary was entirely deliberate. listen to this. we want to ensure that only legal migrants have access to the labour market, free health services, housing, bank accounts and driving licences. this is notjust about making the uk a more hostile place for illegal migrants, it is also about fairness. the intense push by the government had eyebrow raising tactics, but ministers believed the home office had hefty public support. if you haven't got all of the right paperwork, you're basically a bad guy and they have a culture of disbelief and their absolute commitment, since 2010, has been to cut immigration and drive as many people as they can out of the country. i think it's that cultural assumption which has driven a lot of the problems we've seen around the windrush generation. this mess wasn't deliberately made here at the home office, but it didn't come from nowhere, it's rather the by—product of decisions taken over a period of many years, to tighten the immigration rules, then to tighten them again and then and again to bring

in more restrictions. moves that ministers believed then had the public support. consequences that weren't intended, but weren't random either. anxiety for thousands of people, for whom britain was and is a place called home. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. mark easton, our home editor, is with me. to pick up with that phrase used by theresa may when she was home secretary, she said "hostile place," and there are people today, we have heard them, who think it has fed into the wind rusk controversy, what is your thought —— windrush. into the wind rusk controversy, what is your thought -- windrush. when theresa may talked about a hostile environment, she was talking about illegal immigrants and in 2012, all the political parties were trying to demonstrate they understood public concern about immigration levels generally but in particular illegal

immigrants taking advantage of public services in the uk. you may remember we had bands touring london encouraging illegal immigrant is to go home. —— we had vans. the act 2014 introduce checks on people's immigration status when they were looking for a job or a home or using a public service and suddenly, critically, people were able to prove they were here legally. there we re prove they were here legally. there were warnings in 2014 and some subsequently that the legislation could affect thousands of people here quite legally but who couldn't necessarily prove that, but the political climate at that time meant that those warnings were brushed aside. now we have the windrush scandal, it could be a problem for thousands of people, notjust from the caribbean from —— but from right across the commonwealth. then there are3 across the commonwealth. then there are 3 million eu citizens who have been told they must get or apply for proof that they had a right to live in the uk beforejune 2021 or they could face deportation. the

government has rejected suggestions that those people will be treated anything like the windrush generation but there are critics both here and in brussels who are not convinced. mark easton, many thanks. the head of the 0pcw, the global chemical watchdog, has rejected russian claims that traces of another nerve agent were discovered in salisbury where the former russian agent sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned. the british representative to the 0pcw said that a highly—purified version of novichok had been confirmed as the nerve agent used, which could only be made in a sophisticated facility. 0ur moscow correspondent steve rosenberg has been to speak to a retired russian scientist who worked on the novichok programme. six weeks after the salisbury poisoning, britain and russia are locked in a war of words about the nerve agent that was used and about who attacked sergei and yulia

skripal. at the un, britain's ambassador was in no doubt who was to blame. in our view, mr president, only russia had the technical means, operational experience and the motive to target the skripals. but at the 0pcw, the global chemical weapons watchdog, russia's representative said his country had never had any novichok programme. 0n the russian riviera, though, i meet a scientist who worked for the soggy at union's nerve agent programme. lood amir says he created the novichok but was later used against the skripals. it has been identified in russia by the code a234. how certain are you that the substance that you synthesised is the one that poisoned the skripals. translation: i have no doubt that it was a234 that poisoned them. judging

by how pure the test sample is, this may well be a patch that i made with my own hands. it has a long shelf life, virtually no expiry date. the nerve agents were developed and tested at this site in southern russia. 0ne tested at this site in southern russia. one day, vladimir was involved in an accident there. translation: my right hand got covered in nerve agent. i put it in hydrochloric acid straightaway and washed it with a special alkali solution, with hydrogen peroxide. you could say the skripals and i we re you could say the skripals and i were baptised with the same novichok. as for the poisoning in salisbury, the scientist is convinced his country was behind the attack. translation: you will never prove it, unless you find the actual test tube that contained the poison. but the logic of events suggests that this was russia and so does the action of our leaders. they were quick to shout "we didn't do it,"

just like a thief who points the finger at somebody else. the russian state insists it is innocent, but the world isn't convinced. following the world isn't convinced. following the nerve agent attack, trust between russia and the west has faded. the new dawn is confrontation. steve rosenberg, bbc news, southern russia. president trump has confirmed that the director of the cia mike pompeo travelled to north korea last week to hold secret talks with the country's leader, kim jong—un. the meeting — the highest—level contact between the united states and north korea since 2000 — took place after mr pompeo was nominated as us secretary of state. but he's still not been formally confirmed in that post, as our north america editor jon sopel reports. president trump is in florida, hosting the japanese prime minister, but it's one other country that concerning them most,‘s north korea and the plans for an improbable meeting between the us president and kim jong—un.

