alex forsyth, bbc news.oday is the deadline for public sector bodies with more than 250 employees to reveal how much of a pay difference there is between male and female workers. but thousands of companies are yet to file their data. earlier, deborah hargreaves, the founder and director of the independent think—tank the high pay centre, explained why the gender pay gap continues to be such a problem. well, i think that what happens is you are seeing a lot of job segregation. a lot of women in the lower ranks of organisations, and the men, of course, are at the top. they are better paid. so, some organisations have tried to address that by appointing a very senior woman, who then obviously skews the pay gap but does not do much for the people on the lower ranks. what we have got to see more happening is for women to get up the ranks in organisations, to get into more powerfuljobs and to start to affect this. when you look at something like the national health service, for example, britain's biggest employer o

alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. let's take a closer look at the results of all of last night's votes which remember aren't binding on the government. and let's just focus on the couple of votes that were the closest. the fourth on the list is former conservative chanellor kenneth clarke's proposal for a customs union, which was nine votes short of securing a majority. and the penultimate vote was proposed by former cabinet minister margaret beckett for a confirmatory referendum on the government's withdawal bill. it was the most supported, attracting the support of 268 mps, but would have needed 28 more to back it to secure a majority in the house of commons.

our political correspondent alex forsyth reports.f rest for the prime minister, with her brexit plan and her future plagued with uncertainty. for now, it seems the answer is no. instead, key brexit ears were summoned to her country retreat. the prime minister, it seems, still trying to win their support for her trouble deal, but all the while talk is swirling about whether she can keep herjob. her de facto deputy today had to deny reports of a plot today had to deny reports of a plot to replace her which would see him step in, saying he had no such plans. i don't think that i've any wish to take over from the pm, who i think is doing a fantasticjob. i'll tell you this, one thing that working closely with the prime minister does is to cure you com pletely minister does is to cure you completely of any lingering shred of ambition. cabinet ministers were keen to quash rumours of any plan to oust their boss. it is not time to change the captain of the ship. we need to chart the right course, and the prime minister has done that by making

alex forsyth, bbc news.ur political correspondent alex forsyth said it's unclear what the government's next move will be. well, it is not clear what the government is going to do next they'll be watching very closely when mps vote on a series of alternative to the prime minister's plan. if they cannot get behind anyone planet, the ideas it will be something that retains formal ties to the european union, the customs union, it could be the prime minister presents the choice of her deal or that option, on the hope that that may bring brexiteers on board. however, that is far from certain. there's also the possibility that she may just walk away, to leave without any at all. —— there are those calling for the governmentjust two. —— there are those calling for the government just two. labour mps warned against that prospect, but with all these options on the table and no obvious route out of it, the government early only has two weeks until we are due to leave the eu on april the 12th to make these crucial decis

i'm joined by our political correspondent, alex forsyth. so, alex, took us through this vote later.eir thoughts on whether the uk should leave the eu at the end of march and what is currently brexit day, the 29, without a deal. the chances are most mps won't go for that option because we have seen before the majority in parliament is against that idea. what happens then? well, it doesn't automatically mean no—deal is off the table, they would need to be some sort of legislation around that. in the short term, they will come back tomorrow and vote again on the possibility of delaying this process. and if that were to go forward , process. and if that were to go forward, the delay, as it were, we would have to get agreement in brussels on that from the other 27 member states as well. but regardless, if we look to the end of june, it is still no clearer what this deal what will look like, how we will exit the european union. absolutely right, it is not in the gift of the uk parliament to decide to delay, they would request an extension to article 50, the formal legal process, from the

alex forsyth, bbc news.or conservatives have rallied around the former attorney general and high—profile remain campaigner, dominic grieve, after his local party made moves to deselect him. mr grieve, who has called for a further referendum on eu membership, lost a vote of confidence by his local conservative association. he blamed what he called an orchestrated campaign by pro—brexit figures in his beaconsfield constituency. now, it's no surprise that brexit and conservative party infighting is dominating the sunday newspaper front pages here in the uk. let's take a look at a few. the sunday times is focusing on the split within the cabinet. they say both leave and remain supporting ministers are set to abandon theresa may over brexit. the observer is reporting that may is also facing a rebellion over a potential snap election. the sunday telegraph front page follows that thread. their headline reads "snap election under may would annihilate tories". the mail on sunday, "no 10 at war over ‘suicidal election

