tonight at ten... theresa may's plan to renegotiate her brexit withdrawal agreement is met with firm resistance from the eu. the prime minister is hoping to win changes to the controversial irish backstop, which is designed to prevent a hard border in ireland. we look to say what can be changed, what can we take back to brussels, what can we fight for to ensure the deal can get the support of this house? but, in brussels, eu leaders insist that the deal already agreed is not going to be renegotiated. the withdrawal agreement remains the best and only deal possible. the european union said so in november, we said so in december. at westminster, labour's jeremy corbyn attends his first talks with theresa may exploring a way forward on brexit. serious, exploratory on the issues and i set out the labour case for a comprehensive customs union with the european union in order to protectjobs in this country.

we'll have the latest from westminster and from brussels in the search for a breakthrough. also tonight... following the disappearance of the footballer emiliano sala, there's to be an underwater search for the plane he was flying in after debris is found on a french beach. funding for young people with special needs — the bbc is told that councils in england are drastically overspending their budgets. and, as snow and ice cause travel problems, the uk is braced for the coldest night of the winter so far. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news... a win for liverpool over leicester would give them a seven—point lead at the top of the premier league. find out how they got on at anfield. good evening.

the prime minister's hope of renegotiating the brexit withdrawal agreement has been dealt a series of blows by european leaders. last night, mps backed a plan to reopen the deal — specifically the backstop guarantee on the irish border. but the president of the european commission, jean—claude juncker, said the agreement was "the best and only deal possible." and the eu's chief negotiator michel barnier said there was no time to find an alternative arrangement. during the day, the prime minister held talks with labour's jeremy corbyn in the search for a way ahead. our first report tonight is from our political editor, laura kuenssberg. a different kind of meeting in his diary. the labour leader off to see his biggest rival. the prime minister leaving not to wrangle conservatives but to talk to him. will the eu make any

changes? tea and biscuits served behind closed doors in her private office in parliament. but, after an a0 minutes of talks, did the labour leader and the prime ministerfind any common ground? serious, exploratory on the issues, and i set out the labour case for a comprehensive customs union with the european union in order to protectjobs in this country and trade. can we find an alternative to the backstop? looking forward to the day today. thank you. the cabinet has already promised to redraft the arrangements for northern ireland. the backstop will have to change and the prime minister will be negotiating with our european partners to get the very best dealfor britain. ministers will consider if the backstop, that insurance policy against a hard border, could have a time limit, or if the uk could leave when it likes, or that technology could be found to manage the border instead. but, even though she won the vote last night... questions to the prime minister! the problem, the prime minister well knows, is that the eu has said

no to all that before. the majority in this house voted to maintain the commitment to no hard border between northern ireland and ireland, to leave the european union with a deal, and to set out to the european union what it will take to ensure that this house can support a deal. that is a change to the backstop. that means there is, at least for now, a different mood here. tory backbenchers more used to tearing each other apart over brexit for once backing her, if she can get brussels to budge. tell the european union there is a majority in this house for that deal and i would ask my colleagues to give the prime minister space. they're not going to crumble tomorrow, we're going to have to hold our nerve and we can be successful. remember, the prime minister only narrowly got this place on side last night because she made a promise that she would get part of her brexit deal changed. but wanting something to happen and making it happen

are very different things. and, as far as the eu's top brass are concerned, at least in public, all 28 countries shook hands on the agreement, including the so—called backstop, so a deal is a deal... for now. the withdrawal agreement remains the best and only deal possible. the european union said so in november. we said so in december. the withdrawal agreement will not be renegotiated. with the so—called backstop to protect the irish border affecting ireland of course the most, no surprise ireland is protesting most loudly about making a change. we in ireland are essentially being asked, as is the eu, to replace legal certainty, having negotiated that over two years around british red lines, and to replace it with a hope of something that has yet to be proven. listening to that, it is hard

