With our reviewers, asa bennett, the brexit commissioning editor at the telegraph, and the political writier and academic maya goodfellow. Stay with us for that. Good evening. The chancellor has announced a raft of spending pledges at the conservative Party Conference, among them an increase in the National Living wage. Sajid javid said that over the next five years it would increase to £10. 50 an hour, and the age threshold would be lowered from 25 to 21. But an unwelcome distraction for delegates at the conference has been an allegation that the Prime Minister groped a journalist during a lunch 20 years ago, which he denies. 0ur Political EditorLaura Kuenssberg has sent this report from Party Conference in manchester. What happens to the Prime Minister next, and to the country, is not entirely in Boris Johnsons hands. However many photocalls he grins for, he cant be remotely sure if brussels will budge and give him a brexit deal. Weve made some pretty big moves. Were waiting to see whether our european friends will help us. The man in charge of the money says he cant be sure how much it would cost, but would still be prepared to take us out of the eu without a deal. Irrespective, they want to open up the government chequebook. Sajid javids proud mum was in the audience to hear his promises. Mum thought it was a big deal when she watched the first asians move into coronation street here in manchester. Well, now shes watched the first asians move into downing street. Spending taxpayers money they cant be sure they will have. This government is going to build britains future, and bring in an infrastructure revolution. 0utlining how his government would spend cash that has mostly already been promised, on roads, broadband and transport, and a step towards higher pay. Im setting a new target for the National Living wage, raising it to match two thirds of median earnings. This ambitious plan will bring the National Living wage up to £10. 50, giving 4 Million People a well earned pay rise. That would apply to everyone over 21. But its a five year ambition, not an immediate change. This is a modern, 21st century economy, with lots of scope, lots of opportunities, and its right that we balance that with a fair deal for workers too. I thought it was very encouraging in many ways. I think the minimum wage will have a big impact on some industries. But well wait and see. There are plenty of promises the tories would like to make you this week here in manchester. A trial run of a manifesto, perhaps. But there is a feeling in the ether more crucial conversations are happening elsewhere. Unusually during a Party Conference, mps are at work in westminster. And 0pposition leaders have been planning their next moves, determined together to rule out any chance of borisjohnson taking us out of the eu if there is no deal. We will do all we can within a parliamentary scenario and within our own parties to prevent this country crashing out on 31 october without a deal. Reporter do you have a problem with women, Prime Minister . Whether it is the opposition or allegations about his past behaviour. Reporter does the Prime Minister have a problem with women . No, absolutely not. Boris johnson has problems everywhere he turns. It has been alleged that you touched the thigh of a woman at a lunch without her permission. Did you . No, and i think what the public want to hear is about what were doing to level up and unite the country. But will people listen when the Prime Minister and his top advisor wade through so much noise . After whispers that she was aware of what happened back then, Dominic Cummingss wife had to deny any knowledge. Politics under this Prime Minister is stranger than any fiction. Boris johnson will not write the ending on his own. Laura kuenssberg, bbc news, manchester. Raising the National Living wage was at the heart of the chancellors pledges today. 0ur economics editor faisal islam is in manchester, and has been looking at how the government may pay for this. Certainly an eye catching promise from any chancellor, particularly a conservative chancellor, to end low pgy conservative chancellor, to end low pay. They get there essentially by setting the threshold for the National Living wage at the threshold for poverty pay, two thirds of the average wage. And they say they will get there over five years. Labour has a similar policy, but they want to get there essentially immediately, but also the conservatives, not surprisingly, saying that they want to spread this National Living wage all the way down to 21 year olds. Businesses will have to pay for this, some think the taxpayer as well, but the issueis think the taxpayer as well, but the issue is that they want the issue of those businesses that they have the issue of having to plan for brexit at the same time. The government has prepared the legal text of an updated potential brexit deal, and is expected to make those plans public in the next 2 3 days. They are said to include the possibility of having some customs posts in zones around the border between Northern Ireland and the republic. 