, but the dup one way 01’ make that point, but the dup one way or another are making their influence felt. their ten mps which the government relies on to get through votes and they will try to make the most of their influence to the maximum. chris, thanks for joining us. you're watching afternoon live, these are our headlines. the prime minister lays wreaths at the graves of the first and last british soldiers killed in the first world war in belgium, to mark the armistice centenary. a car bursts into flames in melbourne after a terror attack in which a somali man stabs three people. the uk economy grew by 0.6% in the three months to september — thanks to the warm summer weather boosting spending. women around the world are having fewer children — a report finds half the world's countries are not reproducing enough to maintain their current population sizes. and in sport... england's cricketsers have completed a thumping 211—run victory on day four of the first test against sri lanka to end their 13—match winless run away from home. meanwhile england's women have been dealt

the dup simply will not take verbal oi’ the dup simply will not take verbal 01’ even the dup simply will not take verbal or even written assurances from the government, instead they want to ensure there is no mention of treating northern ireland differently from the rest of the uk as to brexit in the official text of the withdrawal agreement that the government reaches with the eu. so can ministers guarantee that? just listen very closely to how the chancellor answered that question. the prime minister has been very clear about this many, many times. we will not do anything which puts oui’ we will not do anything which puts our union at risk. it will not be on the withdrawal agreement? we will not do anything that puts the union at risk. the prime minister insists the uk as a whole, notjust northern ireland, would sign at any temporary agreement, but some cabinet members wa nt agreement, but some cabinet members want certainty as to when this will end. theresa may with her belgian counterpart today, these solemn images from the armistice collaborations underlined the closeness of cross

remember the dup have a lwa ys together. remember the dup have always been passionate brexiteers, but the rise of ukip they were the most eurosceptic party in the uk so they are all for brexit, but they say not that this particular deal, they want the prime minister to go back to the negotiating table and get a better one, so you can expect that to be a major theme in arlene foster's speech. i think she will be looking at the situation closer to home at stormont, weather has not been at stormont, weather has not been at stormont, weather has not been at stormont, weather has not been a devolved government for almost, in fact there goes arlene foster on the way into the conference hall. she's going in along with many other party members to get the best seats in the house, for borisjohnson‘s speech, he will just before her, at around half past two. arlene foster's other main message besides brexit will be the situation in stormont power—sharing having collapsed almost two years ago after the correlation between the dup and

and the dup accept that. what she does do in the letter is leave open the possibility that northern ireland and the backstop would have to follow many of the rules of the eu single market. it is not to do with customs, it is to do with single market regulations, which is annoying the dup today. the prime minister says northern ireland is already different from the rest of the uk in some regulations such as if you want to bring animals into northern ireland from great britain they have to have paperwork. she suggested a backstop that could be expanded upon. the dup are not wearing that say a current regulatory divergence between the uk and northern ireland has been democratically agreed and if you implement a backstop, new regulations would be imposed by brussels and would not be democratic and would break up the uk. that concerns them today, not customs. and would break up the uk. that concerns them today, not customsm illustrates how tricky it is to get to the nitty—gritty of detail in all of this. looking

could the dup be prepared to pull down the government? listen to this from sir jeffrey donaldson, the dup‘s chief whip. in northern ireland the democratic unionist party is not put off by the notion that we would fight an election on the basis we wa nt fight an election on the basis we want the best deal for the union, for the united kingdom and for our economy, and at the moment this does not represent what we believe is the best deal. so, sirjeffrey donaldson making it clear the dup would not be afraid of a general election if that is what this resulted in. they have been looking further afield than westminster at this conference. they see themselves in the same camp as gibraltar in terms of unionism and retaining the link with the uk, which is that the heart of their politics. today we heard from a minister in the gibraltar government, the ministerfor minister in the gibraltar government, the minister for housing and equality, she has come here to speak and she had a very uncompromising message when it comes to the current debate ove

correspondent at westminster, we have some key votes on the budget is taking place tonight, and the dup are expressing their displeasure with the government over government over brexit by withholding support, it seems. it would normally not be worthy of much attention at all, for the government, vote on amendments to the finance bill, which effectively translates budget into law are normally not a problem for them, but as we saw last night, the dup, the democratic unionist party, which props up theresa may's government and has an agreement to vote with it to ensure that the government can win votes in house of commons and get things done, withdrew support temporarily, voting withdrew support temporarily, voting with the labour party, on one amendment, and abstaining on a couple of others, and we expect the dup to abstain on the amendments to the finance bill in the house of commons this evening as well. the upshot of that is not necessarily a disaster for the government in the short—term, but it is a sign that the dup are willing to flex their muscles, if you like, fire a warning shot

