sackis sack is a $;/startfeed. this is bbc news — the headlines: president trump has predicted an effective coronavirus vaccine could be ready for mass distribution in the united states within weeks, contradicting comments by one of his top health officials. mr trump claimed the head of the centers for disease control and prevention, robert redfield, made a mistake or was confused when he told congress that a vaccine could be rolled out by the middle of next year. alabama, florida, and mississippi have declared states of emergency. hurricane sally has been battering coastal areas, and the national hurricane centre says it's caused catastrophic and historic flooding. it is now moving inland at a walking pace, exacerbating flooding. the speaker of the us house of representatives, nancy pelosi, has repeated her warning that congress will veto any trade agreement with the uk if brexit undermines the good friday agreement, which secured peace in northern ireland. joe biden, the democratic party's presidential candidate has voiced similar concerns.

now on bbc news, wednesday in parliament. hello there, and welcome to wednesday in parliament. coming up on this programme, the prime minister faces senior mps and questions over the eu trade talks. are they negotiating in good faith? and so i'm afraid... you don't think they are? as i said, i don't believe they are. you don't? while at pmqs, there's more pressure over coronavirus test and trace. and the next time a man with covid symptoms drives from london to durham, it'll probably be for the nearest covid test. we are testing more than any other european country. and there's bad news if you're a fan of an outdoor dip. swimmers are unaware that rivers across the country contain toxic materials such as lead and mercury, as well as insecticides.

but first, the prime minister, borisjohnson, has said he doesn't believe the eu is negotiating with the uk in good faith. his comments came when he appeared before a group of senior mps. the chair of the eu relations committee was questioning him over the controversial internal market bill. now, it gives ministers powers to change the details of the withdrawal treaty agreed with the eu last year, allowing them to undo elements requiring northern ireland to abide by some eu rules and regulations after brexit to prevent border checks between the north and the republic. hilary benn took up an admission made by the northern ireland secretary a few days ago. now, last week, the government confirmed that the internal market bill does break international law. and we heard yourjustification in the debate on monday, so you don't need to repeat it in front of us today. why are you not prepared to rely on article 16 of the northern ireland

protocol, which you negotiated and which deals with how you resolve any disagreements, rather than engage in lawbreaking 7 what we're trying to do here is really provide a belt—and—braces protection against extreme interpretations of the protocol. the internal market bill is controversial on the government's own side. as the session got under way, it emerged that the government's law officer for scotland, lord keen, had offered his resignation, so hilary benn wondered. . .. could you tell us whether the advocate general for scotland is still in post or not? i'm afraid, mr benn, all i can tell you really, as far as i know, is that conversations on that matter are still continuing. well, lord keen did eventually go, but not until this session was over. returning to the actual negotiations, hilary benn pressed the prime minister over why the internal market bill was needed. i believe and still believe that our friends and partners in the eu will negotiate in good faith and will apply common sense and reasonableness. and the reason for the clauses in the bill is, as i say, as a belt—and—brace,

as a safety net. now, do you think that the eu is negotiating in good faith? borisjohnson said the eu could've agreed not to blockade agricultural products, but had declined to do so. you don't think that. as i said, i don't believe that. you don't? the committee also questioned him about the government's handling of coronavirus. another labour mp questioned him over new rules limiting people in england to meeting up in groups of no more than six. in scotland and wales, children under 11 are excluded from the numbers when it comes to covid restrictions. and it means that families can have the informal childcare that they rely on to get to work. it also avoids a situation in england where a mum and dad

can go to the pub with multiple strangers, but cannot, if they have three children, see their grandparents at the same time. you're making a point that many people are making across the country who want us to relax the rules, and i've just got to tell you, sir bernard, that alas this disease is increasing again. we are seeing... sorry, prime minister, it's not necessarily a request to relax the rules, it's a request to look at them in a very limited and specific way in relation to children under the age of 11. i understand your point, but it is, i'm afraid, a request to relax the rules because it is alas a fact of the disease that it is readily transposable between children and adults. and what we are now seeing is unfortunately the progression of the disease from younger groups, who as everybody knows are much less prone to its worst effects, up into the older groups. and the committee will be aware that the incidents amongst the 80—plus group is now 12 per 100,000, where only a few days ago it was about half that. and it is growing.

