after thursday's dramatic falls in europe and the united states. concerns are growing about a resumption of the trade war between the us and china. canada's defended its arrest of a top executive from the chinese technology firm, huawei, on a us extradition request, prime minister trudeau says it was not political. china has demanded her release. us media say the arrest is related to an investigation into possible violations of sanctions against iran. the eiffel tower and a number of museums in paris will be shut on saturday, because of fears of further street violence involving the yellow vest protest movement. the authorities say they'll deploy nearly 90,000 security personnel nationwide, as well as armoured vehicles in the capital. now on bbc news, it's time for thursday in parliament. hello there and welcome

to the day in parliament, where the chancellor throws his weight behind theresa may's brexit deal. we have to find a negotiated way forward, and the prime minister has presented us with the route forward. and we have to take it. but labour makes it clear it won't back the plan. it is increasingly obvious that the prime minister's deal is neither politically nor economically acceptable, nor is it capable of bringing this house or the country together. also on this programme, a call to lift vat on e—books. and an apology from borisjohnson forfailing to declare money he earned outside parliament in time. that there was no intention to mislead the hhuse and that i have been completely transparent. —— house.

i therefore offer the house a full and unreserved apology. but first, the chancellor, philip hammond, has tried to rally support for theresa may's brexit deal, saying the idea that the government could reopen negotiations with the eu was a delusion. he was speaking on the third day of the debate, while outside of the chamber, the prime minister herself was making efforts to find ways that would persuade more mps to back her in the vote on tuesday. a slew of cabinet ministers appeared in downing street for a meeting with theresa may. it's thought she's attempting to reassure opponents of her eu withdrawal deal about measures to prevent a hard border on the island of ireland. back in the commons, philip hammond spelt out to mps that this was as good as it got. i am completely convinced that of the options open to us, this is the right way for this country to go forward. mr speaker, if there is anyone on the front bench opposite who genuinely believes that there is a magic deal available, which would see us retain all the benefits of eu membership but with no free movement, no payment into the eu budget, no state aid rules,

they are sadly deluded. if he sincerely believes the situation that he's just described to us, if he cannot convince this house of that situation on tuesday, will he resign? because he's clearly lost the confidence of this house. mr speaker, i regard myjob is to go on making the case for a sensible, middle way out of this situation. i do not believe that we can afford the economic cost of a no deal exit, but i equally do not believe we can afford the political and societal cost of trying to undo the decision of the british people in the referendum. we have to find a negotiated way forward, and the prime minister has presented us with the route forward. we have to take it. the shadow chancellor began with a concilliatory tone. it is that we must seek

to prevent a no deal, a no deal situation occurring, either by imposition or by default. the second — and i have to say this is straight —— the second — and i have to say this in as straight a way as i possibly can — it is increasingly obvious that the prime minister's deal is neither politically nor economically acceptable, nor is it capable of bringing this house or the country together. we know next week, the government's deal is going to go down in flames, labour's deal will get nowhere. the uk's looking down the barrel of no deal or no brexit. when looking down the barrel of no deal or no brexit, will he look down the microphone, look to the camera, look to the people and tell them what he would choose — no deal or no brexit? i would choose what this house is seeking for, i believe with good will, a compromise in which we can secure the will of the people, and at the same time protectjobs and the economy.

the fear of my constituents — and i have to say of me as well — and i think many on this side of the house, is that warm words really butter no parsnips. and the right honourable gentleman, in his pursuit of political instability through a general election, is prepared to sacrifice those jobs and that economic opportunity which both he and i hold dear, he is prepared to sacrifice that on the altar of party politicking. i'm somebody who voted remain and i'm in a leave constituency. this deal isn't bringing this house together. it's not bringing the benches opposite together. it's not bringing the country together. would the honourable gentleman agree with me that there has to be a better way than this? "what, what?", chorused conservative frontbenchers, throwing their hands up and demanding labour set out a detailed alternative. the longest continuously serving mp, the father of the house, ken clarke, stepped in. am i right in understanding that, essentially, he agrees with me that we should stay in the customs union and actually collaborate with european partners on international trade deals? and secondly, he said, "collaborate

