Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20240714

After it was previously impounded in gibraltar. England struggle in the fourth day of the ashes after they took the vital wicket of steve smith. Good evening. Pressure is growing on borisjohnson to make clear hed abide by legislation requiring him to seek a further brexit extension if theres no deal with the eu. A group of mps are preparing legal action if the Prime Minister refuses to carry out the instruction, which is expected to become law on monday. The former attorney general, dominic grieve, has warned that mrjohnson could end up in prison if he defies the law. Our political correspondent, jonathan blake, reports. Another stand off in westminster, protest and counterprotest today. Over the Prime Ministers plans to suspend parliament and mpss attempt to force a delay to brexit. Borisjohnson has spent the week in campaign mode. Preparing for an election he wants but opposition parties wont allow, before an extension to brexit is secured, something he is adamant he wont ask for. Id rather be dead in a ditch. As many of that opinion will say content. To the contrary, not content. The contents have it. But parliament has now passed a bill, compelling the prime minster to ask for a delay, if a new deal cannot be reached. The law means Boris Johnson has until october 19 to get a new deal with brussels. If not, he must write and request more time till at leastjanuary 31. Yesterday, he said this some feel the Prime Minister is looking for wriggle room and are preparing a legal challenge if he does not comply. He cannot ignore the law, he is as bound by the rule of law as anyone else in the country. It has passed primary legislation, once it has received royal assent it is the law of the land and he is under an obligation. If it doesnt obey he can be taken to the court and the court will pursue an injunction ordering him to do it and if he does not obey the injunction he could be sent to prison. Those behind the anti no deal bill are confident it will not allow mr johnson a way out. He must write a letter to donald tusk specifying the wording he must use it to apply for an extension. I am very concerned and troubled by the fact the Prime Minister is going around the country saying he will never ask for an extension. Either we have the rule of law or we do not. In aberdeenshire, the traditional spectacle of the highland games, the queen arrived having hosted the Prime Minister at balmoral overnight. The constitutional crisis caused by brexit is sure to have been discussed. Where it will lead next we just cannot predict. Jonathan is here with me. There is a lot coming up, the big day is monday, what can we expect then . On monday, as it stands, parliament is due to be true road at the end of business on that day, that his after the controversial decision from a week or so ago were the queen gave her approval to the Prime Minister as request to suspend or Prorogue Parliament for that slightly extended period in september through to mid october, when mps were due to take a break, now they have no say over the length of that break. That date can shift, there is a window of monday to thursday next week when the government can decide when exactly parliament is suspended. You now have the situation where the premise thatis have the situation where the premise that is bound by law, as soon as the bill requiring an extension till the article 50 process if a new deal isnt reached, becomes law. That should happen by a royal assent by monday, as soon as that kicks in, the premise that will be required to ask for extension to the process if you can get a new deal. Boris johnson has said that he has no intention of doing so. What does he do then . I think that the fact that the opposition parties are due to oppose the governments next attempt to get a general election, which will be one potential way out for the Prime Minister. Also, the government seem determined to stick to their commitment, whatever happens, to deliver brexit by the end of october. Given all that, youre likely to see more news early next week, probably, but about the government and opposition parties to tried to get what they want. Potentially three things taking place on monday suspension of parliament, the bill to delay getting royal assent, putting forward this motion for a general election. That is monday. In terms ofa election. That is monday. In terms of a general election, what options does borisjohnson have to get one of those . He can try again under the fixed term parliaments act, which means that outside of the five year time frame that elections are ordinarily held in, there is to be a two thirds majority in the house of commons to say that they want one earlier than scheduled. He has tried it once, didnt get the number of boots he needed, he will try again on monday, again, it wont get the boots needed. Because opposition parties have said that they do want an election, but not before a no deal brexit has been categorically ruled out. Option one looks almost certain to fail. There are various other means attlee government was