phil mercer joins us now from buyers, if they can get a loan. phil mercerjoins us now from sydney.e numbers? well, we are expecting to see new data about new house sales in australia. they were down sharply in december, the expectation is the january will have fared no better. overall, we are seeing a slump in prices right across the board. we have seen quite sharp falls in recent times, not only here in sydney, prices down 10% in the past year, and 9% in melbourne, but also falls in brisbane and in darwin as well. so the only capital city, the only major city in australia, that is defying the slump is hobart. but generally across the board there is, as we heard in the piece, plenty of doom and gloom. indeed, plenty of doom and gloom. indeed, plenty of doom and gloom. indeed, plenty of doom and this credit squeeze is adding to that doom and gloom. when you speak to people in the market, they say that the credit squeeze is having an almighty effect on the market. and the reason for that is that it market. and the reason for that is thatitis market. and the reason for that is that it

thanks very much, phil mercer in christchurch. the headlines on bbc news...ime minister says her office received a message from the suspected killer minutes before the attack. theresa may calls on mps to make an honourable compromise and back her brexit deal, or risk never leaving the eu. more than 70 flood warnings are in place across britain, after some areas had a month‘s worth of rain injust 2a hours. a state of disaster has been declared in zimbabwe, where a tropical storm has killed over 30 people. the authorities say about 70 people are still missing as a result of the cyclone, which earlier caused severe damage in mozambique. the former vice president of the united states, joe biden, has given his strongest hint yet that he may run for president. if he enters the race, the 76—year—old would join a packed field of more than a dozen democratic candidates hoping to challenge donald trump next year. speaking at a rally in deleware last night, mr biden gave the impression his campaign is already under way, though he says he misspoke. i‘ll get criticised, i

thank you, phil mercer in christchurch. the headlines on bbc news...ises to 50, as the country‘s prime minister says her office received a message from the suspected killer minutes before the attack. theresa may calls on mps to make an ‘honourable compromise‘ and back her brexit deal, or risk never leaving the eu. nearly a0 flood warnings are in place across britain, after some areas had a month‘s worth of rain injust 2a hours. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here‘s holly hamilton. the new formula 1 season has got under way in australia with valkyrie but us winning the first grand prix in melbourne, a distant third in the championship and without a victory last year but he overtook his mercedes team—mate lewis hamilton and went on to win the race by more than 20 seconds. last year ferrari‘s sebastian vettel was lewis hamilton‘s closest rival but this time the title fight could be much closer to home. his mercedes team—mate valkyrie but pottharst could not win a race last year the finn producing what he called the drive of his

phil mercer, thanks very much.nkfully the forecast today not looking as horrendous out there. there is still some rain around in the form of showers. they will come with a mixture of rain, hail, sleet and snow. but they are showers, pushing through on the breeze so some drier, sunny spells follow in their wake. the low pressure which brought us yesterday's wet and also windy weather is now across scandinavia. we've got the air coming down from a more north—westerly direction and that's why, to start the day, we saw showers in the north and west. we see showers transfer into some eastern parts a bit more through the afternoon. just about anywhere can see a shower at some point during the day but it does mean west of scotland brightens up for the second half of the day. still pretty windy down in eastern scotland but it's here where we see wind gusts in excess of a0 or 50 mph. blustery elsewhere, but fewer showers this afternoon in northern ireland and the showers across england and wales, mainly northern england and

let's get more on this from our correspondent in australia, phil mercer, whojoins us from sydney.or cardinal george pell on the various charges? well, george pell was convicted in december of five offences, and as we have just heard from the chiefjudge, judge peter kidd, he has handed down a range of sentences for those offences. and in total, george pell has been sentenced to six years in prison. george pell, six year prison sentence handed down by thejudge in melbourne. and as we have just heard, the cardinal will serve a non— parole period of three years and eight months. so that means he will spend the best part of four yea rs will spend the best part of four years behind bars. and we had previously the judge telling george pell that he had displayed a callous indifference to his victims, and that he had behaved with breathtaking arrogance. and it was a fairly damning summing up of the case by thejudge. it fairly damning summing up of the case by the judge. it took him fairly damning summing up of the case by thejudge. it took him more than an hourto case by thejudge. it took