with the single market", which i don't quite understand. now... there's no country in the world where you can have an open border between two countries unless they have a customs union and they have regulatory convergence. now, is he advocating that? because i think that not only solves the irish border problem, it eases the economic consequences of leaving the european union to a considerable extent. i thank the father of the house for the intervention. let's make it clear that what we're saying, one is a permanent customs union. but yes, we want to make sure that we have a future say which reflects the strength of our economy and the size of our economy in future trade deals. secondly, yes, we want that close, collaborative relationship in the single market, which we believe we can achieve. but then also, we want the protection, ongoing protection and regulations

with regard to employment, environment and consumer rights. that is the negotiating point which we wish to undertake now — if not in government, as a parliament. a senior conservative paid tribute to the prime minister. for her tremendous courage, her doggedness, her diligence, and her determination to arrive at a deal in the national interest. and i believe that she has achieved, in this withdrawal agreement, an essentially pragmatic compromise, which she rightlyjustifies as being a realistic conclusion of that which is possible. to conclude, mr speaker, i'm sure that there are many right honourable and honourable members on both sides of this house who remember lewis carroll's wonderful poem the hunting of the snark, which includes the following lines, which i believe are appropriate. "the principal failing occurred in the sailing, and the bellman, perplexed and distressed, said he had hoped, at least,

when the wind blew due east, that the ship would not travel due west! " mr speaker, to coin a phrase from a greater, kinder and more resolute period in our national life, "come, let us go forward together and settle this now." i disagree with this deal, because of where we are going. it is a failure of ambition. all of the brexit scenarios modelled by the treasury show gdp in 15 years's time to be lower, and lower still when the impact of ending free movement is modelled. so, it's time to stop pretending that ending free movement is a good thing. it is not. it is self—evidently economically damaging. a former brexit secretary turned to the prospect of no deal, which would mean the uk trading on world trade organisation rules. there are colleagues

on this side of the house who think it will actually be, in the long run, be the best because it's the freest in terms of the outcomes. and there are those who fear it as a complete disaster. and i think it's neither. it's absolutely neither. there's been enormous amounts of black propaganda about this proposal, about the world trade 0rganisation outcome. we've heard, a month or two ago, that the supplies of insulin would dry up. no, they won't. we talked to pharmaceutical companies, we talked to the nhs. they did their checks. no drugs will dry up. i am dismayed to follow the honourable member, right honourable member for haltemprice and howden, who spent 20 minutes not telling us a great deal. but he was at the heart, at the frontline of negotiation with the eu, and he left, he walked away from the challenge and now comes to decry the government and nearly every other option on the table, rather than, when he had the chance, coming up with a solution. and the honourable right member for uxbridge, i've seen in his place too. these were people who wanted

to leave and have walked away and now are not even content, even when we are leaving. a little earlier, the brexit secretary, steve barclay, told mps there is "not an absolute guarantee" that the uk will continue to be party to a0 trade deals signed by the eu with 70 countries. mr barclay made the comments after being asked by the mp who chairs the commons brexit committee to give assurances to businesses that trade agreements would continue to apply post—brexit. when he and oliver robbins appeared before the committee on monday, the question of the a0 or so trade agreements that we are party to because of our membership in the european union, relating to about 70 countries, and what's going to happen to them was raised. now, we were told that the eu has said they intend to inform those countries that they ought to interpret them as continuing to apply to the uk during the purposes of the transition, but mr robbins said it is not the same as a guarantee.

now, what assurance can he give to businesses that are trading under those arrangements in many parts of the world, when our own negotiators are saying there's actually no guarantee that they will continue to apply? he's right. we did explore this issue at the select committee. and the point there was the significant progress that has been made in the bilateral discussions that we're having with those countries. but he's right. it's not an absolute guarantee. that is the point that mr robbins made. but significant progress withdrawal is being made. —— but significant progress is being made. is president trump wrong when he says that the withdrawal agreement is a good deal for eu, but a bad deal for britain? i think president trump can justify his remarks himself, but what i do know... what i do know... what i do know is that the us ambassador, mr woodyjohnson, has recently said that britain is the perfect trading partner for the united states.

