this is bbc news. i'm vicki young. the headlines at 3. a second major fire in four years at one of scotland's architectural landmarks, the glasgow school of art. the scale of damage is extensive. scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, has been visiting the scene and talking to emergency services. it is actually quite hard to find the words, given what happened four yea rs the words, given what happened four years ago, the fact it was so close to being reopened after the restoration, that this has happened again. the home secretary uses exceptional powers to release illegal cannabis oil to severely epileptic billy caldwell. the medication has now been administered. his mother remains at the hospital. billy is getting the best care in the world here, and i feel safe here at this particular hospital with billy. so, again, it isjust one step at a time, praying

for a miracle, really. andy murray will make his competitive return from hip surgery at queen's next week. also in the next hour, a crucial game for england's rugby players. in the next few minutes eddie jones' england will try to avoid a fifth test defeat in a row, when they face south africa in bloemfontein. france beat australia 2—1 — after the video assistant referee system was used for the first time in the history of the competition. and zombies, dinosaurs and fluffy cloud candyfloss trees! click is at the biggest gaming event of the year, in half an hour, here on bbc news. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news.

fire has caused extensive damage at the world—renowned glasgow school of art. the alarm was raised just after 11 o'clock last night and the mackintosh building was said to have been engulfed by flames within minutes. the scottish fire and rescue service has said that the historic building has been extensively damaged along with some surrounding buildings. it was undergoing a multi—million pound restoration project following a similar blaze four years ago. firefighters say there were no casualties. scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, has been visiting the site this afternoon to see the damage for herself. she praised the speed of the response and the skill of the firefighters in preventing the loss of lives. our scotland correspondent, lorna gordon, reports. this was a sight glasgow never expected to see again. its world —famous school of art engulfed by fire once more. thick black smoke and flames

spreading quickly, rising high into the night sky. i looked up and i saw this massive orange cloud. and i just thought to myself, surely that's not the art school, at because it was on fire recently as well. weird that it is happening again. yeah, it feels like a dream. it can't be real. yeah, it can't be real. it isjust, like, strange. glasgow's not got very much luck with fires these days. i think pretty much everyone isjust in shock because, i mean, it is iconic, isn't it? the fire spread to other buildings, including a nearby nightclub and a well—known music venue. some local residents were moved from their homes for safety. at its height, more than 120 firefighters were involved in the operation, water pumped from the river clyde to help dampen down the flames. every floor of the art school

building at the centre of this fire is thought to be extensively damaged. the building in which the fire started has been extensively damaged by fire. it has reached from the ground floor right through to the roof. it is significantly damaged. we were focusing our attention on preventing it from spreading. the mackintosh building had been damaged in a previous fire four years ago. its restoration, costing £35 million, had been well under way. artisan craftsmen from across the uk working to recreate charles rennie mackintosh‘s designs which had made the building so well known. i was shocked, heartbroken, devastated for the people that have worked so hard to try and bring the building back to its former glory. i know that the staff at the glasgow school of art, all the architects and crafts people involved, have been working so hard, and they were nearly there in terms of getting the work done as well. so it is absolutely devastating to see it in the state that is in now.

there is shock that a building so central to glasgow's creative history has been so extensively damaged. the investigation into why this happened will be for the days that follow. for now, firefighters continue to work on stopping the fire flaring up once again. scottish first minister nicola sturgeon has visited the scene this afternoon and pledged support from the scottish government following last night's devastating fire. the scottish government stands ready to do anything we reasonably can to help ensure that the building has a future. it is too early to say what that might entail or what that might look like. we do not know yet what the structural condition of the building is. without trying to dodge the questions, it is too early to give definitive answers, but i am determined, as we were after the fire four years ago, that the scottish government will do everything

