tv BBC News at Ten BBC News April 19, 2021 10:00pm-10:31pm BST
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tonight at ten — outrage as england's richest clubs announce plans to join a new football superleague. liverpool, arsenal and manchester united are among those joining the breakaway league along with italian and spanish clubs prompting anger across the board. pretty much the same as most people's reaction, i think. one of alarm, one of concern and disgust, in many ways. protests at elland road tonight where leeds faced liverpool — as many wondered what it would mean for the premier league. for people, greedy people to just come in and treat it like their own personal hedge fund is disgusting. it's going to ruin... the money that gets passed down to grassroots football, it's going to completely destroy
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the whole structure of english football. we'll be looking at what's behind this seismic decision. also tonight... india is added to the red list of countries from which most travel to the uk is banned, over fears of a new covid variant. the trial of the former police officer charged with killing the black man george floyd — security is tightened in minneapolis as jurors prepare to consider their verdict. and celebrations at nasa as its helicopter takes off on mars — the first powered flight on another world. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel... jose mourinho sacked as tottenham boss less than a week before the league cup final at wembley. good evening. plans to create a new football
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superleague have been widely condemned and sparked outrage from fans, officials and politicians. the prime minister has pledged to do everything possible to make sure it doesn't go ahead. the president of european football's governing body uefa has vowed to ban any player involved in the superleague from representing their country in major tournaments. there were protests tonight as liverpool — one of the breakaway teams — took on leeds at elland road. arsenal, chelsea, liverpool, manchester united, manchester city and tottenham are all planning to be part of a new midweek competition in what would be the biggest shake up in football in a generation. they would join spanish clubs atletico madrid, real madrid and barcelona, and italy's ac milan, inter milan and juventus. but why are they doing it? our sports editor dan roan reports. for decades, it has provided the game with some of its most iconic and enduring images,
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but european football's premier club competition now finds itself under threat like never before after a rebellion that has plunged the sport into turmoil. england's so—called big six — manchester united, liverpool, manchester city, chelsea, arsenal and spursjoining some of spain and italy's top clubs to set up a new super league. the shock news derailed uefa's announcement of a revamped champions league. and today the man in charge of the european game didn't hold back in his condemnation, issuing this warning to any players involved. uefa and the footballing world stand united against the disgraceful self—serving proposals we have seen in the last 2a hours from a select few clubs in europe that are fuelled purely by greed above all else. the players who will play in the closed league will be banned from playing in the world cup and europe. this idea is a spit in the face
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of all football lovers the idea is for a new midweek competition, with teams continuing to play in their national leagues. there would be 15 permanent founding members, three of which are yet to join. most controversially, all would have a guaranteed place. a furtherfive sides would qualify on an annual basis. at the breakaway clubs have been warned they could be thrown out of european competitions and even forced to leave the premier league if they don't back down. that would be a devastating blow to the wider game, jeopardising broadcast revenues clubs have come to rely on. it will have massive ramifications on our game in this country. it will wreck the pyramid system that has been so important to local football clubs, to communities and teams. and it takes out the competition. seldom if ever seen at their premier league clubs, these are the absentee billionaire owners whose drive to increase
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revenue squeezed by the pandemic lies behind a plot that will see them share £3 billion just for signing on. this is a mixture i think of greed and desperation, because a number of these very large clubs have overspent massively and got themselves into a very difficult financial predicament, with huge debts, and i think this is, certainly there's a lot of money involved but i think it's a very bad thing for football indeed. tonight an immediate sign of the tensions this has sparked. the players of leeds united made clear their feelings tonight. players of leeds united made clear theirfeelings tonight. in players of leeds united made clear their feelings tonight. in fact wherever you looked there seem to be protests. even liverpool's manager jurgen klopp saying he was opposed despite his own clubjoining in. the government said it would now start a fan led review of it. we will be reviewing everything the government does to support
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these clubs to play. i have discussed these options with the prime minister this morning, and we are working at pace across government and with football authorities. i want to reassure this house of a very robust response. with so much of the euro is on home soil, this summer seemed to be set to return to better times for english football. instead, the stars of the game face an uncertain future. but not everyone thinks it's a bad idea, as laura scott's been finding out. it just absolutely stinks. greed taking over, really. it takes away everything football has been built on. it defeats the point - of competitive football. fans might not have had a voice in negotiations, but they're making themselves heard now. for some, the concept of a european super league risks killing off the club game, and supporter groups from all six premier league clubs involved
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in the radical plans have opposed the move. outside tottenham's new stadium, i met several unhappy fans. i've read something today which is talking about fans like me as legacy fans, and i feel as unwanted from this club as i have ever felt in my life. the tottenham hotspur supporters�* trust called it a betrayal. does that reflect your view of the situation? i think it would be a betrayal on lower league football. a lot of footballers that come into these upper leagues come from smaller clubs, of course, and england has got a great grassroots foundation. so i think that's going to take the brunt of these kind of corporate moves in football. others see the benefit in the league's promise of putting in the league's promise of pitting the best clubs and best players against each other every week. i'm happy with that. i would like to watch ac milan, real madrid, arsenal, - with bayern munich, the big boys' business, you know. i arsenal play with slavia prague.