alex forsyth, thank you very much.r investigation into russian interference in the 2016 us presidential election has concluded that there is no evidence of collusion by members of donald trump's campaign team. but a summary of special counsel robert mueller‘s report, released this afternoon says while it does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him. live now to our north america editor jon sopel at the white house. a good day for the president, jon?” think probably the best day that donald trump has had since his inauguration in january 2017. donald trump has had since his inauguration injanuary 2017. he will feel completely exonerated by the report that has come out. a cloud has parted, a weight has been lifted from his shoulders, if you like, with this report. muller looked into two things, the first being, was there collusion between the russians and the trump campaign. 0n the russians and the trump campaign. on that he is definitive, 100% no, there was no collusion. but on

alex forsyth, bbc news.it and conservative party infighting is dominating the sunday newspaper front pages here in the uk. let's take a look at a few. the sunday times is focusing on the split within the cabinet — they say both leave and remain supporting ministers are set to abandon theresa may over brexit. the observer is reporting that may is also facing a rebellion over a potential snap election. the sunday telegraph front page follows that thread — their headline reads ‘snap election under may would annihilate tories'. and again the mail on sunday — "no 10 at war over ‘suicidal election'" — also reporting the results over their own polling which now givesjeremy corbyn‘s labour a 5 point lead over the conservative for more on this we can get the thoughts of james rampton, features writer at the indepedendent, who's been looking at some of those sunday headlines for us. what have you made of these headlines? many of the papers are leading with that suggestion of a snap election tonight stop it is interest

here's our political correspondent, alex forsyth.r was in parliament yesterday trying to sell her brexit plan and with so many of her mps set against it, she made one last big pitch to win them around. ata made one last big pitch to win them around. at a meeting inside parliament, she said she would quit if they back to exit deal, making way for someone else to take over the second stage of talks which did convince some tories. with the prime minister saying what she said, the majority in that room see this now is the best way to get us out to deal with that in future. is the best way to get us out to deal with that in futurelj is the best way to get us out to deal with that in future. i am encouraged she has accepted we should have a new leader for that second stage when it comes so i think i will now vote for the agreement. but with views on brexit so agreement. but with views on brexit so entrenched, will it be enough? other tories say they still won't tobacco deal and crucially they didn't get northern ireland's du p onboard. we

alex forsyth, bbc news. and alex is with me now.learned about what actually happened at checkers? our remaining very tightlipped about what was discussed, which i think tells you that it was very sensitive, it was focused on whether the theresa may could get enough support to bring her brexit deal back to parliament for a third time despite the fact she has been kicked out twice. she is trying to assess the mood to see if she can bring brexiteers on board and spends a reasonable chance of getting it through. number ten has been certain she will not get it passed. at the moment it still looks very uncertain. we are starting to hear how she could possibly get that deal through, and that is if she agrees to step down. the front of the sun has a very interesting editorial. the sun has come out and called her exactly that. the newspaper says theresa may must set her departure date, and if she does, the paper says tory mps and the du people from northern ireland should back her deal, get it over the line and somebody else can be the next

alex forsyth, bbc news. today is the deadline for public sector bodies, with more than 250 employees, to reveal how much of a pay difference there is between male and female workers. but thousands are yet to file. our correspondent sangita myska has been looking at the numbers. this is not a story about men and women paid differently for the same work, this is about the gender pay gap, it is quite complicated how they calculate that. we have a graphic to show you. this measurement is done by lining up employees, women and men, in a company, in order of salary, you then pull out the woman on the middle salary and the man on the middle salary, and then compare the two, and that gives you the gender pay gap. why is that important today? because we are talking about the public sector, that accounts for one sixth of the number of people employed here in the uk, over 5 million people. who are the worst offenders? it could be argued that the group of employers that should know better, it's universities. if you were

alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster.lk to damian grammaticas in brussels, but first our assistant political editor norman smith is in westminster. hours from the vote and the prime minister some say is in office but not in power. for weeks now we have been talking about parliament taking control of the brexit process. well today the party elders, senior mps in both parties moved to dojust that by tabling an amendment which would allow them to hold a so—called indicative vote next wednesday. what is that, you say? well, basically it would be a vote on the full gamut of different brexit options — another referendum, staying in the customs union, leaving without any deal — and mps would vote on all of these options with the option of the least number of votes dropping out each time until you end up with one option and that would become parliament's preferred option and that would become pa rliament‘s preferred brexit policy. but before we get to then, mrs may's team have made it clear she will bring back her brexit deal for

