today at 5.00pm: we're live at westminster, where the scale of the prime minister's challenge in trying to renegotiate the brexit withdrawal agreement is increasingly apparent. the response from the eu to the notion of reopening the deal and replacing the northern ireland backstop was spelled out in the european parliament. the european union said so in november, we said so in december, we said so after the first meaningful vote in the house of commons injanuary. the debate and votes in the house of commons yesterday do not change that. the withdrawal agreement will not be renegotiated. earlier this afternoon, labour's jeremy corbyn attended talks with the prime minister to try to find consensus on a way ahead. also today: an underwater search will begin for the plane which carried the footballer emiliano sala, after debris is found on a french beach.

an arctic freeze brings a cold snap to parts of the us with temperatures falling to —30 celsius. it's 5.00pm. we're live at westminster, where the prime minister and the labour leader have held talks for the first time to try to find a way ahead on the brexit process. as they met, the message from brussels could not have been more clear. the president of the european commission, jean—claude juncker, along with the eu chief negotiator, michel barnier, said the brexit withdrawal agreement could not be renegotiated. in parliamentary votes last night, mps backed a plan to renegotiate the brexit withdrawal agreement, specifically the so—called backstop,

which guarantees an open border between northern ireland and the republic. mrs may is to speak on the phone with donald tusk, phe president of the european council, within the hour. this was whatjean—claude juncker had to say a short while ago. withdrawal agreement remains the best and only deal possible. we said so best and only deal possible. we said so in november, in december, after the first meaningful vote in the commons in january. the the first meaningful vote in the commons injanuary. the debates and votes in the house of commons yesterday do not change that. the withdrawal agreement will not be re—negotiated. both sides have said loud and clear that there can be no return to the hard

border on the island of ireland. snow slipping back into darker times past. i believe the prime minister's personal commitment on this point, but i believe also that we need a safety net that secures us against this risk. we have no incentive or desire to use the safety net but, at the same time, no safety net can ever truly be safe if they can't just be removed at any time. sometimes, from time to time, i have the impression that this some hope that the 26 other countries will abandon the backstop, but this is not a game and neither is it a simple bilateral issue, it goes to the heart of what being a member of the heart of what being a member of the european union means. ireland's border is the eu's

border and that is the other unions priorities. ladies and gentlemen, we know from the debate yesterday that the house of commons is against many things. it is against and no—deal brexit. it is against the backstop. bobby storey to not know what exactly the house of commons is actually for. the very forthright message there from the president of the european commission speaking in the european parliament. we start nigel farage sitting just across the aisle from him and his reaction was clear to parts of that statement, too. him and his reaction was clear to parts of that statement, too. 0ur correspondent damian grammaticas is in brussels. could that message be any more frank? no, it was very direct, wasn't it? the question at the end, the point he made that the european side don't know what the house of

commons is for was repeated by a number of speakers, including michel barnier, and the speaker for the 27 eu countries and the former belgian prime minister who chairs the european parliament brexit steering committee, all said and what are the alternative arrangements that the uk parliament and theresa may herself is now seeking? michel barnier said that he had spent months debating alternatives, so he had shipped the backstop according to theresa may's government's wishes. we saw his frustration because he opened his speech by saying he had watched the debates in parliament and he had seen theresa may stand up and take a distance from the agreement she had negotiated with the eu side here. the eu side i think are frustrated by what they have seen, clear about their red line that they did not wa nt to

their red line that they did not want to reopen the negotiations, but they did offer an olive branch, which was to say there is a possibility for negotiation and four more movement on the question of the future relationship. if the uk is more ambitious there, that is code for once a closer relationship, the sort of thing that the liberal party has talked about, then the eu is open to doubt and that makes the border question much easier to solve. the eu wanting to stay flexible, but on that side of the negotiation. thank you. thank you. meanwhile, here in westminster, theresa may and jeremy corbyn held their first meeting in the commons to discuss their brexit positions. mr corbyn‘s spokesman described the talks as "very cordial". 0ur political correspondent nick eardley reports. what now? finally,

parliament has agreed on something, but how does the government make it happen? the prime minister got a handsome majority last night and was cleared, we do want the withdrawal agreement but the backstop has to be changed. are you confident she will make those changes? absolutely. not eve ryo ne those changes? absolutely. not everyone is so openly optimistic. can we find the alternative to backstop? prime minister did the eu make any changes? the prime minister has some convincing to do. this evening she will speak to the european council president. last night and majority in this house voted to maintain the commitment to no hard border between northern ireland and ireland, to leave the european union with the deal and to set out what it will take to ensure that this house can support a deal. that is a change to the

