today at five, the funeral of the murdered journalist lyra mckee takes place in belfast. hundreds gathered to celebrate the life of the 29—year—old — one friend told mourners lyra had revealed plans to propose to her partnerjust hours before she died. theresa may — along with political leaders from northern ireland and the irish republic — heard calls for a lasting legacy from the journalist's death. i dare to hope that lyra's murder on holy thursday evening can be the doorway to a new beginning and i detect a deep desire for this. applause the priest was given a standing ovation when he asked why it had taken the death of a 29—year—old woman to bring political parties

together. applause we'll have the latest from belfast... and talking to the leader of sinn fein, mary lou mcdonald, who was at the funeral. the other main stories on bbc news at 5: the death toll rises again in sri lanka — 359 people died in the easter sunday attacks — one of the bombers — who studied in the uk — has been named. huawei — the chinese telecoms giant — welcomes reports that the government will let it help build britain's 56 data network. nicola sturgeon says she wants to hold a second referendum on scottish independence by 2021 if the uk leaves the eu. and a crucial night in the premier league, can united derail city's title bid in tonight's much awaited manchester derby?

the funeral of the journalist lyra mckee — who was shot dead during rioting in londonderry last thursday — has taken place in belfast. the prime minister theresa may, the labour leaderjeremy corbyn, ireland's president and prime minister and the leaders of northern ireland's political parties all attended the service. a priest was given a standing ovation when he asked northern ireland's politicians "why in god's name" it had taken the death of a 29—year—old woman ‘with her whole life ahead of her‘ to bring them all together. father martin magill said he hoped lyra's death — at the hands of the dissident republican group, the new ira — could be ‘the doorway to a new beginning.‘ this report is from sarah walton.

her death has touched people around the world. today crowds in her home country came to say goodbye to lyra mckee. as a journalist lyra reported on the sometimes fractured society of northern ireland. in death she brought together leaders from across the political divide. the british prime minister, theresa mayjoining irish taoiseach leo varadkar and the irish president, michael d higgins to pay their respects. the lord gave and the lord has taken away. and that unity was reflected throughout the service for lyra who came from a catholic background. her funeral today held in belfast‘s protestant cathedral. lyra was a person who broke down barriers and reached across boundaries. this was her hallmark in life and this is her legacy in death. #and oh, my dreams, it's

never quite as it seems. it was a service marked with music by northern irish artists and with too many to mourn inside the cathedral events were broadcast to those outside. #but now i'm feeling it even more because it came from you. but at the centre of this very public funeral there was a very personal grief with memories of a daughter, sister and friend who was about to propose to her partner sara. i was fortunate to spend time with lyra on thursday, her last day. as her uncle stevie i gave her her cadburys easter egg. she showed me pictures of the ring that she brought for sara and told me of the fabulous plans she had for proposing in new york in may. and we should give credit to lyra's mother, our mother, for ensuring that lyra became the kindest, the gentlest, the most loving person

that the world will never forget. let's face it, none of us will ever be the same again. and as the leaders of northern ireland's collapsed power—sharing agreement shared a pew there was a clear message from those leading the service. since thursday night we have seen the coming together of so many people in various places and the unifying of the community against violence. i commend our political leaders for standing together in creggan on good friday. i am, however, left with a question. why in god's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole

life in front of her... applause the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her to get to this point. lyra mckee‘s death has been called the very worst of northern ireland's

past taking away the best of its future. today those that loved her asked for her loss to bring real change. sarah walton, bbc news. sara girvin is at st anne's cathedral in belfast for us. a remarkable young woman and a remarkable funeral service for her today. yes, a day of much emotion here in belfast. hundreds of mourners packed the cathedral behind me and hundreds more came out onto the streets too. it really showed the streets too. it really showed the depth of feeling, disgust and anger at this murder of a 29—year—old journalist who was dead by dissident republicans during rioting in derry last week. amongst that sadness and grief, touches of humour during the service. many friends more harry potter t—shirts,

scarves and badges in tribute to lyra mckee who was an avid fan of the series. outside the cathedral we re the series. outside the cathedral were hundreds of people were gathered, a sense of frustration but also one of hope. politicians here in northern ireland have not had much to agree on since the power—sharing executive collapsed in january 2017 but they came here today, stood together in united in condemnation of that merger. during the services we heard calls from the clergy for politicians to put the differences aside, to come back together and come back to stormont. coal is echoed by the police outside the funeral also. there is a feeling not to let this motor be in vain, not to let this motor be in vain, not to let lyra mckee to have lost her life in vain. calls to use this opportunity as any state for northern ireland. the police

