theresa may heads to europe — hoping for changes to rescue her brexit deal. the prime minister's been meeting the dutch and german leaders today, but the eu insists there'll be no renegotiation. the deal we have achieved is the best deal possible. it's the only deal possible, and so, we cannot... there is no room whatsoever for renegotiation. we'll have the latest from brussels, berlin and westminster. also this lunchtime: police arrest an intruder who jumped over railings to get into the grounds of parliament wages rise at their fastest rate for almost a decade. six migrants are rescued from a dinghy in the channel. the bank that likes to say no — barclays helps customers block their own cards to break addictive habits and new evidence that even antarctica's most stable

glaciers are now melting. and coming up later in the hour in the sport on bbc news: a big night for liverpool and tottenham in the champions league. napoli and barcelona stand in their way. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. theresa may has embarked on a whirlwind tour of european capitals as tries to rescue her brexit deal. the prime minister has been meeting the dutch and german leaders, amid warnings from her own backbenchers that she'll need to win significant changes if her deal is ever to get through the house of commons. later, she'll meet the president of the european commission, jean—claude juncker, who's already said there is ‘no room whatsoever‘ for renegotiation.

our europe correspondent, damian grammaticas, has our first report. it's something the eu may never have seen — it's something the eu may never have seen — a it's something the eu may never have seen — a british prime minister in trouble at home seeking help in her hour of need. first up, the netherlands. can she come back with anything that will appease the seething discontent backcombed? at this late stage, a charm offensive may not be enough to secure real changes to the deal on offer. all the dutch prime minister would say is that their breakfast had been useful. from there it was onto her next stop, but at every turn, the prime minister appears stuck. political gridlock at home, and here in berlin, even her car door refused to open. a fundamental problem, she

has a to open. a fundamental problem, she hasa agreed... to open. a fundamental problem, she has a agreed... the uk'sjunior brexit minister was in brussels with her new demands. the good morning. she wants additional legal reassu ra nces she wants additional legal reassurances that the uk cannot be permanently trapped in the irish backstop. that has been the issue all along. that is the issue that is at the heart of concerns expressed by many members of parliament. eu countries say that mrs may agreed a year ago to the idea of special terms for northern ireland after months of haggling and drafting, the negotiations are over. translation: we have put so much time and effort into something that we in berlin and brussels don't want. nobody wants the uk to lead. now there will be further talks, but i can't imagine where we can substantially change anything. we can't reopen what have been tough negotiations, hard for the eu 27 in the uk. instead, the eu

says it can give reassurance, perhaps a document saying ideally, hopefully, the backstop will never be used. there is no room whatsoever for renegotiation, but of course, there is room if used intelligently, there is room if used intelligently, there is room enough to give further clarifications and further interpretations. mrjuncker will be the last on the prime minister's whistle—stop tour. they are preparing for a summit of eu leaders here this week, they will try to help mrs may in her predicament but won't write to her rescue. —— ride to her rescue. our berlin correspondent isjenny hill. what, if anything, what, ifanything, can what, if anything, can angela merkel offer theresa may? not a great deal, i think, and commentators will no doubt in view those scenes outside the chancellery with heavy

symbolism, as theresa may was momentarily unable to get out of her car to greet mrs merkel, who was stood on the red carpet waiting for her. the two women did embrace warmly. mrs merkel will give the british prime minister some lunch, we understand, and i gather that on the table are talks about possible assurances on the backstop. it is very wishy—washy and my understanding is that there is nothing concrete on an agenda for the two women to discuss, and i suppose that is because when you talk to people behind the scenes who have been dealing with brexit in berlin, for example, a government source i spoke to last week you get the same kind of answer. this chapter, we've done our bit, we think, try to give what was wanted, negotiated, came up with the deal. as far as we're concerned, it is game over. there is little enthusiasm in berlin for mrs merkel to begin offering any kind of concessions. mrs merkel herself would say it is up to the eu as a whole to negotiate those