our political correspondent alex forsyth is with us, talk is to be the day. minister is suggesting, if there is a deal in sight, parliament could get behind, there might be in extension of a few months before we leave the eu to enable the governor to get the legislation in place. but she is also signalling if there is no—deal in sight, that extension could possibly be much longer. it is up to the eu to discuss the terms of any lengthening or delay, but i think the strategy of the prime minister is to threaten the possibility brexit can be delayed, in the hope of winning some of those mps round, to bring her brexit deal back and somehow get it to parliament. but don't underestimate how angry and frustrated many mps here are and how difficult that is going to be. for that very reason, the prime minister is hoping she will get her withdrawal deal through that has been rejected in that building twice. yes, quite, rejected resoundingly in that building twice, a lot of people don't like it, but now we can expect that deal to return to parliament sometime in the nex

thank you, alex forsyth, our political correspondent.ays ago is expected to be released any time now. thousands of people have gathered on the indian side of the wagah border crossing point, waiting to give him a hero‘s welcome home. there are hopes the pilot‘s release could defuse tensions between the nuclear powers over the disputed region of kashmir, which both pakistan and india claim as their own. the neighbours have fought three wars since independence in 19117. rajini vaidya nathan reports from the border. on his way home to india, the pilot this country is hailing a hero. from the early hours of the morning, jubilant crowds have been waiting for the return of wing commander abhinandan varthaman. i‘ve come here from delhi. i want to see my pilot, i‘m proud of him. i want to see him back. there‘s been a real sense of national pride and patriotism here today, and a sense of triumph. but make no mistake about it. the tensions between these two nuclear neighbours might have dampened down in the last day or two, but they certainly have

alex forsyth, bbc news.vative party infighting is dominating the sunday newspaper front pages here in the uk. let's take a look at a few. the sunday times is focusing on the split within the cabinet. they say both leave— and remain—supporting ministers are set to abandon theresa may over brexit. the observer is reporting that may is also facing a rebellion over a potential snap election. the sunday telegraph front page follows that thread. their headline reads "snap election under may would annihilate tories." the mail on sunday headline — "no 10 at war over ‘suicidal election'," reporting the results of the paper's own polling, which now givesjeremy corbyn‘s labour a 5—point lead over the conservatives. earlier, we spoke to james rampton, features writer for the independent. he explained what options parliament would look at again on monday. i think the one that has the most chance — two or three will be brought back in by the speaker at his behest, which ones are allowed through — the one that has most cha

alex forsyth, bbc news.exit campaigners have held protests at six different points of the border between northern ireland and ireland, fearing a return of customs checks could risk peace, jobs and their way of life. the group setup a fake border check point to demonstrate the disruption they could cause and the resistance their return would meet. the currently seamless 500 kilometre border would be the united kingdom's only land frontier with the eu after brexit. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. three teenage migrants in malta have been charged with hijacking an oil tanker, which is considered a terrorist activity under maltese law. the migrants had been rescued by the ship but reportedly hijacked it on wednesday after being told they would be returned to libya. they are alleged to have told the captain to head towards europe instead. two of the teenagers are minors. they all deny the charges. the venezuelan opposition are mounting another day of protests against the electricit

alex forsyth, bbc news.projects itself as a bastion of moderate islam. bbc arabic‘s mouna ba is in the capital rabat. hundreds of people have lined up here to get a glimpse of the pope, who arrived earlier at this institute. it is institute mohammed vi to teach imams from morocco, other african countries, and from europe as well, tolerant islam. an institute that is backed by king mohammed vi. earlier, the pope had praised morocco's efforts to promote peaceful islam and rejects extremism. he also talked about cooperation in building a world of greater solidarity to promote inter—religious dialogue. translation: i am grateful that my visit offers a significant opportunity for advancing inter—religious dialogue and mutual understanding between followers of our two religions. the courage to encounter one another and extend the hand of friendship is a pathway of peace and harmony for humanity, whereas extremism and hatred cause division and destruction. also on the pope's agenda is the meeting with a group of mi

