today at 5. the prime minister agrees to two additional panel members for the grenfell tower inquiry. after pressure from campaigners, two experts will support sir martin moore—bick, in his investigation into the fire which killed 71 people. we want to know why the fire started, how the fire started. the culture of the institutions that were supposed to listen to the concerns of the community. why did this happen? we'll have the very latest.... and we'll be finding out what this means for the inquiry. the other main stories on bbc news at 5... more money for grammar schools in england. the government says it'll mean more choice for parents — labour calls it a vanity project. after more than 200 women were wrongly given the all clear for cervical cancer, ireland's health minister says the public must be told who knew what and when. adverts forjunk food could be banned from london's public transport — as part of efforts to tackle childhood obesity. and: trying to outsmart four thieves

who are holding her children captive — hear what mark kermode thinks of ‘breaking in‘, in the film review. good evening. it's five o clock — ourtop story groups representing the survivors of the grenfell tower disaster say their concerns that the inquiry into the fire would be a whitewash have been eased after theresa may announced that two experts were to join the panel. the second phase of the inquiry, which begins next month, will carry out a wider examination of the factors behind the fire. ben ando reports. it is 11 months since fire tore through grenfell tower in west

london and caused the deaths of 71 people. in the aftermath, attention turned to cladding used on the building, there was anger among local residents who accused the council of using sub standard specifications to save money. when theresa may visited, she was booed and heckled. sir martin moore—bick, a formerjudge was appointed to lead an investigation, but campaigners always said he alone did not have the expertise to the filled the remit. to fulfill the remit. now the prime minister has listened and announced two further members will be added to the panel to support sir martin. in a statement, 10 downing street said, given the scale and complexity of concerning issues that are emerging from the enquiry‘s early investigations, the prime minister has a continuing duty to ensure that the enquiry always has the skills and expertise it requires for the challenges that lie ahead.

the news was welcomed by representatives of those who survived the flames and the families of those who did not. you know, it has taken a lot to get here, you know, we have campaigned and done a lot, to just get our voices heard and we should not have had to, but we did and we are pleased. the prime minister has listened, so we thank her for that. the identity of the two new panel members is not yet known, they will need to be appointed before the enquiry begins its second phase, in which more detailed evidence will be heard, later this month. meanwhile it has been revealed that nearly a year since the tragedy, more than half of those who lost their homes still have not been rehoused. kensington and chelsea council says that of the 210 families that survived the blaze, 136 remain in hotels or other temporary accommodation, while 7a families have been re—homed. previously, sir martin moore—bick has stated that he would not shrink away from making recommendations that could lead to prosecutions, but survivors said that until today, they felt they were not

were all clear. 17 women have since died. the failings occurred after the tests were out—sourced to an american company. our ireland correspondent chris page sent this report. stories like emma mhic mhathuna's have moved and stunned people in ireland. she was given the all clear from cervical cancer five years ago but the result of her smear test was wrong. she was only diagnosed with the disease in 2016 and is now terminally ill. the cancer is throughout my body. i've been told, while i have energy, to get things in place for my children.

it has not hit me that i'm dying, because i'm so worried that people are going to get away with it. the scandal came to light in a court case taken by this woman, vicky phelan from limerick. she was awarded 2.5 million euros in a settlement with an american laboratory which was carrying out tests for the irish health service. doctors have given her between six and 12 months to live. my settlement will mostly be spent on buying me time and paying for clinical trials to keep me alive and to allow me to spend more time with my children. if i die, and i truly hope that won't be the case, the money will provide for my family. it's emerged that at least 208 women should have had treatment earlier. 17 have died. public and political anger has grown. ireland's top health official tony o'brien faced fierce questioning at a parliamentary

committee yesterday. mrs mhic mhathuna on the radio this morning has no time to wait. she said she is too angry to worry about dying, and we are here kicking a football about. let's have an investigation and see what happened. where is the accountability? why don't we both wait until the outcome of the expert review, then we can both reflect? at the moment you are causing hysteria. last night, he announced he was standing down. mr 0'brien‘s resignation will take effect this afternoon. however, the women who have had catastrophic news are likely to keep the issue in the spotlight. emma mhic mhathuna says she wants to ensure no one else will die needlessly. when you are a parent, there is nothing else you won't do for your children, that's why i am going to keep soldiering on as long as i have here. chris page, bbc news.