do we have currently enough testing capacity available? the short answer to that is — no, we don't. and we don't have enough testing capacity now because in an ideal world i would like to test absolutely everybody that wants a test immediately. borisjohnson. well, the pm had already faced questions about coronavirus testing at his regular round of pmqs, but he wasn't facing his usual opponent. angela rayner was filling in for sir keir starmer, who'd had to self—isolate while waiting for the results of a coronavirus test. mr speaker, i want to start

by reading the prime minister a message that i've received from a man called keir. keir wasn't able to go to work today, and his children couldn't go to school. because his family had to wait for their coronavirus test results despite the prime minister promise of results within 2a hours. keir was able to do the right thing and self—isolate and work from home. but other people aren't in this position, mr speaker. many of them are the very people who are getting us through this crisis, like the care workers that i used to work alongside before i was elected to this house. the prime minister once earned £2300 an hour, so can the prime minister tell us what is the average hourly rate of a care worker in this country? the prime minister began by defending the government's record on testing. 89% of those who have in—person tests get them within the next day. turning to care homes, he said the government was launching an action plan.

we will do everything we can to ensure that care homes and their workers are protected, and on her final point, mr speaker, lam proud that it is this government that has instituted the national living wage to ensure that every worker, every worker in this country, including care home workers, is paid substantially more thanks to the care and the work of the people of this country. angela rayner said the whole country would have seen that the prime minister didn't know how much care workers got paid, which she said was barely more than £8 an hour. as to testing, she said time and again the prime minister had made promises and then broken them. they've had six months, mr speaker, to get this right, and yet the prime minister still can't deliver on his promises. the health secretary said yesterday it would take weeks to sort the situation out. well, mr speaker, we don't have weeks. we're now...

per 1000 people, mr speaker, this country is testing 2.54, germany1.88, spain 1.91 and france 1.89. in other words, we are delivering exactly what we said we would do. what is happening, mr speaker, is that the british people quite understandably are responding to that system with a huge, huge surge in demand. and so it's very important that everybody follows the guidance about when they should be getting a test. well, mr speaker, once again i see that the prime minister says it's somebody else's fault, it's the public that are using up the tests. these were the government's own figures and own targets, mr speaker, that they've failed on. and the next time a man with covid symptoms drives from london to durham, it'll probably be for the nearest covid test. we have the highest death toll in europe, and we're on course for one of the worst recessions in the developed world. this winter, we are staring down the barrel of a second wave with no plan for the looming crisis.

people can't say goodbye to their loved ones. grandparents can't see their grandchildren. and front line staff can't get the tests that they need. and what was the top priority for the covid war cabinet this weekend? restoring grouse shooting. mr speaker, i don't think anybody's in any doubt that this government is facing some of the most difficult dilemmas that any modern government has had to face. but every day, we are helping to solve them thanks to the massive common sense of the british people, who are getting on... who are getting on with delivering our programme, getting on with delivering our fight against coronavirus. and it's with the common sense of the british people that we will succeed, build back better and stronger than ever before.

the snp turned to that controversial internal market bill currently going through the commons. clause 46 of this bill allows this tory government to bypass scotland's parliament and take decisions on the nhs, on education, on infrastructure, on economic development, culture and sport, mr speaker, a blatant power grab. we all know what the tory backbenchers are saying behind closed doors. the prime minister's incompetent, he can't govern and they want him away before the next election. the best thing he could do is to support the uk internal market bill which buttresses, as he knows, a surge of powers transferred to the devolved administrations in more than 70 areas. and i should just remind him thatjust in the last recent coronavirus crisis, 5.4 billion has been transferred to scotland as a result of barnet consequentials, and i'm proud to say that 70% of the testing that has taken

place in scotland has been supported by the uk government. borisjohnson. and staying with the internal market bill, at the top of the programme, we heard the prime minister being asked all about it. the legislation gives the government the powers to override parts of the eu withdrawal agreement in what the northern ireland secretary had called a "limited and specific way". so, there were questions for brandon lewis when he appeared in front of the northern ireland committee. it was clear that when you delivered that bombshell at the despatch box, it wasn't an off—the—cuff remark or a slip, you actually read something out there that had been written down for you. who actually wrote down those words? was it dominic cummings or somebody in your department? well, i want to be very specific because i want

