hello, you're watching afternoon live. i'm simon mccoy at wimbledon. today at 2: trying to break the brexit deadlock — downing street says it's come up with a new model for handling customs when the uk leaves the eu. 100 firefighters are now tackling what they say is an ‘apocalyptic‘ moorland blaze in lancashire. limit your water use orface a hosepipe ban — the warning to households in north—west england. coming up on afternoon live, all the sport. we are here at wimbledon with all the action web roger federer is vying for his ninth wimbledon title and a certain serena williams is making a bit of a comeback. in an exclusive interview the duchess of kent shares her memories of wimbledon. and in particular

the moment one player broke down in front of her. we are quite normal people. we do have people who cry! it's a natural reaction. also we'll take you behind the scenes here at the wimbledon championships — we'll even tell you how many blades of grass there are on centre court. hello everyone — this is afternoon live. we will be bringing you all the news from wimbledon here and what goes on behind—the—scenes. that is to come. downing street says it has come up with a new plan to try to break the cabinet deadlock over customs arrangements after brexit. with time running out to agree a deal with the eu,

the latest proposals will be discussed by ministers at a crucial meeting at chequers on friday. it comes amid fresh infighting within the conservative party on the issue. here's our political correspondent tom barton. how close britain's relationship with the european union should be is one of big questions facing those negotiating brexit. but the possible answers to that question have split the government. up to now, two options have been on the table. one, a close customs partnership after brexit. the other, a looser arrangement that would rely op technology to minimise border checks. both though have the cabinet divide over which would be best and now no ten is considering a renewed proposal in the hope of uniting ministers. it is not clear what the details of proposals will be, but writing in the daily telegraph

jacob reese mogg said... government minister sir alan duncan, hit back on twitter, accusing jacob rees mogg of insolence. that sentiment not shared by brexiteers. i think it is fair to point out that the government has made firm commitments in respect of those three issues. that was a contract that we did make with the electorate and i think we have to abide by that. at the end of the week the cabinet will meet to try to find a proposal they can all agree on. ministers admit it won't be an easy day. there are some difficult and important decisions to be made, not least on the customs arrangements. that is what this meeting is about at the end of the week and i'm sure at the end the cabinet

will get behind a solution and that is what we will seek to secure. it might be difficult, but getting something agreed by her cabinet should be the easy part. the prime minister's next challenge will be persuading eu leaders that the proposal is something that they too can accept. our chief political correspondent vicki young is at westminster for us. this tightrope that theresa may has been walking for ever, it seems, has just got that little bit tighter? we do keep talking about crunch moments and having to make decisions, certainly until now there has been a certainly until now there has been a certain amount of kicking the can down the road. that has to come to an end sometime. that is the point of this check summit, or get together, all party, whatever you wa nt to together, all party, whatever you want to cool it. it's about making a

decision as we were hearing their and going back to the eu and saying this is what we want. there are many who think it's pretty extraordinary that a year after these two suggestions of what the customs arrangement might be, that they now seem to be off the table possibly and some other form of compromise will be put forward. we will have to wait and see. i don't think we will get much in advance of that meeting. let's discuss this with conservative mp simon hall who joins let's discuss this with conservative mp simon hall whojoins me now. we have jacob rees—mogg threatening the prime minister, saying the government could fall over all this? i don't think the government is going to fall because the calamity ofa going to fall because the calamity of a kobin led government is very clear and large of a kobin led government is very clearand large in of a kobin led government is very clear and large in all our minds. this is an important week but it's another political week in what is a very important process. most of us talking to colleagues in the tea i’ooiti talking to colleagues in the tea room this morning, and elsewhere, the general mood is one of calm and confidence. calm, that we are doing

the right thing and the proper way, and confidence in the prime minister to go in, backed for britain and a solution and a suite of policies which will benefit british jobs, business and the british economy. you know some of your colleagues feel extremely... they are very concerned about us being in a half m, concerned about us being in a half in, half out of the eu. that would be good for britain, so, how can you find, not you, how can you find the compper mice if you are theresa may? compromise is the right word. -- how can you find the compromise if you are theresa may? there are discussions going on in the british parliament. what i find strange is that people haven't woken up to the fa ct that people haven't woken up to the fact that the parliamentary arithmetic doesn't allow one extreme or the other to have the whip hand in this. that has always given me huge confidence. that we will end up with a pragmatic, common—sense

approach which benefits my constituents and the country as a whole. we are not in the territory, you don't negotiate by banging on the table and demanding this and shouting that, threatening all sorts of things, it is a quiet, slow process. it requires a huge degree of attention to detail, that's why, i have said for a long time, the prime minister is absolutely the right person to be leading his negotiations because she does have that forensic attention to detail. she is fundamentally unflappable. she is fundamentally unflappable. she will get on with the job trying to get the best deal for britain. at some point the penny has dropped an all of our minds that the parliamentary arithmetic doesn't allow for an ultra soft brexit, and ultra hard brexit if you want to use those terms. it does dictate a coitiitioi'i‘sei'ise those terms. it does dictate a common—sense middle ground, pragmatic brexit that delivers on the referendum result but doesn't bite off our nose to spite our face

in terms of losing jobs, harming the economy at a time when you can talk to any economist, some form of international slowdown is expected. the economic cycle tells us that is to be expected in the not too distant future. we need to make sure we have a common—sense solution which delivers for britain in the best way we possibly can. thank you very much indeed. there are many here in the conservative party who say that is the feeling of the majority of mps in the party. there are some on either side who do make their point that does not necessarily reflect the wider feeling feeling from the conservative party. i shall talk to you again later, for now, thank you. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. fire crews from across the country are now working around the clock tackling a blaze on winter hill near bolton. and they're still trying to keep under control fires on land near staleybridge. a grassland fire is also burning on the staffordshire moorlands. danny savage sent us

this from winter hill. this is the coordination point lancashire fire and rescue. you can see all kinds of vehicles coming by, several fire see all kinds of vehicles coming by, severalfire engines, see all kinds of vehicles coming by, several fire engines, there activities are being coordinated from here. fires on the hill behind us, lots of smoke over parts of lancashire. this fire is on a par in size within one at saddleworth last week. many miles of moorland around bolton have gone up in flames over the last eight days. day 5 of the fires on the moors above bolton. dozens of firefighters from across northern england are here to stop the blazes getting any bigger, but it's a difficultjob. we've got over 120 firefighters out fire fighting on the moor. we retract slightly from our operations during the hours of darkness, but as of four o'clock this morning, we're back

in offensive fire fighting operations and using our specialist equipment to try and extinguish this huge scale ongoing fire and try and bring back some normality to the fell. from above, the extent of the damage can be seen. these are pictures from a bbc news drone given permission to fly. several square miles have been destroyed around winter hill. the suspicion is that this was started deliberately. the view from above has also led to some shocking observations of other people starting new fires. a couple of days there was a nearby moorland hill and there was a report of a fire that had started there and the helicopter went to put some water on it and drop some water on it and i understand that the helicopter believes, the pilot believes, he seen people actually setting fire actively there and then which is quite astonishing. dealing with this potentially huge arson incident means fire engines negotiating narrow moorland roads to get to the fires. the suggestion of them being started

deliberately infuriates the mayor of greater manchester. i think itjust beggars belief, doessn't it, to hear that people may have been coming on to this land over the weekend, adding to the burden of the emergency services and basically taking risks with people's land, property — it is just an unbelievable state of affairs. helicopters were once again deployed today. under a fierce sun and blue skies, the deluge needed to put these fires out is nowhere in sight. up up on the moors they are now digging trenches to act as firebreaks. there are many days of work here on the moors yet. fierce sun and blue skies we were hearing, there. as the hot weather continues

across much of the uk, consumers in the north west of england have been warned to use water sparingly — to try and avoid a hose pipe ban. in northern ireland, the first ban in 23 years is in place, after days with very little rain. northern ireland water says it cannot treat water quickly enough to satisfy demand. emma vardy reports. this is the hottest summer northern ireland's seen for decades. north woodburn reservoir provides belfast and near by towns. water usage has reached an all—time high. this is one of 23 water treatment plants in northern ireland. and while the reservoirs have a healthy level of water in them, plants like this are all operating at full capacity and can only treat the water and pump it out so quickly and demand is exceeding supply. some areas have seen a drop in pressure and water loss. we are doing our best to move water from one zone to another. but we don't know what the weather holds, what the forecast is.

we will be keeping the hosepipe ban in place. just for as long as that takes. the hosepipe ban is the first in northern ireland for more than 20 years. tankers have been borrowed from other businesses to help. we haven't been using the hose, haven't — i have a pool, so i have kept the water in the pool and any water i need out of the pool i am watering the plants with it. on our farm, all the water comes from a well and if that well dries up, we will have to bring water from other sources and a lot more work. for farmers there are other problems, those grazing livestock say they are struggling to replenish the grass. in the east where they haven't had rain forfour weeks, grass is drying up, not growing and farmers have had to start to supplement

the grass with winter fodder. with the weather forecast to continue, so too will the appeals to customers in other areas affected across the uk to keep water use to a minimum, or risk losses in supply. i'm joined from our westminster studio by rae stewart, director of water uk and joining me from central london. how bad is it? we are seeing a huge peak demand across the country, perhaps 20, 30% extra demand in some places. it is the summer, you always getan places. it is the summer, you always get an increased demand for water in the summer and water companies prepare for that and build a contingency. there is enough water to go round, i should stress that.

the issue is more about the pressure on water. the water companies in some areas are putting up to half a billion more litres of water into the system every day to meet the demand. that is coming out of the system almost immediately, people are using that because of the heat. that causes in some places an issue with the pressure coming out of the taps. we are showing pictures of people watering their lawns, i suspect that is giving you palpitations. you want people to think about how they use water. that's right, using a sprinkler on a lawn can use up to 1000 litres of drinking water on a lawn over the course of an hour. that's enough water for course of an hour. that's enough waterfor an entire course of an hour. that's enough water for an entire family of four for the whole day. there are things such as crackdowns on sprinkling, don't use a hose, don't clean your car perhaps, turn off the tap on you're brushing your teeth. all of these things will save litres and litres of water. do not asking for any radical change in

people'slifestyle, we are just saying that if you have a think about the way you use water, and try to save a bit more water, then perhaps we can avoid a potential pressure issue across the country. forgive me for being cynical but is this because in a few days you know you will have to start introducing some sort of ban and you can turn around and say, you should have listened to us days ago? there is a ban in place in northern ireland. the first one for more than 23 yea rs, the first one for more than 23 years, but we are not looking at that across the rest of the country at the moment. the companies i was speaking to this morning, they were saying the situation in terms of the availability of water, water sources, that is still relatively healthy. we had an awful lot of rain backin healthy. we had an awful lot of rain back in the spring and that is the time of year when all the water sources in the country replenished. that's the waterway using now. there's plenty to go around, its more that we need people to think carefully about how they use it so we don't have the issue on pressure. people will get the water they need,

they just people will get the water they need, theyjust might people will get the water they need, they just might not people will get the water they need, theyjust might not get it coming out as fast as they would like from the tap. i'm sure you look at the weather forecast, it looks as though this weather is here for quite some time yet. how long before you all start worrying about that water supply? i was asking the question of my colleagues this morning. the members of water uk. they say all their technical people say they are relatively confident about the levels of water we've got. the issue usually comes up when you have a dry winter, a dry spring and therefore all the reservoirs or underground reservoirs, when they aren't punished. but we are in a relatively healthy state when it comes to water levels. even if this goes on for a number of weeks stretching into the summer, they are confident they can still provide the supplies that people need. thank you. you're watching afternoon live, these are our headlines. downing street says it's come up with a new plan to try to break the deadlock

in theresa may's cabinet over customs arrangements after brexit. firefighters in lancashire are spending a fifth consecutive day tackling a huge blaze on moorland at winter hill. water companies urge consumers to cut down on their water usage because of the hot weather — a hosepipe ban is already in place in northern ireland. coming up in sport, we are live at wimbledon by the defending champion roger federer is vying for his ninth title and is on course for a straightforward first round with. he won the first two sets in just 49 minutes. elsewhere at the world cup, brazil hoped to avoid becoming the next big casualties as they prepare to ta ke next big casualties as they prepare to take on mexico for a place in the quarterfinals. andy four time tour de france winner chris froome has his anti—doping case dropped by cycling's world governing body. more

on all those stories coming up at half past two. thank you. she is sitting right here! as you can see, we are live at wimbledon. it is exactly how the tournament started last year, blue skies, and looking over, roger federer is well on his way to winning his first match. but the atmosphere here is very different. later i will be taking you behind—the—scenes to see the work that goes on to make this the championship with everybody dreams of winning. for one person in particular, wimbledon has a very special part in her heart. that is the duchess of kent. she has met most of the players over the years. for years she was the royal face of wimbledon — the duchess of kent has met most of the great players and handed trophies to most of them including in 1993 a tearfuljana navotna.

in an exclusive interview the duchess has been sharing her memories with me. i think it is truly the best in the world. and so, i don't think anybody, however hard they try, can quite beat the way wimbledon's done. and i am privileged to have seen all that. everything has to be perfect. every detail. and it shows. the atmosphere is... it is electric, yeah. it is never too crowded. it is beautifully, cleverly managed. spotless, the flowers everywhere. lovely. as long as we get the weather. if this goes on, we are in for a wonderful wimbledon. it is wonderful.