backstop, thatis that is a change to the backstop, that is what i will be taken back to the european union. it is not clear exactly what those changes will look like in the procession will have to offer more. the prime minister may have succeeded, may have succeeded in temporarily uniting her very divided party, but, mr speaker, is she willing to make compromises necessary that are more important, and that is to unite the country? behind closed doors, the two leaders met the afternoon. labour said the 45 minute chat was serious and engaged. they think the pm is interested in finding consensus. in europe, eu ministers have said that reopening the withdrawal agreement isa reopening the withdrawal agreement is a definite no. would you bet two weeks from now that she is going to come back with something that will change the majority? i

have to say, i wouldn't. parliament has strengthened the prime minister's can to get that deal. the ball is i'iow can to get that deal. the ball is now in the eu's court and they have a choice to make. there are many who are highly sceptical that theresa may can get the concrete changes she needs. the backstop has been an issue for months until further has been no sign of a compromise that would keep every side happy. remember, the prime minister only got a majority in parliament last night because she promised to rivers of the withdrawal agreement. if she can't deliver the delicate truce could well crumble. something now... for some, the solution is as clear as mud. in the last few minutes, the labour leaderjeremy corbyn has been speaking about his meeting with the prime minister this afternoon — here's what he had to say. serious, explorer

tree on the issues andi serious, explorer tree on the issues and i set out the labour case for compliments of customs union with the european union in order to protect jobs the european union in order to protectjobs in this country and trade and, of course, very importantly, to protect the conditions that we have, the regulations on the environment, consumers and workers' rights. we settled case for this and i wanted explain to the prime minister that i wa nted explain to the prime minister that i wanted no deal taken off the table, which is why i didn't meet her until today, and i was very pleased that the house voted yesterday to take no deal of the table. i asked for the prime minister's assurance that we are not back into the territory of threatening no deals as a way of getting support for her feel deal, which has very limited support in

parliament. how did she respond to you? but she more receptive to your ideas than you thought she might be? she listened. i listen to her replies, of course. we then discussed the various issues surrounding the problems of the backstop, which she is going to talk to the eu about. i pointed out this will be the first time in british history we have entered into an arrangement, treaty arrangement with anybody else in which there was no right to leave because it would be a decision that can only be made by the other side. she has heard these arguments before and understood the point we were making. do you have a problem with the backstop yourself? i have a problem going into an agreement which is one—sided. i want an agreement that is mutual. the labour position is we want the comprehensive custom tune with the european union, with a say in how those trade arrangements are made and we put that point very clearly.

i explained that in the house yesterday in the debate. that is jeremy that isjeremy corbyn giving his reading of the meeting he had with the prime minister. 0ur chief political correspondent, vicki young, is with me. the general sense from that is they are still in this area of wanting a customs union. yes, it is. to reason may had that historic defeat a couple of weeks ago and she had to decide whether to go down the softer brexit route, or was she going to try and do what her brexiteer mps and the dup wanted, which is something completely different, go back and talk about the backstop. she has made a decision to go down that route, at least for now. that is what last night was all about. the tory party and the dup have coalesced around something. they

all walked through the same voting lobby on brexit for the first time in a long time, but have they coalesced around a fantasy? it will probably be next week when the prime minister goes back to brussels. the cabinet need to decide what they mean by an alternative backstop arrangement. people have different ideas on that. there are some in the party who would go for some legal wording, but there are others like dorisjohnson wa nts there are others like dorisjohnson wants the whole thing taken out. that is still her issue about what they come back with, if anything. the point made repeatedly today in brussels, bad very point which is that they lack the clarity that they needin that they lack the clarity that they need in order to negotiate, but on top of that, are very firm rejection of the notion of the negotiating. is that taken at face value in downing street already simply hoping that there is an element of

flexibility here? they hoped that as you get closer to the wire and the eu has form on this, that they might shift. whether they will shift enough to help the brexiteers 2i2 completely reva m p help the brexiteers 2i2 completely revamp the whole thing, i'm not so sure. the other thing the eu will be looking at is that we have been interviewing people over the last day, it is clear that not everybody will accept the same thing. she got a majority last night, but how sta ble a majority last night, but how stable is that majority? if they do move, will it go through? some are saying that it will never be enough for some people in the tory party and eventually theresa may will have to go down the road thatjeremy corbyn is talking about and try to bring over some of those labour votes. there where a number of labour rebels last night, a sizeable chunk, 25 of them either voted dant against the government

—— for the government. when do we expect the cabinet to reach a consensus on what the backstop would be, and when do you expect theresa may to present back to brussels? she is having conversations with the irish prime minister and others in the eu, but she is not saying at this point what it is exactly that she once was that she will be having meetings with various mps who have supported all the different kinds of amendments last night to see whether you are on all of that. early next week for the cabinet, benji would have to go back to brussels. were it would you rather be on valentines night and standing in the house of commons waiting for another brexit vote? thank you. joining me now from brussels is the vice—president of the european parliament, the finnish mep heidi hautala. thank you so much forjoining us. it

