this is bbc news — i'm shaun ley. the headlines at 8pm. theresa may makes a late dash to strasbourg for talks with the european commission president, jean—claude juncker, in an effort to secure last minute concessions on her eu withdrawal deal. ahead of a crunch vote on the prime minister's deal tomorrow in the house of commons — some euroscpetic mps say they think there could be a late breakthrough in the brexit impasse this evening i don't know what the outcome is. all i know now is that i think they are reaching the point where they are about to have some kind of agreement. i'm speculating, but that's my indication. the main stories on bbc news. investigators have found the voice and data recorders, from the ethiopian airlines plane, which crashed yesterday, with the loss of 157 lives. the nhs reveals plans

to abandon its four—hour a&e waiting time target — meaning patients with the most serious conditions would receive treatment faster. algeria's president abdelaziz bouteflika is to step down following mass protests across the country. hello and very good evening to you. welcome to bbc news. the prime minister will soon arrive in strasbourg for unscheduled talks with the head of the european commission, jean claude juncker. the decision to go was only made this afternoon. theresa may is hoping that the eu will give her enough assurances on the brexit deal to convince mps to back it in just 2a hours‘ time. downing street has insisted that tomorrow's crunch vote will go ahead, despite admitting that talks with the eu have been ‘deadlocked'. our political editor laura kuenssberg has

the latest from westminster. these are vital hours for the prime minister and her government. injanuary, mps resoundingly kicked out her brexit a deal that she had brokered with the european union. since then, she spent weeks saying she was trying to get changes to make it appetizing to the house of commons. but after the last couple of days of will they or won't they, with her on a plane tonight it seems maybe they will. divine guidance may be what's required. the prime minister went to westminster abbey today, to celebrate the commonwealth. choreographed formalities here, very different to the sprawling brexit saga. as it is, god arranged the members in the body. but the old truths maybe don't apply. at almost exactly the same time, across the road... the leader of the opposition was trying to work out

what on earth is really going on. it seems that the whatsapp group, or a lottery, or something, has chosen the member for worcester to reply to the house, when my question was to the prime minister. the meaningful vote will take place tomorrow. and the motion will be tabled today, ahead of that debate. it is then, this house will face a fundamental choice. back the brexit deal, or risk a delay that would mean months more arguing about brexit, prolonging the current uncertainty. uncertainty which would do nothing but pass control to brussels and increase the risks. in other words, government ministers had to promise they will stick to the promise they've already made. meeting presidentjean—claude juncker outside. also checking hands with michel barnier. stephen barclay, the brexit secretary had been expected in the house of

commons to make a statement today. i don't know if you will be able to fly back in time. let's hear the questions. he got some response. we can ask adam fleming in a little while what response he had from presidentjean—claude juncker. has we said, this is one of a couple of meetings that mrs may will have tonight. my apologies for attempting tonight. my apologies for attempting to interrupt laura kuenssberg's report there, but we wanted to bring you those pictures of theresa may's arrival in strasbourg. this could be arrival in strasbourg. this could be a very important meeting tonight. we understand there are a number of options being discussed between the two sites. sometime of detailing terms of the understanding and interpretation of how the irish backstop would be and how temporary it would be. whether that would be enough to reassure brexit here in peaceis enough to reassure brexit here in peace is not clear. let's talk to oui’ peace is not clear. let's talk to our correspondent adam fleming who we briefly heard and there, getting a bit ofa we briefly heard and there, getting a bit of a shout tojean—claude juncker. did you hear what —— what did he say? i think he said you have

been very helpful. when i shouted at him the first time he arrived at the front door to greet mrs may about five minutes ago i said "what's happening, is there a deal" and he said you will have to be patient just like we have been patient. don't think we should read too much into the comments here, especially when i was asking such a pointed intellectual questions. you got right to the heart of the matter. that is what we wanted to know, even if he was not prepared to tell us. did they think they have the makings ofa did they think they have the makings of a deal? is it something that will help mrs may when she returns to westminster? we definitely now there area westminster? we definitely now there are a few elements on the table tonight. whether they actually end up tonight. whether they actually end up being the final elements of the final package, that presumably is going to be unveiled in an hour or two, if at all, so we can only kind of talk about the elements that we know about. they are this, it is going to be something called a joint interpretive instrument, that would bea interpretive instrument, that would be a legally binding document. it would take a lot of the stuff that was in the letter from jean—claude

juncker and donald tusk the president of the european council, to theresa may earlier this year where they said you know that backstop? we wanted to be temporary if it ever comes in and we are going to work so quickly to get a free trade agreement in place before the backstop is ever needed. it will be taking those commitments from a letter and putting them into something much more illegally concrete, that looks much more like something you would get along an international treaty. there is also going to be an update to the political declaration. that is the separate document that goes alongside the divorce treaty, that sketches out the shape of the future relationship. there will be a tweak to the language there about the ambitions that both sides have for the free trade agreement. there will also be some clarification of the existing dispute settlement and arbitration system that is envisaged in the withdrawal agreement. that will be the system that either side would use if they felt the backstop was no longer needed, or had been entered into when it wasn't required oi’ entered into when it wasn't required or something had gone wrong. the new element no one had heard about until