to imagine there is any mood to give the prime minister what she wants fast but if there is to be a deal, one side or the other, in the end, will have to give. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. this evening, donald tusk — the president of the european council — after speaking to theresa may reaffirmed the eu position that the brexit withdrawal agreement was "not open for renegotiation." their conversation was described as "open and frank." our europe editor katya adler is in brussels with the latest. this conversation tonight between donald tusk and the prime minister is being described as frank. that is diplomatic speak for difficult. eu leaders do not accept the prime minister boss max imposed two—week deadline to achieve big

changes to the brexit deal. —— prime minister's self—imposed. the aim here is to stand firm, stay united and keep up the pressure on the uk. faced with new uk demands for changes to the brexit deal, europe is presenting a united front. though, privately, they are worried here. eu leaders have agreed to reject calls for changes to the irish backstop but they also want to avoid a no—deal brexit. and time, as we know, is running out. translation: it's more important than ever that europe remains calm, united and determined. i'm an optimist by nature, i will work day and night to make an agreement with the uk happen and if it can't, to ensure that all measures are in place in the eu to cope with a no—deal brexit. as eu and uk lawmakers prepare to stare each other down, the eu's chief negotiater emphasised

again today why he believes the text on the irish backstop must not be touched. translation: the backstop is not dogma, it is a solution, found in negotiations with the uk, not against the uk, for the unique situation that exists on the island of ireland. frustration here is palpable, with divisions in the uk parliament and the prime minister's negotiating style. is that the way you can solve a problem of a magnitude? is that the way to do that? is that the way you do that? that is every day changing your opinion? so much passion, so much engagement here in the european parliament in the brexit debate today but, crucially, no one here has any power to change anything at this stage. the only ones who can bend or amend the withdrawal agreement, including the backstop on the irish

border, are the leaders of the 27 eu countries and right now they are stonewalling the prime minister. there are no plans to hastily schedule a summit of eu leaders at this stage. angela merkel sent out her spokesman to talk to the cameras today about what is next rather than appearing herself. he said theresa may should go and see jean—claude juncker, a man who, at this stage, has little power to help her. and assumptions the eu will give in at the 11th hour are strongly dismissed here because the backstop text, as it stands, is also designed to protect the eu's single market after brexit. yes, it's true that the eu can declare things impossible and at the last minute change its mind but it is usually to protect the integrity of the european union. accommodating the demands of the hard brexiteers, like theresa may would like us to do, would mean seriously putting at risk the integrity of the single market. whatever happens with brexit

in the future, the eu hopes for close ties with the uk. but these next days and weeks are likely to be tough. katya adler, bbc news, brussels. so, theresa may is set to continue talks with the eu after mps backed a plan to renegotiate her brexit deal. but what are the main options? and what are the chances of success? our deputy political editor, john pienaar, takes a look at the detail. theresa may's won a little more time. her hopes of a last ditch brexit breakthrough haven't died, yet. her problems, though, are still piled high. her directions from mps, the ones she wanted, unpicking the plan she agreed for managing the irish border, the so—called backstop plan that she insisted, until yesterday, was the best she could get. and getting the eu to abandon demands they're still standing by. well, judge for yourself. just now, it looks almost

like mrs may's mission impossible, here and in talks with eu leaders. in europe, obstacles wherever she turns. first, is there any way round the now famous irish backstop? that would keep the uk under eu customs rules and northern ireland closer, to avoid stops and checks on the eu's irish border. that's if there's no final trade deal ready, after any brexit transition time. mps want mrs may to agree an alternative, but brussels says there isn't one. back home, of course, brexiteers and the dup say checks could happen away from the border. trade could be tracked with new systems, new technology. getting round the backstop might, just might, unlock a deal but brussels says the technology doesn't exist. and even if the eu gave ground, and there's no sign of that, reopening the brexit divorce deal could open up new problems. spain could renew its claims on gibraltar. france might veto any new deal. the eu is clear it would shift

position, if mrs may went for a brexit closer to europe, staying under eu customs rules, say, but that's not a true brexit, according to mrs may. and, anyway, just imagine the reaction of brexiteers back at westminster. mrs may will be back in the commons in around a fortnight and it could be tough. if she can't win concessions from the eu, brexiteers are still threatening to vote down her deal. other critics, on all sides, could well try again to take control of brexit, force her to delay brexit day on march the 29th, and next time, unhappy ministers might resign and join the rebellion. as things stand, mrs may will be back in the commons, reporting a deal if she, somehow, against all the odds, gets one next month. and if no deal‘s agreed, she will report that to mps, a day ahead of a big debate and crucial votes the next day, valentine's day. but don't expect much affection in the house between rival factions, rival parties or, for that matter,

