mr puigdemont said he was still the president of catalonia. bill hayton reports. carles puigdemont is a fugitive in exile. he still faces criminal charges in spain over catalonia's unilateral declaration of independence. but regional elections ten days ago gave a narrow victory to the separatists and mr puigdemont insists that means he's still the rightful leader of catalonia. translation: the spanish government has a new opportunity to behave as the european democracy it claims to be, and therefore recognise the results of the elections that took place on december the 21st, and in this way to start a political negotiation with the legitimate government of catalonia. but the spanish authorities are showing no signs of compromise. the charges remain in place, and speaking on friday, the spanish prime minister dismissed as absurd the idea that mr puigdemont might try to lead a new catalan government from abroad. translation: i will no longer give you a legal reply. i will give you reply based on solid common sense. it is absurd to try to be a pre

mr. puigdemont to be there, he deserves that.e's a good man. >> if madrid doesn't want that to happen, what will you do? >> they have to release him to take the seat and be there at least in the first session of the parliament then we'll see what happens. he has to be there he has been elected. he has not committed any crime in a normal democracy he should be sitting in the parliament >> during this campaign, the erc, your party, has taken a step back from the pro-inpre pro-independence approach they had. is that something that will continue will you guys focus more on governing rather than pushing again for that independence? >> we have never been aggressive >> not in a physical sense, but pushing for that as a -- >> in a political sense we wanted people to vote, to decide about our future we still believe the best future for catalonia is under the frm of an independent republic >> will that be a priority >> this is our commitment. we have to take into account the country is divided on this issue. that no simple solutions are th

mr puigdemont has recorded a new year message from brussels, where he's in self—imposed exile.of catalonia and that his government must be restored. he declared independence from spain after a referendum in october, but madrid then sacked him and his team, some of whom have been arrested and jailed. translation: we are a democratically mature people, who have won the right to constitute a republic of free men and women. the ballot box has spoken, democracy has spoken, everyone has been able to express themselves. so what is prime minister rajoy waiting for, to accept the results? let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. police in ukraine have freed 11 people that were held hostage in a post office in kharkiv. a standoff had been going on since the early afternoon, when a man entered the building wearing an explosive belt and threatened to detonate it. the suspect has been arrested. the black lives matter activist erica garner has died aged 27. she had suffered a heart attack last week. ms garner came to prominence three years ago after her father eric gar

mr puigdemont has recorded a new year message from brussels, where he's in self—imposed exile.said he's still president of catalonia and that his government must be restored. he declared independence from spain after a referendum in october, but madrid then sacked him and his team, some of whom have been arrested and jailed. translation: we are a democratically mature people, who have won the right to constitute a republic of free men and women. the ballot box has spoken, democracy has spoken, everyone has been able to express themselves. so what is prime minister rajoy waiting for, to accept the results? now on bbc news, one of the highlights of the year from our award—winning documentary series — our world. catrin nye spent two years following two families — one syrian, one german — living in a small city, adjusting to the massive influx of refugees. this is welcome to germany. more thani million refugees are now in germany, having escaped the brutality of the world's war zones. for two years, we have followed a syrian family in their struggle to adapt to life in a small east

mr. puigdemont comes back to spain, he faces immediate arrest. there is still a warrant out for his arrest on charges of sedition and disturbing the peace, having been one of the organizers of that illegal independence referendum back on october 1. other separatist leaders say they have been taken to jail. carles puigdemont was spared that fate because he left and went to brussels, but he knows as things legally stand, he cannot come back. he offered to meet the spanish prime minister in any other european country. thel have to wait and see spanish prime, how he responds to that -- rather he will respond to that call for dialogue. there is a clear legal blockage. cross puigdemont says he will return and had up catalonia's regional government, but at the moment, it is not clear how, physically, he can do that. genie: kathryn noris- -- s-trent inorri barcelona. leaders slammed donald trump at a press conference in brussels. men were meeting as part of the french president's efforts to support peace talks in the middle east. emmanuel macron said the