the dup might be. that is absolutely fundamental to the dup. the dup will not bend on that. that is actually fundamental to them. they are on the edge tonight. let us and with something different. the front of the sun. a photograph of prince charles, camilla, and family. it is a lovely picture. prince charles‘s 70th birthday. this is the official photo to commemorate it. there he is with his children and grandchildren and camilla. we haven't actually got it on colour in front of us... you can see it on screen in colour. we remarking that they look the same bronze would as the bench they are sitting on. we were slightly wondering about the headline. the sun is famous for its fantastic puns. the greens of wales. we were thinking the grinch —— grins. it is a lovely picture. the times cut it tight and had a picture of prince george and prince charles. i think it is such a happy picture. i don't know why they bothered. it works as a big picture. that is why they have done it in the sun. and happy that they coming majesty. and it is nice and informal. having a genuine family

the dup is the big story, they prop up theresa may's government, they need dup theresa may's government, they need d u p votes theresa may's government, they need dup votes to get this through parliament and it was like what is on offer is not going to be a cce pta ble on offer is not going to be acceptable to the dup. that is because there will be a uk wide customs backstop and northern ireland would still have to follow some single market rules which the rest of the uk wouldn't have to follow, so for the dup, that amounts toa follow, so for the dup, that amounts to a boarder at the irish sea, that sta rts to a boarder at the irish sea, that starts to break up the united kingdom of great britain and northern ireland. we would have to see the detail, but the dup suspect that what is going to be in there is good —— is not gone to be acceptable to them but the dup is not nearly party in ireland, they don't represent the majority of people in northern ireland, most people support parties that back remain. many of the parties here are saying that it looks like it could be reasonable eno

it is worth reiterating that the dup has those ten votes. it isa that the dup has those ten votes. it is a supply and confidence agreement with the conservatives at the moment but a they take those ten mps away and those conservatives that are sworn to vote against the withdrawal agreement, then you do see a very difficult path ahead for the prime minister and it will be acutely aware of that here in brussels this evening as the top two theresa may. back to the studio. the headlines on bbc news: theresa may arrives in brussels as the eu says it's ready to sign the brexit withdrawal agreement. in belfast, the dup renews its attack on the deal, saying it could separate northern ireland from britain. film director nicolas roeg, whose credits include don't look now and the man who fell to earth, has died at the age of 90. let's get more now on our main story. european council president, donald tusk has recommended that the eu approve the brexit deal at a summit on sunday. it comes after spanish pm, pedro sanchez received assurances from the uk government over gibraltar and dropped his

today, the dup's deputy leader had this message. so, prime minister, the message from this conference: from every section of this party is: in the backstop. applause -- bin applause —— bin the backstop. tories have beenin —— bin the backstop. tories have been in town trying to allay the fears. last night, the chancellor philip hammond told delegates at a private dinner that the backstop may never have to be used. but if it is, say the dup, northern ireland would remain fixed to eu rules, even after the rest of the uk goes its own way. many northern ireland businesses are backing the deal, putting business at odds with the dup, who say it undermines the integrity of the uk. well, i think that's an argument that no one in the business community in northern ireland act sets, very sio seldom in northern ireland you see unanimity about everything but when you find every single business organisation is telling you something different, i think the dup should take cognizance of that. the dup will continue defending their position he

in belfast, the leader of the dup, arlene foster, attacks the deal, saying the dup will vote against it unless changes are made. theresa may has met eu leaders this evening. we'll bring you the latest reaction. the other news this evening... french police use water cannon and tear gas against demonstrators in paris, who are demanding a cut in fuel prices. 130 protesters were detained across the country. a nd nicolas roeg, the director of the man who fell to earth and don't look now, has died at the age of 90. theresa may has met eu leaders ahead of tomorrow's crucial summit where her brexit withdrawal agreement will be formally signed off. she and the other 27 eu leaders are due to approve the draft agreement for britain's departure from the european union. it follows spain's decision not to boycott the summit after getting reassurances over gibralter. this evening, theresa may insisted that the uk's position on the sovereignty of gibraltar has not changed following claims she caved in to spanish demands for concessions over the future of the territory. let me just say a word about g

