hello, i'm ros atkins, this is outside source. with just 26 days to brexit, 7 days until mps vote this is bbc news, i'm clive myrie. on the brexit deal — the headlines at 8pm. and the uk government is back in brussels negotiating. counter—terror police are investigating three packages containing explosives found we'll have the latest. at heathrow airport, london city airport an hiv positive man has become and waterloo station. the second person ever to be irish police say they're assisting cleared of the aids virus. scotland yard with the inquiry we'll hear how it was done. as two of the packages had republic of ireland stamps britain's most senior officer, cressida dick, says there is a link, china's premier warns of a tough struggle ahead between falling police numbers as the country deals with a slowing and violent crime. economy and a us—led trade war. and 100 bird species are facing extinction i agree that there is some because of the global food trade. we'll have more on that. link between violent crime on the streets, obviously, and police numbers. of course there is, and i think everybody would see that. bmw is warning it might consider moving production of the mini, from cowley in oxford, in the event of a no—deal brexit. a british patient‘s hiv has

become "undetectable" following a stem cell transplant. the london man is only the second known adult worldwide to be cleared of the virus, raising hopes that one day, the discovery might lead to a cure. and hundreds of people have joined the royal family at buckingham palace, to mark the 50th anniversary, of the investiture of the prince of wales. a counter—terror investigation has been launched tonight after three small explosive devices were found at buildings at major transport hubs in london. the met police counter terrorism said the packages were found at heathrow airport, waterloo train station and london city airport earlier today. let's take a closer look at today's events: the first device was found

in the compass centre within the grounds of heathrow airport at nine fifty five this morning an area around waterloo station was cordoned off at around eleven forty after a second package was found. and at ten past twelve this afternoon staff were evacuated from city aviation house at london city airport after a third package was reported. and this evening, a statement from the irish police said they were assisting the met with their enquiries. our correspondent, robert hall is outside london waterloo station. first of all, just how significant are these packages in terms of the kind of damage they could have cost? i think to keep things in perspective, of course anything like this is very worrying and the police we re this is very worrying and the police were treated very seriously and are doing so. we'll talk about that in a minute, but the one device which did

go off, when staff opened it at an office building close to it. the fire inside simply damaged part of the envelope. but what the police are saying when he finally released this statement was that these were viable devices capable of starting a small fire even within the package, so small fire even within the package, soi small fire even within the package, so i don't think we'll be talking about anything too serious, however it could cause injury and obviously if there are packages undiscovered and they go off, then they could cause a lot more than a small fire on somebody‘s desk. let's try and piece together what we have talked about here and you mentioned at that timeline, let's talk about the package itself that we are looking at, they're all the same contained within a white plastic postal envelope and two photographs that we've seen on the republic of ireland postage stamps and the republic of ireland, dublin return address on the front of the plastic envelope. within that envelope is a

device itself. they have crudely written addresses to the transport hub to heathrow airport and no person, no specific office, just a very crude address with a postcode. so there is a similarity in it does give the police here and the republic of ireland, something to follow u p republic of ireland, something to follow up and given the length of time this was cordoned off this morning, the package was found in the postal office just behind morning, the package was found in the postal officejust behind me morning, the package was found in the postal office just behind me at the postal office just behind me at the station and they're looking very closely at the area, closer to the television, piecing together the arrival of the package, presumably in this morning's mail and began to trace it back to the irish sea to dublin. any suggestion that there could be other packages out there? it is very early in the investigation, but given certainly that we know, there are no arrests,

or motives to the counterterrorism command, there is just or motives to the counterterrorism command, there isjust the or motives to the counterterrorism command, there is just the linked similarities between the packages themselves. yes there is a chance andi themselves. yes there is a chance and i think that's why they're making it very clear that while transport links at the two airports we re transport links at the two airports were not seriously disruptive in any way, nobody was hurt and everyone was evacuated safely in the packages are was evacuated safely in the packages a re successfully dealt was evacuated safely in the packages are successfully dealt with, there isa are successfully dealt with, there is a real risk and the republican staff of transport hubs across the uk have been circulating with these pictures and they have been warned to remain vigilant because as i said at the outset, there is a chance that one or more of these packages may be lying undisturbed and that could cause serious damage or serious injuries. is it clear 10096 as far as the police are concerned that these packages have been left

by the same person? the same organisation? they are absolutely linked? well, it is very difficult to be specific and obviously, we are not in possession of the facts yet, but the police going by the packages themselves, the writing is similar, it is quite crudely written, there is not particularly style, two envelopes in the pictures i've seen, one of the return address's talks about dublin, the other is in gaelic, but the stamps are identical in each one, the postal stamps are the republic of ireland. so there is a physical similarity according to police, there is a similarity also in the workings of the small devices inside. so that is what they're going to be working on, but as i said, this is my piecing together what happened here and beginning to retrace the journey of this packages