phil mercer in christchurch, thank you.—old man has been stabbed to death in a fight in south—west london. the man — who died at the scene — was attacked in fulham in the early hours of saturday morning. no arrests have been made. the former minister, nick boles, has quit his local conservative association because of a rift over brexit. mr boles wants a closer relationship with europe and opposes a no—deal brexit. he'd been facing efforts by tory activists in his constituency in lincolnshire to oust him as the party's candidate at the next general election. the bbc‘s comic relief programme last night raised more than £63 million. highlights included a special reunion by the cast of four weddings and a funeral — and a spoof spin off of the bbc one drama the bodyguard. the money is used to help vulnerable children in the uk and across the world. our entertainment correspondent, lizo mzimba reports. red nose day 2019! it's the night when some of entertainment‘s biggest stars come together and use comedy to raise money for comi

thank you very much, phil mercer, in christchurch.how, and where, we want to die. for deborahjames, host of podcast you, me and the big c, it's something she's starting to consider. deborah has incurable bowel cancer and, since the death of her friend and fellow podcaster, rachael bland, she says she's been forced to confront the difficult choices she'll eventually have to make and she's visited a hospice that cares for the dying. hi, deborah, i'm dallas. welcome to trinity. i'm a little bit nervous. of course you are, of course you are. that'sjust fine, it's really natural. i'm deborah james. i'm 37 years old and i have incurable stage iv bowel cancer. i have two young children, age nine and age 11. only 8% of people will survive with my type of cancer, so, therefore, i have to ask myself the question — how will i die and how do i want to die? have you ever seen that film one flew over the cuckoo's nest? yeah. i liken it to that. that we are all a bit weird. i am meeting catherine who also has stage iv cancer. i have twins and they w

phil mercer, thank you.igration for the mosque shooting in christchurch has attacked a teenager who egged him while he was being interviewed. when people are getting attacked in their own... fraser anning hit the 17—year—old before a short scuffle takes place between the two. the teenager was then restrained and arrested, but has since been released. a petition calling for senator anning to be removed from office following his comments has attracted nearly a quarter of a million signatures. a leaked eu document appears to confirm that the uk will have to take part in european parliament elections in may, if brexit is extended beyond the end ofjune. the memo has been circulated to eu ambassadors ahead of theresa may's visit to brussels on thursday, where she will ask eu leaders to delay brexit. the uk is presently due to leave the eu on march 29th. with me is our political correspondent, susana mendonca. i suppose that this is not a great surprise but presumably it is the last thing that anyone wants not just

phil mercer reports, from sydney, one of the worst—affected cities.o australia's top of the market. it suffered its steepest fall in prices since the —— since the global financial crisis in 2008. this is a 3—bedroom, 2—storey unit. financial crisis in 2008. this is a s-bedroom, 2-storey unit. sydney is suffering the most. melbourne has felt the pain as well. everywhere you look it is doom and gloom. i am pretty worried. i think it could be facing a 30% fall. they are talking about the difficulty of getting money but i think it is more about the chinese buyers pulling out of the chinese buyers pulling out of the market, which has really brought the market, which has really brought the market, which has really brought the market back down—to—earth. the housing market, which normally makes our economy buoyant and moves forward , our economy buoyant and moves forward, that is shrinking. we will find our economy will shrink as well. there is now an abundance of supply, well. there is now an abundance of supply, including new housing developers like this on

phil mercer, thank you.irm that the uk will have to take part in european parliament elections in may if brexit is extended beyond the start ofjuly. a memo has been circulated to eu ambassadors in advance of theresa may's visit to brussels on thursday, when she will ask eu leaders to move the current brexit deadline beyond march 29th. 0ur political correspondent susana mendonca is in our london newsroom. let's go through this chronologically. if we leave on the 29th of march, there is no issue. because we will have left and those elections in may will have nothing to do with us. but if it isjune beyond the question until now has been, would we have to take part in electing meps if we leave on the 29th of march as you say we would not take part in those elections but that at the moment to his mate has no deal through so we would be leaving with no deal on the 29th of march and parliament has made clear it does not want to leave without a deal. so we have this issue. what the eu has said in a document that has