the government is pressing ahead with plans to expand existing grammar schools in england. it has promised £50 million to provide new places at selective schools. labour has dismissed it as a vanity project, saying it's a misguided use of overstretched funds. 0ur political correspondent iain watson reports. here is a test for you. when did the prime minister say this? we know grammar schools are hugely popular with parents. we know they are good for the pupils that attend them. yes, it was 2016, before the general election. losing her majority in 2017, the commitment to lift a ban on new selective schools was dropped. now £50 million has been made available for existing grammar schools in england to expand. the £50 million for grammar school expansion is a relatively small part of a large capital pot which is there to make sure that we can accommodate the needs of families and make sure we have

got good school places and diversity in choice. the funding was first ear—marked in 2016, the new education secretary has now authorised it. to get the cash, schools must pass some tests. they will have to prove there is local demand and set out what they will do to attract more pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. leading grammar schools say they welcome the challenge. it's no doubt where they are dominated by the middle classes, that can have a negative effect, so it's welcome we are looking at the way grammar schools admit pupils, rather than debating whether they should exist or not. labour say the focus should be on schools in greater need. unfortunately the government have shown they are ideologically driven to help the selected few while the rest of schools are facing real—term cuts and having a damaging effect on education. when is a new grammar school not a grammar school?

when it's an annex. this school in kent set up an annex ten miles away, so critics say money for expansion could mean more grammar schools by the back door. not content with dropping one manifesto pledge to create entirely new grammar schools, today the government has dropped another. it had said it would get rid of so—called inclusivity rules when it comes to new free schools. translated, that means they could select up to 100% of the pupils on the basis of their parent's religion. that's now gone, and only up to half of the pupils in these schools will be selected on the basis of faith. i do welcome the fact that the government has abandoned its plans to allow religious groups to open free schools and only open them to children of particular faiths. this is our school... more money will be made available via local authorities to expand faith schools in their areas, where there is demand. the government says it wants

to offer more choice but critics say there is still too much emphasis on schools selecting pupils rather than parents selecting schools. iain watson, bbc news. the prime minister has split her cabinet into two groups to consider the options for customs arrangements after britain leaves the eu. a downing street spokesman said each group will contain both leave and remain supporters — and that the work is being undertaken "as a priority". 0ur political correspondent, jonathan blake is at westminster. the very fact that this is happening, jonathan, is this a sign that the cabinet is so divided on this issue that essentially theresa may has said sit down and see what ideas you can come up with?m may has said sit down and see what ideas you can come up with? it is further proof that the cabinet is struggling to come to a consensus on this big issue of the uk's customs

arrangements with the eu after brexit. there are two options on the table and she has split the cabinet down the middle, three ministers on each side to go away and look at these options i come back and present their findings later. 0ne group of ministers is looking at the customs partnership option which the prime minister is thought to favour, thatis prime minister is thought to favour, that is where britain will collect customs tariffs on behalf of the european union on goods entering the uk and set tariffs at a lower rate for good stain in the uk and companies would have though is refunded with a difference refunded and on the other side, the option is the maximum facilitation option, whereby they would be little need for checks on the border of goods entering the uk, which are bound for the european union, because of technological solutions, as yet unspecified ones, i have to say. it will be interesting to see if we

find out what these groups of ministers discuss and come back with, but there will be some difficult discussions by them to have, because there are arab mix of leave and remain supporters on each side and a mix of ministers who support one option over the other. next week there will be a meeting of the brexit subcommittee and looking further ahead, there is an eu summit injune further ahead, there is an eu summit in june where the further ahead, there is an eu summit injune where the government will hope to have some idea of its preferred option, you would think. let us see. time is tight. thank you. some news coming through regarding airport travel, specifically london, london luton, we are hearing that people at luton airport, are going to stage strikes over at the may bank holiday weekend. this is luton airport, staff including baggage handlers, firefighters and security staff are going to stage strikes over the may

