a cabinet minister resigns from government on the day the general election campaign officially begins. alun cairns has stood down as welsh secretary, following claims that he knew about a former aide‘s role in the collapse of a rape trial. the prime minister has met the queen at buckingham palace to mark the start of campaigning for the election on december the 12th. i don't want an early election and no one much wants to have an election in december, but we have got to the stage where we have no choice because our parliament is paralysed. jeremy corbyn tells supporters the country will see real change if labour wins the election. i will be proud to be a labour prime minister, but i have to warn you,

it will be very different. it will be a very different way of doing things. we'll have the latest from the campaign trail. the other main stories this lunchtime... the climate campaign group extinction rebellion wins a legal challenge against the metropolitan police‘s ban on their protests in the capital. the man accused of murdering british backpacker grace millane goes on trial in new zealand. he claims her death was accidental. a big fall in profits at marks and spencer, down i7%, after a drop in demand for clothes and homeware. and coming up in the sport on bbc news. double olympic boxing champion nicola adams calls time on her career over fears she could lose her sight.

good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. in the last hour a cabinet minister has resigned from the government. alun cairns quit following claims he knew about a former aide‘s role in the collapse of a rape trial. it comes as borisjohnson met the queen to mark the dissolution of parliament formally beginning five weeks of campaigning. in the last few minutes, the prime minister has spoken in downing street, saying he has no choice but to hold an election, because parliament is paralysed. for labour, jeremy corbyn told supporters this morning that the country will see real change if his party wins on december 12th. our first report is from our political correspondent chris mason.

this is what the official start of a general election campaign looks like. the prime minister went to see the queen at buckingham palace this morning and then he made the most of the backdrop of what he still hopes to call home after polling day to make his pitch. i havejust to call home after polling day to make his pitch. i have just been to see her majesty the queen earlier on and she agreed to dissolve parliament for an election. i want you to know that i don't want an early election, no one much wants to have an election in december, but we have an election in december, but we have got to the stage where we have no choice because our parliament is paralysed, it has been stuck in a wrap for three and a half years, and iam afraid wrap for three and a half years, and i am afraid our mps arejust refusing time and again to deliver brexit and on the mandate of the people. if we can get this deal over the line, with a sensible majority government, we certainly can, then we can release that pent—up flood of

investment, hundreds of billions are waiting to pour into the uk and we can inject a surge of confidence into our system. but moments before, this, the prime minister's welsh secretary alun cairns resigning from the cabinet. he had denied he knew about a former aide's role in the sabotage of a retrial, but bbc wales discovered he had been e—mailed about it. he had been a cabinet minister for three about it. he had been a cabinet ministerfor three years about it. he had been a cabinet minister for three years and said he was confident he would be cleared of any wrongdoing. the conservatives have had a bumpy start to this campaign, not just this have had a bumpy start to this campaign, notjust this cabinet resignation, but being forced to defend a doctored video put out on social media and two of their politicians forced to apologise after remarks widely seen as crass about the grateful hour fire. they are now trying to focus on their big picture message, as are labour, as the two main candidates to be prime

minister slugged it out. jeremy corbyn has been in telford in shropshire, a must win seat for labour and shropshire, a must win seat for labourand said... shropshire, a must win seat for labour and said... i will be proud to bea labour and said... i will be proud to be a labour prime minister. but i have to warn you, it will be very different. it will be a very different. it will be a very different way of doing things. because i was not born to rule. he promised to scrap university tuition fees and rough sleeping, in work poverty and the need for food banks and added... judge us on whether we have built hundreds of thousands of genuinely affordable homes so that decent and secure housing is within the reach of everyone. judge us on whether patients are still waiting more than four hours in a&e departments and tens of thousands are waiting months for cancer treatment. judge us on whether we have got brexit sorted within six months by offering the people the

