Independence is unsustainable. The Nobel Prize Winning poet and playwright sir Derek Walcott has died aged 87. And Daniel Kaluuya stars in the horror film get out vll1. U. |. | . Jv a. |. On that and much more in the film review at 5 45. Good welcome to the good welcome to the bbc news at five. Its rare for britains Intelligence Community to make a Public Statement about anything. So the fact that gchq felt it had to rebut allegations that it the comments made by the White House Press secretary, sean spicer. Gchq said the claims were nonsense, utterly ridiculous, and should be ignored. Downing street says it has been assured by the white house that claims gchq spied on donald trump during his Election Campaign wont be repeated. Richard lister reports. It is an extraordinary claim, that donald trump was bugged by gchq on the orders of barack obama, a claim that has ruffled feathers and led to strenuous denials from london. The allegation was first tweeted by President Trump. President trump said his phone had been tapped before his inauguration. He said president obama was a bad or sick guy. The evidence . Last night the republican led Senate IntelligenceCommittee Said there was no evidence. The latest in a series of dismissals by senior republicans. That evidence remains the same, we do not have any evidence that took place. Thats what i ve said, we have cleared that up, we have seen no evidence of that. So where is the president getting the information about being hugged by gchq . Apparently from fox news. And probably did use a Foreign Intelligence Service to get this ,. ,. , information for him. The probable culprit here is called gchq. Yesterday the White House Press spokesman read a transcript of that report in response to questions about the wire tap claim. These are merely pointing out that i think there is widespread reporting that throughout the 2016 election there was surveillance that was done on a variety of people that came up. If the reporters in the room were sceptical, gchq do you either believe the gchq spokesman or President Trumps spokesman . Which one you choose to believe, i think, rather depends on your political views on what is going on in the united states. That forceful language was underlined by Downing Street, which this morning said it too had told the americans that the gchq claim was ridiculous and said the white house had given assurances that the claim would not be repeated. Richard lister, bbc news. I can speak now to brian lord, former Deputy Director for intelligence and Cyber Operations at gchq who is now Managing Director at pgi cyber. Hejoins me from bristol. Thank you for joining hejoins me from bristol. Thank you forjoining us. The fact that gchq has spoken publicly about this at all, does that suggest to you, from your knowledge of working there, that there is a lot of anger about this . I think what it shows is, there is a need in an extraordinary set of circumstances, i think, to almost, this is notjust about assuring the public, this is about getting the message straight to the president how absurd these claims are. And i think the fact that breaking with long standing tradition to make this statement does emphasise the need to kill this nonsense story off as quickly as it possibly can. And is it a damaging, has it been damaging, the fact that these are two nations that are supposed to be allies, that this was even out there. I think the fact that it was allowed to go from a bizarre claim on fox news straight to the White House Press machine without appearing to have lodged withoutappearingmave lodged any degree of common sense with any degree of common sense seems interesting. I think the seems interastiwrtfiflrng. ,. In , 7g of the relationship at an nature of the relationship at an intelligence level between the uk and the us means it will survive this. It has survived a lot worse in the past and i think it will continue to put this rather silly little blip behind it. continue to put this rather silly little blip behind it. I am struck that you say it is also about reassuring the public. Is that because there is a sense, or is there a sense, all had it already been created by the trump organisation, thatthele is no smoke organisation, that there is no smoke without fire . Spying agencies exist to spite, so perhaps something went on, is that an image created in the public mind . An interesting point. Public mind . §. , a Lwa Ys Public Mind . §. , always a Public Perception theres always a Public Perception when claims and counterclaims go, is there any smoke without fire . We are entering not just there any smoke without fire . We are entering notjust in this case but Ina Entering Notjust in this case but in a wider sense this era of fake news, let news stories can be put out and exaggerated and amplified when they have to basis of truth. I think the trump organisation, the who sit around, do have a people who sit around, do have a tendency to do this, therefore it is important