concessions. but there is no appetite whatsoever for that year. there is a great deal of concern about the possibility of a no—deal brexit. business in germany is worried about that. the government is starting to try and prepare for that. perhaps it is best summed up in the words of the german europe minister, who said this afternoon, i hope they will wish each other, mrs may and mrs merkel, a merry christmas, because that's all there is to talk about today. jenny, thank you very much indeed. here, some conservative backbenchers have renewed their demands for mrs may to step down or face a leadership challenge. opposition parties have called on labour to force a vote of no confidence in the government, but labour says now is not the right time. downing street says the prime minister will take her brexit deal back to the commons for mps to vote on it before january 21st. our assistant political editor, norman smith, is in westminster. so norman, she has a few weeks' breathing space. a little bit, but really, mrs may

doesn't have many cards left the play. the only two she really has oui’ play. the only two she really has ourtime and fear. play. the only two she really has our time and fear. time in the sense that mrs may seems to be running the clock down to brexit day, because although number ten say the meaningful vote will be held before the 21st of january, the chances are it may not be held until the second oi’ it may not be held until the second or third week of january, it may not be held until the second or third week ofjanuary, which would only leave eight weeks till we actually quit the eu, not enough time really promises made's critics to fashion a plan b, an alternative strategy, which is when mrs makin play the fear card. the fear for mps is that if then they vote down mrs may's deal, the only other choices around could well be either no deal oi’ around could well be either no deal or no brexit, and the hope of mrs made's team will be that brexiteers will shy away from possibly losing

brexit and so will gravitate towards a deal, and former remainers will wa nt to a deal, and former remainers will want to avoid no deal and so might back her deal. so this morning, it seemed to me, cabinet ministers after the travails and trauma of yesterday are sounding a little bit more upbeat here. amber rudd, returning from the gym, i think. the prime minister has got my full support, as she has the cabinet, to try and improve the withdrawal agreement so that we can get this agreement through parliament. it's really important we deliver on what the people have asked us to do. we have one deal, it's on the table, i really hope we can get it through parliament. she's not going to get any improvements, is she? don't be a pessimist — let wait and see. she's putting everything she's got into this, and i think she deserves our full support to try to do that. thank you. the danger in playing the time card as you give an opening for your critics to move against you. the signs are, tory brexiteers are trying to renew their efforts to

oust mrs may, in the belief that she cannot and will not strike a better deal, that she will go to brussels and will come back with someone words, soft furnishings and scented candles around her deal to make it look a bit nicer, but fundamentally it will be the same deal. so, this morning, we heard from steve baker, one of the leading brexiteers in effect telling tory mps to get back to their desks, start writing those letters demanding a contest. this vote being deferred is a sign that the deal was simply too bad to put before parliament, it was going to fail by a considerable margin. so, what i want to happen today, i'm afraid, is for colleagues to wake up to the reality that theresa may can only lead us to failure and, therefore, with great sadness, people need to put their letters of no confidence in her to sir graham brady, and we need to change prime minister. ben, i don't know if you have watched the children's programme

stingray when you were young, but they had the famous catchline: anything can happen in the next half an hour. it feels a bit like that with brexit sometimes. thanks, norman. as we've been hearing, the question of preventing a new physical border in ireland with the so—called backstop is perhaps the most controversial part of the prime minister's deal with brussels. the democratic unionist party says the withdrawal agreement leaves northern ireland following different rules to the rest of the uk. but some parties in northern ireland want the insurance policy of the backstop, and businesses there are keen to avoid new barriers to trade. here's our ireland correspondent, chris page. it's difficult to tell where it is, but it's easy to see how it's affected the brexit process. the irish border has been the most difficult issue for negotiators to resolve. the sticking point is the backstop, an arrangement to ensure there will be no checks on the land

frontier, even if trade talks aren't successful. under the backstop, there would be some checks on goods coming across the irish sea from great britain into northern ireland, because this part of the uk would continue to follow rules of the eu single market. mps argue that would mean the united kingdom would not be so mean the united kingdom would not be so united, one of the main reasons why this deal has run into so much political trouble. whether they transport products by land, sea or air, businesses say they need uncertainty to enter. the boss of this haulage firm said the lack of clarity is crippling. the politicians have displayed themselves in a very poor light, and oui’ themselves in a very poor light, and our confidence in them as decision—makers at this time is at an all—time low. we run a business. if we did it as they run parliament, we would be out of business. most political parties era post brexit, as did 56% of voters in the referendum. four parties who