back at the moment, it appears to the republic of ireland. with me is chris phillips — former head of the national counter terrorism security office first of all, it seems surprising that these packages... that is going to be the key failing here, locations such as this, you would think they would have a scanning process in place, because they should not get to the desk of anyone, they should be scanned before they get here. they could have caused harm, luckily no one has been injured in any serious way at least. and crudely marked with an address on the front, both three packages suggest that they are linked. and it is not unusual that they would be crudely marked, writing or otherwise, they do not wa nt to

writing or otherwise, they do not want to give anything away in the most important thing i think we have at the moment is the fact that there may be others out there. that these things will potentially take your hand off if you open them incorrectly. so it is important that the message gets out from the police to make sure other people are aware of this, but we have seen these things before the united states and in the uk, there is nothing new about it, the interesting point is that the dublin connection that the police will be looking into. is this the kind of thing that the ira might‘ve done, in the past? the kind of thing that the ira might've done, in the past? they have used these devices before, many yea rs have used these devices before, many years ago. the interesting thing is potentially the flame effect that the fire effect, the incendiary devices have been used largely in belfast and in the old days, during the ira troubles, those things have caught stalls on fire, they are dangerous things. the suggestion,

that there may be other packages out there? these things tend to come in waves, usually the first wave in these types of buildings, no guarantee that the next wave, if there is one might be totally different types of buildings, different types of buildings, different businesses. so i think eve ryo ne different businesses. so i think everyone needs to be aware of this it as everyone needs to be aware of this itasi everyone needs to be aware of this it as i said, hopefully the police will put out with these packages look like, so people have the opportunity to stop them before they get open. britain s most senior police officer has contradicted the prime minister by linking the rise in violent crime to cuts in police numbers. metropolitan police commissioner, cressida dick, was speaking just a day after theresa may said there was "no direct correlation" between the two. this afternoon mrs may ordered the home office to co—ordinate a series of ministerial meetings on knife crime. there were 285 knife killings in all last year, the highest toll since the second world war. here's our home affairs editor, mark easton.

a youth in a balaclava with a knife. the video of this incident in lancashire yesterday quickly went viral on social media. no one was seriously hurt and police quickly made arrests, but, once again, knife crime is britain's waking nightmare. oh my god! what else can be done, what can we do to prevent young people getting involved in knife crime? the commission morning trying to reassure the public. was the recent spike in stabbings down to cuts in officer numbers, she was asked? there has been more demand for policing and therefore there must be some link between violent crime on the streets, obviously, and police numbers, of course there is. i think everybody would see that. her comments appeared to contradict the prime minister, who yesterday said this... there's no direct correlation between certain crimes and police numbers. so, is that right? since 2010, the number of police officers in england and wales has fallen from around 140,000, down to 117,000 last year.

at the same time, the number of violent crimes causing injury has also gone down, from about a million incidents a year at the beginning of the decade, to around 600,000 in recent years. the figures don't offer compelling evidence that more officers means less crime. murders are up, but attempted murders are down. knife crime is up, but gun crime is down. it's not that straightforward. the prime minister told the cabinet today the government's response to knife crime went beyond the police to what she called a whole government approach. there were hints of extra resources, with ministerial meetings being urgently convened. right now, there is an air of crisis. why do you think people carry knives, as a young person yourself? because, like, there might be people after them and for protection they might... at the crib youth centre in north london, 13—year—old anthony is taking part in a knife crime awareness course. be honest, do think people can protect themself with a knife?

it depends on what situation they are in. they worry about cuts to police here and cuts to youth services, but they also worry that the wider community is not taking its responsibility. yesterday, we were called to an area where a young person was getting jumped and beat up. we ran out and went to that area. there were people in the area, other adults, just standing around. there was a group of around 35 people around one child. it's our responsibility as well, notjust to stand there and let these things happen. as police in east london search for clues to the apparently random stabbing of 17—year—old jodie chesney, family members today backed calls for longerjail terms for carrying knives. people want it to stop, but experience tells us there are no quick and easy solutions. while knife crimes in london often make the headlines, there's growing evidence that it's becoming a serious challenge across england and wales. nottinghamshire police is the only force outside

the capital to have a dedicated knife crime unit. noel phillips, from the bbc‘s victoria derbyshire programme, spent the day with them. the officers have stopped the car on the road there. straightaway, they've noticed a hammer in the vehicle. these specialist officers are responding to reports of a man with a deadly weapon. the bbc has been given exclusive access to the nottinghamshire police's knife crime unit, the only force outside of london with a dedicated knife crime task force. do you understand why you have been stopped? why you have been arrested? in the last 12 months, 125 weapons have been removed from the streets. this is what you recovered from the car? yeah, this was just down by the driver's seat, literally within arm's reach of the driver. he claims it is a tool from his tool box. nearly 900 incidents involving knives were recorded in nottinghamshire last year, compared to 794 the previous 12 months. we have had a load of changes to the way we are trained in first aid.