to ensure that what i said was absolutely making sure that i was giving the house a straight answer and was in line with the government's legal advice, which of course is the same as we published. so, was it lawyer or numberio or... i'm afraid i'm not going to comment on who puts into the advice that comes through to ministers. do you understand why people can't trust your government? and do you have any handle on the anxiety and the unease and the instability that your government is creating every day in northern ireland, which is a fragile society? well, i disagree with the entire premise of what you just outlined. we continue to still speak with northern ireland on a whole range of issues, including on the issues that are the uk internal market bill. and as i say, these clauses will deliver in effect what will be entirely in line with what we set out in our paper, which was to ensure that there's a safety net, an insurance policy that we can give that certainty to northern ireland businesses. brandon lewis.

meanwhile, the government reached a compromise with some of its own rebel backbenchers who had been threatening to vote against the internal market bill. it accepted a proposal to give mps a vote before ministers can use some of the powers in the legislation. back in the commons, line—by—line scrutiny of the bill was continuing. the legislation gives the uk government new spending powers in devolved areas, such as transport, which the scottish and welsh governments say is a power grab. speaking for the snp, alison thewliss said the legislation would allow the uk government to build projects and send scotland the bill with interest. it's the skye bridge all over again, the first pfi project in the uk, opened in 1995 and notorious for its tolls. the then—scottish executive had to buy the bridge back a decade later in order to abolish the tolls, which themselves raised more money than the

bridge cost in the first place. do we really want to return to that level of generous investment in scotland ? but the conservative former welsh secretary stephen crabb disagreed. she's making an interesting speech about what is the appropriate level of government for making decisions about projects and what projects constitute value for money or not, but at the heart of her argument is a really serious proposition which i think every unionist in this house should find objectionable, and that's that this elected uk government should never have the ability to spend money in all corners of the united kingdom for the benefit of its citizens. alison thewliss said devolution was the settled will of the people. labour's stephen doughty agreed, up to a point. and she knows i don't support independence, i support the union, but i do agree with her and what she's saying about devolution. we have a devolution settlement. it was voted for by the peoples of wales and scotland and northern ireland, and we need to respect that. stephen doughty. you're watching wednesday in parliament, with me, alicia mccarthy. now, back to the row over covid testing, and one of the big issues is schoolchildren

developing symptoms and parents and teachers needing to know if they have the virus or not. the education secretary, gavin williamson, faced the chair of the commons education committee. the papers today reporting that 339 schools are either closed or partially closed. and what message can you give to teachers, support staff, parents and pupils that there will be a fast testing, track—and—tracing mechanism in schools, so you can reassure everybody who is in education? gavin williamson said 99.9% of schools in england had opened. we've always been conscious that, with children coming back into schools, there was going to be a situation where people would need more access to testing. that is why we ensured those deliveries of tests to every single school in england. that's why we, this morning, opened up the ordering system

for schools to be able to order new tests, for them to be able to get those directly from the nhs, so they're able to alter supply. can you give a testing guarantee whereby if there is a suspected outbreak, whether it's a staff member or a child or a parent, that they could get some kind of testing within 48 hours? and also that they don't have to travel a long distance to get that? mr chairman, as you're aware and your committee's aware, schools are, i think, the only organisation that actually has a set of testing kits that have been sent to them directly, in order to be able to ensure that, if they're in a situation where someone isn't in a position to be able to get a test, that they actually have testing kits on—site in order for them to be able to access, and that's something that is quite unique but very important.

