good morning. welcome to breakfast, with charlie stayt and mega munchetty. our headlines today: at least 27 people are reported to have been killed after gun attacks at two mosques in the new zealand city of christchurch. i could hear screaming and crying, andi i could hear screaming and crying, and i saw some people, you know, drop dead. four suspects are in custody, but police say there may be more. the prime minister is on her way to the scene. it is clear that this is one of new zealand's darkest days. clearly, what has happened

here is an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence. parliament has voted to delay brexit. theresa may will now ask the eu for an extension beyond 29 march. it is the biggest company you have probably never heard of. interserve, one of the government's biggest providers of public services, faces a crucial shareholder vote today. it could force it into administration. good morning from cheltenham on gold cup day, and will there be another fairytale like there was yesterday, as bryony frost became the first female jockey to win a top—class grade one race here? all the sport from here at 6:30 a.m.. and it is windy on cheltenham week across the country once again, a bit of rain at times. stronger winds even tomorrow, and for some

some snow in the forecast. i will have all the details on breakfast. it is friday 15 march. our top story: the city of christchurch in new zealand is in lockdown after a series of deadly shootings. police say there are multiple fatalities after attacks at two mosques, where hundreds of people had gathered for friday prayers. police say they have one suspect in custody, but people across the city are being asked to stay indoors. the country's prime minister, jacinda adern, said it was one of new zealand's darkest days. ramzan karmali reports. emergency vehicles rushing the injured to hospital, after a gunman entered the al noor mosque in christchurch and opened fire. about 300 people were in attendance for the traditional friday prayers. a senior member of the congregation described the horrific scene. i saw that some people were running out through my —

through my room where i was in, and also i saw some people had blood on their body, and some people were limping. at that moment, you know, i realised that it was really serious. there are reports the gunman was firing continuously for at least ten minutes. another mosque in the city also came under attack, and the police say that several people have been apprehended. new zealand's prime minister expressed shock. what i can say is that it is clear that this is one of new zealand's darkest days. clearly, what has happened here is an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence. police have not confirmed numbers, but have said that there have been fatalities and injuries in more than one location. we are currently dealing with an unprecedented situation in new zealand. it is very grave, very serious. we have dealt with an active shooter situation. we have

multiple fatalities. in an extraordinary action, police have also asked for all mosques throughout the country to close their doors. schoolchildren have been allowed back home, but the city and the country remains on edge. we can speak now to our correspondent hywel griffith from our sydney bureau. information coming through all the time regarding this. 0bviously we're getting as much information through as we can but not all of the picture is clear. no, it is fair to say still a dynamic active situation, predominantly because the police fear they may be someone at large who is part of this seemingly planned, orchestrated shooting in

multiple sites. we know they have arrested three men and one women. we know and have had confirmed from an australian prime minister that there was an australian citizen amongst them. that is relevant because online someone has already been claiming this in the name of white of premises. they have issued a ma nifesto of premises. they have issued a manifesto and shown their hate towards muslims living in new zealand and other western countries —— white supremacism. it is impossible to verify at the moment whether it is the same person but there is certainly the suggestion that this was an orchestrated attack by right—wing extremists, who chose christchurch as their target, and ra nt christchurch as their target, and rant terror across two masks during friday prayers. can you tell us more from your observations of any tensions in new zealand when it comes to immigration, when it comes to white supremacy, as you have mentioned? these are the suggestions of the motivation behind what has happened. no country is left untouched by that sort of tension or

friction —— two mosques. however, i would argue new zealand certainly isn't a place where we have seen hate crime on this level, or anything comparable. it is a country known for its welcome internationally, notjust a tourist, it has offered to take in more refugees. in immediate response to this massacre, jacinda ardern made that point that there would have been many immigrants, many refugees, within the mosques at that time during friday prayers. and there is a home for them in new zealand, contrasting that by saying that there was no home for this kind of hatred or extremism. but, as we heard in that report earlier, the police are conscious that this could yet trigger a potential copycat or maybe even further orchestrated attacks. that is the reason why they have called for the immediate shutting of the doors of all mosques across new zealand, warning people it is not safe to be there at this time. brexit is no longer likely to take

place on the planned date of 29 march, after mps gave theresa may their backing to seek an extension. now it's up to other eu leaders to approve it, when they meet on thursday. but before then mrs may will ask parliament for a third time to approve her brexit plan. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth is in westminster to tell us more. sometimes on these days it has been ha rd to sometimes on these days it has been hard to say anything clearly and without fear of contradiction, but what we have here unusually is theresa may proposing a delay to march 29 and parliament agreeing. yes, so i think what we can take away from this is the most likely thing to happen at this point is there will now be a delay to brexit.

we won't leave on 29 march. how will that work? well, i think there are two options which are the most likely. the first is that brexit could be delayed up until 30 june, but that is only if mps passed theresa may's withdrawal deal in another meaningful vote next week. now, if that vote fails and mps reject that vote again, the prime minister has suggested she will ask the eu for a longer extension, possibly a year or more. but remember, any extension would have to be agreed by the 27 other eu countries and without any agreement in brussels or in westminster, britain will leave the air you two weeks tomorrow without any deal in place. that is still the default position. now, the prime minister is hoping that by floating the possibility of a very long delays she might encourage some of those brexiteer mps who don't want that to rally around and get behind the deal when it comes back next week. but there is still a lot of anger in parliament that we are, even at this point. lots of brexit backing conservatives did not want a delay at all and the fact it looks likely has caused immense frustration. if theresa may cannot rely on their

support, she might hope for it, but it is still not a given thing. and just to confirm, the next meaningful vote will be when? it will be at the beginning of next week. we don't know the specific day. it has to happen by next wednesday, probably most likely monday or tuesday. it is a very short time for theresa may to convince those 75 conservatives who didn't back her last time to try and get on board. teachers are warning that many schools have to pick up the pieces of families living in poverty, using school budgets to provide food, shoes and even clean clothes for children. but head teachers, gathering for the annual conference of the association of school and college leaders, say they do not have enough funding to provide such support. the government says an extra £750 million is being given to schools, and it is working on improving teachers' wellbeing. the liberal democrats have suspended their former leader lord steel while an investigation is carried out into evidence he gave to the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse about the late mp cyril smith. lord steel told the inquiry

he didn't take action against smith, despite his admission that he was being investigated about abuse allegations. the lib dems say there is great concern more wasn't done. lord steel later said he didn't act because smith was not an mp or party member at the time. retailers have been warned they must take immediate action to help prevent knife crime after testing found many were selling blades illegally to children. i2% of shops visited between october and january failed to carry out the required age checks, increasing to 50% of online retailers. the home office said it is supporting trading standards to help them to take rogue retailers who sell knives to under—18s through the courts. a senior north korean official has said their leader is considering breaking off denuclearisation talks

with president donald trump. after decades of hostilities the leaders of the two nations met for the second time in singapore last month. talks were halted when mr trump walked away. it is red nose day today, and tonight, some of the biggest names in comedy will be doing their bit to raise money for comic relief. and you might remember last month our very own carol was challenged to sing from the rooftops, to get the london coliseum lit up red. let's take a look back at her performance. # hello, is it me you are looking for? # i can see it in your eyes, i can see it in your smile. enough! i can't sing, i neversaid i can see it in your smile. enough! i can't sing, i never said i could sing. that was horrendous. literally singing from the rooftops. and, staying true to their word,

carol was last night invited onto the roof of the coliseum. # five, four, three, two, one! that is the cast of the merry widow joining carol as she pushed the button to turn on the red lights for comic relief. i could have made a joke about her singing being comic, but i would never do such a thing. the live show will take place later tonight, and will feature a specially shot sequel to the hit comedy four weddings and a funeral. yes, the original cast members are returning to their roles, 25 years on. 0ur entertainment correspondent lizo mzimba reports. charles. kerry. tom. fiona. matthew. the sequel to one of the most successful comedies ever will be one of the centrepieces of this evening's show. and some surprise

guests. surprise guests like the star of tv‘s biggest drama for yea rs, star of tv‘s biggest drama for years, bodyguard. are you comfortable in dealing with something who is much better looking than you? i suppose that is possible. i'll give it my best shot. comic relief says new elements are key to keeping things fresh. well, we have tried to get new people involved, that is the truth, we have tried to get younger comedians involved, you try and get people who have never helped you before, and then you just hope he turns up. which dance which first became popular in the 1960s... which dance which first became popular in the 1960s. .. some familiarfaces will popular in the 1960s. .. some familiar faces will be doing a very unusual university challenge. two across them, place them on their hips. jump, to twist. across them, place them on their hips. jump, to twist. this is, i think, the highest altitude i've beenin think, the highest altitude i've been in my life. and some very different challenges have already helped raise huge amounts. brea kfast‘s very own helped raise huge amounts. breakfast‘s very own dan walker is one of a team of celebrities who claim to kilimanjaro for comic relief last month. we did it, we did

it together, and we did it for comic relief. thank you so much for your support. thank you. while i'm more than 24—hour dance —athon by strictly hosts claudia winkelmann and tess daly has raised more than £1 million for this year's appeal. and comic relief will be starting at 7:00pm tonight on bbc one. it is gold cup day at the cheltenham festival, and mike is live there for us this morning. any tips for us yet, mike? i notice you have the white gloves on, looking very smart. yes, that is not because it is cold. it is because in a moment i will be handling the famous trophy, the original trophy, more on that in a moment. but it is weirdly quite warm, very windy, hence the hair is

all over the place. dawn is breaking over cleve h ill all over the place. dawn is breaking over cleve hill and it is here the 16 over cleve hill and it is here the i6 runners will thunder up at around 3:25pm this afternoon to see who has won one of the gold cup. one of the most eagerly anticipated days in the racing calendar. even more so after yesterday, which has been described as one of the most significant in the meetings recent history much of that was due to the success of bryony frost aboard the horse frodon. she became the first female jockey to win a top—level, grade one race at cheltenham festival. she will be joining us live on breakfast a little bit later on. elsewhere, arsenal turned around a two—goal deficit to qualify for the quarter—finals of the europa league with a 3—0 victory against rennes. striker pierre—emerick aubameyang got a couple of goals, and then celebrated with his black panther mask. chelsea are also through, after thrashing dynamo kyiv 8—0 on aggregate. 0livier giroud was the star, scoring a hat—trick.