he effectively suggested the dup had simply overinterpreted oi’ the dup had simply overinterpreted or misinterpreted what was in the latter. what we have said throughout this process and what we are still saying is that we will not accept an arrangement where there's a border down the irish sea. that is the concerned the dup have. we have had that proposal from the european union but i don't think the prime minister could have been any clearer and remains clear that that is not and remains clear that that is not an acceptable proposal to the united kingdom and that remains the case. looking at some further reaction this morning from samuelson, the dup's this morning from samuelson, the dup‘s brexit spokesperson, he says the dup is disappointed more than angry and think downing street lea ked angry and think downing street leaked the letter to prepare the ground for whatever deal is coming. he's not reading the rights on confidence and supply just he's not reading the rights on confidence and supplyjust yet, asking the pm to reconsider and if an agreement of this nature was to come t

the key thing is not whatjacob rees—mogg is doing, it's actually with the dup are doing, the dup are a p0p up with the dup are doing, the dup are a pop up for that, they say that the agreement is over unless she is replaced with a new leader. that is a significant point here because they can try to oust all they like, but the dup use polling there's supported that we don't have a functioning government and that shirley is the moment where she would have to seek that from a significant element. let's look at the mail because there saying have they lost the plot, they're suggesting here that it's either this deal, no deal or no brexit, how can it be no brexit? is, if, if the deal gets voted out by the comments, then we are heading towards no deal territory. and it's thought by some that there is no way parliament would allow britain to crush out without a deal. how do they stop it? they can't stop it effectively but what they can do is vote to see the problem it wants a no deal does not wa nt problem it wants a no deal does not want in no deal, and if they vote over while political pre

the dup are poised to vote down theresa may's draft brexit deal. for this draft agreement feels her own key commitments —— fails. she has not eliminated the risk of a backstop arrangement. 0n not eliminated the risk of a backstop arrangement. on one hand, we are told the backstop would be the best of both worlds and on the other hand, we are told when a gradually the backstop. 0n gradually the backstop. on this plan to avoid a hard irish border, they are not backing down. been the backstop —— bin. border, they are not backing down. been the backstop -- bin. boris johnson in belfast to lend his support. it is the dup‘s confidence and supply agreement keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing street. and supply agreement keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing streetm and supply agreement keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing street. it is vital that we keep this partnership going and we keep this confidence and supply arrangement going and that we're not so complacent as to abandon the government of this country to a man whose policy is to break up

could the dup be prepared to pull down the government? the dup's chief whip. in northern ireland the democratic unionist party is not put off by the notion that we would fight an election on the basis we want the best deal for the union, for the united kingdom and for our economy, and at the moment this does not represent what we believe is the best deal. so, sirjeffrey donaldson making it clear the dup would not be afraid of a general election if that is what this resulted in. they have been looking further afield than westminster at this conference. they have had strong links with a number of years with the government of gibraltar. they see themselves in the same camp as gibraltar in terms of unionism and retaining the link with the uk, which is that the heart of their politics. today we heard from a minister in the gibraltar government, the minister for housing and equality, she has come here to speak and she had a very uncompromising message when it comes to the current debate over the future of gibraltar in the context of these brexit negotiations. it is

>> arlene foster like everyone else in the dup has not seen the details of this text, so she's saying that based on her understanding of what it will contain. last night her party spokesperson on brexit essentially issued a threat towards the prime minister >> if she doesn't keep her side of the bargain, she knows the consequences though i suspect our agreement, of course, is not with theresa may. it's with the conservative party. it will be up to the conservative party to decide whether or not they wish to keep the agreement with us in place >> it's worth reiterating that today is about getting this proposal through the cabinet that is a very small group of conservative mps with theresa may as their head. she has been working hard to bring them on her side, talking to them about specific concerns they may have to do with this draft text that her negotiating team has agreed. further down the road, we will see a parliamentary vote on any withdrawal agreement that is where the parliamentary mathematics becomes difficult for theresa may if you have the dup voting against the measure as a

we re particular sort of brexit, the dup were brexit supporters. they campaignfor were brexit supporters. they campaign for the were brexit supporters. they campaignforthe uk were brexit supporters. they campaign for the uk to leave the european union, and the customs union, so whenever the dup are looking at the brexit situation, they're looking at that and are also looking at of course their bottom line which is they can be anything in their view that separates northern ireland from the rest of the uk, and what they were particularly concerned about where theissues particularly concerned about where the issues around the single market, the issues around the single market, the regulation of goods, the notion that northern ireland would have to continue following european rules on goods while the rest of the uk did not come and that would mean as one dup politician has put it that the rules would be set in brussels, and not london, and therefore northern ireland would have no control over those rules, and to this person and to the dup, that means a

