tonight at ten, the government says it's getting "serious about fighting crime." but critics argue the plans are vague, and lack credibility. the promise is for 10,000 more prison places in england and wales, and police stop and search powers to be extended to tackle knife crime. the use of stop and search in right legal and professional way drives the right kind of outcomes and that's effectively what we are seeking to do. these are fairly empty, headline grabbing promises that have no evidence or resource to back them up. we've not heard a whisper on where the money is going to come from. for some, the proposals add to speculation that the government's planning a snap election. also tonight... hong kong is hit by more violent protests, as china warns britain, not to interfere, in the territory's affairs. china's just made it clear it

will not accept what it calls british meddling. the influence of hong kong's one—time colonial power these days is very limited. please allow me to negotiate! 50 years after british troops were sent to northern ireland, we talk to some of the soldiers on patrol, at the start of the troubles. and england end welsh hopes of topping rugby's world rankings after a convincing win at twickenham. good evening. downing street has announced a package of measures on law and order, saying the government is "serious about fighting crime." but critics argue the proposals are far too vague, and lack credibility. the government is promising thousands of new prison places.

and a pilot scheme, giving the police wider powers to stop and search suspects will be extended to all 43 forces, in england and wales. labour says there's little detail about how the policies will be funded, and warn that extending stop and search could lead to social unrest. 0ur correspondent richard lister reports. stop and search. the government says it cuts crime and it wants more police forces to use it more often. the plan is part of a law and order package unveiled by a prime minister who says he wants criminals to be afraid. figures suggest black people are almost ten times more likely to be searched than white people. but the home secretary said the initialfeedback she had had from police was that stop and search works. from all the police forces that i've been speaking to, even in london and yesterday, i've heard that crime under 255, the age group 25 years old, has gone down by 15% because of increased use of stop and search,

and that means taking more weaponry off our streets. so, of course, the use of stop and search in the right legal and professional way drives the right kind of outcomes. london's metropolitan police force is one of seven that's been running a pilot stop and search programme launched by the previous home secretary in march. but today the met was unable to provide any figures on how the programme's worked so far. i'm not aware of the pilot having been evaluated, certainly haven't seen any published evaluation of it. i'm not aware of there being an equality impact statement. i really wonder on what basis has this decision been made and why hasn't the information being made available publicly. why hasn't there been a transparent decision. britain's overcrowded jails were another part of today's announcement. £2.5 billion to be spent on another 10,000 prison places. a major increase in prison capacity. there are some 83,000 men and women in prison in england and wales. that's close to the total capacity which is around 85,000 prison places.

today's announcement of an additional 10,000 places represents an increase of around 12%. the government says the first new prison will be here, alongside hmp full sutton in yorkshire. that expansion was first announced more than two years ago and the home office has been unable to give a full timetable for implementing the latest plan. we are seeing headline grabbing policies with absolutely no evidence or resource behind them in the potential run up to a general election in the autumn. and nobody should be fooled by borisjohnson. he has form for empty promises that he's not delivered on. the prime minister pledged last month to recruit an additional 20,000 police officers. he said today the most dangerous criminals they face should spend longer injail. a move which could fill many of the extra prison places he's promised. richard lister, bbc news. 0ur political correspondent, jonathan blake, is with me....

we are expecting more law and order announcements from the government tomorrow. is an autumn election will likely? these announcements will only add to the speculation that is the case and with these announcements on potentially vote winning pledges for extra police officers, extra prison places, tougher sentences for violent criminals, downing street is preparing for a vote at some point in the autumn, whether the prime ministers forced into it through a vote of no confidence or it is time of his choosing backed by parliament. these promises and pledges might go some way to allay fears and violent crime and boris johnson promised to make the streets safer. the government has left itself open to some criticism about the way in which it is going about it with these potentially short—term vote winning pledges, which is what it is trying to do, rather than an overall considered look at the criminal justice system