so that now makes it six english teams through to the quarter—finals of the two european competitions. the draw for the next stages later on today. —— stage is. and st helens made it six wins from six to extend their lead at the top of super league, with a convincing win over huddersfield giants. so this is an historic moment here at cheltenham, quite a story as we told you on breakfast last september when out of nowhere really, the original trophy first handed out to the first winner of the gold cup in 1994, rednet splash, was presented

back to the course. it had been in a vault somewhere since the 70s, before that we do not really know where it had been since it was taken away by the owners of red splash in 1924, but now it is back. it is the first time in nearly 100 years it is going to be presented to the winners of the gold cup this afternoon. nine coat gold, it weighs 616g, think of the gold cup this afternoon. nine coat gold, it weighs 616 g, think it is, and we also have a plinth at the bottom and around that plinth other winners of the gold cup dating back to 1924 with red splash, and of course, last year, native river most recently. but yeah, have other special moment to be holding this. this trophy, rather special moment of sporting history. that is fantastic, and you are so lucky to get your hands on that and they are so trusting to let you put your hands on that, indeed. we'll talk to you later, what we're going to say? is going to say so the winners were not actually get this one, this will stay in cheltenham in a case now forever, that visitors can look at but they will at least get to lift it this afternoon. look at that thick that cloud cover across cheltenham racecourse. how is that across the rest of the uk? good

morning, yes. they will get quite a bit of rain at times during the day today in cheltenham, across other parts of the country as well. 0nce again, another windy card for the country. gusting across parts of north—east scotland and england, touching gale force across many areas, chilly to cost scotland at the moment but actually quite a mild start of the day, then in cheltenham and across much of england and wales, temperatures in double figures that we have some patchy rain and drizzle drizzle through the night. you will be wintry over the scottish mountains in northern ireland, but there will be sunshine in between. always staying cloudy across the southern counties of england and south wales, further rain and drizzle to come in, most persistent on the moors of south—west england on the hills of south—west england on the hills of south—west wales. could hit 15 degrees, 16 degrees again this

afternoon, it does a fairly blustery. into tonight, winds are set to pick up again, particularly for england and wales. we will see a weather system start to work in between, turning whatever time because some parts of england and wales and then into northern england and northern ireland, but notice the temple to contrast through tonight into tomorrow morning. the blue colours on the child here, showing the single figures, double figures in the south. that will be crucial because as i weather system pushes into m0, on the northern edge of it, we could see snow covering the hills of northern england, northern ireland, northern scotland seeing up to perhaps ten millimetres of snow. rain and drizzle coming and going, more persistent drizzle in the west tomorrow. the winds will be strong all day long, particularly for england and wales, gusting in excess of maybe 40 or 50 miles an hourfor some of you. it will be wet and windier than today, temperatures up

to 30 degrees, that will tend to feel like just for five degrees and parts of scotland, especially given the fact we've got that snow as well. that all pulls away into the north sea, bringing chillier winds further south, so a chilly day for england and wales on sunday but sunnier by and large, it will also be windier in eastern parts of scotland, story of sunshine, blustery showers, temperatures in single figures, just into double figures in the south. do you know? i look at that sunday picture and i know there is lots of rain and everything, but it actually looks quite calm. compared to the next couple of days, yet. and also compared to brexit, if i am being com pletely compared to brexit, if i am being completely honest. goes about saying really, doesn't it? yeah, it's so does. which is once again dominating of course, many of the front pages. so let's have a look through. the daily express brands mps "failures", after they voted to delay brexit.

that significant moment yesterday. the paper says the decision is a "damning indictment of our democracy". "give mayjust a little more time", that's the headline on the metro. it says the prime minister "secured precious breathing space" for her brexit deal, which will be voted on again next week. the times also leading on brexit, their photo is of bryony frost, who became the first female jockey to ride a top—level cheltenham festival winner yesterday. and of course, we will be spending the morning at cheltenham throughout the morning at cheltenham throughout the morning at cheltenham throughout the morning this morning. finally, the daily telegraph says theresa may has just "one last roll of the dice" left, adding there's "huge pressure" now being put on the dup and tory brexiteers to "fall in behind the prime minister's deal". ‘s are those of the front pages, i am looking at the time. yeah, a real mixed bargaining business pages i'm going to steer clear of the brexit stuff because clearly the business

world wants to know what is happening there too, but there is available now between apple and modify, this is a story in the financial times this morning suggesting that the bosses modify is complaining that apple's app stores charging much more than rivalsjust to be able to put them on the store. you know that if you use apple products, you can only use the app store, he suggests that is because apple has its own music player, its own music app and wants people to download that instead. so daniel, the boss of this modify, saying that is unfairand he the boss of this modify, saying that is unfair and he is going to complain to the eu about that. so expect that argument to continue. this is a story about china launching positive only chat rooms. that is a nice idea. there some lovely quotes on this and they say the internet can be a horrible place sometimes, too much trolling, too many messages. they have launched chat groups that only allowed to say things, they are spreading the universities there. there is a

lovely q u ote universities there. there is a lovely quote from a guy who was an engineering student and he says last term, ifailed to engineering student and he says last term, i failed to qualify for graduate school, did not turn in a diploma from a second major, broke up diploma from a second major, broke up with my girlfriend, but i was skewered by the praise only chat groups, so! skewered by the praise only chat groups, so i decided to start my own. so i like that, the power of positive thinking modified a. that is really nice, spread the love. can i show you something? how clean are you both? clean? hygienic? yeah, i am very clean. me too. lucky millenials, there's a really good picture. see this, there are dozens of holiday homes which kind of at risk at the moment, there is long beach leisure park in hornsby, north yorkshire, there is a 150 foot long crack that is open in front of them this holiday home so they are really worried, but underneath there is the

story that caught my eye as well. hygiene is apparently a dirty word for 15% of male millenials, and please feel free to get in touch and counter this research. it says that 15% of 16 to 34 —year—olds lag behind the over 35 cohort by feeling it is ok do not wash your hands after using the restroom, cough into their hands and not use hand sanitiser, compared with 35 and over men. we also take a lot of public transport in this country, and people sneezing cough on them. can i just say, we talked about this yesterday, it is the cambridge crew, the 2019 boat race, that is quite an outfit for a photo shoot. it is the lycra and wellingtons the thing. outfit for a photo shoot. it is the lycra and wellingtons the thingm is the wellies that really do not sort of go with it all. do you know what? that does everything to me. it looks great. it looks great, i am not, i'm sorry, i am looks great. it looks great, i am not, i'm sorry, iam not looks great. it looks great, i am not, i'm sorry, i am not even apologising to saying that looks

fantastic. i will have that picture. the time now is 6:24 a.m.. it would not be an exaggeration to say that we have seen a week of intense drama in parliament. with three consecutive days of intense drama in parliament. but with the breaking news coming thick and fast, plenty of us are feeling more confused than ever about the uk's departure from the eu. we sent breakfast‘s graham satchell back to the classroom to get up to speed on his brexit basics. morning, delighted to see so many of you here, that so many of you are keen to see me talking about brexiter beginners. this week, finally, stuffers change. parliament this week is basically all but ensure that we're not going to leave the opinion on the 29th of march. yes? i thought we were definitely on the 29th of march? well, you could be forgiven for thinking that if only because the prime minister keep saying we're going to but actually, the prime minister still reckons she can geta the prime minister still reckons she can get a deal to, even if it passes

next week, which is far from certain, we still won't have the time to get everything done is live on the 29th of march. she is bringing back a deal, she is already, why would you bring it back again if she has already lost twice? well, third time lucky i suppose and the prime minister is calculating that things have changed. she is now seeing is my deal is not passed, we might have to have a very long extension of the article 50 period, so she is hoping that those brexiters and her party start to think i do not like this deal, but i would rather have this deal than this brexit. is anyone else who wa nts to this brexit. is anyone else who wants to ask a question? anyone? anyone else at all?:. are we actually going to leave the opinion? if you force me to bed, i would say almost certainly. if the prime minister's deal is defeated, i think there will be the ability to vote at some point if the deal fails. there will be the ability to vote at some point if the dealfails. it might bea some point if the dealfails. it might be a referendum, it might be canada brexit, there might be a norway brexit, have a vote on each of them and let see which one winds and will go forward with that. i'm really sorry, i know you're going to be heartbroken but that is all we've got time for today. thank you so

much all of you for showing up, bothering to show up at this time of the morning to my fantastic lecture. i look forward to seeing you next week for my next instalment of brexit for beginners. thank you. he gaveit brexit for beginners. thank you. he gave it a good try, didn't he? i think on the whole, there are more questions than answers. but that is just the nature of the whole process. alex forsyth is going to be taking us through, our political correspondent, she will be explaining it and talking to a few people as well throughout the morning. and of course, we're going to keep you up—to—date with what has happened in new zealand, we have had a shooting there are two mosques. we understand that 27 people have been killed and we are expecting further reports of injuries. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm tolu adeoye. the instagram influencer felicite tomlinson, sister of one direction singer louis tomlinson, has died at the age of 18.

the aspiring fashion designer, who had over1 million followers on instagram, died at her flat in west london. police say an ambulance was called to reports of a female in cardiac arrest. louis tomlinson is said to have cancelled a scheduled appearnace at comic relief this evening. the family of a british ex—pat living in crete, who suffered severe injuries after a car crash, say they urgently want to bring him home for specialist care. islington bornjohn buckle seriously damaged his spine in the crash and needs treatment his brother says can't be provided by the greek hospital. he is now in a stable condition, but he is just he is now in a stable condition, but he isjust maintaining life, but they do not have the specialist facilities on the island to treat

serious spine injuries. so he is known a situation where it is stable, but no treatment or improvement in his condition. a world war ii veteran from essex who won a legal battle to leave his care facility has returned home. 98—year—old douglas meyers from southend had been refused permission to return to his bungalow, where he wanted to finish his life. but in february, the high court ruled the "ideal solution" would be for him to return to his home with a support package. thejudge described him as a remarkable man. let's take a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tubes this morning. but on the trains: southern services are disrupted between east croydon and london bridge and victoria. that's due to electricity supply problems. turning to the roads in forest hill: the a205 london road has temporary traffic lights and roadworks at the junction with sydenham hill. finally in hammersmith: fulham palace road has a lane closed for telecoms work northbound, near the junction with inglethorpe street. now the weather with kate kinsella. good morning. 0nce