today, is a unilateral declaration issued by the uk in a separate document giving its qualifications and interpretations of all the other stuff that has been agreed. when diplomatic joke stuff that has been agreed. when diplomaticjoke to me with that and interpretation of the interpretation, of the backstop to the backstop. a wonderful summary. i wish we could get all of that onto a description on screen, to sun it up. the difficulty is i suppose, if this is part of an agreement itself which said it would not be reopened, would it be regarded by the uk's attorney general as legally water tight enough? for him to be able to change the legal advice he gave which seems to be the reason so many tory mps couldn't vote for it? i know it's incredibly complicated, but it boils down to two things — one all that stuff sounds like stuff that was on the table this weekend, proposed by the table this weekend, proposed by the eu, almost a to by the uk

negotiating team but rejected at the last minute by the prime minister because she can convince herself or her cabinet, or she can convince herself that we get to her cabinet. that is the first question about judging what has happened tonight. the second question is the one you played very well there — does any of this allowed geoffrey cox the attorney general, the government's chief lawyer, to say my legal advice set last year we could be stuck, the uk, in the backstop indefinitely with no power over it, whether you can switch that advice and stay on the balance of probability he now thinks that is no longer the case. the reason that has ended up that way the government has looked at the 585 pages, protocols to protocols, backstop student backstops, interpretations to interpretation, and realised it is complicated for people to comprehend so why not create one key decision point and one big signal that it is ok for people who oppose the deal to not supported? people who oppose the deal to not supported ? it people who oppose the deal to not supported? it is geoffrey cox the

attorney general either doing this oi’ attorney general either doing this or doing this. i'm sure a lot of people will listen to him he might find themselves middle ground. people will listen to him he might find themselves middle groundlj think find themselves middle ground.” think it is slightly more attractive than he is piece which we were talking about last week. i think we will rather see a thumbs—up or thumbs down so people know clearly where they are standing on this withdrawal agreement. adam fleming in brussels for now. i think we might need to talk to you again before the evening is out. thank you very much. let's have another look at what is supposed to happen in the coming days. i hope that was a thumbs up! tomorrow mps will get another chance to vote on the prime minister's withdrawal agreement. in the previous vote in january, the government was defeated by 230 votes. but if this time it passes — the major barrier to the uk leaving the eu on 29th march will have been cleared, although further legislation will be required to ensure a smooth exit. if mps vote against the deal again, the government is due to table further votes for this week. starting with a vote on wednesday, in which mps will be asked if they support "leaving the eu

without a withdrawal agreement and a framework for a future relationship on 29 march". this is essentially giving mps the opportunity to decide whether to back — or rule out — the uk leaving the eu with no deal in place. if mps vote to rule out a no—deal brexit... the following day, on thursday, mps are expected to get the opportunity to vote on whether they support a "short extension" of article 50 s two—year negotiating period. if mps back this motion then the uk will ask the eu for an extension beyond the original deadline of friday 29th march. it was effectively triggered when theresa may began the article 50 process on the 29th of march into 2017. the group of mps theresa may really has to win over if her deal has any chance of passing is the conservative brexiteers known as the european research group.

iain duncan smith, a former party leader, is one of their number. he says he hopes mps get enough time to look at all the legal implications of any changes to the backstop... there needs to be time, to look at the legalities of this. for keeping that the attorney general should say that the attorney general should say that he is able to change his opinion, and that no longer the backstop is an entrapment as he said it was previously. everybody needs time to discuss that. we have a group of legal people who are going to look at that as well. it is tight, but we have to do all that work before reaching the final conclusion. but it sounds like they think that they've got something, so thatis think that they've got something, so that is what the statement is going to be about tonight. we want to see hey, what it is, and be the legalities of that, is it by any means at that enough for him to change his advice which was quite tough last time? so basically the agreement would leave us trapped in agreement would leave us trapped in a backstop, which would have com plete a backstop, which would have complete negotiating power over us, which is not that. so if that changes and he is able to say that is different and keep coming back to

and, the arrangements are part of a package signed up to by the eu, and not just discussed, package signed up to by the eu, and notjust discussed, and within end date — that process is moving in the right direction. certainly. let's speak to our political correspondent — chris mason — who's in westminster. i should imagine people are not expecting to get much sleep tonight. i'm not quite sure when that appointment is going to happen with the pillow. he could be sometime. here we are on an evening of well, you can pick your adjective, fluidity, chaos, ithink you can pick your adjective, fluidity, chaos, i think both of those are accurate over the next few hours. we didn't know until the very last minute that the prime minister was definitely heading out to strasbourg to meetjean—claude juncker of the european commission and others. the briefing we were given during the day was that that trip would only be made if it was worthwhile, for a face—to—face

meeting. we are being taught to manage our expectations about this. we know the defeat of the prime minister suffered back in january, in other words the amount of persuading she has to do. the key question when we hear from the prime minister and we hear a statement in the house of the next hour or two is how much new stuff is there and to what extent can it persuade people and how many can it persuade. in 2a hours' time, we will talk about the second attempts to get these withdrawal agreement through the british parliament. adam was saying that the two sides have talked about a joint interpretive statement, which wasn't be legally binding. the stumbling block over the backstop and could be get out of it was the attorney general saying there is no way out, you can't unilaterally walk out, there is no mechanism. if the

