you talk about the chemistry between jean—claude juncker and theresa may. claude juncker, quite garrulous, ill—disciplined some might say, theresa may, mrs procedure and precision. i think that two of them don't quite see eye to eye. we got to remember, there are two teams of negotiators. the attorney general, ollie robbins, barnier and others, they've been cooking up this text to wea ken they've been cooking up this text to weaken weeks. don't think this was all put on a series of post—it notes. a lot of thought has gone into the dash into this. it's interesting jean—claude juncker said we need to have a second and theresa may said, there was stuff that wasn't clear the first time around. but they've done, they listen to concerns of people everywhere and put it in a document and if you look in the small print, you will see stuff about working and environmental standards going forward. that was a concern of labour mps. they tried to capture all the concerns around parliament and put them into these quite impenetrable documents. our impenetrable documents. ou

by him, jean—claude juncker.one everything we could to help get it over the finishing line. we were asked to clarifications in december, we gave them. we were asked for assurances injanuary, we them. we were asked for assurances in january, we gave them. we were asked for assurances injanuary, we gave them. i was asked for further reassurances last monday in strasbourg, notably with regard to the backstop, i gave them. “ assurances. regard to the backstop, i gave them. —— assurances. and regard to the backstop, i gave them. “ assurances. and so regard to the backstop, i gave them. —— assurances. and so i have to welcome that today the 27 leaders endorsed the legally binding clarification and assurances that prime minister theresa may and i agreed in strasbourg. this closes and completes the full package, there is no more that we can give. we are hopeful that the agreement will be adopted by the house of commons. hope eternal on the part of the european commission president jean—claude juncker. they have the europ

the prime minister has gone to strasbourg to have another round of urgent talks with jean—claude junckerent the withdrawal agreement? very much so, prime ministers do not get into motorcades with the cameras trained on them unless they are going to have something to show for it at the end. this is, it is much more likely to be the prime minister and jean—claude juncker revealing what has been negotiated over the weekend and what this has done it has pushed the timetable back for the day enormously so they had been waiting for a statement by the brexit secretary stephen barclay, that is not now expected until 9pm so a government motion for tomorrow's vote has not gone down yet so we are on tenterhooks to see what the prime minister will have to show for this. the nine o'clock statement tonight will be based on any agreement that is reached between the prime minister and jean—claude juncker, would that be the point to make, if there had been an agreement? there will be a statement before the motion tomorrow, someone will have to explain to the commons what they are being asked to vote on b

european commission president jean—claude juncker warns voting down the deal would put everything at in politics, sometimes you get a second chance. it is what we do with the second chance that counts because there will be no third chance. in other news: investigators recover the voice and data recorders from the ethiopian air crash. but as more airlines ground the type of plane involved — us aviation officials say they believe it is airworthy. and living life in limbo. we talk to syrian refugees on the risks of returning home. the british prime minister has declared legally binding changes to her brexit deal, just hours before the house of commons is due to vote on it. theresa may has been seeking additional assurances about the irish backstop — the measure to prevent the return of border controls between northern ireland and the republic. she says she now has assurances that the backstop would never be permanent, if it was ever used. adam fleming reports from strasbourg where the talks with the eu have been taking place. theresa may spent more than two hours in her last—minute talk

so you tell me how jean—claude juncker. .. ..then we have a hope tp come to a conclusion.factually, howjean—claudejuncker is a puppet of george soros? george soros has put out his plan and vision about the future of european union quite many times, openly — you can look at the internet... that's not what i'm asking you about. i am asking for specific evidence. he put out his plan. look at what was included in his plan. how many migrants should be brought into the european union, how much it would be significant that there are borders and national identity, how much the border protection capacity should be pushed back and look at the policy of the european commission since 2015 — exactly — exactly carrying out those points, which have been included in the plan of george soros. my question is... that's not evidence and you know it. crosstalk. in your view that's evidence? absolutely. that's absurd. no, this is the evidence. it has been written by george soros and that has been complete by the european commission. my question is, my question is, why european commissioners hav

