this evening, conservative rebels will join forces with the opposition in a vote as they attempt to force the prime minister to delay brexit — but he says he will never surrender to their demands. that's what they want — to force us to beg, to force us to beg for yet another pointless delay. he isn't winning friends in europe, he's losing friends at home. his is a government with no mandate, no morals and as of today, no majority. that working majority was lostjust moments before as tory mp phillip lee — seen here crossing the floor — defected to the liberal democrats. and the other main

stories this evening: a delay of up to five years for hsz, says the government — and a rise in cost of tens of billions of pounds. hurricane dorian devastates parts of the bahamas — their prime minister calls it a "historic tragedy". and on the eve of the fourth ashes test at old trafford, we speak to one of england's rising stars. and in sport later on bbc news: johanna konta takes to the court at the us open, looking to make the semi—finals in new york for the first time. good evening from westminster, where we're just hours away from a momentous vote in parliament that could see mps take charge

and try to force the prime minister to ask for another delay to brexit. rebel conservatives will join forces with the opposition as they attempt to block a no—deal brexit. downing street says if the government loses tonight, they'll seek a snap election next month. the mood inside the house of commons is febrile this evening — the government's working majority has been slashed to zero before the debate even gets under way after tory mp dr phillip lee crossed the floor and defected to the liberal democrats. tories who defy the government in the next few hours know that they could face expulsion from their party and deselection as mp5. our first report tonight is from our political editor, laura kuenssberg. nu eire. the former greece in government have become buddies for number ten. selects have this conversation. we'lljust hear what he has to say. former cabinet ministers on their way to oppose the

prime minister who is trying to win them round. the clamourfrom prime minister who is trying to win them round. the clamour from tory rebels is not to stay in the eu. most of them voted for the old government because my exit deal that fail. but they will do all they cannot to remain, but to block boris johnson leaving without a deal. it is only the second time he has made this journey as per minister, screaming down whitehall to the gates of parliament. —— mike as prime minister. there were only a few members when he took his place and he was mocked when talking about the british tradition of democracy. this country still stands then as now, for democracy, for the rule of law... less than two minutes in, watch this. the three mps walking through the chamber are two lib dems flanking are conservative, phillip lee. who turns right with them to ta ke lee. who turns right with them to take a new seat alongside that rival

party. a defection that ticks away boris johnson's party. a defection that ticks away borisjohnson‘s majority party. a defection that ticks away boris johnson's majority altogether. i wish my honourable friend all the best. so can he hold of mps on all sides who want to block no—deal, which could mean an extra three months wait for brexit? there is on —— only one way to describe this deal, jeremy corbyn‘s surrender bill. it means running up... there are no circumstances in which i will ever accept anything like it. the characters might be different but look who might be enjoying this a little. just like his predecessor, many of the prime minister's powerful thousand are sitting on the benches behind him. many of us are concerned we are currently on course to leaving the european union without a deal on the 315t of october that we will not have time to negotiate and legislate for a new deal. could the prime minister make

a commitment to publish this afternoon the uk's proposals so that those of us who are considering what to do later today can have the benefit of seeing them? this new tribe of tory rebels is determined to work alongside labour... jeremy corbyn! to find a way to block no—deal. corbyn! to find a way to block no-deal. isn't winning friends europe. he is losing friends at home. his is a government with no mandate, no morals and as of today, no majority. careful plans for beating the government tonight have been hatched with tory rebels, labour and been hatched with tory rebels, labourand a been hatched with tory rebels, labour and a smaller —— the smaller parties too. this is a massively important day. all of us are united, this is about stopping the threat of no—deal... this is about stopping the threat of no-deal. .. as things stand, you are confident you will manage to take control of the commons tonight?|j am, control of the commons tonight?” am, this is about parliamentarians doing thejob across am, this is about parliamentarians doing the job across parties. how much to the next 12 hours matter? immensely. ourjob much to the next 12 hours matter? immensely. our job here much to the next 12 hours matter? immensely. ourjob here and now is