overall considered look at the criminaljustice system as a whole. an election or not, making a promise is one thing but funding it is another. £2.5 billion the treasury has said will be made available for these prison places but they can't say where the money is coming from so say where the money is coming from so it is something for the chancellor to grapple with is the prime minister's policy pledges keep coming. 0k, thank you. there have been further clashes between pro—democracy protesters and riot police, in hong kong. tear gas was fired after petrol bombs exploded near the main police headquarters. earlier, beijing warned britain not to interfere in hong kong's affairs, after the foreign secretary, dominic raab, suggested there should be an investigation into ongoing violence against pro—democracy protesters. from hong kong, here's jonathan head. this is how it starts every weekend now in hong kong. they've turned improvising barricades into an art form. they work with impressive speed and coordination. there is never much time before the police arrive.

these confrontations are now a familiar routine in hong kong's streets. generally, the protesters retreat, avoiding direct contact. but, by nightfall, the clashes were happening in multiple locations across the city and getting worse. the police are stressed and acting at times with little restraint. this was an underground station where protesters were corralled by the police and then beaten and driven down the escalators. the foreign secretary, dominic raab, has called for an independent investigation into police tactics. it's one of the five demands made by the protest movement. but his intervention has not gone down well with china which views this as an internal matter. the longer this goes on, the greater the risk of more overt intervention by china.

now, that's something that, clearly, worries britain as a joint guarantor of the city's special status. china's just made it clear it will not accept what it calls british meddling. the influence of hong kong's one—time colonial power these days is very limited. there are those here who is still hope for some kind of foreign support for their cause. in truth, though, they are largely on their own, and up against an unyielding and increasingly impatient china which has warned it won't stand by if this unrest goes on. jonathan head, bbc news, hong kong. a man has been charged with the attempted murder of a policeman with birmingham after the officer was allegedly run over by his own patrol car yesterday. the 42—year—old co nsta ble car yesterday. the 42—year—old constable suffered serious injuries but his condition is not said to be

life—threatening. this aspect will appear in court tomorrow. a second teenager has died two days after getting into difficulty in the sea off the essex coast. haider shamas, who was 18 and from luton, died yesterday. rescuers couldn't revive his 14—year—old sister malika after she was rescued from the water near clacton pier on thursday. police say a third relative, a 15—year—old girl, also pulled from the sea, is expected to recover. a political row has broken out in washington following the death ofjeffrey epstein, the multi—millionaire businessman and convicted sex offender. he was found in his prison cell in new york yesterday, apparently having taken his own life while awaiting trial on new sex traffiking charges. donald trump is facing strong criticism from democrats, for retweeting a conspiracy theory linking his death to the clinton family. chris buckler reports from washington. jeffrey epstein was once a man at the centre of high society parties and a figure instrumental in the abuse of underage girls.

his death in a new york prison just weeks after another apparent suicide attempt has raised many questions. some including the city's mayor have called it convenient given the alleged involvement of some of his rich and famous friends. among those retweeting conspiracy theories was donald trump. you know what he had, he had information on the clintons and a man ended up dead. he gave publicity to completely unsubstantiated allegations about another president, bill clinton. his wife hillary ran against him for the presidency. this is another example of our president using this position of public trust to attack his political enemies with unfounded conspiracy theories. mr trump was himself at one time a friend of epstein. they were pictured partying together but that was many years ago. and the president and the white house insist he is now concerned about getting to the truth

about what happened at events epstein organised in florida and new york. the president just wants everything to be investigated, and trying to connect the president to this monster from years ago where they are seen dancing in a video, versus other people who are actively i suppose flying around with this monster. the authorities here in the us are acutely aware of the questions being asked about the death of a man who had links to some of america's most influential people. it is why the fbi are investigating. something that is extremely unusual in the case of an apparent suicide. and while epstein's victims know he won't now face trial, they are pushing for inquiries to be widened to look at the actions of his associates. among his many famous friends was prince andrew who attended church with the queen at balmoral today. in recently released court documents, he has been accused of groping a girl at epstein's mansion, an allegation buckingham palace has called