campaigned to remain have come together with the messyjob back the backstop. -- with the message of backstop. -- with the message of back the backstop. we have to wait amid instability. some would say a deal would be more reachable. amid instability. some would say a dealwould be more reachable. the uk government is there to put our case. northern ireland's biggest party has a bigger slogan — bin the backstop. the dup, whose ten mps keep theresa may in power, says she has to radically strange —— change strategy. she did the same last week with the legal opinion. up to the last minute, she resisted it, got a bloody nose as a result from parliament, and then gave in. and she seems to be doing the same again. the disagreements, debates and disputes have been going on for

two and a half years, but this border is still the biggest barrier on the road to brexit. so, what are theresa may's options now? and what could her opponents in parliament do to try to control events? our reality check correspondent, chris morris, is here. well, there was supposed to be a vote in parliament today but now, as we all know, there isn't one. and this is where we've got to. theresa may is talking to individual eu leaders to find out how or if they might be able to help. later this week, on thursday and friday, there's an already scheduled summit of all eu leaders, and brexit is back on the agenda. so the big question, will the eu agree to tweak the deal in a way that will help the prime minister get it through the house of commons? changing the legally binding withdrawal agreement itself looks extremely unlikely, but maybe additional promises could be made, a formal declaration or statement saying that no one intends that the irish backstop should ever come into effect. tweaks to the non—binding political

declaration on future relations are also a possibility. will it be enough? well, if there was a delayed vote in parliament — either before or probably after christmas — we'd find out. and if the deal was approved, which still looks like a big ask, then, the withdrawal agreement would have to be turned into uk law and ratified by the european parliament as well. but it means we'd likely be heading here, leaving the eu with a deal in march next year and entering a transition period. but if the deal was rejected or no vote took place, well, the default position is down there, leaving the eu with no deal at all. the warnings about what that could mean are becoming grimmer by the date. a lot of people will try very hard to avoid it. which leaves us with a host of potential options here which could be filling all three screens within a few days. could mps suggest an alternative future deal which enjoys a majority

in the house of commons? should we expect a new prime minister or a new general election, or another referendum, sending the deadlock in politics back to the people? could that lead to no brexit at all? all of these options are full of complications and would take time and, in truth, no one knows what's going to happen next, because brexit has made all the old certainties disappear. a man is being held by police after apparently trying to break into the grounds of parliament. an eyewitness told the bbc the man jumped over railings before being detained. our political correspondent, alex forsyth, is there. alex, tell us what happened. reports started emerging just before midday that a man had tried to gain access to the houses of parliament and then images and some video footage

appeared on social media of a man a p pa re ntly appeared on social media of a man apparently being detained by police just inside carriage gates, here. while later, the metropolitan police issued a statement in which they said a man been arrested at this location on suspicion of trespassing ona location on suspicion of trespassing on a protected site. that was around 11:55am. he was inside the palace of westminster and a taser was this ploy -- westminster and a taser was this ploy —— was deployed. security at this location was significantly stepped up after the westminster bridge attacks last year, but scotla nd bridge attacks last year, but scotland yard says that this incident today is not being investigated by the metropolitan police counterterrorism branch. alex, thank you very much. wages are rising at their fastest pace for nearly a decade. official figures show average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, climbed 3.3% in the three months to october. the number of people in work also rose to a record high, as our economics correspondent, andy verity, reports.

this branch of an american engineering company in telford makes precision parts for manufacturers in everything from prosthetic limbs to aircraft. it employs 400 people, and it's got a0 vacancies it's struggling to fill. if it's going to expand as quickly as it wants to, it can't skimp on wages. particularly in those areas where we need to have high skilled people, people who are really skilled in the art and who are mastering the class, there you basically pay the upper level of the market rate. for the ones less skilled, you basically get across with market wages. however, the wages have been increasing over the last couple of years, ahead of inflation. with record numbers of people in work, a shortage of staff, both skilled and unskilled, is one reason pay is now rising i% faster than prices. i think we've got another really good set of figures in terms ofjobs, we've got more people in employment now than ever before,

the employment rate is at a record high, the rate of women in employment is at a near record high, and youth employment has almost halved since 2010. —— youth unemployment. what's also really pleasing is, for the ninth month in a row, we are seeing wages outpace inflation. the average pay rise works out at £16 a week, taking the average pay packet to £495 a week. now, if your glass is half full ahead of christmas, you'll say that's the best pay packet we've had since 2011. if your glass is half empty, though, you'll say we're no better off than we were in 2011. expanding companies who can no longer count on taking on new people to meet the orders coming in are being forced to find other ways to produce more — otherwise their growth will be held back. what companies will need to do is invest more in capital, in machinery, and with the current uncertainty, they are more reluctant to do that, and they'll also need to train staff a little bit better so that they become more productive. with benefits frozen but pay