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no disrespect to slavia prague, but slavia prague _ don't have the big name to play with arsenal. - top spanish and italian clubs have also signed up to the league. newspapers there called this a war on football. disaster. abdu supports ac milan. he says they are going to ruin the game by doing this. giuseppe has been a fan of milan rivals inter for more than 60 years. he doesn't like the plans. he'd rather keep the champions league. european football has a global following with many fans living thousands of miles from their club grounds. kevin wang, who watches inter milan from his home in beijing, says it's a more attractive prospect to have better quality games on television. translation: i'm actually quite l looking forward to this league. | as a fan i'm mostly interested in watching these amazing matches and stiff competition. fans have onlyjust been allowed back in to watch their teams after months away.
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this seismic move has left many feeling shut out again. laura scott, bbc news, tottenham. the superleague announcement has seen share values in both manchester united and juventus rise significantly. the business model, where there is no longer a threat of relegation, is one widely used in us professional sport to guarantee income. our business editor simonjack is here. share prices are up — clearly some who think this makes a lot of sense. sports fans love jeopardy, a nail—biting encounter which sports fans lovejeopardy, a nail—biting encounter which can end in defeat or glory. business owners largely low with that. one premiership managing director said to me, i got to the end of last season not knowing whether my budget or my income for the next season was going to be 70 million or £170 million. there also another important consequence. businesses with steady and non—erratic earnings are worth more than businesses with
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very volatile earnings and that's why you saw the chancellor going through so juventus why you saw the chancellor going through sojuventus shares up and manchester united's shares up nearly 10%. the promoters of this league is a it was a broken product with too many boring games with small minnows playing giants and it didn't get interesting until after christmas. that's why they think this will be a success. this is probably a moment in recent history where a fan boycott of match day would be least effective. the fight for the heart and soul and the finances of football looks like it's going to get very bloody indeed.- football looks like it's going to get very bloody indeed. simon jack, thank ou. let's talk to our sport editor dan roan who's at old trafford. how likely is it that this super league will go ahead? i how likely is it that this super league will go ahead?- how likely is it that this super league will go ahead? i think much will depend — league will go ahead? i think much will depend on _ league will go ahead? i think much will depend on the _ league will go ahead? i think much will depend on the next _ league will go ahead? i think much will depend on the next move - league will go ahead? i think much will depend on the next move of. league will go ahead? i think much l will depend on the next move of the premier league. in a sign of the division this has caused, tomorrow
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14 of its clubs will meet to discuss this crisis. but missing will be the six that are members of the so—called dirty dozen, and condemnation is growing from some very influential figures indeed. tonight prince william, the president of the fa, tweeting that he shared fans�* concern and that it risked real damage to the sport. it doesn't help that many of the figures from behind the plot have come out and conducted an interview and explained themselves —— have not, but behind the scenes they are adamant this will generate much more money not only for them but for the rest of the football family. they are struggling to convince people of that but they seem confident they can take the legal action required to block any of the punishments that governing bodies like uefa are threatening them with earlier on today. what seems clear is this is now a battle for the control, the
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future of the game going forward. as the rhetoric toughens up, the sense is that what would be the biggest shake—up of the club game for a generation moves ever closer. and for many fans, the feeling is that the game they love has never seemed so distant. . ~' , ., india's been added to the government's "red list" for travel — meaning that from 4am on friday, british and irish citizens arriving in the uk from india will have to quarantine in a designated hotel, like travellers from some other countries. non—residents will be barred from entering the country entirely. here's our health editor hugh pym. with a surge in covid cases and the health system under threat, india's capital, delhi, has announced a week—long lockdown. a variant of the virus first found in india has been detected in the uk, with most cases linked to travel. it's not officially said to be a concern, but the prime minister has postponed his trip there and new restrictions have been imposed. a visit to india to see relatives will get a lot more difficult