good morning. once again, the wind strengthened overnight last night. we have had some rain, you might just get a bit of drizzle this morning but it is largely cloudy. another windy day and still with further outbreaks of rain and some showers likely as well. the wind speeds could strengthen before it is as little this afternoon, outbreaks of rain popping up anyway, could get some brighter spells further north the temperature still reaching 15 celsius. 0vernight tonight, largely cloudy, ahead of some heavier, more persistent rain which will push the second part of the night. wet and windy by saturday morning, the temperature between eight and 10 celsius so reasonably mild. the met 0ffice celsius so reasonably mild. the met office has issued a yellow weather warning to saturday, for high winds once again. that is a 45 to 55 miles an hour likely, fairly disrupted, we will get some wet weather mixed in there as well. saturday quite u nsettled, there as well. saturday quite unsettled, better, drier date on sunday but it is going to feel a bit cooler, then finally into next week, things start to settle down. i'm back with the latest

from the bbc london in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. now though it's back to charlie and naga. have a lovely morning. bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. it is 6:31am. there has been a major incident in christchurch. we understand the latest figures are that at least 40 people have died after the shooting. that confirmation coming from the new zealand prime minister. she is now speaking at a press conference. let us listen into what is being said. i think we should be vigilant against the idea of extreme ideology and extreme violence and violent acts. has the organisation been putting too much focus on one sector

of risk? you will notice from our security services that their focus is on extremism, regardless of where it comes from. we need to be blind in that regard, it needs to absolutely focus on threat and ideology and extremism. because obviously that is what we have experienced here today. is this a new zealand where our innocence 's gone? we have undoubtedly experienced an attack today which is unprecedented, unlike anything we have experienced before. but as i say, new zealand has been chosen because we are not a place where violent extremism exists. we reject those notions and we must continue to reject them. this is not an on paperfor that kind of behaviour, for that kind of ideology. this is a place where people should feel secure and will

feel secure. i am people should feel secure and will feel secure. iam not people should feel secure and will feel secure. i am not going to let this change new zealand's profile. none of us should. prime minister, they weren't on our intelligence agencies' watchlist. why not? 0bviously agencies' watchlist. why not? obviously it is an indication to you that they hadn't acted in a way that warranted it. feel free to ask further questions at this time, i am not ina further questions at this time, i am not in a position to give you more information beyond that. taking a question from claire. have you had any indication from australia about whether they were on watchlist in australia, the one who was born in australia? my understanding at this stage as they were not on watchlist. you will also understand i won't wa nt to you will also understand i won't want to jeopardise the case that may be taken in the future, as well. i do also want to acknowledge that i have been contacted by prime minister scott morrison. i intend to speak with him directly sooner they am able. not at this stage.

certainly the minister of foreign affairs and the prime minister of australia have contacted the deputy prime minister and myself. are you able to confirm the age of the victims? not at this stage. i will have been other members of the public who will have seen the footage as the injured were being brought to christchurch a&e, and you certainly can see from that footage there is a real range of ages there. iimagine there is a real range of ages there. i imagine that these would have represented particular brothers, fathers, sons. i haven't had a breakdown, at this stage. it is not information i can share. what is your advice at the moment... he has a very turbulent online presence. how is it that they have not been followed by our agencies? at this point i am unable to give additional

details. 0bviously that offender is in custody now, so i can give that assurance. he has been apprehended. he is also accompanied by two other associates. he has been actively question, obviously. these may be additional questions you can put to the commissioner of police. just listening into the new zealand prime minister, jacinda ardern, just updating us information very significantly confirming that at this stage 40 people are confirmed dead. there were two locations, two masks in the city of christchurch. we know that four people, believed to be three men and one woman, are in custody. you may have heard a second ago she was saying there was a wide range of ages of the victims, although no details yet on that. the bangladesh cricket team were amongst those caught up in the attacks, as it was en route to the one of the mosques

for friday prayers. mohammad isam is bangladesh correspondent for the espn website. hejoins us on the phone now. thank you very much for talking to us. i can't even imagine what you have been through today. can you tell us what happened to you as you we re tell us what happened to you as you were with the team? so we finished a press co nfe re nce were with the team? so we finished a press conference around 1:20 p.m., at the cricket ground. and about a kilometre from there is the mosque. 17 of the bangladesh team got on the tea m 17 of the bangladesh team got on the team bus and headed towards the mask. i saw them get out from the parking lot, and within five minutes one of the players called me for help. he said save us, we are in big trouble. someone is shooting. i didn't take him seriously at first,

but then obviously his voice was cracking up and ijust ran for it. i tried to run all the way, but i got a lift from someone and i reached that incident, about 700 yards from it. i tried to charge to the team bus, and! it. i tried to charge to the team bus, and i thought i will go here and see what is happening. there was live shooting going on at that time. i saw one dead body, i saw one person running towards me with a bloodied shoulder, i think. and by the time i was getting close to the bus the players had already, you know, come back towards the bus. they were running towards me. and we ran through the park, the ground, the cricket ground, so we ran through the park, all 20 of us, and we headed back to the ground for safety. we were there for about an hour. and you said you saw... you think you saw one person who had died. another who was injured, and you also said that you heard a lot of shooting. did you have any idea then about how many people were

involved in the attack, actually taking part, or being behind this attack? no, i wasn't taking part, or being behind this attack? no, iwasn't aware taking part, or being behind this attack? no, i wasn't aware of anything until i went back to the ground again, and then we got the whole picture of it. it was quite brutal. i mean, that 20 minutes, the players were really breaking down. they had seen way too much in that 15 minutes. there was no security around, obviously, because it is a peaceful country. you don't have security everywhere, and the bus driver didn't know what to do. he was like a lame duck, sitting there. 0ne female driver, she was the one who informed us that there was something going on. and that is why the bus had stopped at that point, right opposite the mask. the players had heard the shots being fired, they saw people tumbling out of the gates, so we just ducked under in the bus. and how soon did you see

emergency services arrived, police, ambulances? 0bviously emergency services arrived, police, ambulances? obviously there was very much confusion. yes, there was, but i think by the time i had walked towards that bus they were all over the place, all of the emergency services and the police were there. but yes, the team didn't have any police or security cover. theyjust ran through and tried to escape from the situation. and do you have any idea, you said you were hearing the shooting, do you have any idea of what kind of weapons were being used at the time? what did it sound like? iam at the time? what did it sound like? i am sorry, i am not an expert, so i don't know. and can you also just give us an idea of the number of people who were at that mask, that the bangladeshi cricket team was intending to attend? it wasn't full yet, because the prayers hadn't started, so people were still going on at that point. it was actually quite close to the time that they would start the prayers. 0k, and all

of this took place just after 1:20pm your time. yes, between 20 and... i think i was there between 1:20pm and 1:30 p.m.. thank you for think i was there between 1:20pm and 1:30 p. m. . thank you for talking think i was there between 1:20pm and 1:30 p.m.. thank you for talking to us. thank goodness that you are safe, and the team as well. this is obviously a very tragic, horrible story that has unfolded this morning. we are getting a sense of what the immediate aftermath of the shooting was like first—hand for those who witnessed it. in the last few minutes we have heard from new zealand prime ministerjacinda ardern. it is with extreme sadness that i tell you that, as at 7pm tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. ten have died at linwood avenue mosque, three of which were outside the mosque itself. a further

30 have been killed at deans avenue mosque. there are also more than 20 seriously injured, who are currently in christchurch a&e. new zealand's prime minister, jacinda ardern, now confirming the number of debt are at 40, more than 20 seriously injured. she has been updating throughout the morning, and we will keep you up—to—date with what has happened, the shooting at two mosques in new zealand, in christchurch. four people have been put in custody. police have warned that there may be more people out there. they haven't confirmed that there. they haven't confirmed that the city is safe and have urged people to stay indoors. matt will have all the weather for us a little later on. right now we are going to cheltenham. it is gold cup day at the cheltenham festival, and mike is live there for us this morning. and mike is dry at the moment. good timing, actually, a few drops of rain has fallen out of the sky. but

i think it is also so windy that that will keep pushing the showers away. it is quite warm. a marvellous view at this time of day over a rather empty cheltenham, and over there, he hasn't been there all night. we will get the latest on the form for the runners and riders for the gold cup in a little while. 0ne of the most eagerly anticipated days in the racing calendar, really, the gold cup, if you like, the world cup ofjump racing, gold cup, if you like, the world cup of jump racing, especially for the purists. first, let's get the rest of the sport. it was a tense night in north london, where arsenal overturned a two—goal defecit to qualify the quarter—finals of the europa league. they trailed 3—1 from the first leg against the french side rennes, but two goals from striker pierre—emerick aubameyang and one from ainsley maitland—niles saw them through 4—3 on aggregate. after his second goal, aubameyang celebrated by wearing a mask from the film black panther, which he collected from behind the goal. that picture dominates many of the back pages of this morning's papers.

no such drama for chelsea. they thrashed dynamo kyiv 5—0, giving them an 8—0 aggregate victory. 0livier giroud was the star for them, as he scored a hat—trick to see them through to the last eight. there are now six english teams in the quarter—finals of the two european competitions. the draw takes place later this morning. one other line of football news for you, and paul scholes has quit as the manager of 0ldham afterjust 31 days in charge. the former manchester united midfielder oversaw one win, three draws and three defeats at the league two side. he says he left because he wasn't able to work in the way that he wanted. the new formula one season is underway, and world champion lewis hamilton has set the quickest time in the first two practice sessions for sunday's australian grand prix. not such a good day for fellow british driver and debutant george russell.