investigation into the murder and three people have been arrested so far, two men and women in her 50s. all been released unconditionally. police believe the key to solving this mode lies within the community in creggan and derry and they have appealed to members of that community to come forward. joining me now from belfast is the leader of sinn fein, mary lou mcdonald, who was at the funeral. we saw pictures of you in the congregation, thank you for being with us. that question from the priest, father martin magill, why in god's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with a whole life in front of her to get the point where political leaders can join together. is a good question, isn't it? absolutely, i think you hit the nail on the head and said in

very clear, concise, uncompromising terms the message i have heard amplified right across ireland in recent days. the call country —— the whole country mourns the loss of lyra and as a whole country studies itself and realises we need to take a stand for progress, there cannot be going any back and the only way for our society in the north of ireland and across ireland is to move forward. the put the challenge, but the question —— the father put the challenge and he was right to do so. the challenge and he was right to do so. it is for politicians to make the necessary progress to land on a nswe i’s the necessary progress to land on a nswers for the necessary progress to land on answers for the the outstanding issues and to get shared power back up issues and to get shared power back up and running. the current situation is not sustainable. there is another question too, to those who were behind the killing of lyra.

to those that say they stand for the irish republic or republican cause, that they are not wanted, they represent nothing, on the misery and they have now gone to war with their own community. the message to them is to desist, to stop, to disband and to allow all of us to construct that type of future, that type of ireland that labour so passionately believed in. the priest also appealed to anyone who has information about the murder give information about the murder give information to the police. would you go along with that? absolutely. i think it has been noted that the level of cooperation has been very strong. people who live in derry and creggan do not support what happened on thursday night. they are brokenhearted and distressed. they

are disgusted and angry, but they are disgusted and angry, but they are also resolute that we believe in our shared and collective future. resolute those of us that our republicans that we have a peaceful democratic way to achieve our goal of irish unity and that an united ireland will only be achieved peacefully and democratically and those that came out on thursday night and took lyra's life have no plan, no strategy. in fact, will only distract, disrupt and shatter our shared hopes and aspirations. this is a time for politicians to work together without a doubt. we believe the irish and british governments need to read from the front. it is now urgent they meet in the british irish intergovernmental conference and set down the road map, the answers. let's get back

into it and deliver the kind of sustainable decent response of governance that people right across the north of ireland want and deserve. do you think the political vacuum there has been at stormont, the breakdown of power—sharing, do you think that is partly responsible for the violence that we have seen in londonderry and if it is, what are you going to do to try and break the stalemate? those responsible for the stalemate? those responsible for the violence in derry and those that orchestrated and carried out the violence. we should not give them any room or any soccer or alibi. which not offer up any excuses for the actions that were taken that resulted in the brutal slaying of a 29—year—old woman. those that orchestrated that violence are responsible for it, they are accountable. people must be brought to justice for it. i have said for a long time and sinn fein has said for

a long time and understood, that having the stalemate around our power—sharing institutions is not good. it is not good for society, it is not good for that kind of democrat engagement that we need. what are you going to do too and that stalemate? we stand ready. we have stood ready for over two years ago. a year ago in february we landed on an accommodation, the dup could not deliver to that, that came to nothing. since we have stood ready, ready to embrace a process that can deliver. it is notjust a case of talking of the talking is essential. we are charged as politicians with much more than that. asking us to talk is not setting the bar at the right level. the demand of us needs to be to resolve, to come up with solutions, to resolve the outstanding equality issues and to get stuck back in two power—sharing in all of the spirit

of the good friday agreement with equality and human rights and progress and prosperity. all the things we can achieve collectively. the ball is now in the court of political leaders and dare i say it, our partners and unionism to actually resolve and sort things out. briefly, the priest father martin magill said he hopes lyra's death could be the doorway to a new beginning. we have had moments before in northern ireland where we thought it could be a turning point but you think a tragic death could bea but you think a tragic death could be a turning point? i think it absolutely has to be because lyra has been taken away from sara, and her mother and her family who loved her. she represented a new northern sentiment and a new island and represented very much the course we need to walk together. —— a new

ireland. big decisions have been made over the last decades. heavy lifting politically has been done. we have found ways to do the right thing andi we have found ways to do the right thing and i am appealing now, i am appealing especially to our partners in unionism and the dup, equality is the answer. delivery of rights is the answer. delivery of rights is the answer. delivery of rights is the answer. i think lyra knew that and all of society knows that and now we need to not only talk but deliver the answers to every single citizen, irrespective of colour, creed or their view on the constitutional issues, that their rights will be fully vindicated and respected, and then we can have power—sharing government that serves everybody. thank you very much indeed for your time. thank you for joining us from belfast. the headlines on bbc news...