when you are dealing with such an extraordinary organisation, such an extraordinacy otgenisationr how governments and even its testing how governments and even its own administration response, you have to be able to deal with these things on the hoof, which is different to you might have done different to how you might have done it before and i hope that it will settle down and get to and situation that everyone is normal with where they can trust information coming from the White House Press machine. Is there any indication if you have spoken to people you used to work with, that this was put out with {w deliberately . I think where the anger comes is, dragging into an argument the oldest. Closest Ally Argument the oldest and closest ally of the usa in a way to score a cheap domestic political point and protect personal fqebeqqiqqe domestic political point and protect personal Reeutatien Isi Domestic Political Point and protect personal Reeutatien Ls the domestic political point and protect personal reeutatien is the Point Personal Reputation is the point that has caused the most anger. What probably worries me in the longer term, if one looks towards the next three years, is this going to be a trend . Controlling three years, is this going to be a trend . Controlling information trend . Controlling information to protect personal reputation point will Transcend NationalSecurity Issues . I think that is an area that the uk and Us Administration needs to look at very carefully. This is a new situation for all sides. Gchq has not been used to dealing with anyone who operates in that way before, is not fair to say . |j anyone who operates in that way before, is not fair to say . I think fairto before, is not fair to say . I think fair to say that most people in its fair to say that most people in the world have not start of the Us Administration that behaves in that way brian lord, thank you very much for your time, former Deputy Director of intelligence cyber director of intelligence and Cyber Operations at gchq, thank you very the former chancellor George Osborne has been appointed editor of the london Evening Standard newspaper. Hes due to edit the paper four days a week from may and says he intends to continue as the mp for tatton in cheshire. Opposition mps including labour Leaderjeremy Corbyn have said that the appointment makes a mockery of Media Independence and have called upon him to quit his role in ,. , now George Osborne will decide whats on one, becoming editor of a major newspaper less than a year after being sacked from the cabinet following the eu referendum. There are plenty of examples of mps who have edited newspapers and magazines over the years. Im who have edited newspapers and magazlnes over the years. I m golng to continue to play a big part in british putlic life and im looking British Public life and im looking forward it. He has spent his entire life in politics, six years running the treasury after building his career within the tory party as an mp and adviser to previous leaders but before politics he wanted to be a journalist. Now he willjump straight into the editors chair of the Evening Standard. Since leaving the cabinet he has been busy with lucrative Speaking Jobs and a role in a major investment firm. He plans to continue thejob while investment firm. He plans to continue the job while continuing as an mpfor continue the job while continuing as an mp for tatton. Ludicrous, multitasking taken to an unbelievable degree. This man will be the mp for tatton, director of a bank, running his Northern Powerhouse operation, and editor of the london Evening Standard. How many morejobs the london Evening Standard. How many more jobs does the london Evening Standard. How many morejobs does he the london Evening Standard. How many more jobs does he want . The paper s owner said he was proud to Eeeez E Eeeeez eele Ee Eeee Ezeej i; l. L Eeeez E Eeeeez eele Ee Eeee Ezeej ie l. L an editor of such substance and have an editor of such substance and someone have an editor of such substance and someone who is sceptical about the government s approach to brexit. Financial centre will count in our favour. The government has chosen not to make the economy the priority his newjob will give him a platform to trumpet londons quite amazing, i was shocked. I thought it was fake news. Why is he doing it . Not for the money, hes got plenty from elsewhere. I can only conclude he wants to build the standard into an alternative power base to theresa may and in the event of brexit going pear shaped he will use this power base to launch his attack. We were in a Downing Street briefing when the news broke and the Prime Ministers spokesman was taken unawares, he was totally shocked. No one thought that George Osborne would become the editor of a newspaper in london and still be an mp. George osborne may have left government but this extraordinary appointment puts him back on the front line of politics. Ben wright, bbc