a royal baby is announced. prince harry and his wife meghan are expecting their first child. kensington palace said the duke and duchess of sussex were delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public. the baby is due next spring. the couple are in syd ney next spring. the couple are in sydney ahead of a tour of australia and use the. we will have the latest. also this lunchtime: brexit backlash at the start of a critical week. the government says the gauche asians with the eu have hit a real problem with the issue of the irish border. —— brexit negotiations with the eu. i think we can get there. whether we do this week or not, who knows? protesters told to get serious as fracking is set to get under way, seven years after it was linked to small earthquakes. and the map of patient brains to make complex operations safer. and coming up in sport later in the hour on bbc news, we'll have the latest from seville,

as england prepare for their nations good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. kensington palace has announced that the duchess of sussexis has announced that the duchess of sussex is pregnant. in a statement it said meghan was expecting her first child in spring next year and that she and prince harry were delighted to share the happy news with the public. the announcement was made shortly after the duke and duchess of sussex arrived in australia on their first royal tour asa australia on their first royal tour as a married couple. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell, reports. sydney, this morning. news of

meghan‘s pregnancy had not then been announced, so meghan's pregnancy had not then been announced , so were meghan's pregnancy had not then been announced, so were those two ring binders as a conscious effort to conceal their news for a little longer? and then there was that choice of a long coat for the wedding on friday. was she trying to hide something or was itsjust wedding on friday. was she trying to hide something or was its just a sensible choice on a windy day? whatever the truth, shortly after 8:30am this morning, kensington palace issued a short statement saying that the duke and duchess of sussex are expecting a baby due next spring. the child, which will be seven to nine to the british throne, is on its way. clearly it is the fulfilment of a wish by them both to start a family. harry of course is known to have a strong rapport with children. meghan as well. known to have a strong rapport with children. meghan as welllj known to have a strong rapport with children. meghan as well. i think they will be wonderful, very modern pa rents. they will be wonderful, very modern parents. prince harry, whenever he goes to any event, comes to life

when there are children there. maybe in another life he was a natural blue peter presenter! briefly then, for everyone, something to agree about. wonderful news. and for harry and meghan, they face a hectic 16 days on the royal tour, with a mass of baby gifts, no doubt, and the prospect of parenthood. and nick is with me now. this is a joyous moment for any couple, their first baby, but how significant will this be?m is lovely news for them. i think harry has been particularly envious, seeing his brother with three children now. i think they will be very happy. in constitutional terms, it really has no great significance at all. this child, boy or girl, will be seventh in line to the throne, and as a great—grandchild of the monarch, it will not be entitled to be called prince or princess, and a particular exception had been made in the case of william's children because he is a future monarch. the

child will be a lord or a lady, as the son or daughter of a duke, but that will be it. certainly in terms of health, we must be assured that the royal doctors assume that meghan is in very good health. she has endured this 22 hour flight to sydney. they will have 16 days of quite arduous royal tour ahead. i am sure they are confident that everything is under control and in good shape. thank you very much. brexit negotiations have stalled again over the issue of the irish border, only two days before an eu summit billed by brussels at the moment of truth. the eu is understood to want further reassu ra nces to understood to want further reassurances to prevent the return of the so—called hard boarder in northern ireland, involving physical checks. hopes of a breakthrough were raised when the home secretary made an unscheduled trip to brussels yesterday but talks faltered over the back—up plan known as the backstop the back—up plan known as the ba cksto p to the back—up plan known as the backstop to avoid the reinstatement of the irish border the future trade deal is not agreed. half full,

theresa may knows she needs fuel for the coming days. to find some way through the brexit deadlock. negotiations have ground to a halt. ministers know that the very prospect of a deal has now been thrown into doubt. this is obviously a difficult period and there was a lwa ys a difficult period and there was always going to be a moment like this but we should remember that a huge amount of progress has been made. there are one or two very difficult outstanding issues. but i think we can get there. whether we do this week or not, who knows? but everybody is trying incredibly hard. a whirlwind trip to brussels for the brexit secretary dominic raab yesterday. he was on his way back after just yesterday. he was on his way back afterjust an yesterday. he was on his way back after just an hour, yesterday. he was on his way back afterjust an hour, finding no common ground with the eu over a back—up plan for the irish border. nobody wants to ever trigger the backstop, but it needs to be there as an insurance mechanism to calm nerves that we are not going to see a physical border infrastructure

re—emerging on the island of ireland. those agreements have been made in writing by the british government and what we are saying is we wa nt government and what we are saying is we want no more and no less than the follow—through of those commitments. what to do if no future trade deal emerges that can keep checks away from this border has long been a sticking point. northern ireland's dup, the party propping up theresa may's government, are clear they will not tolerate eu proposals that exclude other parts of the uk. this is all designed because the eu wa nted is all designed because the eu wanted to find a way of continuing to tie the united kingdom into its single market and customs arrangements, in other words to thwart brexit. those concerns are felt across the conservatives back benches and at the highest levels of government as well. theresa may's brexit strategy hangs in the balance, as popular here in westminster as it is in brussels. there is talk of cabinet walk—outs.