hundreds gather at the funeral of murdered journalist lyra mckee who was shot dead during rioting last week. the death toll rises again in sri lanka — 359 people died in the easter sunday attacks — one of the bombers — who studied in the uk — has been named. huawei — the chinese telecoms giant — welcomes reports that the government will let it help build britain's 5g data network. and in sport, manchester united kids hand liverpool the advantage in the title race if they can beat their rivals manchester city later. city will return to the top if they can beat their rivals in the manchester derby. at the end of the season atp tour finals will move from london to tehran in 2021 after a ten year stay in the english capital. it is the first time italy has staged the event. and after ronnie o'sullivan

shot glass, judd trump narrowly avoided another upset. i will be back with more on the storyjust after half past. officials in sri lanka say one of the suicide bombers behind the easter sunday attacks, had studied in the uk. eight of the nine bombers have now been identified — one of them was a woman. meanwhile the death toll has risen again — 359 people are now known to have died in the bombings which targeted churches and tourist hotels. paul adams reports. outside saint anthony's shrine in colombo, an eerie silence. more than 100 christians died here. the black and white ribbons signify mourning. the city's hospitals are still full of the wounded and all over sri lanka a visible police presence and a lingering sense of shock and apprehension. fresh images too of the men thought to have carried out these atrocities. cctv pictures from a lift

in colombo's shangri—la hotel show two men with rucksacks minutes before an explosion in the restaurant. the government says it's arrested more than 60 people. it says the bombers were educated and included one woman. at least one had travelled abroad. we believe that one of the suicide bombers studied in the uk and then maybe later on did his postgraduate in australia. before coming back to settle in sri lanka. most of them are well educated and come from the middle or upper middle class. as the investigation goes on the government is facing difficult questions about how this was allowed to happen. why were intelligence reports from a foreign country not circulated or, it seems, acted upon. translation: the security officials who got the intelligence report from a foreign nation did not share it with me. appropriate actions would have been taken. i've decided to take stern action

against these officials. sri lanka is an island acquainted with grief. its long civil war ended only ten years ago. but sunday's attacks were unprecedented in scale and complexity. with so—called islamic state claiming involvement, members of sri lanka's small muslim minority say they fear a backlash. actually you cannot blame all of the muslim community for the subject. so most of the people are peace loving people. because they are not involved and they all feel very bad about this. three days on, sri lanka is still reeling from one of the world's worst acts of terrorism since 9/11. dealing with the aftermath will be a huge challenge for a government that seems both divided and dysfunctional. paul adams, bbc news. our correspondent, nick beake is in colombo for us this evening.

more detailed picture emerging of the people behind these horrific attacks. well, i'm sorry, we have lost the line to colombo but we will try to get back to him as soon as we can. a woman from manchester has been confirmed as the eighth british victim killed in the bombings. 55—year—old it director lorraine campbell was staying at the cinnamon grand hotel in colombo on a business trip when she died. ms campbell's husband, neil evans, said he had lost his "best friend in the world for all adventures". her son, mark, has paid tribute to his mother and described how the family lost contact with her. her husband neil i believe, was informed first that they could not find her. and that she was there. i think as more details came out he put two and two together. he was

texting her in the restaurant in the morning and then the text stopped. then the report came out and he put two and two together. part of it was a shock and disbelief, and the other pa rt a shock and disbelief, and the other part was, ijust a shock and disbelief, and the other part was, i just felt for the person telling me. to my mum, i was her world so to have to tell me she didn't make it would have been really ha rd. i didn't make it would have been really hard. i knew he was also alone. my mum was inspiring, she was very strong, very independent but the one thing that struck out for me throughout my entire life, she was a leader. she would take one for the team, bring the team along. she would never leave anyone behind. she almost rallied her friends like troops. they would follow her anywhere because of the mutual respect and love they had for each other. everyone she came into

contact with remembers my mum. i just want to bring my mum home and i wa nt to just want to bring my mum home and i want to give everyone who knew her, who had the opportunity to spend time with her and get to know her like the old dead, give them the opportunity to come together and celebrate this beautiful woman. that was lorraine campbell's son paying tribute to his mother. talks between the government and labour are continuing as they look to break the brexit deadlock — but there's no sign of any imminent breakthrough. meanwhile, the prime minister's leadership is back in the spotlight as senior conservative mps are currently meeting to decide whether to try and change party rules — which would allow a leadership challenge against theresa may injune. our political correspondent iain watson is at westminster. how likely is it they would change the rules and maybe bring forward a

