with the eu to be ditched. the prime minister tells mps her policy is clear. we will be leaving the customs union. we want to ensure that we can have an independent trade policy. we also want to ensure that we deliver, we are committed to delivering on our commitment of no hard border between northern ireland and ireland, and ensuring we have as frictionless trade as possible with the european union. as cabinet ministers prepare to meet this afternoon, we'll be asking why this has become such a thorny issue for the government. also this lunchtime: nearly half a million women in england missed theirfinal screening for breast cancer because of computer errors. tragically, there are likely to be some people in this group who would have been alive today if the failure had not happened. the woman in court accused of an acid attack on her partner which led him to end his life. commons speakerjohn bercow is facing calls to stand down, after being accused of bullying by his former private secretary. thousands of liverpool fans gather

in rome for their champions league semifinal, after violence marred the first leg match at anfield. # there'll be bluebirds over # the white cliffs of dover...# and at 101, dame vera lynn is nominated for two classic brit awards — 80 years after she released herfirst single. and coming up on bbc news, the pre—quarterfinal favourite, ding junhui, goes out of the world snooker championship at the quarterfinal stage. he's beaten comprehensively by barry hawkins at the crucible. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. senior cabinet ministers are

due to hold a meeting on brexit, amid warnings from tory eurosceptics that the government's proposed customs partnership with the eu after the uk leaves is unacceptable. the proposal would mean the uk collecting tariffs on the eu's behalf. the mps have denied they're issuing the prime minister with an ultimatum, but the row is threatening to split the cabinet. theresa may said this lunchtime that the uk would leave the customs union. here's our political correspondent ben wright. are you willing to quit the government? over the customs deal? the foreign secretary is likely to be more vocal at a meeting of cabinet colleagues later today. he and they have strong and differing views on an issue that will shape the country for years — how britain should trade with the eu after brexit. the uk exports half its goods to the eu. the government is hunting around for a solution and is under political pressure to choose a new customs arrangements. why with just six months to go,

are the government still considering options that we all know are not feasible? we will be leaving the customs union. we want to ensure we can have an independent trade policy. we also want to make sure that we deliver, are committed to delivering on our commitment of no hard border between northern ireland and ireland. and ensuring we have as frictionless trade as possible with the european union. there are a number of ways in which that can be delivered. there certainly are. one idea being discussed is a plan for the uk to collect tariffs on the eu's behalf at airports and ports. known as the customs partnership, it has been met with scorn by brexiteers in theresa may's own party. the customs partnership does not in the end meet the stated objectives of the government.

it doesn't meet the commitments made in the conservative party manifesto. nor in the prime minister's repeated statements that we will be out of the customs union and the single market. he and dozens of his brexit—backing conservative colleagues think there is a hih—tech all this that would avoid the need for a new hard border in northern ireland while giving the uk maximum freedom to strike new trade deals. but other tory mps are much more sceptical. the customs partnership is a potential solution, and we should not walk away from the negotiating table before examining it in more detail. we shouldn't tie the government's hands at this stage. again, we are seeing how theresa may is having to negotiate brexit with her own party and cabinet as well as the european union. this customs question is combustible. anger the brexiteers and they might try and bring her down. but theresa may also knows that a number of tory mps could side with labour in voting for a whole new customs union with the european union if they think the prime minister's plan will damage trade. a cabinet decision on customs is not expected today.

it will only be the starting point for talks with the eu. for many at westminster, this goes to the heart of what brexit will mean for the uk. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. well, the customs union is central to how the eu handles trade, which is why the issue is so significant. chris morris is here with more. so this is all about trying to ensure that trade remains as easy as possible — frictionless is the government's preferred term — once the uk has left the eu. at the moment, like every other country in the eu, the uk is automatically part of the customs union. that means there are no internal tariffs or taxes on goods going from one country to another, which makes it easier for manufacturers of, for example, car parts or medicines to move stuff around, so it's cheaper to do business. here's another important aspect of the customs union — all the countries involved impose the same level of tax on goods coming into the eu from outside, a common external tariff. again, that makes things easy,

