this is bbc news. the headlines at 11:00: police scotland say they're examining complaints of sexual misconduct against the former first minister alex salmond. the claims are strenously denied by mr salmond. he says he's "no saint," but that he's done nothing wrong. i've made many mistakes in my life, political and personal, but i have not sexually harassed anyone, and i certainly have not been engaged in criminality. the claims prompted an internal scottish government investigation. scotland's first minister said they couldn't be ignored. it's a difficult situation, but what is important is that complaints are treated seriously, regardless of who the person complained about is. egyptian authorities say a british couple on holiday there died of natural causes, but relatives say they were "in perfect health."

strong winds and torrential rain in hawaii as hurricane lane approaches. and coming up at at 11:30, another in—depth look at the morning papers. i'll be joined by the political commentator giles kenningham and nicola bartlett, political correspondent at the daily mirror. stay with us for that. and the yorkshire chippy that has translated its menu into mandarin and cantonese after attracting a legion of visitors from china. good evening. the former first minister of scotland, alex salmond, strongly denies two claims of sexual harassment dating back to 2013. the claims, which were made in an internal scottish government investigation, have been passed to the police. mr salmond has launched legal action against the scottish government

for the way it's handled the case. his successor as leader of the snp and first minister, nicola sturgeon, said the complaints were made in january and were investigated through a process she had agreed to. here's our scotland correspondent lorna gordon. i think we won the election. he is one of the best—known figures in scottish politics. 0h, you've got your scotland shirt on! alex salmond, a former first minister, a man who led his party, the snp, twice and became the face of the nationalist movement, securing an historic referendum on independence for scotland — but who is now facing allegations of sexual misconduct in the run—up to that vote. the complaints date back to 2013, when mr salmond lived here at bute house, the official residence of a serving first minister. the allegations from two individuals have been denied by mr salmond, who described the claims as "patently ridiculous".

i've made many mistakes in my life, political and personal, but i have not sexually harassed anyone, and i certainly have not been engaged in criminality. you know, i'm no saint, i've got flaws, i understand that, but these are absurd, and i'm looking forward to the opportunity to establish that point. mr salmond said he's not been allowed to see and therefore properly challenge the evidence against him, so now, in an extraordinary move, the former first minister is taking the government he used to lead to court. nicola sturgeon, his anointed successor and for many years his closest political ally, said complaints could not be ignored or swept under the carpet. alex, into this one, please! everybody knows the length and closeness of my relationship to alex salmond, and i think people will understand how difficult this is for me and for my party. this will be extremely upsetting to members of the snp up

and down the country. it's a difficult situation, but what is important is that complaints are treated seriously, regardless of who the person complained about his. the investigation into these allegations was conducted by scotland's top civil servant, the permanent secretary leslie evans. in a statement, she says alex salmond's comments contain significant inaccuracies which, she says, will be addressed in the court proceedings he intends to bring. she said the scottish government will defend its position vigorously. they've now handed the information to the police, who said their inquiries are at an early stage. welcome to the very first episode of the alex salmond show... alex salmond lost his westminster seat at the last general election, swapping front—line politics for presenting his own tv show. well used to being in the spotlight, mr salmond has come out fighting. he'll now take centre stage

in a case which will be heard in the highest civil court in scotland. the details of the allegations against alex salmond, and the investigation‘s findings, have yet to be made public, but the nature of these complaints, against such a high—profile figure, have rocked scotland's political establishment. thomas cook has moved all 500 of its customers from a hotel in each of where a british couple died on tuesday. —— in egypt. egyptian authorities say a british couple john and susan cooper, who were on holiday there, died of natural causes. but that's being disputed by their daughter, who says they were in "perfect health" before they suddenly became very ill in their hotel room in hurghada, on the red sea. judith moritz reports. john and susan cooper are said to have started their holiday in great spirits, going to bed on monday in good health, but gravely ill the next day, when they were discovered by their daughter. i believe that their death is not

