tv BBC News at Six BBC News February 26, 2019 6:00pm-6:31pm GMT
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hello, this is bbc news. the headlines. meaning some rain and gales as well. a bit ofa meaning some rain and gales as well. a bit of a shock to the system as temperatures return closer to the prime minister has told mps that if her brexit deal is rejected, they'll get an opportunity to vote on ruling normal. out a no—deal brexit, tonight at 6: and possibly delaying brexit itself. for the first time theresa may concedes that brexit could be delayed. let me be clear, i do not want to see article 50 extended. 0ur absolute the prime minister offers a series of votes, including a postponement — but she tells them more time doesn't solve the problems. ultimately, the choices we face would remain unchanged — leave with a deal, leave with no deal, or have no brexit. the prime minister has become quite the expert at kicking the can down the road. but the problem is the road is running out. theresa may's concession came after a threat of rebellion in her own ranks — we'll find out what those mps think now. also tonight... one of the pope's top advisers is found guilty of sexual offences — cardinal pell is the most senior
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catholic cleric to be convicted. the far right activist tommy robinson is banned from facebook — and his instgram profile has been taken down too. the new rules on organ donations — a gift of life from nine—year—old keira to eleven—year—old max. i honestly was ready to die. i didn't think i'd make it. a second record—breaking day — 21.2 degrees in south—west london — that's warmer than malibu and barcelona. coming up on bbc news... brendan rodgers is set to leave celtic to return to the premier league, and become the next manager of leicester city.
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good evening. for the first time since she began negotiating uk's withdrawal from the european union, thersesa may has opened up the possibility that brexit could be delayed. facing pressure from some of her own ministers, the prime minister has offered parliament a series of votes. first, a vote on whatever deal she negotiates by the 12th march. if that's rejected, mps will then have the chance the following day to vote on whether to leave with no deal. then, if the commons votes against that too, there'll be another vote by the 14th of march on delaying brexit beyond the current deadline of march 29th. here's our political editor, laura kuenssberg, on a major turning point in the government's brexit strategy.
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asthma departure has always been the prime minister pours my plan. adamant we would leave the eu by the end of this month, keeping the pace up end of this month, keeping the pace up to leave on time —— make a smooth departure. but with no deal in place yet, theresa may had to say what she never wanted to, that there could be a delay to brexit. i know members across the house are genuinely worried that time is running out... that if the government doesn't come back with a third meaningful vote, or if it loses that vote, parliament won't have time to make its voice heard on the next steps. so... the uk will only leave without a deal on the 29th of march if there is explicit consent in the house for that outcome. third... then the words she never wanted to say. that outcome. third... then the words she never wanted to saym the house rejected the deal negotiated with the eu then rejects leaving on the 29th of march without
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a deal and future framework, then on the 14th of march the government will bring forward a motion on whether parliament wants to seek a short, limited extension to article 50. translated, if mps echoed her deal again, they can choose to delay brexit instead. —— mps threw out her deal again. the prime minister has become quite the expert at kicking the can down the road, but the problem is the road is running out and the consequences of running down the clock are evident and very real for industry and people pours ‘s jobs. delay is not what number ten wa nts, jobs. delay is not what number ten wants, and for once it was remainers to push the prime minister, those in cabinet said they would quit if she didn't admit it was an option. walking out quietly satisfied together after newly three errors of cabinet talks. those who deplored the idea of leaving without a deal have won, for today. we have to
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avoid that. i think it is our duty. the prime minister was very clear today and i think parliament should be reassured that we have that very firm timetable. if brexiteers in cabinet are frustrated, they don't really wa nt cabinet are frustrated, they don't really want to show it. it is now for members of the house of commons to reflect on what17.4 million to reflect on what 17.4 million people voted to reflect on what17.4 million people voted for and to ensure they back the prime minister in her efforts to get a good deal. but for months and months she has said we will be leaving and now she is saying something else, that mps might delay brexit. don't people have the right to feel quite cross about that or that they have been misled? the prime minister is clear we are leaving the european union and no option has been taken off the table. but the northern irish allies believe this is a mistake. table. but the northern irish allies believe this is a mistakelj table. but the northern irish allies believe this is a mistake. i think if they start ticking off the pressure we willjust be in the situation in a few months' time. let's get on with it now. theresa may went down the road from number ten to parliament more than 80 times to say she would stick to the