but once you have that common external tariff, then you can't do your own separate trade agreements with other countries around the world. that is why the eu negotiates trade deals on behalf of all its member states. now, that's one thing the government insists must change after brexit — part of taking back control, it says, is being able to do your own deals. so is there anyway of replicating what the government likes about the customs union without the bits it doesn't? well, for months now, it's been discussing two proposals — we've heard a lot about them this morning. firstly, a new customs partnership, which would see the uk collecting eu tariffs on goods arriving from other countries at uk borders on the eu's behalf. if those goods then stayed in the uk, companies could claim back any money they were owed. but it could take years to set such a system up, the eu is sceptical about whether it would work anyway,

and supporters of brexit see this as a trap to keep the uk locked into the eu system. so the second proposal is for a highly streamlined customs arrangements, using all sorts of new technology, and other schemes such as allowing companies to settle their bills every few months, rather than every time they cross a border. but while that could minimise checks, it won't get rid of them all together, which means it rubs up against one of the trickiest issues in the brexit process — how to avoid a hard border between northern ireland and the republic. so the cabinet is trying to figure out which option to pursue, while labour, other opposition parties and some tory rebels think the only answer is to negotiate a new improved customs union with the eu. it all means that brexiteers now fear a plot to thwart the whole brexit process, their opponents say it is time to see sense, and the political temperature is rising. chris morris there.

in a moment, we'll talk to our correspondent damian grammaticas in brussels, but first our assistant political editor, norman smith, is in westminster. norman, this is shaping up to be a real problem for the prime minister. reeta, tory brexiteers insists they are not threatening the prime minister, not holding a gun to her head, but it is absolutely clear they expect her to kill off this idea of a customs partnership, because they say it crosses all their red lines, breaks all mrs may's brexit pledges, they say it would mean, for example, still paying money into the eu, still coming under thejurisdiction paying money into the eu, still coming under the jurisdiction of the european core, not able to strike oui’ european core, not able to strike our own trade deals, and in fact, they say, remaining inside the single market. what is significant about their intervention today is that it about their intervention today is thatitis about their intervention today is that it is the first time, really, the hard—core that it is the first time, really, the ha rd—core brexiteers that it is the first time, really, the hard—core brexiteers have threatened to break ranks with mrs may, because today they have formed

a protective guard around, fending off her critics, standing by her through the rows over the divorce bill and the transition period and fisheries policy, but on this, they say, we will not put up. and the question, really, how does she keep them on board, and we heard mrs may talking about lots of other options, and that suggests that in downing street they are now rapidly scrambling to come up with some sort of alternative compromise, third way badge, call it what you will, but this party is so divided, it is going to prove incredibly difficult to avoid a brexit bust up. damian, how are the uk's difficulties over the issue of the customs union being viewed in brussels? well, reeta, the eu was watching these discussions with interest, well aware that these are political

issues in the uk which are very practical consequences. the first thing to remember in all of this is that these negotiations depend partly on what the uk side agrees and brings to the table, so unless something concrete is agreed, negotiations here slowdown — and have been. secondly, the eu has been very clear that it preserves its autonomous rights to act, so it might reject what the uk agrees, even at the end of all these discussions, and we know that the eu has concerns about all of these ideas — the customs partnership, where the uk would collect harris, the eu says, how would that work outside our legal framework? how would those be passed on legally to the eu? how would this complicated process of tracking all imports to the uk work? how would the reverse work, items coming through the eu into the uk? imagine the millions and millions of containers worth of goods coming into the uk every year, there are already adamant about

whether the chinese managed to slip in good stead uk are avoiding duties, so the eu as many difficulties with this. —— slip in goods to the uk. damian grammaticas, many thanks, and to norman smith in westminster. the government has admitted that nearly half a million women in england who should have received invitations for breast cancer screening since 2009 were not contacted, partly because of it errors. the health secretary, jeremy hunt, has told mps that between 135 and 270 women could have had their lives shortened because of the mistake. well, our health editor, hugh pym, is here. a very grave looking health secretary was about to mps, what did he have to say cool? he have to say yes, secretary was about to mps, what did he have to say yes, she began his statement by saying there had been serious failings in the programme in england. since 2009, in england, women between 50 and 70 have been

