this is bbc news. the headlines at 103m... the former us president george bush senior has died aged 94. his son george w bush described him as a man of the highest character. he served as the 41st us president between 1989 and 1993, his term was defined by the cold war and his victory in the first iraq war against saddam hussein. aggression is defeated, the war is over! another resignation over brexit. the universities and science minister, sam gyimah, resigns calling the prime minister's plan "naive". the deal on the table from the pm is a deal in name only, only pick issues have been kicked down the road, so we are in for several years of negotiations at the point at which we have no bill etheridge and the eu has all the control. police in paris fire

tear gas as protesters take to the streets against president macron‘s policy of raising fuel taxes to combat global warming. alaska is rocked by aftershocks after the powerful earthquake which damaged roads and buildings. and coming up — the travel show visits toyko ahead of the 2020 paralympics to find out what it's like for disabled visitors. welcome to bbc news. the former american president, george bush senior, has died aged 94. he served in the oval office between 1989 and 1993, succeeding ronald reagan, before losing out to bill clinton. his term was defined by the end of the cold war and the first iraq war against saddam hussein.

in april, he was admitted to a hospital intensive care unit with an infection, a week after the death of his wife barbara. he had been married to barbara for 73 years. his son, george w bush, who also became president, released this statement. he described his father as a man of the highest character and said he was the best dad any son or daughter could ask for. former president barack obama has also paid tribute, he said america had "lost a patriot and humble serva nt". and president trump said he inspired a generation of americans with his authenticity, disarming wit, and unwavering commitment to faith and family. our north america editorjon sopel looks back at his life. i will faithfully execute the office of president of the united states... that george herbert walker bush had reached the highest office in the land almost seemed predestined. so help me god.

congratulations. he was born into a family of wealth, privilege and politics. his father was a us senator. george attended yale, before volunteering for the navy in world war ii. he was shot down over the pacific, his rescue remarkably caught on film. peacetime took him to texas, where he made a fortune in the oil business, and then came the lure of politics. he was elected to congress, served as an ambassador, and became head of the cia, before pitching to become the republican presidential candidate in 1980. he lost to ronald reagan, but reagan put him on the ticket, and served as vice president. in 1988, he had another crack at the presidency, this time successfully. but there were new uncertainties, notably iraq's annexation of kuwait in 1990. margaret thatcher told him to stay firm, apparently saying, "this is no time to go wobbly, george."

he didn't. iraq will not be permitted to annex kuwait. and that's is not a threat, it's not a boast, it'sjust the way it's going to be. a wide coalition was forged, and operation desert storm began. the ground war would lastjust 100 hours, in a decisive victory for american military expertise and superiority. i can report to the nation, aggression is defeated. the war is over. cheering. the 1992 election pitched the patrician bush against the young, charismatic, and hitherto—little—known democratic governor from arkansas called bill clinton. his clear advocacy of a new vision for america swept him to a decisive victory. so help me god. congratulations. within a decade, there was another bush in the white house, george w. bush senior was the last of america's cold war leaders, and the demise of communism

during his period was managed deftly, as former soviet satellites embraced the values of democracy and freedom. george herbert walker bush remained active into old age, even parachute—jumping in his 80s. atta boy! and, of course, the one constant throughout all that, his wife, barbara. they were married for over 70 years. well, george bush was us president when sirjohn major became prime minister. he's been speaking to the today programme this morning — reflecting on his early days in downing street when the gulf war was imminent. within a few days of becoming prime minister, i went to america to talk to george bush, not least about the day in which the war might start.

this would be in december and we we re this would be in december and we were contemplating early january. this would be in december and we were contemplating earlyjanuary. it was quite astonishing how free and frank the discussion was, often with politicians, particularly heads of government, it is a reserve, a holding back, a personal position to be held, but he was utterly and completely frank and friendly from the start and it made for a very easy relationship. the water would never have been so successful without the arab members of the coalition and i cannot think of anyone more suitable, any president more likely to have drawn together such a coalition. and to make sure it was cemented, he got a united nations resolution and that meant it was not a western imperialist, as people might have said, attacking iraq after the invasion of kuwait, it was an attack by people representing every part of the world and in particular, middle eastern members of the coalition. that was a remarkable piece of diplomacy that i

think very few presidents would have been able to achieve. we would speak oi'i been able to achieve. we would speak on the phone often, indeed the first phone call i had as prime minister was from george bush. the first phone call seven years later when i was defeated was from george, who said, come over, the blue fish biting, come and spend a few days with us. so it became a personal friendship and he did not interfere in british politics but he was concerned with how things were going and a good friend to have in bad days as well as good. sirjohn major talking on the today programme this morning. joining me now is greg swenson from republicans overseas. it is sombre when england dies but it was a long life well lived. starting at the age of 18 when he became the youngest fighter pilot in the navy, you know, starting as a naval aviator, ambassador to china,

head of the cia, and then became vice president during the most consequential decade of post—war history. really just a consequential decade of post—war history. reallyjust a fascinating cd for president bush. —— cv. you could talk about his entire generation in that way, their formative years were during the war, he was 18 when he left yale university to become a pilot and then rapidly went to wall street —— rather than go to wall street like his father, he took a different path. i think for that entire generation, it shaped them and they we re very generation, it shaped them and they were very humble and did not brag about it, that is testament to his personality and that generation.