is good if you to come to talk to us. is good if you to come to talk to us. what is your perspective on what happened last night in westminster and the prospects of some kind of agreement given whatjohn claude junker has said today? it sounds like there are two completely different realities on both sides of the channel. 0ne different realities on both sides of the channel. one side talks about really ghosting —— about the negotiating the agreement, the other sides end we will not be negotiate. i can't see the way forward on this alternative backstop solution would be, other than a permanent membership in the customs union, which is not agreed by the british in the house of commons. it seems to me that we are now coming to an moment when it is possibly necessary to say that if the government and the parliament of the uk is not able to find a solution to what kind of

brexit they want, what kind of a deal, then when not ask the people? i feel i deal, then when not ask the people? ifeel i am deal, then when not ask the people? i feel i am talking in the name of quite a lot of british colleagues and acquaintances, people are frustrated because they now see what brexit would mean for them. i think it is time to take the people's vote seriously. you are quite right, that argument is going on in some quarters. before we get to that stage, what can the prime minister do in terms of taking a proposal to brussels? there doesn't seem to be clarity on that at the moment. what kind of reception would there be, how much flexibility is there beyond the public statements that this deal can be renegotiated?” the public statements that this deal can be renegotiated? i believe, glistening in the european parliament this afternoon, in this ongoing debate about what the different political parties, what

the eu commission, what the romanian presidency, what michel barnier has to say, everybody has said we had the negotiation and it has no flexibility on the backstop because it is an essential element of the agreement. of course it was interesting that there was this hint mentioned by you that there might be a way to start discussing the future agreement, but before we get to that point there should be clarity that the flexibility for the most part i think is wishful thinking from the uk side. we are wasting precious time. just a final point, heidi, on the process itself. there is clearly at the map as well in brussels that you cannot blame us, they said, for what is going on, this is all the blame of the british process, that is this theme in brussels, is that the theme that will

get sympathy or empathy from those in the uk who have genuine concerns about the way the process has gone? at the end of the process has gone? at the end of the day, everybody will be a loser if there is no deal. what was mentioned was that the risk of no deal has increased in the crease after the vote yesterday. the question of blame is from the very outset, to start such a kind of referendum with a campaign with a lot of disinformation, outright lies about what the eu is, can only produce confusion. now that there is a negotiated agreement, why not ask the people if they want that or if they want to remain, so nobody has to blame anybody. that would be an informed decision. everybody would be satisfied with that. heidi, thank you very much for talking to us

today. it is a pretty consistent message coming out of brussels today. the former northern ireland secretary 0wen paterson is with me. he isa he is a prominent red set supporter. it isa he is a prominent red set supporter. it is a pretty blunt message, and the message is, we will listen to what you have to say when the understand what you have to say, but this renegotiation will not be reopened. they are negotiating, they are taking a strong position to start with. the prime minister last night got a strong mandate that the european union will have to listen to, she has to be negotiate the backstop with legal text. a legal text outside or inside the agreement? inside the agreement. she made it clear if that's didn't go through we will have another vote on the 15th of debris. what does the

prime minister take to brussels as an idea? lots of people watching one thing, 0k, where is the clarity on this alternative? if you go right back, the british people were given the right to choose. members of parliament said we will give you back the power of decision. 17.4 million people decided they wanted to leave. the prime minister would leave the single market, leave the customs union and leaving the remit of the european court ofjustice. the negotiated withdrawal agreement at the moment does not deliver that and that is why it was defeated. what was interesting last night was there were 25 labour rebels. if you look at the top 100 marginal seats, which the labour party has to win for once to be in government, 78 of them asked to leave, 70

of them as very strongly to leave! there is a convergence. the prime minister has a strong hand to go back with. back to the question, clarity on what she ta kes to to the question, clarity on what she takes to brussels as an alternative to the backstop. you know the irish context very well, what does the prime minister offered to brussels as an alternative to the backstop?” was involved in writing the er paper which we published back in september in which i said to michel barnier, andi in which i said to michel barnier, and i had a very constructive meeting, we made it very clear that there is a border now. there is a vat border, and excise duty border. there is a currency board and security border. it is all done without any infrastructure on the border. quite

rightly, nobody wants physical infrastructure, but you don't need to maintain a border at the moment and you will need it in the moment and you will need it in the future, using existing techniques and processes and existing european customs law. we would like to see those suggestions adopted. no one has picked holes in them. we have had meetings in downing street. your own party didn't adopt them. they did, i have literally just come from didn't adopt them. they did, i have literallyjust come from a meeting in my office with another leading figure who out of the blue rope to me, or wanted to come and see me and endorsed our paper. these are all existing techniques. it is there really boring and it works. you will forgive viewers are thinking, why hasn't this brilliant plan

not been adopted by the government in full, and by brussels? why are we into this backstop sager if you have the plan ready and up and running?m this backstop sager if you have the plan ready and up and running? it is a very good question. i think the idea that some people have is the only way to solve this is a customs union. we know there are strong voices in dublin who hate brexit and think the best thing they can do is use this as a mechanism to keep us in the customs union. that's sadly run straight into the demand of the 17.4 million. i have is been stopped in the street by people saying, we are going to leave, aren't we? just get on with it. the people are miles ahead of us. those two are explaining what their position on the backstop is, that they have concerns about the viability and the security of the good friday