two were to agree, we are stuck in it. if they can't make progress on these trade deal. if this is legally binding, that solves that problem. the legally binding that is crucial. the legally binding that is crucial. the absence of that would mean that loads of those who voted against it who are on the conservative side would say look, fundamentally nothing has changed and therefore would be inclined to vote against it again. i think two factors could help the prime minister really cut that number in the votes tomorrow. assuming that we'll be here fleshes out something similar to what adam is articulating, which is one, that phrase legally binding since that last perhaps the withdrawal agreement is not being reopened and rewritten, something is being attached to it that has some clout and enforceability in courts. secondly, the giant ticking clock that we are two and half weeks away from brexit and a good number of brexiteers who don't much like the withdrawal agreement, who think it involves too much compromise and isn't the kind of brexit that they

would have liked, ultimately a good number of them have spent an entire political lifetime trying to walk their party towards the door marked exit from the european union. they can see themselves stood on the doormats next to that doorframe now, and fear that if eventually they don't back some variation on the deal, brexit might never happen because there could be a delay or a general election or a referendum or whatever. i think a combination of something that he seemed to be legally watertight, if that is the advice from the attorney general and the lawyers advising the brexiteers, could persuade a good number, as well as the factors of the clark, but will it be enough for the prime minister to get a deal through tomorrow? the numbers she needs to persuade our fast. if it is not, is there something else in the eu's lougher in a week or so stunned that might insure that she couldn't get it through the third attempt? or the

fourth or fifth attempt? two and half weeks to go, but you can do quite a lot in that time if you have to. they certainly have over the last two and a half weeks. all of this is predicated on emerging tonight that both sides must have something. not only is theresa may having her evening spoiled and possibly well, but the average prime minister was on his way to fly to the states for st. patrick's day and had to turn the car around again and go back to some emergency meeting of the cabinet in dublin. there are a lot of elements in this, they all have to fall into place for theresa may to be able to stand up in the house of commons tomorrow and say" i had a sufficient clarification of my agreement that i have an extra legally binding phrase that means you can vote for it in confidence, that the irish backstop is not a gordian knot. we think we have on the state. quite. but the confidence, the steps into the fantastic confidence, the steps into the fa ntastic story confidence, the steps into the fantastic story you tell if the

colourful trip to the airport that didn't quite result in getting on a plane for mr varadkar, that the eu has fully bought into it. therefore what parliament is voting on is absolutely something that the eu is happy with, and be 27 remaining heads of state of government. in other words, a solid basis from which to proceed. a huge if — if the government can get this withdrawal agreement through either tomorrow or at some other states, there is then at some other states, there is then a process to be gone through that involves turning it into british law here, which does not happen on the night of that vote, the european parliament also has to sign it off as well. we're still quite probably at some sort of delay to brexit, evenif at some sort of delay to brexit, even if the withdrawal agreement was agreed by mps and very, very soon. there is only those two and a half weeks. very striking when you speak to particularly brexiteers, they try very big distinction between what

they see as a technical extension to they see as a technical extension to the article 50 process, the rain brexit by a couple of weeks to go through the motions and sort out the paperwork bluntly. and something longer because the british parliament has not managed to agree anything remotely close to the agreement that the government has secured with the european union. brief final question. when will we know what phrase the vote tomorrow is putting? that is important as well. presumably, they've got to get that sorted out before mps turn up and they cannot just that sorted out before mps turn up and they cannotjust presented with just a popular vote. that will have to start that tonight, but whether oi’ to start that tonight, but whether or not that is published tonight we are not yet certain. the nature of it might be determined by exactly what we learn in the next hour. there was someone what we learn in the next hour. there was someone suggesting to me in the houses of parliament an hour or so ago that it might appear electronically at first thing tomorrow morning. clearly they have tomorrow morning. clearly they have to get some time for mps to give it a good look and decide what they

make of it. given that we are at 8:20 p:m., there is no guarantee that we will definitely see the form of words published and in public this evening. i hope you have an appointment with your pillow at some point over the next 12 hours. thank you so much. chris mason at westminster. chris was talking about the implications of brexit. one of the implications of brexit. one of the important elements he mentioned if the european parliament, which has to sign off the steel. the prime minister is also, as well as meeting jean—claude juncker, meeting the president of the european parliament. also the former belgian prime minister. but much more important now than being prime minister to my country, he has been the liaison to the whole process on behalf of the european parliament and he has to be persuaded as well. pretty much he is on site with commission. i think it is fair to say that is another element of this

where all the ducks have to got to be lined up in a row before mrs may can bring that out in her meeting. hopefully press statement released tonight. we will bring you more from strasbourg as we get it. breaking news. i'm sorry to say, it is about the disappearance of catherine shaw. she was from oxfordshire and had been travelling in guatemala for some months. she was last seen on march the 15th guatemala. a body has been found in the for her. that is confirmed by the for her. that is confirmed by the lucie blackman trust, which i assume has been working with the family and offering them support as it often does when young women go missing abroad. the trust confirmed that the body for catherine shaw has been found, a bite has been found that has not yet been identified, but it was the search for catherine shaw who has been missing since

march five. sport now. and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's apologies for being a bit late. zinedine zidane is returning to real madrid. it's less than year after since the frenchman left. that was after winning a third successive champs league title. he oversaw the club's most successful period in the modern era winning 7 trophies in 100 games, a time that included a 40—game unbeaten run. he'll replace santiago solari with real third in the spanish league but out of the champions league. what zinedine zidane wants to do not have a team that wins also at home. they won the meet twice in the last ten years. simply not good enough for what he feels that the most important competition of all. of course he has won the champions league. it is three times in iraq that metric itself. still it will be a target. it is about rebuilding. we

