sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow.hern ireland have been given more time to try to form a power—sharing government after failing to meet today's deadline. after three weeks of talks, there's still no sign of agreement between the democratic unionist party and sinn fein. the northern ireland secretary james brokenshire said he believed there was no appetite for yet another election, as our ireland correspondent chris buckler reports. there's been a lot of talk in northern ireland about restoring power—sharing, but at times it's felt like sinn fein and the dup have been speaking a very different language. much of the funding for this class for migrant workers in dungannon comes through stormont, but with no government, there's no budget. we might want to ask how much... and that means this community group can't be sure how much money they'll have once the new financial year begins, and that's just next week. if there's no funding, it would mean imminent closure within two months and alljobs lost. that's how serious it is

but first, over to our scotland editor sarah smith. h, there had been some suggestion that nicola sturgeon might call for a second referendum, but no—one was expecting it today? well, exactly. ever since the morning after the eu referendum, she has been saying another referendum was highly likely. suddenly today, the surprise announcement that she is definitely calling for a second vote on scottish referee —— independence. she says she is making the announcement now because she has judged there will not be a deal that allows a separate exit deal for scotland. clearly she wouldn't be doing this now if she didn't also think brexit has changed circumstances enough that she could wina circumstances enough that she could win a second referendum. since she was 15, nicola sturgeon has print of an independent scotland. no brexit may provide the chance. she says it means scotland must be given a fresh choice. what scotla nd must be given a fresh choice. what scotland deserves in the light of the material change in circumstances brought about by

that was sarah smith reporting there.who shot dead a wounded taliban fighter in afghanistan has been given a seven—year jail sentence, but is expected to be freed within weeks. alexander blackman has already spent half that time in prison after being originally found guilty of murder. that conviction was quashed on appeal and replaced with manslaughter earlier this month. our correspondent, duncan kennedy, reports. cheering it was the news fellow marines had been waiting four years to hear. and, moments later, their euphoria was shared in the reaction of alexander blackman's wife. we are overjoyed at the judge's decision to significantly reduce our sentence such that he can be released imminently. this is the moment we've all been fighting hard for. it's hard to believe that this day is finally here. as a marine sergeant, alexander blackman had been a decisive, accomplished leader of troops, someone who'd killed 30 times for his country. but on this tour of afghanistan, in 2011, he and his men went through what was called

sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh.speak to the economistjournalist and broadcaster anne mcelvoy. joining me now from our westminster studio is the plaid cymru mp, liz saville roberts. thank you very much forjoining me this evening. to what extent is there a conversation now in wales that it should examine its future in terms of independence? well, without a shadow of a doubt, this is the time we should be discussing this, just as the prime minister, theresa may talks about forging a new relationship with europe and the rest of the world, surely now is the time also for a discussion to be happening between these four nations and forging a new relationship amongst ourselves. is that about a sense of nationalism 7 amongst ourselves. is that about a sense of nationalism? or are there ha rd facts sense of nationalism? or are there hard facts backing that up? of course, there are hard facts backing that up. we have devolution, our own assembly in wales. we need to work out a working relationship between westminster and the a

sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh. let's speak to our scotland editor, sarah smith, in edinburgh.uite a robust response from the scottish secretary david mandel, and he's talking about not granting a referendum until the end of the brexit process, which might include the transition as well. yes, the uk government's position as they don't wa nt to government's position as they don't want to even talk about another referendum or the possible timing of an independence vote until after the brexit negotiations have been completed in two years' time. they've made clear they're not saying they think there could be a vote in two yea rs' saying they think there could be a vote in two years' time, but to give scotla nd vote in two years' time, but to give scotland a reasonable choice of what they're choosing between an independent scotland and the new uk, as it will be processed brexit, they need to wait until it's bedded down a bitand need to wait until it's bedded down a bit and see what the consequences of leaving the eu are going to be. so this sets up quite a constitutional struggle. t

