this is bbc news. i'm clive myrie. the headlines at 11pm: on the eve of the crucial mid—term elections, president trump makes his closing rallying call across three states, in the first big electoral test of his presidency. the future direction of the united states of america is at stake in these mid—term elections. and a a prediction on what the outcome will be, we were here two years ago and it didn't work out so well. after four stabbings in five days, police say they'll step up patrols on the streets of london. east sussex becomes the latest council to cut key services to avoid a budget crisis. also coming up: preparations for the armistice centenary. remembrance at the tower of london, the new art installation, to mark 100 years since the end of the first world war. and at 11:30pm, we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers

with our reviewers dawn foster, from the guardian, and liam halligan, from the daily telegraph. stay with us for that. good evening. welcome to bbc news. amerian voters are set to elect new members of congress, and in the process they'll deliver the biggest verdict on donald trump's presidency since he was elected two years ago. they're known as the mid—term elections, and they'll decide who controls the two chambers of the us congress, which pass laws to enact the president's policies and can also block his senior appointments. 35 out of 100 seats in the senate are being contested, but all 435 seats in the house of representatives are up for election. donald trump's republicans currently have a majority in each, but the democrats hope they can win the seats needed to take control of at least one chamber.

3a million people have already cast their votes. as our north america editorjon sopel reports, the result will have significant consequences for us policy in the next two years. his name is not on the ballot anywhere across the united states, but the forthcoming elections are all about donald trump. he has put himself at the absolute centre of this campaign, hurtling around the country energetically. and so it's impossible to avoid the conclusion that the results of tomorrow's midterm elections will be a referendum on his presidency. today he was in ohio. everything we have created and achieved is at stake on election day, it is. if the radical democrats take power, they will take a wrecking ball to our economy and to our future. the issue that's grabbed more attention than any other is this,

the caravan of immigrants making their way up from central america and heading towards the us border. the president has deployed thousands of troops and fearsome rhetoric. "america is about to be invaded," he says. fear mongering, say his opponents. getting fewer headlines is health care, but arguably of far greater concern to many more americans. the administration stands accused of watering down people's ability to get insurance cover if they have pre—existing conditions. the democrats in this climate are struggling to find their voice and so they are relying on someone who seems to have lost his. if you vote, you might save a life. that's pretty rare, the way it happens. barack 0bama was today campaigning today in virginia and has been the one democrat still able to draw a crowd and enthuse supporters. healthcare for millions is on the ballot. a fair shake for working families is on the ballot.

and most importantly, the character of our nation is on the ballot. the numbers turning up at rallies, the numbers turning out to vote early, are extraordinary. these are midterm elections like no other. and in the last hourjon sopel has sent us this update from outside the white house on what exactly is at stake. a huge amount. just take a language that donald trump has used over the caravan. lots of republicans on his own side have said this is a misjudgment, we should be talking about the economy and you are almost being racist in some of the things you are saying. just imagine that after tomorrow donald trump, they keep, the republicans keep control of the house of representatives and the senate. he will feel total vindication. and if he wants to shut down the macro —— mueller

investigation into russia, if you wa nt to investigation into russia, if you want to pull out of nato, if he wa nts to want to pull out of nato, if he wants to build a wall, who will stand up to him and say "you are wrong, you made a misjudgment here". i think it would be very hard. i think donald trump would be able to do think donald trump would be able to d o exa ctly think donald trump would be able to do exactly what he likes without hindrance. but on the other hand, if the democrats do well and they take the democrats do well and they take the house of representatives, which according to opinion polls they might do, then it is a completely different story. they will wrap the white house up in red tape. they will be demanding documents. they will be demanding documents. they will subpoenaed this and that. they will subpoenaed this and that. they will demand donald trump's tax return. they will demand evidence of why they appointed brett kavanaugh to the supreme court. and donald trump ausmat pet project will be thwarted all the way. so i think it is not unreasonable to say that actually the future direction of the united states of america is at stake in these mid—term elections tomorrow. and as for a prediction on what the outcome will be, we were here two years ago and it didn't

work out so well. jon sopel at the white house. and you can read much more on the us midterm elections on our website, and you'll be able to follow the results there after the polls close tomorrow night. after the fourth fatal stabbing in london in less than a week, the city's mayor has warned it could take a decade to bring knife crime under control. in the past week, two men and and two teenage boys have been stabbed to death. so far this year, 118 people have been killed in london, and 73 of those deaths were caused by fatal knife attacks. more than a third of all recorded knife crime in england and wales happens in london. and as our home editor mark easton explains, the changing nature of london's gang culture is also a major factor. hundreds of extra police are on the streets of the capital tonight as officers respond to a wave of deadly stabbings thought to be driven by drug gangs. this arrest in a graveyard is connected to the latest killing in croydon.