decorated war hero, when he got into politics, some might say, he represented a generation of republicans, many have gone, the country club set, conservative with a small c. but tolerant of change. how much was his pledge and his failure to keep it, no new taxes, how much did that influence his career? i think it was a huge mistake, and together with the death of his daughter, really that was the only agent of disappointment. he became a good friend with bill clinton later in life and that is truly testament to his nature is a gentleman, he wrote, but that was a mistake and it cost him dearly. also, that is what really drove pat

buchanan to run against him in the primaries, which is the only way an incumbent president in the us can't lose, is when someone in his own party runs against them. i think he got a party runs against them. i think he gota bum party runs against them. i think he got a bum rap, party runs against them. i think he gota bum rap, the party runs against them. i think he got a bum rap, the recession wasn't that bad and in retrospect, it recovered before the election but we didn't know that... you also have to thank ross perot, who ran as an independent and took 20% of the vote, so bill clinton only took 43% of the vote in 1992, so it was a perfect storm for president bush and it isa perfect storm for president bush and it is a shame because i think you surely deserved to win a seventh term, he oversaw such a great moment in history and had that very successful war in the middle east, desert storm, and he was polling 90% two years desert storm, and he was polling 90% two yea rs before desert storm, and he was polling 90% two years before the election, that is how fast things change in american politics. 12 years in the white house, eight as vice president, he is part of the

generation that stabilise the republicans after the scandal of watergate. a lot of trump republicans think of him as part of the establishment that led the country down? very much, the country clu b country down? very much, the country club republicans and they got a lot of pressure from the right and what ronald reagan did brilliantly was bring the three factions of the republican party together and even though they competed against each other in the 1980 primaries, they became good friends, ronald reagan asked him to be vice president, and vice president bush was very loyal asa vice president bush was very loyal as a lit tenant to reagan but also a close adviser because bush had much more experience, especially in foreign policy than reagan. it was really helpful to reagan to have that sort of confidant next to him.

he really moved things to the right, to accommodate president reagan and i think he stays to the right. he made mistakes, nobody is perfect but i think you got a bum made mistakes, nobody is perfect but ithink you gota bum rap made mistakes, nobody is perfect but i think you got a bum rap for it. and you have a lot of respect for his legacy and memory. absolutely, he has shown much better historically, i think even the press has come around to him, who were not kind to him when he was president. i think he will be remembered as a hero and a great statesman. thanks for talking to us. nice to be here. we have a statement from theresa may, she says that it took his career in public life from world war ii to the stewardship of the cia, his direction of the gulf war as commander—in—chief and invigorating a peaceful end to the cold war, he

made the world a safer place for generations to come. let's bring you some breaking news from paris. we reported a week ago some rough scenes, it seems worse at the moment, not least because of the weather but there are fuel protests involving the yellow jacketed protesters on the streets of paris, they were there last weekend and i've been there every weekend for the last month. these scenes are getting a lot more lively. we have had tear gas, riot police out in riot tracks. that is happening at the moment and we hope to talk to oui’ the moment and we hope to talk to our correspondent in paris as soon as we can get him, it's not that safe to be on the streets, as you can see. perhaps we might talk to

him from nearby. you can view the tear gas canisters going off. this is the favoured method of controlling protesters. last weekend, protesters had tried to search through a police line and they were holding back and this is despite attempts by the president to ta ke despite attempts by the president to take the heat out of this conflict over the increase in fuel tax, which he introduced, and this effectively means, fuel has gone up by about 23% in recent months. it has caused a great deal of anger and that anger seems to have spread across class and community, rural and urban. these protesters a re and community, rural and urban. these protesters are on the streets of the capital. we are taking advice on the ground for our colleagues

that it on the ground for our colleagues thatitis on the ground for our colleagues that it is not safe to be out at the moment, because of the risk of the tear gas and getting caught up in water cannon, which are being deployed fairly liberally. in fact, we have established contact with hugh schofield, can new year me? -- can you hear me in the studio? you are ina can you hear me in the studio? you are in a better position to judge what is happening, we can see some pictures. hi, hello? it is shown in the studio. yeah, we are on one of the studio. yeah, we are on one of the avenues leading to the arc de triomphe, which you can see is shrouded in smoke from firecrackers and tear canisters. the champs elysees is eerily empty and instead,

