boris johnson denies lying to the queen over the government's reasons for suspending parliament. did you lie to the queen when you advised her to prorogue, to suspend parliament? absolutely not. his comments came after scotland's highest civil court ruled yesterday that the shutdown was unlawful. the prime minister also said there was a "landing space" for a deal with the eu, and that published plans for a no—deal brexit were just "sensible". labour said it will go on calling for parliament to be recalled, so that it can question ministers — we'll bring you all the latest. also this lunchtime... the number of people convicted of rape in england and wales falls to its lowest level on record. ooh, that was good. the fun of gaming — but how to protect children from addiction? mps want video companies to do more.

and england's batsmen are put to the test — in the first day of the final match of the ashes at the oval. and in sport later in the hour on bbc news, gareth southgate reveals his fears that his players could be racially abused during their euro qualifier in bulgaria next month. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. borisjohnson, in his first media interviews since parliament was suspended in the early hours of tuesday morning, has denied lying to the queen over the move, saying claims it was done to silence parliament were absolutely not true. he was responding to the ruling

by the court of session in edinburgh yesterday, which said the suspension or proroguing of parliament was unlawful, and motivated by the "improper purpose of stymieing parliament." mrjohnson said he wasn't going to quarrel with the judges, but that the supreme court would give the finaljudgment on the issue next week. labour said it would continue to press the government to recall parliament, so that it could properly interrogate ministers. by the "improper purpose of stymieing parliament." the prime minister also said he was confident of getting a deal with the eu, and that the publication yesterday of the government's contingency plans for no—deal were "sensible preparations." we'll have more on that in a moment, but first here's our political correspondentjessica parker. the prime minister in london to talk shipbuilding. he hopes his brexit plans won't be sunk. could no—deal

planning documents that raise the possibilities of protests, a decrease in some foods and a disruption to medical supplies steer him off course? what you are looking at here is the sensible preparations, the worst—case scenario that you would expect any government to do. in reality we will certainly be ready for a no—deal brexit if we have to do it, and i stress again that is not where we intend to end up. it comes after scotland's highest civil court ruled the advice of the queen on the suspension of parliament was unlawful, raising questions over whether boris johnson unlawful, raising questions over whether borisjohnson misled the monarch. there is going to be a further adjudication by the supreme court and we should wait and see what they say. did you lie to the queen when you advised her to prorogue to suspend parliament? absolutely not. downing street

insisted prorogation is the routine run up to a queen's speech, yesterday judges run up to a queen's speech, yesterdayjudges said it actually had the improper purpose of stymieing parliament and unhappy mps say they have plenty of questions about the no—deal yellowhammer documents. that's why we are so angry that parliament was prorogued because i should be in parliament with the ability to interrogate the prime minister and ministers. warnings about the impact of a no—deal brexit have at times been dismissed as project fear but these are government assessments so hard to downplay, and for those mps against a no—deal departure but for the recall of parliament, these papers provide extra ammunition. that is the thing about yellowhammer today, which is we have to remember the government has suspended parliament, silenced the elected representatives so that they are not going to be scrutinised in the way they would have been in parliament if parliament had been, as it should

be today, still setting. mps who don't quite go in for this military discipline forced boris johnson to publish these no—deal assessments. could the supreme court next week force him to recall parliament? the captain ofa force him to recall parliament? the captain of a ship is not always in control. jessica parker, bbc news. our assistant political editor norman smith is at westminster. how much difficulty is the prime minister in, do you think?“ how much difficulty is the prime minister in, do you think? if you had a usual prime minister who had been accused overnight of misleading mps, of breaking the law, having been forced to publish a government report warning of riots and food shortages and telling porkies to the queen, he would imagine they would emerge broken, humbled crushed individual. not so borisjohnson. he emerged characteristically brimming with optimism and confidence.

