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tv   BBC News  BBC News  November 18, 2018 9:00am-9:31am GMT

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this is bbc news, i'm ben brown. the headlines at 9am. britain should walk away from eu negotiations rather than be bullied, says former brexit secretary dominic raab. president trump visits northern california following the most devastating wildfires in the state's history. this is very sad to see. as far as the lives are concerned, nobody knows quite yet. we're up to a certain number but we have a lot of people who aren't accounted for. mental health in the workplace should be given the same status as physical health, according to 50 business executives. england's cricketers beat sri lanka by 57 runs, the first time in almost three years they've won an away test series. and our sunday morning edition of the papers is at 9.35am, this morning's reviewers are katy balls, political correspondent at the spectator and prashant rao, international editor of the atlantic.
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the former brexit secretary, dominic raab, is accusing the prime minister of failing to stand up to a bullying european union. in an interview in the sunday times newspaper today, mr raab, who resigned over the draft withdrawal agreement last week, said there had been a lack of resolve with brussels. he suggested britain walk away from negotiations rather than be bullied. theresa may has rejected suggestions the terms of the agreement can now be changed. let's talk now to our political correspondent peter saull. what else has dominic raab been saying? he insists that he is still
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behind the prime minister but a thinly veiled criticism from the former brexit secretary in today's sunday times suggesting that the prime minister did not do nearly enough to stand up to what he calls the brussels bullies, and if we cannot get anything better than the current deal, he says we should be prepared to leave the european union without any deal whatsoever. his principal concern appear to be with this backstop, the insurance policy to ensure there is no return to a ha rd to ensure there is no return to a hard border between northern ireland and the irish public. the draft deal says that that decision to exit that backstop eventually would be a joint one between the european union and the uk. he says that should be britain's decision to make first and foremost. as you have already said, theresa may making it clear that this is the only plausible deal on the table, a matter of days after losing her brexit secretary, he is a thorn in her side. we are drawing
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breath this weekend after a frantic and rustic week at westminster. where are we now in terms of the position of the parameter and the attempt to unseat her by various tory mps? plenty of speculation in the sunday papers about whether we are at the magic trigger point of 48 letters needed to trigger a vote of no—confidence in the prime minister. we know of just no—confidence in the prime minister. we know ofjust over 20 mps who have publicly said that they have sent a letter into the chair of the backbench 1922 committee graham brady backbench1922 committee graham brady including the former london mayoral candidate zac goldsmith who said that if he knew this is how things would be going, if this was the only brexit deal possible, he would have voted remain in the referendum, he was an ardent brexiteer. we will find out more in the coming days. graham brady has remained very tight—lipped up to this point about this. conservative mps will be going back to their constituencies over the weekend
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trying to get a sense of what the feeling it among grassroots members. if they feel people are still very angry about this, more letters might going in the coming days. even if there were to be a vote of no confidence, downing street extreme are confident that theresa may still has the backing of the majority of her party. she has given an interview saying that the terms of the draft agreement cannot be changing our? she has written in the sun on sunday saying that she passionate belief that her course is the right one for the country. she also reminds people that there is a summit called for next week where her fellow european leaders will largely give the sign off to the deal and then it will be a deal signed off by angela merkel, emmanuel macron and other european leaders that mps here could be potentially rejecting. we still think there are some loose ends that the government wants to tie up. the
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deal talks about a potential extension to the transition period, the two years after we leave the eu we re the two years after we leave the eu were effectively the same rules will apply. it does not say by how wrong that transition might be offended by. theresa may will want to make it —— extended by. theresa may will wa nt to —— extended by. theresa may will want to make it clear in black and white in the eventual deal that the potential extension will only be a matter of months rather than any longer period. president trump has visited northern california to see the devastation caused by wildfires, the worst ever in the state. this morning, officials said five more bodies have been recovered bringing the total number of deaths to 76. more than 1,200 people are still missing. 0ur correspondent dave lee has more. this isjust a glimpse of the kind of bravery shown by those tackling california's fires. this footage was taken from a security camera outside a house in southern california.
