prince harry speaks out for the first time since deciding to stand down from royal duties — telling of his "great sadness" but insisting he had no other option. he described stepping back from being a senior royal as a leap of faith — and made clear that he and meghan had hoped to continue serving the queen but it wasn't possible. i want you to hear the truth from me, as much as i can share, not as a prince or a duke, but as harry. the same person that many of you have watched grow up over the last 35 years. we'll bring you all the latest from our correspondent. also this lunchtime. a leaked report of a government review of the high—speed rail link hsz hs2 could end up costing as much as £106 billion, says a leaked report ofa £106 billion, says a leaked report of a government review. a murder investigation starts

in north—east london after three men were stabbed to death last night — two men have been arrested. the bbc director—general lord hall announces he is to step down in the summer after seven years in the job. and their biggest away win in more than nine years — england take the third test against south africa by an innings and 53 runs. and coming up on bbc news, the american teenager coco gauff‘s name is once again up in lights after knocking out venus williams in the first round of the australian open. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. prince harry has spoken publicly of his "great sadness" at stepping down as a front—line member

of the royal family, after a weekend in which buckingham palace announced the terms on which he and meghan will withdraw from royal duties. speaking last night at a function for his charity sentabale — the duke of sussex said the decision to step back was a leap of faith but insisted that he and his wife, meghan, had been left with no other option. prince harry said he loved the uk and had hoped to continue serving the queen — without public funding — but that it wasn't possible. our royal correspondent daniela relph reports. back on royal duty, for now. the duke of sussex arrived for meetings with african leaders at a summit in london this morning. are you looking forward to the next chapter? he also met the prime minister, and took pa rt met the prime minister, and took part in meetings about the links between the uk and africa, but said nothing publicly. he was more forthcoming last night. at a private dinner for forthcoming last night. at a private dinnerfor his forthcoming last night. at a private dinner for his sentabale charity, he was clearly at ease with guests that included the singer lewis capaldi. it was here that he chose to speak

publicly for the first time about the decisions he is now made.” publicly for the first time about the decisions he is now made. i want you to hear the truth from me, as much as i can share. not as a prince 01’ much as i can share. not as a prince ora duke, but much as i can share. not as a prince or a duke, but as harry, the same person that many of you have watched grow up over the last 35 years, now with a clearer perspective. the uk is my home. and a place that i love. that will never change. i have grown up that will never change. i have grown up feeling supported from so many of you, andi up feeling supported from so many of you, and i have watched, as you welcomed megan —— meghan with open arms, asi welcomed megan —— meghan with open arms, as i found the happiness i had wished for all my life. finally, the second son of diana got hitched. hooray. the speech was personal, with strong hints of disappointment and perhaps frustration. what i want to make clear is that we are not walking away, and we are certainly not walking away from you. our hope

was to continue serving the queen, the commonwealth and my military associations, but without public funding. unfortunately, that wasn't possible. i have accepted this, knowing that it doesn't change who i am 01’ knowing that it doesn't change who i am or how committed i am. but i hope that helps you understand what it had come to. that i would step my family back from all i have ever known, to take a step forward into what i hope will be a more peaceful life. why not go for those with harry yesterday, there was strong support for the decisions he's made. whether he is called the duke, hrh, orjust harry, he can talk on this issue and do a lot of good for us and for the children that our charity tries to serve. harry said it was his choice to step away from royal life, describing it as the only option. he and meghan now have

a year to make a success of it, free from the constraints of royal duty. in12 from the constraints of royal duty. in 12 months, there will be a review of how it has been working.” in 12 months, there will be a review of how it has been working. i think what is really interesting about the agreement that has been reached is that the queen has very wisely left as many doors open as possible. everything is going to be subject to this 12 month review. so, a lot of this 12 month review. so, a lot of this is going to be wait and see. there are so many unresolved, unknown unknowns in this. harry could not have made it any clearer that this is not the solution he wanted. soon, he will return to canada, to his wife and baby son, where he hopes he can leave a more private life with greater freedom. but will they get the privacy and freedom they crave? the talk is of commercial deals, setting up a production company, becoming brand ambassadors. harry has described this new way of working and living asa this new way of working and living as a leap of faith.