the bbc‘s scotland editor, sarah smith, reports.cotland. now brexit may provide the chance. as she says it means scotland must be given a fresh choice. what scotland deserves, in the light of the material change in circumstances brought about by the brexit vote, is the chance to decide our future in a fair, free and democratic way. there should be a referendum, she says, before the uk leaves the eu, some time between the autumn of 2018 and the spring of 2019. 0pinion polls still don't suggest more than 50% of the country would want to vote for independence. the economic circumstances are much harderfor you than they were in 2014. do you really believe you could win another referendum? yes, i do. absolutely. i believe that. it would be wrong for scotland to be taken down a path it has no control over, regardless of the consequences for our economy, our society, our place in the world, for our very sense of who we are as a country. that would be wrong, and therefore my judgment is that we should have that choice. a referendum could ha

sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. live to westminster and our political editor laura kuenssberg.rexit process, was any realistic prospect of meaningful progress today? i think these two leaders are at a stand—off. it might not be personally bad—tempered but i think it has become politically bad tempered. there has even been spat tonight over what was or wasn't agreed between the two behind closed doors at their meeting. number ten has disputed the snp and scottish government's suggestion that somehow the prime minister accepted their version of what would be reasonable timetable. i think what we're seeing, just a few weeks since nicola sturgeon put forward her demand to press ahead with a second referendum, it seems abundantly clear that in the first ages at least of this whole process, this complicated path of taking us out of the european union, that the tensions between the scottish government and westminster government are going to be a co nsta nt government are going to be a constant feature of that as it unfolds. this potentially that adds an extra layer to every decision t

and sarah smith is at holyrood now.e been expecting a negative response from westminster. were they surprised by the uncompromising tone? westminster. were they surprised by the uncompromising tone ?|j westminster. were they surprised by the uncompromising tone? i think the scottish government have been taken aback. they knew that the prime minister was never easily going to agree to another independence referendum. but when saying now is not the time, and also making clear that means that number 10 are not prepared to talk about this, to enter discussions about another vote until at least after the uk has left the eu, if then, that has taken the scottish government by surprise. they say that position is not only democratically indefensible, it is also unsustainable. they don't think that the uk government can keep this up that the uk government can keep this up and keep saying they won't even talk about a referendum for the next two years. but there is no reason to believe that downing street are about to change their

sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh. you back to westminster, the house of lords floating again on the brexit bill. we will bring you that result as soon as we we will bring you that result as soon as we get it. to watch more coverage from the house of lords you can watch that on bbc parliament. let's go back to the call from scotland's first minister for a second scottish independence referendum. joining me now from our aberdeen studio is maggie chapman, co—convenor of the scottish green party. thank you forjoining us. you support the snp in their call for another referendum, can you explain why? yes, we do. we have seen that since the referendum vote injune last year attempts from the scottish first minister, from people across the political spectrum in scotland to engage in a constructive way with the uk government have fallen on deaf ears. any suggestion of a compromise for scotland has gone nowhere. we have heard there will be deals for nissan, for the car industry. there has been no suggestion that there can be any

sarah smith with the latest at holyrood.downing street in a moment, but first to our europe editor katya adler brussels. the letter to be delivered tomorrow, to be hand—delivered tomorrow, the response in brussels will be what? look, this is a huge moment for the eu. up until now this is a union thatis eu. up until now this is a union that is only ever been growing, with european countries east north, south, east and west knocking the door and asking to be let in. now one of its most influential members is banging at that door demanding to be let out. this is a huge blow this, but mix without regret at seeing britain go is a growing sense of determination here that any new deal has to be in the eu's interests. so as soon as the uk's letter arrives here tomorrow, the eu will roll up its metaphorical sleeves. yes, it says it wants to keep a close and friendly relationship with the uk, it says it doesn't want to punish britain, but these will be complex and tough negotiations. any eurocrat i speak to believe that the government

sarah smith, thank you. 0ur deputy political editor, john pienaar, is in downing street for us tonight sturgeon is trying to increase the pressure on mrs may. is the prime minister likely to stick to her guns on not contemplating a second referendum until after brexit? you can bet that she will. downing street is saying theresa may will respond in due course. her answer is more predictable than even donald tusk‘s answered britain earlier today. no referendum, no negotiations on a referendum until brexit is complete. that will mean month after month of a struggle first scottish public opinion above all else. in that time, of course, the progress of the talks on britain's future outside the european union could turn out to be important in tilting the balance. the eu clearly trying to put itself in the driving seat as far as the negotiations are concerned. what's the response in downing street tonight, to the guidelines issued by the eu? number10, no number 10, no minister, number10, no minister, really expected donald tusk is to be encouraging. he was not encouraging. the government, dow