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on saturday, president trump visited affected areas to see the devastation for himself. he began his trip in the north, where most of those killed by this fire have been found so far. he was met on the tarmac by california's governor, jerry brown, and the man who will take over from him injanuary, governor—elect gavin newsom, both men who clashed publicly with the president for blaming what he said was poor forest management before offering any condolences to the families of the dead. the president struck a much more conciliatory tone in person. we're all going to work together, and we'll do a realjob. but this is very sad to see. as far as the lives are concerned, nobody knows quite yet. we're up to a certain number, but we have a lot of people that are unaccounted for. the next few days provide new challenges. those fighting the blaze are welcoming the forecast of rain, but those taking care of recovery efforts worry it could make
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their work even more difficult. as of tonight, the current list of unaccounted for individuals stands at 1276, which is an increase today of 265 over yesterday. that's due in large part to our continuing effort to mine the data. meanwhile, others in the state continue to suffer from dangerously poor air quality. spending the day outside, experts have said, is like smoking half a packet of cigarettes. joe greco is a member of butte county sheriff search and rescue team from chico, close to the destroyed town of paradise. he explained the process of locating missing people. the process is a long one and it's difficult. we start with missing persons reports that the public have called in. and we're looking into every single one of those leads, every single one of them. thousands of calls have come in on reporting missing people.
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we have got about 500 search and rescue teams out there, paired with canine units, that's dogs, and anthropology groups combing through rubble right now looking for anything. any sign of humans. and right now, it's difficult, it's bones at this point. this is very emotional. i was up there on thursday morning with another colleague of mine and our marching orders were to help evacuate a hospital. the fire came through extremely hot, extremely quickly. winds of about 65 miles an hourjust blowing tornadoes of fire around that whole community. it's been surreal. it's been something that i'm not really trained to do, i'm a volunteer. so it's an extremely difficult, sad, sad situation right now. many of those people who did get out and do have family are down here in chico right now.
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there are hundreds of locations of many, many people gathered with family, looking for family, there are people putting up families they have never met in their homes, there are trailers out, a very sad situation but there appears to be some kind of a silver lining in this where humanity is still intact. joe greco from the bute county sheriff such rescue team. some of britain's biggest companies are urging the government to honour a promise to give mental health in the workplace the same status as physical health. executives from 50 companies, including royal mail, wh smith and ford, have written to theresa may, asking her to follow through on last year's manifesto pledge to update health and safety legislation. the government says it will bring forward the recommendations of an independent review. the government has confirmed plans
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to allow universities to offer two year, or "accelerated degrees". they would be allowed to charge higher fees per year but overall students would save around £5,500. 0ur education correspondent sean coughlan reports. instead of studying for three years at 30 weeks a year, the government wants more universities to provide fast—track courses, with degrees taught two years, with 45 weeks of studying. these shorter, or intensive courses, would mean savings of about £5,500 tuition fees and a years worth of accommodation and costs. the universities minister thinks it will particularly help to reverse the decline in the number of mature students who might want to reduce the cost, and to get back into work more quickly. even though the overall cost would be lower than studying for three years, each year would have tuition fees equivalent to about £11,000 per year, above the current maximum limit of £9,250.