towards mrs may if britain seems closer to the outcome many fear — a no—deal brexit. john pienaar there. in a moment, we can talk to laura, our political editor, at westminster. but first, let's go to dublin and our ireland correspondent, emma va rdy. how would you characterise the response and the stance of the irish government today? well, on the face of it in various exasperation and disappointment with theresa may's u—turn on the backstop. in public, britain is going back to the eu to ask for something that brussels and dublin have said they cannot deliver. in private, behind—the—scenes in the irish government, there are real nerves. it is such a high—stakes stand—off for ireland because ireland as the country most set ——

set to be the most affected by brexit. one big question is what alternative to the backstop is britain putting forward? as we get closer to no deal in the coming weeks, if dublin were to blink, and that is a very big if, theresa may would need to put forward new alternatives to get any new concessions. there is no pressure on the irish prime minister to budge because tonight he has the parties here and the eu firmly behind him. thanks again. let's go to westminster and talk to laura. pressure from dublin and lots of pressure from brussels. where does the prime minister stand? in logistics turned she stands with a busy and intense few days ahead, building up contacts between the opposition parties here, mps in her own party tried to continue the talks to understand and assuage the concerns of mps on all sides and

continued the impression of listening to people who have made their objections to her deal so plain. in broader terms it also means crucially, as katya was suggesting, trying to step up conversations one pressure on individual european leaders. downing street is well aware that that is where real pressure would be useful now and that is where real change in the position in brussels would be affected, not by going through the technical, legal side of things that actually be getting into the raw, political power—play between her and her counterparts around the european union. given the response, not surprising, but the firm response to her statement yesterday, there is a lot of fretting about what happens if the european union does not budge in the end and a lot of finger crossing that, in the end, they will all stop the truth is, the deal as it stands will not get through

parliament without some form of change that is challenging for people on both sides of the channel but that is the political reality as things stand tonight. thank you. an underwater search for the plane carrying the footballer emiliano sala will take place after debris was found on a french beach. the plane disappeared with sala and pilot david ibbotson on board last week. but due to weather and sea conditions, an underwater search is not expected to start until the end of the week, and could take up to three days, as our correspondent, jon donnison, reports. could this french beach hold the clues to the missing plane carrying emiliano sala and his pilot, david ibbotson? these unverified photos taken by a woman who was taking a walk are thought to show one of two seat cushions which investigators believe came from the aircraft. the small plane disappeared nine days ago en route from nantes to cardiff. sala had onlyjust signed for cardiff city.

radar contact was lost near the island of alderney. the cushions were found washed up near surtainville in normandy, around 35 miles east of guernsey. earlier this week, emiliano sala's family, who have hired a private search company, arrived in the channel islands from argentina and took a flight over the area where their son disappeared. the air accident investigation branch called off its official search last week but has now relaunched its hunt for the plane and will focus on a priority area narrowed down to four square nautical miles. the debris itself won't help out that much in terms of where the plane went down. the currents in this region are incredibly complex, some of the fastest flowing currents in the world, and actually, the debris, from the known last position of the aircraft, could have gone around the tip of cherbourg, into the bay of seine or, as it has done, down in towards saint—malo. at last night's cardiff match at arsenal, there were more tributes, but,

more than a week after emiliano sala and his pilot disappeared, investigators believe there is virtually no chance they are still alive. jon donnison, bbc news. the venezuelan president, nicolas maduro, has dismissed calls for new elections, but says he is open to international mediation to resolve the political crisis in the country. there has been another day of anti—government protests today — called for byjuan guaido, the leader of the opposition, who last week declared himself interim president after doubts about the legitimacy of maduro's election. president trump has offered mr guaido his support, and the us has imposed some sanctions on venezuela. our correspondent, orla guerin, reports from caracas. a student leader stands alone, pleading for a better venezuela. "it is what we all deserve," he says. "think about that when you go home tonight." the security forces remain impassive. they are likely to