since the legal advice of the attorney general has proven that northern ireland is to consider gb as a third country, will the minister outline how our trade relationship will proceed if this dastardly and despicable deal manages to slip through? this is a good deal. it works for britain, and it's a very secure basis on which to provide the certainty through which our businesses can grow. can we have a little bit of honesty in this house? my honourable friend knows full well that as long as we remain in the backstop, we can talk as much as we like to the united states, but we cannot sign... we can sign an agreement with them, but we cannot implement an agreement with them, or indeed, anybody else as long as we remain in the customs union. so would my honourable friend just get up and say, "yes, that's true, actually"? i think that my honourable friend's

interpretation of the withdrawal agreement is slightly different from my own. for the first... the first thing i should say that the backstop is a hypothetical situation. it's not a situation... it's not a situation that the government intends to be in. let me repeat to the house, if we complete a free—trade agreement, the backstop falls away. it is not something which we intend to pursue. the minister insisted agreements could be signed, and they would kick in after the end of the implementation period, but a labour mp pressed the point. that the deal means that any trade deals that might be signed can't be implemented until we are out of the customs union and the single market. he just has to get up to the despatch box and say that is true.

i simply reject the premise of the honourable lady's question. it is absolutely clear — and it's stated absolutely clearly in the political declaration — that we are going to embark on negotiations with the eu, and we're going to conclude... and that is our principal objective, is to conclude a free—trade agreement with the eu before the end of the implementation period. you're watching thursday in parliament, with me, alicia mccarthy. the house of lords also spent most of the day discussing the prime minister's brexit deal. it was the second of three days of debate in which more than 180 peers are expected to take part. the conservative former cabinet minister lord hunt said those who rejected the deal were playing with fire. it was, he said, time to put party politics aside and back the deal. it must not be a question of who blinks first, we should not be blinking at all.

politics is always the art of the possible, that is why we should now embrace the british tradition of sensible and reasonable compromise which has stood us in such good stead for centuries. labour's former northern ireland secretary, lord murphy, said two years of "botched" negotiations had ushered in a free—for—all. many nationalists see brexit as a means by which we could have a united ireland. many unions see it by means as the union can strengthen even more. and all that's undermined the work of three decades. the problem for brexiteers, my lords, including my good friends in the dup is that they never had a proper plan of their own. and voters weren't told that in 2016, now it is crystal clear, they still don't have one. they charge the prime minister with a mandate to square and impossible circle and she has done her very best. but it is rightly unacceptable. a former northern ireland first

minister, lord trimble, said that if the deadlock led to the election of a jeremy corbyn government that would be a short—term problem. so we've got one side, a negative thing which is short—term, and the other hand we have got another negative thing, bigger negative thing which will be generational in its application. if we don't kill blackstock and this agreement now it's going to haunt us for years. decades, maybe even generations as well. no deal is completely unacceptable, the may deal is completely unacceptable. and when people turn around and say look, the british party are weary of brexit, theyjust want it over, that might be true for this minute but i tell you, when they face the consequences of brexit and see the impact on their lives, that will be forgotten in a flash. and there will be huge anger and they will turn to people in this house and the other and say

when the facts were on the table, why did you deny me the chance to become familiar with those facts and then express my opinion again? why did you take that from me and deny it to me? i am concerned as to what might happen if we have a second referendum. what could the result be? if the results were to be 52—48 remain, would the leavers be content? if the result is the same as last time, on what grounds are we remaining? this deal or another deal? and if we have got three questions on the ballot paper, what happens if all are rejected? well, the alternative seems equally unpalatable, another place will vote for general election and i can only view a second referendum as a further abdication of responsivity and a failure of political leadership.

