this is bbc news. i'm shaun ley. the headlines at three. dozens of fire crews continue to tackle an aggressive moorland fire near bolton. lancashire fire brigade say they expect the blaze to continue for days. a major incident has been declared. it is a dangerous area at the moment. in terms of public safety, the advice would be to simply stay off anywhere around the moorland of winter hill. the head of nhs england says extensive planning is under way to prepare the health service for a no—deal brexit. at the start of a crunch week for brexit, 30 conservative mps demand the prime minister takes a tough line with eu negotiators. the communities secretary, says he is "confident" cabinet will agree a common position later this week. i think there is no doubt that there are strong views on either side and that's what i would expect as we lead into the discussions on friday. polls open across mexico after a campaign marred by the worst political violence in decades.

extra security measures have been taken, after more than 130 candidates and political workers have been killed since campaigning began last september. world cup host nation russia take on spain as both sides are looking for a place in the quarterfinals. and in click at 3.30, we'll meet a group of scientists who've built a robotic cheetah. good afternoon. welcome to bbc news. more than 100 fire fighters are working in what's being described as "extremely testing conditions" at the scene of a huge moorland fire in lancashire. yesterday strong winds led to two fires merging — the result now covers several square miles. officials say it could take at least a week to put out the flames. 0ur correspondent sarah walton has this report.

the fires are still burning. pockets of the north west of england are now covered by smoke and ash as the landscape is tinder—dry with strong winds fanning the flames. this is a blaze thatjust refuses to be beaten. the fires at winter hill started on thursday near a major tv transmitter that serves nearly 7 million viewers. three days on, more than 100 firefighters are still tackling it. this fire is over quite an extensive area, on two faces of winter hill. so we've got two areas in the region of about four square kilometres each so significant fire fronts. so there's aggressive fire fighting going on in areas to stop it spreading towards the forestry and further areas of vegetation. crews on the ground are getting help from helicopters and trenches have been built to try to protect nearby buildings. people are being told to stay away and to keep

doors and windows closed. a 22—year—old man from bolton has been arrested on suspicion of arson. 30 miles away, 100 soldiers are still helping crews fight a separate fire at saddleworth moor. they are expected to be there for another 2a hours. what is really needed here is rain and lots of it but there's none forecast for days. sarah walton, bbc news, winter hill. and sarah walton sent this update on the conditions the firefighters are facing. it's really tough going. the heat is really strong at the moment, about 27 degrees in the sunshine, so that, with the flames and the protective gear the fire crews have to wear, they are dealing with intense heat. they have been joined by fire crews from as far as south wales and warwickshire and they are having to deal with, the fire is just on the far side of that hill,

is pockets of flames spreading not just over the land and on the grass which is very dry but also under the ground because the soil is very peaty, so they will put out one bit of fire but it is so hot underground that five or ten minutes later that same patch of ground is on fire again. the fire crews are taking regular breaks because it is very hard work and coming back down to the control centre and when they get here, there have been lots of donations from local people giving food and drinks and water and they are saying they are very grateful. it is helping morale. they are asking people not to bring donations here directly, it's just not safe, they're asking people to stay at home and keep doors and windows closed. if you want to give food or water to the crews, they have their training centre in chorley that is open until 4pm and they are asking people to take donations there. the head of the nhs in england has

revealed that the health service is preparing for the possibility of a no—deal brexit. simon stevens says there's been extensive planning to make sure the uk continues to get the medical supplies in needs in "all scenarios". meanwhile the communities secretary james brokenshire has said he's confident the cabinet will reach an agreement on brexit, when it meets at chequers this week. tom barton reports. how does the nhs ensure it can get the staff, equipment and medicine it needs if britain leaves the eu without a trade deal? that's the question nhs organisations are grappling with, according to the man responsible for running the health service in england. there is extensive work under way now between the department of health, other parts of government, the life sciences industry, pharma companies, so nobody is pretending this is a desirable situation, but if that's where we get to, then it will not have been unforeseen. but while the nhs is working out what to do if the government can't reach a deal with the eu, ministers insist theirfocus isn't