decide the future here. a student leader stands alone, pleading for a better venezuela. they are likely to decide the future here. and, for now, it seems they are standing with president nicolas maduro. but the opposition has its foot soldiers, young activists who feel a renewed sense of hope. well, the students have brought their protest to the edge of the highway. the opposition here wants to keep up the momentum. it says it wants peaceful demonstrations and peaceful change but there is a real sense here that this is a critical moment for venezuela and everyone is aware of the risk of more bloodshed. larger protests are planned for saturday. the young activists we met believe their time has come. we were born in a dictatorship. we lived all our lives in a situation that gets every time worse and this is the year that we feel we actually have an actual backing, international support. everything is colliding so students are here to support the change in venezuela. the embattled president,

nicolas maduro, popped up on state television. and he made sure to bring some friends. the message here — i'm going nowhere. but he said he was willing to talk to the opposition for the sake of peace. and in a facebook address, a warning for donald trump — hands off our oil. supporters of the president also on the move today, doing a drive—by outside a children's hospital. drowning out a protest by parents of sick children. two sides of the divide on display in caracas. but some were determined to be heard today, like romelo cabrera, a journalism student who had joined the protest on his walking frame. "i'm here for the same reasons as everyone else," he told me. "we feel

bad for our country. it is painful to see what is going on. my sister and my cousin had to flee. i want them back, i want everyone to come back to a free venezuela." the students ended their demonstration with the national anthem. "glory to the brave," it says. "down with the chains." this is a nation poised at a crossroads. orla guerin, bbc news, caracas. the uk supreme court has upheld a ruling thatjobseekers should not have to disclose minor convictions from their past. the case was brought by three people who claimed they'd been refused work because of offences committed long ago. campaigners say the ruling could affect thousands of people with criminal records. our legal affairs correspondent clive coleman has more details. eight years ago, joshua

was convicted of possession of small amounts of cannabis and ketamine and received a £200 fine. he believes job applications were binned as a result. i have realised that the only way for me to getjobs was to start lying on these applications and in interviews and i started saying that i didn't have any criminal convictions and hoping that they just wouldn't check. the object of the multiple convictions law... currently having more than one offence automatically triggers the disclosure of all offences. if a person has more than one conviction, then his entire record is disclosable. but the supreme court found that rule, and another by which police warnings and reprimands given to young people are also disclosed, in breach of the right to a private life. this landmark ruling from the supreme court finds that the current system,

which means that people with multiple minor convictions or even a police warning from their distant past, have to disclose that to prospective employer is simply too harsh. it's too blunt an instrument and one which can blight not only their employment prospects but sometimes even the rest of their lives. some believe employees working with vulnerable groups and in positions of trust should have minor convictions and reprimands disclosed but delighted campaigners believe today's judgment will have significant impact. it stands to affect thousands of people who have old and minor criminal records that they may have got many years ago when they were young. they are affected, they have shame, stigma and embarrassment and it anchors them to their past. the government will consider the ruling. joshua — now working for a drugs charity — would like to see a disclosure system where the minor offences of the young don't hamper the rest of their lives.

many other people i can think of are now in quite a bad situation in life and it stems from that original conviction for something quite minor. it is sort of like a knock—on effect. joshua torrance speaking to our legal affairs correspondent clive coleman. president trump has strongly criticised his own intelligence chiefs, describing their assessments on iran as "extremely naive" and suggesting they should go back to school. the president has been infuriated by comments made yesterday by the director of national intelligence to a senate committee that iran was not actively seeking to build nuclear weapons. our north america editor, jon sopel, is in washington. what is going on? well, what we heard was something quite extraordinary. you had the intelligence chief of the usa