alex forsyth reports.ain, the prime minister was in parliament yesterday trying to sell her brexit plan and with so many of her mps set against it, she made one last big pitch to win them round. at a meeting inside parliament, she said she would quit if they backed her brexit deal, making way for someone else to take over the second stage of talks, which did convince some tories. with the prime minister saying what she said, the majority in that room see this now as the best way to get us out and to deal with it in the future. i am encouraged that she has accepted we should have a new leader for that second stage when it comes so i think i will now vote for the agreement. but with views on brexit so entrenched, will it be enough? other tories say they still won't back her deal and crucially it didn't get northern ireland's dup onboard. we wanted to get a deal. a deal that worked for the whole of the united kingdom, a deal that worked for northern ireland, but now we're in a situation where we can't sign up

our political correspondent, alex forsyth reports.again, the prime minister was in parliament yesterday trying to sell her brexit plan and with so many of her mps set against it, she made one last big pitch to win them around. at a meeting inside parliament, she said she would quit if they back to exit deal, making way for someone else to take over the second stage of talks which did convince some tories. with the prime minister saying what she said, the majority in that room see this now as the best way to get us out to deal with that in future. i am encouraged she has accepted we should have a new leader for that second stage when it comes so i think i will now vote for the agreement. but with views on brexit so entrenched, will it be enough? other tories say they still won't back her deal and crucially it didn't get northern ireland's dup onboard. we wanted to get a deal. a deal that worked for the whole of the united kingdom, that worked for northern ireland but now we're in a situation where we can't sign up to the withdrawal agr

our political correspondent alex forsyth reports.y bleak in westminster this morning. what is happening with brexit is still unclear. and, for many, frustration is growing. last night there were dramatic scenes in parliament, as mps rejected the idea of leaving the eu without a deal. some ministers didn't support theresa may, but they are still in theirjobs. did you expect to be in the cabinet having not backed the prime minister last night? that has caused some anger and many are turning their minds to what happens now. by by no means is any option of the table. today mps are discussing whether brexit should be delayed, given there is no deal in place and most don't want to leave without one. the government suggested a short extension could happen but only if there is a deal in sight. otherwise, a delay could be lengthy. we have two options. if the house has agreed a timetable for the withdrawal bill, we can expect at the european union to agree to a short technical extension to allow the necessary legislation to be carried through.

alex forsyth for us in westminster. europe editor katya adler explained how the latest developments in westminster were being perceived in the eu and whether she thought the prime minister was likely to get approval to delay brexit. i think she will get an extension, but this is not going to be easy. a "cacophony" is how insiders described the difference of views between eu leaders at the moment when it comes to an extension. look, first off, they're waiting for that letter from the prime minister. how long does she want the extension for, and for what reasons? because the eu has long said in order to have a lengthier delay to brexit, they say there have to be significant political reasons. so, a general election or a referendum, for example. and right now, there is so little trust in the prime minister here in the eu that there are eu leaders who also say they want to see proof from parliament that they would support a longer extension before they in the eu sign up to it. there's also a lot of grumpiness amongst eu lea

alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. just to recapture if you are joining us.er to rule out a no—deal brexit ahead of tonight‘s vote. it started a few hours ago. it was opened by michael gove. let‘s hearfrom michael gove — who stood in for the prime minister — as he opened the debate. this house voted to give the people of this country a choice over whether or not we were to remain or leave the european union. 17.4 million people, a clear majority voted to leave. it is a mandate we must respect and an instruction we must deliver. it is also the case... just a minute. it is also the case that at the last general election both principal parties stood on manifestos which pledge them to deliver our departure from the european union. it is vitally important that we honour that manifesto promise, those instructions and our democracy. those outside this house who sent us here to act on their will and to deliver that mandate will take a very very dim view of those who seek to frustrate, deny or dilute the mandate that we were given. that was just part of the message de

we're joined now by our political correspondent, alex forsyth, who can tell us more about what's happeningu. it is very much up good morning to you. it is very much up in the air. yes. in this world of known unknowns, which we have been for some time with brexit, i think what happened last night cements that. even theresa may herself stood up, her credibility again initiated by the fact you cannot get her mean big policy through the house of commons. she hasn't got the backing of her own party, she stands up and says you can have a vote now on what happens next, shall we live without a deal, i think most mps would say not, should we extend the whole process 7 not, should we extend the whole process? and even theresa may said if we do that whatever does that mean? because parliament is deadlocked. do you want another referendum? do deadlocked. do you want another referendum ? do you deadlocked. do you want another referendum? do you want an even longer delay? do you want to not leave the eu? parliament cannot make up leave the eu? parliament cannot make up its mind. that is why we find ours