leadership challenge? the rules and maybe bring forward a leadership challenge ?|j the rules and maybe bring forward a leadership challenge? i can tell you they had decided not to change the leadership roles in the past couple of minutes. there has been two separate meetings behind closed doors of the 1922 executive as it is cold, some of the most senior conservative backbenchers. they were split. some of them wanted another possibility of challenging her leadership six months after the vote of no confidence, rather than the current rule which is a year. that has been rejected for now but it comes with a sting in the tail for the prime minister. her mps are demanding that she sets out a clearer timetable for her own departure than the previous meeting of the 1922 committee, she said she would go when her deal is past, when the current phase of brexit is over before the next stage of negotiations. but she was not specific about the timetable. there is also the possibility her deal in any form might not get through this place at all. so what has been

demanded by her own mps is for her to come forward and offer some clarity for when she is likely to go. she is facing unwanted european elections, local council elections and some other mps are feared because they do not want to see more divisions in the party advertise by trying to change the leadership roles at this stage. that should not be interpreted as huge enthusiasm for the prime minister staying in office. they have agreed to leave the current rules in place but urge her to tell them when she is going to go and many of them, i think, would like to see that sooner rather than later. just to clarify, technically, theoretically she is safe until the end of the year? technically she is safe until the end of the year because that is the current rule that says you cannot be challenged for 12 months and she was u nsuccessfully challenged for 12 months and she was unsuccessfully challenged back in december. what has changed its she has pledged to her backbenchers she

would go sooner than that if they would go sooner than that if they would back her brexit deal and she would back her brexit deal and she would get her withdrawal agreement over the line. there is incentive for them to back her to get her out of number ten if they think she is a liability. she has not said precisely when she will go and they are saying they want a timetable from her when she would stand down, and they would like it to be sooner than december. thank you very much indeed without breaking news from westminster. —— for that breaking news. the chinese telecoms firm, huawei, has welcomed reports that the government is to allow it to help build britain's 5g data network. that's despite objections from senior ministers here — who believe it poses a security risk. the us and a number of allies have also expressed concerns about the security implications of working with huawei. the telecoms firm has always denied being controlled by the chinese government, and says that its work does not pose any risks of espionage and sabotage. richard lister reports.

imagine a world where all the machines in our lives can talk to each other to make everyday a bit easier. traffic lights turn red and tell the sat nav to re—route us. the fridge orders groceries for us this is the promise of 5g. 5g is like going from earth to mars. it is not a faster world. it is a different world. right now we have to instruct our machines but in the 5g world our machines may decide to communicate directly to us or with each other. tv off, lights off. but 5g needs a new network of processors and antennas constantly working out what to do with all the information so who should you trust to build that network? the uk has been considering the chinese telecoms giant huawei and ministers are reported to be close to announcing that huawei

will have some role in bringing 5g to the uk. some of our security partners like the us, australia and new zealand warn it is not to be trusted. there is a threat here, there are nations that do tend to come at our critical infrastructure and pose a threat. and with that understanding, all of us are pretty fairly certain we're not going to use technologies that pose a threat in those most sensitive networks. we're not going to, in the us, have huawei in our sensitive networks. huawei has been building british telecoms infrastructure for almost two decades and strongly denies intelligence links with the chinese government. in 2012 it signed £1 billion investment deal with downing street and uk intelligence community says that britain has rigorous security in place. when we analyse the company for their suitability to supply

equipment to the uk telecoms networks we're looking at the risks that arise from their security and engineering processes. as well as the way these technologies are deployed in our national telecoms networks. a flag of origin of 5g equipment is important but it is a secondary factor. huawei welcomed the report that the government is preparing to bring it on board for 5g saying: a 5g world of smart appliances working out what we need and when to turn on could finally deliver on the big promises of the internet of things. but with technology so fully embedded in our lives, the potential risks are every bit as real as the benefits. richard lister, bbc news. suzanne spaulding is a former under secretary for cyber

and infrastructure at the department for homeland security during the obama administration. she joins me from washington. cani can i ask you should britain trust them to be a part of our 5g network? it isa them to be a part of our 5g network? it is a decision based around managing risk. what the uk government needs to consider and it sounds like they have, is whether the risks to including huawei as one of the suppliers for building this critically important piece of critically important piece of critical infrastructure, our 5g network. you have to consider it in both the confidentiality of the data. does having huawei participating in the build—up, i give them —— give them easier opportunity to access sensitive munication is that good transit that sg munication is that good transit that 5g network? the second consideration is one of disruption. is there a

higher risk of these services may be disrupted? higher risk of these services may be disrupted ? the higher risk of these services may be disrupted? the uk government has tested huawei's technology and found a number of significant security concerns and as i understand it, that has led them to not have huawei participate in building out the core but to allow them to participate in perhaps less sensitive aspects of the sg perhaps less sensitive aspects of the 5g network. but again, it is critically important that those decisions are made on the basis with the understanding that this network will not be dependent upon supplies and equipment that huawei will be providing. the united states government is clearly more suspicious, shall we say, of huawei and more hostile to let it be part of 5g plans. how disappointed do you