final say. who do you prefer? mr corbyn, mrjohnston or one of the other party leaders? it will be your call in five weeks' time. it will be your call in five weeks' time. let's talk about that resignation. our wales political editor felicity evans is in cardiff. explain why alun cairns has gone. 0k, well, back in april last year there was a rape trial in which a former aide to alan cairns, a man called ross england, was a witness. ross england's testimony ended up derailing the trial and the judge accused him of deliberately sabotaging it. eight months later in december last year the welsh conservatives selected mr england to bea conservatives selected mr england to be a candidate in the welsh assembly elections in 2021 with the endorsement of alan cairns. when we we re endorsement of alan cairns. when we were asking the welsh conservatives and alan kearns about when they knew about ross england's involvement in

the collapse of the trial, they suggested he had found out about his involvement only recently. then we discovered an e—mail sent to alan cairns in august of last year by his special adviser, four months before his selection under the endorsement of alan cairns, that told alun cairns and the director of the welsh conservatives some details about that collapsed trial. that is why alan cairns has decided to go today. he says he has done nothing wrong and he is confident an investigation will clear him. what will be the broader impact in wales? it is fair to say it leaves the conservative campaign in wales in disarray. alan cairns, as secretary of state, was supposed to be leading this campaign. he has resigned as secretary of state, though he is still fighting his constituency as a candidate. inevitably all of this will have damaged him and he will have his hands full simply fighting for his constituency. the big

question now is who is going to lead the welsh conservative election campaign? they had high hopes going into this, they were targeting several e—voting seats in the north—east of wales, but now how much does this impact on their chances of securing those seats? thank you very much, felicity evans with the latest in cardiff. we can speak to our assistant poltical correspondent norman smith in downing street. there were some difficult headlines around for the conservatives at the start of the day and yesterday and in the last hour and a big resignation. it has been a dismal, wretched, ragged 2a hours for the tory party when pretty much everything that could go wrong did go wrong, culminating with alan cairns walking the plankjust moments before boris johnson cairns walking the plankjust moments before borisjohnson had his podium moment setting out his pitch. that after the jacob rees mogg saga, that afterjohnson compared jeremy

corbyn to stalin. it reminded me of england's doomed world cup match in the rugby final against south africa where everything went wrong in the first four minutes, every scrum went backwards, it was a nightmare. so the task for boris johnson backwards, it was a nightmare. so the task for borisjohnson is to try and geta the task for borisjohnson is to try and get a grip of this campaign and thatis and get a grip of this campaign and that is what we have seen him doing this at lunchtime, trying to change the tone and direction and to get it back onto brexit. his big pitch is that nothing will happen until brexit is done and only he is going to get brexit done because if you vote jeremy corbyn to get brexit done because if you votejeremy corbyn he says you will be voting for two referendums, one on the eu and one on scotland. changing the tone, trying to find those elusive, sunlit uplands, talking about how business confidence will return, investment will flood in, there will be more cash for schools, the police and hospitals once brexit is over. jeremy corbyn has pounced on this

disarray by deliberately contrasting this morning his leadership with borisjohnson this morning his leadership with boris johnson and the this morning his leadership with borisjohnson and the tory style of leadership, they're born to rule attitude, saying his sort of leadership is to hold the door open for others, their leadership is to allow it to slam in the face of those following behind. what does it tell us? it tells us all those people who, with neat little grids about what is going to happen in the directors, tear them up, chuck them in the bin because anything can happen in the next weeks. 0h, in the bin because anything can happen in the next weeks. oh, yes! norman, thank you very much. norman, thanks for now but we're coming back to you at the end of the programme for a new strand we're running across bbc news called your questions answered. we will be taking questions from members of the audience about some of the nuts and bolts, the details of the nuts and bolts, the details of the nuts and bolts, the details of the election, and try to come up with some answers. don't worry, it

will not just be with some answers. don't worry, it will notjust be me doing that, we have got some of the big brains of the bbc‘s political research team and hopefully we will give you the right answers. we will take a look at some other election news. we will take a look at some other election news. liberal democrat leaderjo swinson has been campaigning in north london, pledging extra resources for mental health care if her party is in government. ms swinson said her party would invest £11 billion into mental health care as she launched her election battle bus campaign and visited a charity. the snp leader nicola sturgeon says demand for a scottish independence referendum will become "irresistible" if the snp wins the majority of scottish seats at the general election. speaking to the bbc this morning — scotland's first minister said she intended to hold another vote on independence next year and said the idea politicians at westminster can prevent a referendum is starting to "crumble". the brexit party leader nigel farage

