hundreds of thousands of people have taken part in protests across the united states against president trump's immigration policies. people took to the streets in cities as far and wide as washington, san francisco and atlanta, calling for migrant families split up at the us border to be reunited. at least one person has been killed and around a dozen injured in the nicaraguan capital managua. armed men are reported to have shot at crowds of people who were marching in memory of young protesters who died during more than two months of anti—government protests. and in the world cup, it's game over for argentina and portugal after losses on the first day of the knockout stage in russia. lionel messi and cristiano ronaldo are among the heavyweights who'll be heading home. their sides lost to france and uruguay respectively. now on bbc news, dateline london. hello, and a very warm

welcome to dateline london. i'm jane hill. this week, what do my guests make of the deal struck by european leaders around migration? how are relations between britain and the eu as we approach very difficult cabinet talks? and we'll discuss the direction of the us supreme court, as its longest serving justice announces his retirement. my guests this week: the british conservative commentator alex deane, the irish times correspondent, suzanne lynch, the guardian columnist, nesrine malik, and the american writer, and host of the frdh podcast, michael goldfarb. a warm welcome to all of you.

at the eu summit this week, leaders reached an agreement, of sorts, around migration — to set up secure centres in eu states for migrants, in which their asylum claims would be processed. however, these centres will be established on only a voluntary basis, and observers are already criticising the lack of detail in the plans. the french president emmanuel macron said the deal struck the right balance between responsibility and solidarity — though france is one of the countries that isn't prepared to host such centres. is there much to commend in these proposals? the first thing to say is there is a huge irony here because migrant numbers are way down to more than 90% since the big crisis in 2015. this has exploded as a huge political issue on the european stage. i think that is down to domestic politics, really. in different countries around europe, primarily germany, where there is a proposed vote of no—confidence in angela merkel. this is the first eu

summit with the first new italian prime minister. he dictated a lot of what happened. i think we saw european fudge here on the issue. there are major questions to be asked about these new control centres for migrants. we're going to look at centres within europe and hopefully they are saying centres outside europe in africa. there have raised serious questions over what the centres will be like and how they will control migrants. there are ethical issues around that. but it left everyone able to go back to a domestic audience with something to show, if you like. in central and eastern european countries like hungary, poland, that have become so anti—migrant in the last years, they were able to say, "this is not obligatory, so we do not have to take these migrants. " we are seeing a classic eu fudge to this issue of migration. that is what we saw at the summit. was it a fudge?

for sure. the hungarians and czechs refuse to have mandatory quotas. you are right to say that the italians, with their new 5—star union, they will be extremely robust on the migration issue. they agree on being tough on migration and eurosceptics. that is what holds that government together. the biggest challenge is for angela merkel internally in germany. in the uk, we have heard a lot from voices within the cdu this week criticising merkel and harking back to her, "there is no limit to the number of people we will take." her country is still trying to deal with the ramifications of that. numbers coming out are down, but those already here present sizeable, domestic political problems. do you echo this? has much been achieved or changed? this is a classic case of

domestic politics getting in a way of actually effective coordination. the problem with the migrant crisis in the eu, it has become too much of a political hot potato to do anything about it across that many countries. my main concern is that the most effective actually move over the past couple of years has been to try to stem the tide in north africa and there has been a lot of funding on the part of the eu. they actually broke sanctions and a couple of cases to the sudanese government in particular. the carrot was that if you manage to stem migrants coming through north africa, then we will integrate more into the global community and get funds. this is hugely problematic, but very effective. this was talked about in the agreement. the idea of the centres has caught the attention of everybody. actually, there was an element of that in this agreement. it has been happening for a long

time, the funding by the eu to north african countries to set up migration processing centres in north africa has been happening for at least three years. it has become an established part of policy. we have posturing for optics at home. the migrant numbers are down. it is not really a current issue, it has now become a domestic political crisis. there is no migration crisis, but there is a political crisis on how to deal with migrants who have already arrived. we are now trying to deal with the situation after it has been precipitated, posturing on an almost nonexistent problem. ora decreasing problem. you may feel differently if you are in germany. the approach towards those who are incoming is overcompensating right now for trying to make people look like something

is happening back home. actually, the policy should be focused more internally than they should be externally. sorry, that is not what the policy is for. it is to say they should keep a robust defence on external migration so that we can preserve the internalfreedom of movement. this is to save something like schengen to enable the european ideal of freedom of movement between member states will do the only way to guarantee that is having tougher barriers externally. it is an interesting point. part of the problem that merkel faces, and it was part of the discussion and negotiation, is that the migrants from north africa who are coming in, you say that numbers are down. so far this year, the equivalent of two of the giant cruise ships that mar the lagoon venice every week disgorging 10,000,