are there lines of communication open? oh, yes, says the president. we've also started talking to north korea directly. we have had direct talks at very high levels, extremely high levels, with north korea and i really believe there is a lot of goodwill, a lot of good things are happening. we will see what happens. as i always say, we'll see what happens. but what no one knew or anticipated was the jaw—dropping revelation that this man, mike pompeo, the head of the cia, had been on a covert mission to pyongyang over easter and had a face—to—face meeting with kim jong—un. a tete—a—tete confirmed a short while ago by donald trump. he just left north korea. had a great meeting with kim jong—un and got along with him really well, really great. it was only six months ago that donald trump was calling kim jong—un "little rocket man" and kim jong—un was calling donald trump a "mentally deranged dotard".

so the fact that talks may be imminent is nothing short of remarkable. where they'll take place, when they'll take place, details still to be worked out, but where they'll find agreement is a much bigger question. donald trump wants north korea to stop these provocative tests and give up their nuclear programme, but why would they? pyongyang wants america off the korean peninsulas, the korean peninsula, so they are no longer flexing their military muscle in joint exercises like this. but that's not going to happen without sufficient guarantees about the south's security. so is there some kind of compromise that can be found? it's not clear to everyone that what he wants is simply denuclearisation of north korea or the denuclearisation of the korean peninsula, which would require that the us also give up its alliance with south korea and the nuclear umbrella that comes with that. an unprecedented meeting is due to take place next week in the demilitarised zone

between the north and south korean leaders. make no mistake, giant strides have been made to get this far. but a deal between washington and pyongyang? well, that's still a very long way off. jon sopel, bbc news, washington. the rate of inflation in the uk slowed last month, meaning an expected rise in interest rates could be delayed. experts say it's further evidence that the long squeeze on pay might be coming to an end. inflation, as measured by the consumer prices index, dropped from 2.7% in february after recent rises to 2.5% last month. that's the lowest rate in a year. wages have also risen, increasing at a rate similar to prices, by 2.8%. if the trend continues, it would confirm the pattern of rising wages and lower inflation. there's another measure of inflation, the retail price index, and that's the one used to fix the rate of interest on student loans, and it means that students in england, wales and northern ireland

could face a sharp rise in the cost of their loans with loan rates rising to 6.3% for those starting university in september. 0ur education editor, branwenjeffreys, is here. branwen, who is likely to be affected ? branwen, who is likely to be affected? huw, if you are at university now and are still going to be come september, or you are starting university for the first time you will‘ pay that 6.3% headline rate all the time that you‘re studying and until the april after you graduate. that‘s when people get a statement that tells them how much they borrowed. in england of course it‘s the poorest stu d e nts england of course it‘s the poorest students that borrow the most because they‘re also borrowing for their living costs. so does this affect how much you repay in your monthly repayments if you are a graduate? well, no, that‘s based on how much you earn. you only start repaying if you are earning over £25,000. at that point, a sliding

scale kicks in. so it‘s the very highest earners who pay that high rate of 6. 3%. but the reason it matters is because it‘s had a powerful effect on how students and graduates feel about the money they‘re borrowing. itjust feels very high when the government can borrow at a much lower rate. that‘s why it‘s going to be included in the government review of post—18 study thatis government review of post—18 study that is already under way and that‘s why universities and the national union of students are pressing really ha rd union of students are pressing really hard for that review to come back and say interest rates have to be. lower. branwen once again, tas very much. branwen jeffreys there, lower. branwen once again, tas very much. branwenjeffreys there, our education editor. the bbcjournalist who broke the story about a police investigation into sir cliff richard has told the high court that he acted in a "professional and fair" way. danjohnson said he was sorry that sir cliff had been through such a difficult time. the bbc says its report on south yorkshire police‘s sexual assault inquiry was of public interest.

sir cliff was not arrested or charged following an allegation of sexual assault. our special correspondent, lucy manning, was in court. sir cliff richard finally heard from the bbcjournalist who broke the exclusive story that the singer was being investigated and his flat searched by police in 2014. yes, this lunchtime the searches are still going on. police officers from south yorkshire police have been in this gated, private estate for more than two hours now. dan johnson reported from outside the singer‘s home. in the witness box, it was put to him that he didn‘t care a fig for sir cliff richard, that he was desperate not to lose an exclusive story. mrjohnson was asked by sir cliff richard‘s barrister if he accepted his story had caused the singer massive damage and distress. he replied, "i accept he has been upset and distressed." the barrister then asked, "are you prepared to apologise to him?" mrjohnson replied, "i am sorry he went through such a difficult time because of the investigation, the allegations."