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timetable and take first night out of the eu by march 29. that is still possible, if mps back her deal in the next couple of weeks. but if they can't, or won't, the next couple of weeks. but if they can't, orwon‘t, it the next couple of weeks. but if they can't, or won't, it now almost looks impossible to imagine us leaving at the end of march without a formal arrangement in place, with a formal arrangement in place, with a possible delay of a couple of months. but beyond that, don't be so sure. a delay might remove some risk, but provokes many more real questions. yet brexit is less likely to be done by the time the seasons turn. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. so, as we've just heard, the prospect of a no—deal brexit has been delayed but — as theresa may pointed out — it has not gone away entirely. in the last hour the government has released internal assessments on the impact of a no deal brexit. 0ur economics correspondent dharshini david is here. boiled down what these official assessments actually mean? 15 pages,
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judge, but they don't make for co mforta ble judge, but they don't make for comfortable reading. essentially saying the country, consumers, businesses, are not prepared for no deal and it could have a heavy cost on all of us, following particularly ha rd on all of us, following particularly hard on those living in northern ireland. some of this is beyond our control, for example, the fact that some of the extra forms needed to cross borders with goods could mean extra money, delays, tariffs and charges and the events of a no deal and that could mean a lack of choice when it comes to food and higher prices. the governor of the bank of england today are speaking about the risks to our prosperity from a no deal. prior to this, risks to our prosperity from a no deal. priorto this, he risks to our prosperity from a no deal. prior to this, he said even if we did get a deal we were looking at the slowest rate of expansion for our economy this year perhaps since the financial crisis. he is now saying with a no deal we are guaranteed an even sharper slowdown. normally you would be talking about cutting interest rates but if prices are rising, inflation is rising, the bank's hands might be tied. how seriously should we take these warnings? put it this way. on that
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head from westminster we could see a no deal being delayed, the pound is trading in the financial markets at its highest level now for some months. dharshini, thank you. and let's go to downing street for the latest from our political editor laura kuenssberg. laura, what is the effect of this possible delay? how does it change things in parliament? george, a big concession in political terms. remainers in the tory party have realised, actually, if they really stick together they can also show strength in numbers. they have forced her to do something she didn't want to do. but in a funny way what the prime minister has actually said today is a statement of something that has been obvious for a while, that it is quite unlikely that brexit is likely to conclude neatly before the end of march, which has been the timetable for such a long time. and it also has been privately pretty obvious that parliament would almost never
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let the country leave the european union without a formal arrangement actually being in place. but theresa may has been forced to accept that today, and that is, at least in the short term, something that does mean a lot. it does almost remove the chance therefore that we would leave at the end of march without any kind of deal being done, with all of the potential economic turmoil that might come with that, but in a classic theresa may move, she has been clear about that, but she has not been clear about what she would like to do instead if her deal falls. it is very clear that number ten at the moment publicly only once to really talk about how their deal could get through, although she has been forced to give a big concession today. laura, thank you very much. a former advisor to the pope has become the most senior catholic clergyman to be convicted of child sex offences. cardinal george pell was found guilty by an australian court of sexually abusing two 13—year—old boys
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in melbourne cathedral 22 years ago. he was convicted in december but the verdict can only now be reported, for legal reasons. from melbourne, hywel griffith sent this report. you're a disgrace! you're an absolute pig! you're a monster! 0nce talked about as a future pope, cardinal george pell‘s fall from grace has ended with him facing up to ten years injail. pell has a reputation in australia for being tough and uncompromising. but he used his power to manipulate and abuse. 0utside court, a statement was read out on behalf of one of his victims. like many survivors, i have experienced shame, loneliness, depression and struggle. like many survivors, it has taken me years to understand the impact on my life. in 1996, in one of his first services as archbishop of melbourne, pell found two choirboys helping themselves to communion wine.
