05/03/2017 BBC Weekend News

The Chancellor dismisses calls for big Budget handouts saying

the UK needs to control spending ahead of Brexit.

But Philip Hammond has a new warning.

If talks with the EU end without a deal, Britain won't slink

We will fight back, we will forge new trade deals around the world,

we will build our business globally, we will go on from

We'll be looking at one Budget spending measure -

Bombshell, President Trump's shocking and evidence free claim.

A new storm engulfs Washington - the White House wants

an investigation into whether Donald Trump's phones were tapped,

The "smart" meters that turned out to be anything but.

Customers receive an apology after being billed thousands of pounds

And Boxer Tony Bellew beats David Haye in a brutal

The Chancellor Phillip Hammond has played down expectations of big

spending announcements in the Budget on Wednesday, because Britain needs

"fuel in the tank" as it prepares to leave the European Union.

But he's also warned the EU that Britain will not "slink off

like a wounded animal" if it doesn't secure a good deal.

Labour is calling for increased spending on public services,

Here's our political correspondent Eleanor Garnier.

These days a long shadow casts itself over

Brexit is dominating politics and as the Chancellor

makes his spending plans, it dominates his

I regard my job as Chancellor as making sure that our economy

is resilient, that we have got reserves in the tank,

so as we embark on the journey that we will be taking over the next

couple of years we are confident that we have got enough gas

in the tank to see us through that journey.

But domestic pressures are building up as well.

There are repeated calls for more money for the NHS,

plus claims social care is in crisis and desperately needs extra funding.

The Chancellor says this is no time for a spending spree,

but Labour is warning more needs to be done.

What we are saying is we will have a fair taxation system

and we will tackle tax evasion and avoidance, we will make sure

there are no longer giveaways to corporations and the rich.

We will invest in our economy and grow the economy and on that

basis we will be able to afford the public services that we need

and we will also be able to have fair wages.

The Chancellor might have abandoned the target and timetable

of his predecessor George Osborne, but he has not abandoned

the commitment to dealing with the deficit.

Economic forecasts might be looking up but do not expect any fireworks

And the government will not want any surprises when EU leaders formally

start Brexit negotiations later this month.

The Chancellor expects to get a trade agreement,

Anybody in the European Union who thinks that if we do not do

a deal with the European Union, if we do not continue

to work closely together, Britain will simply slink off

as a wounded animal, that is not going to happen.

We will have a great fighting spirit and we will fight back.

The Chancellor has called those who want higher borrowing

He is sticking to his cautious approach until the view of life

Eleanor Garnier, BBC News, Westminster.

There was some new spending announced by the chancellor today.

Phillip Hammond said there'd be ?500 million a year to improve

skills and technical training in England.

The money will be used to support changes in technical education

which will see 16-19-year-olds choosing to study in one of 15

routes to qualifications in specific industries.

With me is our Education Editor Branwen Jeffreys.

How significant the change will this be? Leading technical education at

the centre of the budget is symbolic. Businesses are worried

about the economic uncertainty ahead, but those skills gaps go back

decades. Countries like Germany and the Netherlands have been much

better at getting young people from mid to high grade technical

qualifications. This money is going into backing some quite big changes

in England. In a few years of' time a 16-year-old wanting to do

vocational training will choose from one of 15 routes. They will include

maps and traditional skills and more training on top of that specific to

industries like catering, finance and engineering. But how far can

despite hundred million pounds go towards plugging the skills gap.

Overall in the grand scheme of public spending it is a pretty

modest amount of money, but it has received a warm welcome from further

education colleges. For the last 20 years and further education has

lagged behind schools in terms of investment, they have not kept up.

So independent economists at the Institute for Fiscal Studies says if

you look at that up to 2020, that amounts to 13% less for every single

The White House has asked the US Congress to investigate allegations

that the Obama Administraion tapped Donald Trump's telephones in the run

President Trump made the claims in a series of tweets but they've

been dismissed as false by a spokesman for Barack Obama.

Our North America Correspondent Nick Bryant reports.

Bombshell, President Trump's shocking and evidence-free claim.

On the Sunday talk shows this morning one main

Trump claiming the Trump campaign was wiretapped by President Obama.

In his extraordinary twitter tirade Donald Trump

accused his predecessor, Barack Obama, of being a sick

wiretaps at Trump Tower in a Watergate style conspiracy.

This morning the White House issued a statement asking that as part

of their investigation into Russian activity,

the Congressional intelligence Committee exercise their

to determine whether executive branch investigative powers

But the White House has produced no evidence to back up the President's

claims of criminality and seems to be hoping these congressional

Let's get the truth here, let's find out.

I think the bigger story is not who reported it, but is it true?

I think the American people have a right to know if this

happened because if it did, again this is the largest

abuse of power that I think we have ever seen.

Senior Democrats have labelled Donald Trump the deflector in chief,

trying to distract attention from the Trump team's

To understand this, this is the deflector in chief,

no jobs, no infrastructure built, no nothing.

But America's former Director of National Intelligence claims

At this point you cannot confirm or deny whether that happened?

This weekend has seen pro-Trump rallies around the country,

celebrating his successful speech to Congress, but the week that began

with the presidential reset has ended once again with Russia.