who in particular did you go, well, when you saw them? that is asking a terrible question! their grills were sitting next to me, i did actually go sitting next to me, i did actually 9° up sitting next to me, i did actually go up to him. you are not allowed your mobile or to take photographs. would you be tempted? of course. jana novotna in herfirst wimbledon final, certainly not disgraced. and overcome with the emotion of it all, which i am sure is the reason that she lost after being 4—1 ahead in the final set. ijust remember from the far side of the net, her face crumpled.

it is the natural thing, isn't it? god almighty, you have built yourself up for this. you've played wimbledon finals and you didn't make it. imust be... and in public. and she did what comes naturally. cried. nothing wrong in that. you put your arm round her. well, that's what you do when people are crying. a lot of people at the time said, "my word, a member of the royal family!" we are quite normal people. we do hug people who cry. we don't say, "there, there, do stop crying." no. it was a natural reaction. completely. and then she did. and that must have been quite a remarkable moment, having been through what you have been through, both of you actually. yeah. particularly her. do you remember how it went? i think we laughed quite a lot.

been there, done it. we became quite firm friends. did you realise at the time just how part of the championship you were? no, i was so frightened at the idea of going down on the centre court. frightened? terrified. yeah. you never looked nervous. i think once you've got your feet on the grass, you're all right. it's sort of the waiting to go down there. you have been there... don't! i won't! i won't. you have been there a while. thank you. what are the moments that really stand out for you? even just walking into that box is totally incredible. um, and seeing... you are so close, you don't realise how close you are until you actually sit there.

and they are there. and you can... that's amazing. moments that really stand out. i mean, of course, that one you mentioned earlier with jana novotna. i think, just the excellent play, the honour of watching some of our best players play. pete sampras, john mcenroe, becker. so many of them. is there a player for you who sums up is there a player for you who sums up what represents wimbledon?” suppose... i suppose roger federer, really. he is extraordinary. ithink he isa really. he is extraordinary. ithink he is a remarkable person, a charming person. he plays with such grace, he is such an utterly lovely

person. that's very kind of you to talk about it. thank you. my pleasure. i mean that. the duchess of kent talking to me there. everybody here says roger federer, the most polite, most charming of any player that has ever graced sw9 team. for the next 2 weeks the eyes of the tennis world will be everybody focused here on sw19 but what makes this tournament the one every player dreams of winning? i've been meeting some of the people who make it happen. it's a big year for the all england lawn tennis club, celebrating 150 yea rs lawn tennis club, celebrating 150 years since a local croquet club of

into the world's most prestigious tennis tournament, the wimbledon championships. nearly half a million people come here, globally1 billion see it on tv. but to make this grass tournament the best takes attention tournament the best takes attention to every detail. we have a team of quys to every detail. we have a team of guys that go out and do thousands of measurement for hardness readings, chlorophyll plants, they will count grass blades to see how quickly they are wearing out. they count grass blades? yes, the baselines, to see how many plants are there and how quickly it's deteriorating. how many grass plants have you got here? for perennial rye grass, 700 seeds to a gram, we sell 80 grams per square metre. centre court is 900 square metres. that equation of the top of your head is obviously... 5 million! 54 your head is obviously... 5 million! 5a million. you were close! your head is obviously... 5 million! 54 million. you were close! this was

caught number 19, now a restaurant, pa rt caught number 19, now a restaurant, part of a two—week operation serving strawberries and 29,000 bottles of champagne, and of course for the ball boys and girls. day one is important for us because we have a lot of people to get out for those first matches, 200 ball boys and ball girls, we hope to start the first day at a very standard. yellow balls first used here in 1986, more than 54,000 will be used this fortnight, each stored at 68 fahrenheit, everyone checked by hand. this is the main hub of the ball distribution unit, one of three units we have, a front office where we distribute the ball ‘s daily to the ball boys and girls, we have the back room where have stock stored as well. but this is the main hub where well. but this is the main hub where we set up everything to make the system work. here, stored by the main entrance, the new roof for court number one. work started on

this project umaga years ago and as soon as this year's championships are done, it will be lifted into place, fully operational for 2019. this is a beginner, too, for the new wimbledon shop. last year, 46,000 baseball caps and 30,000 championship towels were sold here. and nearly 9000 umbrellas. quiet most of the year. the just two weeks, this place will be packed. what extra staff requirements does that mean? a bigjump in numbers. year round, i have five permanent staff with myself in the office and half a dozen or so that work in our museum shop which is open for this two weeks. we recruit close to 200 more. assessment days, training days like today, and making sure everybody is looked after in the right way. if you think anxious brits here on henman hill, murray mound, edmund edge, whatever you cool it, get highly strung, you should see what happens here. over

the next fortnight there will be using 40 miles of brackets are incapable of holding the strongest forehands even in the middle of matches. often the chair umpire will cool us to tell us it's on its way, so we are ready. the stringer who was responsible for that player, if they are free will do that player because we try to do the same stringer with the same player. then they get the string ready, measure it allup, it they get the string ready, measure it all up, it comes in the machine as quick as they can they get it strong, but found their forest a stencil, into the bag. we have runners, boys, that get the racket sprint as fast as they can through all the crowds down to the court and wait for the change of ends and on it goes. it reputation as the championship in the world comes for a reason. the people who make it work like clockwork. it really is best left to the professionals. 0h, that should be under... yes, under!

what's gone wrong there?! that should be under... yes, under! what's gone wrong there? !m that should be under... yes, under! what's gone wrong there?! if he loses, we will know why! laughter sorry, gareth. i'm out of here! it didn't go well! holly hamilton will be here with all the sport later. roger federer has just won his first match. also here at wimbledon is susan powell. she has got the weather forecast. stunning, scorching, and apart from a feud trails by the aeroplanes, faultless blue skies and a serious warmth. we did the talking about wimbledon records in terms of the temperature —— we could be talking. in 1976 it was about 30 for each day of the tournament, but today if we get to 30 which is the forecast we may see

the record for the warmest first aid. this is how the war —— weather is now shaping up. for wimbledon, could you ask for a more perfect start? everyone is having a lovely day. 30 degrees, plenty of sun cream is the order of the day and that will be the picture as we look at our forecast for the coming week and maybe the week after. july looks like it will bring a lot of dry and sunny weather. if we take a look at what is happening for the championships, a lot of sunshine, faultless blue skies, factor 30 job for me. this week across the uk, dominated by high—pressure, a lot of dry weather and a lot of sunshine, but there will be a couple of exceptions and we will have a look at those. this afternoon, serious

heat, we could hit 31 in the south west of england, parts of eastern wales, a bit cooler along the eastern coast with the easterly breeze. temperatures just extreme along the ease coast of scotland. —— just 16. this evening, temperatures will taper off but the humidity has risen, still fairly uncomfortable conditions by the time we are going to bed, patches of fog forming, but isolated first income and the overnight knows about 12. —— the overnight knows about 12. —— the overnight lows about 12. tuesday is a bit ofa overnight lows about 12. tuesday is a bit of a case of spot the difference, though an isolated thunderstorm in the south west. temperatures are very much like today, in the high 20s. loaded ——

low to mid 20s in northern ireland. rain very scant in the picture, even as we go into wednesday, wednesday may be the chance of a shower in central and southern england, but very unlikely. it is the sunshine that keeps beating down, and the heat stays with us widely, temperatures in the mid to high 20s, and to the north—west of the uk, more cloud coming into play, taking the edge off the heat. as the week continues and looking into the weekend, very little change, high—pressure is anchored down, and any changes will be subtle, but certainly the heat will be the story for the first week ofjuly and maybe even a second and third week and increasingly we will see the lack of rainfall coming into our weather story. much more in half an hour. this is bbc news —

our latest headlines. downing street has developed a third model for handling customs after brexit, after two earlier ideas were rejected. it's feared the moorland fire in lancashire could burn for another five days — around a hundred firefighters are tackling the blaze. the hosepipe ban in northern ireland could be extended to parts of england if the heatwave continues. an mp calls for bouncy castles in public areas to be temporarily banned following the death of a young girl thrown from a seaside inflatable in norfolk. sport now on afternoon live with holly hamilton. roger federer has won his first match. absolutely. sending a strong message. he has come to this as the

defending champion and is looking for his ninth title which is incredible when you think about it. he is still very popular. when you speak to people they are usually wanting to see him, so those crises on centre court. —— so no surprise he is on centre court. the first game was a very strong message to the other contenders. he was taking that match hands down. wouldn't it amazing if there was another repeat of the battle from 2008 between him and nadal? no andy murray, which hasn't put a dampener on it, because no better day than this. there were a lot of questions, andi this. there were a lot of questions, and i think people had a fair idea, because he is recovering from his hip injury. he has had major

surgery. exactly. the thought of him being here, many people had doubts in january. can you show your fingernails? she has even done the wimbledon colours for her nails. we have all made the effort. we are trying to. great start so far. serena williams later on. making her comeback. apart from shock result. sloan stevens, the world number four. people expected her to do really rather well. but she has gone out to a brit. this has been a shock. many people very happy about this. no one was expecting this. that is her out.

losing 6—1, 6—3. actually, it wasn't a brit, it was a slovakian. but someone outside the top 50. sloan stevens was meant to win this quite easily, so many surprises. there is a shock at some stage. absolutely, but none of roger federer. serena williams later on, that will be one to watch. looking forward to see how she progresses at the tournament. she's very passionate about this tournament and she has spoken at getting emotional. there was some anxiety. some of the other players are not entirely happy about her being seeded. she has comeback after pregnancy, and we don't see this very often, she has been seeded 25th at this event even though she is kerley ranked 181 in the world. —— karen lee. —— currently. so the

person who did not make the cut because of that is not impressed, but she is an icon, and you want to see her in action. imagine if we had another williams sister here in the final, just incredible. the response she has got from the public has been incredible. thank you. and a certain football tournament, as well. something in russia? i have not heard much about that... kicking off at three o'clock, brazil against exeter. no one knows better then tim henman what the pressure is like on the players here at wimbledon. a little earlier i caught up with tim — where else but on henman hill.

i asked him iasked him how i asked him how he dealt with all of that expectation. how does it feel to be sitting here with that name, henman hill? i don't come here massive amount during the championships, and on the first aid is not as busy as it will be later, but this is a special place —— on the first day. it makes me reflect on how it evolved when caught one was first ilk, i was lucky enough to play the first match at 97 and they had a big screen —— first built. that is when people were watching my matches and it was first known as henman hill and i've been hanging on to it ever since. you would think the name henwood would guarantee access. not for my kids. my wife brought them up here a few years ago andi brought them up here a few years ago and i got here late, and be here was pretty busy. —— and the hill was pretty busy. —— and the hill was pretty busy. —— and the hill was pretty busy. they were basically

ushered away by one of the security guards because they said it was full and my wife knew that my little one was about to say, don't you know who iam? but was about to say, don't you know who i am? but she was luckily pawed away. it is a good spot, and hopefully people enjoy watching the tennis —— pawed away. what is it about wimbledon that is set apart from anywhere else in the world ? set apart from anywhere else in the world? the cornerstones of the event are history and tradition but also the innovation, and looking at caught one with the roof in progress, that will be ready in 2019, and if you had said 20 years ago there would be a sliding roof on centre court and court one, people would say that you were mad, but thatis would say that you were mad, but that is where the club and the tournament are not scared to move with the times, so it's about getting the balance with the white clothes and the royal box but also improving the technology and improving the technology and improving the technology and improving the event for players and spectators. i went out on centre

court and i found spectators. i went out on centre court and ifound it spectators. i went out on centre court and i found it pretty daunting, what is your memory as a brit going out with all the expectation? what about those last minutes before you walk out? there is nervous, but that is a good thing. if you are not nervous walking onto professional court, that would be a bad thing, because that would be a bad thing, because that would be a bad thing, because that would mean you didn't care, but i was lucky with my family, my mother took me there when i was sixth in the first time in 1991 and i saw you on board. —— 1981 and i saw bjorn borg. i made my career decision right there. in 1996 when i got a chance to play there it felt like i had 15 years to prepare for it, so i was nervous but i was also very excited. i played the french 0pen champion ben and i beat him 7—5 in the fifth set and iowa said if i

could play my whole career at one court ——i could play my whole career at one court —— i always said if i could play my whole career on one court it would be the centre court at wimbledon, the most special in tennis. if you have the chance to play there you might as well enjoy it. what about the other players? they have a similar sense?” it. what about the other players? they have a similar sense? i think so, if you spoke to the top 100 men and women and said, if there's one tournament would most likely to —— if you would most like to win, they would say wimbledon and that goes back to the history and tradition, and the past great champions we have had and hopefully how the event is a lwa ys had and hopefully how the event is always improving and trying to give them a good time. you mention always trying to improve, there have been issues like money, winners money, men and women, but do you think tennis gets it? i hope tennis gets

it, that's a broad statement, but in terms of the equality and equal prize—money, that has been in place for quite some time. at least the last ten years. if you look at the prize—money, the winner this year will get £2.35 million. and losing in the first round you get £39,000, so they are not doing badly. for the club's perspective, and remember this is a tennis club, they are still able to make these improvements and there is more to come. the roof on court one will be finished next year and there is the indoor courts with underground parking which will be a great asset the tournament and the club as well. and potentially across the road with the golf club. do you ever have a pang of jealousy when the golf club. do you ever have a pang ofjealousy when you see young men with their rackets? no, i don't. the final piece of the puzzle is