categorically untrue. but the death ofjeffrey epstein will not end the calls for greater scrutiny of what did happen at some of his notorious parties. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. clashes have broken out injerusalem, between israeli police and palestinian worshippers at the site of the al aq—sa mosque. stun grenades were fired to disperse the crowds after tens of thousands of palestinians assembled to celebrate the muslim festival of eid al adha. norwegian police say they're treating a shooting yesterday at a mosque in a suburb of oslo as an attempted act of terrorism. police say the suspected gunman appeared to hold far right, anti—immigrant views. one person in the mosque managed to overpower him, but was injured. the suspect is now in custody. ukraine has described a visit by russia's president, vladimir putin, to the annexed crimean peninsula as a "blatant violation of ukraine's sovereignty".

mr putin was the guest of honour of a right—wing nationalist bikers' group. crimea was annexed from ukraine by russia in 2014, violating international law. yesterday saw opponents of mr putin stage some of the biggest rallies in years, as tens of thousands took part in nationwide protests, demanding opposition candidates be allowed to take part in local elections. 50 years ago this week, british troops were deployed to northern ireland, a momentous decision, the repercussions of which are still being felt today. theirjob was to try to end fierce sectarian rioting, and, though initially welcomed by nationalists, within months, they became hated figures. so, what was it like for the soldiers on the streets? peter taylor, who covered the troubles extensively, has been speaking to some of the veterans. i felt like a knight in shining armour. tea, buns, sandwiches. we had as much beer as we could take.

and we had all the women we could handle. it was absolutely brilliant, a soldier's dream. those are the voices of soldiers i interviewed many years ago when their memories of deployment was still fresh. but the soldier's dream didn't last long. as the months and years rolled by, the dream became a terrible nightmare. the fact is that deployment was done on a wing and a prayer as the then home secretary, james callaghan, once told me. i never do believe, frankly, that anybody from this side of the water understands ireland. and i've neverflattered myself that i understand the situation fully and i think very few people do. this was the summer of ‘69 and the omens were good. the reception was really fantastic. they welcomed us with open arms. tea. too much tea. buns, sandwiches.

6am, full breakfast. most young catholics had only seen soldiers on the cinema screen and in comics. you sort of grew up reading the hotspur, and comics like that. the next thing, the army's on the streets. it was great. as a kid, i always wanted to be a soldier when i grew up. we were mesmerised, in a way. did you join the army? ijoined the irish republican army, not the british army. within a year, my childhood illusions of playing these heroic characters would disabused when i witnessed them beating a young woman. i gradually had no more desire to be a part of the british army. but cups of tea and buns did little to assuage the army's growing frustration. trying to hammer in a peace line here in dover street between the protestant shankill road and the catholic falls road

stretched soldiers' patience to the limit. a one—man corridor, a one—woman corridor to your mother's house. connecting this against 89. no. these people were beginning to get on my nerves, to be honest. and it was a time of gritting one's teeth and trying to be terribly nice to them. you felt like saying to them, look, forget it. i've had enough. i'vejust asked, sir, that i may be allowed to negotiate. please allow me to negotiate. what did you really feel? in a word, kissed off! because you couldn't do anything! after that teeth grinding encounter, bruce willing served five tours in northern ireland. if they wouldn't desist in being a terrorist, then we took them out. he now lives in jersey, a retired brigadier.

what were those early days like? it was just complete chaos. i mean, we really didn't have a clue. we had no doctrine, we had no rules, and we had never been in northern ireland. we just wandered in. but erecting a peace line did not ease sectarian tensions. just over a month after deployment, the army found itself on riot duty. the crowd used to throw stones at us, we used to wear press combat kit and shiny boots, you know. it was ridiculous. but, soon, it became deadly serious. i was shot on the 28th of april with a thomson machine gun. in an ambush. i was very, very lucky to survive. i lost many good friends in northern ireland because of the troubles. almost 800 soldiers and military personnel were killed, most by the ira.