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such a change to the fee system would have to be approved by parliament and that could prove a significant stumbling block. sean coughlan, bbc news. three men are in hospital after a shooting in north london. police say they were called to enfield yesterday evening, and two of the men are believed to have suffered gunshot wounds. no arrests have been made. a woman has died, and 200 other people have been injured in demonstrations against rising fuel prices in france. more than a quarter of a million people joined the protests. the price of diesel in the country has risen by around 23 % over the past year, the highest level for nearly 20 years. more of the migrants from central america who have been travelling across mexico in the hope of reaching the united states have arrived at the border city of tijuana. about 4,000 people have now gathered there. the local authorities are providing shelters but have appealed to the mexican federal
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government for help. one of the most controversial industrial projects built in the uk is closing down after nearly a quarter of a century. the nuclear reprocessing plant at sellafield in cumbria, has already recycled its last batch of fuel. parts of the site will now be used to store waste, while the rest will be decommissioned, a process expected to take decades, as theo leggett reports. the fuel has been taken from the main pond and transferred into this area. this is thorpe, for nearly 25 years, this has been recycling old nuclear fuel, separating usable uranium and plutonium from useless waste. a process seen as a kind of alchemy. what kind of science could take a fuel, burn it and turn the ashes back into fresh fuel to burn again? but soon, alarms were sounding. thorpe was meant to provide fuel for a new generation of super—efficient power stations,
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but they were never built and ambitious targets were never met. the plant didn't operate as well as we had originally expected. there were a number of operational problems throughout its life. those lofty expectations were built on expectations around nuclear power, cost of uranium and those expectations did not, those assumptions, did not prove to be valid. thorpe did make some £9 billion reprocessing waste from overseas, but now those contracts have dried up as well. although reprocessing has now finished here at thorpe, that isn't the end for this vast facility. parts of the plant will still be used to store old nuclear fuel, and the rest, that will become part of a growing industry — nuclear decommissioning. the most dangerous parts of the site will have to be decontaminated before being dismantled. sophisticated technologies being developed to go where humans can't. the ingenuity we will have to apply
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will be fascinating. new technologies, new processes, as well as the technical aspect of it, for me personally, the most challenging aspect will be to look after the people. thorpe was once a key target for environmental campaigners, greenpeace. they now agree that decommissioning creates exciting opportunities. decommissioning has to be done well, with skilled people who know what they are doing and have experience in doing it. so we support decommissioning work and if that sellafield wants to become a global leader of that, we are supportive. under there is nitric acid with a lot of radioactive substances? thorpe once symbolised ambitious plans for a future of keep cheap and clean nuclear power. its legacy though, is a contaminated facility which will take decades to decommission. theo leggett, bbc news, sellafield.
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the headlines on bbc news. former brexit secretary dominic raab criticises the government's "lack of political will and resolve" in dealing with the eu. president trump visits northern california, where 76 people have been confirmed dead and more than 1200 missing following wildfires. mental health in the workplace should be given the same status as physical health, say 50 top business executives. president trump has said the us will determine in the next few days who it thinks was behind the murder of the saudi journalist, jamal khashoggi. there have been reports that the cia believes mr khashoggi's killing was ordered by crown prince mohammed bin salman. saudi arabia has blamed rogue intelligence agents. let's speak to our arab affairs editor sebastian usher who is on the line from the saudi
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capital riyadh now. first of all, what are they making their of these reports, these persistent reports that the cia in the united states are roaming the crown prince and saying that he directly ordered this killing? -- blaming the crown prince? essentially they are continuing with a policy of the nile and detection. —— denial and deflection. the denial came almost immediately from one of the people named in the report, the cia said it had got hold of an intercepted phone call from the saudi ambassador to washington who is also the crown prince's brother. he said he had called jamal khashoggi by phone and told him that he should go to istanbul to deal with his papers. and that it would be safe. bin salman treated since shortly after that that he had never
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called jamal khashoggi and he certainly never told him to go to istanbul. that was the way it was playing out yesterday in saudi arabia. this morning they have been looking for in terms of positives, the saudi media, is that what president trump was saying, in the sense that he has not made up his mind. he has been told that crown prince mohammed bin salman was not involved. essentially he has not come down one way or another. the us state department issued a statement saying that there were still numerous unanswered questions. the saudis are making a lot of that saying essentially nothing is clear, even the americans are not sure about what's going on. what are your impressions, as you are in saudi arabia at the moment, what are your impressions about the impact that all of this has happened there and in particular on the position of the crown prince? to what extent as it undermine his authority and his position as the factor and ruler of the country? —— de facto ruler of