we can, and i have given that assurance to the principal this morning. can you tell us details of what you have seen today? it is devastating. we see a building, and i am a layperson, not an expert on building control or a firefighter, but looking at it, the building is a shell. the external structure looks as if it is damaged. there is also some damage which i hope is more cosmetic, to the muir building across the road. it has been a fire of a much greater intensity than the one that took hold four years ago. it is hard to find the words to describe what it feels like, to look at such an iconic building, notjust an iconic building in glasgow or scottish terms, but a building with significance for people across the world. four years ago i was struck by the outpouring of support globally for the mackintosh building. we are starting to see that

again today. it is heartbreaking. that is probably the only word that can be used at the moment. inaudible. the fire crews i have been speaking to are from all over scotland and that is a sign of the scale of the response. there were 20 appliances at one stage. it has been scaled back slightly now. we have all seen pictures of the hose which stretched from the clyde to here, so this has been an enormous response and i want to thank the firefighters and the police and members of the ambulance service. the pictures i were witnessing, we we re the pictures i were witnessing, we were all witnessing last night, really bring home water dangerous job firefighters in particular do andi job firefighters in particular do and i am so grateful to them for their response last night. they will be working hard here for days to

come, and they deserve all gratitude. inaudible i think there is still some concern about the 02 abc right now. we have seen the roof collapsing in the pictures. focuses on the internationally famous mackintosh building, but this is a devastating tragedy for the 02 abc as well, an historic and much loved building in glasgow. it is too early to speculate about what the future might hold, but i know the firefighting teams are focused on making sure that the fire is com pletely making sure that the fire is completely extinguished. inaudible it is far too early to draw any conclusions about the cause of the fire. fire investigation teams are starting their work now. i cannot

say how long that work will take. i do not think it is helpful and there is no point in speculating on what caused the fire, or what enabled the fire to develop in the way it did. there will be opportunity in the fullness of time to do that. if i could finally say, all of us owe debt of gratitude to the firefighters in particular, but all the emergency services. the mackintosh building is such a special building, but it is a building and the most important thing today is we are not mourning the loss of life we should not forget that that is down to the skill and speed of response of the fire service and for that i am immensely grateful to all of them. the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon. the home office has granted a licence to allow a severely epileptic boy to be treated with illegal cannabis oil after the drug had been confiscated from his family. the home secretary, sajid javid, says he used "exceptional power" to grant a licence for 12—year—old billy caldwell. billy is currently in hospital, after suffering two life—threatening

seizures overnight. his mother had obtained more of the drug from canada, but it was taken away after she landed at heathrow. keith doyle takes us through the story. when billy caldwell and his mother returned from canada on monday with medicine containing cannabis oil, it was confiscated by customs after they declared it at heathrow airport. billy was taking the oil to help control violent epileptic seizures. now he has been admitted to hospital in london where this morning his mother said the attacks have returned and his condition is life—threatening. billy is getting the best care in the world here and i feel safe here at this particular hospital with billy. so, again, it isjust one step at a time, praying for a miracle, really. this afternoon the home secretary gave permission for billy to use the medication. in a statement, sajid javid said... my experience throughout this

leaves me in no doubt that the home office can no longer play a role, in fact, play any role, in the administration of medication for sick children in our country. billy has intractable epilepsy, which can cause up to 100 serious attacks a day. two years ago, he was given medicine containing cannabis oil in the united states, which slowly shortened the length and number of attacks. back home, his gp took the decision to prescribe the cannabis oil, but the home office later told him to stop as it contains the element thc, the psychoactive chemicalfound in marijuana. this cannabis is being grown legally in canada for medicinal use.