centre court, and you will always miss that, but the other 99%, the tournaments and training and travel, the discipline, i don't miss that in the discipline, i don't miss that in the slightest. but i love being back here at this time of year. great to talk to you. thanks forjoining us. no problem. tim henman, who can play tennis rather well, and now to a couple of people who can't. six months ago during a news nationwide item in afternoon live with look north's peter levy — don't ask me how — we got into a bet over who would win a game of tennis. there was only one way to find out. a careless exchange on the show has come home to roost. someone said to me in the corridor, you and simon should play a game for sport relief, but i said no, you are not fit enough. peter, if you are going for it, so am i. ok. but such a historic

match there was only one location, the birthplace of the wimbledon championships. it all started in 1868, july 1868, six men came together and went into the centre of london and formed the all england croquet club and that is how it started. it was a croquet club based in wimbledon. not here but that walker wrote. —— but at walker wrote. dramatic music i got about five this morning yellow macro, i've travelled down from helped, i'm going to win this —— i got up about five this morning, i've

travelled down from hull, i'm going to win this. he got up at five o'clock this morning, he's going to lose this. 0h oh god. oh yes. don't try that with me. yes! out, that is out. it was in bya me. yes! out, that is out. it was in by a mile. it was out. get over it. this side. what do you want, perfection where jamaat laughter —— perfection? perfection where jamaat laughter -- perfection? 0-30. i have got to get that side? oh! 15-30. over the

net. he is getting a bit cocky now. that was in. oh! it's all right, they are not yours. 15-40. oh! game set and match, mccoy. oh! i've pulled something. i was totally stitched up, it is 30 degrees, as well. i was stitched up, as well, they told me you could play. he comes all the way from the north and he whinges. i sort of enjoyed it. if you think i look bad, they have just buried peter leavy. nothing i can say. we had to show

you that when we say something we stick to it. in a moment you'll be telling us what's hot and what's not in the business news. first a look at the headlines on afternoon live. downing street says it's come up with a new plan to try to break the deadlock in theresa may's cabinet over customs arrangements after brexit. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. water companies urge consumers to cut down on their water usage because of the hot weather — a hosepipe ban is already in place here's your business headlines on afternoon live. tesco says it is planning a "strategic alliance" with french retail giant carrefour, to cut costs and offer lower

prices to customers. the firms are battling growing competiton from newer rivals in the grocery market including internet giant amazon. nearly 22,000 jobs have been hit on the uk's struggling high streets this year. figures for the bbc show that shop closures and retail administrations have left more than 7,000 people out of work. a further 9,500 roles are due to go through planned shop closures, while 5,100 are in doubt at poundworld, which is in administration. it could take two weeks before supplies of carbon dioxide return to normal, the british meat processors association has warned. c02 is used to stun farm animals before processing and in packaging to keep meat fresh but is in short supply. a plant in billingham, county durham is due to restart on monday. maryam, wimbledon relies on sponsorship, one of the big sponsors is lavazza, tell us more? its the eighth year of lavazza

sponsoring wimbledon, they ll have 100 baristas serving at the event across 60 service points. they re the only food and drinks firm to partner with all four grandslam tournaments. andre agassi is their brand ambassador. joining us now is giuseppe lavazza, chairman at lavazza. when the weather is hot like this, surely you don't fancy a coffee at wimbledon? we are ready and prepared to offer the best coffee experience with any kind of weather, so it doesn't matter if it is very heart like this, or very cold —— very heart. we have designed a very special offer for wimbledon, to

satisfy any kind of need. widely you choose wimbledon, why tennis? —— why do you choose. you also have a relationship with the other grand slam tournaments. we think we share a common values in the world of tennis, when we are talking about excellence and neutrality and challenging at the same time, looking for perfection. another important point is that the grand slams are big events. and they last 15 days, and this timing allows lavazza the chance of setting up the largest coffee shop in the world, transforming wimbledon and the ground of wimbledon in one of the most important and relevant coffee shops serving during the two weeks of the tournament, more than 600,000

coffee and coffee receipts. i'm sure you will have a chance to go to wimbledon, who are your favourite players? i'm a great supporter of nadal and players? i'm a great supporter of nadaland i'm a players? i'm a great supporter of nadal and i'm a very close friend of him and his family. i'm looking forward to seeing him winning another time, the wimbledon championship, and i hope to see in the final with another great hero, roger federer. absolutely. two class acts. thanks for joining roger federer. absolutely. two class acts. thanks forjoining us. what is it you, a pimms or a acts. thanks forjoining us. what is it you, a pimms ora cup of acts. thanks forjoining us. what is it you, a pimms or a cup of coffee? a bucket of ice for your head? laughter many people would join you with that one. thanks forjoining us. this

promises to be one of the hottest opening days in wimbledon history. to get more on the wimbledon i'm joined by mary rhodes. my my first one was about 24 years ago, i was very young. torque roger federer, the duchess of kent says he is her favourite —— federer, the duchess of kent says he is herfavourite —— talking federer, the duchess of kent says he is her favourite —— talking about roger federer. he is still playing. he's definitely up there. one because i have been fortunate enough to interview him, i did that on the time he came back to defend his title but first time, and he was so generous with his time —— the first time. we took a walk that they do down onto centre court passed the great champions and he was so generous with his time and so lovely, and then he goes out on plays the most sublime shots and

moves like a hovercraft. he's still doing it at 36. what is it like to work here? it seems utterly manic. people are running around. work here? it seems utterly manic. people are running aroundm work here? it seems utterly manic. people are running around. it is the sporting swan, wimbledon. i'm working for the wimbledon channel which is run by the all—england club and everything the club does is impeccable but there's a lot of work behind the scenes. below us it is com pletely behind the scenes. below us it is completely manic because that is what broadcasting is like but everything is immaculate and there are changes every single year but you come along and nothing has changed in a way. tim henman said if you had said to him 20 years ago that the main courts would have rooms on, they would have laughed. —— rooms. rooms on, they would have laughed. “ rooms. “— rooms on, they would have laughed. —— rooms. —— roofs. rooms on, they would have laughed. -- rooms. -- roofs. i remember when court number one was over there and

the position as a reporter was across level and the first few balls, you did not see them —— was at grass level. it has changed a lot over the last 20 years. is there one standout moment from your time here? from a british perspective, murray winning the title the first time, but the standout final was only ten yea rs but the standout final was only ten years ago, and in the grand scheme of things, not that long that was the roger federer nadal final, of things, not that long that was the roger federer nadalfinal, which was epic. it is great for you to come on the thursday because you have a blank piece of paper and you wonder where the is coming. you have the privilege to look around and think, there might be a story developing on court 18, which is where the longest tennis match in history took place. there are always stories which take you by surprise. we have got the weather for it. two weeks, apparently. i'm going to find

out. time for a look at the weather. it is very hot. good afternoon. i'm here on the edge of murray mount, and could it be a more perfect afternoon? unbroken sunshine and it is likely to reach 30, and then eve ryo ne is likely to reach 30, and then everyone starts to think about what thatis everyone starts to think about what that is like for the players but they have at hearty years, 2015 was they have at hearty years, 2015 was the hottest on record, 35 degrees —— hotter years. and of course they play in melbourne where it can reach 40. the forecast for today, sunshine continuing into the evening, the temperature, 31, maybe a touch over cook will we are sitting around 28.5 at the moment and we might peak at 30 in the course of the next hour —— overcooked. going on through the

rest of the week, very little will change, if you are heading to wimbledon it is about suncream and thinking plenty of water and that all the way across the british isles. —— that is the story all the way. a few exceptions, more cloud down the eastern coast, and also a breeze from the north sea which will make things feel fresher. temperatures in the high teens across the eastern side of the uk, further west, the south west, that could be the hotspot, up to 31. that is where the court the heat is this afternoon —— the core of the heat. through the evening, we are set fine and even into tuesday, it is like spot the difference, maybe isolated showers, but could be thundery in the south west. and northern scotland. a bit cooler across the

eastern most counties but the sunshine will continue to dominate. wednesday, very little difference. the chance of a shower and i think it will be a very unlikely story that we see any rain hitting wimbledon this week and even into next week. temperatures are peking somewhere in the high 20s quite widely, but still those figures hitting 30 in a few areas —— peking. the dry weather will be increasingly a talking point as we go through the next few weeks because high pressure is anchored down, it is staying with us and there's precious little to come, and if your garden is as beautiful as this, you will be struggling to keep things looking afresh because many of us could be facing a hosepipe ban. hello, you're watching afternoon live — i'm simon mccoy. today at 3: trying to break

the brexit deadlock — downing street says it's come up with a new model for handling customs when the uk leaves the eu. one hundred firefighters are now tackling what they say is an ‘apocalyptic‘ moorland blaze in lancashire. limit your water use orface a hosepipe ban — the warning to households in north—west england. coming up on afternoon live, all the sport with holly. we are live at wimbledon with all the latest action for you, including defending champion roger federer who has eased through to the second round with a convincing victory over dusan lajovic in the first round. and with the weather, susan powell. what else can you want for an afternoon and sw9 team? nearly 30

degrees our temperature. all you need is your hat, sunscreen and your picnic. thanks, susan — in an exclusive interview the duchess of kent shares her memories of wimbledon and in particular the moment one player broke down in front of her. we are quite normal people. we do hug people who cry! it's a natural reaction. this also we'll take you behind the scenes here at the wimbledon championships — we'll even tell you how is many blades of grass there are on centre court. hello everyone, this is afternoon live. two weeks of tennis and two weeks of

strawberries and cream and two weeks of who knows what is to come? it a lwa ys of who knows what is to come? it always throws up a good story. the place is packed, thousands of people, half a million people come here over the two week period. some of the games have finished and all—around there is play going on. roger federer is already through. i don't want to give holly's main story away but roger has won his first match. 0ur story away but roger has won his first match. our main story this afternoon... downing street says it has come up with a new plan to try to break the cabinet deadlock over customs arrangements after brexit. with time running out to agree a deal with the eu, the latest proposals will be discussed by ministers at a crucial meeting at chequers on friday. it comes amid fresh infighting within the conservative party on the issue. here's our political correspondent tom barton. how close britain's relationship

with the european union should be is one of big questions facing those negotiating brexit. but the possible answers to that question have split the government. up to now, two options have been on the table. one, a close customs partnership after brexit. the other, a looser arrangement that would rely on technology to minimise border checks. both though have the cabinet divided over which would be best, and now number ten is considering a renewed proposal in the hope of uniting ministers. it is not clear what the details of that proposal will be, but writing in the daily telegraph, jacob reese mogg said... government minister sir alan duncan, hit back on twitter, accusing jacob rees mogg of insolence.

that sentiment not shared by brexiteers. i think it is fair to point out that the government has made firm commitments in respect of those three issues. the single market, the customs union and the european court ofjustice. that was a contract that we did make with the electorate and i think we have to abide by that. at the end of the week the cabinet will meet to try to find a proposal they can all agree on. ministers admit it won't be an easy day. there are some difficult and important decisions to be made, not least on the customs arrangements. that is what this meeting is about at the end of the week and i'm sure at the end the cabinet will get behind a solution and that is what we will seek to secure. it might prove difficult, but getting something agreed by her cabinet should be the easy part.

the prime minister's next challenge will be persuading eu leaders that the proposal is something that they too can accept. 0ur chief political correspondent vicki young is at westminster for us. theresa may is coming to the house at 5pm, telling them what happened in the rather brief talks she had the eu leaders last week. i'll be going to learn any more about what may be on the table after her cabinet meeting on friday?” may be on the table after her cabinet meeting on friday? i think it's going to be unlikely, simply because no one really knows the status of this compromise, this third way, whether it's being signed off on not had the rest of the cabinet or whether that is really what fridays all about. there is a cabinet meeting tomorrow morning as well, plenty of time for them to discuss it. she is giving a statement about the eu council which did not touch on brexit all that

much. there will be many mps trying to ask her to get to the bottom of how she thinks she is going to break this deadlock. i am joined by conservative mp marcus fish. what is the way through here for the prime minister? it's years since she said there would be two possibilities with customs arrangements, now it seems neither of those bible? we need to focus on the the future. in my view, there is a clear advantage to the country to be able to set its own regulation. -- now it seems neither of those is viable? there is a lot we can do to help business get ready, there's a lot we can do to smooth the process, but i don't think it's helpful to be talking in terms other than having two separate jurisdictions regulation and customers. even if it got to the

point where some are suggesting staying closer to the eu when it comes to regulations on goods, maybe by diversion more when it comes to services, is that the kind of thing you would consider? —— maybe by diverging more when it comes to services. i don't think you need to do that, we need two separate systems at the point we leave, our syste m systems at the point we leave, our system would be broadly equivalent. that means legally speaking, things have to be smooth at the border. if the eu work to a wrecked new barriers, despite that, then they would be in breach of their obligations as was the evidence to our eu scrutiny committee last wednesday. a quick word on jacob rees—mogg. do you think he is threatening the prime minister? i'm sure he's not. we all want a good outcome we stick by our manifesto promises which were very clear about leaving the customs union, leaving the single market and ijust don't think it's helpful, including the

business, to be talking about other things. we need to get ready now. thank you. that has been the call from business, they want to know what they must get ready for. lots of people hoping that by friday, maybe, we will have a bit more clarity. thank you. don't forget, 5pm, theresa may updating the comments on her meeting in brussels aafew comments on her meeting in brussels a a few days ago. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. fire crews from across the country are now working around the clock tackling a blaze on winter hill near bolton. and they're still trying to keep under control fires on land near staleybridge. a grassland fire is also burning on the staffordshire moorlands. danny savage sent us this from winter hill. this is the coordination point lancashire fire and rescue.