tragically we've had four murders since the middle of last week across a number of boroughs, none of them connected. and each and every one of those tragic murders affects families, it affects friends and acquaintances, and i can't imagine the emotions and the distress they must be going through. my heart does go out to them. london's gangs have changed. where once it was largely about territory and tribes, now it's about drugs and profits. they are organised, business driven, secretive and ruthless. these men are on the way to a murder. a conventional map of london shows borough boundaries and familiar neighbourhoods, but there is another hidden map of gang alliances and rivalries. in waltham forest for instance academics have plotted the territories of 12 gangs including a new alliance of the established beaumont crew with the feared mali boys, a secretive gang thought to be headed by men of somali origin. at the centre of their territory is vallentin road. vallentin road been described

as the most violent street in britain with over 100 serious crimes, including two murders, recorded by the police here injust the last two years alone. this is the unlikely front line in a turf war between organised crime gangs wanting control of lucrative drug markets. we have had this significant shift away from it being about respect and grudges between pockets of young people, and into something that's more closely related to very, very organised networks of people supplying drugs on the street and being very focused on money and seeking to be more underground. the murder of 20—year—old lewis elwin, stabbed to death outside a south—west london primary school in 2016, has never been solved. his brother aaron has been campaigning for more to be done to stop gangs recruiting impressionable young men and women.

the gangs are in the schools, they're in the colleges. there are some people who even have to change schools just because there's gangs are waiting outside the schools, so they really have to have a look at what's going on. even if you don't want to be a part of it, you are part of it, from when you wear a tracksuit and you look like them, you're part of it. it's notjust the black culture, the caribbean culture, the african culture, it's everyone, and it's notjust london, it's in the uk. the murder rate in london is actually similar to last year but 118 homicides in the capital since january represents a huge political as well as policing challenge. we're working together to try and find a wraparound approach to this subject, because it can't just be about arresting people. we want to stop young people getting into harm in the first place. some blame cuts to police and council budgets, but here in glasgow, where gang violence has decreased massively, they suggest treating it like a virus, implementing early intervention measures to solve the problem for the long—term.

their advice to us is, we're not going to solve this overnight. it took them more than ten years to solve this issue and they say we've got to focus on a generation and the reality is it may be a generation before we get to levels of violent crime that are acceptable. tonight in clapham, a vigil at the spot where 17—year—old malcolm mide—madariola was stabbed to death last friday afternoon. two teenage boys have been arrested. but few believe we can arrest our way to beating criminal gangs who are becoming more sophisticated and more callous. mark easton, bbc news, london. a man from gloucester has been jailed for life, with a minimum term of 29 years, after admitting the murder of his wife and step—daughter. prosecutors said christopher boon killed laura mortimer after she returned home from a night out in may. he then attacked ella dalby, who was 11, as she tried to save her mother. east sussex county council has said

it can no longer provide basic services and has outlined plans to reduce them to the legal minimum because of severe financial problems. roads, libraries and social work will all lose funding under the proposals from the conservative—controlled council, and there are fears other authorities could face the same decisions. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth reports. there's a story behind this library. i think it's really cool. not yet officially open, these children are getting a sneak preview. i think it's the best library i've ever seen in my whole life. this library is run entirely by volunteers in premises donated by a local shopping centre. they stepped in when the council library closed due to cuts. there is a wonderful feel about having a library that is being run by the community and we are very lucky in that regard here in langley, but the bottom line is the funding for libraries and community services. balancing the books is a problem

for county councils across england who have faced budget cuts and rising demand for social care. here in east sussex, the council plans to only offer essential services. that would less money for highways and road safety, further cuts to the library service, there could be slower assessments for children with special educational needs, and less preventative work in children's social services. but i think it's important that we give the government the evidence that they need. the council says unless it gets more government funding, it will only be able to provide the bare minimum for the most vulnerable. clearly, we are having to make really, really difficult decisions. we've taken the opportunity to raise council tax as much as allowed by government, but it clearly doesn't take into account the increase in demographics and cost of providing those services. in last week's budget, the government announced an extra