driving for williams, he was slowest in the first session and second—slowest in the second practice. action gets underway at the special olympics in abu dhabi today. the international games is for competitiors with intellectual disability, and involves over 200 nations from across the world. the opening ceremony was held last night, and it is the first time that the competition has been held in the middle east and north africa region. lee mottishead from the racing post is here. iam i am still trying to get my breath back from yesterday. let's start by talking about the history made by

bryo ny frost talking about the history made by bryony frost on frodon, the first female jockey to win a grade one race, and what a moment for frodon. it was one of the greatest hours in cheltenham history. the thing about bryo ny cheltenham history. the thing about bryony is she is notjust a superb jockey. i don't think i have met anyone who can better convey the union between human and horse, and the ongoing conversation, if you like, that takes place between rider and racehorse during the race. she is probably the best thing to happen to racing in a long time. it is one of the most significant moments at this course in modern history. another amazing moment came when paisley park won, and if you have been following it, andrew has been

blind since birth. and they are just good people, ithink blind since birth. and they are just good people, i think for yourjob and myjob, good people, i think for yourjob and my job, conveying good people, i think for yourjob and myjob, conveying these stories, watching these stories play out, when you know the people involved have this river of decency running through them, you celebrate their success. and there was such a wonderful sense of goodwill here yesterday. it was a joy to be part of it. and you want those characters in sport. and in the gold cup, one of the horses that really fascinates me, clan des 0beaux, written by the number onejockey, me, clan des 0beaux, written by the number one jockey, who broke me, clan des 0beaux, written by the number onejockey, who broke his neck the other year. three years ago he was writing point—to—point. we will hear from harry and he was writing point—to—point. we will hearfrom harry and get he was writing point—to—point. we will hear from harry and get your thoughts on his chances. 3.5 years ago i was riding in point—to—point, now i am writing in the gold cup. i have come a long way in a short space of time. you know, i was made sta ble space of time. you know, i was made stable jockey going into this year,

andi stable jockey going into this year, and i broke my neck and it went downhill for a little bit. had four months off but i have come back. it has happened very quickly. it is the cheltenham festival, it only happens once a year and everyone wants to ride winners. the prize money is really good, and it is just a ride winners. the prize money is really good, and it isjust a race everybody wants to win. amazing, what do you think his chances of? amazing, what do you think his chances of? he amazing, what do you think his chances of? he won amazing, what do you think his chances of? he won the amazing, what do you think his chances of? he won the big amazing, what do you think his chances of? he won the big buildup race, if you like, the king george vi race. he is a horse that has tremendous talent, what is not done so far as we a race up tremendous talent, what is not done so far as we a race up this marvellous cheltenham hill, it is a possible he will soar up at to glory. that is to be?, is it? against most courses, which makes it such a feeling those. and also sir alex ferguson, so there is a football connection there. who your other top tips, did you think might come to be in the running?”

other top tips, did you think might come to be in the running? i think the most likely winners are last yea r‘s the most likely winners are last year's victor native river, you have got presenting percy, who is com pletely got presenting percy, who is completely different in the sense that his trainer is completely different to bryo ny that his trainer is completely different to bryony frost, his trainer never says anything, so he isa trainer never says anything, so he is a completely different story. the other story comes in willie mullins, island's top trainer, the most successful trainer ever at the cheltenham festival but is never won the gold cup, on six occasions he has trained the second. he keeps coming back for more, like theresa may with the withdrawal agreement. four runners today and very possible that one of the micro pass that lollipop first. well done, he has even got brexit into the cheltenham coverage as well. -- might go past. we will see this afternoon when we know who has won the gold cup, there will be a few more people sat near

the benches here. i am not sure it is going to be a day to sit on benches, we have got the weather coming up. it looks lovely there, he looks to be in his element. it is fine to sit on a bench. not if it is raining and windy. matt, not if it is raining and windy. it is fine, as long as the rain is not wet. anyway, they go. very good morning, bit of rain abound again across the uk. it is the story of strong winds uk wide, if you are about to head out the door, are the strongest wind gusts to take you to the next few hours. the strongest could be northeast parts of scotland, south—east scotland could touch 50

or maybe 60 miles an hour here, not the desperately cold start away from the desperately cold start away from the scottish mountains. we mentioned the scottish mountains. we mentioned the rain, particularly damper because some western parts of wales at the moment and particularly in scotla nd at the moment and particularly in scotland and ireland, frequent showers here, turning to sleet and snow over the scottish mountains. a bit of sunshine in between, actually not bad mild sunshine across parts of eastern scotland, northern england, down towards east anglia during the afternoon, even if it does stay cloudy. southern counties of england and wales with further outbreaks of rain, most persistent in the welsh hills and the south—west. a chilly day in the north, seven or eight the high and into tonight, damages will drop quite quickly because some northern areas. winds are temporarily easing but then strengthening from the

south as we see more rain, initially in southern counties, then into northern england, northern ireland, southern scotland for the morning and this is a crucial thing for tomorrow morning. notice the temperatures, only a few degrees above freezing in low—level sites, it will be below any heels in the northern half of the country and is this weather system moves in for tomorrow, we could see some significant snow and he was northern ireland, northern england and more especially, northern scotland. as much as five to ten centimetres of snow in scotland. the other half of scotla nd snow in scotland. the other half of scotland will be joined vice, england and wales will see outbreaks of rain, most persistent in the west. some of that could be particularly nasty during the afternoon as england and where was receive the strongest of the winds, gusting all day long, 40 to 50 miles an hour, if not a little bit longer more. “— an hour, if not a little bit longer more. —— hills. that will be tempered by the breeze, four orfive celsius was scotland of course, with snow falling in places it will be even lower than that. that will clear out of the way, those will go on the saturday night into sunday, and it will stay windy particularly across eastern parts of scotland as across eastern parts of scotland as a area of low pressure clears on a blustery day across the uk once again, sunny especially for england and wales, a mix of rain, sleet, and some hill snow at times too but it will be predominantly dry and sunny. not especially warm, temperatures in single figures for most. there is some good news, next week looking drier and brighter, and certainly not as windy.

thank you very much. let's get back to brexit. the eu will have been carefully watching events unfolding in westminster this week, but how has the drama been received in brussels? maria demertzis is from the independent think—tank bruegel, and she joins us from brussels this morning. a very good morning to you and thank you so much for your time. we have an unusual situation yesterday in parliament, you will no doubt have been watching that, as we all work, when parliament and the prime minister theresa may agreed on something and the agreement was that brexit day should be delayed in either circumstance, the 29th of march date should be pushed back. give me your thoughts on how that will be received where you are. the eu has always said that for an extension to happen, there needs to bea extension to happen, there needs to be a good reason why it happens, so i think that if mrs may were to come to brussels and ask for an extension, apart from the duration

of the extension she would be asking for, she needs to present of a concrete plan in terms of what she aims to achieve during that extension. that remains a very big unknown in this equation, and i think that the vote next week is going to really define in some way the feasibility of that question. 0k, the feasibility of that question. ok, so let's just be clear for people, route one is the simplest in a way, isn't it? because theresa may monday or tuesday holds a vote, the deal gets through. it has struggled in the past, but if that happens, she goes to the eu and it is pure mechanics really, isn't it? she said i need three monthsjust mechanics really, isn't it? she said i need three months just to get everything sorted out, that is yes and the eu because it isjust everything sorted out, that is yes and the eu because it is just as normal. to which she does not have a deal and she has to go to the eu and say i have not got a deal but i have got a plan. —— option two. what are they going to say to her? they will need to know what that plan is, what she aims to achieve with the plan? what can she physically do that is going to change the outcome in some subsequent vote? i think that be

very important. the eu would not be asking for guarantees on this, why delay the process if there is not going to be any light at the end of this tunnel in terms of passing the deal? i think that is going to be a very difficult thing to achieve. the other thing, of course, you actually need to think about is whether she can ask for need to think about is whether she can askforan need to think about is whether she can ask for an extension in order to have a separate referendum or even elections. i think there, things will be a little bit more difficult and eu that ijust can't see the eu opposing that, but of course, we are very farfrom opposing that, but of course, we are very far from the uk wanting to have a second referendum. so i do not know how big that probability is, so yet again remain in a very big impasse. do you really believe it is a viable position for the eu to turn around and say we're not convinced by your reasons for asking for an

extension, so we offer nothingthis is what the eu had said, they have been very explicit about that and at some point, i think you need to take them at their word. whether they would want to do something like that, i have sympathy with that. the eu does not want to be seen as the one that is actually causing brexit at this stage. i think that that is at this stage. i think that that is a very important point at this stage. however, you have to understand that the situation in today's very important, both for the uk and eu economies, so some resolution is important and not in the very distant future. apologies, i have one of the question for you. there's quite a lot of talk over here about just what there's quite a lot of talk over here aboutjust what it might cost for us to extend, in any circumstance, monthly, £1 billion a month has been talked about. do you know anything about the numbers? know, the numbers are very difficult to estimate. from the beginning, they have been very difficult to estimate and it would be quite unseemly to talk about things like that. —— no. unseemly to talk about things like that. -- no. maria, thank you for your time this morning. thank you.

shareholders of one of the uk's largest providers of public services will be voting later today on a rescue package, after running into financial difficulties. ben can tell us more. good morning. chances are you've come into contact with this firm without even knowing it. this is the firm into servant it is one of the companies you have probably come into touch with and not known it. it has thousands of big government contracts to provide many of the public services we use every day. everything from cleaning hospitals to making school meals. it is also the largest provider of probation services in england and wales, it supervises around 40,000 "medium to low risk offenders". it also works on a number of big road and infrastructure projects. well, the firm employs around 45,000 people in the uk. so what's the problem? well, the company's run into financial difficulty after delays and cancellations to some of its key construction projects, and not properly assessing the risks when taking on some big contracts.

well, the contracts these companies enter into, you generally make a pretty little margin on them, which means if you get it right and you win, the winner is pretty small but if you get it wrong and you lose, the lose can be massive. —— loss. so as a result, its debts have been growing and its share price has been falling. this is what's happened to those shares since 2014. in the last year alone, they've lost nearly 100% of their value. and so today, shareholders are voting on a rescue deal. the plan is to cut debts from around £600 million to £275 million by issuing new shares. anyone who is owed money by interserve will get these new shares. so it basically hands control of the company to its lenders. it is controversial, but if shareholders don't approve the plan, the firm will collapse into administration. now this might all sound very similar to another outsourcing company, carillion. it collapsed at the start of last year with massive debts,

it left hundreds of government contracts in doubt. and so, is it about to happen again? it went on a big growth spree and that was financed by debt and carillion also had some terrible withdrawals that also because it over £1 million, but! withdrawals that also because it over £1 million, but i guess the differences intercept‘s projects, they are largely getting over those now, so if we can get to this and get some kind of refinance to get the debt down, it can continue. so what happens to all those contracts, the school meals, hospital cleaning or probation services? well, the government says it has plans in place to make sure that they can continue, nor will there be any losses if it falls into administration. what today's vote does do is raise yet more questions about how involved private sector companies should be in delivery of big government contracts for the things we rely on every day. more for me a little later. thank

you very much. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news. i'm tolu adeoye. the instagram star felicite tomlinson — sister of one direction singer louis tomlinson — has died at the age of 18. the aspiring fashion designer, who had over1 million followers on instagram, died at her flat in west london. that was on wednesday. police say an ambulance was called to reports of a female in cardiac arrest. louis tomlinson is said to have cancelled a scheduled appearance at comic relief this evening. the family of a british ex—pat living in crete, who suffered severe injuries after a car crash, say they urgently want to bring him home for specialist care. islington bornjohn buckle seriously damaged his spine in the crash and needs treatment his brother says can't be provided