are you going to resign over the brexit plan? everybody is getting on with theirjobs and we are supporting the prime minister to get the best deal for the country. opposition parties are calling for a change of course. the future political declaration is the next bit where we will fall out for the eu for the same reason that we a lwa ys eu for the same reason that we always fall out and that is because the government is deeply divided. this is politics around the cabinet table holding the country back. this is politics around the cabinet table holding the country backm the uk is determined to leave the eu, it should, in my view, remain in a customs union and single market. in my view, that is the least damaging alternative option for the uk as damaging alternative option for the ukasa damaging alternative option for the uk as a whole as well as the least damaging option for scotland. there are obstacles in all directions. she knows navigating this critical week under pressure from all sides will not be easy. our assistant political editor norman smith is in westminster for us. editor norman smith is in westminsterfor us. norman, editor norman smith is in westminster for us. norman, is editor norman smith is in westminsterfor us. norman, is there a real problem here or is that britain should going on at this stage? simon, we will hear more from

the prime minister in the commons this afternoon and i hesitate to say that we are reaching le crunch in brexit negotiations because we have seems to move from crunch point to crunch point and each time the government manages to scramble through. we are now facing what appears to be a fundamental rift between the two sides over this critical issue of what to do about northern ireland and the border with ireland, in the event there is no trade deal agreed. the eu now seem to wa nt trade deal agreed. the eu now seem to want to go back to their plan a, which was, let's remember, to say 0k, which was, let's remember, to say ok, we will not have a border between northern ireland and ireland, we will simply shifted into the irish sea, so it becomes a border between northern ireland and the rest of the uk. the problem with thatisitis the rest of the uk. the problem with that is it is a complete political nonsta rter that is it is a complete political nonstarter in westminster. theresa may would be politically eaten alive by the dup and probably her own party were she to go down that route

and she herself has said that no british prime minister could agree to that. where does it leave us? they think it means the prospect of any sort of agreement at this week's summit has just gone down the plughole. more importantly, unless some kind of breakthrough can be found, the chances of a no dealjust go found, the chances of a no dealjust 9° up found, the chances of a no dealjust go up and up and up. norman, thank you very much. chris morris from the bbc‘s reality check to have been looking at why the issue of the irish border has proved so difficult to solve. what kind of border checks are there at the moment? a lot of brexit is about borders, and both sides have agreed to make ireland a special case. there are lots of checks that the eu's external borders and customs are something we have heard about a lot this morning, with the idea of the customs union being for the whole of uk orjust northern ireland. even if you are in a free trade agreement like canada is with eu, there may not be tariffs but there are customs infrastructure. and vat checks, making sure people have paid the right amount of money. this is the

conflict between good that we haven't got into. then there are checks to do with the single market. some of them are on regulatory standards. if you bring in a consignment of chemicals, the only way you can find out if it is the right chemical is to test it. you can do this tests away from borders and people are talking about doing it in the marketplace at factories. but potentially between great britain and northern ireland there may need to be checks that kind. the most difficult one in terms of the single market is checks on food, pla nts single market is checks on food, plants and animals, sanitary tests. under eu law, they have got to take place at designated inspection posts. that would mean potentially if northern ireland was following the rules of the single market, that all food and animals going from great britain to northern ireland would have to be checked. why are we doing all this? because of the map. you don't want to have a land border in northern ireland, because it is not something which anyone wants to

see, checks there. but we have highlighted the port of larne for a reason because there are already some checks there. if you export live animals from britain to northern ireland, there are checks at places like larne. there is a principle established that there can be some checks, it is just that what is being proposed in this arrangement, which is now the subject of a lot of controversy, is that there will be far more checks than there have been at the moment. thank you. the energy firm cuadrilla is hoping to begin tracking fish shale gas later today. —— fracking for shale gas. this will be the first and the process has been tried since it was linked to two small earthquakes near blackpool seven yea rs earthquakes near blackpool seven years ago. richard lister reports. this drilling rig in rural lancashire is now the front line for fracking in the uk. after years of debate, delays and demonstrations, worked at the cuadrilla plant has now restarted. but the protesters