12,000 tourists into venice, that is how many have come in this year. the numbers really are quite small. once they get in, this is the schengen thing, then they drift. where did they drift? do drift to where the economy is strongest. they end up often in germany. i don't think the problem — this phenomenon has not been studied enough statistically. i happen to know personally people who did come in in 2015, walking, through the balkans, got to germany. i get pictures all the time. they have jobs. they do what they need to do. this is the domestic politics. if i may say, we use the word 'populism' a lot these days. this is not populism, it is revised ethnic nationalism. it gets a lot closer

to what the attitudes are that are stoked by political leaders. it brings to the fore — dormant. do you mean it is not legitimate to be concerned about migration? i think it absolutely should. rather thanjust dealing with north african countries, i wait for the eu summit where the organisation of african unity has a full seat at the table to discuss this. most of the migrants are coming from sub—saharan africa or from the horn of africa. they end up in north africa for embarkation. when you talk of a regional settlement, it have to be well down as far as nigeria, at least, in order to begin to get some coordination and just to deter people and to break up the gangs that go into the villages and say, "you can go to europe, give me $10,000," and then they end

up drowning in the middle of the mediterranean. it is the people smugglers who benefit in that way. that is an issue we have barely touched on. you will know that brexit was also discussed at the summit. donald tusk said it is the last call for the uk to lay its cards on the table. most difficult issues remain unresolved. theresa may has summoned her cabinet to the country retreat in chequers in a few days from now where they will meet to thrash out a white paper, the blueprint for the uk's future relationship with the eu. theresa may said all sides want a quick deal. the next summit is in october. what's your take on where we are now? well, she got a t—shirt. she was presented with a belgian t—shirt before we lost to belgium. if some of the discussion about a more robust approach to migration in europe had been made

prior to the brexit vote, we might have a different debate about migration. brexit was not the priority at this summit. migration was the priority at the summit. it was always going to be that way especially when the uk government decided to hold back its white paper. initially, there was a ruling that the white paper would be released in some form prior to the summit. and it wasn't. i am left wondering why that is. the first thing is that our national audit office says that our new custom declaration service is going to be ready for a no deal brexit. that is the first admission, if you like. second, hmrc says it can clear 95% of the remaining 5% it can do another 5% in five hours. that is a lot quicker than people were thinking. third, our goods and services exports are at an all—time high. also, where our goods

and services, including outside the eu, to india, more than 30% up. the government is starting to position properly as you should in a negotiation. we might go either way. we might have a deal or might not. there is a sense that when people get—together at chequers next week, it is a crisis meeting in which the hard brexiteers will fight it out with those who want to at least exit the eu some orderly fashion. if what you have just been saying is correct, maybe that is possible. yet you create a picture of things working out and the national press is completely saying, you have left out iain duncan smith's article in the daily mail this week. i do want to bring in suzanne in a moment. a very quick thought, though,

because the cabinet is divided. the british press said we would never get a stage one deal with the european union, and we got it before christmas. then we got a stage two deal as well. why is the cabinet divided? no—one will resign. these deals get done in the eleventh hour, in the 59th minute of the eleventh hour. iagree. i sat through deals at eu summit where deals get done at the eleventh hour. so, one way we could look at the british government position is to say they are holding their cards close to their chest. they will have a stronger negotiation position and it will work out. but we are two years on from brexit and the british cabinet and british prime minister, theresa may, still has not resolved internal issues in the cabinet. in brussels, the eu is saying we cannot negotiate because we do not

know what you want. we have the irony that david cameron held this referendum to resolve the eu issue and now, two years on, the conservative party is divided as ever. second, looking at specifics, the meeting at chequers, what we seem to be expecting from theresa may is a proposal to keep britain in the single market for goods and not services. this is what is emerging as a possibility. a lot of european leaders said this weekend it is not a runner but maybe the europeans are playing a strong negotiation line. the problem is that britain will probably have to — they are not going to be giving a cart blanche and saying it is fine. there will be a problem over migration. how far are the british government, in some way, prepared to accept free movement? they will dress it up in some way, but i cannot see the eu saying it's fine, you can have something without free movement. i think that will be a red

line on the eu side. we have a very banal statement which has been true for the past few years which is that the eu is in a stronger negotiating position than the uk. the problem is that the way there has been domestic messaging on the part of the government is that if we are robust enough and believe in ourselves enough, we'll be able to wrestle compromises from the eu when it is not in the interests of the eu at all. it is a sort of an arms race of statistics. we can process goods in under five seconds. the latest bank of england growth rate numbers are ex—and a whole raft of statistics from people saying it will be a disaster. there aren't too many unknown unknowns for people to say how bad it will be. i have digressed. the eu is much stronger than the uk. on what basis is that? just because?