our scotland editor sarah smith is at holyrood. immediate impact in edinburgh? they did. the flags are at half—mast outside the scottish parliament tonight. earlier today, it outside the scottish parliament tonight. earliertoday, it took outside the scottish parliament tonight. earlier today, it took a bit longer for information to filter through. whilst that debate was going on, we could see msps in the chamber checking their phones, getting the news. the first minister left the chamber abruptly and eventually, one tory msp stood up and asked the deputy presiding officer to stop the debate. at that point, rather controversially, she said they would carry on with business as usual, as she put it. i understand that that is because parliamentary authorities were concerned that they didn't want to be seen to be giving into terrace, so be seen to be giving into terrace, so they carried on, but msps were really u nco mforta ble so they carried on, but msps were really uncomfortable about that, some of them tweeting from the chamber that

that's took to our scotland editor sarah smith whose own scotland for us.there any reason, do you think, and nowhere looking at crystal ball clear with the whole brexit debate, and the discussions that are going to be configured tomorrow, but is there any reason why the timetable nicola sturgeon has laid down which is 18 months‘ time, after the brexit negotiations, might not coincide with what theresa may what might want? that depends whether you're sitting at the scottish government 01’ sitting at the scottish government or the sitting at the scottish government orthe uk sitting at the scottish government or the uk government. in fact, nicola sturgeon discussed this face—to—face at a meeting in glasgow yesterday. they don‘t agree on the timetable at all. the scottish government says the sake of the brexit detail will be known, and will spend six months ratifying it. so scottish people could make the decision then about whether to be independent. the uk government firmly disagreed. they said not only will it take two years before we know exactly what the br

sarah smith has the story. 50 millionjourneys are made on 50 million journeys are made on the stretch. the town. go to the south and direct the north have some of the highest percentages of death due to air pollution in the south—east. in da rtford pollution in the south—east. in dartford the council has recorded nitrogen dioxide levels above the safe limits for years. when the town did not appear in the national air quality plan, they were puzzled. then they found out why. we discovered that the tunnel approach road was classed as a rural road and therefore the air monitoring figures they had and that they were using for modelling purposes was incorrect. quite shocking, really. it meant that for years national data on air pollution does not include this incredibly busy stretch of road. whoever decided there was i'io of road. whoever decided there was no pollution round here must be, probably does not live in dartford. i have two small children and regularly if you live here you will notice that several times a day or a week there is just notice that several times a day or a week ther

scotland editor sarah smith reports. sarah: since she was 15, nicola sturgeon has dreamed of an independent scotland, and now brexit may provide a chance. she says that scotland must be given a fresh choice. >> what scotland deserves in light of the material changes to circumstances brought about by the brexit vote is the chance to decide our future in a fair, free, and democratic way. sarah: there should be a referendum, she says, before the u.k. leaves the eu, sometime between autumn 2018 and spring 2019. opinion polls still don't suggest more than 50% of the country would want to vote for independence. the economic circumstances are much harder for you than in 2014. do you believe you could win another referendum on independence? >> yes, i do, absolutely believe that. i believe that it would be wrong for scotland to be taken down a path it has no control over regardless of the consequences for the economy, society, our place in the world, our very sense of who we are as a country. that would be wrong, and therefore my

and sian lloyd at the national assembly in cardiff, but first let's hear from our scotland editor sarah smithter nicola sturgeon is writing a letter of her own, one that will be addressed to theresa may making a formal request for a referendum on scottish independence. she knows what the a nswer independence. she knows what the answer will be, theresa may will tell her that can be no discussions about another referendum until after the brexit deal is done and scottish voters have had a chance to see the consequences of that. nicola sturgeon said today that she wishes theresa may success with the becoming a negotiations because she says a good dealfor the uk is in scotland's interests, but she did not sound optimistic when she said the prime minister was taking a leap in the dark. the scottish government have not been terribly impressed by the promise from westminster that there will be significantly increased powers for the scottish parliament because they say they have had no detail or commitment on which powers will be returned to holyrood after brexit, so that is one more major political a

sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh.w britain will have taken the historic step of formally saying it wants to leave the european union. no other country has done this before. today, theresa may said she's determined to use britain's exit from the eu to shape an even bigger role for what she calls a global britain. the prime minister was speaking in birmingham from where our political editor, laura kuenssberg reports. nine months of careful assembly. plenty of preparation and attention to detail. the decisions that have been taken will affect all our lives and livelihoods, and her political future. banging the drum for trade with the gulf, the prime minister wants to reach out. tomorrow we begin the negotiations, to secure a new, deep and special partnership with the european union. as we do so, i am determined that we should also seize this historic opportunity to get out into the world. but there's a job at home to do, too. here in birmingham, voters favoured leaving the eu, but were split almost down the middle. never

here is our scotland editor sarah smith.his is a big and bold move from nicola sturgeon, a dramatic political moment, one that is a huge gamble for her. but it is a risk she says she is ready to take. what scotland deserves, in the light of the material change of circumstances brought about by the brexit vote, is the chance to decide our future, in a fair, free and democratic way. a democratic decision she says must happen before the uk leaves the eu. it could have been avoided, she claims, if the uk government had been prepared to negotiate a separate brexit deal for scotland. we have worked hard, really hard, to try to find agreement. the prime minister and her government have been given every opportunity to compromise. our efforts have instead been met with a brick wall of intransigence. opinion polls still don't suggest more than 50% of the country would want to vote for independence. the economic circumstances are much harderfor you than they were in 2014. do you really believe you could win another referendum on indepe

sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh.ere in scotland could be voting in a second scottish independence referendum by the spring of 2019. there has been reaction from downing street today. theresa may has accused the snp of what she called "deeply regrettable tunnel vision" and of playing politics. this report from our political editor laura kuenssberg. we'll brexit break up the britain we know? scotland voted to stay in the eu. brexit is a problem not of scotland's making. the uk vote was to leave. we believe in the union, the precious, precious bond. in the chaotic aftermath she has made her mind up. a second independence referendum is clearly an option now. machine must decide. miz instead of playing politics with the future of oui’ playing politics with the future of our country the scottish government should focus on delivering good government and public services for the people of scotland. politics is not a game. but if the scottish government wants to give voters a chance to leave the european union with all its com

here's the bbc‘s scotland editor sarah smith on what happens next.ted constitutional struggle between the scottish government and the uk government, between nicola sturgeon and theresa may, what will happen next is that the first minister will now send a letter because that vote gave her the parliamentary authority to do so, she will send a letter to number ten requesting another referendum on scottish independence but we know what the prime minister will say. she will say it now is not the time to be talking about that because the uk government and the country needs to concentrate on the brexit negotiations. this has not happened before. a stand—off like this between edinburgh and london. it has or has been considered very risky for the westminster government to tell scotland that it cannot have an independence referendum, the received wisdom for years is that if they were to do that they might antagonise scottish voters and build support as a result. the uk government they are banking on the fa ct government they are banking on the fact that a lot

but as our scotland editor sarah smith reports, nicola sturgeon doesn't see it that way at all.at way, did she. she certainly did not, andi way, did she. she certainly did not, and i get the impression that she came away from the meeting a bit frustrated about the lack of detail that she is getting from the prime minister about the "brexit" negotiations and also about any specific powers that may be transferred to the scottish parliament. the prime minister, who does have the power to block another referendum on scottish independence, that she was very clear, saying now is not the time to discuss it. voiceover: is not the time to discuss it. v0|ceover: theresa may knows that this could be awkward, she is here to talk about her article 50 letter. she is here to press her demand for a referendum on independence. no handshakes, no press conference, did a couple of souvenir photographs but neither woman looks like they are enjoying it. by stark contrast, their first meeting, eight months ago, then it was called a good working relationship, now, nicola sturgeon says the pm has not li