agreement, and that is their main concerns, why they are adhering to this as firmly as they are.” concerns, why they are adhering to this as firmly as they are. i think it is the opposite. if you listen to david trimble, one of the architects of the agreement, got a nobel prize for it, if you listen to paul pugh on it is exactly the opposite. the current agreement is a grotesque breach of the fundamental principle of the belfast agreement which is the principle of consent. david tribble and the unionists had a huge battle persuading unionist vote in the referendum and they got it through on the grounds that the status of northern ireland would not change without the consent of the people of northern ireland, and the withdrawal agreement creates a com pletely withdrawal agreement creates a completely new entity, where law will be in place in northern ireland thatis will be in place in northern ireland that is different to the rest of the uk and they won't have a single elected official who could change that law. paul

is a great expert, he is very clear that this is very damaging to the agreement, whereas there was not going to be infrastructure on the border. we had a terrible time during the troubles, 27,000 armed police and military personnel and it was still porous. that is not going to happen. it is simply not going to happen. sol campbell done by preclearance using existing techniques that are used to read europe at the moment.“ existing techniques that are used to read europe at the moment. if the prime minister comes back in mid—february and she has not been able to negotiate in the way that you would like, what happens then? we are heading towards a new deal. if it comes back on mr miller state to which it is at the moment, the withdrawal agreement will be voted down. i think it is a priority that

the government must accelerate the programme of statutory instruments through parliament. they have several hundred to get through, but they can be got through rapidly. the only way of ensuring that there is no deal, bizarrely, is to ensure that no deal is still there because that no deal is still there because that will bring the european union to the talks. that is what your collea g u es to the talks. that is what your colleagues voted against last night. that was advisory. we voted down the amendments which would take the whole question of the table. the only way to keep the european union in talks is to keep the no deal on the table. thank you forjoining us. the former northern ireland secretary giving us his insight into the brexiters process. well, chris page is live for us in dublin now. take us through the

prospective in dublin on the list events in westminster. if anyone in london had hoped that dublin would change its position on the vital issues after the vote last night in the house of commons there would've been very disappointed. the irish government has made it very clear today that the withdrawal agreement can't be reopened and backstop is the open line. the irish farmers —— foreign minister speaking this afternoon talked about comments made by the by donald tusk. and so as donald tusk was quick to spell out last night within minutes of the vote, and has, and as had been indicated to the british government numerous times prior to the vote, including from ireland, the withdrawal agreement, including the protocol on ireland and northern ireland, is not open for renegotiation. we are at a ratification process now. not still in negotiation.

the solidarity across europe on this, i think, speaks for itself. lee override codes during question time in the irish parliament said that all the withdrawal agreement was not "really —— not open for renegotiation. here have made the point here that different options have been talked about for two years here, like technological solutions to the border, they were looked at, considered and discounted as unworkable. the irish government is asking what proposals britain could bring that could act as a realistic alternative to the backstop. they are still insisting that the backstop is the only way to resolve this question, to achieve the aim of keeping the border in its present state, that is largely invisible

to the people crossing it. as long as you have two fundamentally different positions, with britons in the backstop has to be be negotiated, ireland saying it can't be, it is ha rd to ireland saying it can't be, it is hard to see how this diplomatic middle can be resolved. thank you. we will pick up again after the headlines and we will have some sports news as well. but now... time for a look at the weather, with chris fawkes. earlier today we had snow, particularly in north—west england. some schools and airports closed. but as well as being a pain, it looks beautiful. 0vernight tonight there will be some further showers across northern areas, the risk of icy patches just about anywhere. clear and very cold for many, temperatures down to —6

in the towns and cities but colder in the towns and cities but colder in the countryside. some fog patches to watch out for. a cold and frosty start on thursday, showers in northern scotland and through thursday afternoon we will see a front arrive, bringing some snow. that will impact south—west england and wales first before spreading towards the midlands and south—east england. it is likely to bring disruption, although the amount of snow you will see will vary. the brecon beacons could get five to ten centimetres of snow. weather it is heavy snow or ice, thursday night and into friday morning you are likely to see disruption in the next spell of wintry weather. this is bbc

news. we are live at westminster. the headlines... eu leaders say theresa may's brexit withdrawal deal will not be renegotiated. earlier this afternoon labour's jeremy corbyn attended talks with the prime minister to try to find consensus on a way ahead. also today, an underwater search will begin for the plane which carried the footballer emiliano sala after debris is found on a french beach. people across large areas of the united states have been warned of a ‘once—in—a—generation' blast of arctic air due to hit much of the country over the next few days with temperatures forecast to drop to minus 50 degrees celsius. before we picked up once