to get the legislation that ensures we do not leave at the end of october with a no—deal brexit. we do not leave at the end of october with a no—deal brexitm we do not leave at the end of october with a no-deal brexit. it is fluid but right now it sees mps and here are on course to beat boris johnson tonight in the first ever vote as per minister. it would give them control of the house of commons tomorrow to start to change the law tomorrow to start to change the law to prevent the possibility of leaving the european union without a formal deal in place. but it is the prime minister's willingness to do just that that saw him chosen for number ten. so those devoted to brexit who sent mrjohnson there are firmly on board. we are filled with anxiety at various times, i know i am. this seems to be a day where certain senior members of parliament lose the weight. you can't take away the power of the government to government and still remain a conservative. it is a difficulty for everybody. he is going into bat on

behalf of the uk. there are people in this building who are trying to kick the stool from underneath him. we have to resist that. in normal times, losing a majority means everything for a government. now, that might not even be the most important thing that happens today. and laura is here with me now. a knife edge moment for the new prime minister, for parliament and for the country and who knows where this will end? that's right. boris johnson has hardly been in thejob for very long and he has already played some very dramatic cards in quick succession. in less than a week, he has cut the number of days that parliament will have to sit suspending them, giving them less time to talk about brexit. he said tory mps who vote against the government tonight will be chucked out of theirjobs, will not be allowed to stand for the party again, and even now downing street is making clear that if they lose the vote to rebels tonight, they will try their very hardest to call

a general election. so these are enormous threats, and enormous sta kes for enormous threats, and enormous stakes for boris johnson enormous threats, and enormous stakes for borisjohnson and eve ryo ne stakes for borisjohnson and everyone in the building behind me. it seems right now there is still some arm—twisting going on behind the scenes come up that the government is set to lose and that means it is most likely by midnight we will be in a tussle between parliament and the prime minister over whether or not there should be a general election. it seems whether that happens now or not, we are finding ourselves very rapidly in the middle of a full throttle confrontation between parliament that does not want to allow the country to leave the european union without a formal deal, under prime minister who secured his place in power promising that he would always keep that as an option. and both of them cannot beat the victors here. and they are both determined to win. laura, thank you. so what could tonight's vote in the house of commons mean for britain's departure from the eu, and how might the outcome lead to a general election next month?

our deputy political editor john pienaar has been looking at the possible implications. people see parliament as the place our politicians play political games. well, forget that. tonight, tomorrow, it's a fight. it will shape british politics and all our future for years, maybe generations. a battle between parties, within parties, and no neutrals. not even the speaker, john bercow, who has made it his mission to see the commons, notjust the government, has a say and get its way, even if that means rewriting the rules that he is there to referee. so tonight's big vote is about giving mps, and later peers, the chance to pass a law to block a no—deal brexit and force borisjohnson's government to seek and accept another delay to brexit, past october the 31st, maybe until next january. he has warned conservatives who rebel and vote for that that they will be kicked out of the parliamentary party, banned from standing as tory candidates. a purge is what it's being called, and the pm's counter move?

the huge gamble of trying to call a snap election maybe as soon as october the 14th, on a choice believes he would win — for brexit, with or without an eu deal, or against. but would the commons allow a snap election on borisjohnson's terms? could mps stop it happening? many would try. well, a lot depends onjeremy corbyn. he's been saying almost daily, "bring on the election." but many on labour's side have been insisting that stopping a no—deal brexit must come first, before an election, before a new referendum that some of them want. but either way, it takes two thirds of the commons, 434 mp5, to agree an early election. mr corbyn's opposition could stop it going ahead, unless the government finds another way. so, what about the eu? what do they make of it? well, the next eu leaders' summit is on october the 17th. who would be there for britain

if a snap election comes first? a labour pm offering another referendum, or a re—elected tory with a new mandate, wanting a better deal or to leave without one? if there is no election, well, there is still no clear sign of eu leaders like president macron of france or angela merkel of germany dropping their demand that the eu single market must be protected, as they see it, after brexit. now, that means some controls covering the irish border. unless there is a compromise on that, we could leave with no deal. high stakes? they could hardly be any higher. the prime minister has been described as bringing new focus, new determination to brexit. hard to disagree with that. but he has also accelerated britain's journey towards new risks — critics say new dangers — and whatever happens, towards political splits and public recriminations of a kind no—one has seen before. john pienaar there. well, the government isn'tjust facing a fight from mps. there are two legal

