this is the briefing. i'm sally bundock. our top story: a day before the crucial commons vote on her brexit deal, britain's prime minister warns mps not to play games. heavy snow claims more lives in the alps as parts of europe grapple with the worst winter weather for decades. a shocking attack on the mayor of gdansk, stabbed in front of thousands of people at a charity event in poland. and gearing up despite the pain — andy murray's on court later in what may be his last australian open. in business briefing, driving change — we'll bring you the latest from the north american auto show as carmakers adapt to shifting consumer tatses. —— tastes. a warm welcome to the programme,

briefing you on all you need to know in global news, business and sport. we have a packed programme for you today. also, faced with no seat on a plane, would you accept sitting on the floor during the flight just to be able to get home? that is what this family did. we will tell the story a little later. what you think about idea? —— what do you think of that idea? just use the hashtag #bbcthebriefing. it's set to be an extraordinary week in british politics. today, the prime minister, theresa may, will make a last—ditch attempt to persuade mps to back her brexit deal on the eve of the crucial vote in the house of commons on tuesday. she'll use a speech to warn that parliament is more likely to block brexit than let the uk

leave the eu without a deal. she'll also say that if the referendum result isn't honoured then trust in politics will suffer. our chief political correspondent vicki young reports. our cheap legal correspondence —— —— our chief political correspondent vicki young reports. she will travel to stoke—on—trent to make it final pitch. she says parliament is more likely to block brexit than allow britain to leave the eu without a deal that mps who have promised to respect the referendum result should get behind the plan. it was an argument used by the plan. it was an argument used by the brexit secretary as well. certainty in terms of what will happen has increased. they seek an ideological purity with that deal are read —— risking brexit. ideological purity with that deal are read -- risking brexit. they will now back the promise of what

they plan even though they are now unhappy with some elements of it. what is in the withdrawal agreement to reason they has negotiated with eu? it includes a divorce bill of around £39 billion. it outlines what happens to uk citizens living elsewhere in the eu, and eu citizens who are settled here. it lays out how to avoid the return of a typical border between northern ireland and ireland. the so—called axe top. will you win a confidence vote? they are not keen on another referendum either. my own view is i would rather get negotiated deal now if we can to stop the danger of a no deal exit from the eu on the 29th of march which would be catastrophic for industry, catastrophic the trade and a long—term effects of that would be huge. we will do everything we can to prevent a no deal exit. prospects are looking bleak for to reason may, but as mps can decide

what they want instead of her deal, she can he pushing her plan. david buik, who's a market commentator with the financial betting firm core spreads, joins me now. good morning. as vicky outlines, all to play for this week. gosh, and don't think anybody knows that we what will happen. what has increasingly clear it is very unlikely that prime minister may will win the vote tomorrow. there is a huge romp in the centre of it who are unhappy for various reasons, whether they are part of the no deal of all whether they don't want to leave europe at all and very carefullyjeremy corbyn who was speaking yesterday gave what i thought was a very incoherent explanation of how he, if there was a general election, would vote. i think what has happened and we don't know whether the european union has

a couple of cards up its sleeve, maybe the prime minister will bring to the commons this morning more clarification of the backstop. i don't think the european union will show its hand but i think it doesn't wa nt show its hand but i think it doesn't want a no deal under any circumstances to the degree that i think most people in this country do as well regardless whether you remain leave. what about the argument that if they don't vote with her plan, this could kill brexit altogether? i think there has any huge amount of skulduggery over the last 72 hours. we have seen not only the sunday times but the mail, sirjohn major wrote a brilliant article yesterday saying that we need to step back from the breach, we need to rescind article 50, we need to look at it andi article 50, we need to look at it and i think there is a growing opinion now that people are trying desperately hard to have this council altogether and i think the idea of heading towards another people's vote, obviously you have a lot of support for that, which you

can see that, but i think it is a poor idea because it throws democracy to the wind. you have had a vote where the people were jammed up a vote where the people were jammed up on the information or not, i don't accept that as an excuse at all. if you didn't know what you we re all. if you didn't know what you were doing, you shouldn't have voted. i don't like that idea at all. but i think the idea ofjust pushing on relentlessly when you have no endgame is absolutely ridiculous. we shall continue this conversation in half—an—hour, because you are back for the news briefing. he is back to talk through some of the key stories in the media today. this story certainly dominates today and this week. now, let's move on to other stories. three people have been killed and a fourth is missing after an avalanche near the austrian ski resort of lech. austria has been hit by record snowfall in the last week. there have been more than 20 weather—related deaths across parts of the alps so far this month. bethany bell reports. mountain regions in austria are used to snow, but this is extreme. days of heavy snowfall

are taking their toll. three skiers from germany were killed in an avalanche in lech. their bodies were found on a ski route that had been closed off because of the danger of avalanches. a fourth person is still missing. translation: we decided to cancel the search because it had become too dangerous. we know how the weather will develop, so we can probably initiate the search again on wednesday. the risk of more avalanches is very high. some ski resorts and mountain villages have had to be evacuated. other areas are snowed in. these firefighters near the town of kleinzell in central austria are working round the clock to clear snow from homes and buildings. the snow is very heavy and there's a real risk this roof could cave in. translation: it's quite dangerous work.