again with the latest brexit developments at westminster, let's catch up with the sport and join will. we start with the news that neil lennon has left his job as head coach of scottish premiership side hibernian by mutual consent in the last hour. the club say he hasn't been sacked nor has he resigned after he was suspended on friday following what was described as "an exchange" with several club employees. in a statment the club said that the investigation was to allow for "an internal review" but no further "disciplinary process has been commenced". lennon's assistant garry parker has also left. liverpool can move seven points clear at the top of the premier league tonight if they beat leicester at anfield. jurgen klopp's side have the advantage in the title race after manchester city lost at newcastle last night, but the liverpool boss has told us that while he loves his dayjob, the intensity of the title race isn't much fun. let's enjoy the moment, let's enjoy the ride as much as possible and let's go for everything. you don't set limits. you able to enjoy it? never. i never really enjoy it, it's just the work i do. i enjoy the work with the boys

but not the situation that you can go for this or that. football is not the most important thing in the world but, in these moments, for us, of course, it feels like that. i love what i do, but the situation, yeah, it is intense as well. arsenal have signed barcelona midfielder denis suarez on loan until the end of the season. arsenal have the option to make the move permament for £18 million in the summer. the former manchester city player will link up again with unai emery, who he worked with during a loan spell at sevilla. manchester united will face a paris saint—germain side without neymar in the champions league in a fortnight‘s time. the world's most expensive player is out for ten weeks with a broken metatarsal in his foot. the brazilian damaged it in their french cup victory over strasbourg last week — the french champions say they've opted for what they call a conservative treatment. psg travel to old trafford for the first leg of their last—16 tie on the 12th of february. there will be a new face for wales in the six nations. tomos williams will make his first

appearance in the championship when they play france in their opener on friday night in paris. williams starts at scrum—half ahead of gareth davies and is partnered by his cardiff blues team mate gareth anscombe in the half backs. only three changes have been made from the team that beat south africa in november, as wales, who finished second last year, aim to build on their nine—match winning streak. we feel he is a player of the future, there are still things to work on on his game, he knows that from a defensive point of view, but he got some lovely little touches and a bit of x factor about him. it isa and a bit of x factor about him. it is a position we had some real strength and depth in in terms of gareth and the things he can do, davies was great in the summer, particularly the second test against argentina, so we are looking for improvement in that position as well. england record point scorer

emily scarratt has recovered from a hamstring injury in time for friday's women's six nations opener against ireland. it'll be the centre's first appearance for the side since leaving the england 75 programme at the end of last year. england have dropped opening batsman keaton jennings for their second test against the west indies in antigua... uncapped kent batsmanjoe denly comes into the squad in his place. jennings has struggled for form recently, and only managed scores of 17 and 14 in the first test in barbados. the other change sees spinner jack leach replaces adil rashid, with stuart broad also included in the 12—man squad. the second test starts tomorrow. and menna fitzpatrick and her guide jen kehoe have become the first british skiers to win both paralympic and world titles. the pair took gold today in the women's downhill for visually impaired skiers at the world para—skiing championships in italy, to add to their gold medals at the winter games in pyeongchang last year. silver went to britain's kelly gallagherand her guide, gary smith. we'll have more for you in sportsday at 6:30pm.

thank you, we will see you later. welcome back to westminster where the scale of the prime minister's challenge in trying to renegotiate the brexit withdrawal agreement is increasingly apparent. senior eu officials have made it clear they aren't prepared to reopen negotiations. in parliamentary votes last night, mps backed a plan to renegotiate the brexit withdrawal agreement, specifically the so—called backstop, which guarantees an open border between northern ireland and the republic. that, of course, probably the biggest obstacle that has been around and one that mps are trying to find an answer to. the chorus from brussels is if you have an alternative plan, let's hear it. there is no clarity so far. with me to discuss the issues around that is the former director general of the uk border force, tony smith. he knows this area rather

well. good to have you with us, thank you. for lots of people this is a hugely complex area and when we talk about, for example, the border between northern ireland and the republic, theissues northern ireland and the republic, the issues in terms of checks or no checks is, to lots of people, impenetrable. so what is the main issue at stake for you? it is an external borderfor issue at stake for you? it is an external border for the eu with northern ireland and the uk, what are the sticking points? there are no two borders the same. the irish border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland is an enigma itself in border management, because of the history, the regulatory frameworks that exist. so there is technology permeating borders globally, no doubt in my mind. digital capability, e—mail etc are available. my former colleagues at the border. face the problem that we do not know what checks we will be asked to do on what. there will not

be passport controls, but this is a customs check, we have not had them since hmrc in the 905. if we will put in customs checks, what will be checking? what is the regulatory framework, what is the policy framework? then we can bring in the technology to deal with that. so i would like it very clear understanding of what we will check on our side and there is to implement all this stuff. there is something called smart border5 which can do some of that but it is very ha rd to can do some of that but it is very hard to understand right now what technology will be deployed in the context we are talking about. a more general question based on that answer, and listening to 0wen paterson earlier who seem to suggest there is a package of measures and technology already, is there such a body of measures which could deal with any of the policy options we are talking about? i know you say you do not know right now what the czechs might be on what, but do you