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for this family from leicester and others like them, with a hotel quarantine on their return and a bill for thousands of pounds, so they're unlikely to go. unfortunately, my wife's family is based in india and we try to go at least once a year to meet up. and since last year, we've not been able to go and the uncertainty of not being able to see my kids' grandparents is something that we're quite uncertain and unfortunately waiting for that. one leicester travel agent is now braced for cancellations. most of the people, 99% will cancel now, but it is quite difficult for us. there's no money for us. we're not making anything at all. secretary of state... 50,000 passengers travelled between the uk and india in february, but the health secretary said the new policy was unavoidable. india is a country i know well and love. between our two countries, we have ties of friendship and family. i understand the impact of this decision, but i hope that the house will concur that we must act, because we must protect the progress
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that we've made in this country in tackling this awful disease. it'll take effect from friday, but labour asked why it hadn't happened sooner. can he explain, contrary to his previous answer, why india wasn't put on a red list ten days ago when other countries were? while announcing travel restrictions, ministers also pointed to the fact that more than ten million people in the uk had now had both vaccine doses. the average daily number of people getting first doses of the vaccines rose from the new year to reach a high point in march. it had been expected to come down a bit, with supplies needed for second doses, but it's fallen more steeply than expected because of a shortfall this month in astrazeneca jabs. the number coming back for second doses rose pretty sharply from march and is now well ahead of the daily number getting first doses. but the health secretary warned that the biggest risk was new variants,
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and plans for a booster vaccine shot designed to tackle them would be scaled up. hugh pym, bbc news. the latest government figures show there were 2,963 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is now 2,469. just over 2,000 people are in hospital with covid — the lowest number since the end of september. four deaths were reported people who died within 28 days of a positive covid test. 25 deaths have been announced on average every day in the past week. 127,274 have now died across the uk. as for vaccinations, another 83,000 people have had their first dose of a covid—19 vaccine in the latest 24—hour period, meaningjust under 33 million have now had theirfirstjab. just over 221,000 more people have had their second dose, meaning more than ten million have
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had both jabs. the prime minister is expected to announce this week a much more ambitious target for cutting britain's carbon emissions. the new plan is to cut carbon emissions by 78% by 2035. and for the first time international aviation and shipping will be included in the target. our chief environment correspondent, justin rowlatt, joins me now. how will they do this? well, what we hear is that the _ how will they do this? well, what we hear is that the prime _ how will they do this? well, what we hear is that the prime minister - how will they do this? well, what we hear is that the prime minister is - hear is that the prime minister is going to announce this in the next couple of days. let's be clear, it is much more aggressive than planned. this is 78% of 1990 emissions levels. it is what the climate change committee said needed to happen if we are going to meet our bigger target of getting to net a zero by 2050. that means reducing emissions as much as we can and then
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capturing and you can't be offset by planting trees or engineering solutions. why now? it is a really important time for climate politics. the idea is to signal to the world that britain is really serious about cutting emissions. it comes in the run—up to this big climate conference the uk will host in glasgow in november. the idea is to rally other countries to raise their carbon cutting game at that conference. how are we going to get there? more renewable power, more electric cars, more low carbon heating systems, some of us will have to eat less meat and dairy. it will require a big investment and insulating our homes, we will be encouraged to drive less and walk and cycle more. aviation is likely to get more expensive for frequent flyers. i think what we are seeing here is the kind of big changes we knew we were going to need to make, but they are now happening much sooner than we expected. justin rowlatt, thank _ sooner than we expected. justin rowlatt, thank you. _ security is being tightened in minneapolis asjurors begin considering their verdict in the trial of the former us
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police officer charged with murdering the black man george floyd last year. derek chauvin denies causing mr floyd's death by kneeling on his neck. the defence says mr chauvin correctly followed police training, but the prosecution say his actions were disproportionate and deliberate. footage from the incident was again shown in closing arguments today, and some of it is included, in our correspondent nick brya nt�*s report. it's a measure of the passions aroused by this trial that the courthouse looks more like a prison. and the presence of the national guard serves as a martial reminder of how this midwestern city has become america's most volatile fault line. put your hands up, right now. let me see your other hand. in its closing argument, the prosecution showed police body—cam footage of george floyd's arrest for a minor offence, and his reluctance at getting in the police car because he suffered from claustrophobia and anxiety. already handcuffed, the officers took him out