due to natural causes, and something on the evening of their death does not add up. my parents went to sleep on the monday evening fit, healthy and in good spirits, and they woke the following morning in very poor health. medical action was taken, but unfortunately nobody could do anything to save their lives. i have made accusations, and i need answers. they meant the absolute world to me. nobody could have asked for anyone better. they were the salt of the earth. the family were staying at the five—star steigenberger aqua magic hotel in the egyptian red sea resort of hurghada. today their tour operator, thomas cook, said that although the circumstances of the coopers' deaths were unclear, there'd been reports of a raised the level of illness amongst guests. the hotel disputes this. thomas cook is removing all 300 of its customers,

offering them a different hotel or a flight home. everybody‘s really worried, and obviously as anxiety raises and people start talking, they're talking to each other, and the lack of answers from thomas cook is really disappointing. we flew out on tuesday, which is the day that the poor, poor people passed away, and i must say i'm really sorry about what happened. but i think we should have been given the opportunity whether to come or not to come, and we would have not, and now we've chosen to go home, i've got two small children. absolutely dreadful, all i could think of was, like, "i just want to go home." janine traviss has just come back from the same hotel and has spent the last three weeks on antibiotics. she and her partner, lee brooke, both had terrible stomachs cramps. he went downhill more rapidly than i did and became quite unwell. by the evening time, he wasjust in the room being violently sick. stomachs cramps, nausea, dizziness, really, really unwell. and i, by this time, was sort of in quite a lot of pain. for thomas cook, this is very close to home — susan cooper worked out their burnley branch. it was closed today, mrs cooper described as a loyal and long—serving member of staff.

the company says it's helping with the authorities‘ investigations and is deeply saddened by the deaths of susan and john cooper. judith moritz, bbc news. president trump has cancelled plans for his secretary of state to visit north korea. mist and trump said progress towards the us goal of denuclearising the korean peninsula was too slow. he said: well, david willis joins us live from washington. strange mixed m essa 9 es from washington. strange mixed messages in there, trying to unpick those tweets? yes indeed. double handed, perhaps triple handed, a message from donald trump. 0n the one hand saying that he believes north korea is dragging its feet as far as denuclearisation is concerned. 0n the other hand, extending battle of branch, that warm greeting, to the north korean leader, kim jong—un, basically saying he hopes to see him soon. ——

extending that olive branch. the president making it clear as well, the recent trade spat with china has played a part in this. he believes the chinese are not being as helpful with all of this as they once were. we heard, didn't we, after the singapore summit, donald trump saying that basically the world can sleep safely in its beds tonight, because there is no longer a threat from north korea. it would seem, rachel, that was a little premature. 0ne rachel, that was a little premature. one wonders, is this trump realising he overplayed his hand? he said too much and now he needs to be a tough negotiator again? what do you think is going through his mind? let's not forget, he cancelled the singapore summit at one point, didn't he, only two reinstated later after the mood music from pyongyang became a little more mullions, as it were. ——

emollient. he has clearly state gehlot on this over the personal relationship he built up with kim jong—un. but i think it was clear to the americans there was every likelihood secretary of state mike pompeo might return empty handed a second time after this trip to north korea. they didn't want to see that. donald trump is basically saying now, let's wait and see, and also, looking to fall back, i think, on that personal relationship that he believes he has struck up with kim jong—un. believes he has struck up with kim jong-un. david willis in washington, thank you. people in hawaii are being moved away from their homes as a hurricane nears the american pacific islands. hurricane lane's already brought flash floods, power cuts and torrential rains. the latest reports suggest it's lessening in force, but it's still carrying winds of over 120 miles per hour. james cook reports from hawaii. this is what hurricane lane has done