rising against inflation, the incentives to earn more are strong — vacancies are now increasingly filled by people from stay—at—home mums or dads to pensioners, who haven't previously been looking for work. andy verity, bbc news. coastguards have picked up six more migrants trying to cross the channel from france on a small boat. the overloaded dinghy was spotted in the early hours by a bbc film crew on board a fishing boat. since the beginning of november, at least 118 migrants have attempted to get to britain in a similar way. colin campbell watched the rescue. we spotted the inflatable dinghy at around 2am, halfway across the english channel. motoring from france to the kent coast. the rnli are on their way, but at

the moment the boat is heading in the moment the boat is heading in the wrong direction, heading towards folkestone when it should be trying to make the shortest route towards dover. the water at the moment appears to be going into the back of the dinky but they are continuing, not stopping. it is a desperate race to try to get to the uk for these people. the rnli and the borderfor saihi to rescue the migrants in their dinghy. we have pursued them for about an hour and we we have pursued them for about an hourand we are we have pursued them for about an hour and we are about two miles from dover, where they are being safely rescued. in the last three months, more than 100 migrants have made the treacherous crossing. it is 20 past one. our top story this lunchtime: theresa may meets the dutch and german leaders, to try to win concessions over her brexit deal, but the president of the european commission says there's no chance of a renegotiation. it isa it is a deal we have achieved, it is the best possible, it is the only

deal possible. and so we cannot... applause promise any room whatsoever for a renegotiation. and coming up in sport on bbc news, the tribunal that could change athlete funding in the uk asjess varnish makes her claim for wrongful dismissal against british cycling. the father of murdered british backpacker grace millane has visited the place where her body was found, on the outskirts of auckland. david millane took part in a traditional maori blessing ceremony alongside grace's uncle and members of the new zealand police force. a 26—year—old man has been charged with her murder. more from our correspondent in auckland, hywel griffith. asimple, a simple, spontaneous memorialfor grace on the banks of this lake in

new zealand's south island. backpackers joined local people for the first of several vigils. among them was joshua, a the first of several vigils. among them wasjoshua, a friend of grace's brother, who plan to meet up with a 22 which? during her travels. brother, who plan to meet up with a 22 which? during her travelslj brother, who plan to meet up with a 22 which? during her travels. i wish i was there for her and them right now. i was there for her and them right 110w. “ i was there for her and them right now. -- the 22-year-old. i thought of her like a little sister as well. iam of her like a little sister as well. i am obviously glad that everyone is showing so much support. greece disappeared on december the 1st, but what started as a missing persons inquiry became a murder investigation. —— grace disappeared. a 26—year—old man from auckland is on remand accused of killing her. herfather on remand accused of killing her. her father david visited the woodland near auckland where she was found, thanking officers for their work and taking part in a maori blessing on the damp, disturbed soil where grace's body lay. the dense undergrowth may still hold

clues of exactly how she came to be here. officers have asked the public to help them find a shovel they believe is linked to her death. grace's body was found buried near to year. although it has been removed the investigation is very active. police are looking for any signs of disturbance, anything left behind. news of her murder has left a genuine, palpable sense of shock. people who didn't know her still feel a connection. i have two daughters the same age, one of my daughters the same age, one of my daughters was backpacking 18 months ago. and i know how i felt, i was absolutely terrified. and ijust can't imagine what this poor family is going through. new zealanders are desperate to show grace's family and the world how much they care about a daughter who died so farfrom home. the second phase of the grenfell tower inquiry, examining the wider causes of the fire, has been delayed. the public inquiry heard this morning that it won't begin

until next autumn at the earliest. 72 people died in the disaster in june last year. helena lee reports. it's nearly 18 months since the fire at grenfell tower in west london took the lives of 72 people. the public inquiry, led by sir martin moore—bick, was set up to establish the facts around what happened. recommendations will also be made to prevent a similar tragedy ever happening again. but the families affected have had to endure months of delays. the first phase of the inquiry is only now coming to an end. it was expected to finish by easter. this morning, during closing statements, it emerged that further delays were likely to happen. the second phase isn't expected to now start until autumn 2019 at the earliest. the bereaved and the survivors, and the public at large,