invited for breast screening, it is volu nta ry, invited for breast screening, it is voluntary, and they get that every three years. but it has emerged that some women in their late 60s, who would you their final screening under this programme, never got the invitation, never heard that it was available. that is partly, we're told, an it problem, partly down to variation in practice in different parts of england. a number of different factors. that is 450,000 women affected, 150,000 have died since then, quite probably because ofa since then, quite probably because of a whole range of reasons. that leaves 300,000, some of whom, in the early 70s, will be in bite back for screening. others will get a chance to have that if they wish. jeremy hunt spell that the tragic consequences of this in terms of women who have had their lives shortened when he spoke to mps. there may be between 135 and 270 women who had their lives shortened asa women who had their lives shortened

as a result. i am advised that it is unlikely to be more than this range and may be considerably less. however, tragically, there are likely to be some people in this group who would have been alive today if the failure had not happened. he went on to say there would be a review of what happened, and there will be a whole series of questions 110w will be a whole series of questions now about who knew what when. the it upgrade was in 2016, public health england, who run this programme, became aware of the problems early this year. ministers were told in march. so why has it taken until now? the argument is they had to be sure about what was going on, but i think this is a serious blow to the government's credibility, to public health england, in running a really important screening programme, which is said to be very advance, and in terms of its ability to prevent cancer, a lot of questions will now follow from this. 0k, thank you.

there has been advice from the department of health, patients are encouraged not to contact their gp in the first instance, but contact a dedicated national helpline that has been set up. you can also look on the nhs choices website for more information. donald trump's former doctor has said a letter he signed during the us presidential campaign, which praised the candidate's "astonishingly excellent" health, was written by mr trump himself. let's speak to our correspondent gary o'donoghue, who's in washington. gary, quite a revelation. absolutely extraordinary revelation. if you remember, back in 2015, we had a story that the president was going to release a medical information about himself as candidate, a memo was sent around to sit outside the doctor's residence

while he got this memo, and the doctor now says it was dictated by the president himself, the candidate at the time. he described himself as the healthiest person who would ever be elected as president of the united states, bearing in mind he was well into its seventh decade by then. it was also rather grammatically challenged, talking about him having astonishingly excellent results, so it looked rather strange at the time, and now the doctor is saying that he didn't write it himself, the president dictated it. this is all tied up with harold bornstein, a former doctorfor president with harold bornstein, a former doctor for president trump for 35 yea rs, doctor for president trump for 35 years, having had his office raided last year. he said he felt like he was raped, a misappropriation of the term, i think most people will agree. also, it turns out that he may not have got the job he wanted, he wanted to be the president's personal position in the white house, that didn't happen, so there may be some score settling going on here, but also the president dictating his own medical releases,

if that turns out to be true, it is a pretty big deceit on the part of the president towards the public. gary, thank you, gary o'donoghue there. a court has begun hearing evidence in the trial of a woman accused of throwing acid over herformer partner. berlinah wallace is alleged to have attacked the dutch engineer mark van dongen in bristol in 2015. she denies all the charges. our correspondent jon kay was in court. it was september 2015, mark van dongen suffered what the prosecution described as catastrophic acid burns. paralysed and partially blinded, he chose to end his life 15 months later at a euthanasia clinic in belgium. today, his father caijs came to bristol crown court to hear the testimony of the woman who is accused of throwing the acid and is also accused of murder. berlinah wallace denies both counts. the 48—year—old took

the stand and was asked first about her early life. she described how she was attacked growing up in south africa and had family difficulties. after moving to the uk, she said she met mark van dongen through an online dating website in 2010. to start with, she described their relationship as like a party. lovely, fun. she said she loved him. that he was her family. but she said as time went on the dutch born engineer became erratic and abusive. she told the jury he would hit her, say racist things when they were alone together. the jury heard at one point he had a swastika etched on his hand. the fashion designer claimed on a trip to the netherlands, mark van dongen had pushed her onto the street naked. which she said had left her feeling humiliated. she said she, too, could be nasty to him at times. she said she would call him names, scratch and bite him. but she denied having a temper. berlinah wallace has now started talking about the weeks and months before that acid incident, in 2015,