0ur europe editor katya adler has more from brussels. What we first had to do is take a step back and remind ourselves what Boris Johnsons step back and remind ourselves what borisjohnsons aim has been in renegotiating the brexit deal. He said he wanted to be in the backstop, and what have we seen this evening . Bin the backstop. Well, we know he is under pressure because if he wants to get a new deal with the eu by that Leaders Summit in 0ctober, the eu by that Leaders Summit in october, the eu has said they need official government positions, official government positions, official government positions, official government alternative to the backstop, by this week. The leak tonight is not yet an official position but a suggestion that has been made by the uk government. And it would see customs infrastructure on the island of ireland, so not exactly on the island of ireland, so not exa ctly o n on the island of ireland, so not exactly on the border between Northern Ireland and the republic of ireland, but set back maybe five, maybe ten miles. They would be checks on goods, as well, and there would be gps tracking systems on traders as well. Now, what the eu has said to date is, you want to be in the backstop, borisjohnson . Thats fine as long as you can find an alternative that meets our main criteria bin the backstop. Respecting the single market, number one, and numbertwo, respecting the single market, number one, and number two, safeguarding the Northern Ireland peace process. For the eu this means no customs infrastructure, not on the border, not near the border. It means no checks at all. I have spoken to the European Commission tonight. The bbc has spoken to the Irish Government as well. Their response is that this is not an official uk position yet, and therefore they cant officially comment on it, but were these customs posts to become the official uk position, it would be dismissed and rejected by the eu as insufficient. The bbcs director general has reversed a decision to partially uphold a complaint against the bbc breakfast presenter naga munchetty. The complaint related to her reaction to comments by president trump. The corporations complaints unit found last week that she had breached editorial guidelines. Over 100 mps wrote to lord hall to protest against the ruling, and today lord hall said he had reviewed the decision, as our correspondent David Sillito reports. Breakfast news, and an unscripted exchange that made headline news. Absolutely furious, and i can imagine that lots of people in this country will be feeling absolutely furious that a man in that position feels its ok to skirt the lines with using language like that. The topic donald trump telling politicians, all women of color, to go back to where they came from. And, as our guest was saying there, its an absolutely it feels like a thought out strategy to strengthen his position. And its not enough to do it just to get attention. This exchange provoked a complaint about the two presenters. The process ended with a decision that Naga Manchetty had strayed beyond the bbcs editorial guidelines. Describing a remark as racist is not the issue at stake here. The issue at stake here is whether it was right to go on to ascribe motive, in this case to president trump. Could have been to anybody else. The concern about that argument was how far was it actuallyjust accepting that racism was part of acceptable political debate. Many within the bbc were said to be uneasy, uncomfortable, and in the wider world, well, today more than 100 mps signed a letter expressing their concern. All of which led to the director general today reviewing and reversing that decision, saying. But this has also raised some wider issues. If the corporation wants to present itself as the premier Cultural Institution for the whole of our nation, in all of its diversity, with all its differences, it needs to work out how it deals with the diversity of its own staff. And, at the moment, it doesnt seem to know quite what it wants to do. There has been a clear statement the bbc is not impartial on racism. But there are certainly other questions that have yet to be resolved. David sillito, bbc news. Shaista aziz, a journalist and anti racism campaigner who signed an open letter to the bbc published in the guardian protesting about the original decision, joins me now. Has the bbc done enough . Hire, good evening. Well, ithink has the bbc done enough . Hire, good evening. Well, i think todays decision by the bbc is very welcome. Its a shame that this whole incident took based on the first place, and that it has taken so long for these this decision to be reversed. But it is welcome, and now the bbc needs to build on this. What needs to happen next is an apology should be issued to naga immediately, and then there needs to be some wider answers in relation to how this happened, why it happened, and what this means also for the black and ethnic minority staff at the bbc, who have been very disturbed and distressed by the events of the past few days. Some of the further complaints that came today emerged after it was found that dan walker, her co presenter, had also been the subject of the original complaint, but as the complaints process progressed, his name was taken out of the picture because it was settled. That explanation by the bbc does account perhaps, doesnt it, for how this whole complaint process transpired, why theres a difference in treatment between the two. Well, i think that particular bit of information that has come out was really, really damning. And one of the reasons why this story has had such residence and has created such anger is because this how people of colour and black people are treated every day across this country. When we talk about our painful lived experiences of racism, we are silenced, frequently, and we are shut down. And frankly people dont wa nt to shut down. And frankly people dont want to listen. And in the case of naga and her co presenter, its really horrifying that there is one set of rules for women of colour and one set of rules for a white male presenter. Now, even if the bbc said that that was not the case. Sorry, just to interrupt, the bbc did not say did say that it wasnt her own experience that was the problem, it was her comments afterwards. But just to move on from that original row, tony hall has said that there needs to be a further discussion there about how these things are handled. What other policies need to be put in place, do you think . Well, asi be put in place, do you think . Well, as i said, even if this is not the case in terms of the different treatment between both presenters, this is now the perception, so that isa this is now