we carry tourniquets in the vehicles now, partiularly in some of the armed response vehicles, defibrillation kits, tourniquets. 20—year—old esrom ghide was stabbed to death on the streets of nottingham last september. my son is my everything for me. i miss my son. i'm crying every day, 24/7 i'm crying. tsega wubet came to the uk from eritrea in 2011, hoping for a better life. this is one of the last videos she has of esrom. before, i'm ringing my son, he's not answering me. i'm sending text message, he's not answering. my body is in shock, what is going on with my son? i'm scared every minute because maybe he's. .. maybe he's calling my name, saying "mummy" or something, i don't know. five teenagers have pleaded not guilty to esrom's murder. last year, at one of the uk's busiest trauma centres,

doctors resuscitated 28 children with serious knife wounds — 50% more than in the previous year. the last 12 months have been the busiest 12 months we've ever seen for violence leading to trauma, and certainly for knife crime. nearly every day, certainly every other day, we're having someone come in who has been the victim of knife violence. 26—year—old phidizz knows why so many young people are carrying weapons. he spent most of his teens in gangs and has has served time for carrying a blade. if i didn't carry a knife, i didn't feel safe. my life could have been taken in an instant if i didn't have a knife. i was naive and younger at the time. i used to think weapons are power. lives lost, families scarred and authorities struggling to cope with knife crime. communities across the country are demanding urgent action to reverse this deadly trend.

the headlines on bbc news... counter—terror police are investigating three packages containing explosives found at heathrow airport, london city airport and waterloo station. britain's most senior officer, cressida dick, head of the metropolitan police, says there is a link, between falling police numbers and violent crime. bmw is warning it might consider moving production of the mini, from cowley in oxford, in the event of a no—deal brexit. sport now...and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's damien two games tonight in the champions league knockout stages. spurs have taken a 3—0 first leg lead to germany

where they face borrusia dortmund. no goals there as yet. in the evenings other game, real madrid host ajax, where ajax have an early lead so that tie now 2—2 on aggreagate. around 15 minutes gone in both those games. a little later england's women could make history tonight by winning their first ever trophy. japan are the team standing between phil neville's side and the "she believes cup", they'll face them in their final game in florida this evening. the four team competition has added importance with the women's world cup being staged this summer. when he gets to moments like this, if the manager starts changing his beliefs and that is not the wrong message to the players, that is the game that we have to win, the game that we want to win. and again that i was to enjoy. injuring with the tea m i was to enjoy. injuring with the team that i picked and i believe i picked the past team possible. —— best. you can watch how england get on this evening in tampa. there's live coverage on bbc fourfrom 10pm. it's also available via the bbc

sport website, app and connected tv. england's cricketers have just started their 20 20 series against west indies. ben stokes, jos buttler, and moeen ali have all been rested for the games whilst jason roy has returned home due to the birth of his first child. england won the toss and have chosen to bowl. they have the early breakthrough, tom curran claiming the wicket of shai hope. west indies now 30—1. the wesh rugby union players union says it is is "deeply concerned" about plans to merge two of wales' most succesful sides, ospreys and scarlets. as part of ‘project reset‘ the rival regions could to merge, with a new team created in the north of the country. the controversy‘s led to the resignation todsay of ospreys chairman mikejames, who blamed the welsh rugby union's "catastrophic mismanagement" of revamping regional rugby. if the merger does go ahead, then it could be officially announced as early as sunday with the two sides most likely to join forces next season. i know things happen quickly

and are never a straight forward, in welsh rugby, but there is a little bit of anger because there is a decision that some boys have got offers over the bridge, do they take that offer to secure their livelihood? do they wait to see what is happening in wales? there is uncertainty. meanwhile the weslsh national side are just two games away from winning the six nations grand slam — many of that team made up of scarlets and ospreys players. they're back in action this weeknd against scotland. just one change for that game at murrayfield. adam beard comes in for the injured cory hill in the second row. gareth anscombe continues at fly—half with dan biggar on the bench. and scotland will be without backs sean maitland and chris harris for that clash. the pair suffered calf and foot injuries on duty with their respective clubs in the weekend's english premiership.

wasps scrum half dan robson's expected to make his first start for england this weekend in their six nations match at home to italy. there's been plenty of talk about robson getting a run in the team and he came on as a substitute against france last month but he's trying not to get ahead of himself. just not to try too hard, a lot of times you get that chance and you try too much, you try to really show yourself off and for me, i have got to go out there and do what i have been doing. my form has got me into this position and i have got to back myself with that and have the confidence that is good enough. that last 16 in the champions league. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in sportsday at 10:30pm. bmw, owners of the iconic mini, have issued a stark warning about the impact a no—deal brexit might have on its production here.

