welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines: china's population falls for the first time in more than six decades. we look at the impact that is having. belgian police say a key suspect in a corruption scandal at the european parliament has cut a deal with investigators. as the us and uk renew their commitment to helping ukraine, troops on the frontline tell the bbc they desperately need western tanks to make progress. both president biden and prime minister sunak have committed to standing with ukraine for as long as it takes, and our teams are in lockstep as we coordinate our efforts both with one another and also with our many allies and partners.

and could one of britain's richest men become the new owner of manchester united football team 7 live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. hello and welcome to the program. we begin in china where an unwelcome milestone has been reached. the country's population fell for the first time since the 1960s, and the national birthrate also fell to the lowest it's been since data collection began, in 1949. the announcement on tuesday comes alongside one of china's worst economic performances in almost half a century. the labour force is shrinking, as the country's retired population keeps growing. this also means india is expected to overtake china as the world's most populous nation later this year. let's take a look at

some of the numbers. china's population last year was more than 1.4 billion people, according to official data. that's a decrease of 850,000 people from 2021. as for the national birth rate, it sank to just 6.77 births per 1,000 people. compare that with the united states, where it stands atjust over 11 births per 1000 people. here's how some beijing residents reacted to the news. translation: i think firstly, the cost to raise a child now is too high, from when they are little to when they go to school, and when they look for a job in the future and get married and have their own children. the cost is too high. we don't have any plans to have a second child. translation: | feel worried | about the population decline, especially for my generation who were born after 1990. most of us are the only child. if we are not married, the girl will need to take care of her parents and hergrandparents, if they're still alive.

so the burden on everyone is quite heavy. putting aside the financial burdens, it's quite a heavy commitment for people in our generation, in terms of time and energy. i've been speaking to the population expert from the school of earth and environmental sciences at the university of queensland, dr elin charles—edwards. she told me about the significance of these figures. we have known this has been coming for a long time but it is a real milestone and this coupled with the fact that india is likely to overtake china as the most populous country this year is a real shift in global population. and when you look at the fact that this has been a trend, what are you expecting to see in terms of the impact on chinese society and the economy there? we have known this is coming, most countries are going through what we are calling a demographic transition where we are having sustained falls in fertility rates over time, and

china's fertility has been below replacement level since the 1990s, and it has about impact notjust on the declining population size but ships in the asian composition of the population so you have fewer young people supporting an ever larger share of elderly chinese. �* , , , chinese. and why is this happening. _ chinese. and why is this happening. if— chinese. and why is this happening, if you - chinese. and why is this happening, if you can i chinese. and why is this i happening, if you can talk chinese. and why is this - happening, if you can talk us through the historical context of all of this?— of all of this? there are a number _ of all of this? there are a number of _ of all of this? there are a number of reasons - of all of this? there are a number of reasons that l number of reasons that fertility falls, more so about childhood mortality. as infants are by people tend to reduce family size because they know their children will do addo—carr but as a countries develop a modern as we see the cost of children, the capital ships, so in gregorian societies children can be a source of labour and again to household budget but as countries industrialise and urbanised they become a bad class people want fewer children, they focus on quality rather than quantity of children.— rather than quantity of children. ., . ., children. you referenced india earlier in _ children. you referenced india earlier in our— children. you referenced india earlier in our conversation. i earlier in our conversation. things are different there in

terms of population growth? they are, india is still growing. back in 1950 both china and india had total fertility rates of around six children per woman by china's declining fertility has been much more precipitous than india's india is though a replacement level, just below, so the future we're seeing in china is something that india is going to have to encounter and manage in coming decades. when you look at population growth often countries in the past have seen that as an issue, they want to keep populations under control so that they can serve the people, governments can serve the people that are living in those countries. why has this become such a challenge and what — can administrations do anything to reverse this? seam; administrations do anything to reverse this?— reverse this? any big shift in demographic— reverse this? any big shift in demographic regimes - reverse this? any big shift in demographic regimes is - demographic regimes is challenging but this is something that we're all going be faced with, globally, by the end of the century will be looking at a stable declining population. the big challenge though is the shift in the age

of structure. how we actually manage the fact that we have fewer productive workers per older people but it is something that we're all going to encounter and be faced with and there is little we can do about it. that was dr elin charles—edwards at the university of queensland speaking to us on tuesday earlier. belgian prosecutors have struck a deal with one of the main suspects in a european union corruption scandal. pier antonio panzeri will receive a reduced prison sentence in exchange for information. qatar and morocco have contested claims they offered bribes to try to influence the european parliament. i've been speaking to our news reporter sofia bettiza who gave me the latest. he isa he is a former mp in the parliament of brussels, he has been a central figure parliament of brussels, he has been a centralfigure in parliament of brussels, he has been a central figure in this