what you can see our crowds of people converging where they can on the arc de triomphe. there is no particular call to go anywhere but word has got out that the arc de triomphe is the place to be. you can see people have masks on and look ready for a confrontation. but they seem good—tempered. they have it in for the french media but we are keeping our english voice is very loud, so they are where we are foreign media. what is driving the protest? because this has sustained itself, despite every attempt by the government to pacify protesters? well, the government hasn't actually done very much other than say it understands their motivation, that's what president macron said the other day. this is the 50% of the french population we don't really see very

much. this is not the thriving in the big cities or the impoverished in the high immigration areas, this is the other 50% who live in small towns, around the country, people who feel they are completely forgotten economically, culturally, politically, and feel they have to bear the brunt of taxes, which they say have risen constantly over the last year and this fuel tax now coming in is the straw that has broken the camel‘s back, the trigger for this, they say it is notjust the fuel tax, it is everything, it is the way we feel, our way of life has been crushed, they say they cannot make ends meet. yeah, that's an anti—macron sentiment pooch rather forcefully there. apologies for anyone who speaks french.m

rather forcefully there. apologies for anyone who speaks french. it is the 50% of the population that feel they are not taken into account and feel their growing poverty is not being listened to. this has been a kind of social media protest movement, formed in a more this form, without any leader or particular demand, they have come up here, the word is to go to the arc de triomphe but it is a completely different protest than those we normally see in paris, normally behind the banner of a union or political party but this is just people. hugh schofield in paris, thank you very much. of course we will have more from paris as we get it in the course of this morning. it is 10:18am. let's take a look at the headlines. his son george w bush described him as a man of the highest character. another resignation over brexit. the universities and science

minister, sam gyimah resigns calling the prime minister's plan "naive". police in paris fire tear gas as protesters take to the streets against president macron's policy of raising fuel taxes to combat global warming. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's mike bushell. tyson fury thinks this could be the greatest comeback ever. he has lost ten stone to get to this point, having spent two years out of the sport. our reporterfrom los angeles. 12 rounds... tyson fury attempting to do what he does best, to get under the skin of opponents. unlike their last face—off, which endedin unlike their last face—off, which ended in a melee, this time you could not penetrate the facade of the master champion. tomorrow is

time. actions speak louder than words. so, tomorrow, iwill show everything i will release everything inside of me. i guess you can't wait for that? i can't wait. fury has ove 1120 m e for that? i can't wait. fury has overcome issues with mental health and alcohol and drug problems. overcome issues with mental health and alcohol and drug problemslj don't believe anyone ever went up to 27 stone, lost all that weight, come back, i do remember people suffering from only problems i have so it ra nks from only problems i have so it ranks among the best comebacks of all time. east and the boxing world with a surprise win against wladimir klitschko in the championship backyard. is there a chance of a similar upset? people are intrigued. it is going to be a great fight. when a great fighter, you how to

agitate. the only way he can beat him is to agitate him. this is where it all happened, the staples center. the la la kers it all happened, the staples center. the la lakers are here but that will be replaced by the ropes and canvas, destiny just hours be replaced by the ropes and canvas, destinyjust hours away. more on this now, speaking earlier on bbc brea kfast, this now, speaking earlier on bbc breakfast, lennox lewis said that the differences in style and stature between the fighters should make for an interesting contest. he is the bronze bomber, loud, big and the only big man in america right now who is taking on the british. it is a great fight and a great matchup. he is more of a puncher, right—handed and when it comes to tyson fury, he is obviously a mover and is taller and a different style,

more of a boxer. all set, you can follow every punch on bbc radio 5 live. coverage starts at 4am. the fight should start around 5am. neil warnock will have to speed up today on his 70th birthday. delighted to have been presented with three points to take the cardiff team out of the relegation zone in the premier league. this strike earned them a win over at wolves. cardiff have in fact now won three of their last four games. another early kick—off in the premier league, man city, at home to bournemouth and could go five points clear. liverpool are not playing in the merseyside derby until tomorrow. pep guardiola is wary of an improved bournemouth side. what we have done these two days is to look at how

good a team they are. they played with the same manager every year and even with their results against big teams, they can get results and if they can get them, they deserve to. one of the biggest corruption scandal since league has seen chinese players banned for 16 years. a major match—fixing inquiry found that one player affected the outcomes of several games and another also pleaded guilty and was given a six—year suspension. the england netball coach says she will use tomorrow's game against uganda to rotate her squad in preparation for the world cup next year. they took a 2—0 lead in a 65—53 win. she says they must focus on the world