in the early part of the summer, she said you is feeling good, full of energy, completing a university fashion course, i wanted to go out from that with a bang, i was beginning to feel positive. as for her relationship with mark van dongen she said, i thought everything was fine, we were not fighting as much, i thought we had come to understand one another, we would talking about getting married. as the summer progressed in 2015, the elation ship went badly wrong, she said it broke down when she discovered that he had a new girlfriend, a different girlfriend. the prosecution has claimed in this case that berlinah wallace bought sulphuric acid on the internet and through it over mark van dongen as he lay in bed injust a pair of shorts, they say his injuries were so severe shorts, they say his injuries were so severe he was driven to that decision to end his life at a euthanasia clinic in belgium. she denies throwing the acid, she denies murder, she will continue giving her testimony here later this afternoon. our top story this lunchtime: it's emerged nearly half a million women in england

missed their final screening for breast cancer partly because of computer errors. tragically there are likely to be some people in this group who would have been alive today if the failure had not happened. coming up on bbc news, a year before the cricket world cup england are officially the best in the one—day game, overtaking india to go top of the icc world rankings for the first time since 2013. around 5,000 liverpool fans have travelled to rome for the second leg of their team's champions league semi—final against roma tonight. the first game at anfield was marred by violence, leaving one man in a critical condition. liverpool managerjurgen klopp says any problems off the pitch will not affect his side's performance. italian police have appealed to british fans to stay

within italian rules to ensure their safety. our sports correspondent david ornstein reports. the eternal optimists en route to the eternal city, liverpool fans departing for rome with hopes of success, and safety. sound, yeah, yes, it's good, my mother is all right about it now, she let me go on the trip, so i am ok(!) nah, i'm not worried at all. safety in numbers. stay to the denominated squares that they have recommended to go to. stay on the shuttle bus, really. 8—2 on aggregate, mark my words! for those already in the italian capital, the build—up has been trouble—free, a far cry from the pre—match violence that marred the first leg of this champions league semifinal last week, and left a liverpool fan, sean cox, in a critical condition. yesterday, roma players showed their support for the 53—year—old

as the authorities worked to avoid a repeat of such disturbing scenes. detailed advice to visiting supporters include not walking to the olympic stadium under any circumstances, nor wearing the colours of their team. it's a very small minority of people, and all the people of rome i have spoken to, they despise them people, as we do. it's just a great atmosphere here. i went to see fatboy slim last night, dancing with italian women with italian women all night... it's just absolutely amazing, no bad vibes at all. but i don't want to speak too soon. we will see what happens tonight. tonight, it's hoped the focus will shift firmly to events on the pitch. liverpool arrive here with a glorious chance to reach the champions league final, and move a step closer to club football's biggest prize. the reds are in firm control of the tie, after winning 5—2 at anfield. however, roma overturned a similar deficit to stun barcelona in the last round, so liverpool have been warned. we deserve to be here, tonight, and tomorrow night. and if we have the result we need, then we deserve to be in the final. if not, then rome has a very good campaign as well, if they can get a result,

then they deserve it, that is part of the game. but we are here to fight for our dreams. the final preparations for their most important game in more than a decade, liverpool beat roma on the same ground to lift the trophy in 1984, and they will want it to be a scene of celebration one small on and off the field of play. our correspondent, james reynolds, is at one of the gathering points for liverpool's fans. is all going well? pretty quiet, liverpool club updated advice to fans, they told them to meet at this square, and another nearby square, in the hours before they are meant to get onto the shuttle bus, here we are at piazza del popolo, there is a reasonably

lively atmosphere, but the italian authorities are on alert, they want to make sure all the liverpool fans get on the shuttle buses that they will provide, they want to prevent any chance encounter between liverpool and roma fans, particularly on bridges, and even after the match finishes, we understand liverpool fans, the away contingent may be asked to stay inside the stadium for two hours to avoid any encounters on the way back. so, piazza del popolo and piazza di spagna. they will gather in those squares and then they will catch buses towards the stadium. police have begun a murder investigation after a man was shot dead in north—west london last night. the victim, thought to have been in his 30s, died of his injuries outside queensbury tube station. some tsb customers say they are still facing account problems