no—deal, he insisted he had got in place the necessary preparations to avoid the sort of dire scenarios forecast. an agreement with the eu, yes he was hopeful of getting one, and telling lies to the queen? absolutely not. but optimism and confidence only get you so far. mps wa nt confidence only get you so far. mps want details about what he's actually doing to avoid the sort of grim no—dealforecast to actually doing to avoid the sort of grim no—deal forecast to get an arrangement with the eu and they wa nt arrangement with the eu and they want details or the truth about why he chose to prorogue parliament, which means if thejudges decide on tuesday that parliament should be recalled, then i suspect boris johnson is going to need an awful lot more than bullish bravado. norman, many thanks. norman smith. well, borisjohnson said the government plans for dealing with a no—deal brexit, as laid out yesterday in the operation yellowhammer report, were for a worst case scenario. with more, here's our

business editor simonjack. the summary of the government's no—deal brexit planning is only five pages long but it makes for startling reading. the trouble starts at the ports. in a reasonable worst case scenario, lorries could be delayed at the ports for up to two—and—a—half days with significant disruption lasting up to six months. that would hit supplies of fuel and fresh food, resulting in reduced availability, choice and higher prices. panic buying could make matters worse. both these effects would see low income groups hit hardest. three quarters of uk medicines and medical supplies come via short crossings such as dover and are described particularly vulnerable to port delays. the document also contemplates civil disorder with protests and counter protests and says there may be clashes between fishing vessels which would be suddenly illegally

fishing in each others waters. the government says no—deal planning has accelerated in the six weeks since this document was produced. to be clear, this is not a prediction — much will depend on how well businesses are prepared and how the eu reacts in a no—deal situation. but it does not deny that these scenarios are plausible. the government said it still hopes to secure a deal. parliament has passed legislation to prevent no—deal, but official policy says it is prepared to leave without one. this document sows some doubt that the uk is prepared for what that might mean. the president of the european parliament says the eu would not accept any brexit deal without an irish backstop and that the uk hasn't provided any alternatives yet. let's speak to our europe correspondent damian grammaticas. borisjohnson was again confident today about getting a deal, but that's not by the sound of it being echoed in brussels? no, absolutely not. this is

interesting because this is the president of the european parliament here who had just come out of a briefing on the latest state of play in the negotiations given to him by michel barnier. he said there was nothing on the table to talk about. he said a deal could only be done with a backstop in the eu because view, he said that could not be clearer, and if the uk didn't want to talk about that then there was nothing to talk about but he said there was nothing on the table and there's a resolution being drafted for next week which is very pointed. it says, despite the claims by some in the uk government that alternatives exist... and boris johnson has said that... they say there is nothing in there to discuss. the president of the european parliament went on to say that a no—deal would be entirely the

fault of the uk, but after no deal, the european parliament drawing this clear line and insisting, they will be no progress in any negotiations u nless be no progress in any negotiations unless the uk deals with the irish border, citizens' rights and its financial obligations and there would be no future trade deals either unless the uk agrees to fair competition, level playing field clauses. i'm sure we will see this repeated next week from the parliament as a whole. 0k, many thanks. the number of people investigated for rape who were later convicted of a sexual offence has fallen to its lowest level since records began more than a decade ago. the latest figures show there were fewer than 2,000 convictions across england and wales in the year to the end of march — down by more than a quarter on the previous year. the number and proportion of suspects who were charged has also dropped dramatically. our home affairs correspondent june kelly reports. phone messages and social media have become a big part of rape investigations.

complainants are being asked to hand over their phones, as the police search for digital evidence. rebecca says that after she was raped, she had some seemingly normal whatsapp exchanges with her attacker. this was because she was trying not to make him angry as he had punched her and threatened her with a knife. but she was told that the messages could be misinterpreted by a jury — and the man, who she learned had a history of violence against women, wasn't prosecuted. learning that decision was absolutely devastating. how did you feel when you learned that? somewhere between absolutely broken to absolutely livid as well. it was, hang on a minute, you've let him out, based on a really weak reason. the latest annual figures for england and wales show that prosecutions now stand at 3,034, a drop of nearly a third.

