among many of his clients, david barlow became known as dr. barlow. this was ar name assigned to him by some of his clients when he was working on liability cases involving the medical field became so emersed in the subject matter of the litigation that over time he acquired more knowledge in some cases than some of the doctors who were consulting with the client on that same matter. to this day i occasionally refer to him as dr. barlow just for fund. in 2011, shortly after being elected to the united states senate, david barlow joined my team as my chief counsel and chief staffer on the judiciary committee. he's someone who had never worked on the united states senate prior to that time, but literally within a matter of weeks had learned the ropes of this body to a degree sufficient that no one would have been able to discern the difference between mr. barlow and somebody who worked in the senate for many, many years. he quickly became a favorite within my office. david barlow was someone who we could always turn to in a moment where someone had a qu

gareth barlow, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news...raft and naval ships are deployed in australia to help people affected by the worsening bushfires. former nissan boss carlos ghosn flees to lebanon, despite being under house arrest in tokyo on financial misconduct charges. auckland is the first major city to welcome in the new year 2020 with a huge fireworks display. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here'sjohn watson. there's a boost for england in their preparations ahead of the second test with south africa — batsmen 0llie pope says he's "ready to go" having recovered from the illness which has affected england's preparations. he along with chris woakes and jack leach sat out the first test defeat. they're three of eleven players who've been hit by the sickness bug in the camp. could not have come at a worse timing really with the test match. luckily, feeling all right now. been feeling good for the last few days, so feeling good for the last few days, soiam on feeling good for the last few days, so i am on

gareth barlow, bbc news.ews in australia are assessing the damage from the weekend's bushfires, and while the weather has cooled down a little, the political debate is raging on. prime minister scott morrison has acknowledged a link between global warming and extreme weather, but has doubled down on his defence of the coal industry. shaimaa khalil has the story. it feels like a deserted war zone, but this is the aftermath of the catastrophic bushfires that have ravaged new south wales. and in the village of balmoral, the devastation is everywhere. russell scholes has been a volunteer firefighter for six years. he was out with his team trying to control the blaze in the village when his own house was burned to the ground. so many of the brigade are tired. that's the mental side of it — when you're continually battling something you can't beat. the prime minister scott morrison, appearing for the first time today after fierce criticism of his holiday in hawaii, conceded that more needed to be done to tackle glo

gareth barlow reports. remarkable, almost apocalyptic scene facing firefighters tackling australia's deadly and devastating wildfires. fire chiefs described saturday as an awful day. as thousands of personnel tackle raging infernos, the country's prime minister, scott morrison, has been heavily criticised for being on holiday in hawaii, but the pm has cut short his trip to return home. i get it that people would have been upset to know that i was holidaying with my family while their families were under great stress. they know that i am not going to stand there and hold a hose, iam not a trained firefighter. i'm conforted by the fact that australians would like me to be here, just simply so i can be here. an area the size of belgium has been torched by the fires. hundreds of homes have been destroyed and at least ten people killed. scores of blazes continue to grip the country. this is certainly taking its toll, and so too is the spread of the activity across the country. in september, most of that effort w

gareth barlow, bbc news. to come: ‘ignorance has won‘ — that's the anguished cry from the british campaign to protect the apostrophe which is giving up the struggle after many years. it's quite clear that the worst victims of this disaster are the poor people living in the slums which have sprung up around the factory. i am feeling so helpless, that the childrens are dying in front of me and i can't do anything. charles manson is the mystical leader of the hippie cult suspected of killing sharon tate and at least six other people in los angeles. at 11am this morning, just half a metre of rock separated britain from continental europe. it took the drills just a few moments to cut through the final obstacle. then philippe cozette, a minerfrom calais, was shaking hands with and exchanging flags with robert fagg, his opposite number from dover. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines: a political row has broken out in britain after it emerged that the perpetrator of the london bridge attack had been released