baked into the withdrawal agreement, and subsequent letters that jean—claude withdrawal agreement, and subsequent letters thatjean—claude junckerm, called a joint interpretive statement, and this is a legally binding statement that both sides to sign up to. it doesn‘t change the text of the withdrawal agreement, but it allows both sides to interpret what the withdrawal agreement means. within this joint interpretive statement, which as i say, is legally binding, they appear to be looking at various levels of the students, if you like, for the uk, that they can get some answers if they feel that the eu is not lighting in good faith. —— acting in good faith. it seems like they are looking at a three step approach that will comprise as joint statement. the final part of it would be some kind of a unilateral decision by the uk that it feels like it has acted in good faith, and that the eu hasn‘t, and that the uk feels it can walk away if that scenario arise. and i think that seems to be the most sensitive and difficult part of this discussion. how difficult would do about b for the irish government to exempt? the irish government b

jean-claude juncker call this a second chance.se deal doesn't get through, next week we are inevitably headed for an extension of brexit? even the extension needs 127 positive votes from the other member states and i fail to see how having a couple of weeks more time will make the situation different and help find a solution we couldn't find in two years. said, if that is the last thing we can do to find a deal, luxenberg will not oppose it, but the time is coming. maria: focus on your country, we know you are well to attract financial business and industry. how many have already moved their assets? aboutny are we talking and what is your horizon for investment you think you can capture? pierre: we have been in the special position that we have always said we want to continue to work with london city in a cooperative mode and that has been appreciated by investors, and it is about 50 companies that have decided for luxenberg. what you can see is in the whole a multiple has been choice as other players have chosen other places but

that jean—claude juncker to theresa may injanuary. seem jean—claude juncker to theresa may injanuary. that doesn't seem to be enough and if it is not enough we don't know what happens from here. these three tests for the commons, what happens if the uk says no, no and no? no forthe what happens if the uk says no, no and no? no for the improved deal, and no? no for the improved deal, and no? no for the improved deal, and no do no brexit and no extension. it is a nightmare scenario and it can play and i don't think anyone is prepared. how flexible would the eu 27 b with regards to extending the leaving date? beyond march the 29th. quite a bit of flexibility. it would be the rational thing to do, if the other option is no deal. president macron france said it has to be an extension for some concrete purpose. that had to be the position, that it would be for another national election, for a referendum, for legislation to be passed, merely to get a deal over the line. there has been some softening but some of the 27, and the uk must ask fo

through that door, we are expecting theresa may and jean—claude juncker to arrive.we heard a little bit earlier on bbc news. from iain duncan smith. we have asked them to look at in line with the previous vote, which is to replace the backstop. i don't know what the outcome is. all i know now is that i think they are reaching the point where they are about to have some kind of agreement. i'm speculating, but that's my indication. and i think there will be a statement tonight at around 9pm tonight — which will be one in strasbourg and i think one here in the house of commons. then they will lay the motion as amended. and that will be voted on tomorrow. but there needs to be time to look at the legalities of this. the key thing was that the attorney general should say that he is able to change his opinion, and that no longer the backstop is an entrapment — and he said it was previously. everybody needs time to discuss that. we have a group of legal people who are going to look at that as well. it's tight, but we have to do all that work before reaching a final conclus

the head of the european commission, jean—claude juncker said that the eu had made every effort to belear about the withdrawal agreement and insisted that the backstop would never be used ‘as a trap‘ in politics, sometimes you get a second chance. this is what we do with the second chance that comes because there will be no third chance. welcome to bbc news. the prime minister is in strasbourg tonight — theresa may says she

until a recent campaign, which you briefly spoke about before, against eu commission president jean-claude juncker and billionaire george soros, really threw the party into upheaval. many calling for him to be expelled completely. those tonight that are disappointed with this watering down, they voted overwhelmingly in favor of this. it was a closed-door meeting, but epp sources say it was very heated in there with viktor orban himself making a speech,

the head of the european commission, jean—claude juncker said that the eu had made every effort to be about the withdrawal agreement and insisted that the backstop would never be used ‘as a trap‘

we start off with brexit, theresa may and jean—claude juncker have agreed to legally binding changesop. both sides have made the announcement on the eve of a critical vote in the uk parliament. for more on this breaking story, i'm joined by monica miller. some major developments out of strasbourg. the sterling as you mentioned is up and so are asian markets after news broke that theresa may and the head of the european commission have agreed to legally binding changes over the divorce agreement between the eu and the uk. theresa may is hoping the resolution over a backstop deal which involves the border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland will maybe help pave the way for a successful vote later today. what happens next? as i mentioned, we are expected that the draft on what theresa may now calls and improved withdrawal agreement is scheduled to go back to the commons for a second so—called meaningful boat. when the same plan was put to members of parliament last month, it was defeated by a majority of 230 votes. if the prime minister ‘s plan is again rejected, anothe