convictions are down to 1,925. this is a fall of more than a quarter. and referrals from the police stand at 3,375. this figure is down by over a fifth. so, hard evidence that fewer suspects are being brought to court by the crown prosecution service. campaigners are accusing prosecutors of screening out the tougher cases. not true, says the director of public prosecutions. well, it would be quite wrong, wouldn't it, to make a serious decision that impacts on somebody‘s life in that sort of way — and we don't. as a matter of policy, we apply the same test to every kind of crime, whether it's rape and sexual violence or any other sort of crime. there is a huge justice gap for complainants of rape. and what that also says is that if you're a rapist, you can continue your offending with impunity, because the likelihood of you being held to account in the courts is minuscule.

rebecca was told by a specially—trained rape lawyer that her case wasn't going to court. it's a conversation she remembers well. he's raped somebody, they've come forward, there is so much evidence there, you've let a known rapist go. i've said that to her, and she shrugged. she went, "i've heard worse." rebecca says she was left suicidal by her experience, and she is unsure whether she would advise other complainants to come forward. meanwhile, the crown prosecution service says it will now ask a watchdog to review its work. and june is here with me now. very distressing and worrying testimony from that person, and the figures overall are worrying. that's right, this is all about public confidence in this morning the director of public prosecutions, max hill, said, if i were a victim i

would be worried about these figures, so that shows you the challenge he knows his organisation is facing. it is true rape investigations have become more complex, because of the amount of potential evidence on people's phones and any relevant evidence has to be disclosed to the offence. this isa to be disclosed to the offence. this is a big issue and it has stopped some rape trials. nevertheless some women's groups even before the figures today were involved in legal action against the cps about what they maintain is a change of approach by prosecutors. they say prosecutors are now trying to second—guessjuries prosecutors are now trying to second—guess juries and going for what they call a bookmakers approach. the director of public prosecutions has vehemently denied that this morning saying it is not the case, but meanwhile he has ordered this review of how his teams are doing and has also said the figures in future will be published quarterly rather than annually so we will have a clearer picture of what the situation is. june, many thanks.

a new study shows cancer survival in the uk is improving but that it lags behind that of other wealthy countries. the research looked at five—year survival rates, and found they were worse in the uk than in australia, canada and ireland. our health correspondent, dominic hughes, reports. for some years now, the uk has lagged behind other developed countries when it comes to treating cancer. the gap is closing with definite signs of improvement, but the latest research shows there's no room for complacency. we know that we don't have enough radiologists, we don't have enough endoscopists and we don't have enough of the pathologists that read the tests, and so we have something of a bottleneck in the nhs to be able to get people through the system. and this can make our gps slightly more reluctant to refer at the earliest possible opportunity when there is this bottleneck in the system. the latest data looks at survival rates for seven of the most common cancers in seven high—income countries with similar healthcare systems. the uk was at the foot of the league

table in five of the seven cancers, including pancreatic cancer, where less than 8% survived five years after diagnosis. in australia the five—year survival rate was close to 15%. faster diagnosis and swifter treatment are the key to better results, and unions say that means more specialist staff trained to identify and treat cancer. we do think there needs to be a focus on specialist nursing and continuing professional development, investment in that, and also time given so once we've got the numbers we can spend time developing them into specialist roles so they can contribute fully to the service delivery. the government points to cancer survival rates in the uk that are now at a record high. and analysts have welcomed nhs england's plan for the coming years which targets the improvement of cancer services. some of the measures in there do line up with some of the things that studies suggest may be behind the uk's poor performance.

so those will be things like speed to starting diagnosis, picking up all the symptoms that might lead you to that suspicion that there's something that needs to be looked at there again. i think those probably are along the right tracks. because these statistics take a while come through, it may be some time before we really know where they work on. the uk's record on treating cancer is getting better, but today's figures show there is still a long way to go. dominic hughes, bbc news. two life—changing drugs will be made available to about 400 cystic fibrosis patients in scotland. the drugs help to improve the health of lungs, but cost about £100,000 per patient per year. our health editor hugh pym is here — the nhs in scotland rejected their use just a month ago, so what's happened now? well, the nhs cost regulator in scotla nd well, the nhs cost regulator in scotland and the equivalent in england both rejected these drugs on

