on a visit to belfast, theresa may assures business leaders, the government would prevent any return to a hard border, between northern ireland and the republic. the prime minister also suggested, she may not seek to take the irish backstop out of her brexit agreement, but wants brussels to amend it instead. northern ireland does not have to rely on the irish government or the european union to prevent a return to borders of the past. the uk government will not let that happen. the prime minister heads to brussels on thursday, pushing for changes to the brexit deal — but is the eu listening? also tonight: four young children die in a house fire in the west midlands. police describe the scene as heartbreaking. liam neeson, are you sorry for what you said? the actor liam neeson denies he's a racist, after recalling how he wanted kill any black man, following the rape of a friend a0 years ago.

if she'd said irish or a scot ora brit, ora lithuanian, i know it would have had the same effect. the un says persistent and illegal breaches of air pollution across the uk are a violation, of the rights of children. and his masters voice will live on. bankrupt hmv, is bought out, of administration. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news, is the fa cup dream over for the lowest ranked team left in the competition, as barnet battle it out for a place in the fifth round? good evening. theresa may says she wants the european union to agree to changes to the so—called irish backstop in her brexit withdrawal deal, but she's suggested

she might not seek to remove it altogether from the agreement. after speaking to business leaders in belfast today, the prime minister will travel to brussels for talks on thursday. the ‘backstop‘ is the provision that would guarantee an open border between northern ireland and the republic, until there's a comprehensive trade deal, with the eu. that means there would be no checks at the border. the whole of the uk would have to continue to obey eu rules on the trade in goods, and in some respects, northern ireland would have to remain closer to the eu, than the rest of the uk. but critics say the backstop could mean trade is goverened by eu rules indefinitely. however supporters argue, it's a crucial insurance policy. from belfast, here's our deputy political editorjohn pienaar. it's complicated, but you can make anything work — almost anything, if you try hard enough. search for any opportunity.

so why not a brexit deal? at this electronics firm in belfast, they're saying uncertainty is bad for business, here and across the uk. and leaving with no deal could be much worse, especially in northern ireland. we've a lot of traffic goes up and down, across that border every day. we have engineers that travel up and down every day. if customs are reintroduced into that, then that will slow down our business and will make our competitors in the eu countries far more attractive. so today, mrs may came with words of reassurance — there'd be no return to stops and checks on the border, deal or no deal. northern ireland does not have to rely on the irish government or the european union to prevent a return to borders of the past. the uk government will not let that happen. i will not let that happen. and then this — the prime minister's aim was to change the backstop her dup critics see as a threat to the union, not drop it. well, i'm not proposing to persuade people to accept a deal that doesn't contain that insurance policy for the future. what parliament has said

is they believe there should be changes made to the backstop. and it is in that vein and that light, we're working with politicians across westminster of course, across the house of commons, but also we will be working with others, with the irish government and with the eu. that could mean trouble with brexiteers and the democratic unionists. their leader arlene foster, looks laughable, but talks tough. looks affable, but talks tough. her mps can prop up or vote down a brexit deal and her message today — get round the backstop or no dup support. most people in northern ireland voted to remain. businesses, they would support mrs may's deal. are you playing a dangerous game of who blinks first? it's not a dangerous game at all, it's a game of trying to find a long—term, sustainable relationship with the european union that works for the whole of the united kingdom and of course, from a northern ireland point of view, one that doesn't separate us from our main market, which is gb. could britain leave without a deal?

well many believe it could happen. the eu could offer late concessions, some, close to mrs may, calculate that if the brinkmanship goes on long enough, brexiteer rebels could fall into line for fear of losing brexit altogether. but if this is a game of who blinks first, no one's blinking yet and the longer it goes on, the more dangerous it gets. how to keep the border working as it does today? that's the problem blocking a brexit deal. mrs may meets northern ireland's political leaders tomorrow and then on to brussels the next day. no clear route to agreement, so little time to find one. john pienaar, bbc news, belfast. as we've just heard the prime minster is heading to brussels on thursday, let's talk to our europe editor, katya adler, who's there for us tonight. what kind of reception do you think the prime minister will receive?