while there is some evidence that some formulations may have medical benefits, it remains illegal in the uk. but this afternoon, billy caldwell is once again being treated with the medication his family says is life—saving. let's talk to peter reynolds, the president of the cannabis reform charity clear. thank you forjoining us. presumably you think that in this case the home 0ffice you think that in this case the home office has done the right thing?- last, yes. it is wonderful news, and let's raise a cheer, but let's be angry at what has gone on. this is not just a recent thing, angry at what has gone on. this is notjust a recent thing, it is not just the plight of billy, it applies to hundreds of thousands of people in this country who already use cannabis oil as medicine. —— cannabis. for 50 years the government has been engaged in systematically misleading and misinforming people the truth about

cannabis. it is going on today. this suggestion from the home secretary that he has used exceptional powers, it is nonsense. integral in the misuse of drugs act, the home secretary has the power to license any act that would otherwise be unlawful. he could have done this at the stroke of a pen weeks ago, and he could've done it for alfie and the many people who need access right now. we have heard over the yea rs right now. we have heard over the years about cannabis being used for pain relief. in this case we are talking about something more widespread, in the case of billy it is about alleviating the seizures he's having. how many people across the country do you think i'd using cannabis for medicinal purposes? we have to date on which we provided the campaigna have to date on which we provided the campaign a couple of years ago. probably about i million the campaign a couple of years ago. probably abouti million people are using cannabis, at least partly for what they would term medical reasons. the trouble is, the

response to this from government, they always seem to respond to campaigns for medical use with the arguments against recreational use. it is disingenuous. the evidence is overwhelming. i first gave evidence to parliament in 1983 and the evidence was strong then. it has been getting stronger since. britain is now at the very back of all first world nations and allowing access to this substance as a medicine, and it is inhumane what is going on. that is inhumane what is going on. that is interesting because people have argued, saying, it has got to be proven that it works, that there is not enough evidence, but globally, you alluded to the fact that other countries allow the legal use of cannabis for medicinal purposes. there have been lots of clinical trials. there are not enough. in the uk, there are no clinical trials because the home office will not

allow them. the home office has this position that it is open to applications from companies wishing to develop cannabis medicines, but to develop cannabis medicines, but to my first—hand knowledge, i have been involved in seeking with the home office to allow one of the major canadian medical cannabis companies to gain a licence to develop cannabis medicine in the uk and the home office rejected the application out of hand, so everything you hear from the home office about this is dishonest. as far as getting approval and checking the safety of medicines, in every jurisdiction in the world, where cannabis is legally available as a medicine, is separate set of regulations has been set up, because you cannot regulate a plant —based medicine that contains something like 500 molecules in the same way you would regulate the single molecule pharmaceutical medicine. it is disingenuous. they are trying to shoehorn this complex medicine into the same system as is used for

medicines synthesised in a laboratory. it is false and misleading. let's hope this is a breakthrough. tell us about the other uses, other examples you have come across in the evidence you say you have seen, and giving testimony about, how it is used by different patients? 0ne one of the main uses is for neuropathic pain that is caused through the nerves and is different from the pain you get from a cut or a traumatic injury. in that sort of pain, opiates can be very effective. but in neuropathic pain, spinal injury, the pain associated with fibromyalgia and multiple sclerosis, opiates often don't have a very good effect so neuropathic pain, cannabis... again, there is very good evidence, which the home office and which the british government,

not trust this government, the labour party has been just as bad not trust this government, the labour party has beenjust as bad on cannabis as the conservative party. there is substantial evidence which they have been refusing to even consider. they have not taken on board the argument and considered them, they have refused even to look at it and thank god they had been forced now into this position, it is about time. peter reynolds, thank you very much indeed for speaking to us you very much indeed for speaking to us this afternoon. the headlines on bbc news: fire has broken out for a second time in four years at one of scotland's architectural landmarks, the glasgow school of art. there has been extensive damage. the government has said it will help with restoring the building. the home secretary uses an exceptional power to release illegal cannabis oil to severely epileptic billy caldwell after doctors said it was a ‘medical emergency‘. the medication has now been administered. in the next few minutes, eddie jones' england will try to avoid a fifth test defeat in a row, when they face