much disposal, one potentially bringing in a want line bill which would effectively change the law to get around a fixed term parliaments act and allow them to hold a general election on a specified day, that we dont need a straight majority, easier for the government to achieve. As things stand, again, very difficult. Then it is the option that sounds absurd, but the government is engineering a vote of confidence in itself, which will bring down the government if a new government cant be formed, that will trigger a general election. To my knowledge, that hasnt never happened it is certainly a extraordinary thing to contemplate, you always expect the opposition to trigger it rather than the government, but its a sign ofjust how crazy an upside down things are at the moment that is being considered. There was a bit of a tease from the lib dems . Jo swinson has a 20 day music for 16 going on i7, has a 20 day music for 16 going on 17, the song, suggesting there could be another liberal democrat mp joining their ranks. They have 16 at the moment after philip lee, the former conservative, joined them, crossing the floor of the college dramatically at the beginning of Prime Ministers questions at the beginning of the week. They won a by election not long ago, giving them another mp. We expect an announcement later this evening to find out who the latest lib dem npas. Thank you forjoining us. And well find out how this story, and many others, are covered in tomorrows front pages at 10 30pm and 11 30pm this evening in the papers. Our guestsjoining me tonight are martin lipton, chief Sports Reporter from the sun, and the economist, ruth lea. The number of people now known to have died in the bahamas as a result of Hurricane Dorian has risen to a3. But the death toll is expected to rise significantly. Efforts are continuing to provide aid to survivors and find further victims of the storm on the islands. David willis reports. Dorian grazed the carolina coast but certainly left its mark, leaving hundreds stranded amid rising floodwaters after they ignored a warning to leave. But the lashing winds and torrential rain bore little comparison to the destruction wrought earlier in the week. Hundreds, possibly thousands of people are missing on the tiny island of abaco in the bahamas, and many fear the place will never be the same again. I honestly believe abaco is finished. I think abaco will not recover until the next ten years. Like, fully recover, because everything is gone, absolutely everything is gone. A few miles off shore, the crew of a british ship, the rfa mounts bay, is spearheading what looks to be a massive relief operation. The United Nations believes more than 70,000 people here are in urgent need of food and water. But the aim is to evacuate as many as possible to neighbouring islands, not least because those who remain face being homeless for months. Dorian, for its part, has now headed out to sea, weaker than it was a week ago but still capable of doing serious damage. Its expected to make landfall again in nova scotia, canada, sometime this weekend. David willis, bbc news. Clint watson reporter with tv station, Eyewitness News has been on the island of abaco, and told us about what he found there. Its disastrous, things are flattened, nothing is operable. Its just a place where people are just deserted, Walking Around aimlessly, not knowing what is next for them. Im just hoping for some kind of relief. Most of the residents on the islwant to get off because you cannot operate, that is nothing you can do there about to sit in despair. For many people, they need to get out and begin to strategise a way forward. We find that all of the ports of entry to the island are swamped with people, just trying to get out on relief planes or boats. Just last night, a boat of 500 came in from abaco. Yesterday, several thousand got out at various ports on the island now that the airport is open. People just want to get out because the place is just nowhere to want to be. The difficulty in part is that aid is coming and going to put to the capitalfirst, then is coming and going to put to the capital first, then you is coming and going to put to the capitalfirst, then you have is coming and going to put to the capital first, then you have to physically get it to the other eye lengths . There is too much red tape for a cause like this where people just need relief. Getting all of that the supplies, they have to go through nema who have to distribute it. It is taking to long to get to the people, people want to bring in relief, they want to comment and just distribute it to people but thatis just distribute it to people but that is not being allowed to happen. They have to pass it through the officials, it becomes very cumbersome. You had a lot of people saying that they are not getting the belief, they hear about it but not getting it. Nema is the National Emergency management agency, it is the organisation responsible for disaster coordination relief efforts, the government on responsible for distribution and ensuring the entire operation is looked after. In terms of the