the german motor manufacturer said it would "have to consider" moving production of the mini from its cowley plant near oxford. the japanese car maker toyota has also said that a no—deal brexit would make it "extremely complicated" to build new models in the uk. here's our business editor simonjack cowley in oxford is the home of the mini. and although it's now german—owned as a model and as a brand, it doesn't get much more british than this. a new mini drives off the production line here every minute. but bmw warned today that moving production out of the uk was an option in a no—deal brexit scenario. the key in these times is definitely flexibility. we are prepared for a lot of scenarios. we are very flexible in the production, we've pulled forwards some production interruptions, but we also have a plan b if things are changing. so, we will see what the outcome is but bmw will answer with flexibility. this isn't the first warning from mini's owner, bmw,

but it's perhaps the starkest language, the strongest tone we've heard from this company about the potential consequences of a no—deal brexit. it won't be news to the government. the business secretary has continually warned that that outcome would be ruinous for the entire industry and the government stresses it is an outcome they are still very keen to avoid. the amount of money invested in the uk car industry in recent years tells a pretty grim story. in 2015, over £2.5 billion was invested. that has fallen every year since to just under £600 million in 2018. that's a total fall of 80% injust three years. the alarm is industry—wide. the head of toyota's european operations said a bad brexit result could jeopardise future investment at its uk factory near derby. if it becomes more difficult, in terms of duties in trading, in trading, then it is very difficult to think about the future. of course, short term, we can overcome any of those

problems with logistics or whatever, but we need to think about what is the long—term effect if this is not materialising correctly? from honda's recent decision to close its swindon factory. nissan reversing plans to build an additional model in sunderland and jaguar land rover laying off thousands of workers. they all pointed to factors beyond brexit. but bmw and toyota are clear that for them, the chance of a no—deal brexit is the issue putting their uk future at risk. president trump has announced he will travel to alabama on friday, following catastrophic tornadoes that left 23 people dead. authorities say that figure may rise, with dozens of people are missing. rescue crews are now going house to house hoping to find survivors in the wreckage. a local sherriff says it was the worst destruction his area had seen in 50 years.

amber rudd, the work and pensions secretary, has said that disabled pensioners will no longer face repeat assessments to continue receiving their benefits. from this spring, about 270,000 people will not have to have their personal independence payments regularly reviewed. but a disability group said the reform would still leave millions of younger people "stuck in a failing system". our social affairs correspondent michael buchanan reports. i have trouble getting on and off transport, buses, and i cannot get on a train at all. buses are difficult, so without the car i would be totally... housebound. when diane barrett lost her car for six months following a benefit assessment, she says she lost her independence. the 69—year—old who lives with parkinson's disease fought the decision and won. today's government announcement means she won't now have any more reassessments for personal independence payments. it is a relief certainly,

yes, and it's great. it is wonderful they are taking some notice and listened. funnily enough, i was only thinking about it the other day. i was thinking, ooh, the thought, you know, of going through that again, because you have a wodge of papers and that again, with parkinson's, your writing is very bad, and the stress of it. we are not just talking about equality for people with physical disabilities... as well as specific help for pensioners with disabilities amber rudd said she wanted to see more disabled people in work and to change her department's overall image. the benefits system should be the ally of disabled people. it should support them. people with disabilities and health conditions have enough challenges in life. dealing with my department should not be one of them. the government is struggling to make the system work. personal independence payments is 20% more expensive than the benefit it is replacing, and its roll—out is five years behind schedule. claimants are increasingly going to court to overturn negative decisions and almost three quarters

of them are winning their cases. the problem with pip is the assessment process. people are called in for an assessment with a health care professional who doesn't know them, doesn't understand their condition and often get scored zero points or very few points, and the benefit is taken away from them. diane barrett may no longer need to go through an assessment process which she describes as deeply flawed. despite today's relief for pensioners, around 1.8 million other people on the benefit will continue to struggle with a system that many campaigners say is broken. with me is genevieve edwards from the ms society. you are just saying at that news conference, you want to ask her a question. what was it and have you had any answer over the last few hours that may clear up your

question? i was interested to know that it was great to see, we have already heard from people who are at retirement age that are relieved to know that they won't have to be reassessed. but we are also concerned about the millions of people that are working age they're still stuck in a system that is not working for them. an example of that, 82% of people with ms who go through that process and appeal the results have overturned, 83% so it is fundamentally flawed, wonderful news from the secretary of state today, but let's fix it for everyone else still stuck in that system. how difficult is it for someone to keep going to these assessment processes, ? for going to these assessment processes,? for starters, the stress makes their lives worse and this is incredibly stressful. she spoke to someone who's like it's like being

on trial, having to prove that you are affected on trial, having to prove that you a re affected by on trial, having to prove that you are affected by the condition that you have and for ms, it is fluctuating, different for everyone in the symptoms are often invisible, pain, fatigue and too many assessors do not understand that it's notjust the quality of the assessment, it is also rules like the 20 metre rule, which means that you do not qualify for help if you can walk a step over that and that doesn't get me very far outside my house. it certainly does not give into a bus stop or to work, so it is trapping people in their homes. there's a lot to do to fix it, some great news from government today, but a lot more to do. your specific question that you did not get to ask had to deal with people who are over 65 years old.|j am interested to know, having seen the details yet, those pensioners are no longer have to go through the assessment, i would like to know how many of them are on the highest