jayne mccormack in belfast explains what the dup are up to. this was an absolute reminder to theresa may about the power the dup wields in parliament. now, she needs the support of the party's ten mps in order to have a majority in the commons to get stuff through but in this instance, it didn't work. the confidence and supply arrangement that the two parties have, which is essentially the dup will back the government on all votes in exchange for £1 billion extra in spending for northern ireland. well, it was breached in this instance. the dup is meant to support theresa may on all finance votes but they said in this instance, they were not doing that, in order to fire a warning shot to theresa may and the government over its irish border proposal. now, remember, the irish border backstop is the insurance policy that would see no hard border in ireland after brexit. if it comes into effect, the dup says their problem with it is that there would be extra checks for goods coming into northern ireland from the rest of great britain, and they see

we also spoke to the dup sammy wilson. it is up spoke to the dup sammy wilson. it is up to the prime minister as to whether or not she brings a deal which meets the requirements which have been set out notjust by ourselves and this is important, these are promises which she made because she recognised that the integrity of the uk was important and she has made them time and again. in the house and to us privately and to the public. and it is not just an privately and to the public. and it is notjust an issue for us, there are many of our own backbenchers from scotland concerned about separate treatment for northern ireland and the impact that would have on scotland and the demand for independence there and also many roman backbenchers who do not want to be tied into some kind of customs arrangements for ever, but want to know that if we do have to have a transition period until we get things, properarrangements transition period until we get things, proper arrangements put in place to facilitate trade, that we have the ability to walk out of those and we are the

but, within the dup, it is bitterly opposed. and look who has become an ally. borisjohnson was in belfast to lend his support, saying it was the confidence and supply arrangement with the dup keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing street. it is absolutely vital that we keep this partnership going, and we keep this confidence and supply arrangement going. if the so—called irish backstop was to be used, northern ireland would remain fixed to eu rules, even after the rest of the uk goes its own way. many northern ireland businesses are supporting the deal. but they are at odds with the dup, who say it undermines the integrity of the uk. well, i think that's an argument that no—one in the business community in northern ireland accepts. it's very seldom in northern ireland you see unanimity about everything, but when you find that every single business organisation is telling you something different, then i think the dup should take cognisance of that. but the dup see this as their moment to stand firm, and they aren't backing down. well, never before has this par

yes, that is the dup, which keeps her in government. they have lent their support to theresa may, so they are effectively partners of the conservative party, but they have already started to pull back on that support because they are not happy with this deal. that is ten but she can't count on. as you say, labour, the main opposition, they are signalling they are not supporting this deal and conservative mps are pretty unhappy as well. those who wa nted pretty unhappy as well. those who wanted to stay in the eu and those who wanted to leave, across—the—board there are a lot of critics she is facing, and when you do the numbers, when you do the maths, it is looking increasingly difficult for her to get that through. having said that, there are a couple of weeks before the vote at the moment the government is doing a betting behind this. so theresa may has written a letter in the british newspapers appealing to the public to and get behind the deal. i think the hope is that she can shift public opinion, that mightjust push some of the

the dup have previously only abstained on one bill. this doesn't necessarily bring an end right away to that confidence and supply arrangement that keeps the government in power, in office, in numberten the government in power, in office, in number ten downing street, effectively, but what we are seeing tonight is the dup flexing its muscles, something that it hasn't done before, and saying to the prime minister, if you don't change course and you keep going the way you are, we are not going to support you. add into that the fact that many of her own backbenchers are saying the same, and at least 25% in saying they have no confidence in her and they have no confidence in her and they want there to be a vote about whether the prime minister should stay in charge of the conservative party, there is clearly a lot for theresa may to worry about tonight. thank you. despite some brexiteers appearing to want to force some last minute changes to the brexit draft agreement, in both number 10 and the eu there doesn't appear to be much appetite f

in belfast, the dup renews its attack on theresa may's brexit deal, saying it could separate northern ireland from britain. french police use water cannon and tear gas against demonstrators in paris who are demanding a cut in fuel prices. 130 protesters were detained across the country. and nicolas roeg, the director of the man who fell to earth and don't look now, has died at the age of 90. good evening from brussels, where theresa may has met eu leaders ahead of tomorrow's crucial summit where her brexit withdrawal agreement will formally signed off. the prime minister has met both the european commission president, jean claude—juncker, and the european council president donald tusk, who will host tomorrow's summit. confirmation that the summit would go ahead came after the spanish prime minister pedro sanchez received assurances from the uk government over gibraltar. this evening, theresa may said that the uk's position on the sovereignty of gibraltar has not changed following claims she caved in to spanish demands for concessions over the future of the territory. the spaniards a

