this is bbc news. i'm martine croxall. the headlines at 11: tear gas and rubber bullets have been used to break up crowds of anti—government protestors in paris. 126 people have been injured, including several police officers. they have been pushing them up and down the street all morning and li tingshen is starting to rise. —— and the tension is starting to rise. a plan b for brexit? amber rudd becomes the first minister to openly discuss alternatives to the prime minister's deal. what happens if it is voted down and anything could happen. there are lots of different things that could happen, most of which they don't wa nt to happen, most of which they don't want to happen. so when they think about this deal they happy way up the alternatives as well. —— they have to weigh up the alternatives. meanwhile, the conservative mp will quince has resigned from the government, saying he "cannot support" the prime minister's withdrawal agreement. police in new zealand are to charge a 26—year—old man with the murder of british backpacker grace millane, who went missing in auckland last week. sadly, the evidence we have a bit

has established that this is a homicide. —— we have gathered. white house chief of staff john kelly is to leave donald trump's administration at the end of the year. and at 11:30 we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers. good evening and welcome to bbc news. there's been more violence in paris today after riot police clashed with protestors for the fourth weekend in a row. tear gas, water cannon, and armoured vehicles were used as thousands of the so—called yellow vest protesters took to the streets, with cars and barricades set alight. the "yellow vest" movement began in opposition to a rise in fuel tax, but ministers say it's been hijacked by ultra—violent protesters. from paris, lucy williamson reports.

they called it a protest. at times it looked more like a game of urban war. groups of protesters fanned through the capital's streets today. from the arc de triomphe to republique, boulevards once built to open the veins of the city filled with tear gas, burning vehicles and riot police. on the champs—elysees this morning, the mood was largely peaceful. protesters arriving here from across france caught up inafamiliardance of conflict with police. police are just pushing the protesters back down out of this side street onto the champs—elysees. they've been pushing them up and down this street all morning and the tension is starting to rise. the police were well prepared for this confrontation, with armoured vehicles, new tactics, and bag searches — seizing gas masks and helmets and anything that could be used against police. the tear gas, far stronger

than usual, took many protesters by surprise. and rapid reaction squads marked out by orange armbands were stationed among the protesters to spot trouble and make early arrests. translation: we have to stay vigilant because there are still rioters out there. thank you to everyone who called for peace. now is the time for dialogue and to reunite the unity of the nation. that dialogue has already begun and must continue. despite the violence of previous protests, this movement still has the backing of many voters in france. its members proud of their lack of leadership and the diversity of their support. sylvie is a far—left supporter. herfriend, christophe, is a fan of the far—right. they say the gilets jaune have united different people against president macron. translation: that is what macron does not like, that we are united.

he has brought back solidarity among the french. we are united in combat for now. after that, who knows? but this movement is already splintering into two kinds of protest — one that looks towards a new political programme and a violent wing, opposed to any negotiation. it is hard to exclude and even harder to control. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. amber rudd, the work and pensions secretary, has become the first government minister to openly discuss an alternative brexit strategy, if the prime minister's deal is rejected in the commons on tuesday. she said she still supported theresa may's withdrawal agreement but it could be chaotic if mps didn't back the plan. she said a so—called "norway plus" option or another referendum would both be possibilities in such a situation. our political correspondent iain watson reports. you know what it's like in the run—up to christmas. you'll be told that great deals are available,

but you'll be tempted to wait for the january sales. and one cabinet minister is telling mps that if they don't like the prime minister's brexit deal, then a different one could come onto the market. amber rudd supports theresa may's deal. she says it's the best option, but if it is defeated... if the house is not going to support no deal, it needs to come forward with an alternative deal. and i have seen that there is a lot of support for norway plus in the house of commons, there is a certain amount of support for a people's vote. nobody knows what would happen. people should think very clearly, if they are not going to vote for the government's withdrawal agreement, whether they would prefer those alternatives. so what does she mean by norway plus? like norway, the uk would be outside the eu but with access to the single market. we would have greater control of our agriculture and fishing industries. and the "plus" bit — unlike norway, we would be inside the customs union, or something very like it,