gareth barlow, bbc news.cy chiefs have been meeting in sydney, calling for the federal government to better prepare australia for worsening extreme weather events. since september, six people have died in bushfires that have engulfed the states of new south wales and queensland. i got the latestjust now from our correspondent phil mercer. this is a very influential group of former fire and emergency chiefs, they've held a press conference here in sydney in the last couple of hours, accusing the prime minister, scott morrison, of going missing while much of australia burns. this group is accusing the centre—right government of not taking climate change seriously and not doing enough to fortify australia in a time with a drying climate and worsening fire conditions. the prime minister, mr morrison, has conceded there is a link between climate change and the bushfire crisis here in australia. we have fires burning in the west and we certainly have fires burning here in the east as well. the morrison government h

gareth barlow, bbc news.tralia, but hundreds of families are spending the day in emergency shelters, unable to celebrate in their homes, as the country battles some of its worst bushfires in years. figures released by firefighters in new south wales reveal nearly a thousand houses have been destroyed. conditions have eased, but another extreme heatwave is due later this week. phil mercer reports from new south wales. koalas and other australian animals are the unseen victims of the fires. much of their habitat has been destroyed and the survivors need all the help they can get. the true extent of australia's bushfire crisis is gradually emerging as the charred remains of devastated towns are inspected. since the start ofjuly, the authorities here in new south wales say almost 1,000 homes have been destroyed by the bushfires. this property was devoured by flames that tore up through a gully at the back. communities like this terrorised by fires that, in many places, are simply burning out of control. we just w

gareth barlow reports.ut a serious political message. russia seized crimea from ukraine in 2014 and ever since, moscow has worked to strengthen its claim to the region. in may, president putin opened a 19—kilometre road link and now with this bridge, there's a direct railway connection linking saint petersburg with the former ukrainian territory. translation: today we have a very important occasion. it is important for crimea, for sevastopol and for the whole of russia. because infrastructure projects such as this landmark bridge will have an impact on the whole economy. "what a beauty of a bridge", the russian leader exclaimed, a view that's not shared by the ukraine or the european union. an eu spokesman said the bridge was a continuation of russia's forced integration of illegally annexed crimea — going on to say that the megastructure limits the passage of ships headed to ukrainian ports. relations between ukraine and russia have made minor improvements in recent months, but the opening of the $3.6 bill

gareth barlow, bbc news.nt trump has urged americans to come together to fight anti—semitism after five people were injured in a knife attack at a rabbi's home in new york state. the suspected attacker — grafton thomas — has appeared in court. he denies five counts of attempted murder. the state governor, andrew cuomo, called for tougher domestic terrorism laws and said anti—jewish sentiment had become an "american cancer". chris buckler reports from washington. members of new york's largejewish community had gathered to celebrate their religion, only to be attacked because of it. they were at the home of a rabbi, here in monsey, to mark hanukkah, when a man forced his way into house and started stabbing people, in some cases multiple times. he pulled it out from the thing and he started to run into the big room, which was on the left side. and i threw tables and chairs,that he should get out of here. grafton thomas was arrested 30 miles away, in manhattan. reporter: mr thomas, why'd you do it? he's already a

gareth barlow, bbc news.rily halting production of its 737 max aircraft. the planes have been grounded since march — a response to crashes in indonesia and ethiopia that killed 346 people. regulators in the united states, criticised for earlier decisions on the 737 max, are now saying they will not approve any return to service before next year. here's our north america correspondent, peter bowes. grounded and now pulled from production. boeing's problems have gone from bad to worse, with the aviation giant forced to admit it can no longer continue to make the 737 max. the temporary halt in production is because the regulatory authority — the federal aviation administration — has still not cleared the jet to return to commercial service. it was grounded globally in march following crashes in ethiopian and indonesia, which left a total of 346 people dead. it was grounded globally in march following crashes in ethiopia in a statement, boeing insists... "safely returning the 737 max to service is our top priorit