£650 million to councils to help with the costs of social care and more money for roads, and they're working out a new funding system, but many councils say they need more support and they're watching what happens here in east sussex to see if they might follow suit. for the people who rely on support services, like these carers, it's a worrying time. michelle's partner has multiple sclerosis. social services helped us for a very short time, and then that was that. donna's mum has alzheimer's. she looks after her along with her sister. you're given that help and then nothing, so you feel abandoned. nobody understands, unless you are a carer yourself. chris's son gary has severe learning disabilities. at two o'clock in the morning it's you and the person you care for against the world and that's very, very disparaging, it's very lonely. they rely on this charity in east sussex to fill the gap left

by shrinking services. their story is familiar as councils across the country continue to struggle. alex forsyth, bbc news, eastbourne. the headlines on bbc news: 0n the eve of the crucial midterm elections, president trump makes his closing argument across three states, in the first big electoral test of his presidency. after four stabbings in five days, police say they will step up patrols on the streets of london. east sussex becomes the latest council to cut key services to avoid a budget crisis. let's go back now to the us midterm elections. 0ur correspondent dan johnson is in washington, dc for us now. it's good to see you. thank you for joining us. this could all be about turnout, couldn't it? it could indeed, and that is everybody‘s

focus at the moment. the final round of campaigning has all been about getting out the natural supporters of each party. they seem to have lost a ny of each party. they seem to have lost any hope of switching any undecided voters at this point. it is just about trying to get as many people to the ballot box as possible, and that is why both sides really seem to have retrenched back to their core messages. but there are some people who have already made their minds up and voted. more than 35 million americans have cast early postal ballot. so those people have already made their choice, and turn up at the ballot boxes tomorrow is expected to be a record high for a mid—term elections. is expected to be a record high for a mid-term elections. sure, i mean, a mid-term elections. sure, i mean, a lot of talk of a blue wave of democrats coming out in force, trying to peg back the power of president trump by taking at least the house. but the suggestion seems to be that a lot of races are actually tightening up now and the chanceis actually tightening up now and the chance is perhaps of the democrats taking the house are not as high as they will make everyone thought they were. yes, it is difficult to read

at this stage, and it gets more tense as we get closer to the actual, real day of voting and the results that actually matter. of course, the pollsters may still be up course, the pollsters may still be up two years ago in calling the presidential election wrongly, so no one's got great confidence in the opinion polls. they had shown hope for the democrats of at least winning the lower house of congress, the house of representatives, which would have enabled the democrats to frustrate the president, to stop him spending money on certain programmes, to make life difficult for him over the next two years. now, whether that actually happens 01’ now, whether that actually happens or not we're going to to wait until tomorrow morning to see. the democrats have been hopeful of that and barack 0bama's campaign message has been if you have not enjoyed the last two years of the trump presidency, this is your chance to come out and make your mark, to stamp your authority on what the character of this country is going to be like the next few years. both the campaigners in chief, barack 0bama and donald trump, have said this is one of the most important

elections of their lives. indeed, and the economy is going great guns. you should be good news for the republicans, surely. why is it that they are somehow behind? is this the trump factor? well, we know that donald trump isn't popular with everyone. a divisive figure, i think eve ryo ne everyone. a divisive figure, i think everyone would agree. and that is why even when he has got some positive news to celebrate, on the economy, the record number ofjobs, the low unemployment, he has been putting that message across. but time and time again he has got back to these core campaign themes, some of the themes that ran through his campaign back in 2016, on immigration, saying that the democrats will allow anybody into the country, and that mobs will be allowed to come in, while he is the one who is sending troops to defend the southern border. 0n talking tough in foreign relations, those sanctions that he reintroduced on iranjust sanctions that he reintroduced on iran just today. he sanctions that he reintroduced on iranjust today. he has hammered home the make america great again

message once again and said that any votes for the democrats will put that at risk, the democrats saying that at risk, the democrats saying that this is an important election about the tone of politics, the nature of the society, and the way that government is run here in america. that is the choice that the american people now face. and they are expected to turn out to vote in record numbers tomorrow. indeed, we will see what happens. many thanks. and you can read much more on the us midterm elections on our website, and you will be able to follow the results there after the polls close tomorrow night. theresa may is due to brief cabinet colleagues tomorrow on the latest state of the brexit talks, after a phone call today with her irish counterpart, leo varadkar. the uk has been told by ireland to stand by its commitments, specifically on avoiding a hard border between northern ireland and the republic, even if there is no brexit trade agreement. 0ur political editor laura kuenssberg gave us the latest from downing street. at the reception in westminster