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch for us.jacinda ardern continues to provide striking leadership. she said the fall and will receive justice. also taking issue with social media companies, facebook in particular, the prime minister arguing that facebook has not enough to ta ke arguing that facebook has not enough to take them for graphic vision that was recorded during one of the ataxia on friday. facebook says it is using various tools to identify and remove offensive material, but the prime minister says that graphic vision is still online and it is facebook‘s responsibility to do something about it. we could see pushback from the business community in new zealand, companies are thinking about withdrawing advertising from social media because of the issues surrounding that video. we know that a state—owned lottery in new zealand has already done so, perhaps more banks could follow, so certainly social media, the role of social media and its responsibilities are very much in the spotlight. are some of the bereaved families a

and we can speak to our correspondent phil mercer who's outside christchurch hospital for us. re of course still many people being treated in hospital. in various states and conditions. yes, suffering from gunshot wounds, some of them very serious. behind me christchurch hospital, 3a people still needing medical attention. some will need multiple operations because of the wounds that they have suffered. we understand that a dozen are in intensive care. a four—year—old girl was earlier airlifted to a specialist unit in auckland and she is in a critical condition. we understand according to the prime minister that the bodies of the victims will now begin to be returned to their families so that the burials can be taking place. we are learning more about where they are from, from india, indonesia and other countries like pakistan and turkey, and among the dead, a five—year—old girl and her father, who were chased and shot dead by the government. —— gunman. senior cabinet ministers, including the chancellor philip hammond, have suggested mps may not get a third chance to vote on th

thank you, phil mercer.cross large parts of malawi and zimbabwe. aid workers say an area around 50 kilometre wide is under water. and in a short while, we'll speak to save the children's emergency response manager in mozambique to get the latest on the rescue operation. nhs patients may not benefit from improvements in cancer treatment because of a shortage of senior doctors, according to the royal college of radiologists. a survey has found 70 consultant clinical oncologist posts are currently vacant in the uk — more than half of which have remained unfilled for at least a year. there may not be enough clean water to supply england's needs within 25 years. that's the warning from the chief executive of the environment agency. sirjames bevin will tell a water industry conference later today that climate change and a growing population means unless we have a different attitude to water, in a few decades there may not be enough to go round. keith doyle reports. our summers are getting hotter and drier, which m

let's go to sydney and our correspondent phil mercer. here, phil, and what details are you able to share on what you know about this man, brenton tarrant. new zealand and australia share a very close relationship. that relationship will come into sharper focus now, given that the main suspect in this case was apparently born, or living, in the northern pa rt born, or living, in the northern part of new south wales. the australian prime minister scott morrison has described brenton tarrant as a right—wing extremist, a white supremacist. certainly his background will have to be gone through forensically by australian investigators. we understand that a 28—year—old man has been charged with murder and he is due to appear in court in christchurch in the morning. as the court process proceeds, more light should be shared on the motivations of the gunman or gun men behind these attacks. i think it is safe to say that new zealand will almost certainly be changed forever because of this. the former prime minister helen clark was saying this is a

live to christchurch and our correspondent phil mercer. it is past one o'clock in the morning.ple in new zealand. no, following a difficult day. it began with the appearance in court of the man investigators believe was responsible for this atrocity, brenton tarrant, 28 years of age from australia appearing briefly in court. he was there for about three minutes. he was not required to enter a plea. he did not utter a word but he seemed calm and was looking around the court room during that brief hearing. he is due backin during that brief hearing. he is due back in court on the 5th of april, being remanded in custody. we have had the new zealand prime minister visiting survivors in hospital and we know that as of tonight, 11 people remain in intensive care and among those critically ill patients are children, one aged just two yea rs old are children, one aged just two years old and 13 years old. what about the police investigation into this? not least in the first mosque where so many of the victims died, thatis where so many of the victims died, that is an enormous crime scen

well our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch for us. is now, the words of new zealand prime minister, jacinda ardern. she held a cabinet meeting today, promising tough new legislation around gun control. as it stands, you can be 16 and own a gun here or 18 to own one of those military—style semi automatic weapons. the authorities believe the laws are too lax and they need changing. all gun owners are licensed here. but most individual weapons don't need to be registered. that sets new zealand apart from many other countries. the prime minister is promising new legislation in a week's time. there will be also a national inquiry into the actions of the agencies leading up the actions of the agencies leading up to the atrocity here in christchurch on friday. did they do enough, did they know enough about the suspect who is in custody, that will all unfold during the inquiry. the police investigation is continuing. here in christchurch there has been a stream of people leaving flowers at this makeshift memorial at the botanic gardens. 31 pe

earlier, i spoke to our correspondnet in christchurch, phil mercer, who gave a full breakdown of theres. what we are seeing now is all of the firearms used in last friday's attacks will be banned. all military style semi—automatics and also assault rifles will be outlawed within three weeks. in the meantime, there will be interim measures put in place by the government to stop a run on people buying those prescribed guns. the prime minister, jacinda ardern, as you say, speaking here in new zealand in the past hour, saying that these measures, very strict measures, will in her words, "prevent an act of terror." so there seems to be broad support among the new zealand population. earlier today, mps received a petition with about 65,000 signatures, calling for the ban on semi—automatic weapons. there will be people who oppose what the pm is suggesting, but we get the sense here that there will be a vast swell of support for the prime minister's reforms. we were carrying that press conference live. did she not say that all people who currently possess military style assault weapons will