bank holiday weekend at the end of the month in a dispute about pay and about zero—hours contracts. that news is coming through from the unite union and if we hear any reaction from the airport, we will keep you up—to—date. that is what we are being told at the moment and it will affect flights, over the may bank holiday as things stand. the mayor of london, sadiq khan, wants to ban adverts forjunk food on the capital's tubes and buses, and parts of the overground rail network. it's part of an effort to tackle childhood obesity — a0 percent of 10 and 11 year olds in london are overweight. our health correspondent james gallagher reports. if you take public transport in london, you're bombarded with adverts for junk food. whether in underground stations or bus stops, london mayor sadiq khan wants them banned. he says ads promoting food high in salt, fat or sugar are contributing to childhood obesity. we have a situation where children are obese, they will probably be

obese as adults. it impacts them physically, psychologically and inhibits their life chances and is also a strain on the nhs. i think having fewer children who are obese, fewer children who are overweight is a win—win for society. the mayor says seeing signs like this are making us more likely to want to buy one of these. 0nly amsterdam in europe has tried this measure already. health experts say tackling childhood obesity will not be the silver bullet. the idea gets a mixed reaction for people heading to the tube. i think it will help, i don't think it will be the be all and end all it. but it will help, won't it? it's a free market. just warnings, in terms of the risks of eating junk food. ithink bans... they don't work. i don't think it's a good idea. almost four in ten children

are overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school in london. celebrity chef jamie oliver says banning junk food ads could reverse the problem. if a child is born today, i think that by 2030 the statistics will be different. but some argue the current rules on adverts are already tough enough. i think current regulations do the job because they are among the strictest in the they world, they apply across all media, it's notjust about the placement of the advertised. the rest of the world tends to look to the to the uk for leadership. we are not complacent and if there is evidence more changes need to be made, the regulator will make those changes. the planned advertising ban comes one month after the sugar tax came into force across the uk. it seems there's a growing appetite from politicians for tackling our waistlines. this is bbc news at five — the headlines:

theresa may has agreed to appoint a panel to help the judge leading the g re nfell panel to help the judge leading the grenfell fire enquiry. it comes after pressure from the local community. the government presses ahead with plans to expand existing grammar schools in england. labour calls it a vanity project. after more than 200 women were wrongly given the all clear for cervical cancer, ireland's health minister says the public must be told who knew what and when. and in sport, siralex and in sport, sir alex ferguson's son darren has banked football fans for the support football fans have shown his father following for the support football fans have shown his fatherfollowing his brain haemorrhage. he also praised hospital staff for their care. everton manor —— manager sam alla rdyce everton manor —— manager sam allardyce said he would be speaking

to wayne rooney about whether he wa nts to to wayne rooney about whether he wants to leave to play for dc united in the us. kyle edmund takes an denis shapovalov in the madrid open as he continues to charge into the world's top 20. i will be back with more on those stories after half—past. the british government must do more to build trust with minority groups, according to a united nations special adviser. tendye achumee is compiling a report about race relations since last year's brexit vote. and she's raised concerns about the windrush scandal, rising levels of hate crime and current immigration laws. our community affairs correspondent adina campbell reports: tendye achumee has been on a whistle—stop tour of the uk, revealing her initial findings whistle—stop tour of the uk, revealing her initialfindings in front of the media, the united nations special adviser has been assessing levels of discrimination

faced by some communities. top of her list with how people from the windrush generation have been affected by the government's immigration policy. the problems around racial equality are very deep, like the windrush scandal, what has been astounding is to come face—to—face with how deep immigration law and policy that is in place profoundly resulted in the kind of dynamics we are seeing in oui’ kind of dynamics we are seeing in our contacts. it appears that part of the problem is notjust hate crime itself, it is the way it is dealt with. do you think police forces, the authorities, should be more effective and should be speeding up their processes to stamp out this type of crime?|j speeding up their processes to stamp out this type of crime? i think one of the priorities for police forces and from government authorities more generally should be building trust in ethnic minority communities and i have been staggered at the levels of distrust and a lot of that is actually founded, if you look at some of the policies and the

immigration context, like the hostile environment policy that deputises government enforcement to hospitals, schools, universities or the prevent duty that has some of the prevent duty that has some of the dynamics, if you think about the criminal justice the dynamics, if you think about the criminaljustice report, reports about gang matrix databases, that basically result in deep concerns about racial profiling. the distrust that communities have for government is warranted and i think the priorities for those institutions should be restoring trust. since brexit, has become more acceptable for people to truly reveal how they feel about minority groups or migrants in this country?” feel about minority groups or migrants in this country? i think some of that is definitely going on, it has been evident that one of the indications of the rhetoric and the practices around the decision on whether or not to exit the eu has been a growing acceptability in terms of intolerance and racist