the barrister said, "he‘s in court, are you prepared to apologise to him?" the judge then intervened saying, "i don‘t think this helps anybody. we are trying the issue here, not extracting that sort of concession." he later added... mrjohnson denied the bbc‘s use of a helicopter to take pictures of the police searching sir cliff richard‘s flat was intrusive. "i thought it was useful to tell people what was going on." but he was pressed by the singer‘s barrister about why there hadn‘t been more discussions about sir cliff richard‘s privacy. the barrister asked him about an email he wrote, referring to the singer as a celebrity paedo.

mrjohnson said it was just shorthand to a close colleague and he‘d always been professional and fair when reporting this story. sir cliff richard listened closely in court to the man who had broadcast details about him to the world. the singer is claiming very substantial damages from the bbc for invading his privacy. the bbc insists the story was accurate and in the public interest. lucy manning, bbc news. police in cumbria say they‘ve seen a disproportionate number of deaths related to drug abuse in one town over recent months. 12 people have died in barrow—in—furness since december and officers there say they‘re struggling to prevent the availability of drugs, such as heroin and crack cocaine, on the streets. they‘re warning that staff cuts are hampering their ability to tackle gangs who are travelling from as far afield as london to sell drugs in the town. 0ur social affairs correspondent, michael buchanan, has been investigating this

problem since january. his report contains some distressing images. police, police! i canjust start feeling it now. two different flats, two different days, one major problem — barrow is awash in drugs. i mean, there‘s definitely self—harm. for people like bobby, a former dj who turned to drugs, what started as a choice is now an addiction to heroin and crack cocaine. some people think that they‘ve got insects underneath their skin, and pick themselves like that. the drug taking continues despite a major spike in deaths. four people have died in this dilapidated block of flats in recent weeks.

in total, there have been 12 drug—related deaths in barrow since december. for a town of 67,000 people, the figures are totally disproportionate, with the rate of drug deaths far higher than in many major cities. 12 lives through barrow‘s riches, building nuclear submarines, were simultaneously closed by and out of reach. you know the chances of you reaching old age are very slim? i know they‘re pretty limited. very limited, in fact. you‘re ok with that? well, yeah. yeah. it‘s a kind of choice i‘ve chosen. i‘ve played them cards for a long time. so, i know what i‘m holding in my hand. a loaded gun? absolutely, absolutely. you know, not much wrong with that. you can only play for so long. cos' it's just embarrassing going there every day because everyone, like, knows, do you know what i mean. for donna stainton, collecting her methadone prescription is something of a family tradition. a former heroin addict, her parents

were both users and dealers, forcing a four—year—old donna to sell their drugs. when you're a child, do you know what i mean, and your parents say do something, you do it, you know. hold it in that hand, and when you get there, just give them that, get the money and run back as fast as you can, you know. so you do what your parents tell you, but it wasn't until i was older that i realised, you know, i was absolutely dealing drugs, you know. donna‘s life highlights barrow‘s longstanding drug problem, her mother and sister died following drug misuse. she also knows some of the people who died recently, one of them did so in herflat. she wonders who‘ll be next. it hasn't been this bad, never. like you used to get the odd overdose and that now and again, now and again, but now it's constant, you know. it's craziness. with less money being spent on rehab services, police admit they‘re struggling to reduce

the availability of drugs. is there any drugs in the premises at the moment? liverpool and manchester gangs, the long time suppliers, have beenjoined by london dealers in recent months. you‘re arrested on suspicion of possession of a class a drug. you do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence... it‘s known as county lines, big city criminals overwhelming a small, distant town. many people have been imprisoned, but a lack of intelligence and surveillance officers, and police rarely get the gang leaders. it won‘t be fair to say that we disrupt individuals and very, very soon after there‘s someone to fill that void in the drugs market. we‘ll keep persevering. we will keep doing what we can within the resources that we‘ve got. but inevitably, if the pattern continues, more people will die. such warnings came too late for markjohnson. his mother‘s only child, he started taking drugs in his teens, mainly cannabis. various jobs as a hotel cook didn‘t prevent him moving on to harder drugs.