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch.ng the point that the terrible damage that was done on friday was done primarily with two guns, assault rifles purchased legally on a standard license in new zealand, modified illegally but very easy to turn them into military grade, and this is the response? yeah, what we are seeing now is all of the firearms used in last friday's attacks will be banned. all military style semi—automatic weapons and also assault rifles will be out lord's —— outlawed within three weeks. in the meantime there will be interim measures put in place by the government to stop a run on people buying those prescribed guns. the prime minister, jacinda ardern, as you say, speaking here in new zealand in the past hour, saying that these measures, very strict measures, will in her words prevent an act of terror. so there seems to be broad support among the new zealand population. earlier today and he's received a position —— petition with about 65,000 signatures calling for a ban on semi—automatic weapons. —— ear

our correspondent phil mercer spoke to us from christchurch in the last hour.1 o'clock in the evening here and still people come together, mostly in quiet contemplation. you get the sense there is a great deal of anger, frustration and of course the grim realisation that new zealand isn't the country that it once was. once upon a time, new zealands considered their homeland to be a small country perched at the bottom of the world far away from the world's trouble spots. but of course, the atrocity perpetrated here in christchurch on friday means that like so many countries around the world, new zealand has joined a very long list of countries scarred by extremism. we have seen the prime minister here, jacinda ardern, today saying that she believes that new zealand's gun laws are too lax and that they need to be strengthened. here near the al noor mosque near hagley park in christchurch there has been a steady flow of visitors throughout the entire day delivering floral tributes, remembering 41 people who were killed just a couple of hundred metres up the road.

our correspodent phil mercer is in christchurch — and has been giving us the latest. perpetrated at a building about 200 metres down the road. throughout the day, people here in christchurch and people around the country have been turning out at various videos, trying to make sense of what has been, in many eyes, a senseless attack. the emotions rage from disgust to dismay to disbelief. i think there is also the sense that new zealand could well be a very different country from here on in. once upon a time, new zealanders thought their country was a place at the bottom of the earth, far away from the world's trouble spots. but the atrocity perpetrated here on friday means that new zealand has suffered, just like many other countries. new zealand has been looking to reform its gun laws for quite a few years now, but you'd have to say that the atrocity perpetrated here in christchurch will give the prime minister all the help she needs to push reform through. there was a story earlier today that the government was going to ban semiautomatic weapons, just the type of wea

earlier i spoke to our correspondent in christchurch, phil mercer, who gave a full breakdown of the county'sng now is all of the firearms used in last friday's attacks will be banned. all military style semi—automatics and also assault rifles will be outlawed within three weeks. in the meantime, there will be interim measures put in place by the government to stop a run on people buying those prescribed guns. the prime minister, jacinda ardern, as you say, speaking here in new zealand in the past hour, saying that these measures, very strict measures, will in her words, "prevent an act of terror." so there seems to be broad support among the new zealand population. earlier today, mps received a petition with about 65,000 signatures, calling for the ban on semi—automatic weapons. there will be people here who oppose what the prime minister is suggesting, but we get the sense here that there will be a vast swell of support for the prime minister's reforms. let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. a strong showing by a far—right party in the netherlands provincial elections

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch. tell us about the vigil that has been planned.that we understand will take place in christchurch on thursday. we have already seen a very powerful act of solidarity with the city by the people of wellington, the capital of new zealand, about 11,000 people have crowded into the basin reserve, the main cricket ground in wellington, to stand shoulder to shoulder with people of many different faiths and culture, just to pause to remember the atrocity perpetrated in christchurch more than two days ago. when we think of new zealand, in the past, this is a country that has considered itself to be immune from the troubles of the world and the violence, but of course, the events on friday sure that new zealand is no longer immune to that, and when we think of the way forward, the vigils, the strength and the harmony that has been displayed at the vigils and will be displayed at vigils in the next few days, you get the sense that the greatest strength for new zealand against the sort of extreme violence is its unity in diversity. this is a