that was the unforeseen price of deployment 50 years ago. what was the army in the end able to do? leave. we got out, job done. peace had been restored to northern ireland. peter taylor, bbc news. reflections on the troubles. and, in the week ahead, we'll be hearing from some of the families living in derry when the troops arrived 50 years ago. and we'll be reporting on the divisions that still exist in the city. now, with all the sport, here'sjohn watson, at the bbc sport centre. good evening. wales could have topped rugby union's world rankings tonight, but an england victory at twickenham preventing that, the hosts winning by 33—19 in today's world cup warm—up match. they will face each other again next weekend as both sides continue their preparations ahead of the tournament in japan next month. patrick gearey reports from twickenham.

they called this a warm up, but england against wales is always piping hot. careful or it'll scold you. all that stood between wales and the world number one spot was england at twickenham. that's some obstacle. when all 19 stone powers towards you there is only so much you can do. that was the second try. they led 14—0. wales spent the week at an alpine training camp. evers has had practice running around mountains. some try, but so close to the world cup these matches are measured in bruises as much as points. gareth anscombe for wales. tom currie for england. the next injury was to welsh pride. the last place he wanted to put the line—out out was there. 21—7 at half—time. often when wales are lacking

direction they head north. it only takes a few steps to launch a comeback. next over the captain bundling wales to just five points behind. the test england wanted. they responded. after george ford's penalties, daily put away a volley. finishing 33—19. england have kept wales from the top of the world, their 1a match winning strea k of the world, their 1a match winning streak is over, plenty for coaches to wander. eddie jones streak is over, plenty for coaches to wander. eddiejones most of his thinking quickly. he has to name his world cup squad tomorrow. patrick gearey, bbc news, twickenham. manchester united began their premier league campaign at home to chelsea today. if you've been avoiding the days results because you're waiting for match of the day 2, which follows the news, then look away now. it was an emphatic start to the season at old trafford as frank lampard lost his first league match in charge. united winning 4—0 thanks to two goals from marcus rashford, £80 million summer signing, the defender harry maguire, enjoying an impressive debut with his man of the match performance.

just the one goal separated arsenal and newcastle, pierre emerick aubamayang scored it, as steve bruce lost his first league match in charge. the day's other game between leicester and wolves finished goalless. jermain defoe helped himself to three goals, his first rangers hat trick, as they beat hibernian 6—1 in the scottish premiership. this was him getting his second, it means rangers and celtic are the only two premiership sides to win their opening two matches. fifth placed st mirren earned their first win of the season against aberdeen. and british racing driver jamie chadwick's become the first winner of the women's motor sport championship, the w series. she didn't win the final race at brands hatch, her fourth placed finish enough to maintain her points advantage over her nearest rival, to claim the title in the first edition of the series which aims to provide a pathway for female drivers into formula one. and on the bbc sport website tonight, you can read

about the british shotputter who was accidentally entered into the axiioom relay at the european athletics team championships. that, though, is all from the bbc sport centre tonight. clive. now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. have a very good night.

hello. this is bbc news with lewis vaughan jones. a 17—year—old boy is in hospital with serious injuries after an arson attack on a house in west yorkshire. police say they're treating the incident in heckmondwike as attempted murder. two young girls, aged 16 and 11, were in the house at the time. a warning that alasdair gill's report does contain some flashing images. for in the morning and a house in heckmondwike is on fire. 0ne—bedroom is completely ablaze. neighbours say the fire was started deliberately took hold within seconds with a family of four still inside. you

could hear the screaming and i got up could hear the screaming and i got up to look out the window and i saw the smoke and flames were licking out the doors, the windows, the back, the loft, it was just every bit of the house was in flames. west yorkshire police says this was an arson attack and is treating it as a case of attempted murder. they want anyone who has information about people acting suspiciously or of males buying petrol in cans to get in touch. ten minutes before the fire started, this cctv captured two people walking near the property with what could be a petrol can. police say a 17—year—old boys in a serious but stable condition in hospital while a woman and two girls we re hospital while a woman and two girls were treated at the scene. one of the girls was at the front upstairs windowjumping the girls was at the front upstairs window jumping out. the the girls was at the front upstairs windowjumping out. the mum and the other daughter were at the back and then the sun was in the loft extension. he jumped out then the sun was in the loft extension. hejumped out of then the sun was in the loft extension. he jumped out of the side. jumped out of the top bit?