you can see all kinds of vehicles coming by, severalfire engines, there activities are being coordinated from here. fires on the hill behind us, lots of smoke over parts of lancashire. this fire is on a par in size with the one at saddleworth last week. many miles of moorland around bolton have gone up in flames over the last eight days. day 5 of the fires on the moors above bolton. dozens of firefighters from across northern england are here to stop the blazes getting any bigger, but it's a difficultjob. we've got over 120 firefighters out fire fighting on the moor. we retract slightly from our operations during the hours of darkness, but as of four o'clock this morning, we're back in offensive fire fighting operations and using our specialist equipment to try and extinguish this huge—scale ongoing fire and try and bring back some normality to the fell. from above, the extent of the damage can be seen. these are pictures from a bbc news drone given permission to fly.

several square miles have been destroyed around winter hill. the suspicion is that this was started deliberately. the view from above has also led to some shocking observations of other people starting new fires. a couple of days there was a nearby moorland hill and there was a report of a fire that had started there and the helicopter went to put some water on it and drop some water on it and i understand that the helicopter believes, the pilot believes, he's seen people actually setting fire actively there and then which is quite astonishing. dealing with this potentially huge arson incident means fire engines negotiating narrow moorland roads to get to the fires. the suggestion of them being started deliberately infuriates the mayor of greater manchester. i think itjust beggars belief, doessn't it, to hear that people may have been coming on to this land over the weekend, adding to the burden of the emergency services and basically taking risks with people's land, property — it is just an unbelievable

state of affairs. helicopters were once again deployed today. under a fierce sun and blue skies, the deluge needed to put these fires out is nowhere in sight. up on the moors they are now digging trenches to act as firebreaks. there are many days of work here on the moors yet. police have launched an investigation after a 14 year old boy was stabbed in north london. officers were called to the scene at fairbridge road near islington at around seven o clock last night where the victim was found with a number of injuries. a 14—year—old boy and another 15—year—old have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder. an 11—year—old — who had been arrested — has now been released. an mp has called for bouncy castles in public areas to be temporarily banned

after the death of a young girl in norfolk. according to eyewitnesses, the inflatable trampoline exploded flinging the girl into the air. she was taken to hospital but died of her injuries. an investigation involving the health and safety executive, local authority and police is under way. the body of a six—year—old girl has been found in the grounds of an old hotel on an island off the west coast of scotland. police say the body was found on the island of bute, in a town called rothesay. the girl had been reported missing from her home around two and a half hours earlier. as the hot weather continues across much of the uk — consumers in the north west of england have been warned to use water sparingly — to try and avoid a hose pipe ban. in northern ireland the first ban in 23 years is in place, after days with very little rain. northern ireland water says it cannot treat water quickly enough to satisfy demand. emma vardy reports. this is the hottest summer

northern ireland's seen for decades. north woodburn reservoir in county antrim supplies belfast and near by towns. water usage has reached an all—time high. this is one of 23 water treatment plants in northern ireland. and while the reservoirs have a healthy level of water in them, plants like this are all operating at full capacity, they can only treat the water and pump it out so quickly and demand is exceeding supply. some areas have seen a drop in pressure and temporary water loss. we are doing our best to maximize production, and move waterfrom one zone to another. but we don't know what the weather holds, what the forecast is. we will be keeping the hosepipe ban in place. just for as long as that takes. the hosepipe ban, in place since friday, is the first

in northern ireland for more than 20 years. tankers have been borrowed from other businesses to help. we haven't been using the hose, i have a pool, so i have kept the water in the pool and any water i need out of the pool i am watering the plants with it. on our farm, all the water comes from a well and if that well dries up, we will have to bring water from other sources and a lot more work. forfarmers there are other problems, too — those grazing livestock say they are struggling to replenish the grass. in the east of the province where they haven't had rain forfour weeks, grass is drying up, not growing and farmers have had to start to supplement the grass with winter fodder. with the weather forecast to continue, so too will the appeals to customers in other areas affected across the uk to keep

water use to a minimum, or risk losses in supply. you're watching afternoon live, these are our headlines. downing street says it's come up with a new plan to try to break the deadlock in theresa may's cabinet over customs arrangements after brexit. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. water companies urge consumers to cut down on their water usage because of the hot weather — a hosepipe ban is already in place in northern ireland. coming up in sport, we are live at wimbledon by defending champion roger federer is vying for his ninth title here. his quest is going pretty well, after a smooth start,

losing just eight games, beating dusan lajovic lajovic in straight sets will stop there has been a shock sloane stephens, beaten by world number 55. elsewhere at the world cup, brazil hope to avoid becoming the next big casualties as they prepare to take on mexico for a place in the quarterfinals. it is still goalless there, 15 minutes in. one of the first firefighters into grenfell tower has told the public inquiry that he believed the stay—put advice given to residents to stay in their homes "failed" barely half an hour after the fire began. thomas abell was part of the north kensington crew that was called to reports of a fouth floor kitchen fire just before 1am on 14june last year. the inquiry heard how mr abell found a flat on the fifth floor of grenfell tower ‘fully involved' in the fire just before half past one in the morning. chancellor merkel of germany is due to hold emergency talks

with her interior minister shortly — as a row over the country's migration policy intensifies. horst seehofer, who leads bavaria's christian social union, a key party in mrs merkel‘s coalition has threathened to resign. he argues that police should turn away migrants at the bavarian border if they have sought asylum elsewhere. but mrs merkel is sticking to an eu—wide deal. the winner of the presidential election in mexico has promised to tackle the corruption and violence that have plagued the country. andreas manuel lopez 0brad0r, an anti—establishment left winger, says he'll deliver ‘profound change' after his landslide victory. us president donald trump has congratulated mr 0brad0r, and said he's looking forward to working with him. relations between the two countries have been soured by mr trump's promise to build a wall along the border and make mexico pay for it. but mr 0brador has said he'll seek friendly relations and a frank dialogue with the us.

will grant reports from mexico. andres manuel lopez 0brador has waited 12 years for this moment. having narrowly missed out on the presidency in 2006, this was a victory he savoured. in many ways, though, he's waited a lifetime. from the moment he burst on to the political scene as a left—wing activist, he clearly wanted the presidency. now, at the third attempt, it is his. the campaign might have been the bloodiest in mexico's history, but the vote itself passed off peacefully — at least in most polling stations. in aragon, a low income neighbourhood in mexico city, queues were orderly and voters patient — keen to exercise their democratic right to show their displeasure to the governing party. the word on the lips of many voters in mexico is "change". notjust change in the party in power or the president, but a more fundamental shift in the political and economic

direction of the country. in particular, change is wanted in those parts of mexico where the drug cartels rather than the state rules. mr lopez 0brador‘s win is largely because he promised to tackle the ingrained corruption and violence. economically too his support are hopeful he can begin to redress the balance in one of the most unequal societies in the americas. it is a daunting task ahead, but for now his supporters are delirious with joy. he and his supporters have decimated the two main parties in mexico and in the process completely redrawn the political map of the country. let's return to events here at

wimbledon, the first day of play in a two week festival of tennis. for years, she was the royal face of wimbledon — the duchess of kent has met most of the great players and handed trophies to most of them including in 1993 a tearfuljana navotna. in an exclusive interview the duchess has been sharing her memories with me. i think it is truly the best in the world. and so, i don't think anybody, however hard they try, can quite beat the way wimbledon's done. and i am privileged to have seen all that. everything has to be perfect. every detail. and it shows. the atmosphere is... it is electric, yeah. it is wonderful. jana novotna in herfirst wimbledon final, certainly not disgraced. and overcome with the emotion of it all, which i am sure is the reason that she lost after being 4—1 ahead in the final set. ijust remember from the far side of the net, her face crumpled.

it is the natural thing, isn't it? god almighty, you have built yourself up for this. you've played wimbledon finals and you didn't make it. imust be... and in public! and she did what comes naturally. cried. nothing wrong in that. you put your arm round her. well, that's what you do when people are crying. a lot of people at the time said, "my word, a member of the royal family!" we are quite normal people. we do hug people who cry. we don't say, "there, there, do stop crying." no. it was a natural reaction. completely. and then she did. and that must have been quite a remarkable moment, having been through what you have been through, both of you actually.

yeah. particularly her. do you remember how it went? i think we laughed quite a lot. been there, done it. we became quite firm friends. did you realise at the time just how part of the championship you were? no, i was so frightened at the idea of going down on the centre court. frightened? terrified. yeah. you never looked nervous. i think once you've got your feet on the grass, you're all right. it's sort of the waiting to go down there. you have been there... don't! i won't! i won't. you have been there a while. thank you. what are the moments that really stand out for you? even just walking into that box is totally incredible. um, and seeing... you are so close, you don't realise how close you are

until you actually sit there. and they are there. and you can... that's amazing. moments that really stand out. i mean, of course, that one you mentioned earlier with jana novotna. i think, just the excellent play, the honour of watching some of our best players play. pete sampras, john mcenroe, becker. so many of them. that's very kind of you to talk about it. thank you. my pleasure. i mean that. with me now is michael hann, who's the vice—president of the all—england club. this is a big year eu, you are 100 doubled you are not! the club is 100 yea rs doubled you are not! the club is 100 years old. sometimes i feel it! we we re years old. sometimes i feel it! we were founded as a croquet club. the people in those days found another

title for the club because tennis was coming in. can you imagine the committee meetings deciding what never going to be calling themselves, item number one on the agenda for about ten years. now it is what it is now, the lawn and croquet club, and croquet is played as well. there was a croquet club nearby and that's where wimbledon started. the tradition of this place seems to be there but my word, there are changes. that's part of the importance of your job. are changes. that's part of the importance of yourjob. it used to be, no longer now, vice president's role is very much passive but nevertheless i meet my colleagues from time to time about what is happening. wimbledon can never look over its shoulder, it has to be moving forward the whole time. 0ver the last 15, 20 years, major steps have been taken to make sure that this club, this championship, stays at the very top near the top top of at the very top near the top top of

a whole of the grand slams. we are competing with a global challenge. absolutely. where we are sitting now isa rank absolutely. where we are sitting now is a rank you park, it is still called that from the fondness of our friends, the new zealanders. behind you where you are sitting you have co re you where you are sitting you have core 16, 17, now is to be a rugby pitch. 0ver core 16, 17, now is to be a rugby pitch. over the far end of court number one was another rugby pitch, where they played a lot of rugby there. a big sign in the trees facing church road said aware of by facing church road said aware of rugby balls. that was the spirit wimbledon 20, 30 years rugby balls. that was the spirit wimbledon 20,30 years ago. rugby balls. that was the spirit wimbledon 20, 30 years ago. finally, where the new court number one is, that used to be a cricket pitch. of course, all that has gone now. we have taken the club back from the new zealanders, as was our right, and have continued to develop it. this time next year we will have the roof on court number one. we are a lwa ys roof on court number one. we are always looking to make wimbledon the forefront of the grand slams. what is it about this place that every

player from the world wants to win this one? all the grand slams have different qualities. the australian, the french, the most chic. the american the wealthiest. hours has the tradition. that is our usp. we try very hard to preserve that with players playing in all my clothes. the fact it's played on grass, two admire the other grand slams were played on grass. the american and the australian. we are the one left on grass. we intend to keep these traditions as long as we can. a pleasure to talk to you. it is hot, very hot. susan powell can tell us how much longer it will stay that way? yes, you are right. it is hot. we

forecast the 30 degrees but what i am going to tell you is that that temperature is a standardised temperature is a standardised temperature that we use all the way around the world to record temperatures, that is done in the shade. i had a fish around in the weather centre handbag and he is our thermometer. standing where i am with the sun directly on you, it's 39 degrees. all the more reason for people to have their hat on or seek a bit of shade. it is very hot here. let's ta ke a bit of shade. it is very hot here. let's take a look at what is coming on with our forecast. you don't need me to tell you its unbroken blue sky and sunshine here this afternoon. the temperature we are showing, 31 in terms of actual recorded temperatures it might be a little high. | temperatures it might be a little high. i think we will record about 30 to the course of this afternoon. getting on 4pm, the sun will drop in the sky and that temperature will ease off. the rest of the week, we will be hitting similar highs. maybe

even into the low 30s at the end of the week and for the weekend. lots of dry and sunny weather to come. that is the case for the majority of the british isles, a little more clout this afternoon into some of north—eastern coast. a breeze off the north sea freshen things up. temperatures in the high teens to the low 20s but in a core area costs the low 20s but in a core area costs the south—west, we could hit 31 this afternoon. northern ireland, about 23. into this evening, a beautiful and to the day, lots of sunshine, overnight lows between 12 and 14. off overnight lows between 12 and 14. off into tuesday, plenty of sunshine. some patches of mist and fog. an odd chance of the isolated thunderstorm. a little more clout across northern scotland taking the temperatures down a shade. still, widely looking at this figure is hitting the high 20s to the low 30s. we might not make a record—breaking

wimbledon here this week in terms of the ultimate high temperature, that was 35 in 2000 but certainly we are looking at a hot week. the heat continues on into next week. —— that the 35 jesus dominating, dry weather increasingly becoming a problem as we go through the next weekend. —— dry weather dominating. thursday and friday, the high pressure still with us. going nowhere in a hurry. it wiggles around a little, that might change how wind direction and might ta ke change how wind direction and might take all the humidity down. that mix things feel a shade more comfortable but still the story for the coming daysis but still the story for the coming days is very much one dominated by the dry weather, sunshine and yes, the dry weather, sunshine and yes, the heat. temperatures even into the week ahead. the week after this, still for many of us pushing into the high 20s or low 30s.