jean-claude juncker says this clarifies and complements the deal but does not change it and if mps voted

european commission president jean—claude juncker warns if the deals voted down there will be no "thirdhance". there will be no new negotiations. it is this. i'm ben bland in london — also in the programme. investigators recover the voice and data recorders from the ethiopian air crash. but as more airlines ground the type of plane involved — us aviation officials say they believe it is airworthy. it's been ruled a socially harmful cult by the new south wales supreme court. we track down the group known as universal medicine. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it's 9am in singapore, 1am in london and we start with breaking news from strasbourg where the british prime minister says she's secured what she called legally binding changes to her brexit deal, just hours before the house of commons is due to vote on it. theresa may has been seeking additional assurances about the irish backstop — the measure to prevent the return of border controls between northern ireland and the republic. she says she now has assurances that the

we are expecting at some point theresa may and jean—claude juncker to tell us how their talks have gonewhen the prime minister arrived, both sides appeared confident there was by all accounts a warmth to the initial exchanges. then they wind behind closed doors to get down to the detail. we still don't know what that is. some of the prime minister's opponents to her gear have been telling us what they have heard. all i know now is that i think if they are reaching the point where they are about to have some kind of agreement. i'm speculating, but that is my implication. this is the live feed coming from the house of commons. she will persist in those negotiations until she is satisfied with that being achieved. but i can, mr speicher, provides the house with an update tonight on what has been agreed so far. clearly the government will update the house at the earliest opportunity tomorrow should there be an outcome to the continuing talks in strasbourg that will have an impact upon tomorrow's debate. this evening and strasbourg, the prime minister and my right honourable friend the secre

so, with that, donald tusk and jean claudejuncker so, with that, donald tusk and jean claude juncker hat, donald tusk and jean claudejuncker wrap up the press conference for the evening and we are expecting theresa may to give a statement later this evening, so maybe that will come in the next few minutes and of course we will bring you that when she appears. i think there is one or two things that we should take out of that press conference, first of alljean claude juncker it setting out the efforts and links they have gone to to support theresa may and the clarifications they offered and december and assurances they gave in january and the extralegal assurances they date and strassburg which was approved tonight in february. and what i think has been going on through some part, according to people i have spoken to here, there is an attempt to assure the head of european elections at the head of european elections at the casino yelling at the european union is not blamed for it. i think you are starting to already see senior european figures pointing out they have done everything the

european commission president jean—claude juncker warned if the deal was voted down there was "no thirdnce". us aviation authorities say they believe the boeing 737 max aircraft, of the type that crashed in ethiopia on sunday, is airworthy. airlines around the world have grounded nearly 80 planes over safety concerns. investigators have found the voice and data recorders but it will be a while before the findings are made public. algeria's ailing president, abdelaziz bouteflika, has pulled out of a bid for his fifth term in office, following widespread protests. now on bbc news — monday in parliament. hello and welcome to monday in parliament. the menus from westminster. the government announces the outcome of the latest brexit negotiations —— main news. the prime minister, and my right honourable friends, the secretary of state from exiting the eu, have secured legally binding changes that strength and improve the withdrawal agreement and political declaration. feelings run high in the commons as mps complain about a lack of time to consider any new brexit proposals. the government is

we have seen theresa may had to france for brexit talks with the president of the eu, jean-claude junckerthey are hoping to produce enough for the attorney general to change his legal advice on the deal. now, we're hearing from the prime minister's affected deputy that, who is making a statement right now, that they have in fact security changes to the brexit deal. we will try to get you more as we get the latest on this. we are hearing from mr. lymington, that negotiations are continuing between prime minister theresa may, as well as president juncker. you can see live pictures of the effective deputy making remarks on securing changes to the , which a vote will happen in parliament tomorrow. aviation regulators say the anticipate mandating changes to aircraft by max april after a second fatal crash in five months. remainssays the plane airworthy and has no intention of following china's lead in grounding. boeing shares fell sharply after the ethiopian airlines crash that killed 157 people. joining us is bloomberg u.s. airlines reporter justin bac kman. tell us how critical is boeing's b