as you can see, all the men are harnessed because you can easily slip off while coming down. so, the risk is relatively high. driving conditions are treacherous. it's a struggle to keep the streets clear. underneath this white blanket is a tarmac road. this area hasn't seen this much snow in well over a decade. in neighbouring germany, the army has been brought in to help clear the roads, and people here are bracing themselves for more. heavy snow is forecast over the next few days. bethany bell, bbc news, near kleinzell in the austrian alps. at least seven people have died in severe winter storms in the us midwest. ten states and the capital, washington, have been affected by the snow storms, which stretch from colorado to the east coast. hundreds of flights have been cancelled and schools closed. let's take a look at other stories making the news.

a key republican ally of president trump, senator lindsey graham, has urged him to end the government shutdown temporarily to allow more time for negotiations. the shutdown is the result of a dispute with congressional democrats over funding for mr trump's border wall. a british iranian woman detained in iran is set to begin a 3—day hunger strike in protest at being denied medical care in prison. nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe was jailed in 2016 after being convicted of spying, something she denies. french president emmanuel macron has published an open letter to the people in an attempt to defuse the ‘yellow vest‘ protests that have rocked france for nine weeks. he has called for a nationwide debate until march to discuss the future of the country. a row has broken out in italy between the roman catholic church and the mayor of rome over what should happen to coins thrown by tourists into the capital's famous trevi fountain.

nearly $2 million in small change are scooped out each year and given to a catholic charity, but the local council has ruled that the city should take the money. the mayor of the polish city of gdansk has been seriously injured in a knife attack at a charity event. pawel adamowicz was stabbed on stage in front of thousands of people. he's been undergoing emergency surgery. kim gittleson reports. it was supposed to be a joyous event celebrating poland's biggest charity. then suddenly, a 27—year—old man rushed on stage and stabbed pawel adamowicz, the popular mayor of gdansk. as bystanders rushed to his aid, his attacker remained on stage, arms raised, shouting that he blamed

the mayor's former liberal party for wrongfully imprisoning him. mr adamowicz was resuscitated before being rushed to hospital. his condition remains unknown and an investigation is ongoing. translation: it's important for us right now to establish how it happened, how this man came so close to the mayor of gdansk. we know that he was using a press pass. we need to establish how he got hold of this press id and if he was allowed to be on stage. the most important question is what motivated him to commit such a dramatic act. mr adamowicz has been the mayor of gdansk for over 20 years, and he recently appeared in a video appealfor the event, which was in support of the great orchestra christmas charity. his stabbing has shocked poland. translation: all was great until we heard the disastrous news about the attack. it was shocking, unbelievable.

we don't know at the moment what the mayor's condition is, but we know something horrible has happened, a result of aggression and hatred. poland's interior minister said in a tweet that the attack was an act of inexplicable barbarity and vowed that it would be investigated. poland's prime minister and president also condemned the stabbing, adding that they hoped mr adamowicz would make a full recovery. kim gittleson, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: andy murray takes to the court for what could be his farewell match at melbourne park. day one of operation desert storm to force the iraqis out of kuwait has seen the most intense air attacks since the second world war. tobacco is america's oldest industry, and it's one of its biggest, but the industry is nervous of this report. this may tend to make people want to stop smoking cigarettes.

there is not a street that is unaffected. huge parts of kobe were simply demolished, as buildings crashed into one another. this woman said she'd been given no help and no advice by the authorities. she stood outside the ruins of her business. tens of thousands of black children in south africa have taken advantage of laws passed by the country's new multiracial government and enrolled at formerly white schools. tonight sees the 9,610th performance of her long—running play the mousetrap. when they heard of her death today, the management considered whether to cancel tonight's performance, but agatha christie would have been the last person to want such a thing. you're watching the briefing. our headlines: prime minister theresa may is set to make a last minute appeal

to pro—brexit mps today to support her deal with the eu on britain's departure. more heavy snowfall expected in the alps as parts of europe continue to grapple with the worst winter weather for three decades. the australian open is now under way in melbourne. and for many tennis fans all eyes will be on andy murray as this could be his last competitive tournament. he's been struggling since an operation on his hip and at a tearful news conference last week he said australia may be his final professional appearance. live now to phil mercer in melbourne. he is going to play in a few hours. i he is going to play in a few hours. , who is he playing and what is the likely outcome, do you think? andy murray takes to court in a couple of