immediate needs of the islands, is it the supply of food and water, shelter also . Shelter is still a concern because there are not many buildings to put people in the. How long do you have people group together, they cant live . New defence and armed forces are coming in to set up a tent city, about 1000 tents. In to set up a tent city, about 1000 te nts. M ost in to set up a tent city, about 1000 tents. Most of the bahamian residents on the island are opting to go out of town to other islands of the capital where they can stay with family members. The immediate need is obviously food and water so that people can have something in the stomach to eat, what are to do what the need to do, to brush teeth, even use rest rooms. There is nothing here. It is a place that you dont want to put anybody to live in. That was clint watson, speaking to sean attlee earlier. An Iranian Oil Tanker, seized by Royal Marines injuly has been spotted outside a syrian port. The ship had been held in gibraltar having been suspected of intending to take its cargo of oil to syria in breach of eu sanctions. It was only released on condition it would not travel on to syria. However, satellite photographs reveal it is now sitting at anchor, outside the syrian port of tartus. Our Diplomatic Correspondent James Landale reports. This is the Iranian Oil Tanker at the heart of the latest tensions, grace 1 as she was known, but now renamed. Detained injuly, by gibraltar, with the help of british marines. Suspected of heading to syria in breach of eu sanctions, released in august after iran gave written assurances that this was not the case. But look at this new satellite images appearing to show their tanker moored a few miles from the syrian port of tartus, potentially there to off load its cargo. A Foreign Office spokesman said the reports were deeply troubling and any breach of assurances would be morally bankrupt and a violation of international laws. This is hugely disappointing and demonstrates why the uk government was right to impound the vessel in gibraltar and wrong to release it. In a terse tweet pointed at european allies, the Us National Security adviser, john bolton, said anyone believing the ship was not headed for syria was in denial. Tehran thinks it is more important to find the murderous assad regime and providing for its own people. So far there has been no comment from tehran which is desperate to evade tough us sanctions curbing its ability to export oil that have hit its economy so hard. Iran announced today a further breach of the deal it agreed in 2015 to curb its nuclear programme. Western officials said the move had been expected. The tensions with iran are deepening and optimism remains thin on the ground. The british chambers of commerce says two fifths of uk businesses havent done even a basic Risk Assessment of the consequences of a no deal brexit. The government has said theres been a significa nt acceleration in the help given to companies. But the bcc says its members are still struggling with a huge number of unanswered questions. Our business correspondent, katie prescott, has more. Here in southampton, these warehouses are filled to the rafters. Meachers Logistics Stores everything from food to car batteries, and takes it on to where it needs to go. But not knowing when and how well leave the European Union is causing problems for them and their customers. We are so reliant on what the changing environment will be between the eu and uk and what decisions are made, just to how hard the brexit is, but pretty much, we are there in capability, but not necessarily with the manpower well need because you cant employ people with no work to do. This is the feeling being echoed up and down the country unlike big businesses with contingency plans in place, many Smaller Companies are working out how to direct the limited time and resources. Its very hard for businesses, particularly those who are pressed delivering orders or dealing with contracts to try to hit a moving target, and thats exactly what theyve seen over the past three years. Those firms who have been able to do some preparations have done them. Many others have been watching and waiting, hoping for a resolution to the question, so that they can then prepare with greater confidence. And, right now, a lot of businesses still dont have the basic information that they need, either, in order to take those steps and make those preparations. The government says it has put in place a lot of support for Small Businesses to raise awareness about what they need to do. Theres a website with comprehensive information for different sectors, a £10 million Brexit Readiness Fund for trade associations, and a finance council to support investment in Small Businesses. But for Companies Like meachers, theres one thing that politicians arent giving them that they want and thats certainty. Katie prescott, bbc news, southampton. The headlines on bbc news a Cross Party Group of mps is preparing to take legal action if the Prime Minister refuses to abide by a bill to delay brexit. The number of People Killed as a result of