she had late-night talks in strasburg with jean-claude juncker.und midnight, the leaders announced the new deal. what we have secured is very clearly that the backstop cannot be indefinite, cannot become permanent. >> the backstop is an insurance policy, nothing more, nothing less. the intention is not for it to be used, like every insurance policy, and if it were ever to be used, it could never be -- >> we have a very clear timetable that enables the backstop as defined currently to be replaced with arrangements. >> let us be clear about the is here of brexit might not happen at all. mahon isistopher still with us on set in london. --m what you have read about there are new aspects of the brexit deal. what is the market pricing in? vote fails andis that the market is ok with that? is that the base case? consideration gay in any brexit discussion is just how little support there is in the u.k. parliament for a no deal type of brexit. you can see these reports were you have had threats of cabinet level three organization, talk of people walking out

the deal to apply pressure on mps to get as many people to back it as possible and i think jean—claude junckerprocess to help get the dealer crossed the line. interesting to hear that conversation with dominic grieve because what he was saying was worried for word what some senior eu people have been telling me in the last couple of days. first of all that an extension for article 50 is almost inevitable because all of that big piece of work about writing the withdrawal agreement into british domestic legislation will ta ke british domestic legislation will take at least three months is what the british government has been telling brussels the whole time so there is not three months until the 29th of march so everyone thinks an extension of some duration is inevitable. i'm the second big point about the future that actually as far as lots of people in the eu are concerned the backstop is a bit of a red herring, if not a red herring it's a symbol of the big debate which is to come, that if the uk is going to stick to its pledge to avoid a hard border on the island of ireland and uphold the good

for his part, jean-claude juncker and theresa may kept reminding people, it is like an insurance policy. you hope you won't have to use it. let's listen to what mr. juncker have to say about that. >> the backstop is an insurance policy, nothing more, nothing less. the intention is not for it to be used, like every insurance policy. used, it were ever to be it will never be a threat. >> jean-claude juncker also urged parliament to vote yes on this deal, warning that there will be no new negotiations. brexit or chaos is essentially what he says. david: all right. let's talk about what we are hearing from members of parliament. is there any hope that they will accept this version of the deal? >> i think it is interesting to look at some of the things that people havenow some said as parliament gets ready for that vote. jacob rees-mogg, for example, the leader of the pro-brexit tory european research group, said it is too early to say definitively, but it is a step in the right direction. the democratic union party of northern ireland said it would study the deal. steve baker, a eurosceptic

the speaker of the house of commons telling us that he doesn't want a new vote, jean—claude juncker tellinge doesn't want a new deal, so telling he doesn't want a new deal, so the normal door to get out of the situation has nearly gone, so we are more in the fire exit looking to find a solution. her problem, not her mistake that we are where we are, it is because too many people have so far played party politics on this issue, and my hope is that of course the uk parliament next week will do the sensible thing and vote yes. there is still huge resistance to the deal that has been voted down twice from those who want another referendum, pulling a stunt in brussels today, and some of the support that was there for the deal now slipping away at home. support that was there for the deal now slipping away at homelj support that was there for the deal now slipping away at home. i think there are a number of us who moved oui’ there are a number of us who moved our vote, moved our position last week to vote for the deal who are now saying, well, everything's back on the table. the situation has cha

european commission president jean—claude juncker said this morning he's hoping for clarity but thatgreement on an extension to article 50 might not be reached at this week's european council summit. as the first funerals take place for the victims of the christchurch mosque shootings, new zealand's prime minister calls for a global fight against racist right wing ideology. we absolutely have to learn the lessons from what gave rise to the ugly ideology of this individual and what environments allow that to grow and potentially spread. the un says cyclone idai has triggered a massive disaster across mozambique, zimbabwe and malawi, as the death toll rises to 300. and raheem sterling plus my england team—mates say he was right to criticise the way black players are portrayed in the media. good morning and welcome to the bbc news at nine. theresa may will write to the president of the european council, donald tusk, today, to formally ask for brexit to be postponed. it's understood that she'll request a short extension to the process, beyond the uk's scheduled departure date of march 29