have to see what happens with gareth bale for instance. they didn't get on. they are like water and oil. i think one of the things that zinedine zidane wanted was for gareth bale to leave in the summer. they said no chance. what now? a birmingham city fan who pleaded guilty to attacking the aston villa captainjack grealish yesterday has been sentenced to 1a weeks in prison. paul mitchell, hit grealish from behind about ten minutes into villa's game at st andrew's. he admitted ‘assault‘ and ‘encroachment onto the pitch‘ at birmingham magistrates‘ court. he been banned from attrending football matches for 10—years. but for some the punshment doesn‘t go far enough. i think that tougher presents incidents would be a start. 1a weeks doesn‘t seem the punishment to fit the crime. there has to be more as a deterrent. and then i think stadium bands, then the burning and fans from their own stadium and la stadiums. they have to find a way of

hitting clubs in the pocket. what more is needed is increased security at stadiums. clubs will have to pay for that. manchester city manager pep guardiola says the club‘s players and fans ‘need to dream‘ if they are to win a first champions league title. his side play schalke in the last 16 second leg tomorrow at their etihad stadium, 3—2 up from the first leg. but guardiola believes they need to push themselves, given their relative inexperience. this competition is judged when you are out for the last 16, it is a big disaster. my perspective and my approach is completely different. it is a big success being there for the teams this season, next season in the champions league, it is a big success. we will be even closer, ourselves and liverpool are closer to do that. moving beyond the group stage is an incredible success in my opinion. trevor bayliss — the head coach at england cricket — has shed some light on the recent departure of batting

coach mark ramprakash. bayliss says ashley giles — the new managing director at the ecb — made the decision not to renew rampra kah‘s contract. we did have a conversation with him. i think there has been a few more then, yeah, obviously jail i think there has been a few more then, yeah, obviouslyjail is the captain of the team and would have been involved as well. but actually he has got some thought on what he thinks the team in the squad and the coaching staff need to go to. or wa nt to coaching staff need to go to. or want to go to. so that is a decision that has been made. we will carry on. that‘s all the sport for now. i‘ll have more for you in sportsday at 10:30. chris mitchell at the bbc sportscenter. investigators say they‘ve recovered both flight recorders, from the ethiopian airlines plane that crashed yesterday — killing all 100 and 57 people on board. the boeing 737 max 8 was flying

to the kenyan capital, nairobi, when it went down shortly after taking off from addis ababa. nine people from the uk were among those onboard. our correspondent emmanuel igunza sent this report from the scene. it‘s a slow, delicate process of recovering pieces of the plane that might offer clues on why flight et302 went down. more remains of those who died have been recovered from the rubble as rescue efforts enter the second day. the main focus for the investigators has been that huge crater that was made when the plane hit the ground. now throughout the day we have seen them pull out debris, including this mangled wreck here of what remains of the aircraft. we‘ve also seen them retrieve the black boxes, which will help in the investigations on finding out exactly what happened. the passengers on board were from 35 different countries, nine were british. among them, joseph waithaka, who had dual british and kenyan citizenship. also a polar effort expert.

and an animal rights campaigner going to the same event. i am very, very proud of what she achieved. it is just tragic that she couldn‘t carry on to further her career and achieve more. this morning, the un conference began with a minutes silence for the victims. 19 un staff were among those killed. it is the second time this type of aircraft has crashed in five months. in october, and indonesia lion air plane came down killing all 189 people on board. today, china and indonesia along with ethiopian airlines grounded their fleets of the 737 max 8. recovery efforts are coming to an end but the investigation into what happened to flight e t 302 will continue for many months.

and in the past hour it‘s been confirmed — that sam pegram — an aid worker from lancashire was among the nine britons killed on the flight. the four—hour waiting time target for accident and emergency in england is set to be scrapped and replaced with a whole new raft of measures. the sickest patients would be seen the fastest. the target has been missed repeatedly since 2015 and nhs managers say it is outdated. our health editor hugh pym reports. at the moment, we haven‘t got any debts available in the unit. whether it is a&e routine operations, cancer or mental health care, nhs targets are there to try to reassure patients they are being treated as fairly as possible. now there is to be a big shake—up of the system in england. nhs leaders argue new a&e targets will be marked relevant to patients‘ needs. what matters to patients in a&e departments is that when they arrive, they are seen and served quickly to a higher standard. that if they are severely ill

with life—threatening conditions, stroke or heart attacks, they are treated quickly, rapidly and to the highest possible standard, which we do every day. and for everybody else, that they are treated in a timely way. nhs england will try out alternative a&e targets. for example, reducing average waiting times, measuring the time taken for an initial assessment by senior clinicians, and ensuring the sickest patients are prioritised for quick treatment. there will now be a debate over whether introducing new nhs performance standards and benchmarks can improve patient ca re and outcomes. and whether altering an existing target which has been missed, looks a bit like shifting the goalposts. senior a&e doctors say their research shows the existing system does work. before our standard is utterly mission—critical, to hospital system performance to safe care. our belief is that by dismantling the four—hour standard, we‘ll be adding to the crowding that occurs.