speech, i think it is the case. what has also happened is heightened levels of anxiety and even people who might not be explicitly racist or intolerant, feel anxious. the full report will beef published injune, 2019. some of the other stories making bbc news at five. a million npower customers facing higher bills from next month as the energy supplier becomes the latest to raise gas and electricity prices. npower says typical annual dual fuel bills will rise by 5.3%, or £61; a year. customers on fixed rate contracts, won't be affected. in the democratic republic of congo. two britons have been kidnapped in the democratic republic of congo. local media reports say a female wildlife ranger who was with them was killed. the foreign office says its staff are providing support to theirfamilies in britain. the campaign group leave dot eu has been fined seventy thousand pounds after an investigation into funding during the 2016 referendum. the electoral commission concluded

that the campaign group incorrectly reported its spending. the group did not run the official leave campaign. the director of a yachting management company has been given a 15 month suspended sentence for failing to ensure the safety of four sailors who died when the cheeki rafiki yacht sank in the atlantic. douglas innes was acquitted of manslaughter in april but the 43—year—old and his company, stormforce coaching limited, were convicted last year of failing to operate the yacht in a safe manner and today were sentenced at winchester crown court. duncan kennedy reports. this is the moment american navy divers searched the cheeki rafiki. the upended boat rocked by the swell of mid atlantic currents shows no signs of the four man crew. andrew bridge, james male,

steve warren and paul gosling, were sailing it back to southampton from antigua when they started taking on water. the boat was operated by douglas innes who told the court he had received e—mails from the men. innes called the uk coastguard, to tell them what was happening. the e—mails suggest they have been taken on a lot of water yesterday and today and they are concerned enough to phone and e—mail me. when the upturned cheeki rafiki was found later, it's keel was missing revealing a series of rusty bolts. the results, said the prosecution, of repeated groundings during earlier sailings and a lack of maintenance, something

he said the failure to have it serviced was an act of negligence but also said such a survey might not have found the fault. last month a jury found douglas innes not guilty of the manslaughter of the four men on board the cheeki rafiki. but last year, in a separate trial, he was found guilty of failing to operate a yacht in a safe manner and it is for that that he was sentenced today. thejudge called on the judge called on the maritime authorities to change the rules on boat safety, something they have now agreed to do. i have personally pledged to the family that rules will change as a result of this case. there are a number of grey areas that were referred to this morning during the defence's presentation and it is important that we make it clear to industry how they operate those services and make sure that they are safer to travel a lot. the families gave

victim impact statements, one said she was numb and breathed beyond words at the loss of her father. another said of his son, when i look at his picture now, ijust cry. duncan kennedy, bbc news. a family has had a narrow escape after getting out of their car at a safari park in the netherlands. the group, including a woman carrying a child, defied signs warning visitors to the park not to get out of their vehicles. the incident happened on monday — but staff at the park only became aware after this footage emerged on the internet. let's speak now to niels de wildt who is the manager of the safari park... thank you for speaking to us. what on earth did you think when you saw this footage online?”

on earth did you think when you saw this footage online? i was shocked, clearly i was shocked by seen this video. in the beginning of the video, it seems rather harmless, but further on in the video, it was clearly exciting movie video to see, so clearly exciting movie video to see, soi clearly exciting movie video to see, so i was shocked. what sort of amat —— animals could the family have encountered chris buckler this situation could have been much worse. yeah. they stepped out of the vehicles in the cheater area, so there were many cheaters there, and you can clearly see in the video, that the animals are there, but the family thought it was a good idea to ta ke family thought it was a good idea to take photographs and make films, yeah. and, cheetahs, i am assuming,

oui’ yeah. and, cheetahs, i am assuming, our artful, strong, fast, that is why you're told not to get out of your car? the whole route, it is forbidden to get out of your car, especially with the cheetahs, who are predators. they usually hunt for smaller game, but for a little child, it could be dangerous as well, so stay in the car. you presumably have signs everywhere, reminding people to stay inside, i am assuming. of course, of course. 0n multiple occasions, we give our guests information about the rules, we have them in the bags and at the entrance to the to safari. we also have a ranger who in person gives you information in most languages, also in french, and also tells you