so, from brussels this afternoon, mr puigdemont had a message for spain: let's talk.t state. this is the wish of the catalan people. the next step is to talk with president mariano rajoy. we need to find new ways, the political solution for our crisis between the spanish state and catalonia. that offer doesn't interest spain's leader. this afternoon, mariano rajoy made it clear, if carles puigdemont isn't here, he can't talk to him. translation: i will have to talk with the person who actually occupies the office of president of the catalan regional government. for this to happen, they need to take up their seat and be in a position to talk with me. the crisis began months ago when a pro—independence administration faced off against the government in madrid. there followed months of argument, protest, debate, emergency measures, and then the vote. now, catalans find that they are right back to where they were when the crisis began. nobody has really changed sides. for now, the local government headquarters here awaits its permanent occupant. the man who won this elect

so, from brussels this afternoon, mr puigdemont had a message for spain: let's talk.state. this is the wish of the catalan people. the next step is to talk with president mariano rajoy. we need to find new ways, the political solution to our crisis between the spanish state and catalonia. that offer doesn't interest spain's leader. this afternoon, mariano rajoy made it clear, if carles puigdemont isn't here, he can't talk to him. translation: i will have to talk with the person who actually occupies that office of president of the catalan regional government. for this to happen, they need to take up their seat and be in a position to talk with me. there then followed months ofargument, protest, debate, emergency measures, and then the vote. now, catalans find that they are right back to where they were when the crisis began. nobody has really changed sides. for now, the local government headquarters here awaits its permanent occupant. the man who won this election can't come to take up his old job. the law says that all sides now have until april to decide what to do

mr puigdemont has recorded a new year message from brussels, where he's in self—imposed exile. catalonia and that his government must be restored. translation: we are a democratically mature people who have won the right to constitute a republic of free men and women. the ballot box has spoken, democracy has spoken, everyone has been able to express themselves. so what is prime minister rajoy waiting for, to accept the results? stay with us here on bbc news. still to come: the windfall, and the wait. young people are set receive record inheritances, but not until their 60s. residents from a block of flats in the centre of manchester are spending the night in emergency accommodation after fire swept through their homes. firefighters managed to stop the blaze destroying the entire building but flames engulfed several floors of the i2—storey tower this afternoon. one person was taken to hospital suffering from the effects of breathing in smoke. 0ur correspondent, mark edwardson, sent us this report. this is church street in manchester, it is the southern edge of what is called the

so, from brussels this afternoon, mr puigdemont had a message for spain: lets talk. wish of the catalan people. the next step is to talk with president mariano rajoy. we need to find new ways, the political solution to our crisis between the spanish state and catalonia. that offer doesn't interest spain's leader. this afternoon, mariano rajoy made it clear, if ca rles afternoon, mariano rajoy made it clear, if carles puigdemont isn't here, he can't talk to him. translation: i will have to talk with the person who actually 0pera pies that office of president of the cata la n pies that office of president of the catalan regional government. for this to happen, they need to take up their seat and be in a position to talk with me. —— who actually occupies that office. there followed months of argument, protest, debate, emergency measures, and then the vote. now, catala ns emergency measures, and then the vote. now, catalans find that they are right back to where they were when the crisis began. nobody has really changed sides. for now, the local government headquarters h

mr puigdemont also said he would be prepared to return to spain if he was given certain guarantees.really cou nt prosecution. i do think he can really count on that at the moment, bearing in mind his former deputy, the head of the republican party in catalonia, is in prison in madrid at the moment facing possible charges of sedition and rebellion which carries a jail sentence of 30 years. where are we? have we seen any movement towards healing some of the divisions between the separatist group and the unity group in catalonia, or are we back at square one? let's speak to our guest from the new york times. i've spoken to you so many times in the past few months and i always feel i'm back in groundhog day. nothing really seems to have changed. it's definitely groundhog day. we unfortunately have a situation where the divisions are deeperand a a situation where the divisions are deeper and a solution seems to be further away. the only thing we know todayis further away. the only thing we know today is that catalan society is deeply divided, split down the middle. as you said, a narrow