there has never been as much attention on the dup. the chancellor philip hammond was here, borisjohnson was speaking before arlene foster, this is the party used ten mps are staying theresa may's minority government, they are at the parliamentary pivot point i'm with one of those mps now, gavin robinson, mp for east belfast, so gavin robinson, mp for east belfast, so what did you make of what arlene foster had to say about the brexit situation in the ticket the? arlene has been very clear in her position, position we have held for 18 months, where we have indicated that we have constitutional redlines, we want to see this country which voted to leave as one, and to do so in a way which doesn't impinge on the constitutional or economic integrity of our country. that message was reinforcement and indeed endorsed today by conservative colleagues. no turning back on this, you will vote against the deal if it comes before parliament in its present form. what happens after that? what has been useful in the last couple of days is that there

but within the dup it's bitterly opposed. and look who has become an ally. borisjohnson was in belfast to lend his support, saying it was the confidence—and—supply agreement with the dup keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing street. it is absolutely vital that we keep this partnership going. and we keep this confidence—and—supply arrangement going. if the so—called irish backstop was to be used, northern ireland would remain fixed to eu rules. even after the rest of the uk goes its own way. many northern ireland businesses are supporting the deal. but they're at odds with the dup, who say it undermines the integrity of the uk. i think that is an argument that no one in the business community in northern ireland accepts and it is very seldom in northern ireland you see unanimity about anything, but when you find that every single business organisation is telling you something different, i think the dup should take cognisance of that. but the dup see this as their moment to stand firm and they aren't backing down. never before has this party been so c

there's about 80 of us and particularly now with the dup it's 12 particularly now with the dup it's i2 potentially and that's more than enough. that of course is assuming that the prime minister could get it through cabinets and even that i think is questioned. to pick up that point it's something that our correspondent in belfast was talking about. the room for maneuver with plans to be tweaked and battered about and any deal coming back. how much to think a at that stage? the comments will debate in the proposals in great detail. that's oui’ proposals in great detail. that's ourjob. but if those proposals are based essentially on chequers that means that we would remain half in and half out of the european union. it betrays the spirit of the referendum and that is not what 17.4 million people voted for and therefore i and my colleagues would feel honour bound that would be our clear duty to defeat those proposals and that's exactly what we would do. ifinal brief and that's exactly what we would do. i final brief thought if we would. would you also feel honour bound to push for ther

that is a red line for the dup. so the message from arlene foster will be that the brexit deal in its current form will not wash with her party. they will vote against it when it comes before the house of commons. and it is the dup who are at the sweet spot of parliamentary arithmetic. their ten mps are propping up the government. they have a deal with the conservative party to support them in key votes, but that has been strained in recent days because of their opposition to the brexit deal. so arlene foster is trying to persuade the prime minister to go back to the negotiating table and get a better deal. and we can expect her party members to be passionately in favour of that stance. climate change will cost the us hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the centrury, according to a major government report. it says human health and agriculture are seriously at risk, and the poor will suffer most. the white house has dismissed the findings as inaccurate. here's our north america correspondent, james cook. th

the dup is socially not progressive, to put it mildly. it's been described as the political arm of the 17th century. its positions on various issues are not in tune with the larger public. that kind of scenario is also a constitutional breakdown scenario, isn't it? isn't that in support -- >> i do think it's an overstatement to say that we are in uncharted waters and we will be in even more uncharted waters in circumstances where parliament rejects all of the options. as i say, every one of the scenarios that we're describing, one is left slightly scratching one's head thinking the united kingdom couldn't get to that place, could it? in a few weeks we could be in exactly that place. >> isn't that theresa may's ultimate trump card with the brexiteers, that actually rather than their government being formed, we could have a general election and it could be corbyn who's the next prime minister, in which case it's either my deal, it's chequers or corbyn. and that's a more persuasive argument than the dup short-lived brexiteer coalition. >> bu

that was nigel dodds of the dup. addressing the conference. he called on the government and the eu to get rid of the irish backstop. eu to get rid of the irish backstop. our way out in the second half of the talks. the talks. people of the united kingdom voted for. for. it is self—evidently not taking back control of our laws. back control of our laws. not while we are still collecting eu tariffs and... tariffs and... arlene foster has to say to her party conference in belfast. party conference in belfast. before you today as leader of the democratic unionist party. democratic unionist party. hall, and indeed those of you who are supporters watching at home. are supporters watching at home. that you have done over this past 12 months. months. benefit of everyone and that must be are guiding principle. are guiding principle. boris forjoining us at our conference, thank you so much. conference, thank you so much. applause —— my personal welcome to boris. —— my personal welcome to boris. philip hammond was speaking at a conference dinne