cup in liverpool nextjuly. that is all of the sport for now. studio: mike bushell there. now... theresa may has suffered another blow to her hopes of winning the backing of mps for her brexit deal after another cabinet resignation. the universities and science minister, who voted to remain in the eu referendum, has announced he's quitting hisjob in protest at the prime minister's withdrawal agreement. it's the tenth ministerial resignation over may's brexit proposals. he said he felt that he had to leave the government because he felt the prime minister's deal allowed the eu to put its own interests first — at the expense of the uk. i had to make a decision in the national interest and be able to look myself in the eye, in leaving the eu, we will surrender our voice, power of veto and our event. we will become root takers and not rule makers. the deal on the table from the pm if the deal in name only. all

the pm if the deal in name only. all the big issues are being kicked down the big issues are being kicked down the road, so we are in for several yea rs of the road, so we are in for several years of negotiations at the point at which we have no bill etheridge and the eu has all the control and they will hammer our interest. —— we have no leverage. with me now is our political correspondent jonathan blake. in one way, no surprise because we know the degree of unhappiness but on the other hand, a bit of a rising star? he was definitely a rising star? he was definitely a rising star and someone until now had been loyal to theresa may. in that interview, i asked loyal to theresa may. in that interview, iasked him loyal to theresa may. in that interview, i asked him whether she can survive if she loses this boat in the commons on her brexit deal and he said he would still support her as leader. but there is no way around this, it is another blow to the prime minister, for sure, a ministerial resignation is never good. he is the tenth to quit the government since her brexit plan was agreed that the chequers retreat. it

is another one off the list of those whom she can rely on to support her brexit deal in parliament and he's set out some broad criticism of the agreement that she has reached with brussels. i think the nub of it is that phrase he used, it is a deal in name only. that is how others see it, settling the second part of the deal, the political declaration britain has agreed with the eu on how their future relationship will work. it still needs to be negotiated in detail and that is

what will happen, supposedly after the 29th of march next year when we formally leave the eu but sam gyimah is just formally leave the eu but sam gyimah isjust one of formally leave the eu but sam gyimah is just one of many with concerns about whether, firstly, what the two sides are set out can actually achieve and secondly, the direction in which it is going in the first place, as not being a good one for the uk. what is the government reaction? very little. they have thanked sam gyimah for his service but there will be an announcement on monday. we understand his replacement, there have been an exchange of letters, and this is something of a well trodden path that downing street has been going through over the last couple of weeks. we had jeremy wright speaking this morning, responding to sam gyimah‘s criticism. let's listen to what he had to say in response. gyimah‘s criticism. let's listen to what he had to say in responselj regret what he had to say in response.” regret very much that sam is leading the government, he has done a good job ina the government, he has done a good job in a number of roles as minister but i don't agree with him on this. i think you need to look at the deal asa i think you need to look at the deal as a compromise and a balance between two things, firstly, the british public have so clearly to us ina referendum british public have so clearly to us in a referendum outcome that they wa nt in a referendum outcome that they want to leave the eu, that they wanted to get back control of their borders, that they want to stop spending billions of pounds sent overseas to brussels every year. this deal achieves those things. speaking of money, confirmation from

the government that it is going to give up its remaining part of the galileo project, which was in his brief the science minister? and that may have been the immediate trigger for sam gyimah‘s announcement despite his broader concerns. this is the satellite system which the eu is the satellite system which the eu is developing as a competitor to the gps system, developed by the us military some years ago, and used by all of us if you use a sat navs, the eu is developing its own system and britain has been a significant part of that to date, paying in something in the region of £1 billion of funding. the satellite infrastructure was being built in the uk but the eu made clear during negotiations that the uk would not have access to it, at least in the immediate term, after brexit. the government has taken a decision that if it is not a fully signed up member of that project and cannot be involved in any way, having been effectively frozen out by the eu, the pm has announced the uk will develop its own project to rival

galileo. but it's a very clear indication of one tangible impact of the uk leaving the eu. thank you. the saudi crown prince, mohammed bin salman has been meeting world leaders on the sidelines of the g20 summit in argentina. theresa may urged the crown prince to hold the murderers ofjamal khashoggi to account, while russia's vladmir putin gave the saudi leader a much warmer welcome. french president emmanuel macron's warned him he was ‘worried'. today the focus will be on the meeting between donald trump and chinese president xijinping. a series of aftershocks have rocked the us state of alaska after a devastating earthquake struck its biggest city, damaging buildings and forcing people to run into the streets. the quake was centred about seven miles north of the city of anchorage and there are no reports of serious injuries. laura westbrook reports. earthquake!

alaska is used to earthquakes but this is far bigger than most. the seven magnitude quake took many by surprise. earthquake drills are all very well but reality can be quite different. there are tvs on the ground. the first quake caused damage inside buildings, forcing all the local tv stations off the air. many people had returned to their offices when a powerful after—shock sent them scrambling out again. the bbc spoke to a local reporter a short time later. this state sees on average more than 800 a week but because our state is so large, a lot of quakes are not big enough