here's scotland editor sarah smith. theresa may knows this could be awkward.'s here to talk about her article 50 letter. she's here to press her demand for a referendum on independence. so no handshakes, no press c0 nfe re nce , independence. so no handshakes, no press conference, just a couple of souvenir photographs that neither woman looks like they're enjoying. by stark contrast, their first meeting, eight months ago, then it was called a good working relationship, now, nicola sturgeon says the pm has not listened to her on brexit, theresa may says that she will reject any request for a vote on scottish independence. my position is not going to change, now is not the time to be talking about a second independence referendum, because it would not be fair on the scottish people to make them make that decision when the facts are not clear and also because now is the time when we need to pull together to make sure we get the best possible deal for the uk, including the people of scotland. i'm told the meeting inside this hotel was businesslike, cordial, and pr

but we start in edinburgh, with our scotland editor sarah smith.o—one was expecting such a dramatic move from nicola sturgeon today, demanding another referendum on scottish independence before the uk leaves eu. now, she says she feels she is compelled to ask for another vote because the uk government wouldn't listen to her plans for a separate brexit steel for scotland. but of course she wouldn't be talking about another vote if she didn't think she could win it. this isa didn't think she could win it. this is a big and bold move from nicola sturgeon, a dramatic political moment, one that is a huge gamble for her. but it is a risk she says she is ready to take. what scotland deserves, in the light of the material change of circumstances brought about by the brexit vote is the chance to decide our future in a fair, free and democratic way. democratic decision she says must happen before the uk leaves eu. it could have been avoided, she claims, if the uk government had been prepared to negotiate a separate brexit dealfor prepared to negotiate a sepa

chris buckler who's in county tyrone and sian lloyd in cardiff but first to our scotland editor sarah smitht minister today said she does wish to reason a success with upcoming negotiations because a good uk deal is in scotland's interests, but she is not optimistic about that. she described the process as a leap in the dark. the scottish government have not been terribly impressed with the promise ofa terribly impressed with the promise of a significant increase in powers for the scottish parliament theresa may mention today because they said they haven't had any commitment on what powers might come to holyrood after brexit. of course nicola sturgeon is busy writing a letter of her own at the moment, one she will send to the prime minister making a formal request for a scottish referendum, what she already knows the answer. theresa may will say there can be no discussions about another referendum until this brexit deal is done and scottish voters have had a chance to see how it is working. i'm standing at one of the 260 crossing points between northern ireland and the republic of ireland a

sarah smith was watching. no cuts here! welcome to glasgow.lonely little protest came out to greet the prime minister, who has come here to try and resist another referendum on scottish independence. theresa may has heard the warnings that the snp really might try to call another vote. she said they should focus on governing scotland. politics is not a game and government is not a platform from which to pursue constitutional obsessions. a tunnel vision nationalism, which focuses only on independence at any cost, sells scotland short. butjust in case, she's already rehearsing the arguments against scottish independence and for the union. we are four nations, but at heart we are one people. let us live up to that high ideal, and let us never stop making loudly and clearly the positive optimistic and passionate case for our precious union of nations and of people. thank you. a key message there from theresa may to nicola sturgeon, stop all this talk about independence. the people of scotland don't want another referendum, the prime minister says.

but first, here's our scotland editor, sarah smith, in edinburgh.first minister said she does wish to raise a success with the forthcoming negotiations because a good uk deal is in scottish interests. but she is not optimistic. she described the process as a leap in the dark. they scottish gunmen have been terribly impressed with the promise of a significant increase in powers for the scottish parliament that teresa may mentioned today. they say they haven't had any commitments about what new powers may come to hollywood after brexit. nicola sturgeon is busy writing a letter of her own, the one in which he makes a formal request for another scottish referendum. she knows what the a nswer referendum. she knows what the answer will be. theresa may may tell they can be no discussions until after the brexit deal scottish voters have had a chance to see how it is working. lam standing it is working. i am standing at one of the 260 crossing points between northern ireland and the republic of ireland. this bridge will become part of the only land border be

but first we go to sarah smith at holyrood. the first minister, nicola sturgeon, is writing a letter of her own. one that will be addressed to theresa may, making a formal request for a referendum on scottish independence. she knows audience to that will be. theresa may will tell they cannot be any discussions about another referendum until the deal is done and scottish voters have a chance to see what the consequences of that are. nicola sturgeon did say today that she wishes theresa may success with the upcoming negotiations, because, she says, a good dealfor the uk is in scotland's interest. this could have government had not been terribly impressed, however, by the promise from westminster that they will be significantly increased powers for the scottish parliament, because they say they have not been to get any detail or commitments on which new powers will be returned to holyrood after wrexham. that is just one more political upper argument thatis one more political upper argument that is yet to come. there was a process