to avoid a hard border in ireland. but there would be fewer restrictions on freedom of movement and we would pay into eu budgets. you don't need me to tell you that we are living in extraordinary political times — and here is another example. cabinet ministers are expected to sing from the same hymn sheet, and notjust at this time of year. yet amber rudd is speaking openly about the defeat of her own government and setting out her preferred plan b. now, she doesn't want the prime minister to resign but theresa may's authority is looking less deep rooted. but some senior conservative figures say we don't have to be like norway or have another referendum if theresa may's deal is defeated. instead, we could leave the eu without a fully—fledged deal. we should seek to put in place some ad—hoc temporary arrangements with the agreement of the european union which would minimise and perhaps even eliminate any disruption at the border on the 30th of march next year. there's not much festive cheer at westminster. the prime minister and amber rudd say the brexit deal

will bring certainty. but some sceptical conservative mps believe pushing on with next week's vote would simply be a gift to the opposition. iain watson, bbc news, westminster. iain watson reporting. and iain has been giving me more details on the impact of another resignation tonight. just at the very time, this crucial weekend before the vote, that the prime minister needs people coming their way, it seems to be going if anything slightly in the other direction. tonight a ministerial aide has resigned, colchester mp will quince, no offence to him, not even a household name, no offence to him --. even a household name, no offence to him ——. this is only at the start of his ministerial career, 35 years old, a leader voter, pretty loyal, and he is not investing his future in theresa may. there is speculation that others at that level might be considering resigning as well. against that kind of backdrop it is unsurprising that ministers are now

talking more openly about what should happen if on tuesday the prime minister goes down to a defeat. what is particularly interesting about the amber rudd intervention is this, usually the idea of a —— another referendum or a norway option is used to get other ministers into line, amber rudd is saying it may not be a desirable option, but it is plausible. iain watson. police in new zealand are preparing to charge a 26—year—old man with the murder of the british backpacker grace millane. grace was last seen in auckland a week ago. police say there's evidence she's dead but her body has yet to be found. simonjones reports. described by her family as lovely, outgoing, fun—loving. tonight, in grace millane's hometown in essex, people came together. ...to pray for the repose of the soul of grace millane. shock that her disappearance is being treated as murder. this is very, very sad. devastating for the family, obviously, and friends. many of the young people

in our parish knew her. some went to school with her and went on school journeys with her. so it will affect the parish really very badly. despite an extensive search, police have now reached this conclusion. the evidence we have gathered to this point in the inquiry has established that this is a homicide. grace's family have been advised of this development and they are devastated. police say a 26—year—old man will be charged with her murder when he appears in court on monday. grace arrived in new zealand last month and had been staying at a backpackers' hostel in auckland. she was last seen last saturday night entering a hotel in the city with a male companion, who the police say had been with her during the evening. detectives have released pictures ofjewellery they believe grace had with her — this necklace and a distinctive pink watch that are both missing from her possessions and could help them find her body. here at the catholic church

in wickford, special prayers will be said for grace at services throughout the weekend. a moment of contemplation to mark a young life cut short. we have been extremely concerned for her welfare... grace's father had flown to new zealand to plead for help infinding her. now he needs to know where her body is. the police say they will do everything they can to return her to the family. simonjones, bbc news, wickford. i've been speaking to gill higgins from tv new zealand in auckland, who told me what officers were saying about the suspect. basically where they just said he basically where theyjust said he is a 36—year—old man who was seen entering that city like apartment with grace on the saturday night. we don't even know when they met that night, it seems that the last cctv image of her before that was in a burger bar in a place called sky city and then it does not appear, they have not said, that he was with a bent —— 26 your old man. that was

a bent —— 26 your old man. that was a two—hour gap. she bitterly met him, they do not say how she met him, they do not say how she met him, they do not say how she met him, they have footage of him leaving department. we don't know whether the car belongs to him. that isa carof whether the car belongs to him. that is a car of interest. they believe that car was used to transport grace ‘s body somewhere. that is a part of their enquiry now, don't detract that movement of the car on the sunday and looking at dna, fingerprints evidence, clothing fibres, to try to get more information about where grace's body will be. there was a nationwide appealfor information will be. there was a nationwide appeal for information before the homicide announcement. what other information are police hoping to find? sorry, just say that question again. there was a nationwide appeal for information before the homicide announcement for the public, what more do they need to hear from people? i think that the key is that they really want to find grace's body. they have their suspect now