now the president of the european commission, jean-claude juncker.ition of the 27 members of the european commission has been united and unequivocal. tirelessly to negotiate an agreement. we have done everything we could . we asked for clarification in december. i was asked for further reassurances last monday. i have to welcome that today, the 27 leaders endorsed the legally binding clarification of assurances that prime minister .ay, and i agreed discloses and completes the full closes andthis completes the full package. there hopeful that agreement will be adopted by the house of commons. >> ladies and gentlemen, we are ready for every eventuality, including the absence of an agreement on brexit. [indiscernible] quick thank you very much. i know open the floor for a fewre questions -- for a questions. start right here. >> hello. 'm from "the daily telegraph." how long is "a long extension," please? >> [speaking foreign language] [laughter] >> until the very end. [laughter] >> gavin lee at the bbc. can you describe the atmosphere in the room? if no

this is why theresa may went to see jean-claude juncker in strasburg. rally in the pound. she will come back and there's more of a chance that her parliament will vote it through. then, the attorney general said the main risks are still there. the probe brexit hardliners -- saying thehardliners backstop is part of their strategy -- it will trap the u.k. into this relationship with the eu. in the negotiations about the future relationship of the u.k. in the eu, if they were to be unreasonable, they could unilaterally pull it out. the attorney general pouring cold water on it because it will brexit -- pro brexit faction incentive devoted to vote it down. to go through the numbers. whooke to brexit hardliners said they were expecting to have more news. lawyers -- eight lawyers who will give their findings on this agreement. let's say the hardliners vote against it. we are hoping to hear more about the dup. they are a crucial vote for is -- crucial vote for the support of the may government. there may be an amendment to see if no brexit is brexit is off the

again, we come back to the point emmanuel macron makes an jean—claude juncker made an donald tusk, theymade in the last few days, there is a key thing they will consider in this decision, the functioning of the european union, protecting the good functioning, that project that they are all so wedded to, and at what point will they consider it is better to keep this brexit process going perhaps if things go badly for theresa may next week for a long extension... perhaps but at what point do they also think, you know what? the eu has to move on. it gets more comp located keeping the uk end. the whole process sucks up so much energy in this place and sucks up so much decision—making power and all those civil servants and it sucks up the attention of the eu. white smoke thatis attention of the eu. white smoke that is the point, look at all these journalists here from every country in europe. —— that is the point. the debt problem and migration and the relationship with china for the eu to consider, the russia problem, there are so much for europe to talk about and all these germans and poli

european officials said in strasburg, jean-claude juncker already on his way.t does seem like something has changed in the past hour. you would think political logic and convention for tell you if she is flying into strasburg, she doesn't think she can get some kind of concession, something that would allow her to present something to a vote. but it is unclear what the content of it will be. reportingria tadeo, from brussels, we will keep you updated before the crucial vote tomorrow. still ahead come after a rough 2018, hedge funds are gaining this year. we will talk with elaina weinstein, founder of an ie group. this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ to ae: hedge funds off strong start in 2019 after last year's suffering their worst performance since 2011. our next guest said you have to be borderline crazy to start a hedge fund in this environment. anana weinstein -- il weinstein joins us. great to have you. it turns out we are starting nicely this year, particularly the long short funds. the strategy is doing quite well. up 7% on average. has your doom and gloom perspective

jean—claude juncker, the president embracing theresa may.bably the warmest their body lang which was. they didn't look like that at the news conference. a much delayed news conference. exactly the point that ross was making. the political editor of the sun newspaper has offered these observation on his twitter feed. an arbitration mechanism to escape the backstop at no time limit. legally binding change but not ones that theresa may had initially wanted. an aspiration for alternative arrangements by december 2020 but no ha rd arrangements by december 2020 but no hard date. i suppose the transition gets a bit of wiggle room. the aspiration was to do everything by 2020. i think theresa may had suggested there would be something in the withdrawal agreement. there isa in the withdrawal agreement. there is a legally binding declaration which is of the same legal standing as the withdrawal agreement but it doesn't really change what was in it. it's clarifying comments repeating again and one did get the impression that the eu was basically saying,