first to our scotland editor sarah smith who is that the snp conference, due to open in aberdeen.n we took, at this in aberdeen'."whsn we took, at this ‘and in aberdeefigwhen we took, at this ‘and the in aberdeefigwhen we took, at this ‘ and the escalating stand—off and the escalating tensions here, what do you think the next moves are for nicola sturgeon? well nicola sturgeon was expecting this move from the prime minister and they have their next moves carefully planned out. she is basically not going to take no for an answer because she's sure she can probably do well out of this argument with the prime minister. so the plan is - the scottish the plan is that the scottish government will go ahead with the vote in the scottish parliament next week demanding another referendum, and they will win that vote, and they'll still make a formal request to the prime minister for another referendum, forcing her to officially deny a request that has come notjust from the snp, but that has been voted through the scottish parliament. then there comes an pe rlie ment; then there torn eserr it's

we'll speak to our assistant political editor, norman smith, but first to our scotland editor, sarah smithhuge moment for the uk — so many answered questions — so many unanswered questions — and very high stakes at play for scotland's first minister. for nicola sturgeon it could cost her the career, if she has another referendum and she loses it. she knows that very well. but i asked her, did she really believe that she would win another referendum on scottish independence and she said she was convinced that she would, despite the fact that opinion polls do not suggest a majority of people in scotland support independence and the economic circumstances are considerably more different, she says she is planning to win this thought. of course, she has adopted a tone that is not triumphalist dick, she is trying to suggest that she is being forced into this course of action because she doesn't want to look like she is using this as an excuse. to look like she is using this as an excuse. she talked about how she's trying to find compromise and how they had refused this was not she said that no c

obsessed with a form of brexit that would directly threaten scottish jobs. 0ur scotland editor sarah smithather lonely little protest came out to greet the prime minister, who has come here to try and resist another referendum on scottish independence. theresa may has heard the warnings that the snp really might try to call another vote. she said they should focus on governing scotland. politics is not a game and government is not a platform from which to pursue constitutional obsessions. a tunnel vision nationalism, which focuses only on independence at any cost, sells scotland short. butjust in case, she's already rehearsing the arguments against scottish independence and for the union. we are four nations, but at heart we are one people. let us live up to that high ideal, and let us never stop making loudly and clearly the positive optimistic and passionate case for our precious union of nations and of people. thank you. a key message there from theresa may to nicola sturgeon, stop all this talk about independence. the people of scotland don't want another referendum, the prime minister

our scotland editor sarah smith was watching. no cuts here! welcome to glasgow. little protest came out to greet the prime minister, who's come here to try and resist another referendum on scottish independence. theresa may has heard the warnings that the snp really might try to call another vote. she said they should focus on governing scotland. politics is not a game and government is not a platform from which to pursue constitutional obsessions. a tunnel vision nationalism, which focuses only on independence at any cost, sells scotland short. butjust in case, she's already rehearsing the arguments against scottish independence and for the union. we are four nations, but at heart we are one people. let us live up to that high ideal, and let us never stop making loudly and clearly the positive, optimistic and passionate case for our precious union of nations and of people. thank you. a clear message there from theresa may to nicola sturgeon — stop all this talk about independence. the people of scotland don't want another referendum, the prime minister says. it'

our scotland sarah smith is at holyrood in edinburgh.se in scotland, and what is aging 2955555 hits? gig? well, nicola sturgeon‘s defiant response is she is not going to take no foran response is she is not going to take no for an answer, and she thinks she can turn this battle with theresa may to her advantage, the scottish government were fully expecting this response from downing street and they are ready with their next move, they are ready with their next move, they will proceed with a vote in the scottish parliament on wednesday, which is certain to vote for another referendum. and they will request referendum. and they—will— reg—test; from referendum. and they—will— reguest= from the prime minister formally from the prime ministgr! referendum, so that she has to that referendum, so that she has to officially deny it. something they will say is a democratic outrage, defying the will of the elected scottish parliament. and the snp could for now turn this into a debate that is not about the rights ww wrongs of independence but and wr