has been campaigning in workington in cumbria this morning. he told a rally that borisjohnson's new deal with the eu was 95% the same as theresa may's deal, which was rejected by mps three times. he also said that labour would betray leave voters. the green party launched its election campaign this morning. it's pledging a major increase in spending on climate measures in order to end the use of carbon in the uk by 2030. 0ur reality check correspondent sophie hutchinson has been looking into the promises. well, yes, the green party insisted today that some things were "bigger than brexit" and that this election must be about the climate and they launched this ambitious plan. today i am proud to announce the green party will invest £100 billion a year into climate action over the next decade. so let's have a look at that. in total that's around a trillion

pounds in ten years, it's certainly a very large number. to put it in context, the annual cost would be similar to the whole of the education budget, which this year was £103 billion. so where would the money come from? well, they are proposing that 9% would come from tax changes, including a rise in corporation tax. and the rest, the vast majority needed would come from borrowing. this year we will borrow an estimated £55—billion pounds. but the green party would increase it to more than £140 billion a year, the highest level of borrowing since 2012 as a proportion of national income according to researchers at the institute for fiscal studies. the party are calling it a green new deal. it means decarbonising every single sector of the economy. energy, industry, agriculture, transport and housing. it is a rapidly growing out

renewable energy in britain so that we are net zero carbon by 2030. eliminating carbon by 2030 is 20 years sooner than the current uk target for net zero emissions, which many experts would regard as extremely ambitious. you can find more information online. throughout the election campaign, the bbc will be looking at key issues, explaining the policies that are being talked about and some that aren't. find the explainers at bbc.co.uk/news, or on the bbc news app. we will take a look at some of the other main stories. we will take a look at some of the other main stories. the climate activist group extinction rebellion has won a legal challenge against the metropolitan police, following the force's decision to ban the group protesting across the capital. lawyers acting for extinction rebellion say the met now faces claims for false imprisonment from potentially hundreds of protestors. richard lister has more.

what do we want? climate justice! the extinction rebellion autumn uprising shut down large sections of london last month and led to more than 1800 arrests. the protesters used tactics to stretch police resources to the limit and the police eventually responded by clearing the demonstrators' camps and using the public order act to declare the whole protest illegal. but the protesters took the police to court saying they had no right to shut them down. today two high court judges agreed saying, "separate gatherings, separated both in time and by many miles, even if coordinated under the umbrella of one body, are not the public assembly within the meaning of the public order act." and the police had acted unlawfully. we are delighted with today's result. it vindicates our belief that the police's blanket ban was an unprecedented and now unlawful infringement on our right to protest. it is a victory for those

who want to draw the government's attention to what scientists have been telling us for decades. metropolitan police figures show around 400 protesters were arrested after the ban was imposed. some may now be able to sue the police. among them, an mep. it's actually a really important case because it's about defending the right to assembly and public protest and those are fundamental cornerstones of a functioning democracy. so it's very important that we won today and i'm very happy. the police say their actions were reasonable and proportionate. but they accept the judgment. we are disappointed by the ruling but clearly we absolutely respect the court's decision and what we need to do now i think is in slow time carefully consider what it means for us and review our tactics in light of it. 0ur planet is in crisis... and extinction rebellion has not gone away. the actorjim carter is one of the celebrities in this new video campaign. but the ruling today means the next street protests will be

harder for police to stop. richard lister, bbc news. our top story this lunchtime... a cabinet minister resigns from government — on the day the general election campaign officially begins. and coming up, our assistant political editor norman smith will answer your questions about the election. and in the sport on bbc news. after premiership champions saracens were found to have breached salary cap rules, exeter‘s chief executive has called on them to be relegated. the bbc has learnt that evidence provided by groups known as paedophile hunters was used in more than 250 prosecutions last year — even though their techniques are considered controversial.

