message will. but we are putting the message out very clearly to the prime minister, unless you bring back something that will protectjobs and the economy, there is no way, it is not just the labour the economy, there is no way, it is notjust the labour party, i cannot see parliament overall voting for it. on that basis, wouldn't it be better to move to one side and let us better to move to one side and let us get on with the negotiations? failing that, having a general election. in regard to a people's old, we have left all the options on the table. but my preference is a general election. but obviously, you cannot choose to have a general election. you know the reality of that. do you feel a second referendum, a so—called people's vote on the terms of any deal could be the way forward? the best option i think is a general election but we will keep all the options on the table. and of course what we will try to do in the interests of the country, approaches constructively, try and see whether oi’ constructively, try and see whether or not we can at least get something through parliament that protects jobs and the economy but i cannot

see that coming from theresa may. she cannot even hold her own cabinet together, let alone the conservative party or parliament. the best solution is for the conservatives to stand to one side and let labour get on with the negotiations, failing that let's have a general election and that will design it. —— decide it. we are the beginning of the conference season, liberal democrats kicking things off in brighton, what would you say about the rise of anti—semitism, saying people saying that they should swing behind the liberal democrats? what is your message to people your party who are upset by what has been going on? the m essa 9 es we upset by what has been going on? the messages we had the largest political party in western europe, the parliamentary labour party wants to get on with the job, which they are doing, effectively opposing this government and preparing for the next election. there is a few individual mps, of course, who are disgruntled at the moment. we say there is an open door,, cs, identify

there is an open door,, cs, identify theissue there is an open door,, cs, identify the issue and we can resolve those issues. but actually, now, the labour party now occupies the centre common—sense ground of politics with radical solutions to the crisis they came from the financial crash, we are still having austerity imposed on us asa are still having austerity imposed on us as a result. liberal democrats, i think need to get real and the only chance they have of influencing the political agenda in the future actually is probably as individual members joining the labour party. thank you very much for joining labour party. thank you very much forjoining us. that's the shadow chancellor there, john mcdonnell in the city of london. next, a special report by inside out into the disruption experienced by train passengers in the north of england. this is for northern, crossing the border, bringing us mismanaged timetable trauma. delays for the rich, just as bad for the poor, displayed on chaotic led boards. the hordes of commuters, they slowly grow older, still waiting, they're late,

stood shoulder to shoulder. poor service, it tests our passengers' brains cos they know they'll be rammed inside two tiny trains. and as they step forward to make their approaches, a loud tinny tannoy blares out a new notice. this train is now cancelled, a robot voice mithers. today's problem due to a shortage of drivers. but new rolling stock's coming, our wait‘s nearly ended. we're told they'll be worth it. can our railway be mended? good evening and welcome to a special edition of inside out, coming live from the national railway museum in york. this japanese bullet train is designed to travel at more than 200 miles an hour. but passengers here in the northern england complain that their speeds are more snail‘s pace than bullet. for the first time in the history of inside out, our programmes

across the north of england have come together to ask if we're getting a raw deal when it comes to investment in the railways. passengers across the north have had a miserable summer of travel disruption. i have had two occasions where the person stood next to me has passed out. once at urmston train station, a little old ladyjust slumped down the back of my legs. on the east coast mainline, virgin became the third private operator to face financial meltdown. which franchise will be next? you have not only got what's now just generally referred to by the public as northern fail because the services aren't being delivered, but you then also have problems on the trans—pennine route, too. but are our trains really as bad as we think?

we have taken to planes, trains, and automobiles to find out. i thought this was going to be the easy trip! £93. better get on the road or we're never going to win this! we're joined this evening by the northern powerhouse ministerjake berry, lindsey howley representing passengers, and also, we hope to have in our studios in salford, the mayor of greater manchester, andy burnham. in may, a new rail timetable was introduced and it caused chaos. passengers who use northern rail have been the worst affected. according to figures produced by the northern powerhouse partnership, the problems on northern rail alone cost our region £38 million. at the height of these timetabling issues, over 15% of the company's cross pennine trains were very late or were cancelled. we've been out with passengers to find out how bad things have been. we are sorry that the 17:54...

these trains are a joke. they're always packed out. we are travelling on a third world train service. rattling. you can hear the rattling now. overcrowding, heat... the whole experience is just grim. whatever your destination, travelling round the north this summer has been anything but funny. the service is rubbish. tannoy: we are sorry that the 1754... leeds railway station, where it's every man and woman for themselves. ..delayed by approximately 25 minutes. so if it is a three carriage, we'll need to hot step it up the platform when we see the train come around the corner in a minute. gemma is waiting for the trans—pennine train, which runs from middlesbrough to manchester airport. tonight, it's late. and little. yes, it's a three carriage.