It is a scandal that refuses to go away and Donald Trump is guaranteed

to remain in the headlines by launching that twitter tirade

against President Obama, and some people claim he is trying to throw

up a dust storm to deflect from his team's relations with the Russians.

But he has made these startling accusations without any evidence to

back them up. Government forces in Iraq say

they are closing in on government Intense fighting has been taking

place with the Islamic State The International Organization

for Migration says 200,000 people have now fled the city,

some of them to a temporary shelter Our correspondent Rami Ruhayem has

been there, and sent this report The people of Mosul endure yet

another round of fighting between Iraqi Government forces

and so-called Islamic State. They arrive in droves

from western Mosul, one bus-load after another

of battered civilians. In just over two hours we saw more

than five buses arriving here. It is a camp for the internally

displaced. Children are bewildered and scared, many far too young to

We were all just running and running, the

mortars raining on our heads, till we got to the Army.

Some were grateful for the Army's help, but

these men said their homes were hit by army shelling.

On foot and under fire from all sides, the refugees from Western

Mosul arrived here. They escaped with their lives, but their misery

is not over. And they keep coming, thousands each day, too many for the

authorities to cope with. Close by in another temporary camp more

people are seeking refuge. With such an unrelenting flow the authorities

can hardly keep up. The energy company SSE has

apologised after some customers were quoted tens of thousands

of pounds for a day's The error was caused

by malfunctioning smart meters hugely overestimating the amount

of energy usage. What was my time? Just under three

hours. Or just over. Smart meters are meant to provide us with far

more accurate bills, so imagine the surprise of some SSE customers whose

smart meters calculated that they had run up bills of thousands of

pounds in a single day, like Andre in Chingford. His bill is already

?11,000 just for today. I came downstairs this morning to look at

the smart meter and the reading is ?7,000 on it and I have only put on

the dishwasher and washing machine. I contacted SSE on Twitter and I

e-mailed them through my apt to account. I got no response back from

them. My faith in my reader is dwindling by the second. SSE said

that a small number of customers were seeing inaccurate information

due to an issue with software. Customers should rest assured that

their billing is completely unaffected. Andre has one of the 5

million smart meters that have already been installed in British

homes. By the end of the decade every single household should have

one at a total cost of ?11 billion. Apart from giving you exact bills,

smart meters are designed to encourage the Internet of things.

When they work they are also supposed to enable quicker and

easier switching between suppliers. The smart meter roll-out has already

been beset with delays, but this weekend's wildly inaccurate readings

will probably push the embarrassment gauge well into the red.

A memorial is to be built in northern France to honour British

soldiers and sailors who died during the D-day landings

The government is to contribute ?21 million towards the monument

that will be near the beaches on which the Normandy

NEWSREEL: This is it. They are on the beach.

In June 1944, an estimated 21,000 members of the British Armed Forces

and Merchant Navy lost their lives as they fought alongside

their allies to gain a foothold in occupied Europe.

Among them was George, an 18-year-old engineer.

On each beach, there was roughly 1200 on each beach that were killed,

plus God knows how many wounded, and seriously.

So you can imagine the sights on those beaches.

In the 70 years since the landings, George and his fellow veterans have

returned to remember the fallen, but there is no single memorial to the

friends they lost. In June 2014 with just 500 members left, the

association was disbanded, but George has continued his campaign

for a memorial and now the government have backed that call. It

is early days for the memorial, but one possible designer is the man

behind this moving tribute to the crews of Bomber Command. The

monument will be in one of the seaside towns that saw heavy

fighting. George Batten is delighted. It means everything

really. All of us who came that have lived our lives, but our friends and

colleagues who were left behind had nothing. The hope is the memorial

can be completed in time for the 75th anniversary of the landings in

June 20 19. Boxer Tony Bellew has

revealed he broke his hand during his surprise victory over

David Haye last night. The much-hyped British heavyweight

showdown in London ended with both fighters injured

and considering their For the man who was once in a Rocky

movie, it really was a Hollywood ending. Few had tipped Tony Bellew

and soon it was the heavier David Hay packing a punch. But then a

twist. In the sixth round David Hay stumble, injuring his ankle and he

could barely move. Tony Bellew sensed his chance and David Haye was

down. But not yet out. Somehow he hobbled on, but come the 11th his

hopes went through the ropes. As the cameras snapped around him, David

Haye tried desperately to scramble back to his feet. But his team

decided enough was enough. Tony Bellew had done it and after a

build-up dominated by threats and insults, the warmest of embraces.

The fight had taken its toll, David Haye left for surgery on his

Achilles whilst Tony Bellew later revealed he broke his hand. But the

toxic trash talking had turned to respect. Thank you, you have so

helped me secure my kids' future. He said, no, thank you, thank you. He

is a brilliant athlete, he has been in a special fight. One with no

title, but one with no shortage of pride.

Tottenham have closed the gap on Chelsea at the top

of the Premier League to 7 points after beating Everton.

Harry Kane scored twice in their 3-2 victory at White hart Lane.

The England striker is now the league's top goal scorer.

Meanwhile Celtic had to come from behind to reach

Aberdeen are also through to the semi finals.

And there was another gold and another Championship record

for Great Britain's Laura Muir at the European Indoor Athletics.

Muir added the 3000 metre title to her 1500 gold from yesterday,

to earn an historic double in Belgrade, winning

And in the last hour team-mate Asha Phillip has