on preparing for no deal, but on getting a good one. we are preparing for all eventualities. the point, though, is that our focus, our attention, all of that detail and effort, must be about getting that deal. that is what is in the best interest of our country. but of course, we must be prepared and we will be. the cabinet is badly split on what that deal should look like, with several ministers making their personal views publicly known over the last couple of weeks. infighting that today has drawn scorn from the labour leader. you get the feeling that every time somebody in the government thinks, "we really should get an agreement," we get cabinet ministers going off on a tangent. and also, the white paper on the objectives, well, goodness, the referendum was two years ago and the white paper is only going to come out after apparently a weekend party at chequers for the cabinet. and that meeting at chequers this friday is key and a big challenge. finding proposals for the future

relationship with the eu that every member of the cabinet can sign up to. i spoke to tom barton a little earlier, and he started by explaining why friday's cabinet meeting is so crucial. they are there to discuss just one key question which is how close should britain be to the eu after brexit? that is a key question because frankly, cabinet is incredibly divided, deep divisions and very public divisions. just yesterday, we saw michael gove letting it be known that he had physically ripped up a report which suggested, a government report which suggested he backed theresa may's preferred option of a customs partnership and we have had borisjohnson being publicly denounced by ministers who supported remain at the referendum for using, how can i put it, a dismissive expletive when talking about business. but ultimately, all of these ministers need to line up behind

a government policy. 0n how to get out, this is a position where it's not going to be possible to maintain the idea you can have different views, you've got to sign up to a common position? yeah, and that's the issue, up to now there's been a breakdown in discipline because nobody, because they are tussling to set what the government position is. this meeting on friday, they are going to lock them in a room at chequers and say, "no one is coming out until you can agree, until you can find a position that you all agree on". to bea to be a fly on that wall! absolutely. that position will become a white paper, a formal government document and will form the basis for the next round of eu negotiations about the future relationship. so let's be clear with people, we've agreed with the eu when we are leaving, the end of march next year. we have agreed the sort of transition, broadly, and some elements to be finalised but essentially, the terms for a year 01’ more while we are getting out, while we adjust but this

is the next negotiation, exactly what our relationship with the eu will be when we are no longer a member of the eu and when the transition period is finished. exactly right, the end of march next year, we leave the eu but actually, for a period of time up to a couple of years, the end date is still slightly movable, there will be a relationship which is almost identical to how it is today. but during that time, the government needs to agree what it is going to look like after that period and at the moment, they can't agree among themselves what it should be. never mind with the eu. exactly and at some point, they have to agree and friday is about getting them to agree amongst themselves and then the process of getting that agreed by the eu begins. a bit of lobbying by one of the big unions ahead of this important meeting this week. they released a poll, i think. this is the unite union, the biggest affiliate union of the labour party, the biggest donor to the labour party, and this is the union themselves

and this isn't the union themselves but the people's vote campaign, the campain for a vote for a second referendum essentially to approve whatever whatever deal the government agrees with the eu. or not. right, but this campaign have done a poll of members of the unite union which is significant becausejeremy corbyn is very clear he does not back a second referendum under any circumstances. interestingly, so does the unite union and yet this poll shows that its membership disagrees with both the union and the labour leadership. there's been a lot of debate around jeremy corbyn‘s position, a suggestion that he is in a different place to the majority of his membership. that is something the people's vote campaign are very keen to highlight and i think they are using the poll to make that very point. a young girl has died after she was reportedly thrown from an inflatable on a beach in norfolk. police and paramedics were called

to gorleston and the girl was taken to hospital, where she died. an investigation has been launched to etablish the circumstances to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident. a missing right—year—old boy from kent has been found safe and well. toby drury was found a short while ago at longfield railway station. he had been missing since 11 this morning after last being seen in nearby new ash green. the rail operator, govia thameslink, could be stripped of its franchises unless its services in the south—east of england start to improve. passengers who use its thameslink and great northern trains are also set to be offered compensation equivalent to a months free travel. hundreds of thousands of people have faced weeks of disruption following the introduction of new timetables in may. people renting homes in england could be given more security, under government proposals to introduce a minimum tenancy term of three years. eight out of ten tenants currently have contracts of six or 12 months. ministers say longer agreements would strengthen communities. the polls have opened in mexico after an election campaign marred by some of the bloodiest political violence in the country for decades.