gareth barlow reports.s an all—too—familiar story after eight years of war — syrians fleeing fighting. some people haven't managed to escape in time. members of the white helmets volunteer rescue group desperately try to help those caught up in the latest upsurge of violence. as the syrian government battles to regain territory held by rebels in the northern province of idlib. but the turkish president has warned his country can't cope with the number of refugees trying to escape the fighting. translation: more than 80,000 of our brothers from idlib have started migrating towards our borders. if the violence does not stop this number will increase and turkey will not carry such a burden on its own. we are working with russia to stop the attacks. in fact, they are sending a delegation to moscow tomorrow. russia is a key backer of syria's president assad. moscow's support has changed the course of the conflict. government forces once again control the majority of the country, but years of fighting has displac

gareth barlow, bbc news. state bride in syria, has been arrested after arriving back in ireland with her 2—year—old daughter. lisa smith went to the war—torn country in 2015 after converting to islam and becoming radicalised. she had been living with her child in a syrian refugee camp. she has also revealed that the father of her child was a suspected member of is who died last year. correspondentjohn campbell has more on ms smith's background. she was a woman in her 30s. she had been a member of the irish defence forces, so somebody with military training. she became disillusioned with her life. in 2011, she converted to islam and then in 2015, she made that decision to leave her husband and go and join the islamic state. now, she resurfaced again in the summer of this year when the islamic state was collapsing. she was held by us—backed forces in syria. she was in a refugee camp. at that time, the bbc caught up with her in that camp and asked her what she had in doing when she was with islamic state, and sh

gareth barlow has more. activists pour in where the coal pours out.masks, the protesters occupied several mines across the states of saxony and brandenburg. they say the german government's pledged to phase out coal by 2038 is not enough. translation: we're here, activists for the climate, sitting here in front of the inaction of our government. this is for the climate, for a future with renewable energies. saturday's protests aren't the first such demonstrations. injune, hundreds of activists blocked a mine near cologne for several days. seven of the top 10 carbon emitters in the eu the sector provides thousands ofjobs and a small cut small protocol rally sought to highlight the fossil fuel‘s importance. but activists say greater action is needed to protect the environment. an extraction of millions of tons of coal must stop gareth barlow, bbc news. a new law comes into force in china this weekend that will force mobile phone users to submit to facial recognition software in order to access the internet. the government in beijing says it will help pr

gareth barlow, bbc news.nistered kashmir. it comes more than four months after they were sent following unrest in the region, and is the first major troop reduction by india since it ramped up security there. the decision to cancel the special status of kashmir, and end the exclusive right of its people to own land, sparked massive unrest and the region was put under a security lockdown. the bbc‘s south asia editor anbarasan ethirajan has been telling us why this is happening now. the government has been under intense pressure from the international community to restore normalcy in india administered kashmir pulled they sent in more than 14,000 additional troops to maintain law and order after the region erupted after the indian government withdrew the special status given to it and some special privileges for the citizens. kashmir itself is a plus point. it is claimed by both india and pakistan which had led to war previously and that's why the world wants to know how much progress has been done because the

gareth barlow, bbc news.ylum in the us. but his opponents — including the mexican government — say his new measures may be putting asylum seekers at risk. those who apply often face a wait in mexico for months, and even then their chances are slim. for an increasing number, fleeing persecution in their own countries and unable to return, the crackdown has led them to desperate measures. ana gabriela rojas reports from matamoros, on the mexico/texas border. as winter approaches, this corner of the world becomes even more hostile to those seeking safety and security. fernanda is too scared to go home to honduras, where she is wanted for political activism. desperate to be reunited with family in the us, she has spent four months in squalid conditions on the border. now she has taken a step that fills any parent with horror. she sent her seven—year—old son across the border alone. so, fernanda took her boy to this border bridge and said goodbye. this man had to make the difficult decision. he wanted to give his

gareth barlow, bbc news. still to come: we meet the father of the modern wind turbine, a true pioneer in the fight against climate change. it's quite clear that the worst victims of this disaster are the poor people living in the slums which have sprung up around the factory. i am feeling so helpless, that the childrens are dying in front of me and i can't do anything. charles manson is the mystical leader of the hippie cult suspected of killing sharon tate and at least six other people in los angeles. at 11am this morning, just half a metre of rock separated britain from continental europe. it took the drills just a few moments to cut through the final obstacle. then philippe cozette, a minerfrom calais, was shaking hands with and exchanging flags with robert fagg, his opposite number from dover. you're watching the briefing. 0ur headlines: malta's prime ministerjoseph muscat has agreed to step down, following intense criticism over his handling of the investigation into the murder of a prominent journalist.