news, scotlands First Minister has told the bbc she wants to find a referendum date that both sides can agree on. Speaking at the partys Spring Conference in aberdeen, Nicola Sturgeon said she was Up For Continued Discussion with theresa may on the matter. The Prime Minister, whos been speaking at the conservative Spring Conference in cardiff reiterated that independence would be bad for scotland, bad for the uk and bad for us all. Our Political Correspondent iain watson has the latest. At the Snp Conference it is hardly surprising that the focus is on a second referendum on Scottish Independence. We dont know when it will take place. Legally it is westminster, not scotlands First Minister, that takes the decision. But here it feels like the campaign is already under way. The members are delighted at the call for another vote within two years but Pro Union Campaigners do not want it to happen at all. The snps Deputy Leader had a message for them and for the Prime Minister. People of this country will have their choice. They will not be denied their say. And no uk Prime Minister, no uk Prime Minister, should dare to stand in the way of scotlands democracy. The snps Spring Conference in aberdeen was supposed to be discussing a range of issues. The health service, education, skills and training. These will still be debated but there is really only one item on this agenda and that is the arguments in favour of a second Scottish Independence referendum. Next week Nicola Sturgeon will get the backing of the Scottish Parliament for a referendum and she will try to broaden support by arguing that she is standing up notjust for scotland but for democracy. What the Prime Minister has done is not to put herself in opposition to me or independence. She is. 9th he rights. Ts 35} , ~ , ~ ~ eee eee eeeee ee ee eeeelfe refeeh in . fieeeeeeieeeeeeeieeeee if . I will of the Scottish Parliament. That is not a sustainable position. Today in cardiff the Prime Minister made the case for the uk remaining campaign, whenever it comes. She made it clear that its timing is not even up for discussion before brexit. It is now clear that using brexit as the pretext to engineer a second Independence Referendum has been the snps sole objective ever since lastjune. But it would be bad for scotland, bad for the United Kingdom and bad for us all. In the United Kingdom. So far the arguments have not been so much about independence, more about the timing of an Independence Referendum, but it is not a trivial dispute. In politics, as in comedy, timing can often be crucial to success. Iain watson there. A mother who admitted covering up the death of her child for 12 years has been sentenced to 2 months in prison. Victoria gale admitted preventing the decent burial of her son who is thought to have been around 18 months when he died. This report from kingston crown court. Over a decade victoria carried a terrible secret, her baby son died, she had his body and over the years it seems no one in authority investigated with the child was. 11 yea rs investigated with the child was. 11 years old, the body of the little kaiser, was found hidden in a boy, kaiser, was found hidden in a box ina boy, kaiser, was found hidden in a box in a garden shed at the home of relatives of victoria. They say they did not know what happened. His leg was bandaged although it is not clear how he died shes always denied any involvement in his death. The postmortem determined that it was inconclusive and thats due to the passage of time, over ten years. he he left park after he left Northwick Park hospital as a newborn the authorities had a minimal contact with the child and there was a with the child and then there was a tragic family accident. One decade later victorias two year old daughter became ill and died. An inquest found she had swallowed a tiny battery. It was then that police beggg investigating what had police began investigating what had happened to kaiser. It emerged that some of his short life was spent in a Bedroom Withjunk and a bedroom Crammed Withjunk and victoria gales. On his Birth Certificate she did not name his father but she claimed she had handed him over to his father, one the of lies she told her family of the of lies she told her family and the authorities. Eventually and the authorities. She eventually admitted that after he died she kept his body in the bedroom for years before moving it to the shed. A former neighbour never knew kaiser but asked victoria about him. She implied that she had no contact with kaiser and that was the best way kaiser Audihat Wasfthebesuuay because that was how the dad wanted it. It was, if the dad wanted kaiser she was not allowed any contact. I think its absolutely disgusting because the child has missing because the child has been missing and nobody knew. How can nobody know . Victorias local council, barnett, in north london, in a in north london, said in a statement, the death of any child is tragic. We are working with the boroug