our news correspondent phil mercer joins us now from christchurch. what more can you tell us, phil? been talking again particularly about ideology, hasn't she? yes, she has, and jacinda ardern saying that there will be a two minutes' silence on friday to mark the one week anniversary of the atrocity here in christchurch. burials have started today. among the first funerals, a father and son, refugees from syria who arrived only in new zealand last year. so the prime minister coming to a city thatis the prime minister coming to a city that is still struggling to come to terms with these atrocities, and the prime minister saying that she believes new zealand was targeted because of its safe reputation.” because of its safe reputationli happen because of its safe reputation.” happen to be, though, the prime minister of happen to be, though, the prime ministerofa happen to be, though, the prime minister of a particularly peaceful nation, an inclusive nation, a place where 200 ethnicities and 160 languages are spoken. we pride ourselves on being well known as a welcoming place. in fact,

man described by the australian prime minister, scott morrison, as the shooter. 0ur correspondent phil mercerralia. there is a lot of working in tandem, as there has to be, with the australian authorities. yes, that is because the australian prime minister scott morrison, says one of the men detained in christchurch is an australian born citizen and the prime minister here is saying that he believes that this was the work ofa he believes that this was the work of a white supremacist extremist. there has been information circulating on the media here in australia as to who this man is probably is. there is speculation he is in his late 20s and had railed against mass immigration and had posted some sort of manifesto before allegedly carrying out this attack. relations between australia and new zealand are very close and no doubt the close relationship will work in terms of the team out between the security agencies. 0ne terms of the team out between the security agencies. one big question being asked is why were individuals like there is not on a security watch list? that will be part of what

our news correspondent phil mercer is with us now from christchurch.dibly difficult week for the country. tell us about the messages from the imam at the mosque where there was the greatest loss of life? this imam survived the attack on the al—noor mosque a week ago. giving a very powerful sermon in front of not just muslim worshippers, but thousands of other people, non—muslims, who had come along in an act of solidarity, including the new zealand prime ministerjacinda ardern, the imam saying, when the gunman came into the masked seven days ago, he could see the hatred and rage in his eyes. he praised the resilience, the compassion and the love that new zealand has shown towards the muslim community during this time. he said that the country was broken hearted, but not broken. he also consulted the idea of islamophobia, saying that there was this irrational fear of islam around the world. he said that his phobia kills, and he said that sort of hate speech, that ideology, needed to be stamped out. some very powerful words on a poignant day. after a lot

and we can go live to christchurch now, evening time, and speak to our correspondent, phil mercer.sense of how jacinda ardern will take this idea, global fight against a racist right wing ideology that she talks about, how she will take that forward? ideology that she talks about, how she will take that forward ?|j ideology that she talks about, how she will take that forward? i would imagine that she would be working in concert with her australian collea g u es concert with her australian colleagues across the sea, the prime minister, scott morrison, there has been discussing ways to counter the rise of the far right too in australia. australia and new zealand share so many things in common and of course the man suspected of perpetrating the atrocity here on fridays is an australian citizen. this was the second time that the prime minister has visited christchurch since the attacks and she has announced a two silence here on friday to commemorate a week since the awful events. —— two minute silence. she wanted a high school, an institution very badly touched by the atrocity. two p

our correspondent phil mercer is following developments from sydney in australia.ould be looking to see if they had missed any opportunities to prevent this, given that the suspect is australian. australian police will also be doing the same, presumably. that is right. both security services in australia and across the tasman sea say this 28—year—old suspect was not on their radar and they have no knowledge of him before they have no knowledge of him before the terrible events today in the city of christchurch. there will be a forensic investigation to determine whether mistakes were made or whether police were next that he would had to say that tracking everybody with extremist sympathies in countries like australia and new zealand would be an enormous, in fa ct zealand would be an enormous, in fact probably impossible, task for the authorities. what they will be doing is they will be looking to see if they can learn from theirs to see if they can learn from theirs to see if these sorts of things, these sorts of people, can be caught in the future. this will be an

let's speak to our correspondent phil mercer.t was an important moment, the reopening and for people to reuse the mask. many people take into the street to market that respects? a very symbolic time for the muslim community in christchurch, a very sacred place has been returned to them. eight days ago the al noor mosque was at the scene of mass murder. 42 of the victims died inside the mosque and it remains the epicentre of a community's grief. we saw 5000 people gather over the road for what has been called the march for love, organised by 316—year—old students. another powerful display of solidarity. 0rdinary new zealanders coming together in this display of support. prime ministerjacinda adern addressing a crowd at a mosque. she says she has simply been echoing the humanity of new zealanders. bbc news has learned that the family of mark duggan, who was shot dead by a metropolitan police officer, is suing the force for damages. an inquest jury found that he was lawfully killed. the shooting in north london in august 2011, led t