nearly two weeks after the bank began changes to its it system. this afternoon, the bank's boss, paul pester, and two other executives will appear in front of mps to explain why the switch left nearly 2 million customers unable to make scheduled payments or to access their accounts online. the american rap performer, kanye west, has sparked an angry reaction on social media, after suggesting the enslavement of african americans over centuries may have been a "choice". speaking on the american entertainment channel tmz he claimed black people were mentally imprisoned and were choosing to be enslaved. the singer later said his remarks had been misinterpreted. the commons speakerjohn bercow is facing calls to stand down after being accused of bullying by his former private secretary. angus sinclair said he was intimidated by angry outbursts, obscene language and mimicry from his boss. mr bercow denies the allegations, as chris cook reports. angus sinclair was appointed

private secretary to the speaker of the house of commons in 2005, when michael martin held thatjob. almost uniquely, it's a personal appointment of the speaker, running his office. mr sinclair was in the post when john bercow was first made speaker in 2009, but the two men struggled to build a good working relationship. the speaker responded in a way that i can only say is a form of bullying, and that is to show anger, thump the table, to say that somebody has failed in front of others. it seemed to get more frequent, from time to time, you would hear yourself mimicked. your thought then is, "is that really how he sees me?" mr sinclair recalled one encounter when another part of the house had been slow in replying to a request for information. there was a tirade of how i had let him down,

it was quite the worst thing, a lot of bad language, and suddenly his mobile phone which he had been holding was flung on the desk, in front of me, and broke into a lot of bits. newsnight has been able to corroborate mr sinclair's account using his diary from the time and by speaking to his former colleagues. in 2010, john bercow asked mr sinclair to leave his office but on unusual terms. so they gave you something you called a compulsory early retirement, which was part of which was £85,000 lump sum. but there were conditions attached. i had to sign a nondisclosure agreement, that would not make complaint about my departure. nor talk about it to the press. how do you feel about it now? it's in the public interest to know why i left, yes, it breaks the nondisclosure agreement, but it is the truth: there was bullying. this is also not the only allegation against the speaker. kate emms, mr sinclair's successor, left the job after a year, her managers were told

she was diagnosed with post—traumatic stress disorder. a spokesman for the speaker's office said: an enquiry is under way, but its remit does not permit it to reach verdicts on individual mps. it is up to the house of commons to decide on the speaker's fate. now, her latest album has sold more than half a million copies, and along with adele's 21 has the longest unbroken run at the top of the charts in 30 years. now the legendary war time singer dame vera lynn has been nominated for two classic brit awards, for the collection of re—orchestrated versions of her most famous songs. dame vera, who's 101,

is up against artists many decades her junior. our entertainment correspondent colin paterson reports. # we'll meet again # don't know where, don't know when...#. dame vera lynn has received awards throughout her career. in 1945, she was given both the war medal and the burma star for entertaining the troops. but now at the age of 101, she finds herself nominated in two competitive categories at the classic brit awards. it is on the back of the success of her album, vera lynn 100, released last year. it featured re—orchestrated versions of some of her best—known songs and digitally created duets with the likes of the host of pointless, alexander armstrong. # there'll be bluebirds over # the white cliffs of dover...#.

the album was only kept off no 1 by ed sheeran and drake. the classic brits say that what she achieved in the year of her 100th birthday means she is more than worthy of her nominations. she has been an inspiration to so many other artists, as well as entertaining us and inspiring the country as well. it is remarkable that we still have her with us, we can celebrate her, and she can inspire a whole new generation of talent all over again. in best female, vera lynn is up against the italian pianist beatrice rana, 76 years herjunior. while in album of the year, her competition includes another pianist, tokio myers, the winner of last year's britain's got talent. # and i know we'll meet again... #. yes, she was the forces' sweetheart. and now, almost 80 years later,

vera lynn is the darling of the classic brits awards. colin paterson, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's stav. the field not looking quite as vibrant and golden under the grey skies, quite a bit of rain around, spreading east, some of it quite heavy, all courtesy of this area of low pressure. ice bar is fairly packed together, it has been quite windy and cold through the morning.