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he told them that they were in trouble and then forced both into a series of sexual acts. for years, pell purported to be someone who wanted to help abuse survivors, setting up a world—first system here in australia to offer counselling and compensation. in reality, it only served to mask his own crimes. george pell became one of the most powerful people in rome. today the vatican said it was pained by the verdict, but it stopped short of forcing him to resign. despite being a convicted paedophile, he remains a cardinal, with the power to vote on who becomes the next pope. we await the outcome of the appeals process, recalling that cardinal pell maintains his innocence and has the right to defend himself. for some abuse survivors in australia, rome's reticence is abhorrent. excommunication. there is no other choice.
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it would be a farce for the catholic church if they once again give lip service. it's about time the catholics, from the pope down, started to practise what they preach. after months of secrecy and suppression, the world can now learn about george pell‘s crimes. a man trusted by millions around the world has been held to account. when he returns to court next, he knows he faces a prison sentence. hywel griffith, bbc news, melbourne. president trump and the north korean leader kim jong—un have arrived in the vietnamese capital, hanoi, ahead of their second summit. they're expected to discuss ways of ridding the korean peninsula of nuclear weapons, but there are few signs that pyongyang is willing to give up its arms. facebook has taken down the far right activist tommy robinson's official page and his instagram profile for violating its policies on hate speech.
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the former english defence league leader was deemed to have engaged in what it called "organised hate". facebook said a number of posts on his page had violated the social network's community standards, but it had not taken the decision to remove his page lightly. here's our media editor, amol rajan. thank you, every single one of you, for turning out today. tommy robinson has mastered the art of social media. we don't need the media to report that! because we are the media. stephen yaxley—lennon, to use his real name, is a far right activist who claims to have been silenced by the mainstream media. so he turned to digital platforms such as twitter, facebook and google—owned youtube, to rally activists and spread his message of anti—islamism and a war against liberal elites. except now he's been silenced in some of those places, too. nearly a year after twitter banned him, and having received a final warning, facebook and its subsidiary instagram today permanently banned him. in a blog post, facebook said:
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tommy robinson's facebook page has repeatedly broken these standards, posting material that uses dehumanising language and calls for violence targeted at muslims. taking a stand for or against an agitator like tommy robinson is the easy bit. working out the limits of free speech and what kind of internet we want, well, that's much harder. for facebook, this is uncomfortable terrain. act too fast and you get accused of censorship. act too slow and you get accused of spreading hate. technology itself is politically neutral, but technology companies, staffed by ambitious people and committed to a particular world view, will always be guided by a subjective choices. as tommy robinson has just found out. tommy robinson said again today that a corrupt media and establishment were trying to silence him.
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and there are some libertarian journalists who disapprove of robinson but disapprove of banning him even more. i think it's a terrible idea for facebook to ban tommy robinson, not because i think the guy's got good views, but because it's censorship, and free speech has to be with no ifs and no buts. you're giving him a gift in banning him, making him a free speech martyr, and he absolutely does not deserve that position. the internet is a big place. tommy robinson, seen here protesting outside the bbc in salford on saturday, has colonised a chunky corner of it. though his reach has diminished today, his followers still know where to find him. amol rajan, bbc news. the time is 6.15pm. our top story this evening. the prime minister has conceded for the first time that brexit could be delayed beyond the current deadline of march 29th. coming up. another day of record temperatures in parts of england and wales — warmer than parts of the med. coming up on sportsday on bbc news. we hearfrom chelsea manager maurizio sarri as he considers dropping his goalkeeper
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kepa arrizabalaga after he refused to be substituted during sunday's carabao cup final lose. 11—year—old max is alive today because he received a heart transplant from nine—year—old keira. their extraordinary story inspred a campaign to change the rules of organ donation, and today max and keira's law cleared its final parliamentary hurdle. once in effect in england, it will presume consent for organ donation unless adults opt out. that's how it works in wales already. 0ur medical correspondent has the story of these two remarkable children. i saw there was a line of ambulances, lining up. and one by one, they came out with containers and... so i watched all of her organs leave, which was quite emotional. joe ball's daughter keira was nine years old when she was in a car accident with her mum and brother.