our political correspondent alex forsyth is in westminster. what can you tell us. ? more, and perhaps involve a total rethink of brexit. the point being this, number ten hopes that will encourage brexiteers who have rejected this deal before to come round rather than face a long delay. in fact, one prominent brexiteer, esther mcvey, former work and pensions secretary, who quit the government because she doesn't like this brexit deal, has now told the bbc she is now minded to vote for it and others might have to think about doing the same. so the effort is clearly on trying to salvage that deal. there are talks taking place today between the government and dup, who are crucial in this, happening as we speak in whitehall. the focus is again on the issue of the backstop, that plan to avoid checks on the irish border, whether or not there can be any interpretation of the legal advice that may give the uk a way out of that may give the uk a way out of that if it so chose. but don't underestimate the fact that this deal has been kicked out resoundingly twice and it will no

our political correspondent alex forsyth reports. there is clear frustration in westminster. still on show the day after mps rejected theresa may's brexit plan again. the question now is what happens next? as yet members of the government can't give any real clarity. i think what we have to do is to make sure that we deliver on the will of the people at the referendum. we have to keep trying. some still argue the prime minister's brexit deal is the best option. it's obviously very disappointing that the government lost yesterday. i think that has put the country in some difficulty and i feel the best way forward is the prime minister's deal but we will see what the options are. so will she put it back again? well, obviously, the cabinet will have to consider what the next step forward will be. the ayes to the right, 286. the noes to the left, 344. yesterday's rejection of the brexit plan was smaller than the two previous efforts but still substantial. on monday, mps will vote on alternatives to the prime minister's plan. last time, parliament could not agree on any one option

let's go to our political correspondent alex forsyth, who is in westminster. mps, or the majority of them, said we do not wa nt the majority of them, said we do not want the uk to leave the eu without a deal. they cannot rule it out because currently the law says otherwise but they have made it very clear they are going to go pretty far to stop that happening, so it seems the prime minister's strategy now is to try and bring back a deal again, even though it has already been rejected twice, in the hope of somehow getting it through and i think part of the tactic is by saying look, if you don't back my deal, there could be a short extension to the process if you back my deal, but if you do not back my deal, that extension could be much longer. the hope is that that could cajole, persuade, for some brexiteers to get behind the deal. there is going to be a whole series of votes for the deal today, expect mps to put forward their ideas about what should happen next, and expect an element of uncertainty, well, obviously, to continue. alex, thank you very much. that

alex forsyth is going to be taking us through, our political correspondent, she will be explaining itcourse, we're going to keep you up—to—date with what has happened in new zealand, we have had a shooting there are two mosques. we understand that 27 people have been killed and we are expecting further reports of injuries. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news, i'm tolu adeoye. the instagram influencer felicite tomlinson, sister of one direction singer louis tomlinson, has died at the age of 18. the aspiring fashion designer, who had over1 million followers on instagram, died at her flat in west london. police say an ambulance was called to reports of a female in cardiac arrest. louis tomlinson is said to have cancelled a scheduled appearnace at comic relief this evening. the family of a british ex—pat living in crete, who suffered severe injuries after a car crash, say they urgently want to bring him home for specialist care. islington bornjohn buckle seriously damaged his spine in the crash and needs treatment his brother says

hadn't taken the steps needed to make the most of leaving the eu. 0ur political correspondent, alex forsythe of theresa may's closest aides, one of her closest allies — he was in her inner circle. and what he is suggesting in this interview is, that despite the fact that theresa may has repeatedly talked about britain's bright future after brexit — her heart has never really been in it. he said she, and some other ministers, have struggled to see the economic upside of leaving the eu. as you mentioned, mr timothy had to quit hisjob in government because he was, in part, blamed for the failings of the 2017 general election. he talked about the impact of that election result on the prime minister, and on himself. how do you think she felt about the result? i think it was written on herface on her day. on her face on the day. she was shocked, disappointed, and, ithink, worried. because she knew how difficult it would be to get brexit done with the arithmetic she inherited, and now, it had become a slightly harder. i think quite a lot of things went wrong with the election campaign, and i take