and as i say, we've opened up the order line as of 8am this morning, or the department of health have, in order for schools to be able to reorder. the committee then turned to the problems surrounding the results of this summer's cancelled exams. earlier this month, england's exams regulator, quual, told the education committee that it had warned the government that the public would not accept an emergency grading system instead of exam results. if quual were concerned that the idea of the valid mock exam had no real credible meaning, as the chair told the committee on september 2, does this not call into question why quual didn't challenge the implementation of the policy? in other words, i would ask you, is quual truly independent? and do you think that quual is fit for purpose? gavin williamson said quual was "very independent." we wanted to do everything we could to ensure fairness. i know that 0fqual, very much

at the heart of what it does, wanted to ensure fairness. and without a doubt, any process that you introduce in the midst of a pandemic is going to have its challenges. now, sexual and violent offenders will serve at least two—thirds of their jail terms, rather than half as part of changes to the criminaljustice system in england and wales. it will also be possible forjudges to send people aged 18 to 20 convicted of terrorism causing mass loss of life to prison for the rest of their lives. the justice secretary set out the aims of the sentencing overhaul. to bring in tougher sentences, to tackle drug—related crime, to treat addictions, to improve employment opportunities for offenders, to review the parole system and much more. a smarter approach to sentencing will grow confidence

in the criminaljustice system's ability to deal robustly with the worst offenders and reduce the risk of harm to the public, but also be smart enough to do the things that will really bring down crime in the longer term. but the issue of overriding parts of the brexit divorce deal and breaking international law soon resurfaced. this statement follows ina week in which a secretary of state, who took an oath to uphold the rule of law, has let his office and the system down. the whole country have watched him squirm in his seat as he has stood with the prime minister. it was all going so well, and then the right honourable gentleman had to spoil it with an ill—judged, ill—timed and wholly inappropriate intervention. can i remind him that, as a practitioner for years,

i had to endure a labour government — a labour government that passed with incontinence criminaljustice act after criminaljustice act that created the chaos that i am now having to deal with in terms of sentencing reform. it's a little difficult to stomach rhetoric about how tough this government is on lawbreakers when, only a week ago, a minister stood at the despatch box and told us that they intended to break international law, albeit in a limited and specific way, and even the lord chancellor himself seems to think that when it comes to his government colleagues, the rule of law can be watered down to allow lawbreaking which he finds acceptable. i can assure her that, when it comes to the rule of law, both within her majesty's government and indeed in our country as a whole, i, like her, yield to no—one in my belief in equality before the law. i also believe in maintaining a balance, and that is what i am doing every day. many conservatives hailed the overhaul of sentencing. the lord chancellor is to be congratulated for bringing

forward this excellent white paper and the measures contained within it will be widely welcome in my constituency and, i believe, are long overdue. but one labour mp was less impressed. just 206 prison places built out of 10,000 promised by 2020, massive overcrowding in our prisons, little time for rehabilitation, prisoners dumped out of prison with no housing to go to, the probation service — due to a failed privatisation — being left to a phone call every fortnight, if you're lucky. and that's led to a massive rate of reoffending. that's the legacy of this government. there are many fine words here in this statement by the lord chancellor, but where's the resources that's going to turn around that record of failure? well, the honourable gentleman will be glad to know that we secured, within a month of me taking office, £2.5 billion for the biggest prison building project in years.

there are many sensible reforms in this white paper, but all changes have to be consistent with the european convention on human rights. that convention is also a critical pillar of the good friday agreement. so particularly in light of media reports this past weekend, can the lord chancellor give a categorical and comprehensive reassurance that the government has no plans to change either its commitment to the european convention on human rights nor the human rights act? the commitment of this government to membership of the european convention on... you listen, you might learn something. the european convention on human rights... the commitment of this government to the european convention on human rights is absolute. the speaker called for calm. you're one of the most well—respected and well— mannered members of this house, and i don't want you to spoil that in my company. sir lindsay hoyle restoring order there. now, there were warnings in the lords for "wild swimmers" about the presence of toxic materials in rivers.

one peer wondered if the uk was planning to ignore european regulations on water quality and become the "dirty man" of europe. there has been a steady increase in outdoor swimming clubs — or "wild swimming" as it has become known. swimmers are unaware that rivers across the country contain toxic materials, such as lead and mercury, as well as insecticides. the government has committed itself to ensuring that all rivers are of a good ecological standard by 2027. can the noble lord the minister tell the house whether this target will be reached, and if not, when it may be reached? the environment agency takes water quality samples in all designated bathing waters during the bathing season. and if the water fails in any way to meet the minimal standards, the agency then investigates. if the water companies are found to be the cause, the agency then requires the company to take action. in 2019, 98.3% of designated bathing waters did meet the minimum standards, with