hs2, the high—speed rail link between london and the north of england, could cost up to £106 billion — that's more than three times its original estimated cost, according to a review commissioned by the government. the report, which has been seen by the financial times, also recommends that work on the second phase of the railway, linking birmingham to manchester and leeds, should be paused for six months to consider a mix of conventional and high—speed lines instead. our business correspondent coletta smith reports. going nowhere quickly. yet another pause has been recommended for trains in the north of england. today's leaked hs2 review not only suggest that the final price tag could be bigger than the education budget, at £106 billion, but that it is another amber light for the line when it reaches birmingham. it was supposed to split at that point, with two branches heading to

manchester and leeds. but this review suggests finding out if a mix of high speed unconventional trains could be used for the upper sections instead. london on the south gets whatever it wants, and then it is all about a penny pinching in the north. i would say this to the prime minister and the government might 90, minister and the government might go, this is yourfirst big test minister and the government might go, this is your first big test of your commitment to the north of england. we are watching very closely. you know, in my mind, there is no justification at all for doing one thing between london and birmingham and then doing something different in the north. business leaders in the north are chomping at the bit for better connections, and are already planning extra spending. in many respects, it will be better for some of the other cities, as opposed to manchester. if you look at leeds, sheffield, liverpool, they probably have more to gain than manchester. the service to the capitalfrom manchester. the service to the capital from manchester is already good, and manchester has been a massive success good, and manchester has been a massive success story good, and manchester has been a massive success story over good, and manchester has been a massive success story over the last ten years. i think leeds, sheffield

and others will benefit from the opening up of the north, very short train journeys into the capital. the prime minister is under pressure. many of his own mps think the money would be better spent on quicker, smaller projects. it drags more economic activity down to london, more people, more commuters, it feeds london and the places left behind will be even further left behind. the argument to push on with the project isn't about pushing speed of connections to london, it's about taking pressure off the existing system, restocking commuter trains and allowing the government back to get on with the next phase of development, high—speed trains across the north of england. each new review has raised the price tag, and it is sitting at three times the original estimate. the government will make its final decision within weeks. the bbc director—general, lord hall has announced that he's stepping down in the summer,

after seven years in the job. he said he loved the corporation, but that he wanted his successor to be able to lead it through a formal review in two years time. our media editor amol rajan is here. he has been director—general of the bbc since the end of 2012. how effective has he been?” bbc since the end of 2012. how effective has he been? i think he's been pretty effective. if you go back to 2012, he entered a bbc in a state of crisis, following scandals overjimmy savile, lord mcalpine, his predecessor lifted 5a days in thejob. his task his predecessor lifted 5a days in the job. his task was to steady the ship and that was his first chapter. then became the important second chapter, where he argued for a negotiated with the government for a new royal charter, and, more recently, the third chapter, he has tried very hard to reshape the bbc to ta ke tried very hard to reshape the bbc to take on the enormous challenge of streaming giants. actually, he had some criticism for not being tough in the negotiations with the government, but in fairness with him, in recent years, he has done quite a lot more than he is credited for in trying to make the bbc

iplayer on the 21st century. what are the challenges for whoever succeeds him? absolutely enormous. internal challenges, including equal pgy- internal challenges, including equal pay. that could have got significant be worse for the bbc, following the journalist samira ahmed's victory in the tribunal over equal pay. that is an internal, managerial issue. there are two enormous external challenges. the first is political. the next director—general will have to make the case for the existence of the licence fee, to a conservative majority government whose leadership are public to question whether the licence fee should exist. that will be a big political argument. the second is the commercial thing. these streaming giants, amazon, disney, netflix, apple, pouring billions into global entertainment. it is ha rd into global entertainment. it is hard for the bbc to compete in a new world. the next director—general will have to combine political charm and negotiating skills with commercial nous, and the ability to manage thousands of staff. the perfect candidate will do all of those things, so the perfect

candidate, sadly, probably doesn't exist! many thanks. two men, aged 29 and 39, have been arrested on suspicion of murder after three men were stabbed to death after a fight involving two groups of men in the ilford area of north—east london. the police say that those involved were known to each other and within the sikh community. dan johnson reports. a sunday night on an e. london st. three bodies lie on the road. the latest victims of the worst violence. knives, pulled in a fight that ended right outside people's homes. —— sunday night on an east london street. the head was damaged by the hammer, and all of the men we re by the hammer, and all of the men were scratched by the knife. did you see any weapons? one life and one hammer. —— 19.