cost grounds, orkambi and symkevi, saying they aren't cost—effective. what's happened in scotland is the scottish government has said we will still fund them for five years and then allow the cost regulator to have another look to see how effective they are. they will now be available to 400 patients in scotland, most of whom were not able to get the drugs up until now. that's been widely welcomed by families of patients and campaigners, saying it is a landmark moment. these drugs onto kia but they certainly helped to slow the decline in lung function associated with cystic fibrosis. now the spotlight is on the rest of the uk where these drugs aren't available. the situation in england is decisions are made by nice and talks with the manufacturer, the american company, have stalled. they haven't really gone anywhere and nice

haven't had a new proposal. the nhs in england say they are trying very ha rd to in england say they are trying very hard to come up with a deal but they haven't really got very far and they are saying they have to look at what clinical cost experts at nice site is cost—effective. it raises big questions. patients and their families will want these drugs and say it makes a big difference to their lives but cost experts and the nhs have to say what is affordable. the pressure will be on westminster to make a decision for england. the health secretary matt hancock has called in the manufacturerfor health secretary matt hancock has called in the manufacturer for more talks but certainly scotland had moved ahead of the rest of the uk in making these important medicines available to patients. thank you. the time isi:20. our top story this lunchtime. boris johnson denies lying to the queen over the government's reasons for suspending parliament.

still to come, the ashes and may be heading down under but england have had a good morning. coming up in the sport in the next 15 minutes on bbc news, we'll have the latest from the oval as england make a very predictable start to the final ashes test. syria's last sanctuary for opponents of president assad — the city of idlib — has been under intense attack from government forces and their russian allies for months. idlib is controlled by militant jihadist groups, but it's also home to hundreds of thousands of refugees, many of them children. there is a tentative ceasefire at the moment, but the un has accused the syrian regime of conducting a brutal campaign of bombardment — targetting civilians, our middle east correspondent quentin somerville and cameraman darren conway have been to the shattered city and have sent this report. this is a war against everything

that matters to the people of idlib. their homes are attacked, their schools are attacked, their hospitals are attacked. this was a hospital, it was last hit two weeks ago. just look at the destruction. but also, for a moment, just look around. this is the only building that was targeted here — targeting civilians is a war crime, but it's also very effective. because here now, for miles around, there's no—one — they've all fled. the strikes have been precise... ..deadly, and relentless. this hospital is at a secret location. they've had to dig down deep into the solid rock to avoid russian and regime bombs. since april, about 40 hospitals have

been targeted in idlib now. that's a war crime. but this isn'tjust a warfrom the air — it's also a war from the ground, and the worry is regime troops are getting closer here. if they advance another few kilometres, then this hospital will be lost too. they dug down here two years ago, and despite the regime's advance, this hospital is still operating. the rest in the area are gone. they'll keep treating the war—wounded and the sick until they're in range of government shells. child cries. why have you had to build this hospital underground? translation: it is because of repeated russian and syrian air strikes. they have repeatedly targeted us, and life around us in general. they have targeted schools and clinics.

we couldn't treat people out in the open anymore. we weren't secure and our patients weren't safe. this is atma charity hospital, and they're doing an incrediblejob here. it's both a field hospital and a general hospital, and it sees up to 1,000 patients every single day — and it does that with only 12 doctors. the attacks on hospitals all across idlib means that places like this are under more pressure than ever before. and it comes at a time when this war is over eight years old, and the international community is losing interest, so in idlib's most desperate hour of need its people are being left wanting. quentin sommerville reporting from idlib. the john lewis partnership, which owns the department store chain and waitrose, has announced a loss of nearly £26 million in the first half of the year. it said trading conditions had been difficult, with what it called

"soft" consumer demand for home goods and electrical items. the company was also concerned that a possible no—deal brexit could have an impact on fresh food supplies. a group led by the engineering firm, babcock, has won the contract to build five new royal navy frigates. the deal is worth £1.25 billion and will secure 2,500 jobs at the firm's base at rosyth and across the uk, and gives a lifeline to the threatened harland and wolfe shipyard in belfast. mps are calling on video game companies to protect young people from addiction. the culture committee is recommending that a feature known as "loot boxes" — where players pay real money for the chance of winning virtual goods — should not be sold to children. here's our technology correspondent, rory cellan—jones. do you think i'm good? like three quarters of all 5 to 15—year—olds, jake and aiden are keen gamers. woo!