the perception, so that is a problem. And in terms of the wider issues, we need to know how these decisions are played out every day on bbc news, and indeed across the bbc. So this is one incident, but if this is one incident, how are issues around race treated at the bbc, and who decides on these decisions . So what is the make up of the group of people whose professional experience is used by the bbc to make these decisions . What is their professional make up, what is their race make up, and what is their class background . What is their race make up, and what is their class background . These are really important issues, because ultimately it impacts how we perceive the world, how we perceive each other, and how we perceive each others experiences. And this is why this story has had such resonance. Because people can relate to the treatment that naga has received, whether the bbc accepts that it has treated her unfairly or not, this is 110w treated her unfairly or not, this is now the perception that is out there. But your insinuation is that people within the profession of journalism are racist in their behaviour. Is that really what you are implying . Is that what youre saying . Know, that is not what i am implying. What i am saying is that we have to accept that right now, in this country, racism is a very key issue. Its coming up every single day, be it in bulk, be it in politics, be it in our daily life, and we need to have a sophisticated conversation about race in this country. Frankly, weve never really been able to have one, because people become very defensive, institutions in particular become very defensive. Im a former bbc journalist. I worked at the bbc for more than ten years. I know that the bbc has very high standards of journalism. I am bbc has very high standards of journalism. Iam not bbc has very high standards of journalism. I am not saying that every bbc journalist journalism. I am not saying that every bbcjournalist or producer or editor is racist. Thats not what i am saying. But what i am saying is that race is a pertinent issue that needs to be discussed in a sophisticated manner. There are many elements and issues to race that need to be discussed, and they need to be discussed thoroughly and properly by the bbc. And we need to know that people in newsrooms, and indeed across programmes, who reflect the population. And this is an ongoing discussion, this is not a new thing. Diversity and inclusion has been an ongoing discussion at the bbc for many decades. And its in the last few years in particular, because of the way this country the way race has been framed in this country, becoming more and more important. Diversity and inclusion might be important, of course, but also being givenjobs on merit is important. You know, being impartial across the board, politically, is important. It is crucial, isnt it . Well, i really defy anyone to tell me that any person in the bbc has not got theirjob on merit, especially if they are a person of colour. We understand that the jobs market in the uk is impacted by race. It is impacted by race more than any other time. It is a fact, so we than any other time. It is a fact, so we know those things. But at no point is anyone suggesting that people who are not qualified dont get thesejobs. People who are not qualified dont get these jobs. What were saying is we wa nt get these jobs. What were saying is we want to see an accurate reflection the population in all media positions, by the way, not just at the bbc. What has happened at the bbc impact the entire media landscape, and the entire media landscape, and the entire media landscape in this country is not reflective of the wider population. And we all know that, the data, the statistics are out there. So that is the wider issue in relation to what has happened here at the bbc. The headlines on bbc news the chancellor tells the conservative conference that brexit will happen on october 31st, and unveils some new spending pledges. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister, meeting workers in manchester, has again denied allegations of misconduct with a female journalist. The bbc has reversed a decision to partially uphold a complaint against the breakfast presenter naga munchetty, following a wave of criticism. A man has been found guilty of murdering his ex girlfriend, who he strangled and buried in her garden in south west london. Laureline Garcia Bertaux was found wrapped in bin bags in a shallow grave. 32 year old Kirill Belorusov was convicted at the old bailey, and he will be sentenced on friday. People can continue to eat red meat, sausages and bacon. That is according to an International Team of experts, who concluded that there is little evidence that meat increases the risk of cancer or heart disease. The researchers said the Current Evidence on the dangers of red and processed meat was very weak. 0ur medical correspondent fergus walsh has more details. The current guidance from the government advises people to eat no more than 70 g of red and processed meat a day, equivalent to two rashers of bacon or one and a half pork sausages. Now a team of International Experts writing in annals of internal medicine has reviewed existing data and found only weak evidence that it is worth trying to cut back. They didnt find no evidence of harm, but simply that it was very small. The argument is not so much about the evidence but how it is interpreted. Lets take a bow counsellor. In 2015 the World Health Organisations and eating 50 g of processed meat each day, less than two slices of bacon, increases the chances of getting it by 18 . Now in the uk, six out of every hundred people will get about counsel at some point. The who estimated that if we all ate an extra 50 g of bacon or other processed meat every day, that figure would go up from six to seven, so an extra case figure would go up from six to seven