betterfinish a point and then we will come back. because yhere are 27 countries. versus one. you do not think that is a weakness and not a strength? if you could let me finish, you have 27 countries who are in the same organisation with the same interests. even if they do not agree individually with each other, they have to put up. it's just human nature and political intelligence. they have to put up a common front because they are one party. they cannot negotiate individually with the uk against the common interests of the eu. you can obfuscate it with loads of statistics and rhetoric. it's a fact that the second point is... let's hear the second point. it's really not a fact. the second point is that the british government, the tory party in particular,

has its own internal issues. they have a warring cabinet now, not a war cabinet, in terms of meetings going on with chequers. if you want to be in a strong position to negotiate with 27 countries that outnumber you in terms of population and security alliances, then you need to have a strong hand internally. i talked to michael about this earlier. we came on this programme for years during the eurozone crisis, and everything was always the same even when the details changed. everyone was always kicking the can further down the road. whatever happens in the eu negotiations, the fundamental facts remain. until the tory party gets its act together and strengthens the hand of theresa may to go and negotiate with certainty on things like the irish border, we are going to be in the same position over and again. the irish border was specifically mentioned as a key sticking point. jean—claude juncker did say this

week, others in brussels cannot deal with a divided cabinet. that is why there is all this focus on the big cabinet meeting at the country retreat of the prime minister and that fact cannot be escaped, can it? people position for domestic purposes. people in the uk position for domestic politics not thinking squabbling assists the other side in a negotiation we are conducting. not thinking that the europeans read our press. they do so avidly. they love this kind of stuff. i can say it is a fact and therefore because i get to win, apparently, if i'd talk for ten minutes. assert that's the way the tories are... the cabinet is divided. we do know that. is that not a fact? i conceded at the very start. but people in the netherlands say, stop beating up on the brits. the car manufacturing

industry in germany says we need a deal with the uk. it is absurd. bmw here last week... they are german. they are warning against it. half a million cars from germany last year. they all want to be able to export to the uk still. the reason why britain wants some kind of goods single market is because europe does more trade with europian goods. —— european. with all the tensions going on, something will have to change because britain is leaving next march and that is a fact. it now falls to the british government and theresa may to get the party together. it seems she may be leaning towards a soft brexit and cynics say that is why the european union gave them a soft ride at the summit because they can see her leaning towards a soft brexit. the dichotomy i don't understand is how people are so alive

to the divisions on the uk side, which are true, and wilfully blind to the presence of diverging interests in the eu. this is a ridiculous thing to say. you know it is. 0ne comment from you and one comment from you. as you had conceded that there were divisions internally in the tory party, i had considered great if you had chosen to listen, rather than wait for me to finish and barrel down, i had conceded that their work even if there were divisions within the eu, the way the organisation works is that individuals cannot negotiate with the uk. it is the basic structure of the eu. even if there were, let me finish, even if their work, and there are divisions internally in the eu, but they are part of the european union. once they leave, they can enact those divisions. that's all i meant. when i said that the negotiating

position of the eu was stronger, structurally. it was reported this morning that david davis met with michel barnier, his counterpart in the european union, but he has had lots of meetings with other countries trying to do a deal here and deal there. in the end, the commission is charged by all 27, it used to be 28, to be the negotiator. just as immigration, there are all kinds of domestic political things going on in hungary and italy, in the end they get together at the summit and they come up with a unified proposal and that is how they negotiate. i'm amazed you do not want to admit that is how reality works. we will have to leave it there, sorry. the meeting at chequers is within a few days' time so, guess what we will be discussing

on this programme next week? finally this week, 81—year—old anthony kennedy is retiring as a us supreme courtjustice. nominated by ronald reagan, he's the longest serving justice, and has broadly sat in the centre, staying with the conservative majority on issues like campaign finance, but voting in favour of same—sex marriage. president trump has said he will announce his nominee to succeed kennedy on 9thjuly. michael, this is an opportunity for trump to solidify that that conservative majority? by the way, "centre" is a relative term when it comes to the us supreme court. he is a libertarian conservative. he votes in favour of same—sex marriage and the broadening of gay rights. based on the idea that the state has no business interfering with personal lives. he is reluctant to overturn the now infamous decision in 1973, roe v wade, which gave women