corruption scandal, the so—called qatar gate, he was arrested in brussels a few days ago with other eu figures. what is new is that he has now admitted to participating in a criminal organisation and being an active corrupter. according to a statement by belgium's federal prosecutor he has agreed to enter a plea bargain. the reason that is significant is that he is going to give details about how this criminal network was operating. mr panzeri has a lawyer who has just given an interview. let's listen to what he had to say. translation: it listen to what he had to say. translation:— translation: it is clear mr panzeri is — translation: it is clear mr panzeri is involved, - translation: it is clear mr panzeri is involved, he - translation: it is clear mr panzeri is involved, he doesj panzeri is involved, he does not — panzeri is involved, he does not deny— panzeri is involved, he does not deny it. this is a man who has _ not deny it. this is a man who has destroyed. you will have to tell everything he knows, both about— tell everything he knows, both about the beneficiaries of the corruption phenomena, the organisation implemented and the financial services that existed, _ the financial services that existed, and otherwise he has to say— existed, and otherwise he has to say everything he knows.

this — to say everything he knows. this is— to say everything he knows. this is part of the commitment he made — he made. fascinating stuff, talk us through the background of this, talk to us about this scandal. what we know is that a few days ago for two people were arrested in belgium. they are suspected of having accepted huge amounts of cash from qatar, which of course hosted the world cup recently, in exchange to gain influence over political statements, especially when it comes to workers' rights. belgian police have also released pictures of what they said that they found huge amounts of cash, about $1.5 million in cash stashed in a hotel room, an apartment and a hotel room, an apartment and a suitcase. now, the people who have been arrested remain in the custody including panzeri, and some of them are quite senior eu figures, including a vice president of the european

parliament so this doesn't look good for the eu institutions. it is also worth remembering that qatar strenuously denies trying to buy influence through gifts or cash, but, you know, as we have just heard from panzeri's lawyer, panzeri is preparing to give details and to name specific people involved in the scandal, so this latest development means more details are going to emerge soon.— more details are going to emerge soon. sophia battista keein: emerge soon. sophia battista keeping us — emerge soon. sophia battista keeping us updated _ emerge soon. sophia battista keeping us updated on - emerge soon. sophia battista keeping us updated on the i keeping us updated on the story. and members of the parliament to have been accused or denied the accusations. some breaking news. the philippian nobel laureate maria ressa and her new site rappler have been acquitted. maria

ressa as head of rappler which earned a reputation for in—depth reporting and scrutiny of rodrigo duterte tape, she was convicted in 2024 liable and appealing the verdict and faces several other charges which she says are politically motivated. she spoke a short time ago. motivated. she spoke a short time age-— time ago. today acts when, truth wins. _ time ago. today acts when, truth wins, justice - time ago. today acts when, truth wins, justice wins. i truth wins, justice wins. inaudible that was maria ressa there, the philippian nobel laureate who has been acquitted alongside her new site, rappler, by a court of tax evasion charges. what's more on the bbc website. we will be bringing you updates on that story as and when we get them. for now to another story for you today. the uk and us have reaffirmed their support for ukraine and its struggle against the russian invasion.

james cleverly has been holding talks with antony blinken on a visit to washington. mr clovelly raised western unity and had this message for president putin. whilst three quarters of the entire membership of the united nations voted to condemn this invasion, we should remember that never in living memory has russia been more isolated and the atlantic alliance more united. if putin believed the world would succumb to ukraine fatigue and lose the will to resist his ambitions, then that was, once again, another colossal misjudgment on his part. us secretary of state antony blinken welcomed the uk's defence support for ukraine and said the us would also increase humanitarian help. we applaud the prime minister's commitment over the weekend to send challenger ii tanks and additional artillery systems to ukraine. elements that will continue

to reinforce and add to what the united states has provided, including in our most recent drawdown. we remain united in strengthening our humanitarian assistance to the ukrainian people, especially as president putin continues to weaponize winter by attacking ukraine's electricity grid. that is the picture in washington. meanwhile, in ukraine, the intense fighting around soledar and bahkmut continues. troops on the frontline there, have told the bbc they welcome news from the uk that they're to receive around a dozen challenger tanks, a move they hope will turn the tide in the war. together with missile defence systems — this sort of modern equipment from the west — is likely to be pivotal in the next few months in this war. the bbc�*s andrew harding has spent some time with a tank unit near bakhmut and sent this report. lurking in a snowbound forest just behind the front lines, a cluster of ukrainian tanks. but these are ancient forces,

half a century—old. no match for russia's army. translation: they are 'ust not suitable for this. i they work, but the technology has moved on. which is why there is great excitement here about the prospect of new western machines. if you could have any tank, any of these foreign tanks, would it make a difference? i think abrams is very good for us. any tank. it is required for victory. suddenly there is incoming fire close by. a hurried exit for us, a reminder of the unpredictable nature of artillery warfare. we head closer to the front towards two furiously contested towns, soledar and bakhmut.