members of the groups pose as children online to lure and confront suspected child sex offenders — but, despite using their evidence, police have described them as vigilantes, whose activities could put child abuse investigations at risk. luxmy gopal reports. we are phoning the police. get off my phone! don't touch us! this is a sting by so—called paedophile hunters. 51—year—old christopher powell thought he was meeting a 14—year—old boy he had been messaging. it was actually the group predator exposure, posing as a child online, before confronting him. stand back! you are being detained! at leeds crown court he pleaded guilty to attempting to incite a boy to engage in sexual activity and was jailed for 32 months. figures obtained by the bbc show last year police forces across the country used evidence from such groups more than 250 times to prosecute suspects. but the relationship between police and paedophile hunters is an uneasy one.

some groups have been criticised for live streaming their stings on facebook, publicly naming and shaming their suspects before charges can be brought. why have you been speaking to what you believe to be a 13—year—old child ? stings including this confrontation in wakefield landed the group predator exposure in court accused of assault and false imprisonment. last week they were cleared of all charges. with the number of online child sex offences rising, they feel they are needed now more than ever. the police are never going to be able to tackle this. it's going to need people like us, unfortunately, there are bad people who do take an interest in your kids. and police aren't doing enough. i wish we didn't have to do it, but we do. call the police now! i'm under attack! but police say their stance on these groups remains unchanged. these are often very high octane, emotional situations. so there is risk involved

for the groups themselves. there is significant risk involved for the individuals that they are confronting. and also it might actually disrupt a wider undercover policing investigation that we've got. so the evidence needs to be brought to us and let us deal with it. only a minority of overall police investigations of child abuse involve help from paedophile hunters. but as long as police continue to use their evidence, these groups will argue they're not vigila ntes, but vital support in the fight against child predators. the man accused of murdering the british backpacker grace millane in new zealand last year has gone on trial in auckland. the court has heard that the suspect, who can't be named for legal reasons, went on a date with another woman, while grace millane's body was in a suitcase in his room. he denies murder and claims her death was accidental. 0ur correspondent phil mercer reports. grace millane came to new zealand for the adventure of a lifetime. but on the eve of her 22nd birthday, she disappeared. on wednesday, grace's parents

arrived at the high court in auckland to find out what happened to her. in the dock, accused of murder, a 27—year—old man who, for legal reasons, we can't identify. the jury heard that the couple met through an online dating app and went drinking. grace millane went back with the defendant to his apartment. she died there. prosecutors say she was strangled in this city centre building. a week later, her contorted body was found stuffed in a suitcase in a shallow grave. only two people know what happened in that room. one of them can't tell us. and the other one hasn't told the truth about what happened. prosecutors allege the next day the defendant went on a date with another woman while the body of grace millane was still in his apartment. lawyers say this has shown his utter

disregard for the life of the young english woman. the defence, however, has a different story. it believes miss millane's death was accidental. defence lawyers argue it was a sex game that went wrong. miss millane died as a result of what they consensually engaged in during their time together. so while his actions may have caused her death, he is also not to blame, although he may blame himself. and he is certainly not criminally responsible. grace millane's death last year shocked new zealand. the judge has warned the jury to ignore the publicity surrounding the case. today the court heard a poignant statement from grace's father david. he said she was a gregarious young woman who chose her friends carefully. the trial is expected to run for at least a month. phil mercer, bbc news, auckland.

police have made one arrest, following the death of three adults and six children in northern mexico. the group was travelling in a convoy of vehicles which is believed to have been attacked by a suspected drugs cartel. all those who died were dual us—mexican citizens. 0ur correspondent will grant sent this report. this grisly video, taken by a distraught family member, shows the extent of the violent attack on the lebaron mormon family. three women and their children murdered as they travelled between their community settlements in northern mexico. a family portrait has emerged of one of the victims, rhonita maria lebaron, and her children, several of whom were killed, including the babies in arms. the staged photograph now a chilling reminder of the disregard the cartel gunmen had for their victims‘ lives. helpless families are being