the right to have an abortion. he is retiring. he has had a bit of pressure from the president to go and he will be replaced by someone who will vote to overturn roe v wade. there are other things to talk about. but to me, the important thing to understand is this represents the single—minded success of an activist group within american society, going back to a decision in 1973, and some people on this panel were probably not born then. in 1973 this happened, and the religious right made common cause with kind of hardline tax—cutting conservatives. it actually affected their own livelihoods because they were not getting the full benefits of the tax cuts. they have pushed and pushed and pushed and they have finally got to the point where they have a president

who will fulfil the campaign promise to them as he fulfilled the campaign promise to cut taxes. he will appoint someone who will be willing to revisit the abortion issue. it is likely he will appoint someone who is quite young, who will be there to do this... this is the single most important thing that donald trump will do during his presidency. he has an opportunity to appoint a second supreme courtjustice. this was a huge issue. a lot of republicans who were anti—trump, most of the party were until he was elected, this is the one issue why they voted for him. there was a list of 20 people saying if you vote for me i will elect a conservative pro—life justice. this is what he is doing. a lot of republicans were prepared to look aside his other failings and say, he is going to get our man into the supreme court. he has been changing the hue of the court system. it will completely inflect american society long after he leaves the oval office. the issue of abortion is going to emerge as a major political issue in america. in america, abortion is legal at federal level but the reality is states have different powers over

abortion, provision varies across the country. a lot of states will push abortion laws to its limits, seeing how far they can go. we may see a case coming before the supreme court. it is a huge issue and it reminds people this is why it is important to vote. hillary clinton, if she had gone in in 2016 we would have had two different supreme court justices. any prospect there could be an attempt not to do the confirmation hearings? they are actually rushing them. mitch mcconnell had stopped... i do not think so. i think there will be posturing by the democratic side. mitch mcconnell blocked the appointment of obama. he is saying we have to move it forward before

the midterms in november. there is a very slight chance. republicans only have a tiny majority, a 51—50 majority. there could be pro—life republicans who could push back a bit but they will do everything they can to try to get this pass. they want the main senators to do the right thing. people have their own views on the donald trump administration. nominating judges is something they are good at. thomas hardiman from the third set —— third circuit, finalist last time. brett cavanagh, on the dc circuit right now, is a very likely nominee. they are vital ha rd very likely nominee. they are vital hard and untested, their opinions are out of there. the trump administration will get the nominee through. this is a good reminder of the way that republicans have voted, right—wing people have voted,

has been to preserve or bring back a certain way of life. democrats voted in complacency. i now feel like the threat might be more clear to people on the left, so that when they come to vote in the mid—term elections or the next election they will realise you are notjust switching presidents, that you are switching supreme courtjudges. for the next 20 or 30 years. we will have to leave it on that note. i do hope you canjoin us next week for a very passionate dateline london. goodbye. sunday will be another dry, hot and sunny day for most of the uk, but

perhaps some exceptions mostly towards the south—west, with thundery downpours, perhaps into south wales and the channel islands this afternoon. further north, a wea k this afternoon. further north, a weak weather front brings more cloud in northern ireland, if you spots of rain in north—western scotland, elsewhere dry and sunny. mid 20s in scotla nd elsewhere dry and sunny. mid 20s in scotland and northern ireland. those storms could bring some localised flooding. they might drift further north and east during the evening before tending to fade away as little bit more overnight. by the time we get to monday morning, most places by this stage will be dry. more mist and low cloud around, and probably a bit warmer and more human overnight and in southern parts of england and wales. the chance of two storms not far away from the south—west through the english channel and towards the channel islands, but i can't see any rain at all a from here. not much cloud around either. temperatures in the mid—to high 20s and highest temperatures towards the south—east. this is bbc news.

i'm nkem ifejika. our top stories: hundreds of thousands take to the streets as protests against us immigration policies spread coast to coast. anger in india after a seven—year—old girl is raped and tortured. syrian forces shell opposition—held deraa as rebels refuse to surrender. game overfor messi and ronaldo — argentina out, portugal sent packing — the first day of the world cup knockouts. hello and welcome to bbc world news. from coast—to—coast, in major cities and small towns, hundreds of thousands of americans have come out to protest