have broadly the measures available given the options that you face? the main thing for customs checks are the manifests, we do not demand ma nifests the manifests, we do not demand manifests from good5 moving from the eu to the uk, whether through calais or ireland. we are going to require then there will be an electronic system which will be able to cope with a lot more material and data, how we get that data into the border. how they analyse that data without a presence which they do not in northern ireland, how they will analyse that data, and where do we doa analyse that data, and where do we do a check? we will have to do a check somewhere, which we have a mobile tactical response capability to check people in different places and go into companies or warehouses to do those? there is a lot of work to do those? there is a lot of work to be done. in theory it is possible

but i don't think it is being done anywhere in the world, we are breaking new ground but they are very interesting times. how long would it take to set up? it is difficult to know unless we move onto the transition agreement and trying things, it is hard to know how long it would take. some of the stuff in the original government white paper published in 2017 was quite good. we could have a framework of exemptions, if we could agree regulatory approval, so goods coming into ireland are equally a cce pta ble coming into ireland are equally acceptable to other standards, then you are beginning to minimise the number of checks that need to be done and you can focus your technology on the cheques that can be done. putting everything together will be a very big transformation which will take some years, i will imagine, until it is fully operational. some years, that is something to talk about. i

wanted to ask you about the possibility of a no—deal brexit. the prime minister said it is not something that she wa nts, said it is not something that she wants, but it is a possibility. what would that entail for your former colleagues? we are talking about all kinds of points of entry into the uk and all kinds of other issues to do with customs, what would that entail? there is what we do on our side of the border and what the eu do on theirs. when i was head of the border force i took my mandate from the home secretary. if the home secretary wanted me to do much my border and you had to wait longer, you would, that was an operating mandate. so we can decide ourselves asa mandate. so we can decide ourselves as a country what we do at our borders and if we want to issue blanket exemptions we can do that. we cannot control what happens on the other side of the border. what will be put in place by the irish government at their border under instruction from the commission or

the french. i know there is real goodwill between the operational leaders in france and with ireland that they take their instructions from their political masters and we desperately need those instructions from an operational point of view to make this work. i don't share the doom that the world will end if we have a no deal, we have shut borders before and they have opened again quite quickly because the market force will demand that, but what we need is some kind of certainty and immediately a blueprint about what we will operate against and that is where we are up to right now and what i would like to see. fascinating to talk to you, tony. thank you for talking to me. the former head of the uk border force, good to have his expertise and shedding light on the complex issue. business leaders have voiced their frustration

at events in westminster, with the director general of the confederation of british industry warning that uk companies are likely to accelerate their plans for the possibility of the uk leaving the eu with no deal in place. business leaders have voiced their frustration at events in westminster, with the director general —— if mps thought last night's vote might have reassured businesses, they'd have been wrong. the confederation of british industry says emergency brexit planning is heading into overdrive. i don't think there will be a single business this morning who is stopping or halting their no—deal planning as a result of what happened yesterday. and i fear they may even be accelerating it because the other amendment feels like a real throw of the dice, to be returning to renegotiate something that has been so difficult to negotiate. if it goes ahead, the renegotiation goes ahead, and it sounds as though it will, let's move very quickly so we know the outcome. there's concern that starting to re—negotiate a deal with europe would be a gamble, ending up with a no—deal would be too much of a risk for those companies operating

across the border every day. if the withdrawal agreement is going to be revisited, what is key is the effect of any alternative arrangements. the key is that trade can continue across these islands. cross—border trade is key for northern ireland's small businesses. for those running hotels and restaurants, the concerns of the workforce are front and foremost. we have already seen a direct impact on our workforce. recruitment is down 50% from eu nationals across the uk. we saw a large number of workers return home immediately after the brexit vote and when people are looking to come, there is a reluctance to come and work in the uk while there is continued uncertainty about how long they can remain. with companies in every sector now facing the increasing possibility of no agreement being stitched together, it is time for them to get down to the details. we have many businesses, about 145,000 businesses, that only trade with the eu bloc, and for them, their customers are demanding that they're holding inventory, or stock, which is taking up much of their cash and in some cases they are not placing contracts past the end of march because they do know what the terms

of trade are going to be. businesses are used to getting deals done and are hoping that the government will be able to do the same. colletta smith, bbc news. some of the business perspective, there. well, mrs may is expected to speak to donald tusk by telephone around now. he is the president of the pain cancelled. that follows the vote at westminster last night and that the prime minister has tried to explore a possible way ahead with labour leaderjeremy corbyn. let's get the thoughts of vicki young, our chief political correspondent. how do we think this might go, given what has been said in brussels? within minutes after the vote last