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all three were seriously injured. keira was worked on on the side of the road for 40 minutes, doing cpr. but doctors in bristol soon realised they could not save keira. she was on life support, but there was no brain activity. with her mum, loanna still semiconscious, it was left to dad, joe, to decide whether to donate keira's organs. so ijust looked at keira and thought, if keira was given the option, i'm sure she would have said yes. it was in her nature, wasn't it? hmm. yes. because that'sjust how she is. give this to whoever, you know. she'sjust a kind child. her heart, kidneys, liver and pancreas were used to save four lives. it's tragic, it's heart—wrenching that we've lost keira. but unfortunately there was nothing that could be done for keira. but the fact that she's gone on and saved four other people is absolutely amazing.
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300 miles away in newcastle was nine—year—old max johnson. he'd been waiting for a heart transplant for nearly seven months. keeping him alive was a mechanical heart pump. i honestly was ready to die. i didn't think i'd make it. i hugged mum and dad thinking, this is the last hug with my parents. i love you both! we love you too! there was a chance max would not survive surgery. his heart was so badly damaged as a result of a viral infection. this is the moment keira's heart arrived in theatre, ready to be transplanted. the operation was a success. you going to go first? yeah! max, now 11, is doing well, although he is sometimes poorly from the drugs he needs everyday to prevent his body rejecting its new heart. our thoughts about the donor at the time were just, an overwhelming sense
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of deep gratitude. the word thank you didn't dojustice. they've thought of others at that really difficult moment. since the transplant, max and keira's families have become friends. it's like my second family. aww! in the hope of increasing the number of organs for transplant, a new law, which cleared its final hurdle is today, will mean consent for donation will be presumed, unless people opt out. the law change, which comes into effect in england next year, was inspired by max's story. "i hope you are feeling much better..." the prime minister wrote to max, saying the law would be named after him. "with lots of love, theresa may." but when keira's role emerged, it was renamed max and keira's law, to recognise the vital importance of donors. under the new system,
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people will still be encouraged to register that they want to be an organ donor. after a death, relatives will continue to have the final say, so it's vitalfamilies know each other‘s wishes. i want everyone to talk to each other, what decision will it be? let your organs go to waste and just decay or save a few people's lives? max johnson ending that report from fergus walsh. india has launched air strikes against what it claims are militant training camps in pakistani territory, close to the disputed region of kashmir. it's a major escalation of tensions between the two nuclear—armed countries. india says the strikes targeted terrorists from the jaish—e—mohammad group in balakot. but pakistan said the strikes hit an empty area and vowed to respond swiftly. 0ur india correspondent yogita limaye reports. in this mountainous part of pakistan's northeast, india claims
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to have hit a militant group. it says its aircraft bombed jaish—e—mohammad's largest camp. for the first time since 1971, indian jets entered pakistani airspace. translation: i heard a huge explosion and jets flying overhead. in the morning, we saw a big crater, and some homes damaged. but pakistan says there was no damage and no casualties. its spokesman put out these photos saying that the jets were forced to drop their payloads hastily and scramble away. it's vowed to retaliate. india has committed uncalled for aggression, to which pakistan shall respond at the time and place of its choosing. india's actions are being seen as a response to this suicide bombing 12 days ago. carried out by jaish—e—mohammad, it killed 40 troops in in indian administered kashmir. this is an area disputed
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between pakistan and india. the neighbours have fought two wars over it, and for decades it has faced armed insurgency, backed by pakistan—based groups. india has been repeatedly urging pakistan to take action against the jaish—e—mohammad, to preventjihadis from being trained and armed inside pakistan. after the suicide bombing, the mood in the country was one of anger, of wanting revenge against the perpetrators. and with a national election coming up in less than two months from now, the government and prime minister modi were under pressure to act. there were celebrations in some parts of india, jubilation at having struck back. but in others, there is fear of what will come next. yogita limaye, bbc news, mumbai. let's take a look at some of today's other news. the mp fiona 0nasanya has been released from prison after serving a month of her
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three—month sentence for perverting the course of justice. the mp for peterborough, who was expelled from the labour party, was jailed after being convicted of lying to avoid a speeding charge. the delivery service 0cado has confirmed it is in talks with marks and spencers about a £1.8 billion home delivery deal. if the two companies reach agreement, it would give m&s a food delivery service for the first time. 0cado is currently best known for delivering waitrose goods. football, and brendan rodgers is expected to become the new manager of leicester city after his current club, celtic, gave him permission to speak to the premier league team. leicester sacked claude puel on sunday. celtic are eight points clear of their nearest rivals, rangers, as they chase an eighth successive league title. chris mclauchlin is outside celtic park. how much of a shock is this move, chris? in a word, huge, to be