gareth barlow, bbc news.used the actor leonardo dicaprio of "giving money to set the amazon on fire", although he gave no evidence for his allegation.|n an instagram post, the actor, who has pledged five million dollars for the defence of the amazon, has denied mr bolsonaro's claim. the brazilian president has previously accused some ngos of starting the fires that broke out earlier this year, in order to receive more money. several people have been arrested, including four volunteer firefighters, amid allegations they started fires to generate ngo donations. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: a new law in china means smartphone users will have to submit to facial recognition software to access the internet. and a positive message for world aids day from prince harry. it's quite clear that the worst victims of this disaster are the poor people living in the slums which have sprung up around the factory. i am feeling so helpless, that the childrens are dying in front of me and i can't do anything. charle

gareth barlow out in central london.undred acre wood for the official opening of pooh—seum. it's estimated that, every year, a0,000 people visit the area in the ashdown forest in sussex, which inspired the much—loved works of aa milne and eh shepard. charlotte wright reports. nestled in the hundred acre wood, pooh corner in hartfield has been a tourist destination for decades but now, for the first time, visitors can come here to learn about the history behind the bear of very little brain. the aim of the museum was to ensure that when people came from japan, america, australia, canada — seeing as there's links to canada with the original bear — was to be able to tell the story here, so they could go and play a game of poohsticks, they could then come into hartfield and sense what the village was like, and also actually learn something and see what life really was like and engage with the people behind the books. the museum is free to enter, with artefacts on display dating back years. so this one here is a presentation

gareth barlow, bbc news. emergency chiefs have been meeting in sydney, calling for the federal government to better prepare australia for worsening extreme weather events. since september, six people have died in bushfires that have engulfed the states of new south wales and queensland. let's get more from our correspondent, phil mercer, in sydney. feel feel, bring us up—to—date on this. this is a very influential group performerfire and this is a very influential group performer fire and emergency chiefs —— performer chief. they believe that australia's centre—right prime minister, scott morrison, is missing in action during those bushfire crises that just seem to keep going and going. they are calling for a national summit to address this fire emergency that is stretching from coast to coast here in australia. the prime minister, scott morrison, has acknowledged a link between climate change and australia's extended bushfire season. he was reluctant, though, to get into that sort of conversation at the earl

gareth barlow has more.los ghosn was one of the great tycoons of the car industry, known for turning around the fortunes of some of the world's biggest brands. at one point, nissan, renault and mitsubishi were all under his control. a citizen of brazil, france and lebanon, ghosn established himself injapan where he was considered a hero for transforming nissan. he was a very powerful car executive who was particularly known for his efficient cost—cutting, which saved nissan, in essence, yeah. so, a hard—nosed businessman who seemed to have a very good touch in turning companies around. following accusations of significant acts of misconduct, including under—reporting his pay and the personal use of company assets, ghosn was arrested in november 2018 and is facing trial injapan. the former automotive executive, who's subject to strict bail conditions, has accused the japanese government of conspiring against him. now with his appearance in lebanon, where he arrived on board his private jet, which flew via tur

gareth barlow has more. mrghosn mr ghosn shouldn't have been able to leave japan.surrendered his passport and supposed to ask permission to travel. when he unexpectedly arrived in lebanon, japanese authorities were stunned and left scrambling for answers. in and left scrambling for answers. in a statement, he said: mark -- it is —— it isa —— it is a turnaround for a man once revered in japan. —— it is a turnaround for a man once revered injapan. carlos ghosn was one of the great tycoons of the car industry. at one point, sm, renault and mitsubishi were all under his control. at one -- that he was a very powerful car executive who was particularly known for his efficient cost—cutting, which saved listen in essence, yeah, so a hard businessman who seemed to have a very good touch in turning companies around. but all that changed in november 2018. following exhalations of significant a cts following exhalations of significant acts of misconduct, including underreporting his pay, and the personal use of company assets stop he was arrested and faces trial in japan. the