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the country? —— de facto ruler of the country? —— de facto ruler of the country? that is a question that works on several levels. we do not really know the inside workings of the royal family and we know there has been friction and anger for a long time, it huge draw family, essentially this extraordinary rise of the crown prince pushed a lot of other people aside. a lot of other people whose noses were out of joint. but his control of the country had become so complete, all of the levers of power that everyone essentially got with the programme. but this is an opportunity, and we have seen signs of this, that older heads, the way that saudi arabia has done things in the past, the more cautious way, may be beginning to return and there could be an indication of that tomorrow when the various big speech by king salman, the father of the crown prince, to a council which might lay out some sense of how saudi arabia is going to navigate the crisis. in terms of talking to people here, i was at a
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conference couple of days ago with thousands of young saudis. it was the charity that mohammed bin salman runs. they are still, and sincerely, it's not just runs. they are still, and sincerely, it's notjust that runs. they are still, and sincerely, it's not just that they feel like they have to say this, they are still very infused about the changes that there have been in the country, the greater opportunities for younger people and women, the fact that you do not have the religious police walking around in saudi arabia. just a few years ago, you would be concerned if you are in a shopping wall or something, when the prayers ring out, that you have got to get out of that quickly, the religious police would come, how you we re religious police would come, how you were dressed, who you are with. there is not that sense, it seems like more breathable easier country. there is a general sense amongst many saudis that they do not want that turned around. again and again, although you imagine this is not a subject they want to get into deeply, whatever happens at the top, there is a sense that they want their way that things have been going to continue. that is a sort of
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sense of confidence in the crown prince and we just have to wait and see it in the end the royal family decides that he's just too much of a liability. and now we are looking to washington over this more than anywhere else, it was ankara but now it is washington. as it becomes so much that his position is unsustainable. the cia were saying in this report that everything points to the fact that he ordered the killing of jamal points to the fact that he ordered the killing ofjamal khashoggi but they still believe that his position as at the throne and a key figure in saudi arabia is not under threat. —— as heir to the throne. thank you to talking to us. they're meant to be quick and convenient, but could shopping at smaller stores owned by britain's best—known supermarket brands be costing us more? a survey carried out for the bbc‘s inside out programme found customers are paying much higher prices for exactly the same products in smaller outlets compared to the larger supermarkets. jonathan gibson explains.
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more and more of us are shopping in convenience stores. they now account for a quarter of the grocery market. but are we paying over the odds in the small shops run by britain's biggest supermarkets? maggie, a birmingham pensioner, goes to tesco express twice a week. i think you would expect to pay a bit more. you buy quite a few bananas, don't you? well, a single banana in tesco express is going to cost you 14p more. for one? for one banana. my god! right, i know where i'll get my bananas from for now. and that's kind of got me thinking because if bananas cost so much more in tesco's convenience stores than they do in their own supermarkets, then do other things cost more as well? and what about tesco's rivals? the bbc compared the cost of 50 items in supermarkets run by tesco, sainsbury‘s, m&s and waitrose,
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with what they cost in the same chains' convenience stores. 39 of the 50 products we bought in tesco express cost more than they did in a tesco supermarket. while in sainsbury‘s local, little waitrose and m&s simply food, 45 of the 50 products cost more than in the larger stores. but by how much? there were big differences across fruit and veg, in toiletries, and store cupboard ingredients. this fajita kit, for example, costs 20% more in sainsbury‘s local than it does in the larget supermarket. 0verall our survey found that prices in little waitrose were on average just short of 5.5% more expensive while in sainsbury‘s local, tesco express and m&s simply foods, the average difference was between eight and 9%. in statements, the supermarkets told the bbc higher prices reflect higher running costs. without commenting on any specific retailer, generally there's a lot
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more costs that go into maintaining and operating a store like this and that to a degree is why you see the price difference. as for maggie, she is now doing more of her shopping online. but will not stop using convenience stores completely. i think i'll still probably have to go for the odd banana. they might be dearer but they're also nearer and that's the cost of convenience. viewers in the west midlands can see more on this on inside out on bbc one tomorrow at 7.30pm. the programme will then be available on the bbc iplayer. the actorjohn bluthal, has died at the age of 89. he was best known for playing the likable but dull parish council secretary frank pickle in the vicar of dibley. i need to hear a little bit for level, so tell us what you had for breakfast. toast.