see any weapons? one life and one hammer. -- 19. two see any weapons? one life and one hammer. --19. two bodies, both getting cpr. there were people running all over. it was like a horror movie, horrible. absolutely horrific. i looked down on the floor and there was a big knife, not massive. but it was on the floor, cove red massive. but it was on the floor, covered in blood. the main road is closed right up to the railway station and the parallel residential street is taped off. police are examining the pavement in front of those shops and businesses. this shows that the disturbance started in one place and move through the area. it means the police have got a huge crime scene to investigate. area. it means the police have got a huge crime scene to investigatem isa huge crime scene to investigatem is a fight involving two groups of men. we believe they are from the sikh community. the result of that fight, which involve the use of knives, was three people were fatally wounded. despite the best effo rts fatally wounded. despite the best efforts of paramedics, they were pronounced dead at the scene. an absolutely tragic event to take place here. sign up the consequences

are clear, three young men have lost their lives and we have to look at their lives and we have to look at the cause of this, what led this to happen? i think once we get those, thatis happen? i think once we get those, that is where we need to concentrate. detectives have made progress. two mccrimmon had been questioned on suspicion of murder. there is much more evidence to gather, much more to understand about what sparked such a violent incident and such deadly results. campaigners say that smart motorways, which sometimes use the hard shoulder as a traffic lane, shouldn't open without technology which detects broken—down vehicles. the government is about to release the results of an urgent review into their safety. smart motorways are designed to keep traffic moving — but its claimed that nine people were killed last year, after hard shoulders were used turned into use for traffic. our transport correspondent judy hobson reports. this is the m1 near sheffield. it's a smart motorway. overhead signs regulate the traffic and the hard shoulder has been

converted to a fourth lane. in june, jason mercer was driving on this stretch of road when he had a minor collision. there is a sign a bit further up saying the next era, emergency refuge area, is a mile away. but where they were, there was nowhere safe. there was a barrier stopping them getting the vehicles further over, and then a sheer drop. with no hard shoulderjason and the other driver got out of their cars on the inside lane. a lorry hit them, killing them both. he was with me at eight o'clock and he was dead by 8:15. crucially, the lane that jason had stopped and had not been closed to traffic. according to the aa, it takes an average of 17 minutes for the control room, run by highways england, to pick up on a broken down vehicle. and that means it's not safe for them to recover stranded motorists. we contact the customer to say, we can't stop, where you are, because it's in a live lane, so we will contact the highways agency and then

we will go to a safe area and wait for the vehicle to be delivered there by the highways agency. stopped vehicle technology is available, and would alert the control room to a breakdown. but it is only in place on two sections of the m25. no other smart motorway in the country has it. these lorry drivers say that is a worry. i don't really rate the opening the hard shoulders up, breakdowns and that. particularly if it's round a bend, driving a truck. the highways agency is sat on top of the motorway. as i'm coming on, you can see everyone slamming the brakes on, hazards on, because there's a car stranded. but there's no indicating to say that lane one is shut. in eight months, five stranded drivers have been killed on the smart motorway by sheffield. highways england has said it will ensure there are emergency refuge areas every mile. in addition, they say, subject to funding, they will include stopped

vehicle technology on any new smart motorways built after march this year. but claire is one of a growing number of people calling for smart motorways to be banned until they can be made safer. it's akin to manslaughter to remove the hard shoulder. it is. the motorway is a dangerous environment and to remove the main safety feature, you know, how can anybody think that that is going to improve the situation? it can only make it more dangerous. the department for transport wouldn't comment until after the publication of a review into the safety of smart motorways, which is expected shortly. judy hobson, bbc news. and viewers in the midlands and the north west of england can see more on that story on inside out, tonight at 7.30 on bbc1, and it will be available everywhere else on the bbc iplayer

the time is... just coming up to 17 minutes past one. our top story this lunchtime. prince harry speaks about standing back from royal duties — he described the move as a leap of faith — and made clear that he and meghan had hoped to continue serving the queen — but it wasn't possible. coming up ...as the world tries to tackle climate change — we report from china as it increases its coal—fired power stations coming up on bbc news, england's number eight, billy vunipola, could miss the six nations next month after breaking his arm during saracens' win over racing 92. illegal migration in small boats across the channel will continue to be a challenge for law enforcement bodies, according to the national crime agency. it says that gangs based in france are working together to smuggle people into the uk, and have developed their tactics