think washington and gemma will be by this apparent decision by the british government to let huawei in? —— in general will be. british government to let huawei in? -- in general will be. the british government to let huawei in? -- in generalwill be. the united states government dissolved the risk management decision different way! result. it is the ways in which you can mitigate the risk because there will be risks. the uk government noted that the flag, the country of origin, is not irrelevant in the decision—making. they said it was a secondary factor but you do have to consider that china has both legal and economic leveraged over this company. that, ithink, is particularly important when you think about the potential risks of disruption of this service. the uk government has assessed that risk and appears as though they decided that they can mitigate that risk and whatever residual waste they are willing to —— residual risk they can

do. the us government will not so it isa do. the us government will not so it is a different risk appetite, if you will. you are being very diplomatic, bentley put it this way. if you whether british prime minister, would you have huawei building part of your 5g network? would you have huawei building part of your 56 network? it is really a decision for each country to make. in terms of the amount of risk they are willing to accept. it sounds as though the uk government has come down with a kind of mixed decision, so they clearly have some concerns about the security risk that having huawei participate in their network presents, and they think they can mitigate the risk of having huawei participate in the non—core aspects of their infrastructure. 0k, i've got the message, thanks forjoining us. suzanne spalding, former

undersecretary for cyber and infrastructure in the united states, thank you for your time. thank you. we will pause and take a look at the weather. thank you. some places saw someone sunshine to labour on the whole it was called up with more cloud, wet weather and thunderstorms. this has moved away from south—west england, heading across wales, arriving in the south—east but ahead of that, we have had sundry downpours moving from the midlands but continuing in the next hours in northern england. there has been torrential rain and it will head towards northern ireland for a while. they will tend to ease away later this evening and the wet weather will move from northern ireland, we will keep cloud across northern parts of the uk. then more shall remain precious art from northern france over the channel into england and wales. mild out there tonight, not as cold as last night for scotland and northern ireland, with rain not far away. in

due tomorrow, we look to the south again to the sunshine and showers, while persistent heavy and potentially sundry main moves from the south—east to north into northern england, more sunshine in the south and ten bridges near it normalfor the south and ten bridges near it normal for this the south and ten bridges near it normalfor this time of the south and ten bridges near it normal for this time of the year. —— temperatures nearer normal. this is bbc news. the headlines... the funeral of the murdered journalist lyra mckee takes place in belfast, as hundreds gather to celebrate her life. theresa may — along with political leaders from northern ireland and the irish republic — heard calls for a lasting legacy from the journalist's death. i dare to hope that lyra's murder on holy thursday evening can be the doorway to a new beginning and i detect a deep desire for this. the death toll rises again in sri lanka —

359 people died in the easter sunday attacks. one of the bombers — who studied in the uk — has been identified. time for a look at the sport, hugh woozencroft is at the bbc sport centre. good afternoon. there's a huge match to come this evening with ramifications in the premier league title race and a spot in the top four as manchester united take on their local rivals manchester city. we can speak now to the bbc sports editor dan roan, who's outside old trafford. the perfect storm is brewing there, why is this match important to both clu bs ? why is this match important to both clubs? for weeks now, as the title race has become more and more exciting, this fixture has stood out as potentially a defining one. certainly for manchester united's fa ns certainly for manchester united's fans here this evening, they will feel it is a no—win situation because they will be aware if they can geta because they will be aware if they can get a result, a draw or win

against manchester city, they will potentially hand a huge advantage to their better arch rivals liverpool in what has become an increasingly thrilling title race in recent months. but if they can, if they lose to manchester city, they will be the noisy neighbours and on course to retain the title they won so convincingly last year. it is ha rd so convincingly last year. it is hard for manchester united fans to feel. they will be loans to help liverpool with their title. they can't afford to worry about that, not after losing six of their last eight matches, not given the position they find themselves in, six, they are desperately tried to reach the champions league qualification which means finishing in the top four. to be certain of that, three points tonight are essential if they are to chase down arsenal and chelsea, who have the crucial advantage. after their