level. because of benefits, if you are 65 and mildly affected or moderately affected, then your condition worsens in five years, how do you make sure that your support matches your needs. ironically then, you would want another assessment. you may want to request another assessment if your needs increase and so having seen the detail of that, an announcement today in the details will come, but it's that sort of thing that clearly extremely good intentions from government today, we need to make sure that the detail is not unintentionally disadvantaging people. she tried to make a clear and you felt that she was sincere, try to make it clear that the benefits system should be working for people. not working against people. that people should feel that they are getting what they need from the system, is there a

sense, has there been a sense that the system has not been working for so many people for quite a long time then? hugely, we've heard from people all the time saying that having ms is hard enough, it should not be made harder by a welfare system that makes no sense to them, that does not understand their condition and assesses, i could tell you so many stories about people who can't get a handbag, but they are supposed to cook a meal. it does need fundamental fixing and the idea floated to them about putting some of the assessments together, reducing the number of assessments people have on paper, a great idea, but if it is poor quality, as they are currently, then you can do tremendous harm to people plus plus chances of getting the support they need, as i said earlier, it's about putting two, like putting two

donkeys and a card expecting the chariot. a former labour mp who was jailed for perverting the course ofjustice over a speeding fine has lost her appeal against the case. labour says it will now support efforts to trigger a by—election in peterborough where fiona onasanya is currently representing constituents as an independent mp. the conservative peer, baroness warsi, says the party has a deep—rooted problem with islamophobia. the tory peer accused the prime minister of "burying her head in the sand" over the issue, and said efforts to modernise the party had "gone into reverse" since theresa may became leader. a spokesman for the party said discrimination or abuse of any kind would not be tolerated. now it's time for a look at the weather with ben rich. good evening. our weather is in rather a turbulent, changeable mood at the moment. some wind and rain in the forecast

for the next few days. during today, we had outbreaks of rain across northern ireland and england, and southern scotland, with some snow over high ground. here comes our next weather system, some really heavy rain sliding northwards across england into southern scotland during tonight. again on the northern edge of that rain band, we could see some snow. a chilly night in the north, a much milder one further south. but for all of us, the low pressure is firmly in charge tomorrow morning. some strong winds, 50—60 mph gusts possible for parts of the southwest of england. we will see these outbreaks of rain with some health snow continuing to draft northwest words across scotland. plenty of hefty showers breaking out further south with some rumbles of thunder mixed in. some strong and gusty winds with smells of sunshine. in the southeast, 14—15dc, much colder than that further north and west. all of us look quite chilly the rest of the week with some wind and rain at times.

you're watching bbc news with clive myrie. counter—terror police are investigating three packages containing explosives found at heathrow airport, london city airport, and waterloo station. irish police say they're assisting scotland yard with the inquiry as two of the packages had republic of ireland stamps britain's most senior officer, cressida dick, head of the metropolitan police, says there is a link, between falling police numbers and violent crime. bmw is warning it might consider moving production of the mini, from cowley in oxford, in the event of a no—deal brexit. traces of the hiv virus have become "undetectable," in a british patient, following a stem cell transplant. it's only the second case of its kind. a campaign has been launched to encourage more women to go for cervical cancer screening tests. public health england says

the numbers being checked is at a 20—year low, even though it's a simple procedure. two women die every day from the disease. here's our health correspondent, dominic hughes. i'd like to thank my grandma. my sister. my lover. my bestie. my westie. my mother. thank you for reminding me to go to my cervical screening. this new campaign on cervical screening comes as one in four eligible women in england, those aged between 25—64, don't take up the offer of getting tested. it is a similar picture right across the uk, but experts say this simple test is a genuine life—saver. there's almost as many reasons why women don't take up their invitation as there are women. some women are afraid of the result, and we would urge those women to go for their test, because the screening test is trying to detect early changes which can be treated, and therefore prevent cancer. around 2,600 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in england each year,

and the disease claims nearly 700 lives. that's two deaths a day. and yet doctors say if everyone was regularly screened, more than 80% of cases could be prevented. life got in the way of a screening appointment for busy mum of three, mandy parker. she put it off for six months. but then came a diagnosis of cervical cancer, followed by a hysterectomy. ijust put it to the side, and i was busy. and now, of course, i regret not going bang on time. and i think people just need to find that five minutes to go along for the test. it's just imperative that people go. do go and have the test. everybody knows that maybe it's not the most pleasant experience, and it might feel a little bit uncomfortable, but it is really very quick, the nurses are so skilled and professional and they always will put you at your ease. and everybody always says afterwards that it's not as bad as they thought it was going to be. part of the campaign involves rebranding the procedure,