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honest, especially here, george, in the east end of glasgow. fans have been milling around the stadium for most of the day asking various media outlets if it is true, is brendan rodgers really leaving celtic? he became a huge hero here after moving from liverpool two and a half years ago. of course, he has led celtic to seven trophies, the historic double treble and there was always a feeling that he wanted to try his luck once again in the english top flight, luck once again in the english top flight, but for the celtic fans, it is the timing. they are not happy at all, on the day that leicester city get their man, then celtic's brendan rodgers era is very much over. chris, thank you very much. this time last year, the uk was being ravaged by the beast from the east, with temperatures dropping to as low as —12. what a contrast now. for the second day in a row, parts of england and wales have seen
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record—breaking temperatures — 20.8 degrees celsius in porthmadog, north wales and a new uk winter record of 21.2 in kew gardens, southwest london. that's warmer than some popular mediterranean cities like barcelona. so could this be the new normal? 0ur science editor david shukman has spent the day in the record breaking temperatures at kew. a wonderful display of colours here at kew gardens in west london and with the air so unusually warm, and the sun so dazzlingly bright, it really does feel like summer. no surprise this extraordinary spell of weather has set new records for temperatures for this time of year. obviously a lot of people are out enjoying themselves. these crowds are apparently nearly double the numbers you'd normally get here in february. and of course, most people are in shirtsleeves or sun hats. there is a kind of holiday atmosphere. but what does this sudden warmth mean for the natural world?
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the bumblebees are out, and very busy. i caught up with one of the experts here, trying to work out what happens as the insects are active too early in the year. often a lot of solitary bees have a very short window where they're active in the year and it mightjust be a month, a couple of weeks. if there is a mismatch with their food plant, that might be really a problem for them to be successful, yeah. while the warm spell rolls on, it's here at kew gardens that weather history has been made, with a new record. the highest winter temperature ever recorded in britain. we know the average world temperature is rising with global warming, so is this the reason? we asked a leading climate scientist. as global temperatures rise, then we are going to get more extreme heat events. this is just one example happening today. and as we go into the future, this sort of thing is going to get more common. so something that's perhaps a one in 1000 event in the 1950s
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is now a one in 15 event. now, amid this brief burst of summer, there's something else to be aware of. a problem with air quality. although the sky seems nice and blue, there's a kind of pollution you can't actually see, and for the next day or so, here in london and many parts of the country, we're being warned to take care. that was our science editor, david shukman, at kew gardens in south west london. time for a look at the weather. here's stav da naos. i have got kew gardens behind me, a glorious picture with the daffodils out, and we have broken the all—time winter record. 21.2 celsius and that is 70.2 fahrenheit, pretty incredible for this time of year. and it doesn't look like we are going to beat this tomorrow because things will change be on wednesday. under the clear skies, temperatures will fall away and we see patches of
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mist and fog developing in southern eastern england. 0ne mist and fog developing in southern eastern england. one or two sheltered spots, particular north—east on scotland could see a touch of frost, so another chilly start of the day with a mist and fog clearing. a few patches lingering on across eastern england. subtle changes taking place, western scotland, western parts of england and wales could see cloud but widespread sunshine for most but the temperature is not quite as high as today and still very mild for the time of year at 18 or 19 celsius. we have lost a big area of high pressure and we are picking up influence from the atlantic and that will bring weather fronts with it, so more cloud on thursday, the best sunshine could be across scotland and for england and wales, babs northern ireland, may be a weather front moving and kneading —— bringing in much—needed rain and some of the burst could be heavy and it could turn windy and with it the temperatures, between nine and 13 degrees, that will be a bit of a
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shock to the system but those are actually pretty average temperatures for the time of year. friday could see high pressure and a bit of sunshine before the weekend will be a shock, windy, gales, outbreaks of rain and it will feel much cooler, so after the record—breaking heat we are going back to normaljust in time for the weekend. that's all from the bbc news at six,
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