to evade detection. last year, more than 18 hundred migrants made it across the channel, mainly in inflatable dinghies. colin campbell is in dover. dover has become a landing destination for hundreds of migrants trying to reach these shores in small boats. to get here they must ci’oss one small boats. to get here they must cross one of the bro ‘s busiest shipping lanes. the national crime agency is at the forefront of investigating it all and they say it's a big challenge, stopping these small boats heading in this direction. a dinghy arrives on a kent beach. it's summer, these are migrants who have just crossed the english channel. in 2019 the boats made their way here every month. on occasions, up to ten launched simultaneously from french beaches. who are they? immigrants. there is some evidence of a surge tactic and it's a possibility that they may think if they make a large number of departures

on a particular day, at least some of them are more likely to get through, some of them are more likely to evade law enforcement, french law enforcement on the french coast. a dangerously overloaded dinghy taking on water in 2018, i witnessed the start of the crossings. it's a desperate race to try to get to the uk for these people. we also exposed the criminals drumming up business in french migrant camps. translation: a boat, it will cost you 3—£a000. the national crime agency say there is no evidence of a mr big controlling the smuggling operations, that sometimes migrants organise it themselves. unable to afford to pay smugglers, massoud did just that. the former iranian canoeing champion bought an inflatable kayak in calais and paddled across the channel.

the english channel can be a treacherous stretch of water. last year, more than 1,800 migrants reached the uk in small boats. of that number, around 125 were sent back to either france or other european countries. the majority coming across the sea are from iran and in 2019, 63% of iranians were granted asylum on their first try. many more winning an appeal. a spike in arrivals in the summer prompted tough talk from the prime minister. we will send you back. the uk should not be regarded as a place where you can automatically come. but some claim it's empty rhetoric. they are going to make this journey. the people we are seeing coming across in boats have extremely good asylum claims, they are likely to be successful.

the national crime agency admits stopping the boats remains a big challenge but they are confident numbers will reduce and it won't get easier to cross after brexit. this morning 12 migrants were rescued in a small boat by french officers, two an unborn child, suffering from mild hypothermia, rescued and ta ken suffering from mild hypothermia, rescued and taken back to bologna and said to be safe and well. last year tragically three people died trying to get to the uk in small boats, the national crime agency fears there could be further fatalities in 2020. colin, thank you. throughout the day, bbc news is focusing on immigration and you can find out more on the issueby going to bbc.co.uk/ukimmigration. .. you can download the new in—depth bbc briefing guide — which provides extra context, data and evidence all in one place. borisjohnson has set out his hopes for post—brexit trade to african heads of state, and suggested that britain

would become more open to migrants from their continent. addressing a uk—africa investment summit in london, the prime minister said the country's departure from the eu would mean an end to preferential treatment for european migrants. well, our correspondent anne soy is at the conference. what's the response been to boris johnson ‘s comments? what's the response been to boris johnson 's comments? it's been received very well by the african leaders, we have at least a dozen african leaders in attendance here and they have been making their contributions to what they think uk investment should be focusing on on the continent. we have leaders from both the traditional uk partners, and also from other countries, the uk does not have a big footprint and they say they have come here with a message to the uk government to say they are open for business. the uk is seen as a late entrant into what

some people have called a new scramble for africa, there are already summits that have been held in russia, china, tokyo, bringing together more african leaders and looking at investment on the continent. the uk government says it is now keen to send more money to back investment on the continent and what is making africa so attractive is the population growth. by 2050 it is the population growth. by 2050 it is estimated a quarter of consumers globally will live in africa, that's a big market for any investors. and here today, they are striking deals, we are told so far the private sector, the uk private sector has already signed deals to the tune of £6.5 billion and that is still growing by the day. many thanks. phasing out the use of fossil fuels is one of the key ways of tackling climate change. the uk has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2050 — and is aiming to drastically cut its harmful co2 emssions. but china — which uses almost

as much coal as the rest of the world combined — is now increasing its number of coal—fired power stations, fuelling environmental concern. robin brant reports. it's —15 out there. the snow isn't going away. li has lived and farmed here on the old frontier in china's north for all of her 5a years. and, in the depths of winter, staying warm is her number one priority. all she's known is coal. but the pile by the chicken coop has depleted. the old coal stove has been moved outside. it's rusting. life changed a few months ago when li's house got gas. she is one of millions that china is moving to what it hopes is a greener life. how much did it cost? but this is a nation struggling to wean itself off a decades—long addiction.