security has been tightened with more than 130 candidates and political workers killed since september. voters are electing a president as well as members of congress, senators, governors and mayors. 0ur correspondent will grant joins me now from mexico city. can you kind of give us a sense of why this election is potentially a turning point for mexico? mexico has been through at least two administrations of the military led drug war against the cartels in the country. but really, some of the things that have the electorate so angry, going even beyond that, decades worth of inequality, corruption, impunity and of course, the drug violence, too. taking all of those things together, it makes for a very, very difficult picture for a very, very difficult picture for ordinary mexicans who really,

you know, feel they have had enough and they want the country to be taken ina and they want the country to be taken in a different direction economically, politically and the frontrunner, manuel lopez 0brador, the former mayor of mexico city, is trying to offer that, saying that the time is now to take mexico in a new direction and that he is the man to do that. is the violence a reflection then of his credibility asa reflection then of his credibility as a candidate? in other words, if this evidence of the cartels trying to fight back or isn't it as simple as that, is it more complicated, the victims and the political workers who have been killed in the last few months, do they all come from one side? well, you know, i have lived in mexico for three or four years, and now i am back and forward co nsta ntly and now i am back and forward constantly between here and elsewhere in the region and i don't think i have seen it as fractured as it is now. it is hard to pinpoint a single cartel in the way that you used to be able to. there are so

many different groups that have broken up since their main heads have been arrested or killed. it is a very complicated mosaic of violence and different competing interests. added to that, the state institutions are so tightly associated with the cartels, that might be the police in places, the military, the mayors of small towns, it isa military, the mayors of small towns, it is a really difficult picture. what is in front of the next president is going to be extremely difficult to break that down and sort of pacify the country a bit but thatis sort of pacify the country a bit but that is definitely what the electorate want from manuel lopez 0brador if he goes on to win. the polls have opened already and we can see it going on around mexico under tight security already, to protect voters and obviously the workers. when are we likely to get indication of whether or not 0brador has managed to win the election?” of whether or not 0brador has managed to win the election? i think

by the very end of the night here, early morning in the uk, we should start getting a very clear picture of who has won. up until this stage, mr lopez 0brador has been somewhere around 20—25 points ahead of his closest rival. his supporters believe it is done, that this is a coronation, really. 0f believe it is done, that this is a coronation, really. of course it is more complicated than that, you need those people who are so confident to actually turn out and not rest on their laurels and of course the opposition have not been completely decimated so far. they have still got loyal supporters. it is not a decided thing yet. but by about that time, early morning in the uk on monday, we should know who the next president of mexico is. will grant in mexico city, thank you. the headlines on bbc news. dozens of fire crews continue to tackle an aggressive moorland fire near bolton. lancashire fire brigade say they expect the blaze to continue for days. a major incident has been declared. the head of nhs england says extensive planning is under way

to prepare the health service for a no—deal brexit. it comes as 30 conservative mps demand the prime minister takes a tough line with eu negotiators. millions of people who book their holidays online will be protected under new eu rules which come into force today. until now, trips booked via websites like expedia and on the beach did not have the same protection as traditional package holidays from travel agents. our business correspondent joe lynam has more. expedia, lastminute.com, ebookers and on the beach are all popular websites for booking holidays. but they are intermediaries. it means if things go wrong, they are not directly responsible. that ends today. more and more people are buying their holidays online, but they don't get the same protection as they would have got from a traditional travel agents. so, thanks to these changes today, anybody who buys a holiday and, for instance, there's an ash cloud,

or the hotel isn't up to standard, or the airline goes bust, they'll be protected thanks to these new directives. 83% booked a holiday online last year. most of that was through booking sites. but only half of those holidays were financially protected if the hotel, airline or car rental company failed. that will change. but if you book each component part of your holiday separately, you won't get the new protections, as that's not considered a package holiday. when we book our holidays, we usually go online and just look for certain companies, making sure it's, like, atol protected. there's a lot of websites where you can get really good deals for holidays. i know we've been looking into a few, but ijust feel a bit cautious going forward with that because the deals are so good that we don't know if we're going to get the same protection. when i'm sort of looking at protection for a holiday, i don't really think that much about it. ijust usually, you know, find a kind of cheap insurance deal. the new protections — which are eu—wide — only apply to holidays bought