others say it is right to test whether the current target is fit for purpose. there are no planned changes though, in scotland and wales. hugh pym, bbc news. here with me now is professorjulian redhead, a medical director at imperial college health care nhs trust and emergency medicine consultant. you have spent much of your career and accident and emergency departments. what has been wrong with the four hour time?” departments. what has been wrong with the four hour time? i think it has been a really useful target. it has been a really useful target. it has really helped a focused resource and management on that important population, and ensuring that we get flow through the a&e department. it has been a real benefit to accident and emergency. the problem has been described as effectively a sudden rush of people being checked in as it were, in the ten minutes before the four hour target is clocked. presumably that is because everyone looks at tables and comparisons and save the trusty slipping on that, so

it becomes a bit of a problem and you have to get people up there. it's you have to get people up there. it‘s that kind of discretion you are worried about? there are some of those distortions. i think we all agree that the clinicians and nurses and everyone are really focused on patient care. i will hate the public to think people are looking at a clock rather than concentrating on their care. i think what is true is that it does not necessarily cover all the populations of people that we see. we see some of this distortion with mental health and other groups of patients, where it may not be the best at target to use for that group of patients. in the end, presumably because you did not have an infinite number of staff or an infinite amount of space, it does mean that some people will have to wait longer. i would hope that the targets that we come up with and what they come up with when it is all tested and when we have really gone through it, keep that focus on what resources are required in the a&e to keep the flow going. also resources and the rest of the hospital. what is true is that it is

not to do with just a and b flow, it is flow through the whole hospital and also before you come well past a&e flow. we need to make critically that we don‘t have overcrowding in the a&e department. any target that is in place should be addressed in those concerns all the time. people wa nt to those concerns all the time. people want to know that when they go to a&e, they will be treated as quickly as practically possible. that in itself puts a lot of pressure on the staff. yes, but it is the pressure that we want. but we are very good at is identifying a patient into and critical care, then delivering that ca re critical care, then delivering that care to a very high standard within the nhs. that is a credit to all the staff that work in there. sometimes there can be a delay, waiting to see whether that triage can occur. it is speculated that we also need to shorten, to make sure that patients who require urgent treatment that it quickly. what is the explanation for why the target has not been met for the last four years? i think those

are down to individual trusts. changing and populations. it is rightly refocus our efforts. whatever target we choose, it is important we keep the focus on the a&e and not getting overcrowding and flow through the hospital. and allowing our staff ha rd—working staff, to really be able to deliver the care that they need. thank you very much for being with us. while you still can if you want to check... you can do on the health page on the bbc news website, bbc.co.uk/health. now it‘s time for a look at the weather with chris fawkes. hello again. we are looking at a stormy spell of leather, moving across the british isles thanks to storm gareth. overnight we have got some heavy rains swinging its way eastwards. strong winds and gusts could reach 70 mph around exposed western coast of scotland. as the rain then pushes through, we will get cold air tapping into scotland and northern ireland.

through to stake in our band of rain will push eastwards across england and wales, very scholarly and gusty winds with this on. as we start seeing that cold air edging in, temperatures will be followed for many of us through the afternoon with plenty of heavy showers falling to the northern and western areas. heavy snow in the scottish islands, there will be blizzard conditions as well. through tuesday afternoon and evening, some very strong winds target northern island, just around the coasts that reach 80 knots per hour before a swathe of very strong winds affect southwest scotland, england and wales with gusts strong enough to bring down some trees. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines:

theresa may has arrived in strasbourg for talks with the european commission president, jean—claude juncker, in an effort to secure last minute concessions on her eu withdrawal deal. mrs may‘s visit comes ahead of a crunch vote on her deal tomorrow in parliament — and some eurosceptic mps say there could be a late breakthrough in talks tonight i don‘t know what the outcome is. while i not know is that i think they are reaching the point where there are about to have some kind of agreement. i‘m speculating, but that is my indication. investigators have found the voice and data recorders —— from the ethiopian airlines plane —— which crashed yesterday —— with the loss of 157 lives. the nhs reveals plans to abandon its four hour a&e waiting time target — meaning patients with the most serious conditions would receive treatment faster. algeria‘s president abdelaziz bouteflika is to step down following mass protests across the country let‘s get more now in the negotiations taking place in strasbourg. we‘re expecting a press conference from the prime minister within the next hour,

after she meets with the president of the european commission, jean claude juncker. earlier today the government confirmed tomorrow‘s meaningful vote on theresa may‘s deal will take place. let‘s talk to tony connelly. he is in brussels monitoring developments. it has been a fairly busy evening in dublin as well. that is right. there has been a cabinet meeting in dublin tonight, so one assumes that the outline of what is being discussed in strasbourg has been put to the irish government and the the other doubter appears to be consulting with the irish cabinet on the merits of other buyers of what has been discussed. meanwhile, in strasbourg, those talks began at round about 30