need you to make the most robust and decisive factual findings and recommendations that you can on the evidence, so that the criminal and civil liability of those responsible for the grenfell tower atrocity can be determined by others as soon as possible. rajiv menon qc represents behailu kebede, whose flat was where the fire started. having heard the evidence, the inquiry must set the record straight and unequivocally declare that mr kebede bears no responsibility, directly or indirectly, for the outbreak of the fire in his kitchen, its spread, and its fatal consequences. the second phase of the inquiry will examine the refurbishment of grenfell tower, and if certain materials used helped the fire spread. but with that now delayed, the families, for now, will prepare to mark a year and a half since the disaster. helena lee, bbc news.

barclays has become the first high street bank to allow its customers to block certain types of spending on their debit cards. the aim is to help people who are struggling with debt or addiction. our personal finance correspondent simon gompertz is with me. interesting idea, how would it work? customers could set this up over the phone or in branch, but i think for most of them it will be on their smartphones, with the barclays app they will have a menu giving them they will have a menu giving them the option to deselect certain categories of spending, like in supermarkets, for instance, or in pubs or restaurants or expensive websites and premium rate phone lines and, importantly, gambling. then those transactions would not go through once they use their debit ca rd through once they use their debit card for them. gambling is crucial,

some start—up banks already offer this service but barclays is the first amongst the high—street banks to do gambling and these other areas. how has it gone down with charities that help people with gambling addictions? they have given it the thumbs up. well, as the charity that commissions most treatment for problem gambling in this country, we welcome this. we'd like to see it go further, we'd like to see a delay before you can turn the functionality off, and also better information about where to go for help. and certainly by the end of next year, i'd like to see all banks doing the same, but with the full functionality. and i think we're going to see a lot more of this, notjust and i think we're going to see a lot more of this, not just switching and i think we're going to see a lot more of this, notjust switching off spending altogether, for instance we could see cash limits introduced for certain sectors, so you might be able to say i will not spend more than £50 in pubs and restaurants this month, that is the direction we are going. thank you, simon. scientists at nasa say they've detected the first significant signs of glaciers melting in east antarctica. the region had been considered stable, compared with some of the more dramatic changes elsewhere on the continent. but now satellites show that ice

streams into the ocean are speeding up, threatening dramatic consequences for future sea levels. navtesh johal reports. in one of the most remarkable landscapes on earth... we're about to get a tidal wave! ..change is afoot, and it's worrying scientists. it's been known for years that climate change is causing warmer ocean water in west antarctica to eat into glaciers like this one, the giant thwaites glacier. but a new nasa study shows that east antarctica, which was supposed to be stable, is now beginning to feel the impact too. we've known for some time that parts of antarctica are losing ice into the ocean, causing sea level—rise. nasa has now reported that another eight glaciers in a different part of antarctica are also losing ice. this is an effect of the ocean is changing in their temperature and taking warm water to the antarctic ice sheet and causing it to melt.

the agency is going through huge numbers of satellite images to spot subtle changes in ice streams. the data shows that the surfaces of a group of glaciers in the east have dropped in height by almost three metres since 2008. before then, no changes at all had been observed. nasa scientists presenting theirfindings in washington dc believe ocean temperatures in the region began rising in 2010. it is expected that warmer waters will continue making their way towards the east as weather patterns change. the biggest cause for concern is that sea levels around the world could rise by up to 28 metres if these glaciers keep melting, and that will have a massive impact far beyond here. navtejjohal, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's helen willets. getting more chilly for the

short—term, but possibly changes as the mild atlantic air battles in later in the week. at the moment we have the rather benign feeling weather, the morning fog as we have seen in york replaced with beautiful sunshine in lincolnshire. but actually the bigger picture across the uk has lots of cloud in it, especially in the west, and the atlantic weather system is pushing into northern ireland, but all the time it is pushing into high pressure it will weaken. the rain here looks quite dominant but it will become much wea ker dominant but it will become much weaker as the weather front comes in through the night. chilly in the east, remaining so overnight, we could have a touch of frost under the starry skies, but with the southerly