south africa in bloemfontein. at the world cup — iceland pull themselves level with lionel messi's argentin. while earlier france beat australia. a fifth 0di century from jason roy lays a strong foundation for england against australia — they're one up in the five—match series. and andy murray will make his competitive return from hip surgery at queen's next week. a tough draw sees him play world number 2a nick kyrgios in the first round. i'll be back with more on those stories in the next hour. sinn fein has begun debating changing the party's policy on abortion at its annual conference in belfast. the president, mary lou mcdonald, will also give her first leader's address since replacing gerry adams. 0ur ireland correspondent, emma vardy, is at the conference in belfast. they brought this conference forward

to allow the party to have this debate on abortion soon. they have only supported access to abortion in limited circumstances so far but following the referendum result in the republic to overturn the ban on abortion, the proposal put forward here if it passes would mean sinn fein politicians would have to support the party line on new laws in the irish parliament in dublin to legalise abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. to some degree, the party is still divided, at its leader mary lou mcdonald campaigned to overturn the ban on abortion in ireland, but some members oppose it and 2a branches have put forward a notion saying they believe sinn fein members should be able to vote according to their own personal beliefs. that will be debated here this afternoon. the prime minister says she's disappointed after one of her own mps blocked plans to make upskirting a criminal offence. the new law would have seen offenders who secretly take photos up victim's clothes sentenced to up to two years in jail. but tory mp sir christopher chope was able to block the legislation

by shouting "object". 0ur politcal correspondent, iain watson, reports. i was at a festival with my sister on a blistering hot day, waiting for my favourite band to come on stage and two guys took pictures up my skirt. gina martin was a victim of upskirting, the practice of secretly taking pictures under someone's clothes. a liberal democrat mp wanted to make it a criminal offence in england and wales, with offenders being jailed for up to two years. it's already outlawed in scotland but, yesterday, in parliament, this happened. object! objection taken, secretary. conservative mp sir christopher chope uttered that one word, object, and under parliamentary procedure, the proposed law was halted in its tracks. many of his colleagues cried, "shame!" the ministerfor women was one of them. i was shocked, i was angry and i was disappointed and, for the record, i shouted "shame" very loudly after the member objected, because it seems to me this is a case where the law has not

kept up to date with what's happening in the modern world so parliament needs to be flexible, and parliament needs to react. in a tweet, the prime minister made her views clear. gina martin contacted sir christopher to find out why he objected. he just said he objected to it on principle, and i said, "what about the subject matter of the bill?" and he said, "i'm not really sure on that, i'm not sure what that is, upskirting." and i said, "i can help you with that," and i asked for his e—mail address and he said, "yeah, absolutely, e—mail me," and i said, "i'd like to talk to you and find out why you objected and explain to you what this really is and how much it's going to affect women and girls and protect women and girls," and he said, "ok,

well, let's meet then". opposition mps have also criticised sir christopher chope's actions, but government ministers now seem even more determined to outlaw upskirting. iain watson, bbc news, westminster. the un's special envoy to yemen has arrived in the capital, sana'a, in a bid to persuade rebels to give up control of a key seaport. pro—government forces — backed by saudi arabia — have been fighting to take hodeidah from iran—backed militias. most of yemen's aid passes through the port, and aid agencies have warned that a prolonged battle could worsen an already critical situation. spain's government says it has accepted an offer from france to take in some of the migrants from the aquarius rescue ship. the vessel is currently en route to spain, with more than 600 people onboard, who were picked up off the libyan coast. last weekend, the boat was denied permission to dock in sicily, after italy's new government promised a tough stance on immigration. people aged over the age of a0 in england are set to receive health advice on how to reduce the risk of dementia. it will be included as part of the nhs health check, after a successful pilot.

james shippam reports. almost seven million people in england have had what is known as an nhs health check during the past five years. it is offered to people between the ages of a0 and 7a and, until now, has focused on reducing premature deaths from cardiovascular disease. but in future, part of the test will see gps and other health care professionals advising patients on how to reduce the risk of developing dementia. they will say that lifestyle choices — such as eating a healthy diet, not smoking, and keeping active — can help prevent dementia, as well as cardiovascular problems. they will tell patients that what is good for the heart is good for the brain. public health england estimates that over 850,000 people in the uk are living with dementia. it says that as many as one third of cases could be prevented by living a healthier lifestyle.