week in which parliament could take control of the brexit process. 0ur political correspondent alex forsythd with uncertainty. are you prepared to resign to save your deal? it seems that now the a nswer your deal? it seems that now the answer is no. instead key brexiteers we re answer is no. instead key brexiteers were summoned to her country retreat. the prime minister it seems are still trying to win their support for her trouble deal. all the time took a swelling about whether she can keep herjob. her deputy today had to deny reports of a plot to replace how which would see him stepping, saying he had no plans. i do not thinki had any see him stepping, saying he had no plans. i do not think i had any wish to ta ke plans. i do not think i had any wish to take over. i think the pm is doing a fantasticjob. 0ne to take over. i think the pm is doing a fantasticjob. one thing that working closely with the prime minister does is cure you of any lingering shred of ambition. minister does is cure you of any lingering shred of ambitionm minister does is cure you of any lingering shred of ambition.

live to westminster — and our political correspondent alex forsyth.ry events with this intervention, this surprising intervention, this surprising intervention from the speaker which seemed to take the government by surprise, and we've heard from number ten within the last five minutes, what's been said?|j number ten within the last five minutes, what's been said? i would doa minutes, what's been said? i would do a briefing shortly afterjohn bercow made his statement with the prime minister's official spokesman and at that point all he could see was because they had been given no notice of whatjohn bercow was going to say or even the fact he was going to say or even the fact he was going to make a statement, that he did not have a response for us. but in the last few minutes one has come out, it merely says, the number ten spokesman says they note the decision byjohn bercow and this is something which requires proper consideration. it seems they will not be bounced into a quick reaction on this. john bercow is well within his rights to make the statem

second round of what are called "indicative", or advisory, votes. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyths yet, members of the government can't give any real clarity. i think what we have to do is to make sure that we deliver on the will of the people at the referendum, we have to keep trying. some still argue the prime minister's brexit deal is the best option. obviously very disappointing that the government lost yesterday, i think that has put the country in some difficulty. i think the best way forward is the prime minister's deal. but we'll see what the options are. will she put her deal back? we'll see. obviously, the cabinet will need to consider the next steps. the ayes to the right, 286, the noes to the left, 344. yesterday's rejection of the brexit plan was smaller than the two previous efforts, but still substantial. on monday, mps will vote on alternatives to the prime minster‘s plan. last time parliament could not agree on any one option but having another public vote or keeping close to the eu when a customs union proved most popular, government is waiting to see if mps can

we start with our political correspondent alex forsyth.inster was braced for another big moment. a day that will decide the fate of the prime minister's brexit plan. the prime minister. theresa may, not for the first time losing her voice, just when she wants to be heard. you may say that, but you should hearjean—claude juncker‘s voice as a result of our conversations... trying to persuade mps to get behind her deal tonight. the danger for those of us who want to deliver, to have faith with the british public and deliver on their vote for brexit, is that if this vote is not passed tonight, if this deal does not pass, then brexit could be lost. she insisted, after meeting eu leaders yesterday, that she had secured legal changes to the deal, addressing concern about plans for the irish border. i fought hard and explored every idea and avenue to address these concerns, including a time limit, a unilateral exit mechanism, or the replacement of the backstop with alternative arrangements. the house knows how complex negotiations work. ultimately

here's our political correspondent, alex forsyth.or another big moment, one that will decide the fate of the prime minister's brexit plan. last night, theresa may flew to strasbourg for last—minute talks and said she had secured changes to her brexit deal that should allow mps to back it. today we have secured legal changes. we are now going to go to the house of commons to hear from theresa may live. it has been eight weeks since the house held the meaningful vote on the brexit deal and on that day parliament sent a message that the deal needed to change and in response to government has worked ha rd to response to government has worked hard to secure an improved deal that responded to the concerns of this house, and i took the concerns of this house about the backstop to the eu and sat down withjean—claude juncker and donald tusk and i spoke to every single eu leads on multiple occasions to make clear to them what needed to change. —— leader. the minister for exiting needed to change. —— leader. the ministerfor exiting the needed t

alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. take a closer look at the results of all of last night's votes which, remember, aren't binding on the government. and let's just focus on the couple of votes that were the closest. the fourth on the list is former conservative chanellor kenneth clarke's proposal for a customs union — which was nine votes short of securing a majority. and the penultimate vote was proposed by former cabinet minister margaret beckett for a confirmatory referendum on the government's withdawal bill. it was the most supported, attracting the support of 268 mps, but would have needed 28 more back it to secure a majority in the house of commons. so, following last night's votes in the commons and theresa may's offer to quit if her deal passes, what happens next? well, there is now a possibility that the prime minister will try to hold a third vote on her deal, potentially tomorrow, 29th march. if she fails, parliament will come back on monday, april 1st, to debate further options, but it's worth remembering

staying with brexit: our political correspondent alex forsyth has this latest update from westminster, we know that on monday mps will look at this whole range of alternatives to the deal. the prime minister is under pressure from a number of conservative mps to walk away, to leave without any deal at all and labour is pressing for a general election to break the impasse. at least one minister today has warned against the prospect with all these options on the table and no use route out of it, the government really only has two weeks and will it is due to leave the eu on april 12 to make these crucial decisions. now on bbc news, the #metoo movement spread around the world in 2016 — but in france it proved very controversial. helene daoupha rs reports on the resistance french women still face when they speak up about sexual harassment. you may find some of the topics shown disturbing. france, the country of love, romance and la vie en rose. where relations between men and women are sweet, like in the movies. sorry to disappoint you, but i will have to kill the myth. france is where str

here is alex forsyth with her assessment.s is undoubtedly a significant moment in the process of brexit because as you have been saying, the hope of the prime minister had been to try to bring her brexit deal back a third time, despite the fact it's been kicked out twice and number ten hoped that if mps were faced with the fact of either back my deal on the third go round or a really long delay to the whole process they might fall in line and back it. whatjohn bercow has done is make it much harderfor theresa may to bring that deal back before parliament because he is effectively said it would need to pretty significant changes and as you were saying, the eu and number ten at this point, it's not the route they are going down. where we go from here it looks like we are in the process of extending brexit, delaying the departure date. we knew the government will write to the eu tomorrow and seek some sort of extension. last week parliament and the prime minister said if the deal goes through a short delay, if it does not go thr

we arejoined from we are joined from westminster by alex forsyth.at although the history of our parliament runs deepin the history of our parliament runs deep in our constitution is not codified and written down but is open to the interpretation of the speaker. yes, and that is what he has chosen to do today, looking back through hundreds of years of parliamentary precedent to come up with this decision which puts a great big spanner in the government's brexit plan, because the plan had been to bring the sport back for a third time, hoping that mps who rejected it twice already might be persuaded to back it rather than face a long delay to brexit. whatjohn their code saying, he is not ruling out the idea of this vote coming back again on the brexit deal. what he is saying is there will have to be significant changes to that deal if another vote were to be allowed, and he is the one as chairman who would decide if those changes were substantial enough. so it is undoubtedly more than a hiccup from what the prime minister had intended to do. so, give u

earlier, i spoke to alex forsyth who gave us the latest from westminster.and the focus of the conversations between the government and the dup come back to the backstop, that insurance plant to ensure there is now a hard border in ireland. the concern for the dup and some brexiteers is that if we enter that arrangement, because there was no trade deal in place, the uk could end up staying in it indefinitely without any way of getting out. so the focus of conversation is on the legal advice around that and whether it can be interpreted in any way which would allow the uk to pull itself out of the backstop if it wished, so that is being discussed. whether it is enough to get this over the line remains to be seen but the reason this is so important is that several conservative brexiteers said if the dup think this deal is good enough, they could fall in line, so that's why these conversations are attracting so much attention. a man in his fifties has been shot dead by police near the centre of birmingham. west midlands police says the shooting was part of an i

our political correspondent, alex forsyth, is in westminster.heresa may's closest allies, he was really in the inner circle and there are people who think he is one of the few who really understands her thinking and that is why his comments have generated some interest. what he is suggesting, despite the fact that theresa may has given a number of speeches and talks about the benefits of life in britain after brexit, the advantages, he says he doesn't think her heart was ever really in it. she doesn't really appreciate the economic benefits of leaving the eu, not just her but economic benefits of leaving the eu, notjust her but other ministers, so they have not taken the right steps to make the best of brexit, and he also suggests she has made too much effort to bring together the different divisions in her party, trying to compromise a step too far. it isn't the first time he has criticised theresa may's brexit strategy. but it is his relationship to the prime minister, the closeness he had with her which is causing people to take note of what