tonight, theresa may joked at the reception in westminster tonight, theresa mayjoked about brexit as the b word, and while it is not a swear word it is an enormous challenge on every front, another reminderfrom enormous challenge on every front, another reminder from the irish leader today that he and the rest of the eu will not accept that so—called backstop, the insurance policy to guarantee a return to a high border in northern ireland, whatever happens. if it has some kind of time—limit or shelf life on it, and also not if the uk could suddenly tear it up when they feel like it. the problem is that is exactly what some of the ministers who will gather he would theresa may tomorrow morning want. they fear that, if the uk signs up to the backstop without a way of getting out of it, when the uk decides that it wants to, and without some kind of finality, well, then britain could potentially be locked in some kind of limbo, never really quite leaving the european union, and still being tucked in and having to obey its rules and regulations. 0n

the other side of course there are equally strong views which will be given on the other side of the cabinet table, ministers who believe if there is not some kind of a deal, if there is not some kind of a deal, if there is not some kind of a deal, if there is not more compromise, well, then the government could potentially unleash some kind of genuine emergency situation, if there is no deal and britain leaves without the transition period and without the transition period and without anything in place. but, you know, we are at that point now where the ingredients for a deal are pretty much there on the table, but what is required is for the politics in westminster and in brussels to snap into place. that could almost happen at any moment, but what theresa may well knows, and her ministers will be facing her tomorrow morning no to, if she can't carry the cabinet with her, she can forget about the rest of the continent —— know too. michelin is to close its tyre factory in dundee, with the loss of around 850 jobs, after confirming that it would leave the city by 2020.

michelin said the dundee site, which opened in 1971 and specialised in smaller tyres, had suffered because of a shift in the market towards low—cost products from asia. the prime minister and home secretary have both expressed their anger and disgust at images published online which show a group of people burning a cardboard model of grenfell tower and cheering at a bonfire party. the metropolitan police is studying the images and looking into whether any crimes have been committed. this is one frame of what was shown. the bbc is not showing the full video because grenfell families say they find it extremely upsetting. 72 people died in the grenfell tower fire in west london in june last year. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford told us more about the reaction to what happened. the grenfell united group of families and survivors have called the bdo disgusting and offensive to eve ryo ne the bdo disgusting and offensive to everyone that had been affected by the events that night. they have asked the police to take it very, very seriously. what you have seen in the bdo is a group of people in the back garden sitting around a fire having a few drinks, and they have got a tall cardboard box —— video. they put the label grenfell tower on it, and there were crude cutouts of people, some of them painted brown, at the windows of that power. everyone's laughing and

saying things like help me, help me, jump saying things like help me, help me, jump out of the window and they in your flat, we are coming to get you. and then they take this model of g re nfell and then they take this model of grenfell power that they have made and they put it on their fire and burn it. the video, which has been widely shared on social media, has provoked very strong response at the highest level. as you said, the prime minister herself said it was absolutely unacceptable to disrespect those who have lost lost their lives in grenfell tower, the government has urged people not to show it on social media, the home secretary, sajid javid, tweeted... and the police officer leading the grateful to our investigation called the video callous —— grenfell tower investigation. he said his police officers will be investigating in case any crimes have been committed, and that they were taking it very seriously. thousands of flames have been lit for a second night at the tower of london to mark the centenary of the end of the first world war. the installation, called beyond the deepening shadow,

will run each night until armistice day, 11 november. our special correspondent allan little reports on how britain's understanding of the war and its consequences has been transformed over the past century. no war in history had demanded so much, mobilised so many, or killed in such numbers. and, when it was over, the men who fought it began asking questions that have never gone away. what was it for, and was it worth it? we remember them now with public reverence, but the way that we think about the war they fought has changed dramatically in the 100 years since it ended. this is dryburgh abbey in the scottish borders, where britain's military commander, earl douglas haig, is buried. when he died, ten years after the war ended,

he was a venerated public figure. the architect of victory and national salvation. his funeral procession in both london and edinburgh drew more than a million people onto the streets. haig's reputation has risen and fallen over the century, as each new generation reinterprets the first world war in the light of its own values. by the 1960s, haig wasn't a national hero anymore. he was a public villain, the ‘butcher of the somme', who had sent hundreds of thousands of young men to their deaths needlessly. in this version, the war was, above all, futile. in 1917, the war poets wilfred 0wen and siegfried sassoon met here at craiglockhart war hospital in edinburgh. but it wasn't until the 1960s, the age of emerging youth culture, vietnam and anti—war sentiment, that their depiction of the horror and pity of the war gained widespread popular attraction. timed well, both in terms of the cultural narrative,