latest defeat against everton 4—0, there were questions about the character and even courage of their players. and whether united were too hasty in appointing ole gunnar solskjaer before the end of the season. united have to worry themselves so it's a huge game for themselves so it's a huge game for them but just as themselves so it's a huge game for them butjust as big a match in liverpool, it is unique, a derby like no other before with this incredible twist that united really have the fate of their principal two rivals, liverpool and city, have the fate of their principal two rivals, liverpooland city, in have the fate of their principal two rivals, liverpool and city, in their hands in terms of the compelling title race. and the mind games started in earnest with ole gunnar solskjaer saying city would be ready to kick his players, that didn't please pep guardiola ? to kick his players, that didn't please pep guardiola? it was quite uncharacteristic of ole gunnar solskjaer to try these mind games and he was asked about city's tactics and felt that when united play counter—attacked, city may have a tendency to practically foul, you

prevent opponents counterattacking against them, which pep guardiola reacted to as you see here, quite angrily. i have never had a game since my start as a manager thinking about these things. my players can talk better than the about that, the players ahead in barcelona, munich, year, it is about the contest for the people making thousands of never has one player made a foul for the other ones. thanks to our sports editor who is outside old trafford there. man utd v manchester city is an 8pm kick off. there's full commentary on 5 live sport. coverage begins at 6.30 with mark chapman live from old trafford. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. i will be back at 6:30 p:m.. see you then. scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, has told the scottish parliament that

an independence referendum should take place by 2021, if the country is taken out of the european union. she said the brexit process had shown that westminster did not serve scotland's interests and the devolution settlement was utterly inadequate. the scottish government hopes to have the necessary legislation in place by the end of this year. our scotland correspondent, james shaw is in holyrood. talk us through the significance of what nicola sturgeon has been staying today. to my mind, bend, this is the strongest statement nicola sturgeon has made on a second scottish referendum. time. in 2016, just after the european election, she was very strong on the fact that scotla nd she was very strong on the fact that scotland had voted to stay in the eu and the rest of the uk, the totality of the uk, had voted to leave. that meant scotland should be entitled to go its own way and there should be a second independence referendum. then

the 2017 election and happen and the snp lost ground so it went quiet for a while. but she is back with a strong statement that she believes an independence referendum should happen before the next election in scotla nd happen before the next election in scotland in 2021. so legislation to be prepared by her brexit minister mike russell before the end of the year. but she knows that the uk government is trenchantly opposed to the idea of a second independence referendum. the seat will go up against that obstruction in the very near future if this process proceeds in the way we think it will go to. let see a bit of her statement this afternoon. —— lets a bit. to rush into an immediate decision before a brexit path has been determined would not allow for an informed choice to be made. however, if we are to safeguard scotland's interests,

we cannot wait indefinitely. that is why i consider that a choice between brexit and a future for scotland as an independent european nation should be offered in the lifetime of this parliament. if scotland is taken out of the eu, the option of a referendum on independence within that timescale must be open to us. that would be our route to avoiding the worst of the damage brexit will do. of course, that intention does not mean that we should cease trying to build as much agreement on the best way forward as we can, nor should we cease our efforts to avoid any brexit at all. we must also try in all of our actions to avoid the mistakes that have caused so much division over brexit and instead bring people together to focus on finding the common ground that does, i believe, exist between us. our aim must be to act in a completely different manner to the uk government and parliament. the fact is, presiding officer, based on the evidence of the last three years,

westminster has failed. it has failed to protect scotland's interests, it has failed to reach a consensus and it has degenerated into utter chaos. so nicola sturgeon is saying she wa nts to so nicola sturgeon is saying she wants to build a consensus in scotland, amongst even those people who voted against independence last time around in 2014. but the scottish conservatives has said they believe people in scotland are not interested in these constitutional questions, they want nicola sturgeon to talk about things like the economy, jobs, education, they say she has not come to the scottish parliament and given a statement about education for some time. even those people who are in the hardcore in favour of independence, they are not particularly happy with this either. they say they want independence sooner rather than later, not kicking the can down the road until the election in 2021. but

one thing you can say looking forward to that election in two yea rs' forward to that election in two years' time, is that as things stand, nicola sturgeon will be able to say to the electorate in scotland, we wanted to give you the choice between independent and brexit, the uk government stopped us from doing that, therefore you should support us because we will give you the choice is between brexit or independence within the eu. many thanks for that, james short reporting. people who invested money in a collapsed bond scheme have been calling for conservative mpjohnny mercer to quit his second job. a bbc investigation has shown that a company that was paid a commission of 25% from london capital & finance has provided funding to a firm which pays a private salary of eighty five thousand pounds to the mp for plymouth moorview. mr mercer has denied any wrongdoing, and claims there is a ‘co—ordinated effort‘ to discredit him. figures released today show that