injanuary he died, aged 35. itold him it‘d kill him. you know, i had this conversation with him, saying it‘ll kill you. what do you think could have saved him? me. sorry. they make their own choices and it‘s only if they listen, ain‘t it? i miss him so much, i really do. a death is no less raw for being avoidable and in barrow recently there‘s been too much pain. a toxic mix of too many drugs and too few opportunities is overwhelming too many residents. michael buchanan, bbc news, barrow—in—furness. the house of lords has inflicted a first defeat on the government‘s main brexit legislation

by a majority of over 100 votes. an alliance of labour, lib dems, crossbench peers and some conservatives voted to retain the option of a customs union with the eu. the vote prompted claims from brexit supporters that this was an attempt to undermine the referendum result. ministers say that they will try to reverse the vote at a later stage, as our deputy political editor, john pienaar, explains. brexit isn‘t always bad tempered, but it is still a struggle, and today the opposing sides in the lords up were up for it. many peers dislike brexit and today it showed, in a push for the government to explore staying in a european customs union. if in the end we do leave, it should be in a way that limits the damage to the country‘s wellbeing and the future of our children, and that‘s why i believe it makes sense for the government to be asked to explore customs union. only between 10 and 15% of companies in the country actually do serious exporting, they're mostly medium

sized or large companies, and guess what they want? they want access and the best access possible to the closest market, and where's that? the answer was europe, with no customs checks or duties, even if it meant obeying eu rules and no right to strike trade deals around the world. brexiteer peers were having none of it. what is going on here is an exercise by remainers in this house, who are the majority, who refuse to accept the verdict of the british people, and i believe they are playing with fire. and the government was standing firm. by leaving the customs union, by establishing a new and ambitious customs arrangement with the eu, we will be able to forge new trade relationships with our partners around the world. when it came to the vote, the government came off worst. contents 348. wow! not contents, 225. so the contents have it.

peers voted against government policy and to explore staying in a european customs union. so ministers will ask mps to overturn tonight‘s defeat. not because it means a change of policy inside government, they‘re saying having to explore membership of a european customs union is so vague it might make no practical difference. but there are more struggles to come about the shape of brexit and a final deal. ministers will give no ground to their opponents, if they can avoid it. the shape of brexit, the prime minister and the government‘s authority depends on the outcome. john pienaar, bbc news, westminster. the entertainer and television personality dale winton has died at the age of 62. here‘s the star of the show — dale

winton! 0h. thank you, thank you. thank you so much. hi there welcome... dale presented a range of programmes, including supermarket sweep and family fortunes, in a career that started as a dj in london before hejoined the bbc in 1986 to present pet watch. in a statement this evening, his agent said he died at home. he was 62. tributes already coming in to dale winto in, the television entertainer. in the 19805 the art world was gripped by the impact of ybas, or young british arti5t5. today it‘s 0fa5, 0lder female arti5t5. phyllida barlow represented britain at the venice biennale and lubaina himid won the turner prize. and now it‘s the turn of 83—year—old rose wylie, with two exhibitions in london this year. 0ur art5 editor, will gompertz, has been to meet her. ...might say that women do girly subjects.

i hope i don‘t do girly subjects. nothing girly about that, ro5e. well, i don‘t want to do girly subjects, but then i don‘t want to not to do. are you a speedy painter? ah... well, both conflict, because i work quickly, but i keep changing it, and the painting can take a long time. like, i don‘t know, three weeks. 0k. i don‘t know what‘s a long time. yeah. it took me two days to paint that face, that little face in the car. this is from the movie natural born killers, isn‘t it? yes. 0h, as soon as you say natural born killers, they say ‘it‘s so violent‘. yeah. then you find out tarantino wrote the story. he did. and so everyone, that‘s all they say about the film. they stop there. in fact, it‘s a redemption story. some people will see a painting like this and then they look at a leonardo da vinci painting and say, well, he could paint and a five—year—old could do this. he had great skills. i think if you go back to antiquity you get

obstruction, you get ecolomy. yes. cartoon feeds into that, because cartoons have accessibility. this is your working life, is it, rose? this is what it is, this is you. i pick it off the floor to wipe my brush, i wipe the painting with it, then i throw it down there. would you allow this to be considered an artwork? i think that would be silly, i‘d say it was collateral. it‘s collateral. it‘s just what happens from the way you work. suddenly all these people, who have ignored you for all these decades, notjust years, it‘s decades, suddenly can‘t get enough of rose wylie. that‘s funny. it‘s funny, because you‘re 83 now? yes, because i haven‘t changed, my work hasn‘t changed, but the perception of it has. so why do you think it is, rose, that suddenly these female artists, in their later years, are getting the sort of recognition they are now getting?