but also the military political scene within the world at that time. and all of those things have come colliding together, and given 0wen a renaissance and a rebirth, and a message of futility really strong in people's narrative at that time. the britain that emerged from the armistice would never be the same. the war had had a powerful democratising effect, for the men who fought it came home to demand a new place in society for the common citizen. we were promised lands for heroes to live in, and all that sort of thing, but when we came home we found nothing. there was no cheering, no singing. we were drained of all emotion, really. that's what it amounted to, you see. they started marching around the camp, singing out, "we want food, we want money! " the government was obviously very concerned about what would happen when the guys came back, particularly because the labour

party had grown, and then there'd been the russian revolution in 1917, so they were really scared there would be some socialist uprising. but the term "citizenship" comes into use in the 1920s and 1930s, which it never had been before, because the british were subjects of the crown, they weren't citizens, ehich i think is something new after the war. they thought they had fought the war that would end all wars. they had not. but the britain we inherit today, its citizens' democracy, grew out of their extraordinary sacrifice. allan little, bbc news. and we will be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers, dawn foster from the guardian and liam halligan from the daily telegraph. that is coming upjust after the headlines at 11:30pm. now it is time for the weather with ben rich. hello. there was no major need to

wrap up against the cold this bonfire night. it was mild outback, and mild remains, certainly for the next few days. it will often be quite windy. the wettest weather to be found in the west, but that's not to say that eastern areas won't get any rain at all. it's just that this area of high pressure here across the heart of europe is just about close enough to provide some protection in eastern areas from these frontal systems pushing him from the west. low pressure in charge of the weather to start tuesday. the winds circulating around the load in this anticlockwise direction, continuing to draw mild air up from the south. quite murky start the tuesday morning, with some mist fog patches around. for central and eastern areas through the day, the odd shower but a lot of dry weather and some brighter spells. further west, though, the rain starting to pep up, i think, as we go through the afternoon. with that, the wind strengthening, could see gusts of a0 to 50 mph for some western parts

later in the day, and still my old. 16,17, later in the day, and still my old. 16, 17, possibly 18 degrees across parts of the south—east. as we go through tuesday night, there is heavy and perhaps thundery rain will continue to affect some western areas, and actually as this frontal system drives its way eastwards during the first part of wednesday, this is one of those times in the week when a eastern areas will see a little bit of wet weather. not a great start to the day for london, for norwich, the east of england up in the eastern scotland, either. it should dry up in these areas but we will see hefty and possibly thundery showers chasing into the south. all the while the persistent rain keeps on coming in the west, especially for northern ireland where this is shaping up to be a pretty soggy speu shaping up to be a pretty soggy spell of weather overall. into the first part of thursday, look at this company isobars. that is indicative of high pressure trying temporarily to get a foothold on our weather. and that could allow things to turn a little bit chilly for the first pa rt a little bit chilly for the first part of thursday. nothing desperately cold, may be down to four or five degrees. but once again we will see some dry weather and

some sunshine, especially in the east. still the odd shower here. uncertainty about the exact position of the rain, but most likely to affect western areas, temperatures of 11 to 1a degrees. and this is how friday is shaping up. a lot of fine dry weather for central and eastern areas. 0ut west we see a bachelor fresh weather moving into wales and northern ireland. and that sets us up northern ireland. and that sets us upfor northern ireland. and that sets us up for the weekend. it looks like this frontal system will sweep eastwards during friday night. a fair dollop of rain even in the east at this stage, and then that leaves us at this stage, and then that leaves us with low pressure in charge for the weekends. that is likely to bring some strong winds. in fact it is worth staying in touch with the forecast if you have plans this weekend, because the winds could cause one or two issues and there will be some rain at times as well. can we keep the unsettled look to the weather during next week. the jet stream, strong jetstream, racing across the atlantic. whereas at the moment the winds are coming from the

south, this westerly jet moment the winds are coming from the south, this westerlyjet will tend to bring the winds in from the west or the south—west. so it won't be quite as mild as it is at the moment. equally the really cold air remains locked away to the north. so generally speaking it will be relatively mild into next week. 0ften windy, with some rain at times. the wettest when weather once again will be in the west. nothing desperately: the horizon for the time being. —— nothing desperately cold on the horizon.