they say they are in listening mode and she will be meeting jean—claude juncker and donald tusk, the man who represents all 27 eu leaders in brussels. but don't hold your breath for a big breakthrough. the prime minister comes here hoping to persuade eu leaders for changes on the backstop guarantee over the irish border. but they need more fundamental persuasion and that is if they can trust the prime minister. its sound harsh but eu leaders were taken aback about is putting it politely, when after the prime minister signed from the brexit deal in november, which included what the eu considers big concessions for the uk inside the backstop, now she turns around and says it's not good enough. eu leaders understand theresa may is under pressure in her party and parliament, but they believe she doesn't have a stable majority at home they are wary of giving her concessions now in case she is back

ina concessions now in case she is back in a fortnight asking for more to keep mps onside. also, they will wa nt to keep mps onside. also, they will want to give the prime minister some food for thought and that is, if she continues to want to reopen the withdrawal agreement, which includes the text of the backstop, other eu countries may be tempted to go for a bit of print quote probe, france pushing for more fishing rights in the uk and spain over more gibraltar. senior eu officials insist that it's not that they look at the backstop and withdrawal agreement as an unholy, untouchable text, but more like pandora's ‘s box. but now that it's close, they don't want to open it. four children, aged between three and eight, have died in a fire at their home in stafford in the west midlands. their mother managed to jump from a first floor window with a younger child and her partner. the local fire and crime commissioner paid tribute to the emergency services and described what happened as heartbreaking.

sima kotecha reports. windows shattered. the inside of the house blackened by the fire that ripped through the upstairs. it happened close to 3am in the highfields area of stafford. eyewitnesses say it sounded like an explosion. four children were killed. from left to right, six—year—old keegan unitt. four—year—old tilly rose unitt. three—year—old olly unitt and eight—year—old riley holt. firefighters were faced with very difficult conditions inside the property, due to the severity of the fire. our fire investigation team are currently working with colleagues from west midlands fire service and staffordshire police, in order to find out how the fire started and spread throughout the property. three people managed to survive the blaze — the children's brother, two—year—old jack, their mother 24—year—old natalie unitt, and her partner, 28—year—old chris moulton.

firefighters say they managed to escape byjumping out of an upstairs window. their injuries are not believed to be life—threatening. more than 15 firefighters scrambled to the house to put out the flames. neighbours described the loss of young lives as absolutely heartbreaking. i didn't know until now. i thought they'd all got out. the flames were intense, theyjust went that quick, into the roof. it was coming out the roof in seconds, weren't it. four young lives gone, and a community left shaken, and devastated. sima kotecha, bbc news, stafford. police in paris believe a fire that engulfed a block of flats killing ten people and injuring at least 30 others, was started deliberately. a woman who lives in the apartments, in the south west of the city,

has been arrested. 200 firefighters spent more than five hours trying to bring the blaze under control. the hollywood actor liam neeson, has denied he's a racist, after revelations he made in an interview promoting his new film. he said following the rape of someone close to him by a black man a0 years ago, he set out to kill any innocent black man he may have come across in the street. but he said he quickly came to his senses and was appalled by his behaviour, which wasn't motivated by racism. nick bryant is in new york with the latest. nick. it is the new york premiere tonight of liam neeson‘s new movie. journalists have just been told that the photo opportunities and the interviews have been cancelled. earlier he did speak to american television and explained how he had grown up television and explained how he had grown up in northern ireland during the troubles. he was very much

aware, as a young man, of revenge killings. he tried to place these remarks in an historical context. but one word he didn't say was sorry. after his explosive comments about rape, revenge and race... mr neeson, are you sorry for what you said? ..liam neeson arrived at this manhattan television studio not to make an apology but to offer an explanation. i'm not racist. he admitted to setting out to kill an innocent black man nearly a0 years ago, after someone close to him was allegedly raped by a black man. would you have had the same reaction if yourfriend had said it was a white man? 0h, definitely. if she had said an irish or a scot or a brit or a lithuanian, i know i would have had the same effect. i was trying to...show honour to my... stand up for my dear friend in this... in this terrible medieval fashion. and i'm a fairly intelligent guy, and that's why it kind of shocked me when i came down to earth after having these