challenges under way as well. today, thejudge hearing a challenge to boris johnson's decision to suspend parliament was told that the plan was approved as early as mid—august — almost two weeks before it was made public. the claim was made in the court of session in edinburgh, where mps and peers are trying to block prorogation — the suspension of parliament. lorna gordon was in court. yes, sophie. the court was told that the prime minister had declined a request to submit a statement to court here under oath, but documents we re court here under oath, but documents were submitted by government lawyers which appear to show that boris johnson approved those plans to prorogue, to suspend parliament, way backin prorogue, to suspend parliament, way back in the middle of august. that was before downing street aides publicly denied planning such a move. the lawyers representing the group of parliamentarians who brought this action to court say the government was showing breathtaking

co nte m pt government was showing breathtaking contempt for the constitution and likened their actions to autocratic rule. we have a prime minister who is seeking to hold office without accountability. it would seem the better to use power without response ability. that is not a situation which this court can permit. lawyer for the government say the arguments were academic as it was not for the courts to decide whether parliament can be prorogued. he said it was political issues and the resolution must be found in the political arena. thejudge resolution must be found in the political arena. the judge at the court of session lord doherty said he will attempt to make a decision overnight and reach a ruling tomorrow morning. whatever the decision is, it is likely to be appealed. lorna, thank you.

well, this is the scene outside parliament right now. as you can see, people, predominantly those against a no—deal brexit, have been gathering to vent their views. our special correspondent lucy manning has been getting a flavour of the mood. music playing mps are back. the protesters hardly went away. singing from yorkshire, remain supporters came to insist parliament does its job and isn't suspended so it can block a no—deal brexit. why have you come down from yorkshire today? to stop the immoral and ridiculous nature of borisjohnson, with the audacity to think that he can just take control of the house and take... and tell all the mps to go home forfive weeks, when this is the most important time in our political history. it is now time for parliament to take back control and put legislation in place to delay brexit. are you happy for the rebels to take control of parliament, in what might be, as some are saying, a constitutional outrage? do you not think proroguing

parliament at this critical time is not a constitutional outrage? these people are not rebels. they are stalwarts of the conservative party. it was the remain protesters who were out in force today. because the tables have turned, they are now the ones who are angry about the proposals coming out of downing street and what may now happen in parliament. —— the ones who are more angry. chanting: stop the coup! both sides know these are decisive days. the brexiteers are wary of mps trying to delay it. what about the mp5, the so—called rebel mps? he'll deselect them. do you think that's right? absolutely, of course it is. you are going against democracy! you had a referendum. they don't understand, they are talking about a coup d'etat. i haven't seen any tanks on the lawn! the decisions they make inside will affect everyone out here and beyond, and with a possible election, it won'tjust be those on the streets who will have their say.

lucy manning, bbc news. well, this is what we're expecting here in westminster in the next few hours. the emergency debate on brexit is about to get under way. after that, sometime around iopm tonight, mps will vote on whether to take control of parliament tomorrow to extend the brexit deadline to at least january next year. we will, of course, have all the latest on that at 10pm. now let's join reeta for the rest of the day's news. the high—speed rail link hs2 could be delayed by five years — and cost tens of billions of pounds more than originally expected, the government said today. the line connecting london to birmingham, leeds, and manchester has been mired in controversy over rising costs and delays. initial services were due to start running between london and birmingham in 2026, but that could now be as late as 2031. here's our business editor simonjack. curzon street, birmingham,

a building site now, and due to operate high—speed trains to and from london in 2026. that service might be delayed by five years. the biggest infrastructure project in europe is years behind schedule and billions over budget. the first phase would see a high—speed link between london and birmingham, with a second phase connecting manchester and leeds. the original budget was £33 billion. that was revised up to £56 billion in 2015 and is now estimated it could cost up to 88 billion. £7 billion has already been spent. the government has asked a former boss of hs2 to conduct a full review of the costs and benefits. just because billions have already been spent doesn't mean this project's future is secure. there is no future in being secretive about it, we just need it all out there on the table, which is why