for the most part, it seems to me it is the remainers who lost last time now seek another vote, obviously because they think they could win it but if memory serves me right, they thought they could win it last time too. if they were to have their vote and win it without another ghastly campaign i dare say, would it be because the electorate had failed to understand the argument a second time around? perhaps they will finally get it right the third time. my lords, i do fear the result but more than that i dread the process and the effect it would have on already divided society and i could not support that route. now the government's been urged to lift value—added—tax on e—books, to bring them into line with conventional, printed books, which don't incur vat. it follows a decision by the eu, to allow member states to equalise tax rates in this regard. a liberal democrat peer said blind and pa rtially—sighted people were currently

being discrimated against. there are hundreds of thousands of blind and partially sighted people in this country who rely on audio books or digital books whose print size they can alter. now that the eu has agreed that the anomaly whereby those products that charge 20% vat and the print books that the rest of us can rely upon are zero rated, now that that anomaly can be lifted it is clear that whether we remain in or leave the eu the discrimination against the blind and partially sighted can be removed. will he urge the chancellor to do so? here, here. the noble lord makes a forceful case for equalizing the vat rate on e publications and conventional publications. and he rightly says that on tuesday, the eu decided that countries now have the freedom to make that equalization and so we could now move to a zero rate instead of a standard rate

on e publications. and tuesday apparently was e vat freedom day. can i say to the noble lord that the professional publishers association are pursuing this with the chancellor and the treasury and on november 29 the financial secretary wrote back to the professional publishers association saying i quote, "the interest is argument and economic analysis are welcome to enable the government to determine the benefits and risks both for digital business and high street retailers associated with extending the vat to e publications" and i note the forceful arguments made by the noble lord to support that case. could my noble friend ask the chancellor to accelerate that tax cos it's not due to come in until april 2020 or put pressure on the established tech giants to make substantial payments to the public first until we have a property tax either the uk, eu or indeed at international level.

the chancellor welcomes suggestions for raising money and tax rather than the representations which he normally gets which is to spend more. it's indeed the case that at the moment we are planning to introduce the digital services tax in april 2020. and this is designed to bring 1.5 billion over the next four years. and it's targeted on the multinational companies operating in the digital sphere to make sure that they pay appropriate tax on the value they arrive from the uk business. it is seen to be an interim solution until we move to a global solution and the uk has taken the lead and 0ecd to secure that. i certainly like my noble friend's suggestion that we should move it ahead before 2020 and if we did that there may be resources that pay for some of the money me that we might lose from zero rate e publications. the minister there suggesting that bringing forward the tax on tech giants could help payfor scrapping vat on e—books.

the former foreign secretary, borisjohnson has made a "full and unreserved" apology to mps for failing to declare more than £52,000 in income. he was ordered to apologise by the committee on standards over his late declaration of book royalty payments. he made a brief statement to the commons. you will be aware mr speaker that the committee on standards published a report on nine payments mainly unexpected foreign royalties which i'm very sorry to say were recorded late on the register of members interests. i fully accept that the delay was a breach of the house's rules and that i'm grateful to the committee for recognizing that there was no intention to mislead the house and that i'd been completely transparent, i therefore offer the house of full and unreserved apology. well i'm very grateful to the right honourable

gentleman for what he said, and for the way in which he has said it. he has been very prompt and that is appreciated. finally: business questions is the time of the week when the leader of the house, andrea leadsom, tells mps what's coming up in the chamber in the next week or so and mps raise subjects they want to see debated. although brexit was mentioned, many mps were worried about christmas too. come the meaningful vote on tuesday we will have spent around 38 hours debating the deal on top of the hundreds of hours we've already spent it displays debating our exit from the eu. could the leader confirm that we will definitely rise on the 20th of december and return on the 7th ofjanuary, she'll notice there discussions around not quite christmas is canceled but maybe the date that we rise. yes, the house will rise on the 20th of december and return on that 7th ofjanuary. let's hope she's not going to be the grinch of the house who stole christmas and make sure christmas

becomes brexmas for the party members in this house and almost laughingly she has altered the business timetable for wednesday, i think we may be saying to those appearing for the poverty debate not to prepare for the debates. no one will believe for a minute it will be business as usual on wednesday, it's going to be chaotic crisis management kept up with mild panic and set up with a dollop of votes of confidence in the government. andrea leadsom said that the meaningful vote would go ahead next week, as announced. mr speaker, i think frankly we could all do with a little bit of christmas cheer in this place this week so i just like very briefly tell you about derek from murphy old, he lights up his house every year and he's raised over £40,000 for charity including the kirkwood hospice, it's really seeing seeing is believing in this case.