government borrowing last year fell to its lowest annual level in 17 years. borrowing for the last financial year was £17.2 billion less than the year before, but nearly £2 billion more than the official forecast made in the spring statement. the deficit has also fallen to its lowest level in 17 years. babies and toddlers should not be left passively to watch tv or other screens according to new guidance from the world health organization. sedentary screen time — such as using tablets and playing computer games — should not happen before a child is two. and for two—to—four—year—olds it should be limited to an hour a day. the new guidelines are aimed at tackling child inactivity, a leading risk factor for global mortality and obesity—related ill health. the headlines on bbc news... hundreds gather at the funeral of murdered journalist lyra mckee who was shot dead

during rioting last week. the death toll rises again in sri lanka — 359 people died in the easter sunday attacks. one of the bombers — who studied in the uk — has been named. huawei — the chinese telecoms giant — welcomes reports that the government will let it help build britain's 5g data network. nearly two years after the grenfell tower fire in which 72 people died, thousands of local people are still suffering from trauma. the local nhs trust is offering hundreds of residents psychological help, but says many more are not coming forward. in order to encourage people to open up about their mental health the trust has now released a virtual reality film featuring former england striker les ferdinand, who grew up close to the tower. ashley—john baptiste has more. nearly two years on since the grenfell tower fire, yet driving past the tower

still makes an impact. thousands of local residents continue to deal with trauma as a result of the fire, many of whom are not receiving support. antonio escaped from the tenth floor of the tower on the morning of the fire. having just moved into a permanent flat and in full—time work, he's starting to move on. if there's a big window, and it is very important for me, there is a lot of positivity... but for him and his community, the process of healing continues. thousands of people were there that night watching. we will never know what an effect it will have going forward. losing someone dear, a friend or someone dear to you, it will leave a scar open in you that you cannot heal in one or two months or six months or two years, it is going to be forever. today we're going to go to ten

of the houses up here. i think we've been to a few of them and had no responses. since the fire, health workers have been going door—to—door offering support. they say some parts of the community, young men in particular, have been harder to reach. if you remember the day, remember the time, you could experience flashbacks which could happen three, four, five times a day. you can have nightmares. what happens is that somebody tries to avoid thinking or talking about the subject relating to the traumatic incident. come on, boys! so, could this be the solution? a virtual reality mindfulness film featuring former england striker les ferdinand, meant to engage those affected by the fire. tension drops as soon as i get on the grass. made in collaboration with queens park rangers football club, the nhs trust hopes this tool will encourage residents dealing with trauma to open up. what made you do all this to support grenfell residents and the community?

first and foremost, i grew up on the estate myself. it is les ferdinand's long—standing connection with this community that makes him so concerned. what impact do you hope it will have? i think there is a lot of people who have had psychological problems dealing with situations and coming out talking about their emotions and talking about things that have gone on and bottling it on up. hopefully, what this will do, it will allow them to release and be able to speak about some of their problems or some of the situations they are going through. as the impact of the grenfell tower fire continues for many residents, so do gestures of humanity and support. ashleyjohn—baptiste, bbc news. the north korean leader, kimjong—un, has arrived in russia ahead of a summit with president putin. he travelled to russia on his personal armoured train. the leaders are expcted to discuss the future of north korea's nuclear

programme in tomorrow's meeting. it's kim jung un's first visit to russia. he was invited a year ago but has chosen to meet vladimir putin now, after talks with donald trump over dismantling the north korean nuclear programme broke down. there are flashing images in this report from steve rosenberg. he'd taken an armoured train to get here. this is kim jong—un's first visit to russia. he's come for a summit with vladimir putin. and after crossing the border, another first. an interview to a foreign broadcaster. north korea's leader told russian tv that on the agenda was solving the problem of the korean peninsular. he is looking quite the statesman these days. two summits with donald trump have ensured that. even if they failed to persuade north korea to give up

its nuclear weapons programme. in vladivostok, kim jong—un was treated to a guard of honour. the summits with president putin could end up producing more ceremony than substance. no major agreements are expected. but if the two leaders are seen to get on, it will already be a diplomatic success for both of them. whenever there is a summit with kim jong—un at the table, we've kind of got used to the man sitting opposite being donald trump. but this time it will be vladimir putin, and that puts the kremlin leader exactly where he wants to be, centre stage, with russia demonstrating that it is a global player. president putin has not met kim jong—un before, but he has met his father, the previous leader, kimjong—il. as for this summit, what can

north korea expect out of it? at the least, moral support, and by meeting kim, the message is clear to america, if you want to solve the problems of the world you cannot do that without russian help. steve rosenberg, bbc news. the white house says president trump's state visit to the uk injune will reaffirm what it's called the "steadfast and special relationship" between the united states and britain. the bbc‘s assistant political editor norman smith has been speaking to the united state ambassador to the uk, woodyjohnson about his expectations for president trump's visit. i have known donald trump for 30 yea rs, i have known donald trump for 30 years, the president, and he never is an pensive about anything, he's a lwa ys is an pensive about anything, he's always got that drive, enthusiasm. i know he's looking forward to this visit. but he must be discomfited that us president, additional ally