this is bbc news — our latest headlines. downing street says it's developed a third model for handling customs after brexit, after two earlier ideas were rejected. it's feared the moorland fire in lancashire could burn for another five days — firefighters say the blazes are unprecedented. the hosepipe ban in northern ireland could be extended to parts of england if the hot weather continues. an mp calls for bouncy castles in public areas to be temporarily banned following the death of a young girl thrown from an inflatable trampoline in norfolk. sport now on afternoon live. i don't have to go very far for the latest. it doesn't get much better than this. yes, it must be confusing

for people, because it looks very blustery, but the weather is scorching. how are you coping? i'm glad i'm wearing a jacket. we have a job, though. let's talk about the tennis. roger federer has gone through and that is no surprise. yes, the world number two at the moment but the number one seed here. roger federer has made an extremely smooth start to the defence of his wimbledon title. federer tookjust 79 minutes and lostjust eight games on the way to beating serbia's dusan lajovic in straight sets. federer — who turns 37 in august — is looking to win his ninth wimbledon title.

and today's performance showed why he's the hot favourite. us open champion sloane stephens became the biggest casualty so far on the opening day of the wimbledon women's singles as she lost to world number 55 donna vekic in straight sets. the fourth—seeded american, who also reached last month's french open final, looked out of sorts, losing 6—1 6—3 to the croat. there is also the world cup in russia! tournament favourites brazil are taking on mexico for a place in the quarter—finals. they're more than half an hour into the match in samara, but so far only brazil have managed a shot on target thanks to neymar. mexico have never scored against a

goal against brazil at the world cup. defeat would see them exiting the world cup at the first round of 16 for the seventh consecutive time. chris froome's anti—doping case has been dropped by cycling's governing body, the uci. he'd been under investigation since september, when a doping test found twice the allowed level of a legal asthma drug in his sample. froome said he never doubted he'd be cleared, as he knew he'd done nothing wrong. he begins the defence of his tour de france title on saturday. we have much more action to come here at wimbledon. serena williams making her comeback from maternity. we have not talked about the absence of andy murray. such a shame. many

people have been mentioning that. we had hoped that maybe he would come but realistically he had hip surgery only in january and that's but realistically he had hip surgery only injanuary and that's not give him much time to both form the way we would expect. right until the weekend we thought he was going to play, he was in the draw, but he announced yesterday that he will not be here, so a lot of disappointed fa ns be here, so a lot of disappointed fans but still very understanding. we will see him make a comeback here in the future, no doubt. yes, judy murray has said as much. in the meantime, thanks for joining murray has said as much. in the meantime, thanks forjoining us. for the next 2 weeks the eyes of the tennis world will be focused here on sw19 but what makes this tournament the one every player dreams of winning. i've been meeting some of the people who make it happen. it's a big year for the all england

lawn tennis club, celebrating 150 years since a local croquet club evolved into the world's most prestigious tennis tournament, the wimbledon championships. nearly half a million people come here, globally 1 billion see it on tv. but to make this grass tournament the best takes attention to every detail. we have a team of guys that go out and do thousands of measurement for hardness readings, chlorophyll plants, they will count grass blades to see how quickly they are wearing out. they count grass blades? yes, they count the baselines,

to see how many plants are there and how quickly it's deteriorating. how many grass plants have you got here? for perennial rye grass, 700 seeds to a gram, we sow 80 grams per square metre. centre court is 900 square metres. that equation of the top of your head is obviously... 5 million! 54 million. it was close! this used to be court 19, now a restaurant, part of a two—week operation serving strawberries and 29,000 bottles of champagne, and of course for the ball boys and girls. day one is important for us because we have a lot of people to get out for those first matches, 258 ball boys and ball girls, and we hope to start the first day at a very high standard. yellow balls first used here in 1986, more than 54,000 will be used this fortnight, each stored at 68 fahrenheit, every one carefully checked by hand.

this is the main hub of the ball distribution unit, one of three units we have. a front office where we distribute the balls daily to the ball boys and girls, we have the back room where the stock is stored as well. but this is the main hub where we set up everything to make the system work. here, stored by the main entrance, the new roof for court number one. work started on this project two years ago and as soon as this year's championships are done, it will be lifted into place, fully operational for 2019. this is a big year, too, for the new wimbledon shop. last year, 46,000 baseball caps and 30,000 championship towels were sold here. oh, and nearly 9000 umbrellas. quiet most of the year. forjust two weeks, this place will be packed. what extra staff requirements does that mean? a big jump in numbers. year round, i have five permanent

staff with myself in the office and half a dozen or so that work in our museum shop which is open. for this two weeks we recruit close to 200 more. that is a lot of effort in terms of the recruitment process. assessment days, training days like today, and making sure everybody is looked after in the right way. if you think anxious brits here on henman hill, murray mound, edmund edge, whatever you call it, get highly strung, you should see what happens here. over the next fortnight they will be using 40 miles of rackets are capable of handling the strongest forehands even in the middle of matches. often the chair umpire will call us to tell us it's

on its way, so we are ready. the stringer who was responsible for that player, if they are free will do that player because we try to do the same stringer with the same player. then they get the string ready, measure it all up, it comes in the machine — as quick as they can they get it strong, into the bag. we have runners, boys, that get the racket, sprint as fast as they can through all the crowds down to the court and wait for the change of ends and on it goes. it reputation as the best championship in the world comes for a reason. the people who make it work like clockwork. it really is best left to the professionals. oh, that should be under... yes, under! what's gone wrong there?! if he loses, we will know why! laughter sorry, gareth. i'm out of here! before we move on we d earlier in the programme a microphone was left open in error and some unexpected and inappropriate audio

was heard on air. we re sorry this happened during what is a complex live outside broadcast today. no one knows better then tim henman what the pressure is like on the players here at wimbledon. a little earlier i caught up with tim — where else but on henman hill? henman hill, here we are. how does it feel to be sitting here with that name? i don't come here a massive amount during the championships, and on the first day it's not as busy as it will be later. but this is a special place. it makes me reflect on how it evolved when court one was first built. i was lucky enough to play the first match in 97 and they had a big screen. that's when people were watching a lot of my matches and it was first known as henman hill and i've been hanging on to it ever since. you would think the name henman would guarantee access, but no. not for my kids.

my wife brought them up here a few years ago. i got here late, and the hill was pretty busy. it is my third daughter, who you have got to watch out for. they were basically ushered away by one of the security guards because they said it was full and my wife knew that my little one was about to say, "don't you know who i am?". but she was luckily pulled away. it's a good spot, and hopefully people enjoy watching the tennis. what is it about wimbledon that is set apart from anywhere else in the world? the cornerstones of the event are history and tradition but also the innovation. and looking at court one with the roof in progress, that will be ready in 2019... and if you'd said 20 years ago there would be a sliding roof on centre court and court one, people would say that you were mad, but that is where the club and the tournament are not scared to move with the times. so it's about getting the balance

with the grass courts, white clothes and the royal box but also improving the technology and improving the event for players and spectators. i went out on centre court and i found it pretty daunting, what is your memory as a brit going out with all the expectation? what about those last minutes before you walk out? there is definitely nerves, but that is a good thing. if you are not nervous walking onto a professional court, that would be a bad thing, because that would mean you didn't care. but i was lucky with my family, my mother took me there when i was six for the first time in 1981 and i saw bjorn borg. did you think you would end up there? i made my career decision right there. in 1996 when i got a chance to play there it sort of felt like i had 15 years to prepare for it, so i was nervous but i

was also very excited. i played the french open champion and i beat him 7—5 in the fifth set. i always said if i could play my whole career on one court it would be the centre court at wimbledon, the most special court in tennis. if you have the chance to play there you might as well enjoy it. what about the other players? do they have a similar sense? i think so. if you spoke to the top 100 men and women and said, if there's one tournament you would most like to win, they would say wimbledon. and that goes back to the history and tradition, and the past great champions we've had. and hopefully how the event is always improving and trying to give them a good time. you mention always trying to improve. there have been issues like money,

winners money, men and women, do you think tennis gets it? i hope tennis gets it. that's a broad statement, but in terms of the equality and equal prize—money, that has been in place for quite some time. at least the last ten years. if you look at the prize—money, the winner this year will get £2.35 million. for losing in the first round you get £39,000, so they are not doing badly. and from the club's perspective, and remember this is a tennis club, they are still able to make these improvements and there's more to come. the roof on court one will be finished next year. and there is the indoor courts with underground parking which will be a great asset to the tournament and the club as well. and potentially across the road with the golf club. do you ever have a pang ofjealousy when you see young men with their rackets

about to play? no, i don't. the final piece of the puzzle is centre court, and you will always miss that, but the other 99%, the tournaments and training and travel, the discipline, i don't miss that in the slightest. but i love being back here at this time of year. great to talk to you. thanks forjoining us. no problem. tim henman talking to me earlier. maryam is here — in a moment she will be telling us what's hot and what's not in the business news. first a look at the headlines on afternoon live. downing street says it's come up with a new plan to try to break the deadlock in theresa may's cabinet over customs arrangements after brexit. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. water companies urge consumers to cut down on their water usage because of the hot weather — a hosepipe ban is already in place in northern ireland. here's your business

headlines on afternoon live tesco says it is planning a "strategic alliance" with french retail giant carrefour, to cut costs and offer lower prices to customers. the firms are battling growing competiton from newer rivals in the grocery market including internet giant amazon. nearly 22,000 jobs have been hit on the uk's struggling high streets this year. figures for the bbc show that shop closures and retail administrations have left more than 7,000 people out of work. a further 9,500 roles are due to go through planned shop closures, while 5,100 are in doubt at poundworld, which is in administration. it could take two weeks before supplies of carbon dioxide return to normal, the british meat processors association has warned.

c02 is used to stun farm animals before processing and in packaging to keep meat fresh but is in short supply. a plant in billingham, county durham is due to restart on monday. maryam is here with more on how brands make the most of sponsorship deals with big events like this one. and we're talking about pimms this time. a cup of coffee earlier, but now a glass of pimms. do you know the perfect formula? i know how to drink them. pimms was established a long time ago. established in 1840 byjames pimm in his famous oyster bar in london, pimm's is arguably as quintisenttially british

as wimbledon and is one of the official partners. so how important are big events like this to brands like pimms? joining us now is elly martin, pimm's senior brand managerfor europe. how important our events like these? —— are. how important our events like these? -- are. wimbledon is a key part of our season with ten one and we are very proud to be an official partner with them —— with pimms. 0ne very proud to be an official partner with them —— with pimms. one of the great traditions is having a pimms while you watch the tennis, and we do sell a year—round but it is at the front of people's minds in summer especially with the start of wimbledon. pimms is not a drink you would satiate with players. —— the satiate. but it is an official

partner. how does that work? —— associate. it is all about the spectators and the amazing tournament itself, watching it with your friends, if you look at our social media, you see people watching with a glass of pimms and we think this is an important part of wimbledon. tell me, what makes a perfect pimms? what fruit? the simplest way to remember it, one pa rt simplest way to remember it, one part pimms, three parts lemonade, you can't go to wrong. i suggest putting in lots of ice, chopping up strawberries and cucumber and orange and always garnish with a sprig of mint. that sounds like a lot of things to make the perfect ten one.