gareth barlow, bbc news.ied after drowning in a swimming pool at a resort in the costa del sol, in the south of spain. it's believed a nine—year—old girl got into difficulties in the water and her brother and father attempted to rescue her, but drowned. we spoke to fernando torres, a reporterfor the spanish newspaper diario sur who has been at the resort where the deaths took place. we were told that it indeed was the girl with the troubles, perhaps with the pumps. the brother tried to help her and they had troubles too. it wasn't nobody from the resort at the pool, but a recent manager told me that they don't need to because the pool is too little to need a lifeguard there. so police were investigating the incident at the moment. divers — two there — were trying to find clues in the pool but they didn't at the first look. the investigation is still open so they don't really know what happened there. it's christmas day in australia, but hundreds of families are spending the day in emergency shelters, unable t

gareth barlow, bbc news.c eruption in new zealand has left a dozen people injured — some with critical injuries. the eruption happened on whakaari or white island. experts say they consider it to be a moderate eruption. the new zealand herald says up to 20 people were on or near the island at the time of the eruption. the island is uninhabited but tourists do visit it regularly. the volcano is new zealand's only active marine volcano and the nation's most active with regular eruptions since 2012. let us go live now to listen to jacinda ardern talking about the latest eruption. 0k, jacinda ardern talking about the latest eruption. ok, i am afraid we do not have jacinda ardern that i can tell you that the latest we have on this eruption is that apparently, according to the latest, around 100 people could have been in the vicinity, leaving some unaccounted for. that is according to the prime minister, jacinda ardern. the volcano erupting on white island. there are fears that many people have been injured. we wil

gareth barlow, bbc news.e in delhi have arrested the owner and manager of a factory which caught fire on saturday night. at least 43 people were killed in the blaze, many were migrant workers using sleeping quarters in the building. pratiksha ghildial reports from delhi. the fire broke out on the ground floor of this multistorey factory, in the early hours of the morning and then quickly spread to other levels. rescue services say at least 100 people were sleeping inside the building at the time. translation: there were about 30 people from my village at the site. i have been able to see some of them but i haven't been able to spot them all. this is a really congested and densely populated area of delhi. the alleyways behind me are too narrow to be accessed by fire engines. as a result, firefighters had to fight the blaze from a distance of about 100 metres. the country's prime minister, narendra modi, described the fire as extremely horrific and expressed his condolences to the families of the victims. those

gareth barlow, bbc news.he national living wage will go up in april for workers over the age of 25. rising by 6.2%, the living wage from april will be £8.72 an hour. that's an increase of 51p an hour on the current rate. there's also a rise to the minimum wage for 21 to 2a years — going up to £8.20, an increase of 6.5%. joining me now from plymouth is neil carberry, the business representative on the low pay commission and chief executive of the recruitment and employment confederation. thank you forjoining us this morning. why did you recommend this figure? your viewers might remember george osborne made a big commitment on in 2015 to a political commitment to raise the living wage by 2020. the rate today does that. our role isn't a crystal ball games but to judge whether the economy can afford that and the conclusion we reached as well there have been some minor impacts of raising the wage, particularly for part—time workers in ruraland particularly for part—time workers in rural and coastal towns, largely

gareth barlow, bbc news.ers in australia are facing another day of extreme conditions as the nation battles one of its worst ever bushfire disasters. the authorities are focusing their efforts on the coast of new south wales and victoria's east gippsland region. around 4000 people are stranded on the beach in a remote town called mallacoota. a short time ago the emergency services gave this update on the situation. and we've been talking for quite some time about the risk to east gippsland. and what we saw yesterday was, again, that dynamic and that they need —— dangerous situation, not just for community, but our firefighters and other emergency services. who again, from the outset, will say again, have done an absolutely amazing job. and i think the most sincerely for the effort they have been putting in and continue to put in. and one as they continue to put in. and one as they continue to put in. and one as they continue to put in that is very much the case. because we've gone from just over 120,000 hecta