haven't stopped. they blocked the road next to the site this morning. the atmosphere was subdued. those here believe that fracking is a danger to those living nearby, and the wider environment. danger to those living nearby, and the wider environmentlj danger to those living nearby, and the wider environment. i feel quite angry that they are forcing this is. we don't want it. there is no social license. we just want them to go away. we really don't need it. it is harmful to the climate, harmful to health and harmful to the land. harmful to the climate, harmful to health and harmful to the landm is just pointless. health and harmful to the landm isjust pointless. fracking involves drilling first vertically and then horizontally before pumping water, sand and chemicals at high pressure into shale rock, which has trapped inside it. when the rock fractures, the gas is released and brought to the gas is released and brought to the surface. it's a technique perfected in the united states and it now accounts for two thirds of us gas production. energy prices have fallen as a result, but is more reliance on fossil fuels in anyone's

long—term interest? reliance on fossil fuels in anyone's long-term interest? the growth in renewa bles long-term interest? the growth in renewables has been welcomed but it has been confined to the electricity sector and we still use pretty much gas for all of our heating. if people want to heat their homes, and a lot of people cook their food with gas, we are going to need it for many decades to come. cuadrilla says fracking could also create thousands ofjobs, notjust here but insights around the country. and it insists the environmental risk, particularly from earthquakes, is extremely small. police cut two protesters free from the tyres they had cemented themselves into outside the site today. this battle over fracking is not over. richard lister, bbc news. danny savage is at the site in lancashire for as now. protests were always going to be expected, as we have been hearing. they are and they continue this lunchtime. you can see over my shoulder at the moment this white van which is parked across the

entrance to the cuadrilla site here. it was put in place early this morning by protesters and two of them have strapped themselves to the van at the moment. one is on a horizontal board on the top of two ladders, and you can see the scaffolding off to the right, at the side of the van, which is what the police have brought in. they will soon be up there and they have already looked up already to get that man down and get the entrance cleared. it will not stop what is happening behind the fences at the cuadrilla site between preston and blackpool. fracking is due to start again today after a break of seven years. it has not started yet. they are calibrating machinery and doing preparations, we understand. it will start again today and we will probably hear it when it does. meanwhile the protesting continues. they believe the wider point is that fracking is not good for the environment. the company says it is absolutely safe and it is a potential for energy in yea rs and it is a potential for energy in years ahead. danny savage, thank you very much. the resumption of fracking comes as

ministers launch green tb week, an initiative to encourage companies to turn away from coal, oil and gas to protect the climate. how does that square with today's announcement? roger harrabin reports. coal burning is climate enemy number one, so britain's become a global leader in tackling climate change, by phasing out coal for power generation. now, scientists say a huge expansion in wind and solar power is needed to stabilise the climate. we must stop burning coal, gas and oil, their report said last week. the climate minister has taken notice. i am going to be asking today, formally, our committee on climate change for advice on how we get to the net zero target by 2050, and a part of that advice will be to help me understand the costs that might be associated with it, obviously it is going to be a range, because then i can start to think about what does government need to do, what does the private sector need to do and how could we collaborate round the world to try and drop the cost of some of the most important technologies. so, will the uk really

reduce emissions to zero as scientists want? one low cost option is planting trees to soak up the co2 we produce, but the government is missing its target for new woodlands. sales of electric cars are lagging too, and ministers made that worse by cutting subsidies only last week. what's more, the government is expanding heathrow. it's promoting fracking as we heard, it's freezing fuel duty, it's scrapped solar subsidies and it's cancelled zero carbon homes. campaigners wonder if ministers are really serious about ending the use of fossil fuels. president trump has said he accepts that the global climate is changing, but he doesn't know if it is man made. in an interview on american television, he went on to say that scientists' views couldn't be relied upon because they had

a political agenda. think something's happening, something is changing and it will change back again, i don't think it a hoax, ithink change back again, i don't think it a hoax, i think there is probably a difference but i don't know it is man—made. i will say this, i don't wa nt to man—made. i will say this, i don't want to give trillions and trillions of dollar, i don't want to lose millions and millions ofjobs, i don't want to be put at a disadvantage. prince harry and his wife meghan announce they are expecting their first child in the spring. and still to come... an appeal for new investment as the british project to break the land speed record hits the buffers. later. one of the biggest challenges of brain surgery is working out how much of a tumour can be removed from a patient without damaging their speech,