by the greek hospital. the family is now fundraising. he's now in a stable condition, but he's just maintaining life, but they don't have the specialist facilities on the island to treat serious spine injuries. so he's now in a situation where its stable, but no treatment or improvement in his condition. a world war ii veteran from essex who won a legal battle to leave his care facility has returned home. 98—year—old douglas meyers from southend had been refused permission to return to his bungalow, where he wanted to finish his life. but last month, the high court ruled the "ideal solution" would be for him to return to his home with a support package. thejudge described him as "a remarkable man". there's a good service on the tubes this morning then. but on the trains: southern services are disrupted between east croydon and london bridge and victoria. that's due to electricity supply

problems. turning to the roads: ver slow on the a13, into town from the goresbrook interchange in dagenham. —— very slow. finally in hammersmith: fulham palace road has a lane closed for telecoms work northbound, near the junction with inglethorpe street. now the weather with kate kinsella. good morning. once again, the wind strengthened overnight last night. we have had some rain, you mightjust get a bit of drizzle this morning but it's largely cloudy. another windy day in store and still further outbreaks of rain and some showers likely as well. the wind speeds could strengthen before it hits us outbreaks of rain popping up anyway, could get some brighter spells, further north the temperature still reaching 15 celsius. 0vernight tonight, largely cloudy, ahead of some heavier, more persistent rain,

which will push the second part of the night. wet and windy by saturday morning, the temperature between eight and 10 celsius so reasonably mild. the met office has issued a yellow weather warning to saturday, for high winds once again. that is a 45 to 55 miles an hour likely, fairly disrupted, we will get some wet weather mixed in there as well. saturday quite unsettled, better, drier day on sunday but it is going to feel a bit cooler, then finally into next week, things start to settle down. i'm back with the latest from bbc london in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. bye for now. good morning. welcome to breakfast, with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. 0ur headlines today: 40 people have been killed in gun attacks at two mosques in christchurch, new zealand. i could hear screaming and crying, and i saw some people, you know, drop dead.

four suspects are in custody but police say there may be more. a few minutes ago, the prime minister said it was a planned attack. it is clear now that this can only be described as a terrorist attack. parliament has voted to delay brexit. theresa may will now ask the eu for an extension beyond 29 march. tougher rules for the firms that provide our energy. the consumer watchdog says too many firms are providing poor customer service. i'll ask the regulator what it is doing to change how firms operate. good morning from cheltenham, on gold cup day, and will there be another fairytale like there was yesterday, as bryony frost became the first female jockey to win a top—class grade one race here?

wendy at cheltenham and right across the country today and tomorrow. tomorrow some of you could see some significant snow —— windy. it's friday 15 march. our top story: the new zealand prime minister has confirmed in the last hour that 40 people have been killed following an attack at two mosques in the city of christchurch. an armed man in military uniform opened fire on about 300 people praying at the al noor mosque on friday afternoon, whilst another mosque a short distance away was also attacked. three men and one woman are in custody. new zealand's prime minister, jacinda ardern said it was being treated as a terrorist attack. simonjones reports. unprecedented is how police are describing this attack. many dead as two mosques are targeted during friday prayers. people ran for their

lives, but several did not make it. i was hearing shooting after shooting after shooting. it went on about six minutes or more. and i could hear screaming and crying. people outside were also caught up in the chaos. i stopped the car in shock, and i leaned either way. i'm not sure, left, i think, shock, and i leaned either way. i'm not sure, left, ithink, across shock, and i leaned either way. i'm not sure, left, i think, across the seeds to try to avoid getting shot. and apparently a bullet went sailing over my carand and apparently a bullet went sailing over my car and struck the one on the back. it is believed the gunman filmed his attack. explosives were found attached to vehicles. filmed his attack. explosives were found attached to vehiclesm filmed his attack. explosives were found attached to vehicles. it is with extreme sadness that i tell you that as at 7pm tonight, we believe that as at 7pm tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. all mosques in the country have been told to close their doors. schools

we re told to close their doors. schools were put into lockdown. several people have been arrested. lets not presume that the danger is gone. so we wa nt presume that the danger is gone. so we want to make sure that we are right across that community, we are as visible and equipped as we need to be to make that happen. the australian prime minister said the gunman is believed to be from his country. i can confirm that the individual who was taken into custody, i have been advised, is an australian—born citizen. and obviously that element of the investigation, australian authorities are involved in, and they will be proceeding with their investigation, which is already being stood up, involving all of the releva nt being stood up, involving all of the relevant agencies. this is a community and a country struggling to comprehend. we can speak now to our correspondent phil mercer from our sydney bureau. 0bviously news coming through every minute, every hour. we havejust had that update from jacinda ardern, the new zealand prime minister, who has said this was a terrorist attack.

yes, and jacinda ardern confirming that, at the moment, 40 people have been killed in these attacks on two mosques in christchurch. it is the main centre on new zealand's south island. 0ne main centre on new zealand's south island. one of the mosques at hagley park, very close to the city another ina park, very close to the city another in a neighbouring suburb. all of this unfolding at around 2pm this afternoon. the police scrambled to apprehend people, three men and one isa apprehend people, three men and one is a woman. the australian prime minister, scott morrison, saying that one of those men detained is an australian citizen. and there is also video circulating apparently showing the attack taking place at one of the mosques. it is truly appalling, truly traumatic for people to watch, but it does give you an indication as to the callused nature, the barbaric, the savage nature, the barbaric, the savage nature of this attack, the gunmen picking off his victims inside one

of the mosques. so safe to say this will be an attack that will reverberate right through new zealand. this is a country largely peaceful, progressive, mostly, in its politics, welcoming to migrants, but this is a country that is now in deep, deep shock given the traumatic events in christchurch in the past few hours. thank you very much, phil mercer. brexit is no longer likely to take place on the planned date of 29 march, after mps gave theresa may their backing to seek an extension. now it is up to other eu leaders to approve it when they meet on thursday. but, before then, mrs may will ask parliament for a third time to approve her brexit plan. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth is in westminster to tell us more. in short yesterday we had a rare

moment of agreement between parliament and the prime minister over a plan, parliament and the prime minister overa plan, and parliament and the prime minister over a plan, and the plan to delay the 29 march brexit. that's right, parliament overall did agree though it is worth noting that lots of tory mps didn't back this idea, including some of the cabinet. so where are we now? when it comes to this delay, two options are most likely. the first is the government says they could be a delay of up to 30 june. that is only if mps pass her withdrawal deal in another meaningful vote next week. if that vote fails, and mps reject her deal again, then she will ask brussels for a longer extension, possibly up to two years. but, remember, any extension will need to be agreed by the 27 other eu member states. without agreement in brussels or westminster, britain will leave two weeks tomorrow without a deal. now, because the prime minister is

still trying to get her brexit deal through parliament, part of the strategy, it seems, is by suggesting that, if a deal isn't passed, there could be a very long delay to this process. it could convince brexiteers to come around and get behind her deal. she lost that deal bya behind her deal. she lost that deal by a lot last time she put it through. she needs to convince at least 75 mps who say they don't like it to change their minds before the beginning of next week. so this is still a very tall order for the prime minister. let's go to the hague now, where later today the dutch prime minister, mark rutte, will be meeting european council president donald tusk. the bbc‘s anna holligan is there. mark rutte has been one of the friends of the uk in this whole

process. how friendly do you think eu's 27 leaders are feeling right now considering the chaos we have been seeing in parliament? you are com pletely been seeing in parliament? you are completely right, the netherlands is considered to be the uk's closest ally and best friend in the eu so it is especially telling that last night the dutch prime minister, mark rutte, who is a self—confessed anglophile, was expressing the most frustration i have actually seen from him, saying look, the uk needs to make up its mind. what does it want? it is up to london to decide. so the cross continental consultation mission starts today, right here, and the dutch prime minister's official residence in the hague, donald tusk, who negotiates on behalf of the eu national governments, will be here to discuss three things, really. so do the members want to give the uk this extension? if so, how long will that be, and what, crucially, will the terms be? what they want to avoid here in the netherlands and right

across the year is any extension of the procrastination and uncertainty that we have seen throughout the last two years, really. i think that is an understatement, actually, and u nfortu nately i is an understatement, actually, and unfortunately i think we are going to be seeing a little bit more of it before we get anything firm. thank you for taking us through that in the hague. retailers have been warned they must take immediate action to help prevent knife crime, after testing found many were selling blades illegally to children. 12% of shops visited between october and january failed to carry out the required age checks, increasing to 50% of online retailers. the home office said it is supporting trading standards to help them to take rogue retailers who sell knives to under—18s through the courts. teachers are warning that many schools have to pick up the pieces for families living in poverty, using school budgets to provide food, shoes and even clean clothes for children. but headteachers gathering for the annual conference of the association of school and college leaders say they do not have enough funding to provide such support. the government says an extra £750 million is being given to schools, and it is working

on improving teachers' wellbeing. back to our top story now, and those shootings in new zealand. it has been confirmed that 40 people have died. the new zealand prime minister, jacinda ardern, confirmed the number dead in the last hour. it is with extreme sadness that i tell you that as at 7pm tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. ten have died at linwood avenue mosque, three of which were outside the mosque itself. a further 30 have been killed at deans avenue mosque. there are also more than 20 seriously injured, who are currently in christchurch a&e.

it is clear that this can now only be described as a terrorist attack. from what we know, it does appear to have been well planned. two explosive devices attached to suspects' vehicles have now been found, and they have been disarmed. there are currently four individuals who have been apprehended, but three are connected to this attack who are currently in custody. 0ne are connected to this attack who are currently in custody. one of which has publicly stated that they were australian—born. these are people who i would describe as having extremist views that have absolutely no place in new zealand, and in fa ct, no place in new zealand, and in fact, have no place in the world. the latest update confirming that 40 people have been killed. martin van beynen is

a reporter for the stuff news website in new zealand and has been at the scene. i understand you were at one of the locations this morning for some period of time. what stories have you heard from those who were involved? a lot of stories about people running in terror and seeing bodies, seeing people covered in blood. a lot of the people that i spoke to were still in their socks, because they were preparing for the friday afternoon prayer, and so yes, a lot of stories just recounting the horror of experiencing the shootings. martin, what did they tell you about the people who attacked the mosques?