to hawaii already. —— hurricane lane. and it is still churning towards the islands. so far it is not the ferocious wind, but the torrential rain which is the biggest problem. there are reports of catastrophic flooding, of landslides, and a water rescues. tourists among those who have been pulled to safety. attention, please leave the area! the big island in hawaii, hawaii county, has received in some cases to eat of rain already. unfortunately there is more to come, so the impacts are going to grow. hundreds of islanders have been forced to flee their homes. has this ever done this before? no, this is the first time. i've been here for 11 years and this is the first time. across the state, dozens of evacuation centres have been set up. many people heeded the dire warnings, stocking up on food and water as a state of emergency was declared. hurricane lane has now slowed to a crawl as it approaches

us, and that is a concern, because it means the heavy rain and flooding could continue their days. just another challenge for an island chain which rarely experience as storms of this ferocity. —— experiences storms. there is no safe level of alcohol consumption — that's the stark message from one of the most significant studies into alcohol use and its health effects to date. researchers looked at the drinking habits of people in 195 countries, including the uk. the findings suggest that even moderate consumption is asscociated with cancer and other diseases. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes reports. just how much alcohol is it safe to drink? it's confusing when different studies produce apparently contradictory results. now the latest research says while alcohol might protect us from heart disease, overall there is no safe level of alcohol consumption.

alcohol is linked to seven types of cancer. we know about liver disease, which has risen over decades in the uk. so those risks actually outweigh any benefits. so what the study is saying is for health overall the best thing we can do is not to drink at all, which is clearly not going to happen for most people. but if we want to give advice, that is probably what we should be giving. nhs guidelines say we should restrict our drinking to just 1a units of alcohol each week. that's around six pints of beer or seven glasses of wine. but today's report suggests many people are drinking more than that and posing a risk to their health. the study looked at global drinking habits. around the world, one in three people drink alcohol. the study showed that british women drink on average three drinks a day and ranked eighth in the world of highest drinkers. british men drink a similar amount but ranked 62nd, because drinking levels internationally are generally far higher among men. and in this st albans pub, customers were not especially alarmed by these new findings. i think everything comes with a risk, doesn't it? you have just got

to make the decision. be aware of what you are drinking and go from there. there's conflicting advice all the time, isn't there, about how many units you can drink or are supposed to drink? i think it must depend on the individual, surely. drinking alcohol is pleasurable, so it is a case of don't overdo it. it is the degree of risk that we may suffer ill—health linked to drinking that we all have to weigh up. the study shows that the risk of drinking within current guidelines is very low indeed, so it's no argument for abstention just because there is no safe level. after all, there is no safe level for driving, there is no safe level for going on holiday. there is no safe level for getting up in the morning, but it doesn't mean we should abstain from these activities. and in the end this is what the debate around alcohol consumption comes down to, the level of risk we are each willing to live with. the headlines on bbc news:

police scotland say they are examining complaints of sexual misconduct by mr salmond. he says he is the same but did nothing wrong. egyptian authorities say a british couple on holiday there died of natural causes. that relatives say they were in perfect health. and strong winds and torrential rain in hawaii as hurry can lane approaches. —— hurricane. 0n the eve of a visit by the pope to ireland, the first for nearly a0 years, the irish prime minister leo varadkar says he's glad the church isn't as prominent in the nation's daily life as it once was. the catholic church has been caught in repeated scandals over the abuse of women and children in recent years. from dublin, our religious affairs editor martin bashir reports. bishops and priests are not

usually pounding the turf at leinster rugby ground. but as ireland prepares to welcome pope francis, it's also hosting this global gathering of catholics. an altar has been built along the touchline, but that's as nothing compared to the challenge of reconstructing the church after decades of scandal. a lot of the pain and the hurt that we felt we were moving on from has resurfaced, particularly for people who were hurt by clergy in the church. and i think the holy father, it's critical that he does something to try and address that. phoenix park, another venue, has been under construction for months. the catholic church and the irish government are spending more than £27 million to host pope francis. the highlight of this weekend's visit will be here on sunday