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and forced him to the ground. i can't breathe... "i can't breathe. " george floyd uttered these words almost 30 times. this wasn't policing. this was murder. the defendant is guilty of all three counts. all of them. and there's no excuse. then derek chauvin listened as his lawyer mounted his final defence. he argued the officer followed his training and adhered to police procedures in a highly stressful situation. i can't breathe! and the fact that george floyd could speak, he stated, showed that he could breathe. derek chauvin should be found not guilty on all three counts. over this three—week trial, which seen the emotional friends and eyewitnesses. the testimony of medical first responders. in lay terms, i thought he was dead.
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the rare sight of a police chief publicly condemning the actions of one of his officers. it's not part of our training, it's certainly not part of our ethics or our values. and the dramatic moment when derek chauvin decided not to testify. i will invoke my fifth amendment privilege today. this has become a familiar american streetscape, shops boarded up and ready for a storm of protest. but tonight, a pause for prayer for the family of george floyd, their testament of hope that justice will be served. thejury the jury has begun thejury has begun its the jury has begun its deliberations on they have to reach unanimous verdicts. if they don't, it raises a possibility of a mistrial, although in a case like this, with multiple charges, that would be rare. too many people here, it is as if three trials are unfolding simultaneously. derek chauvin is on trial. american policing is on trial. and the ability of the us criminaljustice
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system to police american policing. nasa has successfully flown a small helicopter on mars — the first ever powered flight on another planet. the drone, called ingenuity, was in the air for less than a minute but nasa is promising more adventurous flights come. it's hoped they'll enable scientists to explore much more of distant planets such as mars. here's our science correspondent rebecca morelle. it was a flight that lasted just a0 seconds. but by hovering in the martian air, turning and then landing nasa's ingenuity helicopter made history. applause. confirmed. ingenuity has performed its first flight. and this was the moment mission control learned of the success. human beings have never flown a rotorcraft outside of our own earth's atmosphere. we don't have to say it any more. we have flown, human beings
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have flown a rotorcraft on a another planet! and we are have started it by flying at mars. it's a huge deal for humanity. the helicopter took pictures, too. this one mid—flight capturing its own shadow below. and anotherjust before a touchdown. until now nasa had no guarantees this would work. these flights are testing cutting—edge technology. on board are solar panels and a thermostat so the helicopter can survive temperatures down to —80 degrees. for each flight scientists upload a plan. but ingenuity also has to make decisions by itself. high—tech cameras and sensors can spot obstacles so it can adjust its height to avoid these. but the helicopter can also use these features as landmarks so it could navigate its way down to the ground. this flight is just the start. in the coming days the helicopter will begin to fly further afield
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and it could transform our view of mars. helicopters can cover more ground, active scout vehicles, can go into different areas that the rover can't go into. and then they can do coordinated science data. future manned mission to mars can utilise a drone helicopter. so there is a lot of opportunity. more than 100 years ago the wright brothers made history with the first powered aircraft on earth. now a little mars helicopter has shown the same is possible on another planet. propelling us into a new era in space exploration. there's been strong condemnation of russia over recent days with president putin coming under international pressure on several fronts. the us imposed new sanctions on russia last week for meddling
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in elections and today the eu criticised the kremlin over the build—up of troops on the ukrainian border. there's concern too over the health of opposition leader alexei navalny, who's been moved from prison to hospital. fresh protests in support of mr navalny have been planned for wednesday but police say they will crack down on anyone taking part. our correspondent steve rosenberg reports from siberia, on the growing tensions within putin's russia. where is russia going undeeradimir putin? what kind of a country is the president building? what is he thinking and planning? getting inside vladimir putin's mind is artist vasily slonov�*s job. he sees a leader determined to keep power. translation: however you mix up the pieces, i russia's jigsaw will always show putin. he's outplayed everyone. all his opponents have been removed,