told you. so we'll now have to run up this end to try and get on. sorry. that's the usual, standing on people, getting bashed by their luggage. we do apologise... there you go. this is normal. people behind you can't physically get on the train. so... it really is not a good end to the day at all. trans—pennine has promised more carriages later this year but they don't seem to be on track with that right now. in fact, trans—pennine took the dubious award for passengers being the most squeezed last autumn, with two of their trains recorded carrying double the capacity. when a new timetable came into force in may, northern rail cancelled more than 160 services. the line from oxenholme to windermere closed completely for a month. commuters like dan were hoping

a new timetable would signal a new beginning. dan travels on a northern service from urmston to manchester. i have had two occasions where the person stood next to me has passed out. once at urmston train station, a little old ladyjust slumped down the back of my legs. i was fortunate enough to live in belgium for a year, and the train service over there is fantastic. i'd take that. you know, i don't understand why they can do it and we can't. looking down the road, we've got a car that'sjust pulled up on the left, his door's going to open and then he's going to be getting out. plenty of room as we go past. for one man, the summer of disruption was the final straw. the trains have got so bad recently, i've had to learn how to drive. stephen commutes on a northern train from littleborough to manchester, but he hopes not for much longer. major problems are cancellations, overfilling, having to stand against doors, being squashed against doors. people fainting, passing out

on the train and the train being even later. well, i've got to thank the people running them at the moment, it's putting business my way. people are learning to drive instead of using the trains. northern says it's also bringing in new trains. on top of the timetable chaos, passengers have also endured strikes in a dispute over the use of guards. with more industrial action planned, northern says it is working to find a solution. and if it's not staff striking... thunder cracks. it's the lightning. there was a hissing sound and then everything was cancelled or delayed. at the end ofjuly, the east coast main line was paralysed by a lightning strike at the signals in york. it caused more than 500 cancellations and cost millions of pounds. the next stop will be huddersfield. gemma has squeezed off in one piece at dewsbury. i had to climb over someone's suitcase to get out!

that's not unusual, either. someone lost their shoes. he stepped on my foot and my shoe fell off underneath the platform. so your shoe's in leeds? yeah. my shoe is in leeds. missing trains, missing shoes. after the summer of chaos, travellers across the north have a simple message. we're ignored in the north. chris grayling should come up and see how bad the problem is. do what you say you're going to do. put the trains on time and send the right number of carriages. now, the east coast line should be the jewel in the crown of britain's railways, but it has become the line that no one can handle. three rail companies have failed to see out their contracts since 2006. chris has been trying to find out why, and along the way, he's been discovering that the next generation of trains could be taking the slow... the slow lane in the north. music: thomas the tank

engine theme tune. it should be a model service, but time and again, train companies on the east coast line. have hit the buffers. last may, the transport secretary made this announcement. i will terminate virgin trains east coast contract on the 24th ofjune 2018. he stepped in because vtec, the partnership running the line, couldn't make £2 billion worth of payments to the government. it's a bit like buying a car or buying a house and being told that if your income doesn't work out, you can of course escape the obligation to repay, and say, "i don't really know what it's worth, "but it's yours, mate." to keep the trains running, the government took over. enter london north eastern railway. its trains looked the same, and so did its managing director. david horne had been

the md of failing vtec. now, he's md of shiny lner. i find it very surprising that the same managing director is in place, and also very surprised the government won't answer my questions about how much he is being paid, because he was paid a huge salary for running a failing train service for virgin and stagecoach. and so it's really business as usual. lner said his salary hasn't changed, but it wouldn't give a figure. his old company, vtec, says it was delivering money to the tax payer, more trains and jobs, and record customer satisfaction. so what of the future? it looks a bit bumpy. lner is due to get faster electro—diesel azuma trains in december. but we've been told there's an extraordinary problem with them. industry insiders say the azuma's electronics interfere

with things like points and level crossings. it only affects older equipment, which is here in the north, so from december, the new, high—tech, high speed azuma will be faster, cleaner electric in the south... and slower, dirtier diesel here in the north. i ordered those trains when i was transport secretary ten years ago. they had ten years to get these signalling issues right. that means they'll be much more expensive to operate, they'll be slower, they'll have less capacity and hundreds of millions of pounds of public money is being wasted again. this should be sorted out and it is chris grayling's responsibility. network rail and hitachi confirmed they are working on a fix to older signalling equipment north of york. the plan is still to introduce azuma in december. what's more, east coast isn't the only franchise that may be in trouble. there are big concerns

about the state of trans—pennine at the moment, and i would not bet against there being real problems there in the short term, and that would be a real double whammy for the north of england. cos you've not only got what's now just generally referred to by the public as northern fail, because the services aren't being delivered, but you then also have problems on the trans—pennine route, too. trans—pennine told us it's committed to investment, more seats and new trains in the next two years. so what's the solution? perhaps it's one of these — a fat controller. i think there should be a commissioner of transport for the north whose job is to see that the advertised service is being delivered. and to give instructions to the privatised rail companies and to network rail to see that happens. instead, it has been decided that trains on the east coast line will be run by a partnership between the government and a private company from 2020. it's already predicted that, too, will hit the buffers.