our correspondent phil mercer is in sydney in australia. in media reports as the gunman but it has not been confirmed. according to the australian prime minister, we know an australian man has been detained in relation to their mass killings in christchurch. local media is naming, identifying the individual as brenton tarrant from new south wales. this man has published a rambling manifesto online, running to more than 70 pages. it is anti—immigration in nature. white supremacist thoughts peppered throughout. this man is expected of being involved in the attack. at the moment we do know that three other people were also detained but investigators, victoria, say they are not sure at this time if there's other people are connected in any way with this attack in christchurch. this man appears to have live streamed his attack on facebook as he shot his victims. unbelievable. absolutely unbelievable. having watched some of the video i would not recommend it. it is absolutely horrific. it shows this man essentially live streaming on facebook with

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch for us now.e concede the tributes behind you and i know you are near one of the mosques where the incidents happened. that's correct. the algebra mosque is about 400 metres up this road. the —— the al noor mosque is about 400 metres up this road. we know that about 30 people are still in hospital receiving treatment and today, as we heard earlier, the australian man, 28 years old, brenton tarrant, he appeared in court. it was a brief hearing about three minutes in total. it was not required to enter a plea and he a p pa re ntly required to enter a plea and he apparently seemed quite calm and relaxed wearing prison roads. he is due back in court in early april and during this time, today, we have seen the floral tributes you can see behind me growing, notjust here in christchurch but around the entire country as well. this is a nation thatis country as well. this is a nation that is still coming to terms with the terrible events that unfolded just up the road here near the centre of christchurch a

rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in christchurch. 0ur correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch,facebook to take responsibility for the circulation of the video of friday's attack. jacinda ardern said that responsibility for the circulation of the gunman's footage laid firmly at the feet of facebook and she said the social media giant had to take more responsibility for removing the video that was still online. facebook has said that it has automated tools that are meant to locate and remove offensive material. worth noting also that the chief censor here in new zealand has officially classified that 17—minute video circulated by initially the gunman as offensive material, that means that here in new zealand, it will now be an offence to view, possess, or share that video. as far as the bodies are concerned, we understand that half a dozen bodies of those 50 victims have been released to their families and those funerals can now begin as early as wednesday. as for the survivors, 50 people were injured in the atrocity last friday, we understand that 30 are still being treated for

let's speak to our correspondent phil mercer, who's outside the hospital in christchurch where the injured treated. good morning, some of the individual stories of the families affected by this are beginning to emerge, a bsently this are beginning to emerge, absently heartbreaking, what can you tell us about the condition of those who survived? we know that 34 people are receiving treatment in the christchurch hospital behind me, a dozen of those are in intensive care. we know it for—year—old girl was airlifted to hospital in auckland for emergency specialist treatment, doctors say they are working as hard as they can to treat abdominal winds and chest wins and soft tissue wins among those patients still receiving care. we are finding out a little more about the 50 people who died in friday's atrocities, they came from many countries, from india, bangladesh, some from pakistan. some from afghanistan. we are also told by the prime minister of new zealand that from tonight the bodies. to be released to the families. this is a long process given the scale of the atrocity, it could take until

thank you very much, phil mercer.t when they meet on thursday. but, before then, mrs may will ask parliament for a third time to approve her brexit plan. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth is in westminster to tell us more. in short yesterday we had a rare moment of agreement between parliament and the prime minister over a plan, parliament and the prime minister overa plan, and parliament and the prime minister over a plan, and the plan to delay the 29 march brexit. that's right, parliament overall did agree though it is worth noting that lots of tory mps didn't back this idea, including some of the cabinet. so where are we now? when it comes to this delay, two options are most likely. the first is the government says they could be a delay of up to 30 june. that is only if mps pass her withdrawal deal in another meaningful vote next week. if that vote fails, and mps reject her deal again, then she will ask brussels for a longer extension, possibly up to two years. but, remember, any extension will need to be ag

our correspondent phil mercer joins us from there now.imagine the sadness that pervades the air there at the moment. hi. that was reflected by the imam of the al noor mosque when a week ago 42 people were murdered, gamil fouda, the imam saying that he was there at the time, he could see the rage and hatred in the government's eyes and he said that his actions, had broken millions of hearts around the world but he said that the love and compassion that new zealand has displayed during the last seven days really meant that while new zealand was heartbroken, it was not broken. we have also had the burials, the funerals of 26 victims today, so another excruciating day for the families of those individuals. we have also had an update from the hospital, 27 people remain in the care of christchurch hospital, five of those are in intensive care, so a week on from this event, this terrible event here in christchurch, we have a very sombre day of solidarity and remembrance. thank you. counter—terrorism investigations are underway in birmingham, aft