horrible feelings. luckily, no violence occurred, ever, thanks be to god. what makes you think you can kill a man? i read it in a crime novel. promoting his new movie, the theme of which is murderous revenge, the actor had given an interview, telling how he'd sought retribution after hearing about the rape. i asked, did she know who it was? no. what colour were they? she said it was a black person. there's been outrage at those remarks, but some have

commended his honesty, and viewers saw his own personal torment written across his face. i'm just shocked. i couldn't believe he would say something like that. i thought he was a good guy. it makes you have a little bit of fear, but we have to push through that and find the love. he was on a public platform... at this black theatre company in london, young actors gave us their reaction. him using that language in the interview, in light of his influence, is naive. i agree with you, i don't think we should vilify him, but the statement that he made is problematic. for liam neeson, today was supposed to be about promoting his new movie, but instead he's trying to salvage his reputation. the 66—year—old has been one of hollywood's more bankable stars. will he face a backlash at the box office?

nick bryant, bbc news, new york. the un says persistent and illegal breaches of air pollution limits across the uk are a violation of the rights of children to grow up in a clean and safe environment. the united nation's children's agency unicef, together with the royal college of paediatrics, have investigated the effects of air pollution on children across the country, and believe the government needs a specific strategy to protect the most vulnerable. 0ur environment correspondent claire marshall reports from bristol. oh, no, there's two of our buses! this is the school run for ella and her children, through the centre of bristol. jay has seizures — his first one was three months after he began school, when he started making this journey. he's been to hospital seven times over the last three years. ella told me he mostly has seizures after he's been breathing polluted air. does it make you worried? yeah, cos you could suffocate.

lily's repeated chest infections are now so bad she's having to have chest x—rays. you need to get on the bus now. ella fears they'll have to move out of the city. my two children are reacting seriously to this. this is like not a messing—about matter. literally, our children are suffocating. and i can't cope with it much longer. in today's unicef report, leading health professionals urge the government to put children's health at the heart of its anti—pollution strategy. we're very concerned. i mean, air pollution for these young children is a public—health disaster. it affects their lung growth, it causes new—onset asthma, it makes them vulnerable to pneumonia. all of these things have implications in childhood but also implications going right through to adult life. ella kissi—debrah's death

has brought a face to the horrors of pollution. she lived beside one of busiest roads in london, suffering years of seizures and asthma attacks. she could be the first person to have pollution put on her death certificate. it is still very hard to make a direct link between exhaust fumes and a specific health problem. there is a disconnect, and according to today's report, the public aren't being told enough about the dangers. some city schools are doing what they can. ambler primary school is on a busy north london road. but step through the gates — they've won a grant to plant trees and put up ivy screens to shield the playground from pollution. they also run anti—idling schemes. if we don't do something about the air pollution soon, people are going to start getting asthma, they're going to get lung diseases, they're going to eventually get really sick. if everyone in the countryjust used the public transport more, then it would have a big impact

on the amount of air pollution going into schools' playgrounds. we just need to find as many ways as we can to mitigate, so that we can still use the playground and not feel that coming out isn't about fresh air, it is about being able to run around in the outside. the government says it's doing all it can, while bristol city council has set itself ambitious targets and says more funding is needed. claire marshall, bbc news, bristol. more than a week after the collapse of a dam in brazil, the number of dead stands at 134, with 199 people still missing. those who survived are desperately trying to establish what may have happened to family and friends. 0ur south america correspondent katy watson has been to the site of the disaster in brumadinho in south—east brazil to talk to one woman who's lost six members of herfamily and another who had the narrowest of escapes. when the dam broke, there was little hope for those in the path of the deluge that followed.

panic as drivers struggle to save themselves. elias was driving one of the trucks that day. it sounded like an explosion, but he soon realised what had happened. translation: we saw the mud coming, and i told my friend sebastian, "run, the dam has burst." you can see it on video, my truck moving from one side to the other. there was no way out. we asked god to protect us — death was staring us in the face. they survived. this was the aftermath. his pick—up, says elias, was like a grain of sand tossed about in the chaos. i meet wanderlei searching for the bodies of his brother and cousin in the sludge. this is their overturned truck. translation: my world's ended. i knew i wouldn't find them alive here, but if we are not on top of the search, the authorities will stop looking.