so moving away from the idea of a smear test, a phrase which for some is confusing, embarrassing, or even frightening, and instead focusing on how screening is a preventative test that could save your life. dominic hughes, bbc news. more now on one of our main stories today. theresa may's ordered a series of meetings with ministers and senior police officers to address rising knife crime. earlier britain's most senior police officer, cressida dick, said there was a link between falling police numbers and violent crime. yesterday, mrs may said there was no direct correlation between the two. with me is dr roberta babb, a clinical psychologist and foresensic psychotherapist who's worked young people who've been involved with gangs. and i'm alsojoined from glasgow by will linden from the scottish violence reduction unit, they work to target all forms of violent behaviour, in particular knife crime and weapon—carrying among young men. wait to see you both, thanks for

joining us. if i could start with you, doctor, here in the studio. the suggestion is, and it is been a big pa rt suggestion is, and it is been a big part of the debate, that gangs are huge part of the issue. but it is not just gangs, huge part of the issue. but it is notjust gangs, is it? no, the issue is systemic. we are looking at the issue of service provisions, things i have been cut, and cuts have consequences. we are seeing that in terms of the fact that young people don't have much to do in terms of engaging in youth services, there's cuts to local services, as well as cuts to local services, as well as cuts to local services, as well as cuts to mental health services, because being involved in a gang has acute impact on one's mental health, they also need support in that area. which takes me to you, well, because we know that in scotland, there has been this attempted approach to look at knife crime as a public health

emergency. a holistic approach to the problem? yes. we started back in 2005 on this after we had a record year of violence, homicide, knife crime. but it was our realisation that policing could not do it by itself, it was the realisation that if you wanted to systemically change a problem, you wanted to tackle the problem at its roots, not as a symptom. knife crime or gang crime or acid attack, whatever it is, they are all symptoms of something else. you take away the knife, something else can be used. the questions you need to ask or why? why are young people getting involved in knives? why now? what has changed? what we also need to look at, and we looked at it, what was driving at? is a just poverty or socialisation? is it a lack of hope and aspiration? and

to tackle those things, you need other people to be involved, you need a whole systemic cultural change. we know theresa may will have a discussion about this. does she have to take into account those wider societal issues, and notjust look at certain specific things? some potentially pointing simply to gangs? definitely. ithink some potentially pointing simply to gangs? definitely. i think if some potentially pointing simply to gangs? definitely. ithink if you're looking at the issue, you need to looking at the issue, you need to look at the system because you are thinking about the different things that feed into it. thinking about things like poverty and issues to do with class and deprivation. like i said, mental health is huge, and these things must be taken into account. also if you think about education, expulsion has a huge impact ona education, expulsion has a huge impact on a young person's life, their ability to engage in meaningful employment, and they may turn to crime related activity. that also has an ability to impact their

job searching. everyone says it lies with the young person, but that is distancing ourselves in an unhelpful way. that suggests this is a long—term problem that will take a long—term problem that will take a long time in order to deal with it. and people are looking for solutions as soon as possible because last year, we had 265 knife related deaths, highest total since the second world war. people want solutions? this is the issue that has been going on for generations. the reasons, like we talk about the root causes, are not new, we know what they are and people want a quick solution. but we need to think about the root causes, thinking about the root causes, thinking about using our understanding to slowly shift and make different choices, involving all of us to be engaged in ways that may be uncomfortable but completely necessary. over there in glasgow, how long has it taken for the scots to get down knife crime to be a

model around the world ? to get down knife crime to be a model around the world? it's taken a long time, hasn't it? when we first started, we said it would take a generation. we were quite clear about that, there were a number of agencies and colleagues that said they would do in 2—3 years. because things change over a generation doesn't mean you write off this current generation of people, the 15—year—old boy or a 17—year—old girl that 15—year—old boy or a 17—year—old girlthat are 15—year—old boy or a 17—year—old girl that are subjects of violence that have lost their lives tragically. we have to do something here and now. unfortunately that takes money and resources, it takes the ability to make changes now to support people. but at the same time, if you only invest in the here and now in the quick fixes, you won't have a long—term sustainability, meaning you will have to continually invest and have extra resources rather than actually think about how you can fix the problem. so it is both, not either — or, we can't just problem. so it is both, not either — or, we can'tjust write off the

people just now. a bit of a debate here is your sure you're aware of. cressida dick, the most important police chief in the country, against the prime minister, saying you need more coppers on the beat, theresa may saying there is no cause or link between the two, and the decrease of police officers. what's the situation over there? we have relatively high policing numbers, but the question over causes, statistics can tell you what you wa nt statistics can tell you what you want to hear. but there is a correlation between crime and policing, as well as health and policing, as well as health and policing, health and crime. deprivations, spending and educations, a correlation between global warming and crime. so you can point to any figures, but the reality if you look at the evidence, once you get above a certain number of police officers, more policing does not necessarily mean less crime, itjust costs more money.