well, i was only at the main central city mosque, which isjust by well, i was only at the main central city mosque, which is just by a beautiful park, not far from central city, and, so the people that, that had survived the shooting told me more about, told me about the gunmen coming in, shots being fired, then a pause and then more shots being fired. and then, just this mad dash to try and escape. —— gunman. so some people did not have a chance, they were just shot as they cowered in various corners of the mosque. another others just tried to get up whichever way they could. some talked about going to windows because the bullets broke many of the windows, so that gave some of them away out on some talked about

helping the winded by trying to put down, staunch the bleeding and that sort of thing. so yes, it is, i guess these tables are not uncommon now, particularly from america and parts of europe, but they are very strange for us in christchurch. —— wounded. martin, did you get a sense of those he spoke to about how long, how sustained the attack was, what period of time it lasted? well, several, several of them told me that the attack at the main mosque, where 30 people were killed or at least 30 people were killed, said that the attack seemed to last for ten to 15 minutes. now, i think that could be misleading because people in these situations sometimes think these things take longer than they do, but since the government had several weapons and was firing for a long time and then went back to

finish people off, so to speak, they could well be right, it may well have gone on for that amount of time. martin, just one last thought for us. i know initially in the immediate aftermath there, there was a lot done effectively in many places. what is the situation as we speak now? initially, the schools we re speak now? initially, the schools were in lockdown and parts of the city were locked down, but that has all been, that has been lifted and all been, that has been lifted and all the children have gone home from school, but the city is as quiet as a grave. it was quite eerie walking back from the comet from the shooting scene through the park and then to the main parts of the city, which would normally be very busy on a friday night, but they were just deserted, so it was a bit like a ghost town to me. —— from the, from

the shooting scene. another disturbing story, when it first emerged that there was a real problem, it seemed that there was some live images live streams initially, which i understand now been taken down from social media. yes, look, iam not100% sure been taken down from social media. yes, look, i am not 100% sure about that but i have seen that lifestream and it is, it is very disturbing. someone described as a videogame, so yes, that has apparently been taken down and there have been lots of warnings to families to make sure that parents are careful about what their children are watching because who knows where it will surface? but no, there is some very disturbing footage on that lifestream material. martin, we thank you for your time this morning, much appreciated. that is martin van beynen reporting for

us in christchurch and just to update you, in the last 45 minutes, we have heard from the new zealand prime minister confirming that 40 people have been killed in two locations in the attacks in the city of christchurch. we will keep you up—to—date throughout the morning, of course. here is matt with a look at this morning's weather. it has been so windy of late, i think many people are just hoping for a little bit of calm perhaps to come through now, any hope? maybe next week. next week is looking much quieter, for the time being though, no. good morning. not similarto what we saw yesterday, if you are about to head out the door, winds touching gale force in many parts of the morning rush hour. winds in north—east scotland could top 60 miles an hour in one or two spots. not a desperately chilly start of the day though, a bit cold of course on the scottish hills where you have got some snow falling at the moment but rain showers across scotland, northern ireland and northern england. patchy rain and was almost

persistent on the hills, as it will be to the south—west of wales all day long and then later into the moors in the south—west. it is probably cloudy earlier today, you should all see a bit of sunshine, show is coming and going on that brisk to gale force wind and still the showers come with a wintry feel to them across the northern hills of scotland. 14, 15 celsius maybe if you see some sunshine towards the south—east corner later in the day. cloud across the south will increase again tonight, rain starts to turn persistent and then slide northwards, reaching the borders of scotland, northern ireland by dawn, turning to snow over higher ground and that is because a big temperature controls to take us into tomorrow morning. mild in the south, nine to 10 degrees, to be close to freezing the north and as the next weather system pushes its way into start the weekend, that could cause some issues with snow across northern ireland, northern england, and also parts of northern scotland.

central and southern scotland could see as much as ten centimetres of snow over higher ground, england and wales of a windy day on the cards and a prolonged, strong winds throughout the day. stronger than today, widely more than 40, 50 miles an hourat times, today, widely more than 40, 50 miles an hour at times, meaning to the west year. the wind is a little bit lighter into scotland, but a blustery and cold day here, temperatures fortified degrees celsius at best, cold of course we had that snow falling and of course, 12 to 13 degrees further south, tempered by the strength of the bees. things to improve a little bit as far as bees. things to improve a little bit as faras rain bees. things to improve a little bit as far as rain and snow is concerned ta kes as far as rain and snow is concerned takes into sunday in a pretty windy, wet night across many areas but as our area of low pressure pulls away, we still have some areas of low pressure hitting northern scotland. sunshine for sunday, a few showers here and there, they will be a

mixture of rain, hail, sleet and snow, but by and large a better day and as! snow, but by and large a better day and as i have said, things will turn milder and certainly because the south, good deal drier too. with all that wind, you would think it would disrupt your sleep, wouldn't you? did you do the test that we were all assigned as homework yesterday about how well we sleep? i did indeed, yet. we will explain about this in a moment. i know that ben got 3.8 out of ten, mike got 1.3 out of ten. what did you get? i got 2.5, graded very poor stoplights. so they graded your quality of sleep is very poor. very poor, i am blaming 21 years of shift work. —— very poor.|j very poor, i am blaming 21 years of shift work. -- very poor. i tell you what, it shows. exactly. you're coming back to his childhood, you can see his face. i can tell you what, that is not our relationship at all, i can guarantee that. thank you very much for that. insomnia affects around a third of people in the uk.

that's according to the health advice organisation, nice. but if you're suffering, can you do anything to help yourself? it is frustrating. so, did you do the test" i did not do the test, i fell asleep and then ijust did something else. joining us now is the author and gp, dr rangan chatterjee, and recovering insomniac, christopher egginton. good morning to you both. morning. i'm going to start with you because sometimes people say i had a really bad night's sleep, i have got insomnia. that is so far from the truth of real insomnia, isn't it? that is right. i remember going through initial sleep problems, bus sleep, shiftwork started with me, could not adjust to a normal day off, waking up all the time and i felt like it was socially unacceptable felt like it was socially u na cce pta ble to felt like it was socially unacceptable to talk about i have had poor sleep, it was almost like i've got a cold. like you whinging too much or something? yeah, having a bit ofa too much or something? yeah, having a bit of a winds and your kind of bottled it up a bit. but it has emotional effects too, doesn't it?

alone without a doubt, i think to begin with with me it was about the worry, you get into a vicious cycle of worry with it. if you do not sleep, have a poor day, you are lying in bed and i think the funny thing about insomnia is the more you try to sleep, the harder you try, the more you will that seek to come, the more you will that seek to come, the further away goes. the way you describe it, that is very vivid description. at its worst, what sort of condition are you left in? it becomes a huge worry, anxiety that lives with you, so you have got the night and lives with you, so you have got the nightand in lives with you, so you have got the night and in the you had this kind of commentary that runs with you through the day, we all have this voice, don't we? at night, it is amplified, it is worries and catastrophic ways of thinking and thenit catastrophic ways of thinking and then it leaks catastrophic ways of thinking and then it lea ks into catastrophic ways of thinking and then it leaks into the days and worry in the day and starting to be tied at work, can't focus, then

worry about the nighttime and then you're back in bed again, it is that circle. i am sure you probably talk about this quite a bit, although it is interesting you are saying about maybe people not wanting to say it. it is really debilitating, isn't it? why do i think you are right, charlie, it is something that probably most days you have to talk to people about. it is something thatis to people about. it is something that is endemic now. —— i think you are right. as a society, we are sleeping less then we used to. that is got implications for our ability to make relationships with people around us, it affects every kind of disease we've got, including things i diabetes and alzheimer's, so it is something i think we have to take seriously. i think you have a great story in terms of how you have turned it all about that i think thatis turned it all about that i think that is really, is encouraging for people. what did you do? well, i was really lucky, two years ago became a really lucky, two years ago became a real problem and i was looking to be referred to this course that was trailing at the time. —— lucky to be. idid trailing at the time. —— lucky to be. i did not want to try medication, had chided in the past,

tried herbal remedies and sleeping tablets. the course changes your perception to sleep, gives you the practical tips, things like, things that we know about but we may not stick to, things like switch your phone off, do not have a coffee in the evening. blackout curtains, et cetera, light, noise pollution. this was the test that we will all asked to do, which the nhs is rolling out. is that correct yes, i think it is in london in the south—east at the moment, it is not available everywhere, but the vast majority of people who are struggling with their sleep, there are things that we can all do ina sleep, there are things that we can all do in a lifestyle that really does make a difference. —— is that correct? very few people in my experience need help through primary therapy. we are doing things in a

life style therapy. we are doing things in a lifestyle that we do not realise is actually affecting our ability to sleep. so can everyone do this test at the moment, the online test? sleep. so can everyone do this test at the moment, the online test7m that the one that you are doing, i think you can go on the cpo website and have a look at some resources. but it is kind of worth keeping on top of whether you are getting enough sleep, isn't it? yeah, we know about the effects of caffeine that we do not necessarily know that a large cup of coffee at midday, a large coffee, quarter of that is still going to be in your bloodstream at midnight. so many people think they are ok with that 4pm cup of coffee, but they are not. there are so many other tips like that the people can use. did you sleep well last night? very well. well, getting up this time of day and being here, that might prompt worry. i am pleased to see it. thank you. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are.

good morning from bbc london news, i'm tolu adeoye. the instagram star felicite tomlinson, sister of one direction singer louis tomlinson, has died at the age of 18. the aspiring fashion designer, who had over1 million followers on instagram, died at herflat in west london on wednesday. police say an ambulance was called to reports of a female in cardiac arrest. louis tomlinson is said to have cancelled a scheduled appearance at comic relief this evening. the family of a british ex—pat living in crete, who suffered severe injuries after a car crash, say they urgently want to bring him home for specialist care. islington bornjohn buckle seriously damaged his spine in the accident and needs treatment his brother says can't be provided by the hospital. the family is now fundraising. he's now in a stable condition, but he's just maintaining life, but they don't have the specialist facilities on the island to treat

serious spine injuries. so he's now in a situation where its stable, but no treatment will improve his condition. a world war ii veteran from essex who won a legal battle to leave his care facility has returned home. 98—year—old douglas meyers from southend had been refused permission to return to his bungalow, where he wanted to finish his life. but last month, the high court ruled the "ideal solution" would be for him to return home with a support package. thejudge described him as "a remarkable man". let's take a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tubes this morning. but on the trains: southern services are disrupted between east croydon and london bridge, and victoria. that's due to electricity supply problems. turning to the roads. traffic is slow on the marylebone flyover into town, towards baker street.

finally in walthamstow: the a503 forest road has gas mains work with temporary traffic lights near thejunction with howard road. 0nto the weather with kate kinsella. good morning. well, once again, the wind strengthened overnight last night. we've had some rain, you mightjust get a bit of drizzle this morning but it's largely cloudy. another windy day in store, with further outbreaks of rain, some showers likely as well. now, the wind speeds or the gusts here could strengthen, before it eases a little this afternoon, outbreaks of rain popping up anyway, could get some brighter spells, further north, the temperature still reaching 15 celsius. 0vernight tonight, largely cloudy, ahead of some heavier, more persistent rain, which will push through the second part of the night. wet and windy by saturday morning, the temperature between eight and 10 celsius, so reasonably mild. now, the met office has issued a yellow weather warning for saturday, for high winds once again.

gusts of wind 45 to 55 miles an hour likely, fairly disrupted, we will get some wet weather mixed in there as well. saturday quite unsettled, better, drier day on sunday but it's going to feel a bit cooler, then finally into next week, things start to settle down. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address and over on bbc radio london, as well as on our facebook page. bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. here is a summary of this morning's main stories from bbc news: the new zealand prime minister has confirmed that 40 people have been killed following an attack at two mosques in the city of christchurch. an armed man in military uniform opened fire on about 300 people praying at the al noor mosque on friday afternoon, whilst another mosque a short distance away was also attacked. three men and one woman are in custody.