Hurricane Dorian in the bahamas has risen to a3. Satellite images appear to show an Iranian Oil Tanker off the syrian coast after it was previously impounded in gibraltar. Russia and ukraine have completed a prisoner swap involving 70 detainees. Its hoped the swap will ease tensions between the two countries. More than 13,000 people have died in fighting since russia annexed crimea in 2014. The freed prisoners include captured ukrainian sailors and a man who dutch prosecutors want to speak to about the downing of the passenger plane, mh17, in 2014. Jonah fisher reports from kiev. This swap had been rumoured for weeks. So when the plane finally touched down from moscow, relief echoed across the tarmac. The families of 35 ukrainian prisoners had come to see their loved ones return. Among them, high profile detainees, like film maker oleg sentsov, and 2a sailors, like andre, who was captured in the black sea late last year. And we are happy, too. We cant even understand that this has all happened. This is clearly a very emotional moment for the relatives of these ukrainian prisoners, but it is also politically significant. It opens the door for meaningful talks between ukraine and russia and the prospect of an improvement in relations between the two countries. This man, volodymyr tsemakh, was russias price. A potentially important witness in the downing of the passenger plane, mh17, five years ago, he was flown today to moscow. For ukraines president , the swap is a sign ofjust how serious he is about trying to end the long conflict with russian backed rebels. We have to do all the steps to finish this horrible war. But do you think this is a new chapter in relations between russia and ukraine . I think this is the first chapter. Jonah fisher, bbc news, kiev. Health officials in the United States are urging people to stop using e cigarettes after another death from a mysterious lung illness linked to vaping. Thereve now been fivw deaths confirmed in recent weeks across the us with 215 cases of people falling ill after vaping. But the problem could be much greater, with experts investigating a50 cases of lung illness that may have been caused by e cigarette use around the country. Our reporter, alydia noble has more. Over 12 Million People use flavoured e cigarettes, or vapes, in america, but fatalities are on the rise from a respiratory illness which seems to be related. At least 215 people are confirmed to have been affected, but hundreds more cases are being investigated. On friday, the centre for Disease Control released a statement urging people not to vape, and encouraged users to monitor themselves for symptoms. No common brand or ingredient has emerged among cases, leaving doctors at a loss for the diseases cause, and how best to treat it. The cdc is working with the us food and Drug Association to investigate the illness and what chemicals might be behind it. The illness, which leaves patients struggling to breathe, appears to be a form of lipoid pneumonia, which is caused by inhaling oils and, in most cases, developed after the patient vaped thc or nicotine containing products. The cdc statement comes after michigan became the first us state to ban flavoured e cigarettes on wednesday, after the state Health Department found that youth vaping constituted a Public Health emergency. Alydia noble, bbc news. There are growing concerns about the number of young people whove died after taking diet pills containing a highly toxic substance. Dinitrophenol known as dnp is sold online as a fat burning slimming aid, but in the uk, its illegal to sell for human consumption. Adina campbell reports. Its a poisonous substance mainly used as a pesticide, but dnp is growing in popularity as a quick fix weight loss aid with Dangerous Health effects. In 2018, there were six deaths linked to dnp in the uk. 21 year old Bethany Shipsey had complex body image issues after being raped and emotionally abused by an ex boyfriend, which led to a number of suicide attempts. In 2017, she took her own life. Overdosing on pills containing dnp that she bought online. Since his daughters death, doug shipsey has been trying to trace the source of the dnp. Bethany ordered the pills from ukraine. Police raided this flat and found a stash of chemical substances. A man was arrested and later released without charge. Dnp is not illegal to produce or sell in ukraine. In the uk, it is legal for industrial purposes. Doug shipsey has come to ukraine to find out more about his daughters death. I havent had time to grieve beth yet, and im trying to getjustice for her and trying to prevent this happening to other young people, which is what will give myself, my wife and my family closure. Doug is here to meet the man who he believes is responsible for his daughters death. Who is this . Yeah, you sold her the dnp that killed her. I watched her die, in hospital, in four hours. Im really sorry. If i could do anything. If i knew. He admits selling the dnp, but said he never intended the substance to be used for suicide, and is not responsible for betha nys death. All i want to say is i really feel