around half the coal that is burned across the world in a year is burned here in china. at this facility in inner mongolia, coalfrom dozens of mines is dumped, processed and then shipped off. i was told business used to be better here. china has succeeded in cutting back on coal. but things are changing. china's government has said yes to more places like this, where coal is being mined or processed. and, in the last year, it's approved plans for the biggest new coalmines here, inner mongolia. this is coal heartland in a country where coal is very much still king. it's coal that has power to china to this. from communist revolution to consumerism. it's been decades of breathtakingly fast economic expansion. but growth is now slowing, so the government is trying to cushion the impact and protect

jobs, its spending, new apartments, building railway lines, metro networks. that means falling back on coal. after a decade—long drop coal now accounts for 58% of china's energy generation. but, overall, china's co2 emissions from fossil fuels are still going up by an estimated 2.6% last year. that means china is expected to be responsible for effectively all of the increase in global co2 emissions in 2019. whatever the environmental effects, china has decided its new economic challenges mean coal is still the answer. this sign points to what was once a village. now it is awaiting development as an expanded coalmine. robin brant, bbc news, inner mongolia. the stuggling department store beales has gone into administration. the chain, which began trading in bournemouth in 1881, employs over a thousand people and has 22 stores around the country. our business correspondent

simon gompertz is here. this is the latest of several. why are these big department stores under pressure? beals is not a household name everywhere but it is right across england and has a store in scotland, in perth, it's very well known in those 23 towns that you talk about. it calls itself a retail heartbeat and its offering in the same way the bigger department store chains have suffered. a lot of it is to do with people shopping on the internet instead but the administrators, the people brought in to try and find a future for business when it has failed financially, they have just put out a statement, they are called kpmg and they say trading has been incredibly tough, blaming high rents and high business rates, that was a particular complaint of beales and disappointing trading over christmas which they've all been hit by. and if you think debenhams is in the throes of closing 19 stores. house of fraser had to be taken over, even

john lewis which is quite a big internet presence, has warned its staff that they might not get their traditional bonus this year because times are so tough. and what they will do it now, the administrators, is trying to find a buyer perhaps, during that time they are keeping the business running, all the shops and the thousand plus jobs, they will carry on but they are talking about weeks so it's a real worry, for customers, vouchers will still be valid for that time. they will still be able to return things according to the traditional policies. simon, many thanks. england's cricketers have won the third test against south africa by an innings and 53 runs in port elizabeth. olly pope, who scored his first century for england, and took six catches was man of the match. joe wilson reports. unfurl your flags and paint your face fast. south africa weren't going to last long on monday morning. out. there we go. one wicket, three more needed. mark wood bowled

as quick as he could, always does. rabada batting and the ball taken. kagisa rabada is an expressive cricketer, whatever his mood. check the weather, bright and encouraging which brings us to don best. another one. england's 22—year—old spin bowler was just too much for south africa in this match. but now watch keshav maharaj. big hitting was possible. south africa had been waiting five days for this so huge credit to the batsman and to the spectator who stayed alert. yep, got it. for an hour south africa slogged, skied and survived. close, close, close. it was fascinating, it was a bit infuriating for england. forecast says wind. glad we bought the chain mail. well, what settled it was

a throw from sam curran. england won without needing their second innings, without jofra archer, without james anderson, with a very satisfied captain. brilliant, clinical performance. i couldn't be more proud of the group, four and a bit days we've been excellent. right from the start. england are 2—1 up with one match to come and one of these sides can't wait forjohannesburg. joe wilson, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's louise lear. what a wonderful weekend. finally, finally we got some sunshine across the country but pretty cold with it. this was the story this morning in stafford, take a look at this, where do you think this is? i can tell you it's probably not where you think, it's probably not where you think, it's in spain. quite a stormy weekend across parts of the balearics in south—east spain, snow falling to high ground, strong and gale force winds and heavy rain so if you've got friends and family