0ne eyewitness explained how she administered first aid to one of those injured. and the guy i was... compressing, he was trying to ring his wife. and i managed to get it and i answered the phone, and i said to her, your husband's been shot outside the mosque. don't come here, i said, you won't get through, but please go to the hospital and wait for him. the australian prime minister confirmed one of the perpetrators was australian. we stand here and condemn absolutely the attack that occurred today, by an extremist right wing violent terrorist, that has taken the lives, stolen the lives, in a vicious,

murderous attack. and i particularly wa nt to murderous attack. and i particularly want to convey my heartfelt sympathies not only to all of the new zealand people, as i'm sure all australians would join me in doing, but i particularly want to express my sincere prayers and thoughts for those new zealanders, indeed australians of islamic faith today, who have been the subject of this vicious and callous right wing extreme attack. the new zealand prime minister has confirmed that at least 20 people have been seriously injured and were taken to christchurch accident and emergency. it is with extreme sadness that i tell you that, as at 7:00pm tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. ten have died at linwood avenue mosque, three of which were outside the mosque itself.

a further 30 have been killed at deans avenue mosque. there are also more than 20 seriously injured, who are currently in christchurch a&e. it is clear that this can now only be described as a terrorist attack. from what we know, it does appear to have been well planned. two explosive devices attached to suspects' vehicles have now been found, and they have been disarmed. there are currently four individuals who have been apprehended, but three are connected to this attack who are currently in custody, one of which has publicly stated that they were australian—born. these are people who i would describe as having extremist views that have absolutely no place in new zealand, and in fact, have no

place in the world. that is the latest information from the new zealand prime minister. in around 20 minutes' time, we are told at 8am ourtime around 20 minutes' time, we are told at 8am our time in new zealand, there will be a further press conference from the police in new zealand. we will bring you details of that as it happens. to give you an idea of the timeline it is 9pm in new zealand now. brexit is no longer likely to take place on the planned date of 29 march, after mps gave theresa may their backing to seek an extension. now it is up to other eu leaders to approve it when they meet on thursday, but before then, mrs may will ask parliament for a third time to approve her brexit plan. that vote is likely to take place on tuesday.

teachers are warning that many schools have to pick up the pieces forfamilies living in poverty, using school budgets to provide food, shoes and even clean clothes for children. but headteachers gathering for the annual conference of the association of school and college leaders say they do not have enough funding to provide such support. the government says an extra £750 million is being given to schools, and it is working on improving teachers' wellbeing. we are watching the weather closely after a ll we are watching the weather closely after all of the storms and looking ahead to the weekend. it is gold cup day at the cheltenham festival, and mike is live there for us this morning. perfect timing. good morning, the horses going out for their run along the gallops. around this time you start getting streams of racehorses

walking the course, per the guidelines given out by the british racing authority to improve horse welfare. and what an emotional day it was, with the fairytale story of bryo ny frost. it was a tense night in north london, where arsenal overturned a two—goal defecit to qualify the quarter—finals of the europa league. they trailed 3—1 from the first leg against the french side rennes, but two goals from striker pierre—emerick aubameyang and one from ainsley maitland—niles saw them through 4—3 on aggregate. after his second goal, aubameyang celebrated by wearing a mask from the film black panther, which he collected from behind the goal. that picture dominates many of the back pages of this morning's papers. no such drama for chelsea. they thrashed dynamo kyiv 5—0, giving them an 8—0 aggregate victory.

0livier giroud was the star for them, as he scored a hat—trick to see them through to the last eight. there are now six english teams in the quarter—finals of the two european competitions. the draw takes place later this morning. one other line of football news for you and paul scholes has quit as the manager of 0ldham afterjust 31 days in charge. the former manchester united midfielder says he left because he wasn't able to work in the way that he wanted at the league two side. the new formula one season is underway, and world champion lewis hamilton appears to have picked up where he left off from the last campaign. he has set the fastest time in the first two practice sessions ahead of sunday's australian grand prix. likely title rival sebastian vettel was second—quickest in p1, but could only manage the fifth—fastest time in the second practice.

action gets underway at the special olympics in abu dhabi today. the international games is for competitiors with intellectual disability, and involves over 200 nations from across the world. the opening ceremony was held last night, and it is the first time that the competition has been held in the middle east and north africa region. so here we are at cheltenham on gold cup day, one of the biggest days on the racing calendar, and if we get another day like yesterday, we are in for a very special day indeed. ian renton is the boss here at cheltenham, and nick rust is in charge at the british horse racing authority. good morning, a chance. first of all, bryony frost's went on frodon, the first female jockey to win a top—class grade one race. what does

it mean in terms of the history of this meeting? well, we probably see it as one of the most exciting days we have ever had at the festival and it was a wonderful day for all of us. we had an hour of dreams. bryony is one of the greatest ambassadors for the sport. she is not only a brilliant jockey, she presents for the sport. she is not only a brilliantjockey, she presents her horses so well at fences, but she is such a darling for the crowd as well. everyone loves her, she is a great jockey, and to well. everyone loves her, she is a greatjockey, and to see the reception she received here was just one of those fantastic moments to remember. and an inspiration for jockeys everywhere. we will be speaking to bryony on breakfast in an hour's time. the other fantastic story within the same hour, the two came at once. andrew, the owner of paisley park, who has been blind since birth. everyone can take part

in ownership, from a little investment to a big investment, and going back to bryony and seeing how every heartbeat with her horse, and the fantastic win, they ride equally, women and men, and in what other sport do we have such equality? and last year there was this six—year peak in the number of horse fatalities, and you made the 17 guidelines, and how do you think those have worked this week?‘ 17 guidelines, and how do you think those have worked this week? a lot has been about preparation, and great credit must go to ian and his tea m great credit must go to ian and his team for the work they have done to adapt and get ready for it. a huge credit to the trainers for the preparation they have made. we have asked them to go through veterinary records, veterinary checks, every

horse has been trotted up and examine before it is allowed to leave and go to the parade ring. we hope that that will pay off not only in the short term but in the longer term as well. so far there hasjust been the one fatality on the first day, hopefully no more today. 0bviously day, hopefully no more today. obviously we don't want to see any at all, and you have made your own changes, especially to one of the fences. we have made changes, we work with instructors and the bha on a regular basis and do everything we can to improve equine welfare. 0ne was a recommendation of the jockeys, they felt if we moved the second last fence on the old course just a couple of strides further it would allow them to present their horses a little bit better at that fence. in these tweaks we do on a regular basis. we look forward to another great day's racing today. talking of which, who should we look out for on this famous day? i am looking at almost two ends of the spectrum. from ireland, a small trainer in ireland, and at the other end with willie mullins, the giant of the training ranks, still to win a gold

cup. but it could stay in england. and could this be the final time willie mullins does it?|j and could this be the final time willie mullins does it? i think presenting person has a good record here. nick has a great hat but he didn't wear it because of the wind. it blows the showers away. sally can tell us exactly what it will do for the big race later run. let's get all the weather with matt. it stays windy across the uk, at least in cheltenham you get a shelter from those hills, least in cheltenham you get a shelterfrom those hills, so not least in cheltenham you get a shelter from those hills, so not too much on the way of rain. rain

elsewhere, a mixture of sunshine and showers. if you are about to head out the door, the wind is keen this morning, especially if you are heading out on a bike. we could see a touch of gale force in many areas. south—east england could hit 50 or 60 mph at times through this morning. it is not cold out there, 11 degrees at cheltenham and 12 degrees across other parts of southern england. a little bit cooler across scotland, we have seen showers pushing through the day so far, those turning to snow over higher ground. they will continue to do so. a mixture of sunshine and showers in the northern half of the country aided by the blustery wind. dryers for longer through eastern scotla nd dryers for longer through eastern scotland and eastern counties of england. southern counties of england. southern counties of england and south wales will see cloud dominate, some had rain and drizzle. most persistent on the hills and south wales. a little bit of brightness may be breaking through this afternoon in cheltenham. a high hear of 11 or 12. 14 of 15 in the south—east. single figures in scotland and northern ireland. a chilly breeze here. the breezy a little bit through the night across the northern half of the country but in the south picks up the country but in the south picks up again. 0utbreaks the country but in the south picks up again. outbreaks of rain spreading across england and wales into the borders of scotland and

northern ireland later and it will turn to snow over the hills as we see temperatures in northern areas a com plete see temperatures in northern areas a complete contrast to the south. very close to freezing, where is nine or ten in southernmost counties. and thatis ten in southernmost counties. and that is crucial, because as this next weather system moves in, the northern flank of it is into the cold air. central and southern scotland, northern ireland and northern england, over the hills a covering of snow and it is across parts of central and southern scotla nd parts of central and southern scotland we could see five or ten centimetres of snow, even a covering to lower levels at times. the far north of scotland stays dry, england and wales a very blustery day. the wind is probably stronger than today, widely and for a length of time as well, 40 or 50 mph gusts, very easily. northern england and wales wettest of all. some of that rain heavy and persistent and could cause some minor flooding. rain heavy and persistent and could cause some minorflooding. further south and east you may say largely dry, a few spots of rain in the wind. 12 or13 dry, a few spots of rain in the wind. 12 or 13 here, dry, a few spots of rain in the wind. 12 or13 here, a dry, a few spots of rain in the wind. 12 or 13 here, a cold day in scotla nd wind. 12 or 13 here, a cold day in scotland and northern ireland, even with the brightness letter, so barely getting above freezing all day long. as we go through saturday night into sunday, a stormy low pressure system pushes out into the north sea. still got some strong winds across the board, coming this time from the north and north—west on sunday. so it will be a chilly feel wherever you are. temperatures will have dropped on the south. but after a fairly cloudy day to day for some and tomorrow, lots more sunshine around on sunday. the showers will push through quite