european commission president jean—claude juncker warned if the deal was voted down there was "no thirde". us aviation authorities say they believe the boeing 737 max aircraft — of the type that crashed in ethiopia on sunday — is airworthy. airlines around the world have grounded nearly 80 planes over safety concerns. investigators have found the voice and data recorders but it will be a while before the findings are made public. algeria's ailing president, abdelaziz bouteflika has pulled out of a bid for his fifth term in office — following widespread protests. nhs england has announced plans — which could see the 4—hour a&e waiting target scrapped in favour of prioritising treatment for the sickest patients. health bosses said the target was becoming outdated. it's not been achieved sincejuly 2015 as our health editor hugh pym reports. at the moment, we haven't got any beds available in the unit. whether it's a&e, routine operations, cancer or mental health care, nhs targets are there to try to reassure patients they're being treated as quickly as possible. now there's to be a big sha

prime minister theresa may, council president donald tusk and european commission president jean-claude juncker announced eu's leaders had approved a brexit deal until may 22, if british lawmakers approved the new deal within a week. if the deal fails in the british house of commons, the date on sup to april 12, 2019. this is 10 minutes. >> good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to this press conference following the article 50 european council on brexit. first, i ask donald tusk to take the floor. mr. tusk: thank you. good evening. as you know, we devoted this european council meeting to brexit. prime minister may repeated her request to extend the article 50 period under the 30th of june, and to approve the so-called agreement. during the discussion among the eu 27, the leaders approached a request in a positive spirit. the european council decided to approve the agreement. as regards to the extension, our decision has two denials. the first denial, if there is no agreement passed by the house of commons next week, the european council agrees to an extension until the 22nd of may. th

let's listen to what jean-claude juncker said.y, an insurance the backstop, nothing more, nothing less. it is not meant to be used. if it ever were to be used, it would never be tracked. >> i love metaphors and i think that is a great way to understand this deal. we are putting this in their telling the world that we are certain we can figure this out by the end of 2020. young claude juncker said, let's be crystal clear about this choice stop the big vote is tuesday or brexit might not happen at all. enough signs that this will consider some of the pro brexit fans to vote for it? they're getting closer to a point where they might not get any deal. it raises the question of a hard brexit. the worst thing would be leading to a second referendum. shery: kathleen hays at global economics and our bloomberg policy editor. let's talk to christopher smart. we are eager to have you with us. prime minister may calling us legally binding change. anything happen that might ?hange the outcome >> it is hard to tell. we are coming down to the wi

also jean—claude juncker earlier today said, i never knew i had so much patience. to remind you if you arejoining us, people joining remind you if you arejoining us, peoplejoining us all remind you if you arejoining us, people joining us all this time, we are waiting for the press conferences are waiting for the press co nfe re nces very are waiting for the press conferences very much delayed, we expected them around 7pm but there is drafting and redrafting of conclusions going on and lots of european leaders want their say on what happens next. so we are still waiting for those press conferences and we will bring you the details as we get them. but let's check on... the leader of the labour party, jeremy corbyn is also in brussels today, where he held what he described as "very constructive discussions" with the eu's chief negotiator michel barnier and european commission secretary general martin selmayr. mr corbyn said he had constructive discussions with them and this is what he said outside the commission building earlier. 0ur priority is to ensure that no deal

for strasbourg this evening for unscheduled talks with the head of the european commission, jean claude junckeras only made this afternoon. theresa may is hoping that the eu will give her enough assurances on the brexit deal to convince mps to back it in just 2a hours‘ time. downing street has insisted that tomorrow's crunch vote will go ahead, despite admitting that talks with the eu have been ‘deadlocked'. for the latest let's go to our political editor, laura kuenssberg in westminster. sophie, these are vital hours for the prime minister and her government. in january, mps resoundingly kicked out her brexit deal she had brokered with the european union, and since then she spent weeks saying she was trying to get changes to make it appetising to the house of commons. but after the last couple of days of world they or won't they, with her on a plane tonight, it seems maybe they will. divine guidance may be what's required. the prime minister went to westminster abbey today to celebrate the commonwealth, choreographed formalities here very different to the sprawling brexit saga. as it is, god a