movement or other brain functions. now, scientists at the university of cambridge are developing a ground breaking device that will map a patient‘s brain and act like a sat nav for surgeons, showing them what each part of the brain does. our science correspondent, richard westcott, has this report on the new technology and a warning: it includes pictures of the surgery taking place. a few months ago, totally out the blue, ben rush had a seizure in bed. i'm going to dim the lights for this one now. they found a large tumour — clearly visible on this scan. incredibly, it may have been growing for a decade without him knowing and he's only 29. a few months later, surgeon thomas santarius is removing it. while ben is still awake. ok, take a break a little bit. we were even allowed to talk to him. hi richard. i know these are very strange circumstances. it is richard, i've got it right.

i'm still working. you have been doing amazingly well and you've still kept your sense of humour. yeah, yeah. i try to. using an electric current, thomas can switch sections of the brain off. listen to this. can you count for me again? one, two, three, four. the fact that ben stops counting means it's a part affecting speech, so thomas won't remove it. we'll start now. but it's not the awake part that makes this operation special. a1, b2, c3. yaara erez isn't a doctor, she's a neuroscientist. this test is hard enough when you're not in the middle of surgery, you try doing it. by forcing ben's brain to multitask, scientists are creating a much more detailed map of its functions for a new device that will eventually help surgeons decide what to take out and what to leave behind. that is interesting.

away from theatre, thomas tries a prototype of the device. it will eventually be used during surgery, helping them navigate what each part of the brain does, so they can fit your treatment to your work. in one patient has a physicaljob and what they mostly want is to be able to move and work, we can tailor the test for that. if another patient has mostly office work and they plan big project, then we can tailor the test and treatment for that. a few weeks on, and ben's doing really well. i think you only get one life, so you have to make the most of what you you have, don't you, and i think if you sit around and worry about something like this, then you're only taking away from the joy that you could potentially be having. he and wife lucy know the tumour will eventually return, but by then the new device could be transforming brain surgery, for young patients who have incurable cancer but still have lots of life left to live. richard westcott bbc news cambridge. you can see more on that

story on inside out east, tonight at 7.30 on bbc one or catch up on the iplayer. a report into bullying and harassment of house of commons staff has said a "seismic shift" is needed to solve problems which have been "tolerated and concealed" by parliamentary authorities. dame laura cox's report said a new complaints and grievance procedure wouldn't come close to addressing the issue, which she described as "disturbing". our political correspondent, jonathan blake, is in westminster. this is a pretty hard hitting report? it is, it pulls no punches when talking about the problem of bullying and harassment in the house of commons and it describes it as a reminder of bad things use to be, there is a deference and silence which allowed bullying and harassment to thrive. she says the loyalty of staff has been tested to breaking point in many cases and the

problems have been made worse by com pletely problems have been made worse by completely inadequate procedures in place to deal with them. the report was looking at the problem in general, not specific complaints, but gives some examples of the type of thing, people being the but of joint intelligence committees, comments and physical appearance, so as to what should be done about it it suggests that a new complaints and grievance procedure will not come close to sorting out the problem, the report doesn't name names but it says members of the current senior house administration and she includes the speakers office should consider whether they are the right people to make the changes necessary , right people to make the changes necessary, this report was in part sparked by complaints of bullying against the speaker earlier this year, she strongly denies those but there has been no comment from him or the house authorities to these report. bbc news has learned that hampshire police are giving out warnings to people thought to be at risk of committing sexual offences against children in cases where they can't get the evidence to prosecute.

in the last two years, the force has handed out more than 50 notices urging people to seek help, as rob powell reports. hould consider whether they child sexual exploitation, a growing and changing challenge for police forces. we have been given exclusive access toa we have been given exclusive access to a new scheme being used in hampshire, where officers is issue paper warning notices to people who display concerning sexual behaviour, urging them to change how they act, and get help. i have issued three and get help. i have issued three andi and get help. i have issued three and i have had one was accepted and the second time i for shoed it to a female, laid the in her late 20s and she was horrified, you cannot have 15, 16 year—year—old boys in your house, we might get intelligence and people might question what you are doing. is did she realise it could lead her into hot water with the police? i think, so lead her into hot water with the police? ithink, so once lead her into hot water with the police? i think, so once she realised why we were there and what the community were worried about, to