not to get out of your car and keep doors and windows closed at all times. it is very clearly what our rules are, that you do not get out of your car. so, would you say that the people who did get out on monday, are very, very lucky? yeah, they were very, very lucky. as the video shows, the animals are very relaxed, but as they get out of the carfora relaxed, but as they get out of the carfor a second time, also relaxed, but as they get out of the car for a second time, also the animals and the cheetahs in this case, are sensing animals and the cheetahs in this case, are sensing something is wrong and they are having a look. so, yeah, they were very lucky. thank you very much for your time. thank you very much for your time. thank you for speaking to the bbc. he is the general manager of that safari park where you are most definitely

meant to stay in your car. as people prepare for the wedding of prince harry and meghan markle — now just a week away — a group of amateur singers in the west midlands have been busy creating a unique wedding gift. gosp—ability is the uk's first gospel choir made up of people with mental and physical disabilities — and they've been invited to sing in windsor in the run up to the big day. trish adudu reports. a choir rehearsing at their weekly practice. nothing extraordinary about that, but this is no ordinary choir. they are gosp—ability, the uk's first gospel choir made up of all abilities. the singers have overcome, or are living with, a physical or mental disability. they are practising hard, hoping to create a unique gift for prince harry and meghan markle ahead of their wedding. so what is the inspiration for this choir? the inspiration has come through the amazing work that prince harry and his family have done, particularly with organisations like invictus, fantastic work. to bring the idea to life,

sandra set up nationwide auditions at coventry cathedral, and those with disabilities, like this muscular dystrophy sufferer, jonty g, came to try out. everyone in the choir experiences difficulties to their life, and expressing that through music brings such a strength and power. alongside those with less obvious issues. 26 choir members were selected. news of their existence spiralled, and after just three weeks of rehearsals, they were invited to perform live in front of the archbishop of canterbury. i cannot hold a note in my head. and i will spend the service, when they are singing, listening to them, thinking, "i can't do that!" what do you think prince harry will make of the choir? i hope they will get to hear the choir at some point. i think they will be thrilled to hear them and see

what they're doing. # we all need somebody to lean on.# but no time to waste. sandra has written a charity single, the big love song, a wedding gift song for harry and meghan to raise money for various mental health charities. but the story doesn't end there. this idea started as a little concept but it is growing and growing and growing. next stop, windsor guildhall where gospability will perform 36 hours before the royal couple tie the knot. and you can see a special programme, tonight at 9:30pm, on various times

as well, including 10:30am on saturday morning. let's pause and catch up with the weather with helen willetts. so glad you didn't ask me about next weekend as i'm struggling enough with this weekend! i will be glad when the detail is done with, because it really has been a trial. this weather front has been pushing in from the west, bringing some rain and it will grind to a halt, but given the size, you can see almost the width of the uk, and where it does that it will have quite an impact. late evening sunshine to enjoy in northern ireland, still sunny in eastern areas but the rain band is moving east and beginning of the time. under clear skies, some mist and fog, touch of grass frost, especially in northern ireland where it will be quite chilly. hopefully this rain will clearfrom it will be quite chilly. hopefully this rain will clear from the north—east quite quickly. not looking too bad for the bolt at the start of the day but there will be some showers, heavy and slow moving. look at this, late in the day. tomorrow evening in london as well,

it looks to be quite wet through the evening and overnight is that pushes northward. then the uncertainty for sunday, but there will be more on that in about half an hour. join me then. this is bbc news — the headlines: the government agrees to appoint a panel to help oversee the grenfell fire inquiry — after families of the victims said they feared a whitewash. grammar schools in england are to be given extra funding to help them expand — if they can show they're helping disadvantaged pupils. more than 200 women in ireland were wrongly given the all—clear for cervical cancer — now the country's health minister says the public must be told how it happened. and workers at london luton airport — including baggage handlers, firefighters and security staff — are to stage strikes over the may bank holiday weekend. we will talk more about grammar

schools in the next little while and also we will have the film review of course, but right now... time for the sport with sarah. yes, good evening. wayne rooney has not asked to leave everton, according to their manager sam alla rdyce. rooney is being linked with a move this summer to dc united in america's mls. he's thought to have agreed a deal in principle, but has yet to sign it. this is what allardyce had to say about those rumours: there appears to be an interest from dc united, where that is and where that lies and where wayne lies with it, i cannot tell you at the moment. so only after i've spoken to him today will i find out where the situation actually lies. let's put this right — wayne rooney has not asked to leave, and neither has wayne rooney had a confrontation with me.