hours time and takes on the spaniard roberto bautista agut. he does can teach —— can see that he is unlikely to win tonight, unlikely to win the tournament that he has so loved over the years and andy murray has been playing in almost constant pain for quite a few months now. he said hip surgery quite a few months now. he said hip surgery last year that he concedes that his career is coming to an end. the question of course for andy murray's fans, will he win tonight will continue if he loses? you would like to carry on and have his swansong at like to carry on and have his swa nsong at his like to carry on and have his swansong at his home slam in wimbledon but his surgeon says he is unlikely. of course, the big question is will actually happen. and as you said, he is determined to play through the pain. the press conference we saw, so

play through the pain. the press conference we saw, so emotional. one of britain's most successful modern athletes. he has appeared in several grand slam finals. he began playing tennis at the age of three. he is almost 32 years of age. not old in tennis circles. he is the same ages novak djokovic, who is the favourite for this year's event. u nfortu nately, for this year's event. unfortunately, andy murray's mind may be willing but his body is not and we are beginning the countdown to the end what has been a glittering career. and now the rest of the sport from the bbc sports centre. hello this is your monday sport briefing — away from the tennis, manchester united goalkeeper david de gea was immense making 11 saves in the second half on sunday as he helped his side to a 1—0 win over tottenham at wembley stadium.

ole gunnar solksjaer maintained his unbeaten start to his reign as caretaker manager with a 6th consecutive win since taking charge. marcus rashford scored the game's only goaljust before the half time inetrval after a perfectly timed paul pogba pass — but it was de gea who was the star as the spaniard made a string of fine saves which helped take his side level on points with fifth placed arsenal you expect to win every single game when you are at man united, and that's what you do, you won't, but he going to every game thinking, we should win this and that's the mentality in the group today. we go there to win, we know we have to defend, but we have some fantastic skills and skilful players, attributes. that is why we are at man united. in the nfl play—offs, the new orleans saints came from 14—0 down to beat reigning superbowl champions philadelphia eagles 20—14 and they'll now play

the la rams in the nfc conference championship match next sunday. while in the afc, tom brady's new england patriots are also through after they were 41—28 winners over the la chargers. the patriots now take on the kansas city chiefs for a place in this year's superbowl which takes place in atlanta on the 3rd of february. defending champion mark allen has been knocked out of the masters snooker on the opening day at alexandra palace in london. he lost 6—5 in a deciding frame to belgium's luca brecel. only the top 16 players in the world play in this tournament, and it was a high quality match with all but two of the eleven frames seeing breaks of more than 50. india take on bahrain in a huge match in the asian cup later, with all four group a teams still in with a chance of qualifying for the knockout stages. india are on the verge of going through for the first

time since 1964. a draw could be enough for them, whilst bahrain need a win to have any chance of going through. uae are currently top of the group with four points, followed by india, with thailand in third. qatar's nasser al attiyah leads heading into stage 7 of the dakar rally later. after saturday's rest day (00v) al attiyah finishing second in stage —— after saturday's rest day, al attiyah finishing second in stage 6 on sunday and now leads france's sebastien loeb by a slim margin of one minute and 26 seconds. in the bikes section lorenzo santalino was forced to withdraw after crashing although he's believed to be fine but his bike had to be airlifted away here's something you don't see every day, lewis hamilton outside the formula one car but still thrill seeking. turns out he's a pretty handy surfer — here he is at kelly slater‘s surf ranch in california. slater‘s been teaching the world champion race car driver a few moves before he crashed, something we don't see a lot of from the brit. and it looks pretty chilly with that all encompassing wetsuit so why not head off to the hot—tub to warm up. you can get all the latest

sports news at our website — that's bbc.com/sport. but from me tt and the rest of the team that is your monday sport briefing. here's our briefing on some of the key events happening later. we blast off in beijing where china's space agency will holds a press briefing on its rover mission on the far side of the moon. then to nairobi and a kenyan court will rule on whether four suspects charged with the westgate mall attack have a case to answer. 67 people were killed more than 100 others injured on september 21st 2013. and later in india, one of the world's largest religious gatherings, kumbh mela begins in the northern city of allahabad. we know malala yousafzai as the nobel peace prize winner

who was shot and nearly killed by the taliban when she was just fifteen years old. well now she's written a book called we are displaced in which she tells her own story and shares the journeys of other young female refugees who have been forced from their homes. here she is talking to our arts correspondent rebecca jones. have met many refu trips i have met many refugee girls in my trips around the world, i have been to refugee camps and informal settle m e nts to refugee camps and informal settlements and i've heard these inspiring stories from these refugee girls but on the other hand, i hear in the news different stories about refugees, numbers and figures. we hear about refugees and immigrants but we never hear from them, especially young women and girls. you know what it's like to be displaced, you were shocked by the taliban in 2012 for speaking out