night you had eu leaders and leaders of the european commission and others saying the withdrawal agreement will not be reopened or renegotiated. i am agreement will not be reopened or renegotiated. iam not agreement will not be reopened or renegotiated. i am not saying they are saying one thing in public and another thing behind—the—scenes, but there are whispers of the european union saying they would be ready to move a little bit. what they wanted clarification not just move a little bit. what they wanted clarification notjust on, look, we don't like the backstop anymore, it is also what are your solutions about how we get around that problem you can't just about how we get around that problem you can'tjust get rid of it, it has to be sorted. they want more detail. i would imagine that tonight theresa may would say i will continue next week and give you something concrete that we want you to look at. this has been gone through over the last couple of years and lots of things have been rejected, things have changed because we are nearer to leaving. lots of mps said no deal has been taken off the table, it has not, better still what happens if there is no deal by the

of march and that will focus minds on both sides. 0wen paterson said that as the backstop is concerned, there is an alternative, we put it forward in a paper several months ago. the trouble is that that claim of clarity on his part is not shared in government by some people and certainly not in brussels. that was rejected by them at the time, but can they come up with something else? the alternative is that theresa may goes down the path jeremy corbyn wants her to come a customs union. a45 minute conversation, not just customs union. a45 minute conversation, notjust ten 15 minutes. they will never say they have reached an amazing agreement, but when i saw people who have spoken to ministers at different points of view, they felt senior ministers were engaged in the detail of how things like a customs union would work, they were notjust sitting listening and giving nothing back. they seem to feel at this being taken seriously, eventually it could be a rich that theresa

may has to go down. thank you, vicki young, have a chief political correspondent. let's take a look now at how the border issue is being seen in the republic of ireland — our ireland correspondent chris page reports. this is a theatrical protest, but border people hope it will break through and highlight real concerns. they're worried any checkpoints would delay journeys, disrupt trade and bring back dark memories. i don't think the mps in westminster get the reality of border life in the north of ireland at all. and i think it's probably an extremely sensitive border, which has been shown through history. and we all know border structures become targets and things escalate in this part of the world, unfortunately. that's what we want to avoid. the brexit process has been cooking

for two and half years. but still no one is sure what the final product will look like. this is the longest biscuit production line in europe. the firm's boss says there would be huge problems if britain left the eu without a deal. my hope is that any outcome other than a no—deal brexit happens. an agreed one, a postponement, a delay, a scrapping of the decision. a second vote. it doesn't matter what the other alternative is. a no deal exit at the end of march would be a disaster for this business. and it would be a disaster for the entire irish food industry. the irish government is advising companies to prepare for the worst. agencies are holding dozens of events to help them, like this one about rules for goods and services. the prudent thing to do is assume there will be a hard brexit, prepare for that, look at the timelines and start working today if you haven't already done so. and what business people want more than anything is a clear way forward. the sooner businesses see clarity, the better. because i think if business knows what the outcome is going to look like, we can all put plans in place and we will have to figure a way around it. the best outcome i would like to see

is no brexit, but i don't think that is a realistic option now. i think the second—best option would be a soft brexit with a deal. ministers here have always wanted britain and the eu to have as close a relationship as possible after the uk leaves. the irish government is making its most basic position more clear than ever. that there cannot be a brexit deal without the backstop to guarantee an open border. chris page, bbc news, dublin. let's go to dublin now and talk to katie daughen — she's the head of brexit policy for the british—irish chamber of commerce. thank you so much forjoining us. what is your perspective today given the vote last night and what was said today, indeed in brussels, about the prospects? what is your feeling? we are in a period of great

uncertainty than before. all eve ryo ne uncertainty than before. all everyone has asked for its clarity and these continuing votes towards varying options which are not on the table at —— adds to the uncertainty. it is good they voted to reject the no—deal brexit but whatever they voted for that is the default position unless we have a ratified deal between the uk and the eu, then it looks like the uk will leave the eu on the 29th of march without a deal. if we think about that scenario for a second, i'm thinking about businesses you are talking tea m about businesses you are talking team and representing, what are the main issues in practical terms?m is the customs paperwork. the tariff question aside which will be an issue, especially within sectors like the food sector where tariffs can be high. aside about it is

the customs paperwork, say you had 86,000 irish traders who trade with the uk and 65,000 of them will be doing customs paperwork for the first ever time, you are talking about customs import and export declarations going up from about 1.5 million to around 100 million, a huge extra burden on business, added cost which means they can't invest in other areas that make make their business more profitable. it is the uncertainty of no deal planning, we all hope that would still be avoided but still the plans need to be put in place. barclays have announced they are implementing their no deal plans. we have a number of members of the british—irish chamber of commerce looking to implement their no deal plans. this is extra cost and time, extra focus on something thatis and time, extra focus on something that is not productive for business, which will not help their profits, it will just help which will not help their profits, it willjust help and survive. the base when you look at the withdrawal