we we can speak now to our correspondent phil mercer who's in christchurch for us this morning.s do not have to be registered, which makes new zealand quite different to other countries. according to the prime minister, the gun laws are too lax and they need to be beefed up and we should be getting more concrete information about those changes in the next week to ten days. thank you very much. companies such as facebook, twitter and instagram should fund research into the impact of social media on young peoples' mental health, according to mps. the cross party group says they've been operating in a lawless online wild west and are also calling for a levy on the profits of social media firms. the american musician, dick dale, who was known as the king of the surf guitar, has died aged 81. his composition, misirlou, was made famous after becoming the soundtrack to quentin taratino's film pulp fiction. he's also credited with creating a new sound with the electric guitar, influencing musicians from the beach boys tojimi hendrix. it conjures up all sorts of images, that. one of brit

phil mercer in christchurch.the past couple of hours, a teenager has appeared in court in new zealand charged with distributing footage of the shootings filmed by the gunman. he could be jailed for up to 1a years. stephanie hare, an independent research analyst. this is one of the most chilling aspects of the whole thing. the fact that it was streamed live as it happened and was subsequently shared. an social media companies really scrambling and failing to halt it. here. they were able to use artificial intelligence to help stop the upload of that video. facebook put out a statistic over the weekend that they had stopped 1.5 million uploads. around 300,000 of them still got through. that was in a 24—hour period. it just still got through. that was in a 24—hour period. itjust shows it is not 100% artificial intelligence working to stop these videos, it is still relying on human moderators. that is why it is challenging for the social media platforms, the tech to stop this from happening is not developed yet. part

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch for us now. hejoins us later.ears to confirm that the uk will have to take part in european parliament elections in may if brexit is extended beyond the start ofjuly. a memo has been circulated to eu ambassadors in advance of theresa may's visit to brussels on thursday, when she will ask eu leaders to move the current brexit deadline beyond march 29th. our political correspondent susana mendonca is in our london newsroom. the simple route is that we leave on the 29th of march, and no issues outstanding in relation to these elections in may for the eu parliament, but what if we extend? if we left on the 29th of march we would not have to take part in european elections but we have a situation where parliament has not voted to pass the withdrawal agreement with the eu and has voted against and no—deal brexit and so in terms of the timing even if parliament were to agree now to that withdrawal agreement, they would have to be some kind of extension, a short technical extension up until the end ofjune we understand if

our correspondent phil mercer is following developments from sydney in australia.e know that 49 people had been confirmed dead in these mass shootings in new zealand. almost as many as 48 other people have been winded. we know that there isa have been winded. we know that there is a heavy police presence outside the main hospital in christchurch. if say that it does in operating theatres have been in use there to cope with all the injured people, some of those are requiring various and multiple operations. this is a story and not just about those people who have tragically died, but those who are clinging on to life. tell me the latest about the police investigation. we know four people we re investigation. we know four people were detained, we understand one man, believed to be 28, is facing murder charges and will be in court on saturday morning, what is the latest? they are delving into the history of a 28—year—old man, we understand him to be the australian citizen that the prime minister in australia, scott morrison, referto. mr morrison is of the view that th

let's speak to our correspondent phil mercer. good morning.e about the reopening of the mosque. it feels like a symbolic moment? about the reopening of the mosque. it feels like a symbolic moment7m is. eight days ago the al noor mosque was the scene of mass murder. 42 of the victims died at the al noor mosque and today police handed it back to the muslim community. it will remain the epicentre for the community's grief but there is a sense of this is a symbolic step forward. across the road, at hadley park, 5000 people marched in what is known as the march for love, an event organised by free 16—year—old high school students. another powerful act of solidarity eight days after the attacks. in auckland, further north, the prime minister jacinda dern has brushed aside global praise of her compassionate and decisive leadership saying she is simply being echoing the humanity of all new zealanders. —— jacinda adern. golden eagles in scotland will be fitted with new tracking technology , after six of the birds disappeared in suspicious circumstances