footage of a recent tank battle here, firing on the move. from a hillside in bakhmut, we watch more ukrainian tanks in action. they call this section of the front line a savage artillery war that has raged for months with precious little progress on either side, but ukrainians here insist that's about to change. if, that is, they get western tanks here soon. if you are going to counterattack and sees more territory, then you need tanks, need mobile artillery. it would be very useful for counterattacking because infantry covered by tanks, for sure... without them, these front lines

are going to be stuck like they are. yeah. for now, it grinds on, a cold and lethal winter stalemate. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: we'll bring you the very latest news from the australian open in melbourne, both on and off the court. donald trump is now the 45th president of the united states. he was sworn in before several hundred thousand people on the steps of capitol hill in washington. it's going to be only america first — america first.

demonstrators waiting for mike gatting and his rebel cricket team were attacked with tear gas and set upon by police dogs. anti—apartheid campaigners say they will carry on the protests throughout the tour. they called him 'the butcher of lyon'. klaus altmann is being held on a fraud charge in bolivia. the west germans want to extradite him for crimes committed in wartime france. there, he was the gestapo chief klaus barbie. millions came to bathe as close as possible to this spot — - a tide of humanity- that's believed by officials to have broken all records. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani, in singapore. 0ur headlines: china's population has fallen for the first time in more than six decades.

let's take you now to a new bbc documentary, which examines one of modern—day india's worst ever outbreaks of religious violence. more than 1,000 people, many of them muslims, died in the violence, after a train fire had killed 59 hindu pilgrims. there have been long standing accusations that prime minister narendra modi, who was chief minister of gujarat at the time, did little to stop the violence. a report from the uk's foreign office obtained by the bbc, stated that modi was directly responsible. last year, india's supreme court upheld a ruling clearing him of complicity. jon donnison reports. in 2002, gujarat was burning in what was some of the worst religious violence in modern india. at least 1,000 people died, many of them were muslims. imran dawood, who lives in yorkshire, was visiting family there. two of his uncles and his neighbour mohammed were killed.

they got stabbed, i do not know what happened to my uncles. it's fresh in my mind. like it happened yesterday. but sadly, 20 years on, nothing has happened. the violence broke out after muslims were blamed for a train fire that killed 59 people, many of them hindu pilgrims. in the days that followed, hindu mobs targeted muslim homes and businesses, with the police apparently doing little to stop them. but a british foreign office report marked as restricted blamed the right—wing hindu nationalist group, the vhp, and its allies for orchestrating the violence, but also narendra modi for allowing it to happen. at the time, modi was the chief minister of the state. he's now india's prime minister. the document was obtained by the bbc in 2002. some details were reported at the time, though this is the first time

it has been reported in full. it also reported claims that mr modi had directed the police not to stop the violence. this former senior diplomat was one of the investigators. he's speaking publicly for the first time and has asked to remain anonymous. his words are spoken by an actor. there were pretty credible reports he had specifically instructed the police not to intervene. the police contact who we talked to consistently denied

that, so, we did have conflicting reports on what his direct role had been. but we did feel it was clear, there was a culture of impunity that created the environment for the violence to take place. that undoubtedly came from modi. narendra modi has always denied he allowed or encouraged muslims to be targeted. an inquiry investigating claims of criminal conspiracy cleared him in 2012, a finding upheld by india's supreme court last year. but back in yorkshire, no—one has ever been convicted for the dawood family murders. still feeling very angry, very frustrated. it feels like there's no justice there. jon donnison reporting to some sporting news now and the british billionaire, sirjim ratcliffe, has confirmed his interest in buying manchester united. the 70—year—old, who founded the chemicalfirm ineos, has been a fan of the club since he was a child.

mr ratcliffe attempted to buy chelsea last year, but his late offer was rejected, as todd boehlywas successful in taking over from roman abramovich. 0ur sports editor dan roan has this update. a lot of united fans will be hoping it happens, because so many of them are desperate to see the back of the club's american owners — the glazerfamily — who have presided over a period of decline both on the pitch and in terms of the stadium, old trafford, itself. now last year, they said they would be willing to listen to offers for the club after potentially bringing to an end a period of ownership, 18 years almost, defined by fan protests, controversy, and debt. now this evening, the british chemicals giant ineos — owned by one of the country's richest men, sirjim ratcliffe — formally said he'd entered the bidding process. will it happen? well, it's important to remember that last year, ratcliffe tried and failed