71% classified as excellent. clearly, we have a lot more to do, as all surveys have shown, but the government has shown a commitment to tackling this issue both from a legislative point of view and in terms of funding. does the government accept the legal position which the european court ofjustice originally stated that untreated sewage can only be released into water bodies under exceptional circumstances? and, clearly, this has not been complied with. so what type of action is the government actually going to take urgently to deal with this, or are we just leaving the eu to become the dirty man of europe? i certainly do agree with the noble lord that raw sewage should only ever be released into water systems as a last resort and in exceptional circumstances. and he said the issue had been taken up by fellow environment minister rebecca pow... ..who established the task force, chairs the task force and is committed to doing what is needed from a regulatory point of view,

from a legislative point of view and from a funding point of view to tackle this very serious problem. the house of lords was also worried about the number of peers being released into the political system. the the government is doing everything possible to belittle this place by stuffing the tory benches and by other means, isn't the problem for the government that they want to reduce the legitimacy of this house because they don't like our stand on humanitarian principles and the rule of law? my lords, the noble lord sat in the house when it was much larger than it is today. and so far as stuffing the house is concerned, mr blair put 374 peers in this place. the cabinet office minister, lord true. and that's it from me for now, but do join me again at the same time tomorrow. until then, from me, alicia mccarthy, goodbye.

hello there. it will be a notably fresher start to the day, particularly across the southern half of the uk because the transition was taking place further north yesterday. but there will still be plenty of dry weather on offer, some good spells of sunshine will break through the cloud and make it feel pleasantly warm. we have seen the transition as we come behind this cold front through yesterday and overnight to slightly fresher air back to where we should be for the time of year. quite a brisk easterly wind blowing in the south. always a little bit more cloud close to the north of scotland with this weak weather front, and there could be some patchy fog elsewhere first thing. the first couple of hours after dawn there could be some dense patches, but then it clears away. as should the low cloud near the north sea coast, and the misty low cloud we've had in southern and western areas for the last couple of days. the exception really to seeing that sunshine for most is the north and east of scotland. and with the return of the sunshine elsewhere in scotland and northern england, i think it will feel warmer

than it did yesterday, but the 27 we had in the south not being repeated. more like 21, 22, which is where we should be for this time of year. and so under the clearest skies again through the coming night, it's going to turn quite cool, and, yes, again, the exception being northern scotland where we've got those weather fronts close by. down into single figures quite widely in the countryside setting us up for another date with perhaps some patchy mist and fog again first thing. brisk wind in the south, but otherwise some good spells of sunshine. and even north, as that weather front weakens, at times it will be bright. 19 to 21, around about average for this time of year. and we keep that high pressure close by into the weekend particularly in the north. but this low pressure in the bay of biscay is giving us a little bit of a headache. it comes northwards, it is likely to tighten the isobars. the winds will strengthen again, and possibly it's going to bring some showers close to southern parts of england in particular. so a keen breeze coming in off the north sea,

which will make it feel cooler. some low cloud as well plaguing the north sea coast. so here temperatures will be as high, but 19 to 22 further west. and then just the possibility of some showers. the question mark is how far north they will come into the southern half of the uk. they are still meandering around the area of low pressure into sunday as well. with that breeze coming in off the north sea, also the risk a little bit more cloud around here, but still a good deal of dry and settled weather with high pressure largely in charge further north. as ever, there is more on the website.

a very warm welcome to bbc news. my name's mike embley. our top stories: donald trump claims an effective coronavirus vaccine could be good to go within weeks — contradicting one of his own top health officials. and i called him and he didn't tell me that, and i think he got the message may be confused, maybe it was stated incorrectly, but we are ready to go immediately. hurricane sally makes landfall in america, causing catastrophic flooding, with winds exceeding 160 kilometres per hour. fresh warnings for the uk from senior us politicians — jeopardise the good friday agreement and there will be no trade deal. and maduro accused — a united nations investigation says venezuela's government ordered the torture and murder of opponents. we speak to one of the authors.