we have not been in any difficult situation, because we are two adults and we talk. darren ferguson has expressed his gratitude for the support he and his family have received since his father sir alex suffered a brain haemorrhage. darren missed his doncaster side's final game of the league one season to be at his father's bedside, and thanked fans of his club and the wider sporting world for their well wishes. manchester united announced on wednesday that their former manager was no longer in intensive care and was being treated as an inpatient. —— treated as an outpatient. gareth southgate will name his final 23—man england squad for the world cup on wednesday. the fa will hand a 35—man provisional squad to fifa on monday, and southgate will then tell the players his final 23 two days later. england kick off their world cup campaign against tunisia on 18th june. juventus' goalkeeper gianluigi buffon has been charged by uefa over comments about referee michael 0liver, after their champions league defeat to real madrid. buffon was sent off for dissent

after 0liver awarded real a late penalty, which they scored to progress 11—3 on aggregate. buffon, playing in his final european game, said the english official had "a bag of rubbish for a heart" and should "sit in the stands eating crisps" for "ruining a dream". britain's simon yates retained the overall lead at the giro d'italia — with ireland's sam bennett claiming a maiden stage victory. the bora—hansgrohe rider pipped elia viviani just before the line, as the seventh stage ended in a bunch sprint. yates, who took the pink jersey with a 16—second lead after stage six, was among the group of riders to finish behind bennett. lewis hamilton has edged red bull's daniel ricciardo and max verstappen after second practice at the spanish grand prix. there were some high profile spins in barcelona, including verstappen in an eventful start to the weekend. his red bull team—mate ricciardo came in second to mercedes' hamilton

who finished quickest in the second practice. and the weather has got in the way of what should have been a historic day for ireland's cricketers. they were all ready to play pakistan in their first ever test — and then it started raining in malahide, and it hasn't stopped since. so play has been abandoned for the day, and they're hoping to get underway at 11 o'clock tomorrow morning. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. that's bbc.co.uk/sport. azi farni will be here at 6.30 with sportsday, but that's it for now. thank you very much indeed, sarah. now, as promised... more now on news that the government is pressing ahead with plans to expand existing grammar schools in england. it has promised £50 million to provide new places

at selective schools. and on the line from tunbridge wells is chris mcgovern from the pressure group campaign for real education. to discuss the pros and cons. and jaques shemalakowski is headteacher at hampstead school in central london. good evening to both of you. first to you, why is this happening at a time when the budget is so tight?m is trying to open up to children from deprived backgrounds. we had around 50 years of conference of schooling and yet we are bottom of the international league table for social mobility. that is a scandal. we are also heading to mediocrity in terms of standards. we will have to have children take their gcse exams, and the traditional clocks... last yearin and the traditional clocks... last year in order to give children a

good pass the mark had to be lowered, and alongside the grammar schools we need good technical schools we need good technical schools as well. i support the statement today but i think it hasn't gone far enough. we need far more grammar and technical schools. we might come onto the technical schools point, but, jaques, we are ina schools point, but, jaques, we are in a global market and we see this all the time, so if english, british, schools are not performing well in that market, it is a bad thing, isn't it? it certainly will be. they are not actually bottom of the global market and they have been moving for a few years and there is nothing to suggest that jurisdictions with grammar schools actually perform better. finland, korea, canada, they don't actually have that education. chris? the fact isiam have that education. chris? the fact is i am not against conference of schools, i am only against them in the uk because they are underperforming. you took your cameras to south korea last year,

you give the 15—year—olds their gcse to do, they did it in 15 minutes, had a giggle and said it is what they did in primary school. the conference of school system could be good but it is not stretching children. they should be sitting gcses when they enter, not leave, conference of school. we have to help children. i hear your point. cani help children. i hear your point. can i come back? we have to have an evidence —based education system, not a dogma based system based on ideology, and we have to make very co nfe re nce conference of and grammar schools, and they found no difference. there is no difference with bright children's progress in conference of an grammar schools and therefore i would or would challenge the assumption that those bright children do better in grammar schools. i would flip the argument