tell us about it, yes. so this is the notice that the police here will give to someone who has shown concerning behaviour. it explains the different types of abuse and has add slice about where they can go for help. it says sex with anyone under the age of 16 is illegal. don't take advantage of someone because of their age or vulnerability and for sexual control it's a criminal offence to try to control someone under 18, by using violence intimidation, persuasion or aggression you or someone else can engage in sexual activity with them. is this going soft on what is a very serious crime? no, it is about making the best of an opportunity to manage their behaviour going forwards, clearly, if further victims or intelligence came to light that required robust police action, that would instigate that action, that would instigate that action that the point. but whether

the police should be giving people warning notices at all when they haven't committed a crime is something that defence lawyer is worried a about. the risk is in receiving one of those notices and having it on your record the employer of the future is is not going to look behind the policy decisions that led to the police issuing this, they are just going to see you have received a warning notice for child sexual exploitation and have serious concerns about your suitability. hampshire police says it considers the warning notice a great success, we have been told a number of other police forces are now looking at taking on the scheme. the bloodhound project britain's attempt to build the world's first 1000 miles an hour car has been put into administration. the team behind it are £25 million short of what they need to get to south africa next year, to make an attempt on the land speed record. they're now appealing for an investor who could see the project over the finishing line. duncan kennedy reports. tried, tested...

but now in trouble. bloodhound is already a technological tour de force in its aim to become this — the world's first 1,000 mile an hour car, but its run out of money, and today called in administrators, although the inspiration behind bloodhound insists this is not the end. we've done the difficult bit, which is build the car, you can see the car here. we have created the desert run and the desert track in south africa. it's taken 1,000 man years to do that, and we've got the entire team together, and of course andy green, the driver. so the whole things together, there's just one element that's missing and we'll get that. part car, part rocket. bloodhound now needs £25 million if it's to make a record attempt. it is that now once in a lifetime opportunity for the right person, to come forward and provide it with the investment,

that's the key thing, the investment that it needs to give it certainty, to get it over that line and be great for britain. bloodhound isn't a drawing board fantasy. 80 volunteers have already tested it to 200mph. of course, british drivers have been at the forefront of world land speed records for decades. there was malcolm campbell in the ‘20s and 30, richard noble himself in the 1980s, and andy green in the 1990s, the current world record holder at 763mph. but throughout all of this, what's remained elusive is the world's first thousand mile an hourcar. the team are hoping an investor will see the potential this beast represents. bloodhound is real — it's just waiting to be unleashed. duncan kennedy, bbc news. rain forms

rainforms in rain forms in france have left people dead. around the city the flooding left a trail of cars and collapsed homes, officials say the equivalent of three months rainfall fell in just equivalent of three months rainfall fell injust a equivalent of three months rainfall fell in just a few hours. the former chief constable of scotland, phil gormley, who resigned amid allegations of bullying, has been given a major new role in policing. it's understood mr gormley, who denies any wrongdoing, is about to start work as an inspector of constabulary, overseeing 12 forces in the north of england. the tiny faroe islands are pushing to be allowed to compete as an independent nation at the olympics. their athletes take part in eight international sports, including football, as the faroes but in the olympics, they're forced to compete under the flag of denmark. now they want that to change, as our sports correspondent, alex ca pstick reports. stunning scenery in a land miles from anywhere,

and with isolation comes a strong sense of national identity, but the faroe islands is facing an uphill struggle for sporting independence. football already offers these faroese fans a chance to express their patriotism through sport, as the national team is recognised by fifa. the players want the same for everyone. we're actually playing for the other sports as well, because they never get that feeling like we do, because we're representing our country, you can represent the flag. signeljoensson is 17—years—old and is on track to achieve the olympic qualifying standard for tokyo 2020, but under the current rules her only route to the games is by applying for a place in the danish team. it feels like it's not fair, because i'm a swimmer like everyone else around the world, and i also have worked for that goalfor a long time. it feels like that's the only thing that's holding me back to reach my biggest dream, that is the olympics, and under the faroese flag.

the faroe islands is unique in many ways, not least its dramatic landscape, but also its remote location in the north atlantic, and the people here are fiercely independent. but as far as the ioc is concerned, it's still a region in the kingdom of denmark, and although it might be self—governing governing, that is not enough for a place in the olympics. in response, the ioc gave us a statement, referring to their rules and regulations which says all countries must be recognised by the international community. the prime minister told me it doesn't make sense. i can't understand it. i don't think it's logic. as i told you, we are a self governing country, and we do hold membership in a lot of international organisations, so it's a broken dream for a lot of our young people if they cannot compete