policing is important, we also need to think about what policing is doing. say we were to invest in more police officers, will they work in communities? or will they just be doing investigation teams? if they're going into investigation teams, all they're doing is dealing with the mop up, the consequences. this is about working with communities. that could be police office rs communities. that could be police officers or community workers were health workers. that is what we want to do, and we can only achieve it with the communities, not against the communities. you're working with young people who have been involved in gangs, you're a forensic psychotherapist and clinical psychologist. how do you change the mindset of so many young people out there who feel they have to carry a blade to protect themselves, that it's about using the weapon first and talking later? a big part is listening to the young person. they

are using violence and weapons as a communication, a symptom of something. and it is about taking the time to listen, not respond, but really hear what they're saying. then you can have a different type of discussion which actually looks at their vulnerabilities, as well as their strengths. these are vulnerable young people who are perpetrators but also victims of circumstances, trauma, bereavement, loss, and is about thinking about these things in a way that feels safe and contained, but also persistent and reliable. that is what is so important that services integrate and not fragment, that long—term pieces of work can be done. because with the power of speech, a lot can be achieved, and it is really important. give me an example, if you can, of the kind of young individual that might feel that they need to carry a blade with yellow so many things come into this issue, and it is not easy. we know

people feel safe so they think they will carry a blade to make themselves feel safer. we also know it isa themselves feel safer. we also know it is a form of communication, it communicates status and intent, but also that you can protect other people. it is a lot of things coming together, but it may be a way of communicating you are scared or anxious, and it is a really complicated factor that if we think about just the blade, complicated factor that if we think aboutjust the blade, we missed so many things that are out there like trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder, how people respond to feeling threatened. that is a key pa rt feeling threatened. that is a key part of this issue. let's hope that something comes out of those meetings that the prime minister is having with police chiefs and the home secretary in the next few days. thank you both forjoining us. the brexit secretary stephen barclay and the attorney—general geoffrey cox are in brussels tonight, trying to secure additional guarantees on the backstop provision in the withdrawal agreement. the backstop is designed to avoid border checks between northern ireland and the republic. mps will vote on the

deal by 12 march. this morning, the foreign secretary jeremy hunt said the change the uk requires from the eu is "importa nt" but "simple". compared to where we were a month ago, the situation has been transformed in a positive direction. our ask of the eu is an important asked, a significant asked, a legally significant ask. but it is one ask in a simple one, we need substantial changes that will allow the attorney general to change his advice to the government that says that at the moment, theoretically we could be trapped in a backstop indefinitely. and i think the eu understands that we need that change, andi understands that we need that change, and i think they believe that we need to change because they've seen what happened in ireland. our correspondent in brussels, damian grammaticas said the eu's position on the backstop was unlikely to change. the eu's been clear about that, still clear about that, and as far as we understand,

still not discussing that in there. mr cox and mr barclay are in there now talking with michel barnier and his team. but it seems extremely unlikely that they are ever going to get that legal changes to that backstop provision. the eu's view is that that was agreed back in december, signed off by theresa may, and that treaty will not change. what they might get, and it seems they are likely to get from the eu, is help to try to push this over the line by giving a sort of additional assurant in a letter that they will try to say has legal force, it may be a road map for how after brexit happens, that both sides will look at new technologies to replace border controls, if those things were needed. that sort of thing. the question will be whether geoffrey cox comes out as the attorney general and changes his mind and says, what he said last time when he said

that this would potentially endure indefinitely, now he's convinced that the eu doesn't want that. so that is what mps are looking for in parliament. the question is, will they even accept that? will they accept whatever document comes out or advice he comes back with? will that change minds before the vote next week? the french president, emmanuel macron, has proposed a series of reforms to ensure the future of the european union. in an article being published in newspapers across europe, mr macron has called for the reform of the eu's passport—free schengen area, the establishment of an agency to protect the bloc against cyber attacks, and a ban on the financing of european political parties by foreign powers. a patient in the uk has become only the second person in the world to be declared clear of hiv. his remission followed a stem cell transplant, part of the treatment for a cancer which he also developed. the donor was resistant to the virus.

experts say it's too early to say he's been cured. our medical correspondent fergus walsh has the details. a tantalising glimpse of how in rare instances, hiv might be defeated. the patient had cancer, underwent a bone marrow transplant at london's hammersmith hospital. his donor had a mutation in both copies of the ccr5 gene. this makes them resistant to hiv infection, about 1% of people of north european descent have this immunity. now that resistance was passed to the patient, and for the past 18 months, he's been off all anti—retroviral therapy. clear of hiv, but it's too early to know if he's been cured. and this is just the second time a patient has had prolonged remission from hiv. the first was the so—called "berlin patient", timothy brown, who has now been more than a decade cleared of hiv. i think it proves that the first patient, the so—called "berlin

patient," wasn't a fluke. that they did get cured of their hiv, and this is another potential cure. so it shows that the ccr5 molecule is actually crucial as a means to target preventative strategies to stop people getting infected with hiv. three years ago, i reported from san francisco on another approach to try to defeat hiv. matt's immune cells were edited to confer of the ccr5 mutation. he'd been off hiv meds for two years. now researchers writing in the journal nature say the bone marrow transplant is aggressive, complex, and expensive, so it's not suitable for the vast majority of hiv patients who are better off on daily hiv medication, which is highly effective. but it confirms that the ccr5 mutation is crucial for researchers trying to target new ways to treat hiv. i can now speak to anton pozniak,