and they believe that returning her body to the of utmost importance. for that they need to trace where this car has been. we have not been given details of what that car looks like. perhaps they will issue a photo of the car on monday morning, which is when they will hold their next press conference. they have released images of the necklace and watch, as you mention. we think that is because they are trying to track anything done that might lead them to her body. what has the reaction beenin to her body. what has the reaction been in new zealand from the public and also the coverage it has had in the media? the coverage has been extensive, because this is a really unusual situation for new zealand. we have a really low crime rate you. i think the latest figures say it is a miklik seven homicides per million. that is less than half it is in uk —— million. that is less than half it is in uk -- -- it is million. that is less than half it is in uk —— —— it is less than seven homicides. to have something happened like this in their home country is really horrific. that has been expressed on twitter, on

facebook, people talking about it all the time, all the time people are talking about this case. a lot of of the feeling is that there is a lot of heartache and trying to imagine what it's like —— what it is like for grace's beretts waking up to that news this morning. also a bit ashamed that this has happened here. people are apologising on behalf of all kiwis, they feel terrible about it. it is something that has really hit home for a lot of people you. gill higgins from tv new zealand. president trump has announced that his chief of staff, john kelly will be leaving by the end of the year. there have been persistent reports for several days that mr kelly had been under pressure to go. the retired marine general was homeland security secretary before becoming chief of staff in july 2017. here's president trump speaking about the time frame of mr kelly's departure. john kelly will be leaving... i don't know if i can say retiring, but he is a great guy. john kelly will be leaving at the end of the year. we'll be announcing who will be taking john's place — it might be on an interim basis. i be announcing that over

the next day or two, butjohn will be leaving at the end of the year. he has been with me almost two years now, as you know, between the two positions. our correspondent dan johnson is in washington with the very latest. it had always been a tough job for john kelly trying to impose discipline and consistency on a white house that has been marked by heavy turbulence and high staff turnover. john kelly was the man sometimes at the back of the room with his head in his hand as donald trump spoke off the cuff albeit from the script once again. now the job ofa the script once again. now the job of a chief of staff is to tell the president thinks he does not want to hear. we don't know yet who will replacejohn kelly, whether it will be someone who can stand up to the president. by the change—up? there isa president. by the change—up? there is a new challenge in the new year. there is democrat controlled house of representatives that needs a new. . . of representatives that needs a

new... his lawyer michael cullen, but implicating the president in those payments to two women who said they had affairs with the president and with the russian connections as well. divert and distract is a technique be resident has used before. dan johnson in washington. tear gas and rubber bullets have been used to break up crowds of anti—government protestors. more than 700 people have been arrested, with many others injured. the work and pensions secretary, amber rudd, has becomes the first government minister to openly discuss alternatives to the prime minister's brexit deal. meanwhile — another resigation — the conservative mp will quince has quit the government — saying he "cannot support" the prime minister's withdrawal agreement. and in new zealand detectives are to charge a man with the murder of the 22 —year—old british backpacker. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, hello.

we start with the premier league where it looks like there we could have a title race this season after manchester city were finally knocked off the top of the table. they were beaten 2—0 by chelsea with goals from n'golo kante and david luiz putting an end to city's 21—game unbeaten league run which stretches all the way back to april. chelsea's win also moves maurizio sarri's side into the top four. and that result alongside liverpool's win over bouremouth this afternoon makesjurgen klopp's side the new league leaders. a mo salah hat trick, his second for the club, paved the way for a 4—0 victory and leaves liverpool the only unbeaten side in the league this season. from the first second, really in the game. passing—wise, not, but was always on the line, wanting to help with runs in behind. that is massively important. so, i was really fine with the performance. and scoring three goals, obviously, is good for him and very important for us.