but in this sludge, the recovery effort is slow. there has been lots of rain in the last 2a hours, and these firefighters are returning to areas, hoping that with the extra water it might have displaced the mud and they can recover more bodies. every so often, they find something. a body bag is flown back to waiting families. the events of this past week are still hard to process for helena. she was to become a grandmother. when the dam collapsed, that dream ended. her daughter, son and pregnant daughter—in—law were killed when a wall of sludge slammed into the hotel they were staying in. her ex—husband and his wife died with them. helena spells out the initials of camila, luis, his partner fernanda and unborn baby lorenzo. translation: and they were thrown i don't know where.

they died from cranial trauma and asphyxia. that was the coroner's verdict. i don't even know if it was a slow or quick death. the family's mourning is made all the harder because they have not found all of the bodies yet. in the distance, the search goes on. katie watson, bbc news, in brumadinho. the home secretary, sajid javid, has defended plans to deport up to 50 people to jamaica, the first such deportation flight since the windrush scandal emerged last year. he told mps that all those onboard were foreign nationals who'd been convicted of serious crimes. but there are concerns some of those scheduled to leave have little or no experience of life in the carribean. our community affairs correspondent adina campbell is here. adina, what do we know about this

flight? well, this flight adina, what do we know about this flight? well, this flight is expected to take off tomorrow. there have been previous deportation flights, but none since the windrush scandal first came to light last year. now, over the scandal first came to light last year. now, overthe last scandal first came to light last year. now, over the last couple of days, campaigners, mps and other public figures have raised concerns about this flight, saying more investigation is needed into individual cases. but the home secretary has been very clear about the government's position on this, something that was raised in the commons earlier. sajid javid said that these people have committed serious offences and it is his legal requirement to send them back to jamaica. and in fact there has been a development in all these this evening. yes, one case that has had a lot of attention is a former soldier who has served in the british army, including two tours in afghanistan. he was convicted of assault back in 2010 after stabbing his ex partner's father. i sat down

with the jamaican high commissioner yesterday, who said that in some cases such as his, the government should be looking notjust that the legal circumstances but the personal circumstances as well, and tonight he has been told he will no longer be on that flight, but the flight is still reportedly expected to take off tomorrow. 0k, adina, thank you, adina campbell there. let's take a look at some of the day's other top stories, and a body has been found in a lake by officers searching for a missing student in reading. daniel williams, who's 19, failed to return to his student accommodation following a night out last thursday. while the body hasn't been formally identified, mr williams' family has been informed of the discovery. air—accident investigators say they're trying to recover a body from the wreckage of the light aircraft which crashed with the footballer emiliano sala and pilot david ibbotson on board. the plane was en route from france to wales just over two weeks ago when it disappeared from radar over the english channel. it was discovered on the sea bed near guernsey on sunday. the home secretary has

apologised to a woman who says she's been denied the right to work despite living in the uk for 35 years. willow sims, who's originally from america, told the bbc she was wrongly turned away from the windrush scheme, aimed at helping people prove their status. sajid javid says she's now getting help. the former manchester united manager jose mourinho has been sentenced to a year in prison in spain for tax fraud, but he won't be going to jail. he accepted the sentence as part of a deal with prosecutors in a wider investigation into alleged tax evasion by some of spain's top footballers. he'll now pay a fine of £1.75 million. in a few hours' time, president trump will deliver the annual state of the union address. the speech has been delayed for a week because of the recent partial government shutdown, the longest in us history. our north america correspondent katty kay is in washington. katty, what can we expect in a

speech, do you think? the white house says that president trump has spent the day putting his final edits to the speech, something like 40 edits to the speech, something like a0 million americans are expected to tune in, and he knows that he's not going to get this big a television audience until this time next year, by which time the 2020 election campaign will be well under way, so the challenge for the president is to reach out to voters in the middle with a unified, uplifting town, but at the same time keep his base happy, and we can expect some tough language on immigration, and of course that border wall. i did speak to somebody from the prez tram pre—election campaign today, who said to me that unifying town, that will help his chances. of course, it's not just about what he will help his chances. of course, it's notjust about what he says, it's notjust about what he says, it's also about the spectacle of any state of the union, and tonight, sitting right behind president