let's speak to our correspondent phil mercer, who's in christchurch for us this morning.atest information you have from those who survived this attack? 50 people injured in total, suffering from gunshot wounds. some of them very serious wounds to the abdomen and the chest. doctors say 34 abdomen and the chest. doctors say 3a people remain here. about a dozen in intensive care. we know that a four—year—old girl was airlifted to a hospital in auckland and she is in a hospital in auckland and she is in a critical condition. 50 people have also now been confirmed dead in the atrocities here in christchurch on friday and we are getting more information about the victims. they came from many, many countries. indonesia, turkey, pakistan and jordan and others. quite clearly the trauma inflicted on this city has an effect far beyond the shores. thank you very much. in the next hour, we'll get reaction to the warning from the home secretary, who's urged social media companies to "clean up their platforms", after the shootings were live—streamed online. that's at 07:10. theresa may

our correspondent, phil mercer, is in christchurch and spoke to us earlier.also taking issue with social media companies, facebook in particular. the prime minister arguing that facebook hasn't done enough to take down the graphic vision that was recorded during one of the attacks here on friday. facebook says that it is using various tools to identify and remove offensive material, but the prime minister says that that graphic vision is still online and it is facebook‘s responsibility to do something about it. we could also see some pushback from the business community here in new zealand, reports that companies are thinking about withdrawing advertising from social media because of the issues surrounding that video. we know that a state—owned lottery in new zealand has already done so and perhaps more banks could follow, so certainly social media, the role of social media, and its responsibilities are very much in the spotlight here. and phil, are some of the bereaved families now able to prepare for the first of the burials? they are. the first of the bodi

our news correspondent phil mercer is with us now from christchurch.n is coping, or trying to cope with these terror attacks of last friday. tell us about the message from one of the mosques affected by the terror attacks. a very powerful sermon from the imam who survived the terrorist shooting last week, the word he used to describe the perpetrator, he said that he could see the rage and hatred in the eyes of the terrorist, as he launched his attack on this mosque in christchurch a week ago. 42 of the victims were murdered there. today ‘s go friday prayers we re there. today ‘s go friday prayers were held over the road because the mosque is still a crime scene, a very powerful sermon from the imam saying that new zealand may be heartbroken, but it's not broken. he said his country had displayed the sort of resilience, compassion and love that made it unbreakable. he also addressed the global issue of islamophobia, he said that they was an irrational there of muslims, an irrational there of prayer is that muslims undertake, the clothes they wear, the f

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch for us now. good morning to you.fering behind you there and you are very close to one of the two mosques that was attacked. that is right. just up the road about 400 metres is the al noor mosque. 4i people were murdered inside the building and in the last few seconds the police have started to dismantle the police have started to dismantle the cord and, suggesting that that pa rt the cord and, suggesting that that part of the investigation of retrieving the bodies and the forensic clues is coming to an end in this part of christchurch. we can see heavily armed police slowly clearing the cordon and moving away. in the other direction towards the main city hospital we have information about the 48 individuals who were taken to hospital following these two attacks on the mosques here in christchurch. 39 people remain in hospital, among those treated are a two—year—old boy and a girlaged. we treated are a two—year—old boy and a girl aged. we understand that some of those people in hospital have had multiple operations an

our correspondent phil mercer is in christchurch.it is getting [ate there, tell us what's going on. 10pm here, in christchurch. and still the people come to pay their respects here at the botanic garden. they have been coming here for the better part of three days to lay flowers, to light candles and to read the cards of remembrance of the victims. very ha rd to remembrance of the victims. very hard to sum up in a few words how thousands of people feel, but safe to say having spoken to quite a few people here this evening, there's a sense of disbelief, a sense of dismay and disgust. and also this grim realisation that new zealand, once upon a time a small country perched at the bottom of the world far away from the world's trouble spots, has no longer been immune from the extremist atrocities that we associate with other parts of the world. all of these different emotions coming together here tonight. i would emotions coming together here tonight. iwould be emotions coming together here tonight. i would be pretty safe in saying that

our correspondent in christchurch phil mercer sent us this update there will be 50 funerals here in christchurchvictims, some of them have expressed frustration at the delay in handing over the bodies from the authorities. the police here see the identification process is very, very complex and also needed for the criminal justice system complex and also needed for the criminaljustice system any court case, a murder case, the court must have a clear cause of death. the authorities are saying that‘s why it has taken so long for this process to be worked through. we also heard today from the new zealand police commissioner mike bush. he said that in the police‘s opinion, he was about to commit a further atrocity when he was arrested and was detained by officers at 821 minutes after the first emergency call came through. we also heard in the second visit of the prime ministerjacinda ardern here in christchurch since the shooting, she has visited a high school about last two pupils and a former student. the prime minister saying on friday there will be two minutes of silence across new zealand to re