sad. It just was a Small Business idea. It was just for money. I hope you remember these eyes for the rest of your life. Thats what we needed to hear. Is this the end of the journey for you . Certainly not. Dnp is still freely available on the internet. Adina campbell, bbc news, in ukraine. Educating yorkshire the channel 4 series which followed life in a dewsbury secondary school became a sensation after one of its pupils, mushy, learnt how to cope with his stammer, with support from his teacher. Now, six years on, mushys life is the subject of a new musical. Our entertainment correspondent, colin paterson, caught up with him at rehearsals. Plug it into mine, ill put you some awful music on it was a tv moment which became a viral video and made millions cry the documentary series educating yorkshire. Mushy, in year 11, able to read a poem despite his acute stammer, when his teacher mr burton tried out a technique he had seen in the kings speech. Its the same moment when the trees unloose their soft arm from around you, the birds take back their language. Now, six years later, mushys story has been turned into a musical. Mushy, mushy, mushy you put dewsbury on the map. Mushy, mushy, we saw you on tv. Mushy, youre the man. And this is the moment he went to rehearsals to meet the man who would be playing him the actor, varun raj. Whats going on, everything good, yeah . All good, all good. Awesome, amazing, man. Im a little bit nervous are you a bit nervous, yeah . Same, man. And mr burton is here as well how are you doing, are you alright . I am excited mushy then watched on as scenes from his life were acted out. How many weeks does it take my boys to change a light bulb . I dont know, ammi. Never i thought you were telling a joke . Its like, how the hell has it happened . Its awesome seeing how each and every person has put their hard work in, and obviously really shown how far ive come. Dont tell my mum im famous, im not a geek or a freak. The production was the idea of the rifco theatre company, whose aim was to encourage asian audiences into the theatre. I wanted to tell his whole story. Not just the kind of viral video, the before and the after. And this is what mushy does now, giving motivational talks at places such as this the first direct arena in leeds. Prince has played here, Bruce Springsteen has played here, and now you. Its awesome, i would not have thought i would be here six years ago. Obviously getting from the situation where i thought i would never speak again, and now speaking at this, its awesome. His audience 2,000 people at the teach First Teacher development conference. Hi, guys, im musharaf asghar, and hopefully you guys saw me on a tv show six years ago called educating yorkshire. Cheering. Back at rehearsals, one important question remains. Is he good looking enough to play you . He is, ifeel like i should be calling him mushy. Ifeel like im playing him now. Colin paterson, bbc news, watford. Mushy, youre the man. Now its time for a look at the weather with darren bett. Quite a nice tight for much of the uk. There are a few changes on the horizon. We have ended today with less cloud than it may day for many a voice, that has been the odd shower here and there, but the vast majority staying dry due to his finger of high pressure. This weather fronts will bring more cloud overnight into enough with scotland and Northern Ireland tomorrow, may produce some drizzle. The cloud started to move in as we go into the night. Elsewhere, long clearspells to be had. Perhaps a passing shower to be had. Perhaps a passing shower to be had. Perhaps a passing shower to be hot in east anglia. The temperatures are dropping tonight, around 4 to 7 degrees for many of us. Around 4 to 7 degrees for many of us. There could be a touch of frost in the morning for some of us. Chilly or at the start line of the great north run. Once you get over the telly star, perfect conditions for running, some sunshine and cloud developing. Tomorrow still has the chance close to the coast of east anglia, east kent. Long sunny spells in england, wales, eastern side of scotland. North west scotland and Northern Ireland seem more cloud compared with today, again, some patchy at light drizzle is possible. Temperatures are 1a to 18 celsius for the most part, feeling warmer in north east england. Anybody wanting reign at old trafford for the final day of the ashes test, that is not in the forecast. Another cool and dry day to come. Monday has a frontal system coming in from the atlantic, meaning it murder start on monday morning, away from Eastern England which will still be clear and chilly overnight. Some outbreaks of rain around on monday, not too much reaching eastern parts of england, heavily biased towards wales and South West England in particular. The temperatures come down a bit, equal day on monday, particularly where there is rain. There is a bit more rain on the way at times as you go through next week, brisk winds on occasion to us with systems come in from the atla ntic with systems come in from the atlantic but they will be dry and apply to payments as well. It