since the scottish national party demanded a new independence referendum. 0ur scotland editor, sarah smithence, so no handshakes, no press conferences, just a couple of souvenir photographs but neither woman looks like they are enjoying it. i start contrast, their first meeting eight months ago, then it was called a good working relationship. now nicola sturgeon says the pm has not listened to her in brexit, mrs may says she will reject any request for a vote on scottish independence. my position is not going to change, that now is not the time to be talking about a second independence referendum because it wouldn't be fair on the scottish people to ask them to make that decision when the facts aren't clear and also because now is the time when we need to pull together to make sure we get the best possible dealfor to make sure we get the best possible deal for the uk to make sure we get the best possible dealfor the uk including the people as scotland's. i'm told that the meeting was businesslike, cordial and probably the then kissed meeting yet. they were offering more powers for the scot

here's our scotland editor sarah smith.muchjoyful excitement in scottish cabinet room. today, they look pretty pleased with themselves. as nicola sturgeon insists theresa may must not try to block a scottish referendum or dictate the date. owning a rebuke from the prime minister, who is quite busy enough with brexit. this is not a moment to play politics or create uncertainty. but it isn't certain how she will respond to the snp demands for a referendum. it is a moment to bring our country together, to honour the will of the british people and to shake for them a better, brighterfuture and a better britain. this relationship is turning nasty. nicola sturgeon tweeted today, i was elected as first minister on a clear manifesto commitment to a scottish referendum. the prime minister is not yet collected by anybody. —— elected by anyone. a vote in the scottish parliament next week will trigger the beginning of negotiations about when another referendum might happen. if the scottish parliament votes for a referendum, and they ma

politics is not a game. 0ur scotland editor, sarah smith, is in edinburgh for us now.irst minister is a very smart politician. i am sure in private she has guessed that the prime minister will not give an independence referendum in the midst of these complex brexit negotiations so if she has worked that out what is her political calculation here? she is asking for that referendum to be before the uk leads the eu. she says there is a window when scotland should be allowed another vote on whether or not it should become an independent country. the uk government seems unlikely to allow that, they do not want to fight a referendum campaign at the same time as negotiating brexit, so they will try to insist this be held after march 2019. there is bound to be a tussle over the next few weeks and months that might suit nicola sturgeon well because a lot of her argument is she has been forced into the position of holding this referendum because the uk government are not listening to scotland and the wishes and she could use it to strengthen the argument, if she changes the date

our scotland editor sarah smith reports.sa may knows that this could be awkward, she is here to talk about her article 50 letter. she is here to press her demand for a referendum on independence. no handshakes, no press conference, just a couple of souvenir photographs that neither woman looks like they are enjoying. by stark contrast, their first meeting, eight months ago, then it was called a good working relationship, now, nicola sturgeon says the pm has not listened to her on brexit, theresa may says that she will reject any request for a vote on scottish independence. my position is not going to change, now is not the time to be talking about a second independence referendum, because it would not be fair on the scottish people to make them make that decision when the facts are not clear and also because now is the time when we need to pull together to make sure we get the best possible dealfor the uk including the people of scotland. i'm told the meeting inside this hotel was businesslike, cordial, probably the longest

sarah smith is senior council at beckett she clerked for judge alito on third circuit court of appeals for clarence thomas and for justice aalito. tim meyer is former law clerk for judge gorsuch from 2007 to 2008. he is now professor of law and enterpri enterpri enterprise scholar at vanderbilt law school. sandy phillips is mother of jessica gowin, tragically killed in the 2012 shooting at aurora, colorado movie theater. jamil was a law clerk for goe gorsuch from 2006 to 2007 he is now director of law firm at scalia law firm at george mason university. thank you for your testimony. it will be five minutes each. we will proceed of that with five-minute rounds. go ahead, ms. clark. >> good afternoon. i want to thank the distinguished members of this committee for the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the lawyers committee for civil rights under law. we we have the unique mission of mobilizing lawyers across the world for pro bono to advance our work. for african-americans and other minorities, the court has been a crucial forum for seeking equal justice under law. historically mi