president of the international aids society who joins us via webcam from seattle where this research has been presented. thanks very much for being with us. this is incredibly encouraging, isn't it? it is really marvellous that some of the avenues in which we could explore how to cure patients is being confirmed from the timothy brown case where he was given a transplant with cells that are resista nt to transplant with cells that are resistant to the virus. but there is a second element to this which both patients, it must‘ve happened to them. when people get infected with hiv, the hiv virus hides inside the genetic material. and it appears in both of these cases, all the cells with a genetic material, that material has disappeared. via the transplant. both of them, they had a

mild reaction to the transplant‘s cells, it may also be that that immune response that came after the transplant, it actually helped remove some of those viruses hiding away. to call it a cure would be a long stretch at the moment. i think we have to say it is a long—term remission. 3—5 years of treatment, i would be happy to say there is a cure. ican would be happy to say there is a cure. i can see a committee forming now, defining how long until we call it that. how close then, this development, we heard from fergus walsh there, not just development, we heard from fergus walsh there, notjust talking about bone marrow transplants necessarily, but also gene editing. how much closer do you think we are to getting a cure, a long—lasting cure? i think this has been a significant step. there have been other presentations here, one where they

actually gave particles to monkeys to get rid of all the viruses hiding away in the dna. that technique, rather than transplanting, actually doing some gene editing, removing the hiv gene or disabling them, is on its way. so i think that, together with perhaps modifying the way that cells can become immune, the ccr5 deletion technology, both of those put together is really inspiring to think about. however, we've have a lot of positive things in the past, but these things will not be done overnight. and in the meantime, we have a very effective way at handling hiv, which is anti—retroviral therapy. so we ought to get the remaining 20 million

people who need oral therapy on that treatment. indeed, anti-retroviral therapy has saved so many lives when therapy has saved so many lives when the hiv virus was first discovered or when it first came to the floor. initially it was a death sentence, but now what are the problems of taking so many pills every week for the rest of your life, as far as the current procedures are concerned? well, the good thing is that we have now got cocktails of drugs that will control the virus, put into one pill. so it is actually one pill a day, and where the therapeutic feel that where you take a pill once a month, there are injectables they even month, there are injectables they eve n ta ke month, there are injectables they even take once a month that are well in development, and people are now also developing implants that you can put into the skin, like a

contraceptive implant, and they last forup toa contraceptive implant, and they last for up to a year. so actually the methodology, which we are giving people therapy for hiv, is transforming. we have to leave it there. good to see you, thanks for joining us. hundreds of people have joined the royal family to mark the 50th anniversary of the investiture of the prince of wales. prince charles was joined by his immediate family at the buckingham palace reception, and guests incuded senior politicians and members of the stereophonics. the archbishop of canterburyjustin welby also spoke at the event, and praised the prince's belief in the "sacred duty of service". now it's time for a look at the weather. here's been rich, live with the weather picture. good evening, quite changeable and turbulent over the next few days. the atmosphere is in an energetic mood. you can see the satellite picture, the way weather systems have been racing our way. whether it

is this particular swirl of cloud thatis is this particular swirl of cloud that is our next weather maker, an area of low pressure pushing in from the southwest. it is already bringing rain across parts of the uk, this radar picture shows the weather over the last six hours or so. you can see heavy bursts of rain across the southwest into wales, the midlands and east anglia, the southeast rain enveloping northern ireland to the evening. the wet weather slides in the scotland where it is likely to turn to snow over high ground, above 3—400 metres. temperature wise, freezing in aberdeen, much milderfurther south and all the while turning increasingly windy. low pressure further in charge —— firmly in charge, sitting right on top of the british isles, bringing strong winds through the part of the day up to 60 mph. this band of rain with sleep hail mixed in, still bending back into it northern ireland, further

south we see so democrats unchain developing into the afternoon, with cloud breaking up. we also see a scattering of showers, some of these showers will be heavy and thunder he, accompanied by some really strong and gusty winds. i look at the temperatures, 15 celsius in whole, pretty mild in the east. rain, sleet and snow across scotland, that chilly air in the north is set to head southwards into thursday. in fact by thursday, we will put the air in for close to the arctic. so a chilly field to the weather on thursday, and more and more of these showers across scotla nd more of these showers across scotland are likely to be true, relatively low levels, not as many showers further south, parts of southern england are likely to stay predominantly dry. temperatures much colder than 11 celsius. friday gives us colder than 11 celsius. friday gives usa colder than 11 celsius. friday gives us a chance to draw breath, but it will quickly cloud over. this is our

next atla ntic will quickly cloud over. this is our next atlantic frontal system, the next atlantic frontal system, the nextin next atlantic frontal system, the next in the conveyor belt. as we headed into the weekend, there are more weather systems on the way, staying very unsettled. we see rain at times, some galas and snow over the hills particularly the north, it will feel rather chilly. a lot going on with our weather as we head to the next few days.