but within the dup, it is bitterly opposed. and look at has become an ally. borisjohnson was in belfast to lend his support, saying it was the confidence and supply of arrangement for the dup keeping jeremy corbyn out of downing street. it is absolutely vital that we keep this partnership going and we keep this partnership going and we keep this confidence and supply arrangement going. if the so-called irish backstop was to be used, northern ireland would remain fixed to eu rules. even after the rest of the uk goes its own way. many northern ireland businesses are supporting the deal but they are at odds with the dup who say it undermines the integrity of the uk. i think that's an argument that no one in the business community and northern ireland accepts. it's very seldom in northern ireland uc unanimity about everything but when you find every single business organisation is telling you something different, then i think the dup should take cognizance of that. but the dup see this as their moment to stand firm and they aren't backing down. never before has t

the dup, annual conference carrying on in belfast across the weekend. the time is coming up to 8:45am. the national crime agency has issued a strongly—worded warning to organised gangs, which it says are behind a recent spike in illegal attempts to cross the english channel. so far this month, around a hundred would—be migrants have been stopped whilst trying to enter the uk along the south coast, according to the home office. yesterday, eight iranian nationals were brought ashore in kent. tony smith, former head of uk borderforce, joins us now from our london newsroom. good morning. what's behind this sudden spike in crossings? well i think what we are seeing is displacement, we've done quite a lot of good work in calais in the last couple of years stopping penetration through by lorries, there was a report by the independent chief inspector of immigration which shows more work is being done on french feeder ports to off—load people, but the people traffickers would give up, they will continue to try and find a way at what we haven't seen before

tonight, with the threat of the dup to abstain again on amendments to that bill, on further votes, the government caved in and accepted amendments put forward by labour and the snp to the finance bill. now, these votes weren't on anything unusually significant, they weren't stopping oi’ significant, they weren't stopping or putting through big parts of government policy, but what it does do is demonstrate how easily and readily the democratic unionist party, which, remember, props up the government without confidence—and—supply agreement, their ten mps tipping the government over the line to getting a majority in parliament, that they are happy to withdraw that in protest at the government's brexit policy and in protest at the withdrawal agreement the prime minister has reached with the prime minister has reached with the eu. soi the eu. so i think that relationship between the two, the agreement between the government and the dup, is certainly very strained at the moment, and we'll have to see how far they're willing to take it. of course, the biggest dangerfor the willing to ta

this is again to the dup and their worries. this was the sticking point that held up this cabinet meeting which was supposed to have happened earlier this week oi’ to have happened earlier this week or even at the end of last week. it was the continuing discussion with the european side about this backstop deal and it does look as if theresa may and the british government have had to make more concessions on that and what that means is that in certain subtle ways that may never come to pass but are in the document, northern ireland will be treated differently to the rest of the united kingdom and that is an absolute deadline for the dup. it may never happen but the fact that northern ireland has talked about the movement is vastly different than the way that the rest of the uk is talked about and that means the tent dup votes when it comes to parliament, it'll be a very difficult time for two is me and those ten votes are going to be against her. just on the dup, i am reading a quote on arlene foster, this was what she has sa

but you have the dup incredibly unhappy about what they perceived to be the cover my eyes on the irish border which is presenting this potential for a border down the irish sea. so she is sailing into a storm. as she needs good weather. staying with this, a cross to the guardian as a blow for may as an johnson this, a cross to the guardian as a blow for may as anjohnson quiz of her brexit. let's of the dynamics of thejohnson her brexit. let's of the dynamics of the johnson family in her brexit. let's of the dynamics of thejohnson family in the fact that for theresa may, she is now looking ata for theresa may, she is now looking at a sort of 3—pronged attack. remain who are not happy, leave and we re remain who are not happy, leave and were not happy and the dup is not happy. yes, and first of all, politics is to be able to count. now she is going to be doing a lot of math over the weekend because the advocates working overtime and will based mini off because she has this problem of you have this die—hard court of european group of the brexiteers and we haven't some of them saying i

the dup is also contemplating telling its mps to vote against any amendments to the budget legislation. so that is going to undermine her yet again. yes, so she has two problems, not only to keep her own party on board but the fact she is reliant on the dup. yes, this could be a way of their signalling displeasure over bits of the agreement which pertain to northern ireland. whether they will actually go ahead and do it and vote against her is not clear. but it is all part of this kind of piling pressure on her and her essentially trying to say we have done this deal, this is the best deal we are going to get, let's fall behind it. if we turn to the guardian, brexit entering its crucial weeks. that is the headline. what do you make of the five rebels, the cabinet five, the group of five was made do you think they have got the time to make these amendments? they are meeting up tomorrow, they are meeting up monday, can they make any change whatsoever? they certainly feel that they can. they have decided to stay within the tent and fight their case, but as said, i think it is rather inter