on its head and see if they didn't have to deal with the issues in co nfe re nce have to deal with the issues in conference of schools, why aren't they doing better? you will not part of the argument is having a selective school of any type creams off the best and the brightest from that geographical area, so by definition the schools that remain can't do as well? absolutely, so i think what you end up with is the syste m think what you end up with is the system with the lower standards, whilst doing nothing for the bright majority —— the majority. whilst doing nothing for the bright majority -- the majority. what about those two reports? the ss children's progress on the basis of their gcse results, but that isn't discriminating. it is 50% for passport. if i did one along with stephen hawking, i would get the same result —— a pass mark. as for selection, we have selection today by postcode, by ability to buy a house in a posh area, we have

massive selection. those results from durham, incredibly controversial. there was a reputable piece of research back in the 70s which showed two thirds of grammar school pupils were the children of manual workers and that is reputable research too. let parents decide at a local level. that's what i would argue, let the parents decide. that is the government argument today, isn't it? this is about providing greater parental choice.” isn't it? this is about providing greater parental choice. i think that it had to be —— has to be predicated on evidence and whilst you may dispute evidence there has to bea you may dispute evidence there has to be a consensus around the evidence base and there is no threat whatsoever of evidence that supports grammar schools raising standards. do they help disadvantaged children? no, because they have no wherewithal to do so. a school like mine, about 50% of children come from a disadvantaged background. part of the argument from the government today, you will only get this extra money and be allowed to expand if you can prove that you are helping

some local disadvantaged children? by some local disadvantaged children? by which time the horse has bolted. that money will be far better spent on raising standards of all our schools and to stop tinkering dogmatically with the system and to invest in all our conference of schools. put the money into all schools, chris mcgovern, so they are as good as the international schools you are taking? i'm afraid the dogma is coming from the other side. looking at expenditure, since the 19505, by 900% in real terms, yet we have gone backwards comparatively in terms of international standards. it is not a problem with money. the problem in our system is how we teach the children, and we teach the children in a child—centred and very expensive way which doesn't work. go to shanghai, see the classes of 60 or 70 to shanghai, see the classes of 60 or70 and to shanghai, see the classes of 60 or 70 and work out why is it that there are bottom 30% in terms of their standard of living outperform our richest 10%? we have to learn from those countries, because if we don't we are going to fall further and further behind. grammar schools, thatis and further behind. grammar schools, that is one answer. we can have an

alternative one which has improved our comrades of schools, have a grammar school stream within them, let pa rents grammar school stream within them, let parents ultimately decide —— —— an alternative which is to improve our comprehensive schools. thank you both, that is a weird time for. jaques szemalikowski from perhaps hampstead school in london —— that is all we have time for. the film review coming up, but before that a rather different story to bring new. . . —— you. the uk is hoping for its first eurovision win for more than two decades tomorrow — surie will be doing her best, though the favourites are cyprus, israel and france. people in china can't watch the contest this year though — after the european broadcasting union terminated its contract because it censored a semi—final performance by ireland, which featured a gay relationship. david sillito reports from lisbon. the two male dancers made it more

than clear what this love story was about in ireland's eurovision song. millions watched, but not in china. mango tv presented an edited version of the programme. viewers complained they had, through the show, tried to blur out the rainbow flags in the audience. the decision to strip mango of its broadcasting rights is being widely welcomed among the show‘s fans. this is notjust a song competition, it is a festival of diversity and tolerance. regardless of who they are married to, what gender they are, or what language they speak, it is everybody coming together through the shared passion of music. and lisbon is awash with eurovision fans. what of britain's hopes this year? surie is a eurovision veteran, having been a backing singer in 2015. # hey brother, do you remember when we were kids with no fear?

it's an incredible feeling, because the electricity that is charged from the crowd, the eurovision crowd in that arena, is like no other audience i have ever experienced. go, surie! and she does have many supporters. however... does britain stand a chance? no. once upon a time the uk was a eurovision superpower. the last 20 years, not so good. time, ithought, to talk to dr eurovision. yes, paul really has a phd in eurovision. i think there is a problem with perception. we don't take it seriously enough? yes, people think the music is rubbish. there is some good talent in this contest but we don't see it in the same way.