mr. puigdemont we heard defeating mr. rajoy, taking back catalonia. is that a problem for the party? does that strengthen the party across the rest of spain >> i wouldn't say especially a problem. if puigdemont says he wants to beat that party, many people for unity in spain say that's my party. >> by highlighting mr. rajoy as the enemy, does that strengthen mr. rajoy across spain, or are you sure that ciudadadonos is trying to take back control. >> it happened in the last regional elections, and ciudadanos was the first independence parties, and in the national elections, many people who voted for them, they came back to the party de popular so people are changing their vote depending on the elections. now maybe they feel we have ciudadanos and party de popular. so depending on the elections, they change their vote we don't have to extrapolate things to the national elections. >> all right thank you so much, fernando sanchez costa. there's so much complexity on a regional and national level, we are expecting record turnout today. it was 75% back in 2015. if it exceeds that it seems l

which means that mr puigdemont has the largest number of seats after ciudadanos and they can put togetherhem 70 seats, which means madrid will have to talk to the secessionists as they were doing in the run—up to the start of this crisis, back in october when we saw that referendum when 90% of people voted in favour of independence from spain but only on a turnout of less than 50%. mariano rajoy call this election and it's backfired on him, hasn't it? rajoy call this election and it's backfired on him, hasn't mm rajoy call this election and it's backfired on him, hasn't it? it has. he was hoping that it would wrong—foot the secessionists. even his deputy was saying this vote they hoped would decapitate the secessionists, the separatist cause. this region is split right down the middle, it doesn't seem that attitudes have changed that much from when the first referendum was held on october one. this region is split. you've got 52% of people who say they want to remain part of spain, 48% who say they want to be separate from spain and voted for the separatist parties. actually if you look b

mr puigdemont and four former ministers are wanted in spain on charges of inciting a rebellion.ifornia. at least 150 buildings north of la, including a psychiatric hospital, have already been destroyed. and another quarter of a million homes are without power. the former georgian president mikheil saakashvili has been freed by his supporters, shortly after being arrested in ukraine. there were chaotic scenes in the capital kiev in the moments after his arrest. mr saakashvili repeated calls for ukraine's parliament to impeach president petro poroshenko. this is beyond one hundred days. still to come. white house harmony — the sounds through the centuries that we associate with the american presidency. here in the uk, treating type—two diabetes costs the nhs billions of pounds a year and can lead to serious complications for the patients. the condition is normally controlled with medication but a new trial — carried out in newcastle and glasgow — has shown that it can be reversed through dieting and weight loss. our health correspondent james gallagher reports. isobel murray thoug

mr. puigdemont was accused of running away to brussels, but catalans dreaming of independence have showny don't care. this morning, he said he would meet the spanish prime minister anywhere but spain, and that he wants his old job back. >> despite all the force come from the spanish state, violence, oppression. despite this, we are stronger than ever. >> reporter: and spain's prime minister is weaker than ever, weakened by a regional election he himself called. the divisions are huge, he said, ruling out independence once again. >> ( translated ): i will make an effort to maintain dialogue with whatever government comes out of these elections in catalonia. but i will also make an effort to see that the law is followed. >> reporter: what is staggeringly absent here is any sense of compromise. spanish unionists are still banking that the sun will set on the dreamers, the more turmoil they seem to create. for now though, the indepentistas believe they are on the up. "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger," the saying goes, and theirs is a dream refusing to lie down and die. >> woodruff:

mr puigdemont, the former catalan president in self—imposed exile in brussels, has been speaking as welln can't have it any other which way now. basically that referendum he called on october the 1st when 90% of people voted in favour of separatism on a turnout of under 50%, now that spain has called these elections with a turnout of 82%, this is the will of the catalan people, according to carles puigdemont. people should pay a deposit on plastic bottles, to try to protect the seas from the devastating effects of plastic pollution — that's the call from a group of mps. the commons environmental audit committee recommends a deposit of between 10p and 20p per bottle, which would be refunded when the bottle is returned. it's also calling for more public water fountains so that people can top up refillable bottles. here's our environment analyst roger harrabin. the uk uses around 13 billion plastic bottles every year. nearly half are put into landfill, incinerated or left as litter. many ultimately find their way into the sea. the mps are urging the government to introduce a deposit—and—ret