would you rather a no-confidence vote or the dup combine -- for labor and dup combine? how would you see a solution? neil: there are a number of permutations. if the deal does not go through, and on the current arithmetic, that looks likely. of have the possibility theresa may going back to the e.u. leaders at the summit. the e.u. is not in a mood to renegotiate. this is eat, -- this is it, and this is the deal. anything they might give is very peripheral and they have agreed on the basic deal. that opens the question, where does it leave the prime minister? there is entirely the possibility that is -- that there is a vote of no-confidence, a snap election, and even a labor government. it opens up a can of worms going forward. at the end of march, we could be heading for a no deal. if that is the case, so be it. it is not the end of the world, as many would like to per trade. i would prefer that we see brexit as a positive opportunity rather than a negative one. can handle ats loss of political risk. cable go on the u.k. crashing out of the e.u.? neil: i do not think it

the dup are not happy with the deal. the dup are not happy with the specific proposal providing a ha rd the specific proposal providing a hard broader in the island of ireland. the leader had a frank meeting with the prime minister last night. it certainly does appear we will not be able to support it because it reaches the red line in terms of having differences between northern ireland and the rest of the united kingdom. we would still be in the customs union as well stop we cannot have that. all that because we have even reached the official opposition position. we have even reached the official opposition positionlj we have even reached the official opposition position. i do not believe the deal i have heard so far is in the national interest. it does not meet the needs of all parts of britain and is not give security in trade in the future with europe. one in which we have a say. the prime minister admitted there will be difficult days ahead. resilience is needed if she is to seal a final deal. so many issues remain

of hyste ri cs. here, has accused the dup of hysterics. the parties on the domain side of the argument. they have said we have to wait until this draft agreement is out, let us not see anything until we have actually seen it. thank you very much. we arejoined by we are joined by helen wakefield. it is not surprising the meeting is carrying on, they will all have a contribution. yes, it is no surprise the cabinet is taking a while, this isa the cabinet is taking a while, this is a very important moment. it is absolutely right they should discuss it at length. everybody in the cabinet wants to speak and that is reasonable. i am looking forward to hearing the news when they come out. is it your assumption that the cabinet will ultimately approve the deal? i hope the cabinet will back the prime minister and back the deal. ayew confident? i think the important thing is to wait and see them come out. but you would expect them come out. but you would expect them to? you know a lot of these people. you are conservative through and through, do you

it is always going to be hard to please the dup, isn't it? if she decides to go without the dup, can theresa may make the mathematics work in the house of commons to get this deal across? remember last december, 2017, we thought we had another deal done, the first stage of negotiations, where there has to be some agreement met so that talks could move on into the second phase. they thought a deal was done again and at the last minute theresa may was on her way to brussels but then was pulled back because the dup said they would vote it down. at that point, she came up with a solution that they would find acceptable. now the stakes are higher. does she have the flexibility? we are doing the math about the house of commons and how she can get the deal through. ande 10 votes are so fine they look to be vital. so without them, the risk of this being voted down is a lot higher. taylor: for our u.s. audience, can you explain? every day we wake up it feels like one step forward, two steps back. given the news low today, where do we stand, how does t

i think desperately needs vote from the dup. ithinka desperately needs vote from the dup. i think a number of cabinet ministers, never mind conservative backbenchers, or whether remain or in favour of brexit have expressed concerns and the trip will be for theresa may, can she satisfy everyone? it will be a hard sell. there is no chance of labour coming to the rescue. given the shambolic nature of the negotiations, this is unlikely to be a good dealfor the country. we will wait to see the detail but we have made it clear, if it does not meet that test, we will not vote for it. it is hard to see how this crowd with the odd they must base will be satisfied. there isa must base will be satisfied. there is a small but noisy group in parliament who think that are strengthening and will vote no as they want another choice.|j strengthening and will vote no as they want another choice. i will not acce pt they want another choice. i will not accept a deal that will undermine oui’ accept a deal that will undermine our credibility in the whole of the re st of our credibility in the