i think within two years, it will be discovered it is impossible finding a private company that would be prepared to go into something where it is not in control of all the risk, particularly where network rail has a poor track record, literally, at the moment of delivering what it has promised and delivering value for money. so, don't throw out the virgin liveryjust yet. the government has not yet ruled out giving the company that left them holding the baby another chance to have a go of one of the most troubled lines in england. we had wanted to speak to transport secretary chris grayling, he unfortunately could not make it onto the programme but i did manage to catch up with him on friday in bradford. do you feel you owe the travelling public in the north an apology? i'm sorry for the disruption we have had. it has been a huge frustration to me, because actually, this was the introduction of a major new investment that didn't work out at the start.

we're now in a position in september, the timetable has stabilised, not saying it's perfect. we will this autumn see the start of the new trains arriving. every single train in the north of england is either being replaced with a brand—new train or a completely refurbished new train. the old trains are going to the scrap yard. so i am really sorry for the disruption this summer. i am not sorry that we are doing a big investment programme in the north that is going to give people new trains and better trains. it is just a frustration that we had all the disruption. but ultimately, does the good running of the railways rest with you? does the buck stop with you? ourjob is to invest in the railways and that is why we have done all the modernisation. the ripple, manchester, preston, blackpool. —— the ripple, manchester, preston, blackpool. — — in the ripple, manchester, preston, blackpool. —— in liverpool, manchester. it is why we are upgrading the east coast main line. you have had to take the east coast back into public hands. is the privatised model one that does not work? it is not about ownership. the challenges that the railway

syste m the challenges that the railway system is bursting at the seams. it would not matter if it was one run by the government or a private company, it would still be full. it is about smarter working on new technology. i am optimistic about our goals, i don't underestimate the nature of the challenge. this summer has been a sobering experience for everyone involved. i feel deeply sorry for the passengers affected and sorry that passengers were affected but i am not sorry that we are putting money into trying and sort out the problems, the long—term problems in the north. we are joined now by the mayor greater manchester, andy burnham. he also sits on the transport for the north board. that is a bit like transport for london but with less power. according to chris grayling, everything is going to be fine? not if you speak to people in greater manchester. we have had another terrible day on the trains. people unable to get into work. we have had four months of chaos and itjust goes on and on. we need a solution

from chris grayling. he needs to work with transport for the north to find a solution and i would say that is to bring in a troubleshooter who can bang heads together and get services back on track. we cannot carry on in this position. as a passenger, is that something you would welcome? i think so, i hope so. what really needs to be done isjust the demand, northern leaders need to get together and demand that the investment in transport in the north is not only integrated but is made on a par with investment in the south. as the minister for the north, effectively, if i can call you that, but is yourjob? to bang heads together? i have good news. in a spending review period, we are spending more on improving northern transport than we are in the south of the country. and that is because of decades

of underinvestment. when we launched the northern powerhouse, we said let's put a line in the concrete, we accept there is groaning infrastructure in the north of england and we need to move beyond that and talk about the investment and make those investments, so a few are in the north ovingham, -- if —— if you live in the north of england, what does that feel like today? i would say travel anywhere in the north of england or the motorways and you will see the improvements. there is a commitment to improving systems. the figures you quoted, you are being very selective, you are not including all the money that goes into transport for london. because of a funding change, they do not appear in the figures any more. your painting a picture but you're not include what is going on in london where there is massive investment. your painting a picture but you're not include what is going on in london where there is massive investment. i don't accept that. what transport for london does is use the fair is that people pay

to then borrow more money and they also have the power for example to raise business rate levies on the businesses in london to pay for infrastructure. if you want to talk about the question of whether transport for the north should have similar powers, i think now is a great time to start but conversation. what is required is for northern leaders to volunteer to use those things to borrow money and invest across the north in a strategic way. is that something you welcome, andy burnham? more power, more money? money? i welcome the recognition that the north of england needs more power. we can never go through a summer like the one we have just had where we have been calling all summer on the government to help us sort things out and that call has gone unanswered. we don't have the money to make the investment that is needed. the