mr puigdemont made the offer during a news conference in brussels, one day after separatists won joiningi think there isa completely unlikely. i think there is a zero chance of happening at the moment. this is obviously a compete err repeat message from carles puigdemont, that he is open to dialogue. he is opposed to direct rule on this region, under article 155, balding what they say is an illegal referendum. we are really back to the status quo, from a few months ago. what is extraordinaire, is that this was a big political gamble, by mariano rajoy. he was attending to restore normality, and the appetite the end dependence movement, but it has backed a thickly that type —— but it has spectacularly backfired. they will try and spin it, that the popular vote, if not the number of seats, is in favour of unity with spain, some 52 and a half percent of catalans who voted want to remain part of spain, but the crucial red arithmetic here, in terms of putting together any coalition, is that the only parties that can do that are the secessionist. they are the parties that the two leaders are ei

mr putin's fourth term as president. the sacked catalan leader, carles puigdemont, says he wants to return to catalonia and be sworn in agains the region's president, following the election last week. he's currently wanted for arrest in spain on charges of rebellion. coming up at 6 o'clock, breakfast with rogerjohnson but now on bbc news, weather world. the team looks back at the big meteorological events of 2017 but things are not quite as they seem. this time, we have come to a winter wonderland. or have we? look very closely in the next half—hour, because all is not as it seems. so... let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. welcome to weather world! also on the programme, 2017's biggest storms. tropical deluges, floods that carry a house and everything in it. safe from the storm, near impossible escapes. and even record rain cannot stop another wildfire crisis in california. humber, west or south—west, five or six... plus, we celebrate 150 years of the shipping forecast. its distinctive tones loved by sailors and landlubbers alike. and weather, but not as we know it. i will be taking a deeper look into space weather and t

mr putin's fourth term as president. the sacked catalan leader, carles puigdemont, says he wants to return to catalonia and be sworn in againain on charges of rebellion. coming up at 6 o'clock, breakfast with rogerjohnson but now on bbc news, weather world. the team looks back at the big meteorological events of 2017 but things are not quite as they seem.

idea that the former catalan leader carles puigdemont may lead a new government in the region from abroad. he is currently in self-imposed exile in belgium. mr rajoy says the parliament must choose a new leader. prime minister rajoy: it is absurd to claim you are a regional president when you are living abroad from an more so to claim you can fulfill your duties abroad. can you imagine if i were living in lisbon? it makes no sense at all. ben: researchers here in the u.k. have saved the leg of a dog using a new technique to grow bones in a laboratory. the dog would have had her entire leg amputated were it not for a novel method of creating bone. the treatment is the world's first, and now the first human trials are due to take place in glasgow. reporter: there is no holding her back, but last year, her front right leg was broken in a road accident. her vet tried everything. nothing worked. her entire leg was going to be amputated. >> 9, 10 months, she would be unable to get out and have walks other than to go to the toilet. reporter: but to fiona's delight, her dog was saved with an experimental bone-growing technique. >> it is absolutely f

puigdemont did address supporters. >> the most important thing now is to start a dialogue, because that is the only thing mr.ed. if they follow the wishes of the catalan people, we will find a solution. maria, theng us now, balance was meant to reset catalan politics read hasn't done that? are we back to square one? how will this parliament function with some members not in the country? we are back to square one. it was a night of contradictions. the actual winter is the ballot vote in seats. they were vocal about staying in spain. the whole idea of unilateral independence, but despite getting a good response, they're not going to be able to form a government. the pro-independence parties did manage to cling onto its majority in parliament. that is all that matters now. the risk to markets, especially catalan banks, the idea they would get stuck in real political tension between madrid and barcelona. spell it out for us. what happens next? puigdemont said we needed dialogue, we need a political solution to this. what does rajoi do now? going to hear from the spanish government. they meet on friday. where goi