i put this report by alan cook the chairman in the house of commons library today and everyone can see what is going on and come to their own decisions. i asked doug ogilvy carrying out the review and he will tell us whether the costs match the benefits for this or not, and i start with an open mind on the situation. i'm on a train from london euston to birmingham new street and it's scheduled to take one hour 22 minutes. the plan is that hs2 would cut that journey time to 49 minutes, a saving of nearly half an hour. but it's not just about speed or in fact time. the rail lines between here and the south, the motorways, are very congested, and having a whole new line allows you to clear congestion out of the way give you extra capacity to allow the economic benefits to flow south to north and eventually east to west. that, at least, is that view of birmingham businesses, like this technology company near aston university.

the important thing is is the promise that it's coming, that means the bigger businesses are investing in the area and moving in, like hsbc, they are bringing the money with them that the smaller businesses like mine are able to benefit from. that argument doesn't wash with campaigners who say the government and the construction industry haven't been honest about the true costs, and the benefits are not widely shared. there is an absolute need for new infrastructure in this country, but it is not for the long distance point—to—point journeys that are the preserve of the business elite. what hs2 is is building a fast train for fat cats. the vast majority of commuters in this do short distance, inter— urban journeys. hs2 does nothing for them. the government promises rail links in the north will be improved whatever happens, but its flagship infrastructure project appears to be in the balance. simonjack, bbc news, birmingham. hurricane dorian has wreaked devastation on the bahamas, with the country's prime minister warning that parts of the islands are facing "a historic tragedy". thousands of homes have been destroyed. rescue efforts are just beginning, and while five people

are known to have died, further casualties are feared. the hurricane took more than 2a hours to pass over the islands. images from space show much of the north island of grand bahama has been engulfed and is under water. that includes the airport and the island's capital, free port. our north america correspondent aleem maqbool reports. it is staggering to think that this record—breaking hurricane has barely moved, devastating the same area for nearly 20 hours. these videos were the last posted by a mother named gertha jospeh as she sheltered with her baby at the very beginning of dorian's assault on the bahamas and give a sense of the conditions under which people were trying to ride out the storm. the roof‘s shaking and the roofs leaking so we just pray the roof

don't come off because that's all we have right now, we have nowhere to go. young and old congregating in the sturdiest building around, though even that had sustained damage. when the power went down the online posts stopped and people have since faced long terrifying hours of fierce winds, intense rainfall and massive ocean surges. we are in the midst of a historic tragedy in parts of northern bahamas. our mission and focus now is search, rescue and recovery. i ask for your prayers, for those in the affected areas and for our first responders. because the hurricane is moving so slowly it could still be a long time before help can get anywhere near the areas of grand bahama that have been affected. there are fears many may not have survived the night.

the queen has given a statement about the bahamas, and says she has been shocked and saddened in a statement given to the fahrmann government. rescue teams are searching for nine others who are missing. all but one of the six crew managed to escape byjumping off the vessel yesterday. policies to tackle climate change will be central to the scottish government's plans for the year ahead — so says the first minister, who earlier unveiled her programme for government.

policies to tackle climate change will be central to the scottish government's plans for the year ahead — so says the first minister, who earlier unveiled her programme for government. nicola sturgeon also condemned what she described as the "political and constitutional emergency that is engulfing the uk". here's our scotland editor, sarah smith. not exactly subtle, but it sends the desired message. nicola sturgeon wants you to know that she's in the driving seat, taking bold action on climate change, starting with green buses and other transport initiatives, she is promising to make scotland one of the worlds' first zero emissions countries. of course, nicola sturgeon knows all the attention is at westminster today but she rather likes that contrast. it means she can say she is delivering policies for government, whilst according to her, westminster is delivering nothing but chaos and confusion. we have the most ambitious climate change targets not just anywhere in the uk, but almost anywhere in the entire world. and then this global debate took a rather personal tone.