when pope francis celebrates mass. 500,000 tickets have been issued. so will ireland feel like it did the last time the pope was in town? 1979, and popejohn paul ii was greeted by the largest gathering of irish people in history. back then almost 90% of catholics attended weekly mass. contraception, abortion and divorce were against the law. now all three are legal, and church attendance is down to a0%. marie collins‘ story may help explain why. she was abused by a hospital chaplain as a child. what has happened here basically is the church has fallen over a cliff. its moral authority is completely destroyed. we still have quite a high

percentage of catholics in ireland, and i think many of them are hanging on by theirfingernails. are you glad that the church is having less of a dominant effect? the short answer is yes. i think in the past the catholic church had too much of a dominant place in irish society. i think it still has a place in irish society, but not one that determines public policy or determines our laws. judging by trade in the exhibition hall, the catholic church is pinning its hopes on the popularity of pope francis. this is the best one. he remains the star attraction. but unless it can convince the world that it has changed, then the future of the roman catholic church in ireland will continue to be overshadowed by its past. martin bashir, bbc news, dublin. after a week in which

donald trump has had to address questions about his possible impeachment, there is a renewed focus on november's congressional elections. the party that controls congress ultimately decides if a sitting president should be impeached — and mr trump is currently protected because republicans hold the majority. democrats think attracting younger voters could be a key to success in the mid—term elections, but mr trump has his own young, and deeply devoted supporters, as chris buckler has been finding out. it's up to you, your generation. in the presidential ballroom of the president's own washington hotel is a gathering of the trump teams. crowd chants: usa, usa. hundreds of republican high school students in the capital for a banquet meal and a week of conservative politics, and many here share donald trump's view of the world. i don't think trump's a republican. i think you can make a whole party based on what trump believes. he's conservative in some areas but he's also not conservative in some areas.

you see yourself as a trump party rather than the republican party? yes, 100%. oh, that never gets old. little seems to shake the belief of the president's most devoted supporters, but donald trump junior knows his father is a divisive figure, and recent days have only widened the gap between those who love him and those who loathe him. hate and bs is not a political platform. that is all the other side has these days. but between the booing and jeering for political opponents... and the many chants against the so—called fake news media, president trump seems to have encouraged some hate himself. i think he'sjust changing everything up. hate has always been there and he's just stirring up all of politics and people don't like that he's changing things. but that means stirring up hate? he's being 100% honest, which isn't always what we get from our presidents or the news or anything, and regardless of what they do no one

is going to like a person 100%, so hate will be built no matter what. there is growing pressure for both republicans and democrats to get their voters out in november's congressional elections, and that's partly because the president has been forced to address the possibility of impeachment. it's 7:00pm in the evening and there's a line of people in order to get into this church, and it stretches right down the street, and they're here to talk notjust about gun control but also politics in america. is there anybody here that maybe you're not registered to vote... congress would vote on impeachment proceedings, making the next elections crucial, and for democrats the youth vote really could matter. i think it's really disappointing and really heartbreaking to see a united states president who just has such disregard for the youth of our country. this event in georgia was one of dozens of stops on a nationwide tour by students

from parkland in florida. they became famous in the worst circumstances, when 17 people from their school were shot dead. but despite months of campaigning president trump has avoided the gun law reforms they want. it's about human lives and saving human lives and no matter what party you're from you should support that, so we need to keep as many people together as we can and not be more divisive. but on guns, politics and president trump, america is split. would there be anybody who supports president trump here? all: no. and the last week may only have deepened this country's divides. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. the chinese president on his visit to the uk three years ago was filmed eating fish and chips with the then—prime minster, david cameron —— then—prime minster,

david cameron, in a restaurant near york. since then the chippy has won a legion of fans from the far east. so much so that the menu has had to be translated into mandarin for the coachloads of tourists from china. phil chapman takes up the story. the many visitors here, fish and chips are delicacy they need to try when visiting north—east england will stop we know the story of the present having fish and chips in 2015. after being offered by david cameron. so now they like to come and have fish and chips, like a traditionalfor and have fish and chips, like a traditional for them. and have fish and chips, like a traditionalfor them. i note thank you, and could buy, as well. can we put the fish in 25, please? roxie and her team have also produced menus in mandarin and cantonese. and her team have also produced menus in mandarin and cantoneselj like menus in mandarin and cantonese.” like the fish and chips. i think it is very delicious. i have never