minutes ago and are due to conclude on the hour, that is i think 9pm uk time, and then that should be a statement, although given the sensitivity —— sensitivity of what is at stake, these talks could go on later than the end of the hour. one of the key issue seems to have been, for the uk of the key issue seems to have been, forthe uk mps of the key issue seems to have been, for the uk mps who rejected the agreement, was the artist backstop, in other words, ensuring there is no ha rd in other words, ensuring there is no hard bodied between north and south. do you get any sense that anything has moved on that, or it simply a reassurance that it would be intended to be temporary? that has a lwa ys intended to be temporary? that has always been kind of baked into the withdrawal agreement, and subsequent letters that jean—claude withdrawal agreement, and subsequent letters thatjean—claude juncker and donald twoos, the president of the european council said it is a in january. what has shifted i think is the fact that the eu‘s now says that it is prepared to set up a joint

legal mechanism, called a joint interpretive statement, and this is a legally binding statement that both sides to sign up to. it doesn‘t change the text of the withdrawal agreement, but it allows both sides to interpret what the withdrawal agreement means. within this joint interpretive statement, which as i say, is legally binding, they appear to be looking at various levels of the students, if you like, for the uk, that they can get some answers if they feel that the eu is not lighting in good faith. —— acting in good faith. it seems like they are looking at a three step approach that will comprise as joint statement. the final part of it would be some kind of a unilateral decision by the uk that it feels like it has acted in good faith, and

that the eu hasn‘t, and that the uk feels it can walk away if that scenario arise. and i think that seems to be the most sensitive and difficult part of this discussion. how difficult would do about b for the irish government to exempt? the irish government basically said it wa nts to irish government basically said it wants to ensure there is no hub order in all circumstances, and that is the outcome that they want to achieve, and so long as you agreement the two traits between both sides permits out outcome in all circumstances, what they call on all circumstances, what they call on all weather backstop, they will be satisfied. it is clear that the commission will not make any big lea p commission will not make any big leap that will undercut that sense of confidence that the irish government would want to have in the future, but this idea that the uk still want to be able to walk away unilaterally is a very difficult

hurdle, and it remains to be seen this evening if and how the european commission is prepared to somehow facilitate that. bear in mind that at various stages along the way, an international panel of arbitrators would probably be involved. obviously, the eu would say that any decision that is made must comply without eu law is applied at the irish border, and between ireland and the uk, so there are tricky political and legal questions at sta ke political and legal questions at stake here. tony, we are seeing news that the meeting may go on a little bit longer past 9pm, or at least, they need about 15 minutes to get they need about 15 minutes to get the press conference late up, so we are being told that there will be in are being told that there will be in a news conference in strasbourg involving jean—claude juncker and theresa may at 915 uk time. so, turn

15 local time in strasbourg. i know you will be watching closely. how important is this for ireland? how much to people talk about this in the republic? we obsess about it here, but how important is it for people day to day? it is hugely important, and i think politically in ireland, by contrast, the irish government does seem to have almost universal support across the political spectrum for its stance on the backstop, and its determination that, as they would say, the good friday agreement on the peace process is not overly disrupted by any unintended consequences of exit, but again the irish government is also under pressure not to concede on the point, either on principle or practice, so a lot is at stake as well for a of alaska. and of course, the paradoxical situation is that, if as

the paradoxical situation is that, ifasa the paradoxical situation is that, if as a result of our and‘s sticking to its principles and you end up with a no—deal situation, then that in turn raises the prospect of a hardboard or in some circumstances will stop so, the stakes are very high in dublin as well. —— the prospect of a hard border. just to pick up something tony was saying there. the european parliament coordinator said in his tweet, we will stand by ireland and the need to safeguard the good friday agreement, in other words, the commitment that there should not be a hard border. let‘s ta ke let‘s take a closer look at what might happen. so unless and until something changes, here is what we are expecting this week. another meaningful vote on the deal theresa may

has agreed with the eu, that is on withdrawal agreement and the accompanying political declaration on the future relationship. now, if it passes, which is looking unlikely, well, it would have to be turned into legislation which would also have to get through parliament. and if that happens, it would mean the uk would leave the eu with a deal. would that happen on time by march 29? well, the timing is now incredibly tight which means a short technical extension could well be needed if the eu agreed to get that deal over the line. but back to the beginning, if the government fails to win the meaningful vote, then we are expecting a vote on whether mps want to leave with no deal. if they say yes we do, well, that is what would happen. but it is pretty clear there is no majority in the house of commons for no deal. so that would take us to the next vote promised by the government on extending article 50 and delaying brexit. if that also fails to pass, well, the default position is again down there, we leave on march 29 with no deal in place.

but if mps vote in favour of a delay, there are probably two options. could there be a third meaningful vote with the government hoping to win over wavering brexiteers? maybe. and if it passed, again, we would need new legislation, and then at some stage, the uk would leave with a withdrawal deal in place. but if a third meaningful vote failed or if there simply wasn‘t one, then we end up here, the uk seeking a brexit delay which would mean it wouldn‘t leave the eu on march 29th. big questions follow from that, of course, number one, will be eu agree to that delay? they would certainly want to know what an extension of article 50 was for. and number two, how long an extension could last? a short one wouldn‘t make a huge amount of difference, a longer one, perhaps as long as 21 months would raise huge political issues on all sides. the algerian president

abdelaziz bouteflika — who has been in office for 20 years — has postponed presidential elections scheduled next month and said he will not seek another term in office. president bouteflika‘s candidacy had provoked mass protests across algeria over the past three weeks. joining me from tunis is bbc arabic‘s north africa correspondent, bassam bounenni. thank you very much for being with us thank you very much for being with us this evening. this is quite a dramatic announcement. how far had this been expected or predicted? dramatic announcement. how far had this been expected or predicted7m course, this is a turning point, let say. it is almost the same package announced by bouteflika‘s media office last sunday, except that he decided nowt not to bid for a fifth term in office, and the postponement of the elections, but algerians are