—— pimms. things to make the perfect ten one. -- pimms. it still sounds -- it still tastes pretty good however you do it. some people have mistaken it for a beer. some people will say it isjust the drink for a beer. some people will say it is just the drink they have around summer but actually it is gin —based with caramelised oranges. with lots of herbs and botanicals which gives it the orange warm looking colour, and the distinctive factor is having lots of ice and fruit and also a stripey store so people can recognise that it is pimms. sustainable, as well. thanks for joining us. it looks like you need an ice—cold glass of pimms. you look

quite hot. not that i'm jealous... because i love the tennis.” quite hot. not that i'm jealous... because i love the tennis. i will ta ke because i love the tennis. i will take the you look quite hot and we will leave it there. i have never seen her speechless! the greatest names in tennis have played on centre court here at wimbledon — but what's it like to walk out of the famous centre court doors and one to the grass? earlier i went to take a look. 0nly only members of this club get to see what i'm about to show you and this room houses the men's singles champions day v, and on the right the rose water dish, the ladies single champion will holder, that gives you a sense of the importance —— will hold back. and i quote from kipling. if you can meet success and

defeat the same. we have all the names here, going back to 1877, and the ladies list on the right, serena williams dominating that in the later years. this last bit of the walk and if you're not frightened by now, you have got stronger nerves than most. i push this button and then you are faced with this. 0h than most. i push this button and then you are faced with this. oh my. the players will have someone to open the doorfor them, the players will have someone to open the door for them, but then you get the sense especially on the day, crowds cheering, the roof may be open or closed, but you get a sense of the enormity. the last moment when you gather your thoughts before you are met by a wall of sound, the most famous court in the world. as you come here, you will have to play in the final of the wimbledon

championships and it doesn't get any tougher than that. if there is one man who knows about wimbledon, it is this man, the tennis commentator barry davies. centre court, what memories does this have for you? you have been here a long time. a long time. i remember centre court when the idea was as a youth that one should come through the front gates having paid to come in that far and then you ran to come in that far and then you ran to the centre court to get your place standing at the front of the centre court. you needed to have somebody with you otherwise it would be difficult to last all day, you would take turns to answer the call of nature. it is a long time ago.

frank sedgwick is my favourite player as a kid, the australian. this is going back to the late 40s and early 50s. many people have seen this on television for many decades. the likes of dan maskell, these commentators, they are part of this. yes, he was the voice of tennis and a very good player in his time and a coach and so on. i still try to do the scoring as he did, the old—fashioned way. the scoring as he did, the old —fashioned way. the the scoring as he did, the old—fashioned way. the umpire who set up this morning said can i have a few set up this morning said can i have afew umpires set up this morning said can i have a few umpires sheets, but they are all on the machines and i hadn't really thought about that. i improvised with that. you never

heard this kind of cheering in the old days? yes, there was no henman hill. dan used to be able to keep score as he was commentating but he would not just put 15—0 score as he was commentating but he would notjust put 15—0 out there, he would say what kind of shot it was. amazing achievement. and phrases like, oh, i say, was. amazing achievement. and phrases like, oh, isay, it was. amazing achievement. and phrases like, oh, i say, it became pa rt phrases like, oh, i say, it became part of the language. yes, and semifinals. —— so many finals. part of the language. yes, and semifinals. -- so many finals. it has a traditional feel but this place is changing very fast. has a traditional feel but this place is changing very fastm has a traditional feel but this place is changing very fast. it is an elegant setup. it has been amazing, the way they have rebuilt and they will rebuild again with the number one court, putting the roof on, and they have made improvements already which i haven't seen. they had to do that because it was so popular. you couldn't move around.

what was the statement, you either have or haven't got style, and if you have it sticks out a mile. the other thing people forget, this is a private club. it's a great pleasure to meet you. good luck. nice to see you, barry davies. we are all putting up with the extreme heat, which is wonderful news. how many more days? unbelievably we may see this heat lasting for the whole of the tournament, we may also get away with a dry tournament and that will make it one of only eight in total where it has been dry throughout since the records began on this site in 1922. that would be exceptional but it looks like we will be hard pressed to see any

serious rain in the next two weeks. the wimbledon forecast for the rest of the day, sunshine beating down into the evening. the temperatures will taper off but still a glorious evening to come and this week the dry weather will continue and the sunshine as well. the only variation in our temperature will be geographical, the high—pressure, thatis geographical, the high—pressure, that is very settled, and there's a bit more cloud around the sea coast, and also a breeze from the north sea. eastern scotland, 16—17 along the coast. and a real pool of heat in the south—west of england reaching highs of 30, 31. 24, 25, in northern ireland. this evening it stays fine and the lows come down to about 12—14 but tomorrow the sunshine is out and the temperatures

will go shooting up, and the high—pressure keeps things very calm. slim chance of a thunderstorm in the south west, maybe dorset and hampshire, and the odd one to the rest of the day today, as well, but the rain is scant in the next few days, and if anything that is likely to be welcomed if we get some. tuesday, highs in the high 20s. a bit cooler around the coasts. even into midway, very little change in our forecast —— midweek. into midway, very little change in ourforecast —— midweek. the into midway, very little change in our forecast —— midweek. the odd shower in central and southern england but the skies are start to —— set to remain pretty perfectly blue. even as we go through the rest of the week and into next week, the high—pressure is very much set to stay with us, it wriggles about, changing its orientation, that might

make things a bit more comfortable, but any make things a bit more comfortable, butany rain make things a bit more comfortable, but any rain will be very hard to come by. hello, you're watching afternoon live. today at 2... —— today at 4... 100 firefighters are now tackling what they say is an ‘apocalyptic‘ moorland blaze in lancashire. trying to break the brexit deadlock. downing street says it's come up with a new model for handling customs when the uk leaves the eu. limit your water use orface a hosepipe ban. the warning to households in north—west england. coming up on afternoon live, all the sport with holly. write your live in wimbledon this

afternoon, we'll have all the latest with roger federer vying for his ninth wimbledon title. he's already through to the second round. we've have had the first shock of the drummond, slogans stevens is out. we'll have the latest from russia wrote as a goalless between brazil and mexico. thanks. 0nce once again, the sun begins to beat down, that is the story really for this tournament. we could even see some temperature or sunshine records being broken before the two weeks are through. thanks. also coming up... an exclusive interview — the duchess of kent shares her memories of wimbledon, and in particular that moment one player broke down in front of her. we are quite normal people. we do hardly people who cry. —— we do hug people who cry, it is a natural

reaction. and find out what happened when i went head to head with peter levy after an on air challenge. hello, everyone. this is afternoon live. iam i am alive from sw19, the home of the wimbledon championships. 0ur main story... —— i am live. downing street says it has come up with a new plan to try to break the cabinet deadlock over customs arrangements after brexit. with time running out to agree a deal with the eu, the latest proposals will be discussed by ministers at a crucial meeting at chequers on friday. it comes amid fresh infighting within the conservative party on the issue. here's our political correspondent tom barton. how close britain's relationship

with the european union should be is one of big questions facing those negotiating brexit. but the possible answers to that question have split the government. up to now, two options have been on the table. one, a close customs partnership after brexit. the other, a looser arrangement that would rely on technology to minimise border checks. both though have the cabinet bitterly divided over which would be best, and now number ten is considering a renewed proposal in the hope of uniting ministers. it is not yet clear what the details of that proposal will be, but writing in the telegraph this morning, brexiteer jacob reese mogg said... government minister sir alan duncan, who backed remain, hit back

on twitter, accusing jacob rees mogg of insolence and of threatening the pm. that sentiment not shared by brexiteers. i do think it is fair to point out that the government has made very firm commitments in respect of those three issues. the single market, the customs union and the european court ofjustice. that was a contract that we did make with the electorate and i think we have to abide by that. at the end of the week the cabinet will meet at chequers to try to find a proposal they can all agree on. ministers admit it won't be an easy day. there are some difficult and important decisions to be made, not least on the customs arrangements. that is what this meeting is about at the end of the week and i'm sure at the end of that, the cabinet will get behind a solution and that is what we will seek to secure through the deal. it might prove difficult, but getting something agreed by her cabinet should be the easy part.

the prime minister's next challenge will be persuading eu leaders that the proposal is something that they too can accept. let's cross now to russia. to england's base in repino where gareth southgate is holding a press conference ahead of his side's world cup last 16 game against colombia in moscow tomorrow. we been listening to the stories, they talk about togetherness and bravery. they are no different to ours. we got that togetherness and we got to be brave as well. the other managers that i missed out on that trip but, like i say, we've got to have that togetherness, the bravery and i've seen that all throughout the squad. we just have to go in show that on the pitch. gareth, with some of the bigger

teams now more knocked out of the opposition, is this england's best chance in many years are progressing through to the final?” chance in many years are progressing through to the final? i think we have to focus on the game tomorrow. we have a very difficult opponent, a very good side who we respect and we've got to concentrate on football. playing in the style they have rightly way through the coolant. playing with the same analogy and make sure that we show the resilience that is required. —— play with the same mentality and play with the same mentality and play with the freedom we have played with up to this point. the thing i wa nt with up to this point. the thing i want more than anything else is for the players to continue to attack the players to continue to attack the tournament as we have and that shouldn't change now we are in the knockout phase. if anything, we should feel more free. it is a game you're really looking forward to and it's the sort of matches you want to be involved in, and that'll be fantastic evening. gareth, i guess

given the circumstances, when you took the job, the one question that might have been asked is, ok, how was he going to cope when it comes to the knockout stages of a world cup? now we are here, do you feel as a manager equipped for what you're facing tomorrow, anything that comes at you, circumstances that might arise? are you ready? yeah, i think that would have been a long way down the list of questions that will last night was appointed, frankly, but you just have to keep answering those questions right the way through your career, whether it is asa through your career, whether it is as a player or a through your career, whether it is as a player ora manager through your career, whether it is as a player or a manager so through your career, whether it is as a player or a manager so as i say, we are not preparing for this game any differently to any of the others. we think the key when you're going into knockout phase or even coming into this tournament, the serious preparation is don and we've got to keep things on track and make sure we are prepared for every other game, be as normal as possible this

week, players are in really good spirits, they found a balance that this tournament of enjoyment, relaxation, working hard, training hard, preparing properly for the games and he's done that this week as well. that should not change ahead of tomorrow's match. at this moment, we kindly ask all photographers to exit the room, please. thank you. so, cool, calm and collected under intense pressure. so too is —— so, too, as gareth southgate. england play colombia tomorrow. not being drawn on those questions about how he suspect england will do as they face colombia tomorrow. the interrupted news on brexit to go to that and of course the prime minister will be going to the house of commons at 5pm this afternoon to update the house while her meeting in brussels. the discussion she has come a brief loan they were, one brexit.

0ur chief political correspondent vicki young is at westminster for us and, vicky, mrs may will be under some pressure to reveal more details of the plan when she appears in front of mps in the commons later. yeah, theresa may will be getting protein together on friday at chequers to see where they go from you. —— getting her plan together. when you think of coming forward with two possible proposals, it appears that might be other options on the table. of course they have to be signed off by cabinet members, they will have to be signed off eventually by brussels as well so it is no easy task. it is really a case of speculation at the moment about what exactly theresa may things could bring that breakthrough she so badly needs. discuss this a little bit more. i'm joined badly needs. discuss this a little bit more. i'mjoined by badly needs. discuss this a little bit more. i'm joined by former cabinet minister nicky morgan and a treasury secretary. when it comes a way forward, we felt so much about customs partnerships, where we go

from here, it seems very late in the day to be coming forward possibly with some kind of new suggestion. this is a negotiation and i think what we have seen over the last 18 months is how complex it will be to disentangle the uk from the eu after 44 years of membership. i'm not surprised there are still elements of the uk's position being debated and discussed. there are new things like the issue of the irish border, what businesses are asking for in terms of the ability to trade goods across the uk — eu border which are to be dealt with. i think it is important that the chequers meeting on friday and the white paper the uk governments will publish to come up with a position the cabinet can unite around that can then be put to the eu. do you think there is a possibility were coarsely —— we are more closely aligned with comes to regulation on goods but not on services? is that an option? certainly. we've heard evidence on the select committee about the cost

of businesses, having to fit in more paperwork as they get goods in and out, we now know more than the integrated —— more about the integrated —— more about the integrated supply chain across europe, we heard about it across recently. they bringing goods —— we heard more about airbus recently. we must not forget services, particularly financial services which is something you look at a lot, they must not be forgotten any deal but we need to wait and see, we have a week of speculation before we hear any more details. in the meantime, people like jacob rees mogg are saying the prime minister has to do deliver. people are saying here is threatening her, threatening to bring the government down. what is your message to colleagues at this time? i think the message to colleagues to try and —— who try and dictate how this works, we allowed the prime minister space to go to the prime minister space to go to the summit last week, the eu summit and to now have this meeting at chequers. it is not helpful for

other people to set down red lines of what is and isn't needed. we are going to leave the european union, thatis going to leave the european union, that is what the act we have just passed is all about. any conservatives should want to do this a nyway conservatives should want to do this anyway that safeguard our economy and protect businesses and jobs, we should allow the cabinet to make those decisions. thank you much indeed. very likely that compromise will be the word of the week as we head towards that cabinet meeting, that chequers summit and then of course the white paper. thank you much. just getting some figures from the met office. last month was the driestjune on record in the south east and central southern england had the highest temperature recorded for scotland, that was 33.2 celsius in motherwell on june 25. for scotland, that was 33.2 celsius in motherwell onjune 25. safe to say, it has been hot. we all know that. those are the figures just

backing it up. record high temperatures for scotland and for south east and central southern england. that is all good news for most people but for firefighters, it could take weeks to deal with the fla mes could take weeks to deal with the flames on more than across lancashire and greater manchester that adds to the problem. fire crews from across the country are now working around the clock tackling a blaze on winter hill near bolton. and they're still trying to keep under control fires on land near staleybridge. a grassland fire is also burning on the staffordshire moorlands. danny savage sent us this from winter hill. this is the coordination point from lancashire fire and rescue bank and you can see so many different vehicles coming back and forward with water barrels on the back, several fire with water barrels on the back, severalfire engines. their activities are being coordinated from here. the fire is art behind us, smoke coming from the easterly wind being blown westwards. this fire here is on par with the one in saddleworth last week in size, many

square miles of moorland around manchester, bolton and the general area have gone up in flames over the last eight days. day five of the fires on the moors above bolton. dozens of firefighters from across northern england are here to stop the blaze is getting any bigger. it is a difficultjob. we've got over 120 firefighters now fighting fires on the moor, we attract slightly from our operation on darkness but we are now back fighting operations and using our special is to try and fight this huge ongoing fire and bring back normality. from above, the extent of the damage can be seen. these are pictures from a bbc news droning given permission to fly. several square miles have been destroyed around winter hill. the suspicion is that this is the start of the —— deliberately. the view from above

has led to charging observations of other people starting new files. a couple of days ago, some nearby moorland had a report of a fire that was started there. the helicopter went upwards and water on it, drop water on it and i understand the helicopter pilot believes he saw people setting fire actively there and then which is quite astonishing. dealing with this potentially huge arson incident means fire engines negotiating narrow moorland roads to get to the files. the suggestion of being being started deliberately infuriates the mire of greater manchester. i think itjust beggars belief, doesn't it, to hear that people may have been coming on to this land over the weekend, adding to the burden of the emergency services and basically taking risks with people's land, property — it is just an unbelievable state of affairs. helicopters were once again deployed today. under a fierce sun and blue skies, the deluge needed to put these fires out is nowhere in sight.