about girls education, you were brought to birmingham for treatment and you've been in the uk ever since. can you give us a sense of how difficult it was to adjust to life in a different country? in school, talking to friends. i found it so difficult. they would laugh at slightly different jokes than it so difficult. they would laugh at slightly differentjokes than i would, and when they would say something, they wouldn't laugh. it's the cultural differences. i would say, like, sometimes you would be quiet, sometimes you would pick up a book and pretend you are reading. you are just book and pretend you are reading. you arejust finding book and pretend you are reading. you are just finding it difficult to have a conversation and now it's com pletely have a conversation and now it's completely different. i made lots of friends and i am proudly brummie as well but it's different at the start what does brummie proudly entail? i am proud of birmingham, i love the city, it's a welcoming, diverse place and a lucky accent and a love the people of birmingham and i call

myself brummie. your foundation, campaigning the girls education and juggfing campaigning the girls education and juggling your own education. you are at your second year in oxford university. how do you fit it all in? it is a lot of work but i'm studying at lmh in oxford. which is politics, philosophy and economics. i'm enjoying it. you are not a machine, though. you must switch off, how do you relax? do you watch tv? yes, we do watch tv programmes. i recently watched the good place and also some comedy shows. i recently watched the black adder. i'm a big fan of british comedy. i recently watched yes minister. and also mind your language. that does go back a long way. ah yes, a very long way. i find go back a long way. ah yes, a very

long way. ifind it go back a long way. ah yes, a very long way. i find it one go back a long way. ah yes, a very long way. ifind it one e —— funny. i know it would be welcomed in the same way but i find it very funny. in terms of your university room. you keep your room tidy?” in terms of your university room. you keep your room tidy? i try my best. when my mum comes to the university and sees my room, she tells there. it's tidier. thank you so much. it's been lovely to talk to you. now, this story, a family who'd been on holiday to minorca with tui, they had seats, but when they got on they had seats, but when they got on the plane, the seats didn't exist, they were empty spaces. for take—off and landing, they were offered crew seats to strap into and the ten—year—old daughter sat in that

empty seat next to that gentleman there that you can see however most of the flight they spent sitting on the floor. you can see the view, in amongst the rubbish and when they contacted tui afterwards to explain the problem in the circumstances, tui offered them £30 as a goodwill gesture. we've got programme called ripoff britain and the bbc got involved and they got a full refund. richard says, i would sit on the floor to get home as most economy class seats are painful, only suitable for pocket sized cattle. bill says surely there are safety issues that have been raised. israel says interesting health and safety should be taken seriously. a p pa re ntly should be taken seriously. apparently the city will —— the civil aviation authority is looking into the matter. hello there.

well, it's been a mild winter so far and one thing we've not seen much of is snow. however, over the last few hours, we have had a glancing blow of cold air behind this cold front and we have seen some snow showers push into shetland so over the next few hours, yeah, you have got a chance of still seeing some wintry weather here. a frosty start for parts of scotland but otherwise for england, wales, northern ireland, too much in the way of cloud and wind. still a few showers around as well for it to be particularly cold — temperatures 6—8 degrees celsius. not a particularly cold start to the day on monday. still quite a lot of cloud around with some passing showers. the best morning sunshine in scotland with frost but will tend to cloud over here with some rain getting into the north and west. temperature wise, the mildest weather across western and southern parts of the uk but it will feel noticeably colder than the weather we had over over the weekend. 5 in aberdeen, 3 the top

director in lerwick. the cold doesn't last long, though. a warm front moves through during monday night and by tuesday, it will be this weather front bringing rain to scotland. 50- 100 50— 100 millimetres of rain. quite cloudy, a few sunny spells but it's turning milder. temperatures ten or 11 celsius temperatures rising in shetland. the threat of any snow receding quickly as well. tuesday, more rain to come across scotland but eventually, the rain does start to move to the south. somewhat whether in northern ireland. as we had three when day. temperature—wise on wednesday. eyes at 10 degrees. cold enough for some mountain snow. temperatures here around four or

five celsius. on thursday, winds from the arctic, feeling quite cold on thursday, a sharp frost to start the day. there will again be some wintry showers. a bit of speed. high temperatures of 3—7d. this is the business briefing. i'm sally bundock. driving change — we'll bring you the latest from the north american auto show as carmakers adapt to shifting consumer tastes. china's global trade volume rose last year but its surplus fell again as imports outpaced exports. and on the markets: a flat close at the end of last week bodes for a pretty mixed day in urging in asia. we have not got japan up—to—date because it is

closed for a public holiday.