here's the rest of the results: tottenham are in third after a 2—0 win at leicester. manchester united had their first league win since october and biggest of the season, beating bottom club fulham 4—1. one other line and chelsea and the metropolitan police are investigating an incident of alleged racist abuse at today's game. it was seemingly directed at raheem sterling in the first half at stamford bridge. people in the front row were seen shouting at him as he went to collect the ball for a corner. kilmarnock‘s brief reign at the top of the scottish premiership came to a spectacular end today. they were beaten 5—1 by new leaders celtic. there were also wins for stjohnstone, hibs, hearts and livingston. england and scotland were drawn to face each other in their opening match of the women's world cup in france next year. japan and argentina complete the group for england and scotland,

who last played each other at a major tournament at the euros last year — when england were 6—0 winners. in rugby union's champions cup — glasgow had a huge win over lyon. but exeter‘s woes continue — one of the best in english rugby over the past three years — but they just can't seem to find form on the european stage. patrick gearey reports: exeter — as in westminster — europe's a tricky subject. why do the chiefs, one of the best teams in england, keep going out in the champions' cup group stages, especially when they are capable of rugby like this? don armand over, and it seemed exeter would dominate. but gloucester are a team of unexpected delights. meet ollie thorley. meet him only briefly if you try to tackle him. alex cuthbert eventually caught him. but by then, willi heinz was there to help. exeter came back, but the second half was gloucester territory. the numbers eventually told. jaco visagie's try established a lead that they never lost. for exeter, the exit

looms all too early. up in bath, it didn't feel particularly festive. 1,500 leinsterflags were confiscated for failing a health and safety test. you'd definitely struggle with a risk assessment if you are trying to get in the way of the european champions on a roll. sean cronin in the driving seat of the heavy machinery. that cancelled out a strong start by bath, who were still level when they opened the door forjordan larmour. he doesn't wipe his feet. from then on, bath were always chasing this. leinster, the favourites to win this competition, are showing no signs of flagging. patrick geary, bbc news. ronnie o'sullivan will play mark allen in the final of the uk snooker championship. the northern irishman hasjust edged past stuart bingham 6—5 in tonight's semi final. earlier defending champion o'sullivan breezed past tom ford six frames to one this afternoon in york to reach his eighth uk championship final — that gets under way from one

o'clock tomorrow afternoon. that's all the sport for now. six people have been killed in a stampede at a nightclub in northern italy. the crush happened in the early hours of this morning in the town of corinaldo near ancona on the adriatic coast. james reynolds reports: the blue lantern nightclub was packed for a rap concert. suddenly, at 1am, the air fills with what may have been pepper spray. translation: we were together. we started seeing everyone rush

towards the emergency exits. at the beginning we didn't understand why, but then we started to cough and thought there might be a fire or something, so we decided to leave. but at least one exit route was blocked. in the crush to get out of the club, a railing collapsed, causing dozens of party goers to fall. translation: since 3 this morning, we we re translation: since 3 this morning, we were close to the bodies and the relatives. we accompanied them here to the morgue. you can imagine it's beena very to the morgue. you can imagine it's been a very sudden thing. you cannot believe that it's true. the government has named the dead as teenagers between the ages of 1a and 16. and the 39—year—old mother of one of these victims was also killed. italy's interior minister says the authorities will find those responsible for turning a party night into a tragedy. china's foreign ministry has called on canada to release an executive

employed by the telecoms giant huawei or warned it would otherwise face consequences. meng wanzhou, the company's global chief financial officer, was arrested in vancouver last weekend and faces extradition to the united states. she's the daughter of huawei's founder and is accused of breaking american sanctions on iran. liverpool city council says that 2a asylum seekers who claimed they were children — after being sent to the city — have been found to be adults. the authority says another 15 asylum seekers should have been identified as children by the government, and accommodated in london instead. the authority now wants to recover over 650,000 pounds for supporting the children. a home office spokesman says age—disputed cases remain "a very challenging area". universal credit has been criticised for pushing people into unacceptable hardship, and now the bbc understands it will be rolled out in north kensington, just days before christmas, which could impact many of those affected by the fire