gareth barlow, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news.n motorbikes have killed 35 civilians — most of them women — at a military outpost in arbinda, in soum province. authorities say around 87 insurgents and local security forces also died. the president has declared two days of national mourning. the west african country has seen increasing unrest since islamist violence spilt over from mali in 2015. the us presidential hopeful michael bloomberg has said that his campaign unknowingly used prison workers to call voters on his behalf. he says he has now cut ties with a vendor which operates two call centres in state jails. the billionaire democrat says he only learned about the company's use of prison labour from a call with a reporter. there have been more violent clashes in hong kong between the police and pro—democracy protesters, who've been holding christmas eve rallies in malls and other areas popular with tourists. the city is reeling from its seventh straight month of protests, originally sparked by an extradition bill, which has n

gareth barlow, bbc news.or of new york, bill de blasio, has announced new measures to combat what he said was a crisis caused by anti—semitism afterjews were attacked while celebrating hanukkah. mr de blasio said police patrols would be stepped up injewish areas and schools would teach students about hate crime. the suspected attacker, grafton thomas, has appeared in court. he denies five counts of attempted murder. chris buckler reports from washington. members of new york's largejewish community have gathered to celebrate their religion. only to be attacked because of it. they were at the home ofa because of it. they were at the home of a rabbi here in monsey to mark chanukah when a man forced his way into the house and started stabbing people. in some cases, multiple times. he pulled it out from the thing and he started to run into the big room which was on the left side andi big room which was on the left side and i have thrown tables and chairs and i have thrown tables and chairs and told him to get out

gareth barlow, bbc news.pert wingfield—hayes, has been following developements in japan. there must be some red faces there? very red faces. you can imagine this is very high case. it has involved someone is very high case. it has involved someone who is a household name here injapan, was once probably the most famous foreigner living in japan, working in japan for sub famous foreigner living in japan, working injapan for sub led the revival of nissan. last year, as the report said, he was arrested and this prosecution, this year long drama began. but the big question being asked today here i think is how on earth did carlos ghosn do this? he was under strict bail conditions, hit the house he was living and had security cameras in it that were supposed to be watched pretty much constantly by the police observers. he had his passport, it had been surrendered. in fact, his lawyer today said that he still has mr ghosn's passports. he is the citizen of three different countries and they are still in a safe in his

gareth barlow reports. international delegates are struggling to agree how to react to and limit climate change. the eu small island states they more needs to be done, but countries including the us, india, and brazil, say current plans are adequate. we are sorry to inform you that we are not comfortable with the tax as it is at icp25. it is not only brazil, avu and several other partners have expressed our deep discomfort with this proposal for a work stream on land. european union, you have the floor. the key stumbling blocks centre around three main areas. firstly, small island states, developing countries and the eu want more ambitious targets to reduce emissions. but the us, china and others want to stick to current plans. efforts to finalise agreements made in paris on carbon markets have been hampered by nations, including brazil and australia, and there's a lack of consensus over how small island states are compensated for damages caused by rising temperatures. # climate justice now... as protesters

gareth barlow reports.

watching the fed decision, about half of an hour away, for more on what to expect, let's welcome john barlow's, from pasadena. john, great to have you with us. they are mostly waiting for the fed to hold rates. what will be the more interesting part of this meeting? john: i think that the headlines are unlikely to be very interesting. the fed thinks that it will be unchanged policy for 2020. there is something interesting going on in the background, the fed is increasingly concerned about low target inflation and are looking for ways to prevent inflation from falling further. that's a big factor in their decisions this year and going forward. we are going to hear more about that in the press conference, i think. amanda: still concerns, though we may have seen enough of a turn and positive data that we may not be here to talk about recession any longer, but there are concerns that some point you might need a larger response to a weaker economy. it was recently made as a case to me that we need the fed to set itself up to have the ammunition in the event of an eventual downturn. john: the first

gareth barlow reports.yptic scene facing firefighters tackling australia's deadly and devastating wildfires. fire chiefs described saturday as an awful day. as thousands of personnel tackle raging infernos,

gareth barlow reports.es.