up up on the moors as well, they are now digging trenches to try and act like firebreaks to stop the fire from spreading. there are many days of work left here on these moors yet. that was danny savage. you're watching abdomen live, these early headlines... downing street says it's come up with a new plan to try to break the deadlock in theresa may's cabinet over customs arrangements after brexit. firefighters say it could take them weeks to deal with the flames on moorland across lancashire and greater manchester. water companies urge consumers to cut down on their water usage because of the hot weather — a hosepipe ban is already in place in northern ireland. coming up in sport, we are alive we re coming up in sport, we are alive were roger federer‘s ninth consecutive wimbledon title is often

a start. he lostjust eight games as he won in straight sets. , he lostjust eight games beating serbia's dusan lajovic in straight sets. but there's a shock for the number four seed sloane stephens in the women's draw. she's beaten by world number 55 donna vekic. and world cup favourites brazil are 1—0 up against mexico in the last 16 of the world cup. neymar the scorer with 50 minutes on the clock. we'll have all the latest on that and wimbledon coming up at 4:30pm. as you just saw, there was a bit of a breeze hitting us now. as the hot weather continues across much of the uk — consumers in the north west of england have been warned to use water sparingly to try and avoid a hose pipe ban. in northern ireland, the first ban in 23 years is in place, after days with very little rain. northern ireland water says it cannot treat water quickly enough to satisfy demand. earlier, i spoke to rae stewart, director of water uk. it is the summer, you always get an

increased demand for water any summerand increased demand for water any summer and hotter countries prepare for that and build on contingency as well. there was enough water to go around, i should stress that. the issueis around, i should stress that. the issue is more about the pressure on water. the water companies in some areas are putting up to half a billion more litres of water into the system every day to meet the demand but that is coming out of the system almost immediately, people are using that because of the seat and that causes, in some places, a bit ofan and that causes, in some places, a bit of an issue with the pressure thatis bit of an issue with the pressure that is coming out of the caps. we arejust that is coming out of the caps. we are just showing pictures of people watering lawns, suppose that is giving you palpitations because you wa nt giving you palpitations because you want people to think about how they are using water. that is right because things like using a sprinkler on the lawn that can use up sprinkler on the lawn that can use up to 1000 litres of drinking water ona up to 1000 litres of drinking water on a worn over the course of about one hour. that is enough water for an entire family of four for a whole day. there are things such as

cutting down on sprinkling, don't use a hose to clean your car, turn of the cat when you're brushing your teeth. all of these things will help you save litres of water. —— turn off the tap. you're not telling people to change the lifestyle, just have a think about the way you're using water. then they can avoid potential pressure issues right across the country. forgive me for being cynical. is this because, in a few days, you will have to start introducing some sort of ban and you can say, you listen to other a few days ago? there is a ban in place at the moment in northern ireland, the first one for 23 years we're hearing, we're not looking at that across the rest of the country at the moment about the cos i was speaking to this morning were saying the situation in terms of a laid—back availability of water in places are still relatively healthy. we had an awful lot of rain back in the spring and at the time of year

when all of the water sources and get replenished. that is the water we are using now, there are plenty to go that actors plenty to go round. we just need to get people to think more carefully about how they are using it so we don't have a issue about pressure. it's just not coming out of the taps as fast as people would like it. and surely with the weather forecast as we all have, it looks like as well as here for quite some time yet. how long before you all start worrying about that water supply? i was asking that question of my colleagues is morning, they were saying, the technical people were saying they are relatively confident about the levels of water we have got. the issue that normally comes out when you have a dry winter and a dry spring is the reservoirs, the underground reservoirs not being replenished but we are in a relatively healthy state when it comes to what levels. even if this goes on for a number of weeks stretching right into the summer,

they are confident they can supply they are confident they can supply the water people need. welcome back to wimbledon, where the first days play of the world famous tennis tournament is under way. so what are we likely to see this year? and who could go home as champion? welljoining me now is russell fuller, the bbc‘s tennis correspondent. he has been covering this for a while. we better mention andy murray because it does put a slight damper on things. they there are —— felt they are on the murray mound right now. what are the hopes, do we have any? andy murray is the one man everyone who comes into these famous grounds wants to watch or listen to. given his last year and the fact he had hip surgery injanuary, even if you —— had hip surgery injanuary, even if you “ even had hip surgery injanuary, even if you —— even if he had played here, we we re you —— even if he had played here, we were looking at someone like kyle edmonds as the new british 11, grass is not his strongest. andy murray

just beat him last week. and to johanna konta who has not had a great 12 months but she was absolutely brilliant, semifinal, only lost a serena williams but there are a group of british people headlined by those two this year who really have a chance that these being in decomposition by the second week. in terms of the final, we've solved roger federer go through fairly easily so far, serena williams... there was a feeling of deja vu about all this. there is but it is lovely because when it finally goes away, we will realise exactly what you're missing. to be able to describe two athlete of this magnitude year after year when they are preparing for their 57th birthdays, it is amazing that there is still a debate about who the greatest of all time. roger federer we re greatest of all time. roger federer were saying serena williams is the greatest of all time, she said the feeling mutual. it is very hard to

separate what they have achieved. if williams is here this fortnight, she's not have a lot of time on court after becoming a mum in september. it would be a 20th grand slam title and roger federer is chasing a ninth wimbledon title that would bring him level with martina navratilova. i want to bring people behind the scenes here, you are the voice on bbc of tennis, when you cover an event like this, how much time is spent watching the tennis? are you watching a set of monitors? how does it work? we are lucky as commentators because they are on the court describing the action. there is an outstanding production team as you know well, in television as well as radio that don't always see the glamorous side. the goose are very small. yes, and quite low on the ce ntre small. yes, and quite low on the centre court what it is an amazing piece of real estate because they are just a bit above the court and no more than ten metres from some of

the players when they are walking around at the back picking up the towel on the centre court so we do see the thick of the action but at the same time, you see people talking about matches you have not watched because on days like today when you've got 128 singles players in action across the men's and women's doors, it is impossible to watch the play one final tennis courts. and when you get at to p°p‘up courts. and when you get at to pop—up on the roof...? courts. and when you get at to pop-up on the roof. . . ? it is always a pleasure. nice to get some sun. thank you to the voice of tennis on the bbc. for years she was the royal face of wimbledon — the duchess of kent has met most of the great players and handed trophies to most of them including in 1993 a tearfuljana navotna. in an exclusive interview, the duchess has been sharing her memories with me. i think it is truly the best in the world. and so, i don't think anybody, however hard they try, can quite beat the way wimbledon's done.

and i am privileged to have seen all that. everything has to be perfect. every detail. and it shows. it is electric, yes. it is wonderful. jana navotna in herfirst wimbledon final, certainly not displaced. 0vercoming final, certainly not displaced. overcoming the odds. she was 4—1 ahead in the final but has lost. ijust remember from the far side of the net, her face crumpled. it is the natural thing, isn't it? god almighty, you have built yourself up for this. you've played wimbledon finals and you didn't make it. it must be... and in public. and she did what comes naturally — cried. nothing wrong in that.

you put your arm round her. well, that's what you do when people are crying. a lot of people at the time said, "my word, a member of the royal family!" we are quite normal people. we do hug people who cry. we don't say, "there, there, do stop crying." no. it was a natural reaction, completely. and then she did. and that must have been quite a remarkable moment, having been through what you have been through — both of you, actually. yes. particularly her. do you remember how that went? i think we laughed quite a lot. been there, done it. we became quite firm friends. the did you realise how big a part

of the cabbage of your? no. you have i won't say. we've been a while. what are the moments that really stand out for you ? what are the moments that really stand out for you? even just watching the back walking into that box is absolutely incredible. and seeing... you're so close, you don't realise how close you are until you actually get there and you dare. is amazing. moments that really stand out... that one you mentioned earlier withjana out... that one you mentioned earlier with jana navotna. just the excellent play, the honour of watching some of our best players play. john mcenroe... so many. very

kind of you to talk about it. thank you. my pleasure. the duchess of kent is still picks up a tennis racket and are described by others asa racket and are described by others as a very racket and are described by others as a very good player. time for a look at the weather... hot and sunny, isn't staying that way? well, if i didn't love and respect your already, i do now for sitting in the jacket. we are waiting at the finish to see how much you are melting but you are one cool customer unlike the rest of this year, the sweltering away all in henman hill, murray mound binary in the background with temperatures in the background with temperatures in the high 20s even as we are moving towards 5pm at the sun is just coming down in the skyjust a bit. we hit temperatures close to 30 celsius but he could see similar highs for many days of the tournament for many days ahead. a

skills chance of rain, the chance of a shower very slight and that would make it one ofjust eight tournaments since 1922 when we have escaped with completely dry weather. for our week ahead, we are not really looking at any rain in any significance elsewhere across the uk and if you been following the programme, you will see that has had some impact already in terms of hosepipe bans and that will become more of the story as they look to the coming weeks because i pressure is what is driving the weather at the moment and has no intention of moving, it will shift around a bit and that will change the wind direction and make it less humid but a lot of dry weather to come. here we are, we're left with a lot of sunshine this to come. some cloud around the eastern coast and edited around the eastern coast and edited a breeze of the north sea making it a breeze of the north sea making it a bit more bearable there are if you're not a fan of the. 16—17dc across the eastern coast of scotland. 0ne into this evening, the weather stays fine and overnight tonight, our lows will dip to summer

between 12—14dc. writing a lot of humidity to come. not particularly co mforta ble humidity to come. not particularly comfortable for when you go to sleep. starting tuesday the way we have the past few days, much missed and for the round, a bit of cloud. particularly on the eastern coast but most of that will burn back and while sunshine is the name of the game, very while sunshine is the name of the game, very hard to pick out the detail on the chart that could be the odd thunderstorm across the south—west of england, devon and hampshire on tuesday, the odd one across scotland but anywhere that these rainfall, we could call the people there are lucky at the moment because it is so scanned. averages for tuesday much like to day. the more intense heat towards the west. 0n the breeze of the north sea, high 20s, 0n the breeze of the north sea, high 205, 30-31dc 0n the breeze of the north sea, high 20s, 30—31dc possible. goes without saying, strong uv as well. wednesday, spot the difference, showers moving a bit more into southern england, still the risk of the odd isolated one across scotland

but almost wall to wall sunshine, some cloud developing here or there, droning things hazy but a lot of warmth essentially still to be found and the outlook is very similar. i pressure digging its heels in and of sunshine is what you love, this is the forecast for you. one into the end of the week, a bit more cloud around for some of us but the warmth still continues and the average even into the coming days and on into next week is for things to stay set and we could see temperatures pushing up more as we head into the weekend. this is bbc news — our latest headlines. downing street says it's developed a third model for handling customs after brexit, after two earlier ideas were rejected. it's feared the moorland fire in lancashire could burn for another five days — firefighters say the blazes are unprecedented. the hosepipe ban in northern ireland could be extended to parts of england

if the hot weather continues. an mp calls for bouncy castles in public areas to be temporarily banned following the death of a young girl thrown from an inflatable trampoline in norfolk. we now have the support with holly. —— sport. it is bad enough here. yes, the wind and the heat, i'm not sure. we do have this little breeze, so we are getting some air but it is very so we are getting some air but it is very warm so we are getting some air but it is very warm down there. imagine being on court right now. and yet roger federer, no one ever looks cooler. that is right. he is here, trying for a ninth wimbledon title. it feels like he has been part of our lives for so long and he makes it look so easy. roger federer has made

an extremely smooth start to the defence of his wimbledon title. federer tookjust 79 minutes and lostjust eight games onthe way to beating serbia's dusan lajovic in straight sets. federer — who turns 37 in august — is looking to win his ninth wimbledon title and today's performance showed why he's the hot favourite. us open champion sloane stephens became the biggest casualty so far on the opening day of the wimbledon women's singles as she lost to world number 55 donna vekic in straight sets. the fourth—seeded american, who also reached last month's french open final, looked out of sorts, losing 6—1 6—3 to the croat. and unfortunately it's bad news for britain's liam broady — who's exited at the first—round stage, losing in straight sets to

the big—serving canadian, milos raonic. he comfortably breezed through 7—5, 6—0, 6—1 on court number 1. raonic is the 13th seed and was always going to be a difficult opponent for the british number four. moving on to football and in the world cup in russia tournament favourites brazil are taking on mexico for a place in the quarter—finals. they're1—0 up thanks to this goal from neymar early in the second half. there's around ten minutes to go. it could be the case that we see brazil in the quarterfinals. chris froome's anti—doping case has been dropped by cycling's governing body, the uci. he'd been under investigation

since september, when a doping test found twice the allowed level of a legal asthma drug in his sample. froome said he never doubted he'd be cleared, as he knew he'd done nothing wrong. he begins the defence of his tour de france title on saturday. back here at wimbledon, serena williams to come on the court number one. she is back. some people felt she had never been away. she only had the baby in september, just incredible. it is amazing. the crowds flock to her. she is an icon of wimbledon and is great to see her here, despite controversy over being seeded will she finds wimbledon is a real home to her, that is what she said the

other day, so who knows, could we see another williams sister in the final? thank you, holly. see you later. six months ago during a news nationwide item in afternoon live with look north's peter levy — don't ask me how — we got into a bet over who would win a game of tennis. there was only one way to find out. a careless exchange on afternoon live injanuary has come home to roost. someone said to me in the corridor, you and simon should play a game for sport relief, but i said no, you're just not fit enough. peter, if you're game for it, so am i. 0k. for such a historic match there was only one location, the birthplace of the wimbledon championships. it all started in 1868, july 1868, six men came together and went into the centre of london and formed

the all england croquet club and that is how it started. it was a croquet club based in wimbledon. not here but at walker road. dramatic music i got up at five this morning, i travelled down from hull. and across london to tennis macro in 30 degrees. —— to wimbledon. i'm going to win this. he got up at five o'clock this morning, travelled down from hull, he's going to lose this. oh god.