contradicting the president on the threat of isis, on iran, on north korea and on russia as well and that has brought the blast from donald trump that they are naive and should go back to school. these people other people donald trump selected to be his intelligence chiefs. almost more significant was what they did not say. they did not talk about the southern border, where donald trump wants to build a wall. the president is thinking about declaring a state of emergency. that would be challenged legally because they say it is exceeding presidential power. if he is challenged legally, you can be sure that those opposing it will say that if it is such a national emergency, why did none of your intelligence chiefs raise it? many thanks. councils in england are drastically overspending on their budgets for supporting children and young people with special needs. according to figures obtained by the bbc, councils across england have overspent by more than £321; million this

year. in december 2018, the government announced an extra £250 million for councils over the next two years on top of an annual budget for high needs of £6 billion. but the number of children and young people receiving support is growing — more than 14% of pupils in english schools have some sort of special need. many councils say they expect to slip further into the red in the coming financial year. our education editor, branwen jeffreys, reports from dorset. i'll check for hens... six—year—old malachi hasn't been in school since last september. his dad, alexander, has had to take unpaid time off work. malachi faces extra challenges, including epilepsy and autism, but as yet, no special school place has been found, even though a care plan sets out legally what this little boy needs. malachi struggles every single day of his life because he's not getting

the provisions and the support that he needs, so i think the impact is immeasurable. i think he feels rejected because he can't understand why he can't go to school like every other child. they're not the only family in this desperate situation. dorset is one of many areas struggling with demand. this is one way they're trying to manage costs. some are old and some of are new. some are sad... charlie is in a new special ‘pod' added to a mainstream primary school. it's quite exciting. i'm quite happy. i normally like going into other classes, but i do like being here in the pod. the sensory room here helps children with autism but the council has overspent on paying for day to day support. why is there so much pressure? it is partly because children who get a care plan at this age

could still have the legal right to support until the age of 25. in dorset, this conservative councillor says they are running out of options. it is a multi—million pound problem. up until now, it really has been a case of drawing on reserves and measures to offset it and reorganising budgets in order to be able to cope with it, but there is a breaking point and dorset is not alone as an authority in recognising that day of reckoning will be coming very, very soon. what groom are we going to be giving him today, oscar? we are going to give him a full groom. at 17, oscar is now an apprentice thanks to help given from his school. his mother says support is still needed to get him into work. his mother says support is still needed to get him into workm would be incredibly sad to support a young person until they are 16 and

then say that is it because life goes beyond 16 and some of the most critical periods are at 16 and beyond. my career and my education does not stop, i still have to do all sorts of written exams, even if it isjust stuff all sorts of written exams, even if it is just stuff to all sorts of written exams, even if it isjust stuff to help all sorts of written exams, even if it is just stuff to help starting a business, i think it's so important. much of england is facing similar challenges. the government says it is listening, but none of that will stop the costs rising. parts of the united states have been hit by a deadly blast of polar air — which meteorologists say will bring a once—in—a—generation deep freeze. the arctic air is gripping the midwest and eastern states and temperatures have dropped to —40 celsius in some places. hundreds of schools, businesses and government agencies have closed, and thousands of flights have been grounded. more snow is expected across large parts of the uk tonight on what could be the coldest night of the winter so far. manchester and liverpool airports

were closed for a while this morning because of snow and ice and hundreds of schools were closed across the uk. our wales correspondent sian lloyd is in the brecon beacons. she has the latest. it is feeling pretty chilly here in the brecon beacons, —5 and it feels a bit colder than that but luckily we do not have any wind here this evening. there has been no disruption across parts of the uk the north west of england and north wales where schools have been closed and there has been disruption on the roads. we are expecting the temperatures to plummet, it could be the coldest night of the winter so far here in the uk with temperatures in the scottish glens due to fall to —14. we are used to seeing snow up here in the brecon beacons, the ground is pretty high and there is a snowfall behind me and the mountain rescue teams are very busy this time of

year. marc teams are very busy this time of year. machones teams are very busy this time of year. marc jones is teams are very busy this time of year. machones is from the brecon mountain rescue team. what are you expecting in the coming days? we are preparing for an increase in calls with the snow forecast from tomorrow afternoon so we with the snow forecast from tomorrow afternoon so we are with the snow forecast from tomorrow afternoon so we are expecting a busy weekend.