of britain, nevertheless faces what are likely to be very large protests ? are likely to be very large protests? the last time he was here, they threaten last protest but they didn't occur. there were 100 thousand people in london. there's various numbers. but he knows how important the related is, the british know as well. this is a very, very critical relationship for the future of britain and so welcoming the president here is a really good symbol for the future prosperity and security of this country. the question i am asking is, he's coming ahead of the d—day celebrations, a time to remember and we fought side by side against the nazis, an american president, what do you think about this american president, that seems to excite and motivate people to protest?” president, that seems to excite and motivate people to protest? i think that you get a president like this may be every 50 years. one that

absolutely is about change and transforming the country. that is what the country voted for, they voted for change, but as you know change comes as a cost. people that are benefiting don't necessarily wanting that change, and it makes people uncomfortable, he is willing to do that and he put everything on the table so you can see everything. maybe it's uncomfortable to see things around the table but that's what he's bringing forward. i think he is unique and he hasn't changed. as you said, i have known him a long time so what you see is what you get with this president. let's talk about the visit. will we expect to see him out and about in london or will he be away from people? first of all, we don't have the schedule of all, we don't have the schedule of what he will do. the president is not cosseted away, that is not his style, if you see his rallies outwardly people, when he stopped his car when he is driving and all that. he is a man of the people.

what about traditionally on a state visit, there is an open carriage ride up the mall, we have seen it for all the different leaders, would you expect the same for president trump? i don't know if that is decided, that will be for the security teams of both countries to decide what is the best alternative or whether it can have the carriage. a lot of controversy about whether he addresses parliament, will he like to address parliament? that has not been addressed yet. when we get to that point, he will answer that question. ambassador woody johnson, thanks for your time. the president will be coming in earlyjune and on the major plus i, that will at least do give us something to talk about other than brexit and perhaps a royal baby too. ina in a moment we will have the latest weather for you.

let's return to our top story — the funeral of the journalist lyra mckee — who was shot dead during rioting in londonderry last thursday. political leaders including the prime minister theresa may attended the service, with friends and priests celebrating the life of the 29—year—old. we'll leave you with some images from the day. # amazing grace...# lyra was a person who broke down barriers and reached across boundaries. this was her homework in life. this is her legacy in death. lyra is not here in person but her starlight fills this room.

why in god's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... to get to this point? hello, there. we have seen our weather change today, many places catching rain. they have been a few thunderstorms as well. over the next few days, it will be on the cooler side, temperatures only going one way and that is downwards. there was some warmth today in suffolk where we mist most of the downpours, temperatures about 19—20d. that one was drawn into the midlands and north england, it triggered the stander read downpours and torrential rain in a few places. that cleared away from the

south—west and moves away from wales, more rain from the south from the channel, but further north, heaviest downpours. still warnings of torrential thundery downpours across northern england, moving away from the midlands but continuing in northern england and we will see some wetter weather heading towards northern ireland. the storms can will ease off later the evening, the wetter weather in northern ireland clears away overnight, but we will keep cloud for scotland and northern ireland. further south, clearer skies but we will see some further showers again. coming up from northern france into the channel. mild out there tonight, milder than last night. and in northern ireland. into the next few days, withdraw in cooler air from the antic, peter meehan is pushed out to eastern parts of europe. with it, pressure

which brings spells of rain. some heavy rain likely to be thundery across the south, heading from east anglia into northern england on thursday, then more sunshine for southern england and east anglia, but temperatures will be nearer normalfor but temperatures will be nearer normal for this but temperatures will be nearer normalfor this time of but temperatures will be nearer normal for this time of year and for most part, sunshine and showers. low pressure continues to shape our weather for the rest of the week and into the start of the weekend as well. the last bands of red weather to bus northwards. most places start dry on friday with sunshine, but it gets in wales and it is stander e. abbott is around 14—16d cladding overin abbott is around 14—16d cladding over in western parts, rain pushing eastwards overnight and into saturday wet and wendy weather on saturday wet and wendy weather on saturday and cool as well, warming up saturday and cool as well, warming upa saturday and cool as well, warming up a touch for the london marathon, but not the 25 degrees that we had last weekend.

by the new ira last week. she was a child of northern ireland's peace process — an investigative journalist, murdered while doing herjob. her catholic family chose belfast‘s protestant cathedral for the service, that brought communities together and set a challenge for the politicians. why, in god's name, does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman, with her whole life

in front of her...