oh yes. don't try that with me. yes! 0ut, that is out. it was in by a mile. it was out. get over it. this side. what do you want, perfection? laughter 0-30. i have got to get that side? 0h! 15-30. over the net. he's getting a bit cocky now. that was in. 0h! it's all right, they are not yours. 15-40. 0h!

game set and match, mccoy. 0h! i've pulled something. i was totally stitched up, it is 30 degrees, as well. i was stitched up, as well, they told me you could play. the best man didn't win. he comes all the way from the north and he whinges. i sort of enjoyed it. if you think i look bad, they have just buried peter levy. sorry, we had to show that again, apparently. we are hearing that the children from the cave in thailand who went missing have been found, or the missing children and their

coach, they are alive —— all the missing children. they had been missing children. they had been missing since the 23rd ofjune, a search that was hampered by low visibility and narrow tunnels, and most of those involved had given up hope, but we are hearing that the children have been found alive. all 13 are safe. very good breaking news at last. we can now return to tennis macro. no one knows better then tim henman what the pressure is like on the players here at wimbledon. a little earlier i caught up with tim — where else but on henman hill? henman hill, here we are. how does it feel to be sitting here with that name? i don't come here a massive amount

during the championships, and on the first day it's not as busy as it will be later. but this is a special place. it makes me reflect on how it evolved when court one was first built. i was lucky enough to play the first match in 97 and they had a big screen. that's when people were watching a lot of my matches and it was first known as henman hill and i've been hanging on to it ever since. you would think the name henman would guarantee access, but no... not for my kids. my wife brought them up here a few years ago. they got here late, and the hill was pretty busy. it is my third daughter, who you have got to watch out for. they were basically ushered away by one of the security guards because they said it was full and my wife knew that my little one was about to say, "don't you know who i am?". but she was luckily pulled away.

it's a good spot, and hopefully people enjoy watching the tennis. what is it about wimbledon that is set apart from anywhere else in the world? the cornerstones of the event are history and tradition but also the innovation. and looking at court one with the roof in progress, that will be ready in 2019... and if you'd said 20 years ago there would be a sliding roof on centre court and court one, people would say that you were mad, but that is where the club and the tournament are not scared to move with the times. so it's about getting the balance with the grass courts, white clothes and the royal box but also improving the technology and improving the event for players and spectators. i went out on centre court and i found it pretty daunting, what is your memory as a brit going out with all the expectation? what about those last minutes before you walk out? there is definitely nerves, but that is a good thing. if you are not nervous walking

onto a professional court, that would be a bad thing, because that would mean you didn't care. but i was lucky with my family, my mother took me there when i was six for the first time in 1981 and i saw bjorn borg. did you think you would end up there? i made my career decision right there. in 1996 when i got a chance to play there it sort of felt like i had had 15 years to prepare for it, so i was nervous but i was also very excited. i played the french open champion and i beat him 7—5 in the fifth set. i always said if i could play my whole career on one court it would be the centre court at wimbledon, the most special court in tennis. if you have the chance to play there you might as well enjoy it. what about the other players?

do they have a similar sense? i think so. if you spoke to the top 100 men and women and said, if there's one tournament you would most like to win, they would say wimbledon. and that goes back to the history and tradition, and the past great champions we've had. and hopefully how the event is always improving and trying to give them a good time. you mention always trying to improve. there have been issues like money, winners money, men and women, do you think tennis gets it? i hope tennis gets it. that's a broad statement, but in terms of the equality and equal prize—money, that has been in place for quite some time.

we're going back to the house of commons. the solutions we need to control migration, and alongside our economic development and germanic terrace but we have been stepping up our communications effort so more migrants understand the dangers of the journeys they may undertake and the people who might exploit them, and there will be more work to distinguish between genuine refugees and illegal economic migrants and this includes exploring the concept of regional disembark asian platforms and it was agreed at the council these could be established on a voluntary basis —— disembark ation. there is clearly more work that needs to be done to

establish whether such proposals are viable but we need to be competitive again and you solutions given the gravity of this challenge, —— new solutions given the gravity of this challenge. last week i agreed with the prime minister agrees that we would work towards a new action plan of uk support for greece and european efforts including a further borderforce european efforts including a further border force patrol vessel to work with the greek coastguard. the uk now has more enforcement officers in 17 eu and african countries as part of our organised immigration crime task force and uk and french officers are working together to build links between counter trafficking agencies in nigeria and niger undone thing we should replicate —— and i'm keen we should protect locate this model with other states. we will continue playing our pa rt states. we will continue playing our part in working together with the eu to meet it and after we have left

and for that is in our national interests and in the interests of europe as a whole. the same is true for security and defence which is why abbas i made the case by new security partnership between the uk and the diouf after we left —— which is why at the council i made the case. we are we must work together to adapt our current defences to the new normal and take responsibility for protecting international norms and institutions and in this context i thank our partners for their solidarity in the wake of the appalling nerve agent attack in salisbury. the unprecedented coordinated expulsion of undeclared russian intelligence officers demonstrated our unity in response to this kind of this regard for global norms and rules which poses a threat to everyone, and at the march council we agreed to do more to strengthen our resilience against

these threats and since then the uk has led work with our european partners to propose a package of measures to step up our strategic medications against online disinformation, strengthen our capabilities against cyber threats and reduce the threat from hostile intelligence activities. this council agreed measures in all of these areas including an action plan by december which must go even further in coordinating our response to the challenge of disinformation. this effort to adapt our defences to protecting international norms should also enable us to respond robust the two events beyond europe when they threaten our security interests and this council welcomed the agreement reached by the foreign secretary in the hague last week enabling the... the council reinforced this by agreeing with emmanuel macron and myself by calling for the adoption of a new eu sanctions regime to address the use

of chemical weapons. the council also agreed to roll over current sections on russia in light of its failure to implement the minsk agreement in ukraine. in the context of online threats from the range of state and non—state actors emmanuel macron pushed for further action along myself to look at illegal content online, and we also looked ahead to our nato summit next week, which will be an important moment to demonstrate western unity. the nato secretary—general joined demonstrate western unity. the nato secretary—generaljoined the discussion where we agreed that europe must take greater responsibility for its own security while commenting and reinforcing the activities of nato. too few of our allies are meeting the commitment to spend 2% of gdp on defence and at this council i urge them to do so in order that together we can meet the range of targets that challenge our interests will stop for our own part we have the biggest defence budget in europe and the biggest in nato

after the us and we are investing more than £179 billion on new equipment and that means new aircraft carriers and submarines for the navy and new cutting edge of 35 aircraft for the raf and you armed vehicles for the army. we are leading throughout nato whether that is deployed forces in the mediterranean, air policing in eastern europe or our troops providing a presence in estonia. in april raf aircraft took action to degrade the syrian regime's chemical capabilities. 0ver1000 personnel are deployed in the fort against isis and we are the —— the fight against. in africa, uk troops have build and operate a hospital in south sudan supporting the un mission and they are training security forces in nigeria and our helicopters are deploying to mali in

support of the french this week. two royal navy vessels are working closely with the us, japan and others with another to follow. the first royal navy deployment to the pacific since 2013. our submarines are silently patrolling the seas, giving us a nuclear deterrent every minute of every hour as they have done for 50 years. our modernising defence programme will make sure that our capabilities remain as potent in cancelling the threats of tomorrow as they are in keeping us said today, —— countering the threats of tomorrow as they are in keeping us safe today. we are the strongest military in europe today. turning to brexit, i updated my fellow leaders on the negotiations and they welcome the further

progress that had been made on the withdrawal agreement. with the exception of the protocol relating to northern ireland we have agreement or are close to doing so, and there remains real differences on northern ireland, so on the protocol on northern ireland i want to be very clear, we have put forward proposals and will produce further proposals so that if a temporary backstop is needed there will be no hard border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland. we are committed to the avoidance of such a border and we are equally committed to the avoidance of a hard border between northern ireland and the rest of the uk. northern ireland is an integral pa rt uk. northern ireland is an integral part of our country and we will never accept mcreddie imposition of a border within our uk. —— the imposition. we must accelerate the pace of negotiations on our future relationship, and i warned leaders that i do not think this parliament will approve the withdrawal agreement in the autumn unless we

have clarity about our future trade status within it. we will publish our white paper on the future partnership with eu next week. the eu and its member states will want to consider our proposal seriously and we both need to show flexibility to build the deep relationship after we have left that is in the interests of both our peoples. the white paper will set out detailed proposals for a sustainable and close relationship between the uk and the eu and a partnership that means that the uk will leave the single market and customs union but a partnership that supports our shared prosperity and security. it will mark an important step in delivering the decision of the british people and i commend this statement to the house. jeremy corbyn. i would like to take this opportunity to thank the prime minister for advance copy of her statement. nearly 2000 words of the statement. nearly 2000 words of the

statement and all the prime minister says on brexit is, we need clarity about our future relationship. yes, we do. we have been waiting over two years we re we do. we have been waiting over two years were any clarity from this government. let me address the issue of migration. i hope the whole house shares my concern about the direction that those on the hard right seem determined to take on europe's migration and asylum policy and there was evidence only a few weeks ago when the new italian interior minister exploited the plight of 600 migrant refugees on the rescue ship aquarius to make it a callous political point, and this incident has made it clear that more than ever we need strong leadership across europe to uphold the right to asylu m across europe to uphold the right to asylum and treat all migrants with dignity and respect. it is right eu country should help migrants rescued in the mediterranean and also take

action to alleviate the burden on italy and greece and what commitments or support has the prime minister made as mike offered in that respect? we understand the plan now for the eu is to explore the idea processing centres in north africa. it can be primaries to confirm whether any knowledge eu countries have indicated they would sign up to this deal? —— can be prime minister confirm. in the face ofa prime minister confirm. in the face of a worrying surge of far right rhetoric across the eu i urge the prime minister to stand up for humanitarian values and make sure that britain is on the right side of this debate, ready to stand up to those who tried to use the plight and suffering of tens of thousands of people to incite division and hate anywhere across this continent. 0n the issue of security and challenging disinformation i look forward to the december action plan

and to debating the nato summit next week. when it comes to brexit this government has mishandled these negotiations every step of the way, anothersummit negotiations every step of the way, another summit has gone and another opportunity missed. the division and infighting in the cabinet is having a debilitating effect on this country. having a debilitating effect on this country, and threatensjobs effect on this country, and threatens jobs and communities effect on this country, and threatensjobs and communities in every part of the uk. i don't envy the prime minister as she prepares for her checkers sleepover. she has many loud and competing voices in her cabinet many loud and competing voices in hercabinet —— many loud and competing voices in her cabinet —— checkers. not competing to do the best this country but to the best for themselves. the prime minister's primary duty is not to manage the

latest division within her cabinet, but to negotiate a deal that will safeguard jobs and living standards for decades to come. we look forward to the much vaunted third way on customs that the prime minister hopes will unite her cabinet because the current chaos abbie hunnisett government leaves us facing crucial unanswered question —— current chaos at the government for the roll the uk trade be greater outside the customs union question —— will the uk trade. if the government believes it will come —— believes it will, can they give us evidence. the government's published impact assessments show potential new trade deals come nowhere near replacing the advantages of being in a customs

union leaving every region and every nation worse off. so what evidence does the government have two suggest that rejecting any form of a customs union with our biggest trading partner is the best way of protecting jobs here in britain? even the nhs is now having to plan for multiple scenarios because there is no clarity from government. how does the government intend to prevent a hard border in ireland if we are not in a customs union? the government says they have been working on finding flexible and imaginative solutions, so where are they? the people of northern ireland deserve honesty. what will our future relationship with our biggest trading partner looked like? the

problem is the prime minister is stuck in the middle of two warring factions but she now needs to pick a side. does she want... laughter she wanted a relationship with the eu with regulations or does she believe in the visions of those on her benches who see britain does my future as a move regulated, low investment tax haven? for the league, will potential options for britain's future immigration policy to be included in the brexit white paper? we know freedom of movement will change when we leave the eu, but we are still no clearer as to what will come next. recent figures show migration of european union national is his continuing to fall with some sectors suffering shortages, including the national

health service. finally, is the prime minister still confident she can geta prime minister still confident she can get a deal? at this stage, it is not clear that the prime minister can even get a deal with her own cabinet, which is widely, after two years, the white paper is still nowhere to be seen. the divisions and open one