i think it is probably embarrassment that is making his face going a little bit red. not my skin tone again. listen, first minister, at least i've got a full head of my own naturally coloured hair. finally... all right, order please. he later apologised for being crass. how typical that the first minister's statement today both begins and ends with independence. it really is literally her be all and end all. the first minister did confirm that she will press ahead with plans for another independence referendum and says she welcomes an early general election, promising to put opposition to brexit at the heart of any campaign. sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh. prince harry has defended his use of privatejets, saying he needs to ensure that his family is safe. the duke of sussex and his wife have faced criticism after newspapers claimed they flew privately four times in 11 days over the summer. the prince was speaking in amsterdam

at the launch of a new global project to encourage the tourism industry to become more sustainable. england's cricketers are preparing for the fourth test in the ashes series against australia, which starts at old trafford tomorrow. england's dramatic win in the last test leaves the series tied at 1—1 with two matches remaining. our sports editor dan roan reports. whether the ball is in his hand or at his feet, england cricket's latest sensation can do no wrong. jofra archer and his team—mates in relaxed mood at old trafford this morning, and after a dramatic third test victory to keep the ashes alive, the pace bowler told me confidence is high. we've had really good momentum coming into this game. obviously because of last week, the amazing win, you know, winning it from nowhere. i know there has been a buzz in the camp and everyone is a

lot more happy. having qualified to play for england in march, the barbados born star's impact has been phenomenal, bowling the decisive over to clinch the world cup, appealing to a new generation of fans, and now spearheading his country's test attack. can you believe it sometimes?” country's test attack. can you believe it sometimes? i can believe it because it is what i sacrificed a lot for to have this opportunity, and a lot of people don't get the opportunity, so i'm very grateful. archer's searing pace was too much for australia's top run scorer steve smith at lord's, this blow forcing the batsmen to stick —— sit out the third test, but now smith is back from concussion and the duke —— defining rivalry of the series will continue. whatever delivery, whatever it takes to get him out, i am not going to get caught up in it. do you think he fears you because of what happened ? do you think he fears you because of what happened? i don't know. he is a tough nut. he came back to bat

anyway. i don't know and i'm not trying to scare him either. 96 mph, could you get up to 100 mph at some point? anything is possible. anything is possible. but as i said, i'm not here to throw every ball at 90, you have to put the ball in the right area. aged just 24, archer is set for a long and illustrious england career, but the next two test matches could cap his ultimate summer. time for a look at the weather. here's susan powell. and the distinct feeling that summer may be over. you are not wrong. in the next few days that's what's going to happen. it's going to start to feel more autumnal. today we have been setting in this amber coloured air which is from the atlantic, and relatively mild but through the next few days notice how the picture sta rts few days notice how the picture starts to change. we move into this yellow and then blew air mass, going

into a north—westerly air stream tomorrow and then a northerly airstream on thursday which brings us some arctic air, hence it will feel chillier and for tomorrow it will be pretty windy as well and some of us will see some heavy rain as well. this band of rain sinking south across the uk overnight tonight is a cold weather front and chillier air behind it with some of the rain heavy overnight for england and wales and sky is clear behind it, and showers come into scotland and northern ireland by the end of the night on the wind will strengthen. overnight, temperatures not alarming. the really cold air lies to north of this mash of showers which could turn out to be heavy and squally for parts of scotland, northern ireland and northern england through the day. the rain clears away from the south—east of england and the sunshine might look nice but it will feel chilly and the wind is strong and the numbers in the boxes behind me are the strength of the gusts, particularly notable in north and west scotland are maybe causing disruption. and look at that temperature in stornoway, barely

into double figures. but across the board, probably four or 5 degrees down where we have been today and with the wind you will notice that. then, if we look further ahead, you can see the weather system falls away to the east and high pressure tries to pushing and it will slacken the wind, but we are still essentially sat in that colder air stream, so perhaps with a lighter wind it will feel a little better but we are still on quite a chilly footing despite seeing more in the way of sunshine as we look to thursday. that's all from us. time to join the news teams where you are.

you're watching a bbc news special. as opposition parties and rebel conservatives are squaring up to the government in an attempt to seize control of proceedings so they can pass a law to stop no deal brexit. the prime minister has told mps in the commons to reject a bill that's aimed at preventing a no—deal brexit. that is what they want. to undermine our negotiations and force us to beg, force us to beg for yet another pointless delay! if that happens all the progress that we've been making will have been for nothing. senior conservative mps, including the former chancellor, are among those rebelling against the government.