innocently killed down there. these are us citizens. it's notjust got caught in gunfire at the wrong place at the wrong time, this was a whole new level of cartel violence. with the victims us citizens, president trump was quick to tweet his response. calling on mexico to request us help in cleaning out these monsters. "this is the time for mexico, with the help of the united states, to wage war on the drug cartels and wipe them off the face of the earth," he wrote. from the increasingly beleaguered mexican president, it was a polite thanks, but no thanks. translation: we have all the cooperation we need now. i'm going to tell president trump, thank you very much, and see how they can help, while preserving our sovereignty as they do, and as all countries do. president lopez obrador insists he won't be drawn back into a protracted war against the country's drug gangs, one which has little chance of ever

reaching a clear resolution. however on recent evidence, mexico is still embroiled in one, whether he likes it or not. will grant, bbc news. marks and spencer has announced a drop in its profits for the first half of its financial year, because of a fall in sales of clothing and home goods. pre—tax profits were down by 17% to £176 million. our business correspondent susannah streeter is with me. it sounds like a lot. if you include the third division it is not as bad as it sounds because food grew in the first six months of the financial year. prices were reduced on hundreds of products and then introduced new ranges and that approach seems to be paying off. but home and clothing lines seem to be in disarray and it seems marks & spencer is not getting the basics

right. the chief executive said the decline of 5.5% on light clothing sales was partly due supply problems. online and in—store doubt which is not enough popular sizes for the popular products and that is key when you face tough competition online. and so is there a plan to deal with that? marks & spencer is already in a two year turnaround plan but the boss says that is starting to bear fruit and the winter clothing range has been popular, much more popular because it isa popular, much more popular because it is a better value product, he says. it is also introducing a by now but pay later instalment next month on its website for certain goods and that it hopes will attract a younger customer in the key christmas period. susannah streeter, thank you. a former quality control engineer at boeing has told the bbc that passengers flying on the company's

787 dreamlinerjet could be left without vital oxygen, if the cabin suffered a sudden decompression. john barnett says tests have suggested a quarter of the emergency oxygen systems might be faulty. boeing says it has identified some defective oxygen bottles, but insists they've been removed. the british olympic champion nicola adams has announced her retirement from boxing because she's worried she may lose her sight. in an open letter to her local newspaper, the 37—year—old said she'd been warned by medics that any further impact to her eye could lead to irreperable damage. nicola adams became the first female olympic champion when she won gold at london 2012. she turned professional in 2017 and is the wbo world flyweight champion. in a moment we'll have more on our top story and answer some of your questions about the election but first it is time for a look at the weather. here's ben rich.

you will have noticed that chilled this morning no doubt. parts of scotla nd this morning no doubt. parts of scotland down below minus four degrees. but that meant plenty of crisp sunny scenes in many places. we did have some clouds around and it has generally been turning cloudy across the western side of the uk. that has brought some outbreaks of showers and will continue to do so through the afternoon. the best of the brightness across eastern and south—eastern england. further west you can see the showers living in. through this evening and tonight there's first band of showers drifting across northern england and

into scotland. some of the showers wintry across higher ground in scotland. and then there is a second band could cause some problems tomorrow. temperatures tomorrow not quite as low as today. but this band of quite heavy rain is going to become quite slow—moving during tomorrow. still some uncertainty as tomorrow. still some uncertainty as to where exactly it will be but it looks like parts of north wales, north midlands, east anglia and northern england, up to a0 millimetres of rain. that could lead to some localised flooding and travel problems. to the south of that some sunny spells but thundery showers. sunshine and showers across northern ireland and scotland. and for temperatures, just seven, 10 degrees, slightly below what we would expect at the time of year. the rain lingering for a time across

northern england and moving south—east through into friday as low pressure starts to clear away. brighter skies developing further north and west with some spells of sunshine. we stayed in that rather chilly air. 7 degrees for newcastle, 10 degrees in cardiff. quite a cold night on friday night with some frost and freezing fog patches. another change on saturday, some pretty wet weather and maybe some snow over higher ground in the north. time now for a new feature on bbc news to address specific questions you have about the upcoming general election. so let's return to norman for our first your questions answered. norman, what can you tell us?

well i have