at grenfell tower. the welfare reform scheme combines six different benefits into one monthly payment but delays of up to five weeks have been blamed for rent arrears and a growing reliance on food banks. ashleyjohn—baptiste has more. maher has lived with polio since he was a child in syria. he moved to england a decade ago and lived in grenfell tower with his wife and three daughters. on the night of the fire, he hobbled down 13 flights of stairs through blackening smoke to escape with his family. they now live in this kensington flat, still struggling with the impact of the fire and with his disability, maher is out of work and receives employment support allowance. he is worried about the rollout of universal credit. the move will affect people

in the area who sign on from the 12th of december and existing claimants whose circumstances change. universal credit combines six different benefits and is paid monthly in arrears. people who switch to the scheme must wait five weeks for their first payment. but from next year, this will be reduced to three weeks. it's now been a year and five months since the grenfell tower fire but still, many locals continue to struggle rebuilding their lives and moving forward. it is against this backdrop that some question whether days before christmas is the right time to be rolling out universal credit. the mp for kensington has set up this new food bank in time for christmas.

she has written to the department of work and pensions asking them to stop the rollout. it is unthinkable, really. they're going to have another christmas now wondering whether or not they are going to be able to afford to buy food, let alone presents for their children. we have people coming to us were completely destitute, lost their home, they've been through the most horrific experience, may have lost family members and neighbours and friends, completely unsettled in their lives who are now destitute because of grenfell. we asked the government for an interview. they declined, but gave us this reply... in his budget speech last month, the chancellor pledged to spend an extra £1 billion in universal credit over the next five years. in recent months, however, the welfare scheme has been blamed for causing destitution and increased foodbank usage. antonio, who lived in the 10th

floor of grenfell tower, works in catering. although he doesn't plan to sign on, he is also critical. it is bad timing. when it comes to putting policies into place like this one, they should totally know the sense of reality, that's the right word, a sense of reality of what goes on in the normal life, in the normal world, in the normal working class people. louis vuitton, jimmy choo and gucci may be the staples of fifth avenue and new bond street but now brand—conscious shoppers in gloucestershire are to be given the chance to snap up a high—end bargain, courtesy of the local police. the gloucestershire force is set to auction a haul of 55 pairs of designer trainers, worth a staggering 20,000 pounds. the collection, seized from a man convicted of a gang—related shooting, includes a punk—style pair of studded high tops by christian louboutin. and we'll be taking an in—depth look

at the papers with our reviewers yasmin alibhai—brown and ruth lea — that's coming up after the headlines at 11:30. now it's time for a look at the weather with louise. it's been a windy and showery week, hasn't it? we still have strong winds and sharp showers, but high pressure is starting to build from the south—west, and at the same time, the isobars swing to a vertical, and that means the wind direction is changing, coming from a northerly or north—westerly direction. that will chase the nuisance weather front out of the way, so the showers will ease away, skies will clear, and we'll see some sunshine coming through. the risk of some isolated showers in north

wales, northern ireland, and maybe the western isles. so not as windy as the last couple of days, because cooler sort, that will make it feel noticeably cooler outside as well. 6-8 to noticeably cooler outside as well. 6—8 to the north. winds fall lighter still sunday night into monday morning, clear skies continue, so the blue tones denote temperatures below freezing in scotland and northen england, so a chilly start on monday morning, and as we go through monday, there should be lots of sunshine coming through. all the time, a little more in the way of cloud and a few light showers further west. but the coolest of the weather is likely to be on exposed north sea coasts, 11.5 degrees here, double figures down into the south—west. this is an indication of what is to come over the next few days — we've got this colder air

coming from the north sea, so eastern areas staying pretty chilly, but at the same time, milder air from the south—west, from the atlantic, trying to squeeze back in. and so that could bring more in the way of cloud, and a milder southerly wind out to the west, with frontal systems threatening, knocking on the door, but at the same time, the further east you are, the dryer conditions for a time, but cooler, 4-7 conditions for a time, but cooler, 4—7 degrees here, double figures out to the west. it does look as though the westerly wind direction may well win out in the middle part of the week. that will lift the temperatures, but produce the threat of snow to higher ground. take care.