but i'm grateful to the honourable lady for chairing us all up but i'm grateful to the honourable lady for cheering us all up uncertainty i also love to see those houses where people have gone to enormous lengths to make them bright and friendly for the whole community. i do encourage colleagues to pop around to my office, we have a few christmas decorations up there as well. but probably nothing like as good as the ones in robin rhode and i pay tribute to her constituents for the excellent work they're doing in raising for charity. but one labour mp has something more than christmas cheer to discuss with the leader ofthe house. this is the first opportunity i have had to apologize to the house, the last time we were together in this room i said she flounced. i didn't realize that was a disrespectful or sexist term i used it and i apologize profoundly. well i'm really grateful to the honourable gentleman for his apology which is unnecessary, he'd already apologized to me privately, i have mr speaker been practicing my flounce, i'm not sure i perfected it yet.

something like that. i wasn't quite sure what a flounce was but anyway i know his daughters told him off so ijust like to put that on the record, we know when we see a bit of sexism coming. and it's time for me to disappear now, but dojoin me on bbc parliament on friday night at 11pm for our look back at the week at westminster. but for now from me, alicia mccarthy, goodbye. hello there. we are ending the week on a pretty turbulent note. some strong winds on the way to scotland. severe gales here could cause some problems. and as well as the very strong winds on friday in scotland, we'll also have some heavy rain around, particularly across south—west england, over the next few hours, and that could bring some localised

surface water flooding. the troublemaker is this developing area of low pressure. pressure continues to fall and the low pressure deepens, and that continues to strengthen the winds. now, the strongest winds will be going into the north of the uk, and you can see some of the heaviest rain will be trailing back across wales into south—west england. here, a0 millimetres of rain, and that could cause a few issues first thing friday morning. certainly, some big puddles on your morning commute across this part of the world. the winds will continue to strengthen as we go on through the next few hours. and there is a good chance if you're going out in the next couple of hours of seeing some pretty heavy rain around as well, but it won't be a cold start to the day. the winds will continue to strengthen to thrugh morning across northern ireland and then into scotland. this is where the strongest winds are going to come through, probably the strongest winds around midday, the early afternoon, with gusts around 70 to 80 miles an hour. could even top that in one or two of the very, very most exposed locations.

there'll be heavy rain as well. further south, our band of rain will continue to push eastwards across england, clearing friday. then we'll see some sunshine following and a few showers for western parts of england and wales to end the day. showers too for northern ireland. temperatures will be falling through the afternoon. seven to 10 degrees as that cooler air continues to work its way in. now, as far as the weekend goes, it will stay pretty wind and blustery, and we're looking at further showers around, particularly on saturday. it turns cooler on sunday, but with a bit more in the way of sunshine. here's a chart then to take us through friday night. those strong wind still buffeting scotland, it will take a while for those winds to ease down, and then we'll start to see the next system approaching from the west. so, this is the forecast for saturday. most of us will see at least some bright and sunny spells, but it's going to be a blustery kind of day, with showers moving in from the west and pushing eastwards as the day goes by. so it's one of those days where most of us will see at least a spell of rain. temperatures between nine and 13 celsius, so we're just about on the mild side of things. however, for the second

half of the weekend, as winds swith round more to a north—westerly, still with som showers knocking around, it's going to start to feel a little bit cooler than that. those showers are really quite likely to work into parts of north wales and parts of north—west england, particularly around cheshire, greater manchester and merseyside. and the temperature‘s going down. seven to 11 degrees your high on sunday. welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: asian stock markets recover, despite the arrest of a huawei executive and fears of a renewed us—china trade war. canada's prime minister says it's not political. there was no engagement or involvement in the political level in this decision because we respect the independence of ourjudicial processes. difficult but critical. mediators in the yemen peace talks say there's a long way to go. paris braces for another round of protests by the yellow vests movement. thousands of police and armoured vehicles are put on standby.

and the rescue mission for a sailor in one of the most remote spots on earth, adrift after a huge storm.