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jailed, poisoned or killed. alexei navalny was poisoned and later imprisoned. the opposition leader is on hunger strike. there's growing concern about his health and growing pessimism among his supporters. injanuary, police detained igor at a pro—navalny protest. translation: we're going back to the red terror of stalin - when anyone who thought differently from the great leader was persecuted. now, people who don't support our president are seen as enemies. patriotic chimes — a sign of the times. the kremlin�*s encouraging national pride and distrust of the west. in krasnoyarsk, we're being followed... ok, there it is again, the same numberplate. . .everywhere we go. the fact that we're being followed shows just how nervous
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the russian authorities are, how sensitive they are to potential criticism about what's happening here, and also how suspicious they are of the west. so one of the cars that's been following us has just pulled up here. we're going to try to have a little chat. speaking russian he says he's not following us, it's just our imagination. that's not true. for ksenia and herfamily, it's not the west they fear, it's russia's direction. but like most russians, they avoid politics and protests. i think that people are afraid because if your director finds that you went there... to a protest?
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yeah, and maybe you were jailed, sometimes you can lose yourjob. people are just afraid. when you look into the future, what kind of a russia would you like your son to live in? i would like russia to be more free. but, you know, i don't believe that anything will change in the nearest future. but change can happen suddenly in russia. communism collapsed, and some think that a system built around one man, even a strong man, is dangerously unstable. translation: russia is heading straight for a big catastrophe. i i'm certain. it's irreversible. it's like the titanic heading for the iceberg. the overriding feeling i get about russia is uncertainty, and that's a global concern because the direction russia takes has consequences for the whole world. steve rosenberg, bbc
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news, krasnoyarsk. the labour leader sir keir starmer was thrown out of a pub in bath today, after clashing with the landlord over lockdown restrictions. icame i came here to speak to this man, not your security. you have failed me! a furious rod humphries, who co—runs the raven pub, had challenged sir keir while he was on a walkabout. after the labour leader entered the pub, mr humpries tried to throw him out. this man is not allowed in my pub! in the end mr starmer had little choice but to to leave. he said afterwards nhs staff have been working tirelessly to protect public health and that restrictions have been necessary to save lives. the scottish conservatives have launched their manifesto ahead of next month's holyrood elections. they're focusing on blocking any possible second independence referendum, and they're promising more money for the nhs. here's our scotland
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editor sarah smith. kayaking in the heart of the city. potentially perilous and certainly not for the faint—hearted. tories in glasgow used to be an equally rare sight. in recent years they've found some political buoyancy in scotland, launching their manifesto in a nearby waterside warehouse. we need to choose to rebuild scotland now. with the emphasis on trying to stop the snp holding another referendum on scottish independence. have you spoken to the prime minister about how he would respond if an snp government asked him for permission to have another referendum ? the prime minister is clear we cannot have another referendum while scotland is seeking to recover from the covid pandemic. i spoke to him last night. so in this campaign, you're really focused on the threat of another referendum ? but if you know the prime minister will refuse permission for that, then there isn't any threat at all? well, there is a major threat, because nicola sturgeon has said she would go ahead with an illegal
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wildcat referendum anyway. she has said, she has accepted in this campaign, she would hold that referendum within the first couple of years, and she has also accepted that means campaigning to separate scotland from the rest of the uk during our recovery phase. the scottish conservatives are promising £2 billion extra spending for the nhs, to recruit 3,000 more teachers, a £500 skills grant for every adult to pay for retraining, more local policing and full fibre broadband for every home and business by 2027. and you're currently a westminster mp, but you're standing in this election to become a member of the scottish parliament. why haven't you stood down from westminster? three of scotland's five first ministers have acted both as first minister and also had the dual mandate of mp and msp. i've always been proud of my roots in moray, i am delighted to be the mp for moray, and i hope to have the opportunity to serve moray as part of the highlands and islands region after the 6th of may. it doesn't sound as though you're really focused on the scottish parliament. i'm saying there's opportunities
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