artificially some labour mps. and says, the dup artificially some labourmps. —— and says, the dup artificially some labour mps. —— potentially some labour mps. —— potentially some labour mps. —— potentially some labour mps. good questions from jeremy corbyn today putting doubts to her but she seemed to be pretty confident, back against the wall but she certainly at this point now is this is the moment for her to make sure her premiership is very much stabilised and secure. she can get cabinet behind her. othersjust arriving now, some people have speculated she may not be very happy with the draft agreement. the international development secretary with an earlier, she did not look very happy at all. you cannot read too much into the look on a cabinet minister's face. most of the cabinet are now in, the meeting begins in just about eight minutes. we are expected to last for three hours. vicky, let me ask you, although the meeting starts at 2pm the prime minister has been talking to her cabinet one to one individual briefings last night and this morning, clearly trying to get them ons

we have had this before, the dup won't budge, the dup don't wa nt the dup won't budge, the dup don't want to see a backstop, taoiseach does want to see a backstop, it seems no one is willing to compromise on this, there has been a tiny bit between leo and theresa may and then we saw dominic raab said they will unilaterally walk away in three months and leo varadkar said absolutely no way. dominic raab's friends have been forced to come and say he won't resign over it. this is how controversial it is. cabinet is in disarray. she might lose the dup over this. she can't seem to get dublin onside. she definitely can't get her cabinet dublin onside. she definitely can't get hercabinet in dublin onside. she definitely can't get her cabinet in order. yes. similaron get her cabinet in order. yes. similar on the front page of the times. brussels to offer border compromising brexit boost for may. so the times is looking at it from the guardian's point of view as well. yes, it is fair to say, i am not telling tales, the guardian and the times are pro— remain papers and they're both putting a

this is a big move for the dup to go this far, there were suggestions the dup would try to cause trouble over the budget and not really allowed the budget to pass essentially by causing trouble in terms of votes in the house of commons. didn't happen. something was given, something was assured but they've obviously decided for some reason they're going to push this now, either because they know they are going to get what they want and they want credit or they're generally —— genuinely worried. when it comes to genuinely worrying, ta ke when it comes to genuinely worrying, take this on to the independent. the independent has a forecast on growth for britain following a brexit, which doesn't read very happily. no. i think we saw the office of budget responsibility, who have the responsibility, who have the responsibility to provide forecasts for the treasury, they give, essentially, the figures to the treasury and say to the chancellor this is what we are predicting. it gave a little bit of independence around what those numbers look like so around what those numbers look like so there

the dup, they are making it pretty clear. they spent an hour, the leader of the dup spent an albert theresa may in ten downing street yesterday well, making it very clear that they will not back anything that they will not back anything that means the relationship with europe is different to the rest of the united kingdom —— about an hour. theresa may relies on the dup's support in westminster. this is another reason why they are concerned it will not get through parliament. this is what the guardian highlands. it is interesting to see the different headlines. the daily telegraph says there are different day —— difficulties ahead. the guardian says a split cabinet, a split party, a split nation. yes. there is talk in some of the press there could be a no—confidence vote on theresa may in the coming days. it is for her. we'll see what reaction she gets from parliament. for sterling investors, they are very reluctant to bet that the deal that is there is the one that will get through parliament. an interesting next fe

in belfast, the leader of the dup, arlene foster, attacks the deal, saying the dup will vote against it unless changes are made. french police use water cannon and tear gas against demonstrators in paris who are demanding a cut in fuel prices. 130 protesters were detained across the country. film director nicolas roeg, whose credits include don't look now and the man who fell to earth, has died at the age of 90. hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me arejohn rentoul, who's chief political commentator at the independent, and benedicte paviot, who's uk correspondent for france 2a, and president of the foreign press association. many of tomorrow's front pages are already in. the mail on sunday says the prime minister is making a plea directly to the people with a letter urging the public to back her brexit deal. the sunday express also has theresa may's letter to the nation as its front page. the sunday telegraph has a photograph of the prime minister meeting the european commission president today but its lead article says both

the dup are at the punditry to the point that is there. but in fact keep theresa may in power and rely on them for vital votes. what's worrying there is whether northern ireland could potentially in effect remained as pa rt of potentially in effect remained as part of the european supermarket. and follow european rules on goods in terms of customs the prime minister has given him assurances there will be no break—up of the customs territory within the uk and northern ireland will remain in the customs regime as england, scotland and wales but there's no guarantee in writing in a letter around the issue of the single market with the movement of goods opening the door and the fear position checks there. that's something they say they could not accept because they save northern ireland had to continue to follow eu rules on goods those rules would be set in brussels and not london and therefore northern ireland but i have any influence or control over those rules and that according to those senior figures today they regard as the break—up