yeah, and the mum's car was parked on the drive and he hit the car on the way down. when the fire service came, they wanted us to lay him down ona came, they wanted us to lay him down on a blanket, but they couldn't, so they had to put on a board to load him into the ambulance. he was in a pretty bad way. the police think whoever was responsible may have hurt themselves and turned up at home this morning with burns. they are appealing for anyone who knows more to contact them. coming up at 10.30 we'll be taking an in—depth look at the tomorrow morning's newspapers. my guests tonight are the journalist and author, yasmin alibhai—brown and the former conservative party advisor, mo hussein. time for a look at the weather with helen willetts. time to take a look at the weather further ahead.

northern england and southern scotla nd northern england and southern scotland have had a months worth of rain, which has led to some flooding. it's the upper level strong winds driving the atlantic lows across our shores, and normally at this time of year, you can see that the coming year —— week there is more unsettled weather to come. this was the area of low pressure that brought all of the stormy weather across southern areas and all the wet weather slow to relinquish its grip, but it allows a north—westerly to come across the shores so polar air comes across over the first time in quite a while, temperatures look below—average, so cooler days but also some cooler nights. some sunshine as well but we will have another spell of wet and windy weather in the midweek. it has been wet enough through sunday and into monday, and you can see the rain is lingering for a time and there will

be quite heavy showers with thunder potentially in the south as well and then later in the west, but on the whole it looks like a drier day and temperatures will be two or three degrees below average but given the lighter winds and sunshine, it should feel pleasant enough and that will continue into the evening with sunny spells, scattered showers, light winds, and overnight on tuesdayit light winds, and overnight on tuesday it could turn shoes —— chilly with temperatures getting to single figures widely. the nights are getting slightly longer so may be more mist and fog lingering till eight or nine o'clock but on tuesday it looks like we will see some drier weather away from showers in the north and west and potential showers elsewhere and later on clouds chill coming in of head of the next the front ahead of the dominant midweek. this looks set to bring england and wales another bout of very wet weather and potentially from the tightly packed isoba rs, weather and potentially from the tightly packed isobars, windy weather. there is uncertainty as to how deep the low pressure will be that will determine strength of the

wind, and if will be a miserable day if you don't want the wind and rain but may be getting away with showers for scotland and northern ireland but it stays cool for much of the week and again just like we seem for the weekend, the low pressure moves into the north sea and allows a north—westerly wind to dominate and coming in from the north—west still picking cool air and if you are exposed to the north—west breeze, thatis exposed to the north—west breeze, that is where you will see the showers in northern and western scotla nd showers in northern and western scotland but elsewhere they cannot be ruled out. the sun is still strong in august so given some daytime heat there could be lively downpours but again good spells of dry and bright weather as well which we hope will continue into friday with this ridge of high pressure moving in to the end of the working week, so if you are showers but it doesn't last because by saturday we have this area of low pressure barrelling down, deep area for the weekend carrying most of the north atla ntic weekend carrying most of the north atlantic and again it looks more like autumn than august. so, as we

head into next weekend it looks like we have more wind and rain so it will stay cool and there will be some sunshine but clearly there are concerns and we will keep you updated will stop as ever, the warnings are on oui’ updated will stop as ever, the warnings are on our website. goodbye.

hello, this is bbc news, i'm lewis vaughan jones. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow morning's papers in a moment. first, the headlines. the prime minister pledges two—and—a—half billion pounds to create ten—thousand new prison places — and says all police forces will be given extended stop and search powers. the fbi is investigating the death of the multi—millionaire businessman and convicted sex offender, jeffrey epstein, who was found dead in his new york prison cell. police in hong kong fire tear gas at pro—democracy protesters in the tenth consecutive weekend of anti—government demonstrations. an 18—year—old man who got into difficulty in the sea off the essex coast has died — days after his teenage sister lost her life in the same incident.