from today, so if you've purchased already online and haven't travelled yet, you won't be covered. in that respect, travel insurance is always recommended. joe lynam, bbc news. hundreds of people have descended on the hometown of aneurin bevan to mark 70 years since he founded the nhs. labour leaderjeremy corbyn has been taking part in the celebrations. what nye taught us was that health care should be something available for all. he was the founder of the national health service in the post—war labour government. he started his life in poverty. he became a miner, a trade unionist, long before he became a cabinet minister. but he was also a thinker. he was a man of ideas and of principle. he did not go into politics for personal aggrandisement and power. indeed, he was often heard repeating a very powerful maxim,

"the purpose of getting power is to be able to give it away". england face colombia in a tough—looking last 16 world cup match on tuesday, with a quarterfinal against sweden or switzerland awaiting them if they win. they will exit if they don't. jessie lingard has been talking this afternoon about the refreshing atmosphere among the squad. yeah, it feels like, you know, a new revolution. the manager's come in with great ideas and a great idea of the way he wants us to play. the formation suits us perfectly. you know, as a group of lads, it's a youthful squad, but we've still got them experienced players in there and the team spirit‘s amazing at the moment and everyone's come together and we're really bonding and we're excited.

we're enjoying the world cup and we've just got to keep going on. let's show you the scene right now in the match that is under way at the moment and spain have a 1—0 lead over russia after about 20 minutes of the first half. early days yet but that will be causing some nervousness among the home fans because of course, if they lose, russia will be out of the contest it is hosting and they would have been hoping to get beyond this stage, i think. spain of course a strong side as well. it would not have been a pushover for russia. so far, as well. it would not have been a pushoverfor russia. so far, spain leading. we will keep you up—to—date on the score in that match as it progresses. the search for 12 young boys and their football coach, trapped in a flooded cave in thailand, has entered its ninth day. rescue teams have been trying

to reach deeper into the chambers of the tham luang cave in the hope of finding the children, who are all aged between 11 and 16. there has been no contact with the group since they were reported missing. howard johnson reports. water, gushing out of the tham luang cave complex. earlier this week, engineers began pumping it out from a flooded cavern. other teams have also worked to divert streams from flowing into the area. what we are seeing here is parts of a new superjet pump being delivered. it's hoped that when it's fully operational, even more water will be pumped out of the cave complex to the right of me here. the falling water levels have galvanised search and rescue teams. last night, thailand's elite navy seal divers returned to a chamber around a kilometre away from the pattaya beach, a high sandbank where many hope the missing boys and their football coach are sheltering. the team will now use fixed ropes and stockpiled air tanks to attempt to push further into the cave. but downstream from the pumping

operation, paddy fields are being inundated with water. this village chief says more than 16 farmers have been affected, but his message to the community is simple — the priority is to save the missing 13. 0ne villager said the fate of the children is more important than her livelihood. translation: authorities need to release water onto our rice paddy. if it's to save the kids, we say, no worries. just let the water out to save their lives in the cave. and so as the rescue operation enters a critical second week, the people of thailand continue to support it with everything they have. howard johnson, bbc news. the pakistan army has rescued two british mountaineers from the ultar sar peak in the hunza valley. the army said the climbers' tent had

been hit by an avalanche. bruce normand and miller timothy were rescued by pilots at around 19,000 feet above sea level. another climber, from austria, died in the avalanche. a notorious career thief in france has escaped from prison... in a helicopter. 46—year—old redoine faid — who is one of france's most wanted criminals — escaped from jail near paris this morning. it's believed that he was helped by a number of heavily armed men. it's faid's second jailbreak. in 2013 he blasted his way out of a prison using dynamite and was on the run for six weeks. a privately developed rocket has exploded and crashed to the ground just seconds after lift—off in japan. hundreds of people were watching in shock as it fell from the sky in flames at a test site on the island of hokkaido. it was unmanned and there were no injuries reported. the rocket was developed by a company which is hoping to provide affordable commercial space flights. it was japan's second attempt at sending a private rocket into space. that little boy's face captures it,