trump, will be the democratic speaker, nancy pelosi. she, of course, is the woman who forced him to cave on that government shutdown, and she will be in almost every shot, it is almost a visual reminder of the fact that this is a new, much tougher political landscape for donald trump here in washington. 0k, katty, thank you for that, katty kay in washington. and you canjoin katty for live coverage and analysis of the state of the union address, on bbc one and the bbc news channel from 2am. mps have approved the amount of money councils in england will receive from central government for the next financial year. ministers have announced an extra £1.3 billion will be available to spend on social care and roads. but the local government association says there's now a funding gap of almost £3 billion. in the last decade, council spending on services has reduced significantly, with the institute for fiscal studies estimating a fall of around 18% in real terms between 2009 and 2016. now some councils say cuts will have to continue, among them surrey county council,

as our political correspondent alex forsyth reports. kian, i'll get your bag out foryou in a minute, ok? and i'll do yourjuice. first thing in farnham, and it's school time for kian. he has autism and adhd so isn't in mainstream education. he attends a special school. kian? can you come and get your shoes on, please? getting enough support has been a battle for his mum, eliseu. now she's part of a group of parents involved in a legal challenge over surrey county council's plan to cut millions from its budget for special educational needs, worried about the possible impact. i rightfully feel cross that we have to fight to get the support that our children actually need, you know? this is not asking for violin lessons, this is asking for speech and language to enable them to communicate. that's fundamental. if a child can't communicate, then they are not part of society. not far away, in reigate, another group of mothers is fighting for a different service.

31 children's centres in surrey are due to close, places these parents have all relied on. we've recently had a bereavement. it was actually her twin brother that died, so it was very difficult for us, and because it was such an inclusive and warm, comfortable environment, and the staff there were so amazing, they made me feel comfortable, i could start getting out and about more, which meant i was a better mum, i think. it's really isolating as a first—time mum, but having somewhere you can go and talk to other people who are going through the same struggles as you, i just don't know what i would have done without it. in surrey, the county council says it's having to make hard choices. like authorities across england, the grant it gets from government has reduced in recent years, but demand for crucial services has grown. the government has given councils some extra money, particularly to help with social care. some are allowed to keep more of what they collect in business rates. many are putting up council tax by as much as they are allowed. but most say a long—term

funding solution is needed. it's something the government is looking at. we said at the conservative conference last year that austerity is coming to an end because of some of those really tough calls councils have had to make, and i think we should look more positively towards the new spending review. we provide support, advice, parenting... back in surrey, any future spending seems far off for services struggling now. the council says it's targeting support where it's most needed, but even this children's centre, which is staying open, says it will face pressures. we feel we're bursting at the seams in this one building. if we've got more families to look after, we really are struggling to know how we're going to meet that need. meeting need and balancing budgets has been a challenge for councils across the country. many are hoping the extra funding they have got from government this year signals a change of tune. alex forsyth, bbc news, surrey. the music and entertainment chain

hmv has been bought out of administration by the candian retailer sunrise records. the move safeguards 1500 jobs and 100 shops, but 27 stores will close, including the flagship on oxford street in central london. others in bath, glasgow, manchester and bristol will also shut. the new owners say they'll focus on giving customers more of what they want, including a greater selection of vinyl records. here's lizo mzimba. lunchtime — a quick stampede to the record shop. for decades, hmv stores have been a huge part of life for music fans — and for some of music's biggest artists. now, while a hundred stores have been saved, 27 are being shut down, including the one where it all started almost a hundred years ago in london's oxford street. today's would—be shoppers perhaps an illustration

of hmv‘s falling relevance to younger, online heavy consumers, and its continuing value to others. people are ordering online, they're streaming, and really there's still a crowd of people who want to come and browse. we rely on so many other things, streaming music, we stream tv, we stream films, and they've got to find a business model so they can survive. enter doug putnam, owner of canadian retailer sunrise records, hmv‘s new owners. we took over, you know, 80 some odd stores in canada almost two and a half years ago, and they're doing strong, doing well, profitable. we see hmv continuing on in the uk for a long time. the challenges are significant.