tonight quite divided. there are protests in the capital and other major cities, they are divided, as i said. some took to the street to celebrate, others to protest again. and the opposition are splitting over the way to address this step. bouteflika arrive the arab spring. his resume remained intact, yet he had a stroke back in 2013. he has not spoken in public for years. all of these statements come out as press statements. he has been in hospital until yesterday in switzerland. how far is it possible to assess whether this is an intentional decision by him, or by other people around him who do, effectively, the day—to—day work of government? that's quite interesting, because since the protests have erupted on february

22, the only reactions from bouteflika where letters any day state—owned news agency. now, it is about discussing the credibility of the step for the opposition parties, and let me quote, for example a former prime minister, he became one of the most prominent opposition figures in the country. he said, some minutes ago, it is not about the fifth time, it is about deep and genuine reforms. plus, the credibility, there is the problem of the legal framework, the constitution of our algeria does not allow the president to extend his term, except in the state of war. uncertain times ahead for algeria. actually, yes, and as i did indicate, they are really divided

tonight. for some, any indicate, they are really divided tonight. forsome, any sudden indicate, they are really divided tonight. for some, any sudden or radical change could lead the country to chaos, to uncertainty and even to instability. others are stick to deep and genuine reforms, including bouteflika, to be unseated, because there are various thoughts that she is largely incapacitated, and she cannot lead the transition. so, the transition itself is wanted by many opposition parties tonight by may be the last manoeuvre, according to them. thank you very much for being with us. let‘s ta ke you very much for being with us. let‘s take a look at the headlines on bbc news. theresa may has arrived in strasbourg for talks with jean—claude juncker in an in strasbourg for talks with jean—claudejuncker in an effort to secure a last—minute changes to the eu withdrawal deal. investigators have found the voice and data

recorders from ethiopian airlines plane which crashed yesterday with the loss of 157 lies. the nhs in england if yours plans to abandon its four—hour waiting time target, meaning patients with the most serious illnesses should receive treatment quicker. herfamily in her family in blame herfamily in blame instagram for her death, now they have been told they will not get any help towards they will not get any help towards the cost of her legal team. for molly‘s family, questions too about exactly what caused her to

ta ke about exactly what caused her to take her own life. answers they hope an incredible provide. i thought this was a really strong bases. but now the request for legal aid has been rejected. the legal aid agency has said the case is not of larger public interest, and won‘t lead to significant and material benefit to a large cohort of specific persons. over 200 families every year in the uk go through what we have been through. every one of those families will want to find out as much as possible. it seems to me that the world we live in, our country, our society should help find out those questions come up because by doing so, you could reduce those numbers and stop those nightmares. families don‘t automatically get legal aid at inquests but can qualify if there is a wider public interest. this decision leaves ian russell with two choices, try and raise tens of thousands of pounds to pay his own legal fees

or represent molly‘s interests by himself at the inquest. as for the tech companies, they can afford to buy in the top legal firms in the country. for some, this case highlightsjust how powerless families feel. huge power imbalance. you‘ve got six major global companies here who have all the finance, technology, experts and the like, against families and individuals, who are trying to find some answers, and that is why government has to create a better balance, a fairer playing field. so, it seems molly‘s family, still struggling to cope with her death, may now have to pay to get to the truth of how she died. angus crawford, bbc news.

let‘s bring you a bit more about the latest identified victim of the ethiopian airlines cross from the uk. this is beckham, who was 25 yea rs old uk. this is beckham, who was 25 years old at the time of his death yesterday. this is a photograph of some, that we havejust yesterday. this is a photograph of some, that we have just had access to. we have also had a statement, because he was only 25, and he had not been out of school that long. the school good memories of him. the school he worked with released a statement. unfortunately, we have heard that sam was one of the passengers. many other staff taught some and ebrahim with deep fondness. we offer our condolences to his family and friends in what will be a very difficult time for them. a statement from the school that he used to attend. a teenage boy and a 20—year—old man have appeared in court charged with the murder of 17 —year—old jodie chesney who was stabbed

in a park in east london ten days ago. daniela relph reports. the first suspect appeared that the old bailey. a 16—year—old boy went before the magistrate. both were remanded in custody. a birmingham city fan has been jailed for 1h weeks and given a lifetime ban from attending the team‘s matches, after attacking the aston villa captain, jack grealish on the pitch during yesterday‘s match. 27—year—old paul mitchell appeared in court today and admitted assault and encroachment on to the pitch. our sports correspondent, richard conway reports. birmingham derbies are always tempestuous but just ten minutes into the game, this fan, now identified as paul mitchell, ran onto the pitch and punched aston villa playerjack grealish. mitchell pleaded guilty in court today to assault and was sentenced to 1a weeks in prison and a ten year ban from attending football. but the shocking incident has led to calls for the strongest sanctions amid fears that players lives