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i need a little bit more than that, so just make something up, let your imagination run wild. wild? great. two pieces of toast. its star dawn french paid tribute on social media, saying "cheeky, naughty, hilarious. bye darlin bluey." he also appeared in carry on films and worked regularly with spike milligan. next month world leaders meet in poland for the united nations yearly conference on climate change. now thousands of young people have found a rather unique way to make sure their message is heard, whilst trying to set a record for the world's biggest postcard. lebo diseko has more. on a glacier high up in the swiss alps, something unusual unfolds. 125,000 drawings and cards from children all around the world, each with a message on climate change.
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they are put together to put make one giant postcard which organisers say, at 2500 square metres, is the largest ever. next month, the governments of the world are going to get together in poland for the next conference of the parties on climate change. this is going to be the place where the actual plan of action to implement the paris agreement on climate change is going to be negotiated. we need ambition. we need ambition from every government that is going to be there. 1.5 celsius is a message that is hard to miss. that's what scientists say the limit for global warming needs to be if we want to keep the earth habitable. last month, a un report warned without drastic action, there will be even sharper temperature rises. but with doubts over whether countries can even meet
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the 2 degrees cap agreed at the paris climate conference three years ago, activists are demanding global leaders do more. we expect acts. decision. and urgent actions. we are done with the talking, we don't want to wait any more. we want to do, we want to do this transition, we want to decarbonise the economy and the societies. in order to save the climate and all live on this planet in peace. the glacier this giant postcard was put together on is also significant. it is melting at an alarming speed. it could disappear altogether within the next 80 years. activists say it's just another example of the increasing threat posed by global warming. lebo diseko, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt taylor. hello. it is a blue sky day out
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there for many of you. a bit of patchy cloud admittedly into the afternoon across parts of eastern scotla nd afternoon across parts of eastern scotland and north east england but the fog we saw the midlands will have cleared. temperatures into double figures, could hit 30 to 50 degrees in the highlands, where the winds are lighter. —— 13 to 15 degrees. but a stronger breeze in the south bringing more cloud. in the south bringing more cloud. in the west, clearer skies for longer so there could be a touch of frost into tomorrow morning. frost free in the east but more cloud to start the day. more cloud for all of us through the day tomorrow, coming and going, as it bright sunshine every narragansett. picking up in eastern scotla nd narragansett. picking up in eastern scotland and england for one or two light rain showers. most of you now in single figures. 0nly light rain showers. most of you now in single figures. only a few getting into double figures. wintry showers over the hills into tuesday.
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good morning. britain should walk away from the eu rather than being bullied. the us president visits northern california after the most devastating wildfires in the history of the state. mental health in the workplace should be given these same status as physical health, according to 50 business executives. and after 10am, you can hear from executives. and after 10am, you can hearfrom dominic executives. and after 10am, you can hear from dominic raab executives. and after 10am, you can hearfrom dominic raab himself on the andrew marr show. that on bbc 0ne. the andrew marr show. that on bbc one. a full review of the newspapers coming up are you injust a one. a full review of the newspapers coming up are you in just a moment, but first a full sports roundabout which comes from will perry at the bbc sports centre. hello. good morning. england's cricketers claimed their first series win in sri lanka for 17 years with a 57—run victory in the second test. the hosts started day five in pallekele needing 75 runs for victory.
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it took england just half an hour to get the three wickets they required to finish off sri lanka. moeen ali ended up with four wickets, jack leach got five in just his third test match for england. one more test to go in the series, but plenty of positives forjoe root‘s side in a part of the world where they'd really struggled in years gone by. it's their first away series win for two years.
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