let's speak to our scotland editor, sarah smith, in edinburgh.about exactly what she was going to say. we anticipated some sort of ultimatum to theresa may about agreeing to scotland staying in the single market if the rest of the uk leads. but she has announced she will seek permission for another referendum on scottish independence and that is pretty momentous. what is the polling in scotland in terms of whether the people would like to have another referendum ? intriguingly the last two polls have showed a slight bump in support for independence. 0ne showed a slight bump in support for independence. one had support a couple of days ago at 50% and another one today says 48%. none of them yet have showed a majority of scots suggesting they would vote for an independent scotland. i asked nicola sturgeon directly did she think she would win another referendum, given the difficult economic circumstances she would be fighting this referendum in, and she said she was absolutely convinced she could win this and she would not call a referendum if she d

granddaughter of one labour leader, john smith, alive, her mother says, thanks to research ata lab set up in the memory of the daughter of another. gordon and sarah brown lost their daughterjennifer when she was just ten days old. we knew what had happened but we didn't know why it had happened, so in wanting to try and work out what we could do to make sense of this, what i realised was more needed to happen to unlock that understanding. one of the things we felt we could most usefully do was invest in the science for it. the research done at thejennifer brown laboratory has focused on understanding the causes and consequences of premature birth. some good has come from tragedy. 15 years on, the memory of her daughter is still strong. what i really treasure is the ten very, very precious days that we had with our daughter, because thanks to the care of the doctors, nurses, midwives around us, we were able to have an extraordinary amount of time really being able to be with our daughter. all of that i have inside me

sarah. because while you heard dr. smith say want to bring politics into this clearly there seems to be a disconnect here between whatbetw people are talking about and what dr. smith wants to talkalk about. the issue here is not the 25,000 students that he referred to,to, the issue is these two studentso and those questions are coming from this building behind me, the maryland statehouse in the person of the governor off maryland, larry hogan who is that he has repeatedly put questions to the montgomeryon county public schools to board d along with the state board of education and governor hogan today acing in no uncertain terms they have been rebuked ine getting any answers out of the montgomery county school boardol about these kinds of questions,s about why was an 18 year old in close proximity to a 14 yearyear old. what did they know about thethe immigration status of these twoo individuals that have been charged in this rape? how did they notify federal officialsica that they were dealing witheali these individuals and

sarah. >> reporter: family and friends searched places like the smith point county park sarah loved.ear where her car had been found. for three of her six sisters -- jennifer, tabitha, and samantha -- the search was especially difficult. >> all three of you were pregnant during the search? that must have just added to how hard it was? >> probably worse because i know by the end of the day my feet were so swollen, i didn't even want to move off of the couch but i knew i had to because i wanted to find her. you feel sick to your stomach, but you couldn't tell if it was sickness from pregnancy or sickness because you're afraid you're going to find her and she's going to be dead. >> reporter: besides having to battle the elements and nagging desperation, they couldn't shake another feeling. paranoia. >> i didn't know who did it. so even when we were searching i was like, "maybe that kid did it," you know, i don't know. and then -- >> it could have been somebody right under your nose? >> yeah, exactly. >> i was afraid they were searching with us and that, you know, we're staring down peop

the granddaughter of one labour leader, john smith, alive, her mother says, thanks to a research set up in the memory of the daughter of another. gordon and sarahew what has happened but we didn't know why it had happened, so in wanting to try and work out what we could do to make sense of this, what i wanted was more needed to happen to unlock that understanding. one of the things we felt we could most usefully do was invest in the science for it. the research done at thejennifer brown laboratory has focused on understanding the causes and consequences of premature birth. some good has come from tragedy. 15 yea rs some good has come from tragedy. 15 years on, the memory of her daughter is still strong. what i really treasure is the ten very, very precious days that we had with our daughter, because thanks to the care of the doctors, nurses, midwives around us, we of the doctors, nurses, midwives around us, we were of the doctors, nurses, midwives around us, we were able to have an extraordinary amount of time really being able to be with our daughter. all of that i have inside me and all that love you have for your daughter is still all there.