smartly in the breeze, a mixture of rain, hail, sleetand smartly in the breeze, a mixture of rain, hail, sleet and snow as well. as we go into next week, things looking much drier and certainly nowhere near as windy. we've heard it lots on this programme — to save money on our energy bills we are told to switch. are we getting better at switching? are we getting better at switching? a little bit, not as good as we should be because we often talk about it on this programme, if you do not like you what you are paying, moved to another firm and that is how these big businesses learned that there is a caveat in all this because sometimes people are moving in those companies are not up to scratch when it comes to service and price and all that sort of thing. good morning. yes, some of those firms might offer cheaper prices, but you might end up paying through poor customer service. citizens advice has been looking atjust how good these smaller firms actually are and rating them from one to five for service. top of the list is a supplier called so energy. it scored 4.5 out of five. it's been the best rated in this

survey for more than a year. bottom of the list, with just 1.3 out of 5, is 0utfox the market. they were criticised for billing errors and how difficult it was to contact them. the worst performing of the so—called big six, the uk's biggest energy suppliers, was npower. it came in 18th place in this survey. so today, there are calls for the regulator, 0fgem, to tighten the rules on who can get a licence to supply energy. mary starks is executive director at 0fgem. mary, good morning to you. it is a bit of a conundrum this, isn't it? we talk about it on this programme a lot. if you do not like the service at one of the big firms your witch, switch, but what this report tells us is that some of the firms we may switch to a just not up to the job. yeah, ithink switch to a just not up to the job. yeah, i think the report says a

couple of things and it says that some of the smaller firms he may switch to have a much up to the job, so there are top performers, as well as those at the bottom of the league table. we are strengthening our licensing procedures to make sure that these new entrants to the market get greater scrutiny in future. as the regulator, why are you not looking at this? it has taken citizens advice to do this study, to make them out of five and there are pretty obviously some problems with some of them. isn't that yourjob? problems with some of them. isn't that your job? 0h problems with some of them. isn't that yourjob? oh no, actually, citizens advice to a really good job of assessing customer service in the round and offering customers advice. 0urjob is to ensure that companies are living up to their commitments and the regulatory framework around the market provides the right discipline. what does this tell us and how damaging is it to that idea of encouraging people to switch because people think that it is quite difficult, it is not very transparent, there's a lot of paperwork often involved in terms of moving your energy supplier. why would you move it to affirm that either is not a good or as we have

seen over the past few months, goes bust? so firstly, it can be quite low hassle to switch. there are many services that can help you do that. secondly, there are some really good firms can switch between advice will help you find which ones those are but deadly, if you do switch to a firm that does not perform well, you can be sure that 0fgem's safety net will protect you in the event that that firm gets into some difficulties. let me give you an example. i was with a smaller firm, i practise what i preach, i switched. i was then automatically put on a lot of tariff, they did not put on a lot of tariff, they did not put me on the lowest tariff, i then

had to bring up and put myself on another tower. then it turns out there's another cheaper one, it is too easily difficult to do this. you say it is easy but it is not. so we are taking a number of steps to make this easier. how does that work, how do you make it easier? hello so we are working to make the switching process more reliable and faster, we are working to ensure that all of the new companies coming onto the market have been properly scrutinised and vetted on the way in and we are constantly working to make sure that our safety net procedures are up—to—date and protect customers in the event of problems. how do you scrutinise them though because it is a difficultjob for you guys despite these firms early on? what other warning signs that these people might not be up to, they may promise the earth and cheaper prices but how do you spot that they are not up to it? there area that they are not up to it? there are a couple of things we're doing, first of all we look at when you companies come onto the market, we will give their customer service plans are good look over. we will also check if they are financially prepared for the ups and downs in the market, but not all the problems that we have seen in this market could have been spotted at entry, so sometimes firms do quite well when they are small and then they have problems going. so also, we will be monitoring firms constantly as they evolve in the market and making sure

that at all stages, they are equipped to treat their customers well. 0k, mary, it is good to talk to you, thank you so much. so the advice still stands, despite what we just explain this morning. if you do not like it, switch, but make use of those tables that rank them in order of customer service but also price because the cheapest might not necessarily be the best one as far as service is concerned, more for me after eighta.m.. as service is concerned, more for me after eight a.m.. see you then. thank you so much. back to cheltenham now, where it's gold cup day, but the horses aren'tjust to be found on the race course. i believe you're going to tell us about how horses have been used to help people with illnesses. yes, good morning again. of course, a lot of the focus on cheltenham focuses on this four day festival and the famous day that is gold cup day, this friday, but so much more does go on in this vast course with the arena and the hill in the distance there, imagine things we do not

often see. my down there in the cornerfor often see. my down there in the corner for instance, there are some sta bles ru n corner for instance, there are some stables run by the cotswold writing for the disabled association, and one of the things that they do is use horses to help people dementia. 0ne use horses to help people dementia. one day last week, i went along to see for myself over bit of 10k, which i have to say help to bit as well that was really the power of the horses that is making a difference to these people. just over the fence from cheltenham's famous course something special is happening. a moment of love, it is only the second time it has happened with the contact has helped stimulate a memory. has happened with the contact has helped stimulate a memorylj has happened with the contact has helped stimulate a memory. i have a lwa ys helped stimulate a memory. i have always loved horses. my brother was always loved horses. my brother was a jockey, so i have met a lot of horses. —— steeplechase jockey. a jockey, so i have met a lot of horses. —— steeplechasejockey. i think i find horses. —— steeplechasejockey. i thinkifind a horses. —— steeplechasejockey. i think i find a lot of gentleness in them, but i do not know quite why because they are great, great big

features, aren't they? it also helped her recall the time she had visited the grand canyon on a mule for his 70th birthday. it seems to have sparked a memory, i'm not quite sure how it more than anything it has been like a light is turned back on again. it is the warmth of an animal, an animal the trust you, the present fades away and it takes her back to warm memories. she is not the only one to feel more connected. hundreds of people have attended afternoon tea and cake sessions put on by the lighting for the disabled association people dementia. it was john and joan's first time out together since the former fitness instructor became a resident at whittington house nursing home. enter into the gold cup. well, i think you would win the affection

race, wouldn't he? absolutely, yeah. he's come to thank you for that tip, look. he cannot step back into my life anymore now, i can step into his but i've also got mine, so this gives something joint. the finding, that the impact of these sessions, whether the ten cakes are more important with the contact of horses is having, and they are now holding them almost daily at cheltenham racecourse. we did not know what was going to do, we really didn't, and i think really in a like worcestershire, so many people have had worcestershire, so many people have ha d co nta ct worcestershire, so many people have had contact with horses wanted contact with horses or been racing at cheltenham and just just contact with horses or been racing at cheltenham and justjust opens up that connection. sony has never been so well groomed, as new friends at these tea sessions will back the yea rs. these tea sessions will back the years. lovely scenes. it was a

really special day to witness that really, just goes to show you do not have to get on a horse, even wider horse, sit on a horse to get the power and their affection and they really did seem to sense people's emotions, even facial expressions. —— sonny. i should make it clear that sonny is not really wanting in today's gold cup and i love the fact that sonny seem to appreciate what john was saying, tipping him as a gold cup horse. anyway, i'm delighted to say another of the horses is going past, good morning. we'll be speaking to bryony frost about that fantastic day after 8:30 a.m.. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm tolu adeoye. the instagram star felicite tomlinson, sister of one direction singer louis tomlinson, has died at the age of 18. the aspiring fashion designer, who had over1 million followers on instagram, died at herflat in west london on wednesday. police say an ambulance was called to reports of a female in cardiac arrest. louis tomlinson is said to have cancelled a scheduled appearance

at comic relief this evening. the siblings lost their mother to leukaemia in 2016. the family of a british ex—pat living in crete, who suffered severe injuries after a car crash, say they urgently want to bring him home for specialist care. islington bornjohn buckle seriously damaged his spine in the accident and needs treatment his brother says can't be provided by the hospital. the family is now fundraising. he's now in a stable condition, but he's just maintaining life, but they don't have the specialist facilities on the island to treat serious spine injuries. so he's now in a situation where its stable, but no treatment will improve his condition. a world war ii veteran from essex who won a legal battle to leave his care facility has returned home. 98—year—old douglas meyers from southend had been refused permission to return to his bungalow, where he wanted to finish his life.

but last month, the high court ruled the "ideal solution" would be for him to return home with a support package. thejudge described him as "a remarkable man." let's take a look at the travel situation now then. there's a good service on the tubes this morning. but on the trains: southern services are disrupted between east croydon and london bridge and victoria. that's due to electricity supply problems. turning to the roads. finally in kennington, camberewll road is partially blocked. now the weather with kate kinsella. good morning. well, once again, the wind strengthened overnight last night. we've had some rain, you mightjust get a bit of drizzle this morning but it's largely cloudy. another windy day in store, with further outbreaks of rain,

some showers likely as well. now, the wind speeds or the gusts here could strengthen, before it eases a little this afternoon, outbreaks of rain popping up anyway, could get some brighter spells, further north, but temperatures still reaching 15 celsius. 0vernight tonight, largely cloudy, ahead of some heavier, more persistent rain, which will push through the second part of the night. so wet and windy by saturday morning, minimum temperature between eight and 10 celsius, so reasonably mild. now, the met office has issued a yellow weather warning for saturday, for high winds once again. gusts of 45 to 55 miles an hour likely, fairly disrupted, we'll get some wet weather mixed in there as well. so saturday quite unsettled, a better, drier day for sunday, but it's going to feel a bit cooler, then finally into next week, things start to settle down. i'm back with the latest from bbc london in half an hour. plenty more on our website. bye for now.

this is bbc world news. i'm david eades. our main story today... it is with extreme sadness that i tell you that as at 7pm tonight, we believe that 40 people have lost their lives in this act of extreme violence. mass shootings at two mosques in the new zealand city of christchurch. more than 20 people have been seriously wounded. i could hear screaming and crying and i saw some people drop dead worshippers were gunned down during friday prayers. three suspects are in custody. police have defused a number of explosive devices near the mosques. we'll have the latest from christchurch on what the prime