agreement negotiated by mrs may, the one rejected in the commons, what we re one rejected in the commons, what were the main drawbacks? you clearly had reservations anyway? the british—irish chamber of commerce came out in support of the deal. 0ne of the reservations we would have had would have been in terms of protocol b would not have been particularly happy, it was a means to an end but it would do nothing for services, a huge part of the irish economy, and it would factor in the trade between the north and the south. primarily we were happy with it, we supported it like lots of other business representative groups. we saw it as the best way forward which delivered the most needed transition period which shall businesses have asked for since the start of the process. it included a political declaration which gave a good statement of intent towards a close trading relationship between the uk and eu beyond brexit, which is what our members want. they want to continue to trade between the uk

and ireland and more broadly between the uk and eu. i will come back to you for a we action, katie. this is the latest statement from the eu chief negotiator michel barnier, who says china is too short to find an alternative arrangement to the irish backstop in britain because my divorce deal with the european union will not be reopened for negotiation. this is michel barnier speaking today. we talked of so—called alternative arrangements which could prevent the return of a ha rd which could prevent the return of a hard border, only know one on either side, he says, was able to say what arrangements would be needed to ensure controls on goods, animals and merchandise without a border. he was speaking to rtl radio in france. we have neither the time nor technology, it is too late to look foran technology, it is too late to look for an alternative at this point. what is your perspective, katie? there is a lot of that entity and

what he is saying. the technological solutions being put forward as part of the compromise are the same ones that were put forward in the maximum facilitation arrangements which were dismissed last summer. the political declaration, the letters from the eu ahead of the meaningful voter earlier this month all said that the protocol does not necessarily need to be the foundation for whatever the future relationship will be, there is scope to explore the other technical solutions. with that in mindi technical solutions. with that in mind i think it is incumbent on politicians of all sides to come together to ratify the agreement and released to provide certainty to businesses and clarity on the process. no businesses, and the majority of mps do not want to know deal brexit, and ultimately that is where we could end up if the uncertainty continues and a way forward cannot be found. good to talk to you, katie. thank you for adding your thoughts on the latest developments, katie

is the head of brexit policy at the british—irish chamber of commerce, speaking to us from dublin. tomorrow we'll have a day of special coverage looking at the state of readiness for brexit and what preparations are being made both here and across europe. we have heard from other colleagues about some preparations being made in other parts of the eu. we'll be joining forces with radio 5 live in a special programme at 11:30 tomorrow — putting your questions about how you can get ready for brexit to our experts. get in touch using the hashtag #bbcaskthis. you can also text on 61124 and email askthis@bbc.co.uk. if there are questions, we'll have our day coverage tomorrow. temperatures have dropped a little

bit, chris, and i am wondering what is in prospect? more snow and ice, for sure. some snow last night affected parts of east anglia and south—east england. this nasa satellite picture shows the snow lying on the chilterns and east anglia, the towns across parts of sussex and kent. the snow causing transport problems but also looked rather beautiful at the same time. snow can be beautiful but a bit of a pain. we still have some showers feeding and across northern and western areas which will continue into this evening and overnight. there could be submitted in fog patches, but for many it will be a straightforward cold night, temperatures getting down to —6 in the towns and cities, colder in the countryside. more trouble for thursday, a weather front trouble for thursday, a weather fro nt m oves trouble for thursday, a weather front moves into the cold air, bringing snowy weather our way. some fog patches to

start, otherwise it bright, sunny, frosty started the day with the risk of icy patches. it will be showers across northern scotla nd will be showers across northern scotland but your eyes are drawn to the south—west, where the weather front will be working in. we will see some snow through tomorrow afternoon across south—west england and getting into wales. this is the first area likely to see disruptive weather. how much snow will vary but weather. how much snow will vary but we could see up to five to ten centimetres through thursday afternoon and evening. the front wea ke ns a afternoon and evening. the front weakens a little into parts of the midlands and south—east england, nevertheless one to five centimetres possible, the heaviest snow looks to because parts of wales, five or ten centimetres or maybe more in the brecon beacons. the snow continues through thursday night into the early hours of friday. in summary we will see the likelihood of some disruptive weather through thursday and into friday. that is your latest weather. as the prime

minister insists she is still heading to brussels for talks. theresa may says she intends to renegotitate plans for a controversial irish backstop to prevent a hard border. but the head of the european commission says that won't happen. the withdrawal agreement remains the best and only deal possible. the european union said so in november. we said so in december. in westminster, the labour leader, jeremy corbyn, finally meets the prime ministerfor brexit talks in what are called a "useful exchange of views". serious, exploratory on the issues andi serious, exploratory on the issues and i set out the labour case for a comprehensive customs union with the european union in order to protect jobs in this country. we'll be asking what hope the prime minister has of getting any concessions out of brussels. also tonight: the search for

the missing footballer emiliano sala, two cushions washed up on the french coast are thought to belong to the plane carrying premier league footballer emiliano sala that went missing over the channel. the growing number of children and young people entitled to special