can't believe what he is seeing! it's more than a0 years since the first performance on stage of a play called the elephant man — about the appalling treatment of the victorian man with a serious physical disfigurement. he was a star on the circus circuit but suffered terribly for his illness. but while the theme of the play was arguably ahead of its time, the casting was not. joseph merrick, the lead character, has never been played by a disabled person, until now. amanda parr reports. step in and see! stand up, you bloody donkey, up! up! rollup, rollup, to see the elephant man. the star of victorian freak shows. a figure of keen interest to the medical community.

and in this production, an iconic disabled role reclaimed. it's a strident step beyond whatjamie beddard calls the lazy and offensive casting of the past. the only elephant man i've seen was done by non—disabled actors, which i don't think is acceptable. me being disabled, me being an actor, me doing the elephant man, i really hope makes it a bit more authentic and a bit more meaningful. i need to do a good job to do itjustice. jamie says working with drama school graduates like this will normalise inclusion and exciting approaches to casting.

not having that slightly strange feeling that you're approaching subject matter that you don't have a right to talk about, nowjamie's here, we can explore that and that's a huge experience for so many people out there and it's nice to put it onto a big stage like bristol old vic and it's amazing to be doing this at this stage of our careers. i don't know. i think what we're doing is, if you open up theatre to everyone, the possibilities are kind of infinite and i think it's time that we saw more people represented on stage from everywhere, i guess. and, you know, that's where things are going. i kind of feel that we're on a roll and it's really nice to be part of that, actually. stink, stink, stink. the show includes integrated captioning and sign language, audio description, touch tours, relaxed performances and better wheelchair positions in the auditorium. in bristol 0ld vic's year of change,

it's a ground—breaking project with a clear mission — to embrace the fact that differences enrich, both in this show and the world beyond. amanda palmer, bbc news, bristol. peter firmin, the co—creator of the clangers, has died aged 89. in a career spanning over six decades, he created basil brush, as well as helping devise bagpuss, ivor the engine and noggin the nog. in 1999, bagpuss was voted the most popular bbc children's programme ever made, and in 2014 peter firmin received a bafta lifetime achievement award. now it's time for a look at the weather with alina jenkins. foremost, the heat and the sunshine continues. for some welcome rain. a yellow warning the storms across south—west england that extends into

parts of wales and we could see of you pushing further eastwards this evening into the home counties and maybe towards london. more cloud for northern ireland and north—west scotland. in the sunshine, still a lot of it and temperatures widely in the mid to high 20s, 30 or 31 for some. still the of thunderstorms across central, southern and south—west england this evening and overnight. i'll swear, dry with more blood for scotland but anyway will have fizzled out by this stage. muddy and humid across central and southern england, temperatures not much lower than 18 or 19. we do it all again tomorrow. foremost, a dry and very sunny day again, very warm if hot. more cloud across parts of scotland, somewhat cooler here and once again, eastern coasts cooler with the breeze off the sea but where we have sunshine, lots of it again with temperatures close to 30. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: firefighters tackling a huge blaze which is ravaging moorland across lancashire have said they are launching a "large scale attack" on the flames.

a major incident was declared when two fires merged into one as a result of increasing wind speed. a young girl has died after she was reportedly thrown from an inflatable on a beach in norfolk. an investigation has been launched to etablish the circumstances surrounding the incident. 30 conservative mps have written a letter demanding theresa may gets tough with the eu over brexit negotiations, while the head of the nhs in england has revealed that the health service is preparing for the possibility of there being no deal. polls have opened across mexico with extra security measures in place after a campaign marred by the worst political violence in decades. since campaigning began last september, more than 130 candidates and political workers have been killed. now on bbc news, it's time for click. can artificial intelligence out—diagnose a doctor? can a phone bring a giraffe to life?