european commission president jean—claude juncker warned if the deal was voted down there was "no thirdnce". us aviation authorities say they believe the boeing 737 max aircraft — of the type that crashed in ethiopia on sunday — is airworthy. airlines around the world have grounded nearly 80 planes over safety concerns. investigators have found the voice and data recorders. algeria's ailing president abdelaziz bouteflika has pulled out of a bid for his fifth term in office — following widespread protests. the 82—year—old — who returned on sunday from medical treatment in switzerland — also postponed elections that were due next month. now on bbc news it's a special edition of hardtalk, with stephen sackur. welcome to a special edition of hardtalk from the bbc radio theatre in london with me stephen sackur. this mental health is not easy to talk about, least of all for young men, so often brought up to regard any emotional vulnerability as weakness. well, my guest today knows that and has lived with the consequences. stephen manderson is much better known as rapper professor green. all h

there is a may has flown to strasbourg to meet the president of the european commission, jean—claude junckerer prime hopes for a breakthrough which would persuade enough to vote for the brexit deal agreed in november but rejected by the commons last month. in the comments before the strasberg meeting was announced, the brexit minister robin walker quashed speculation that the government would delay a meaningful vote on that brexit deal. the meaningful vote will take place and the nation will be tabled today ahead of that debate. it is then that this house will face a fundamental choice, back to brexit deal or risk a delay that would mean once more arguing about brexit, prolonging the current uncertainty, uncertainty which would do nothing but pass control the a postles do nothing but pass control the apostles and increase the risks. it is incumbent on this house to deliver on the will of the british people and to provide certainty. tomorrow, members across this house will have the opportunity to do so ina will have the opportunity to do so in a meaningful vote, fully informed on the governme

jean—claude juncker speaking to italian television. the headlines on bbc news...the government should support a softer brexit , if mps rally behind it this week police in england and wales are being given greater stop and search powers to tackle rising knife crime. there's been a sharp rise in the number of adults calling a national helpline for the children of alcoholic parents, according to figures seen by the bbc. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's jj- good evening. they've played a game more than manchester city, but liverpool are back on top of the premier league after a dramatic win against tottenham hotspur at anfield. roberto firmino had given liverpool a deserved lead, nodding in andy robertson's pinpoint cross. spurs came on strong in the second half and equalised through lucas mora. with the clock reaching 90 minutes, mo salah's header was diverted onto the shins of spurs defender toby alderweireld. his own goal giving liverpool a 2—1 win and condemning spurs to their fourth defeat in five league games. chelsea scored two l

what did last night's meeting with jean—claude juncker, thatjoint night's meeting with jean—claude junckerment, night's meeting with jean—claude juncker, thatjoint statement, what did it actually mean? well, it has produced a lot of paperwork which the government planned to stable under the withdrawal agreement and put it in front of mps for them to go through and digests, and work out whether there are now the additional legal assurances around how this backstop is meant to work for a huge number of mps to change their minds. that is really what has changed. the substance of that is going to be debated all day. from what i can tell, what the new documents are trying to say is that, if the air you is proven to act in bad faith in the future around the backstop, the uk does have a potential route out of the backstop. now, will that be enough for tory mps who say that what the uk really need this some sort of exit mechanism of its own? i am not sure that it does, but the brexiteers have their own team of lawyers, the attorney general will put his own advice before the house of commons, and t

you can see why in the same breath, jean—claude juncker is speaking about sphinxes and the uk, but itthe day when we are perhaps going to be slightly clearer on what direction the uk might go? slightly clearer, but don't expect today to result in a clear alternative strategy being set out by parliament. it is the start of a pi’ocess parliament. it is the start of a process and quite a convoluted and precarious process. there are 16 amendments that are being put down, covering every conceivable brexit option, and that gives you a sense of the diversity of opinion which has to be corralled into one clear position. that is unlikely to reach a conclusion until monday. meanwhile, we are engaged in a sort of wrestling match between the government and parliament to keep control, with the leader of the, andrea leadsom, saying this morning that he hoped mrs may would be able to bring back a meaningful vote three this week, ie tomorrow or maybe even friday. and bear in mind that even if mps do manage to reach some sort of agreement by monday, they then face an extraordinarily difficult task in