when touts snap up tickets and sell them on at inflated prices, it's the fans who are hit the hardest. now, a scottish arts and music festival is piloting new technology, in an attempt to halt the professional fraudsters. fringe by the sea, in north berwick, has teamed up with a firm to create software so that tickets are no longer a piece of paper that can easily change hands. catriona renton reports. # everything's reminding me of you #. ed sheeran, at this year's biggest weekend — one of the latest artists to declare war against touts. on his latest tour, he targeted some secondary sites. ticket touts make a profit by selling them at vastly inflated prices. in some cases, up to eight times the original value. pop concerts and big events are often targeted by ticket touts. they snap them up as soon as they go on sale and then resell them at sky—high prices,

meaning fans sometimes end up paying far more than the face value. no—one we spoke to waiting to see demi lovato in glasgow had paid over the odds, but some had been caught out in the past. in cork, in ireland. yeah, i paid, like, i think it was 100 euro each for two tickets. for what?! and they were really bad seats! for my sisters. what?! for ed sheeran. it's not fair to charge, like, extra money for a ticket. if you've paid a certain price, you should charge it for that, or lower. it cost me 200 and something for tickets for mcbusted for my daughter and her two pals. so, yeah, i got well fleeced! fringe by the sea is a growing arts and music festival in north berwick. this year, it expects to sell around 30,000 tickets, and it's piloting a new system which tracks the journey of the ticket, in the hope to beat the touts. yeah, fringe by the sea is a very small festival, with small, intimate venues,

with a maximum capacity of 600. so, what we see is that gigs can sell out in ludicrously quick time for some of the bigger artists. last year, we had kt tunstall, who sold out within two minutes. and where those tickets went, we're not entirely sure, we're not able to track as efficiently as we are with the new system. these are the performers of the future. it's hoped the technology the company working with the fringe by the sea is using will protect them and their audiences. basically, what we do is, we use identity profiling with each person, to make sure they're not a ticket tout, or someone dodgy. we then link all that to a wallet, rather than a ticket, so you're handing over your whole identity in wallet form rather than just an individual ticket that can kind of go the next day. and then we link all that to a block chain. so, it's on an open ledger, which is transparent for everyone to see. this is the biggest test for this new system to date. if it works here, the company says the sky's the limit for the scale of events they can work with —

and beat the touts. now it is time for an update on the weather. the weekend started them onto cheerily across scotland and northern ireland, the western fringes of england and wales. we have a weather front close by. into the evening, the heaviest downpour is migrating into the eastern side of scotland, north east england, before moving into the north sea. behind, clearer skies allowing temperatures to dribble to single figures, across parts of scotland and into the north of england. further south, mild and meet the cloud which thickens. after a dry start across wales and the south—west, some rain into the afternoon. so too into northern ireland and eventually towards the north west of england and maybe south—west scotland. you have not heard mentioned so far, then you will probably get away with a dry

day, top temperature of 19, possibly 20. next week is pretty unsettled across northern parts but it will warm up. this is bbc news. our latest headlines: fire has broken out for a second time in four years at one of scotland's architectural landmarks, the glasgow school of art. there has been extensive damage. the government has said it will help with restoring the building. we do not know what the structural damage is, the damage to the stonework, so i think it is too early to say what is going to be required, but what i can say, absolutely, is we will be there to help. the home secretary uses an exceptional power to release illegal cannabis oil to severely epileptic billy caldwell after doctors said it was a "medical emergency". his family say the substance, which has now been administered, helps keep life—threatening seizures at bay. billy is getting the best care in the world here, and i feel safe here at this particular hospital with billy.