governor promised the north in northern powerhouse and it is time they delivered. we want the money and power, is what he's saying. i'm not suggesting the north pays for it on their own. but a great first step if you want to mirror the powers of transport for london is for the revenues to be invested back in northern transport and just to be clear about the disruption over this summer, i have said on repeated occasions it has been completely unacceptable, the service we have seen, on northern rail, but it is quite complicated because those new timetables were notjust introduced by the government, transport for the north satjointly with the government and i have heard government ministers, chris grayling and myself saying sorry for the disruption, what i have not heard are the representatives from transport for the north who are on that committee saying sorry and apologising for their part for their part in this disruption.

that is your chance to, andy burnham. i did not design the timetable. i am not responsible for running the railways. i am trying to sort things out but we have a situation where would this is a partnership with the government. the government did not turn up to our last meeting of transport for the north. we cannot take the decisions the north needs to get things back contract. if this had been happening in the south of england, we would never have heard the end of it and everything possible would have been thrown at it to sort it out and that is the discrepancy, isn't it? we don't get the same attention. as a journalist, somebody who does not drive a car, you are faced with the reality of what these people are talking about, these politicians are talking about? do you get any comfort from this? not really, no. not even starting a conversation about transport for the north having greater powers, it should have already had them. why has transport for london been exempt from so much of the deregulation?

why is the announcement only coming out after £35 billion has been spent on crossrail? so if one message you could give to government minister, what would it be? can we start to bring public transport in the north up to the levels of the 20th century before going... does it feel like the 21st? that is the question. it is in the 19th! it is a line in the concrete. what i would say is sorry seems to be the hardest word. we need to go right now. our timetable has come to an end. last week, we decided to test the transport system across the north of england. we set off from radio merseyside

to see who could get to radio newcastle the quickest. but who came out on top? here is how we got on? i don't even know what time the flight is. liverpool lime street, here we come. press the clutch fully. my flight leaves in less than an hour. and we are stuck in traffic afterjust one minute. £93. really?! the sign said long delays. we are never going to win this! thought this was going to be the

easy trip. but we got the airport with 13 minutes to go and i had to run the gate. my shoelaces are still undone from security. we have news our train has been diverted because of an incident on the line ahead. whether that means we will be slower faster, we don't know. 0h, oh, my word. i don't take this route very often but i hear from colleagues who do travel on the m62 a lot that it is a nightmare and i am learning first—hand that is true. made it, just. we are about to hit rush hour and just look at the traffic already. bbc newcastle. as quickly as you can. winners! but who was actually the quickest?

tell us. i got there in four hours and 31 minutes. i was not far behind, i was second. limping in at four 35. and i cannot believe this but i was last in the car. four hours and 36 minutes. it is interesting how close it all was. it is hard to draw any conclusion from it because we all had a similar experience and similarjourney time. you pay your money and you take your choice. it depends on which mode you prefer. at least i got a seat. yes! i got a seat for half of the journey but it is all about that passenger experience and do you know what? we have asked for your comments and you have not held back at all. people feel very

strongly about this. and finally... thank you very much for all of your contributions. we know these issues plague you on a daily basis. we are about to depart from this particular platform but keep your comments coming in. hello. quite stretched our weekend so far but we have seen some lovely spells of sunshine this morning across central and southern areas, but thicker cloud for the north and west and that will produce showery outbreaks of rain from time to time. nothing particularly significant

until later in the day, more on that ina until later in the day, more on that in a moment. but enjoy some sunshine, eastern scotland might cling onto some breaks along with central and southern areas, and temperatures will peak between 11! and 21, winds will strengthen by the end of the day, and it is going to push in some heavy rain through northern ireland and scotland. that will gradually drift its way south and east across the borders, nestling close to northern england and north wales by dawn tomorrow morning. it brings with it a contrast across the country, a north—south divide for the second half of the weekend. it looks like it will be added warmer in the south—east for the next few days with showery outbreaks of rain for the north. this is bbc news, i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 2pm: in the us, tropical storm florence is causing catastrophic flooding on the east coast — five are reported dead so far, as forecasters warn that storm surges remain a dangerous threat. once we get to that nine foot range,

this is an absolute life threatening scenario. the strongest typhoon so far this year has been battering the northern phillipines — with violent winds and 20 foot storm surges. thousands have been evacuated. there will be need for water and hygiene kits and kitchen essentials to make their lives more tolerable in the evacuation centre. also coming up this hour... an overhaul of divorce law. ministers set out plans for no fault—divorce, removing the need to allege blame.