theresa may flew to strasbourg for last—ditch talks with the european commission president, jean—claude junckere one legally binding changes to her deal. both sides would explore alternatives to the backstop. but those changes were rejected by a key group of eurosceptic conservative mps, jacob rees—mogg's european research group, and by the dup, whose mps keep theresa may's government in power. that left the prime minister vulnerable to another heavy defeat. struggling with her voice, theresa may delivered a prepared response to the result immediately. i profoundly regret the decision that this house has taken tonight. i continue to believe that by far the best outcome is that the united kingdom leaves the european union in an orderly fashion, with a deal. and that the deal we have negotiated is the best and indeed the only deal available. she said she would stick to her commitment about what she would do if she lost the meaningful vote. therefore, tonight we will table a motion for debate tomorrow to test whether the house supports leaving the european union without a deal on 29 march. the lea

european commission president jean—claude juncker warns voting down the deal would put everything atecond chance that comes because there

the head of the european commission, jean—claude juncker said

we also heard from jean-claude juncker today that it may be a situation where we get to friday and euconclusion to this extension, so we have to be back. the prime minister may also decide to put this to a new vote, but the speaker won't let this happen unless significant changes are made to it. what i've been told is that the withdrawal agreement, the divorce of this deal, the eu will tell you that as a no deal. we don't want to go she ate that. but there is some -- to negotiate that. but there is some wiggle room in the political declaration if she would stoop at the deal to a third vote. vonnie: bloomberg's maria tadeo for us. our thanks to you. 's've been speaking to china ambassador to the u.s. >> fortunately we know how to handle such differences. [indiscernible] make comment on the eupetition between china and if the cooperative comfort dish and witches -- cooperative competition which is helpful for bilateral relationship. vonnie: we also spoke about trade tensions between united states and china. >> from the very beginning, we --e announced now we can see china and the u.s. c

you say there is a deadline day, because jean—claude juncker spells it out last night for us.mediate term, that would be the 23rd of may, that is when they head towards european elections, so head towards european elections, so he wants sun deal negotiated by then. i am just wondering whether theresa may tries to take back the process , theresa may tries to take back the process, rather than letting parliament to put down an amendment for no deal and an extension, does she try and wrestle back the process and is the executive at an emotion in the next two days? the suggestion this afternoon is that is what will happen. whether it is defeated by 100 votes or 200 votes, or somewhere in between, she will make a statement, point of order, what she had done previously, and tell mps what her plans are. from that moment, she can say, we are going to propose a delay ourselves in order to try and reach some sort of deal, and thereby avoid a more humiliating defeat over the next couple of days. what happens with the no deal though it is quite interesting, because thatis it is quite inte

first up will be donald tusk and jean—claude juncker. i am room.had quite a lot of cloud and although we have seen some sunshine, temperatures have responded up around 17 celsius, higher in places and a beautiful day across north—east scotland. it has not been like that everywhere. you see cloud, a lot of it, which we stick with through this evening and through tonight, the odd spot of drizzle and misty and murky conditions and turning windy across the north west. temperatures eight up to 10 celsius, a mild night. a mild start tomorrow under windy start across the north of the uk and seeing gusts of 50 up to 60 mph, may be strongerfor of the uk and seeing gusts of 50 up to 60 mph, may be stronger for the northern and western isles of scotland. wet and windy weather sinking southwards through the day across scotland and northern ireland. for england and wales looking largely dry but predominantly cloudy. best chance of centring to the south of the m4, southern counties of england. temperatures out of the rain band ready mild. behind it, turning cool

by jean—claude juncker and the others in the eu. —— brinkmanship. ave one for the whole continent? i have just currencies or have one for the whole continent? i havejust been hearing that the eu is telling all the other non—eurozone countries that after 2020, they will all have to abandon their currencies and have the euro. we have a supranational or do we allow independent countries to be suffering again? this is a massive clash of ideology of wales and britain has taken on that whole supranational state britain has taken on that whole supra national state structure. britain has taken on that whole supranational state structure. what would be the mood in brussels tonight if theresa may loses?” think they will be as exasperated with us as we are with them. we both see the situation through a very different prison. john kyle junker and donald tusk believe in the supranational project, and donald tusk believe in the supra national project, they and donald tusk believe in the supranational project, they believe the eu ought to be taking more power away

mark: european commission president jean-claude juncker said britain should leave the e.u.of elections on may 23 if the country isn't taking part. in the democratic union party is suggesting the