they admit that, at times, playing games like fortnite has gotten really addictive. it was fun and it felt, it had a good feeling, and it could really hook you on to it, and it was just fun in general. it can also get expensive. aiden once managed to spend £30 on in—game extras before his mum realised. she thinks the games firms need to provide more information. you just buy the box, and you connect it to the tv and then that's it. there's no sort of, like... well, maybe there is, but i don't remember it, a big introduction about, you know, if your child is this age, and this is what you can do, and this is what might happen. i don't know. now, mps are calling for action on what are called loot boxes, where gamers pay real money for virtual goods, such as packs of star players in fifa. they want a ban on selling them to children when there

is an element of chance involved. some of the spending is also a form of gambling, we believe, in that people, rather than just purchasing items, are asked to spend some money to gamble that they might then get a new player for a football game, or some tool for a game that they're playing, like fortnite, which will help their play, and we think that is probably inappropriate that children should be able to gamble on games in that way. they can't gamble elsewhere. the mps say the companies behind games like fifa and fortnite hadn't even done any research into the potential harm they might cause. they said it was unacceptable that companies with millions of users, many of them children, should be so ill—equipped to discuss the impact of their products. but the games industry insists it does behave responsibly. the games industry always has and continues to take the welfare of players really, really seriously. we care deeply about player experience. we want players to play safely. we want them to play in a balanced way. we provide technical

settings technical measures. we provide education, robust age ratings and guidance and information sources. aiden and jake do have other interests, like building model aircraft. but the mps say, for some young people, games can become an addictive and costly obsession, and they need protection. rory—cellan jones, bbc news. the top gear presenter andrew flintoff has said he is "absolutely fine" after an incident involving a three—wheeled motorcycle. the former england cricketer is understood to have "run out of runway" at elvington airfield near york — while filming a race for the motoring show. it's though he was unhurt and did not need medical attention. the ashes may be lost, but there is still a chance for england's cricketers to square the series against australia in the last test match of the summer at the oval. having been put in to bat, england were 86—1 at lunch. joe wilson reports.

keep going, captain. as long as there is the strength to lift a pen and sun in the september sky, there is cricket. it ain't over till the oval. fifth test, over the road. to end the series here, 2—2 sounds a lot better than losing it 3—1. england were asked to bat first. rory burns got the ball rolling. maybe australia have been the better team in the ashes, but maybe england could be the better team today — that's what they were hoping. joe denly opening the batting. well, he was still going, which was more thanjason roy, who'd been dropped for this match. it is tough to feel secure in test cricket. burns still watching, still thinking, and sometimes leaving. that's fine. butjoe denly couldn't help it. an edge, a catch, gone for 14. but look at thejuggling. steve smith even makes his catches last as long as possible! shane was trying to prolong his gum. well, bubbles always burst eventually. there was england's captain.

joe root would be encouraged by the crowd for any run, anything, but the biggest roars came for australia's fielder. root virtually placed the ball in peter siddle's hands, and down. now this is the kind of juggling act that appeals to this particular circus. no hiding place. they even spotted it on the rooftops. australia's captain could hardly criticise because, minutes later, he dropped root too. tim paine is his name. england will resume shortly on 86—1. england's captain has seemed pretty weary at the oval and you can understand it, it's been a very long summerfor understand it, it's been a very long summer for england's cricketers. think back to the world cup and all

that excitement. whatjoe root might be thinking right now is he's had a bit of luck and that it's better late than never. studio: thank you. time for a look at the weather. before we start with the weather forecast i will quickly show you this clip from the south—east of spain. some dramatic scenes. we seen torrential downpours thanks to a slow—moving area of low pressure. we've seen scenes like this, this one is a river in valencia. we've seen a large amount of rain in a short space of time. one area recorded 280 millimetres, the average around 100. there are severe weather warnings in place and we will keep you across that. if we ta ke will keep you across that. if we take a look at the weather across the uk today we've got this area of low pressure. it contains the re m na nts of low pressure. it contains the remnants of tropical storm gabrielle. ahead of the weather

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