to buy chelsea, having bid too late. there is no doubt he will face fierce competition for united if he does bid — the glazer family are thought to want at least £5 billion, and there's expected to be interest from the middle east and us as well. but having said that, he already has significant sports investment in the likes of sailing, cycling, f1, and, of course, football — he owns the french club nice. and he's made no secret of the fact he is a united fan — it was his boyhood club, having grown up here in manchester. and i think for that reason, many united fans will hope the first person to formally declare their hand when it comes to united ends up being the club's next owner. but it's important to note the process could have several months to run. several months more to run. it is day three of the australian open in melbourne. after extreme heat then rain halted play on tuesday, it is going to be another packed day of tennis. i've been speaking to sports reporter at the age, marnie vinall, who told me the tumultuous weather

on tuesday meant a lot of re—scheduled matches and that made things a bit difficult for players. frustration, i think especially with players like kokkinakis' match — he was visibly really dejected when his game was rescheduled. he was five points away from victory, and if he was to win that, he would face andy murray in the second round, which would be a very exciting match especially for locals. but i think there is an element of us being used to the weather disrupting things here in melbourne. yes, that's a good way to look at it, deal with it and carry on. but i'm glad you brought up andy murray, because it was all about andy murray yesterday. what was the melbourne crowd's response? 0h, melbourne absolutely love andy murray, his reception was amazing. you could tell he had a lot of vocal crowd support behind him. and he beat the 13th seed in matteo berrettini —

will and it went down to a tie—breaker in the fifth set, will all so a really thrilling match, and arguably that's the biggest will will upset of the tournament so far. and in terms of djokovic, it was the big controversy ahead of the australian open — have fans forgiven him, forgotten everything that happened last year? there was a lot of apprehension going into the australian open as to how melbourne crowds would react to djokovic, especially because melbournians were put into so many lockdowns. he was deported over his vaccination stance but it was such a warm welcome. ahead of the open, craig tiley, the ceo of tennis australia, says he hopes melbourne would be really receptive towards djokovic and the local crowd would respect his greatness, and that definitely seemed to be the case. he definitely walked out to huge applause from the crowd, and the whole crowds were covered in the serbian flag, t—shirts were made. it was a very warm welcome.

and in breaking, the indonesian journalist has been cleared. it has been speaking. inaudible. to stop journalists _ has been speaking. inaudible. to stop journalists from - has been speaking. inaudible. to stopjournalists from doing l to stop journalists from doing theirjobs inaudible. these their jobs inaudible. these cases theirjobs inaudible. these cases where the rule of role, freedom of the present meet. this equipment inaudible is not just for us but for every

journalist who has ever been unjustly accused.— unjustly accused. that was maria ressa. _ unjustly accused. that was maria ressa. thank - unjustly accused. that was maria ressa. thank you i unjustly accused. that was | maria ressa. thank you for watching. hello there. the cold weather is here to stay for a bit longerjust yet, but the amount of snow we've seen has varied a lot from place to place. many of us haven't seen a single flake over recent days. there's been a smattering over the tops of the hills of the beautiful cumbrian lake district. but a bit more than that in highland, where we have seen some places reporting over 30cm of lying snow. that's where the majority of the disruption's been, but i suspect the disruptive potential is growing — these shower clouds, many of them with snow mixed in, are starting to become more widespread, and are moving their way across more areas of the western side of the uk — and with that comes the threat of disruption. so a band of snow crosses scotland southwards, crosses northern ireland southwards, with showers

becoming much more widespread for wales and areas of western england. now we are going to see accumulations of snow building up — 5—15cm for these areas over modest hills, but at times, the snow will come all the way down to sea level. like recent nights, we still have seepage coming in from the fields, and with a sharp frost around, it's notjust the snow that has the potential to cause some transport disruption on into wednesday morning. but there'll be widespread ice again, bringing very, very dangerous conditions out on the roads. 0n the face of it, temperatures not quite as low as recent days, however, we've got stronger winds — and if anything, i think that's going to make it feel even colder. certainly a bitter—feeling day on wednesday. the winds ease off a little bit as we head into thursday, but we're not finished with the stream of showers — they will, this time, mostly be concentrated across scotland, perhaps a bit more of a mixture here. some rain, some sleet and a bit of snow over the hills. there'll also be a few showers affecting the northwest of both england and wales. that aside, there'll be plenty of sunshine around,

and our temperatures, well, not really changing a great deal, 5—6 celsius, maybe a seven towards parts of southwest england. however, we will see some bigger changes in our temperatures as we head into the weekend, particularly across the western side of the uk, as we start to draw up these southwesterly winds. but cold air slower to move away from the east. so, there will be a big jump up in temperatures across northern and western areas — in many cases, back into double figures — as we go through the weekend. but with that will come thicker cloud and outbreaks of rain. the colder air still hanging on across eastern areas, but even here, temperatures should slowly rise closer to normal.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. that's a great ball, just keep another two on it. keep your ball, maisie, keep your ball.

when i played football, it was literally our life. |