could be at risk. what can we do to stop this before someone actually does end up getting hurt? you know, the society we live in at the moment and the facts that go on in life, is it going to take that before we actually stand up and do something? an arsenal fan managed to get onto the pitch and shove a player during yesterday‘s match against manchester united. and on friday night, the glasgow rangers captain james tavernier was also involved in an angry confrontation with a hibernian fan. perimeter fences were brought down in the aftermath of 1989‘s hillsborough disaster, a revolution in all seated stadiums in the top divisions swiftly followed. many believed british football‘s problems with hooliganism had been largely eradicated but this season marred by several incidents of disorder, and racial abuse, has given pause for thought. the last thing i want is for someone to say that was an accident waiting to happen. and that football hasn‘t addressed it. i do feel we‘ve addressed

it in the past but it has been coming back, it is there for to see, and that is the last thing i would want to hear. after being punched, jack grealish replied with perhaps the perfect riposte by scoring the winning goal for aston villa. but football officials now face serious questions on how they plan on protecting players and the sport‘s reputation. richard conway, bbc news, birmingham. headteachers from nursery schools across england have marched on downing street appealing for guarantees on long term funding. they argue that nursery schools, funded by local authorities, support children in some of the most deprived parts of the country and help to provide care for thousands of children with special educational needs. as part of a week of stories from bradford across the bbc, shabnam mahmood from the asian network reports.

his speech wasn‘t that good, and he wasn‘t that confident, but since she has gone to nursery, he has come along. it‘s really, really useful, because it‘s not too far, and they‘ve got so many facilities, like, on a wednesday, i take the baby to baby clinic, and get her weighed and stuff, and he loves nursery. it‘s in the heart of the canterbury estate in bradford, one of the most deprived areas in england, so children here are offered free places, from the age of two. we have a much, much higher percentage of children who come from areas of high deprivation, and who have special educational needs, so often children will come to us because other settings aren't able to fulfil their needs. it‘s notjust about getting children ready for school. the centre provides a one—stop shop to help those living in difficult circumstances. for a lot of our families,

this food is a lifeline. often, parents will go without food to feed their children, so we look after the whole family. in fact, parents say they have been offered a range of support. when my child started nursery, he wasn‘t talking, i was really worried about his speech and everything, so they helped him to develop his speech, and then they sent a speech therapist to our home, as well, she was coming for about six weeks, and now, bless him, you can‘t shut him up! does your little boy like the nursery? yeah, first he was really upset, because we are really alone here, we don't have any people, so now he's really happy. he's really happy, yeah. they are really helpful. the government has pledged more funding for maintained nursery schools, but despite that, theirfuture is farfrom certain. if this closes, i think it's a huge loss to the community, it's a huge loss to these children, who you can see are ripe with potential. if we give them the best, we level the playing field,

and they will succeed through their schooling and through their adult life. closing the social mobility gap for children like these could become much harder. shabnam mahmood, bbc news, bradford. let‘s bring you an update on what is happening in strasbourg this evening. this is a scene inside the news co nfe re nce evening. this is a scene inside the news conference room , evening. this is a scene inside the news conference room, probably expected prime minister and judge conjuncture to deliver a statement in about 20 minutes. i should say that the irish government in dublin have actually adjourned their cabinet meeting, and they will be coming back a little later. now it‘s time for a look at the weather, with chris fawkes. turbulence where the for sure. all courtesy of storm gareth, that is edging closer to our shores. it is going to be bringing very turbulent weather. a combination of severe gales and heavy rain that could

bring disruption to parts of the uk over the next couple of days. here isa over the next couple of days. here is a storm gareth, edging towards our shores. it has got some tightly packed isobars, our shores. it has got some tightly packed isoba rs, and our shores. it has got some tightly packed isobars, and it is the closest together of the isobars that determine how strongly the winds blow. look how close they are. it is going to be a rough ride for sure. but otherwise, overnight tonight people start to get outbreaks of rain moving in. it is going to be a blustery, ploy kind of night, with those winds picking up instant. the once potentially gusting to 70 mph around the west coast of scotland, but inland, very blustery conditions as well. temperature was, not doing too badly for ingrid and rose. for chester‘s we have got this band of rain that is going to be pushing across england and wales. the rain

heavy over a short space of time. also, some very gusty winds. as the front closer, the sunshine comes out, and don‘t go the temperatures. behind that cold front, cold air will be working on. plenty of showers for northern ireland and scotland, with blizzards developing over the highlands of scotland. on tuesday afternoon, the bone structure pick up instant. expose coastal areas could be 70 mph. the strong winds cross over into south by scotland, across england and wales, produced tonight into wednesday, we are looking at because of around 50 to 60 miles per. strong enough to bring in a few trees, so there is the risk of transport disruption. certainly, speed restrictions likely under bridges, and power is a possibility as well. it will be a rough ride for sure. it stays pretty unsettled through the rest of the week. there will be a risk of localised flooding in

north—west england, particularly around the cumbria area. over the next couple days, storm gareth is likely to bring us some significant distruption. that likely to bring us some significant distru ption. that is likely to bring us some significant distruption. that is your letters. directs a drama has shifted to strasbourg. theresa may is there to meet the president of this is what we heard from someone she needs to convince if she‘s going to win. all i know now i think they are reaching the point where they are about to have some kind of agreement. i am speculating, but that is my indication. there‘s a big vote in westminster tomorrow — but the main event tonight is in strasbourg — where we‘re expecting a press conference in a quarter of an hour. and remember — if you want to get in touch —