eaten it in china. so i love it. chinese, we have vegetables steamed and these sorts of things, not deep—fried, so it is very different. batting is mouthwatering. a&e chicken in china. —— i think it is mouthwatering. but now i really like fish here. —— i only eat. mouthwatering. but now i really like fish here. -- i only eat. this is york resident has been building the profile in china, helping agencies visit china with his social media agency. every tool operator in china, they will definitely experienced fish and chips here. there is no equivalent in china, so this is very special to chinese tourist. —— tour. they will definitely try fish and chips,

especially in the uk. col chapman, bbc, and york. —— -- phil. and we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers, the political commentator giles kenningham and nicola bartlett, political correspondent at the daily mirror — that's coming up after the headlines at 11:30. cut your back to undergo and 45 degrees and the humidity in the peter beattie. at the moment you'll probably want to wear the heat has gone. it will probably return, but not just yet. these were temperatures on friday afternoon to bed with the average afternoon temperatures for this time of year. remember porthmadog hit 30 degrees plus. this high pressure is try to build on from the atlantic, push away most of the showers. we still have this feed of cool air coming

down from the north. a few showers on saturday. most of the heavy showers at the north sea with the heavy winds. 0ne showers at the north sea with the heavy winds. one or two showers developing through the day as the cloud bubbles up a little. a good chance of staying dry as well. a bit more sunshine and not as breezy or blustery carpet averages similar to friday. it will not last minute. things are moving quickly. we've been following us for a few days. this were the system is coming in from the atlantic and squeezing away the ridge of high pressure that has been leading to the sunshine on saturday. saturday night into sunday will not be as cold. it will be cloudy on sunday with outbreaks of rain. midlands, it is in england, you will start dry. but the rain will produce, heavy at times, particularly wet, and windy across southern parts of wales and south—west of england. a late improvement from northern ireland into west wales as well. but those temperatures are going to be

depressed. the good news is things are moving on once again. that weather system will push away overnight and we will be between weather systems on monday, a bank holiday for most, and a better day. more dry weather and sunshine around. the flat ridge, westerly air through the a few showers coming in. further south, probably dry. those judges will get a boost to a person to the low 20s as well. things go a little difficult as we head into tuesday and wednesday. we have a weather front moving in towards the north—west from the atlantic. this one is developing out towards biscay, and that is what we need to watch. this is fairly straightforward. a band of rain coming into the north—west of the uk. ahead of it, dry and sunshine and a little warmer, mid 20s perhaps. the showers could move northwards and develop into more persistent and heavy rain in the

north of england. in the atlantic all the fresh air is coming in behind it. don't take the position of the rain to literally as it may change a little. it should move away on thursday. it is getting pushed away by a developing area of high pressure. there sentence i can i stay at the moment. it should be generally dry with some sunshine and feeling warm enough in the sunshine. no heat wave my dear. looking further ahead into the outlook. high pressure a cross further ahead into the outlook. high pressure across southern parts of the uk, but thejet pressure across southern parts of the uk, but the jet stream pressure across southern parts of the uk, but thejet stream is going to push areas of low pressure and bands of rain across northern areas of the uk. more of a north— south split. jet stream moves a bit further north, actually undulating more and diving down across the central parts of the atlantic. this flow to the lazio allowing more high pressure to build in the uk, promising more dry weather and possibly more heat. hello.

this is bbc news with rachel schofield. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow morning's papers in a moment. first, the headlines. police scotland say they're examining complaints of sexual misconduct against the former first minister alex salmond. the claims are strenously denied by mr salmond. he says he's "no saint," but that he's done nothing wrong. egyptian authorities say a british couple on holiday there died