27/02/2014 BBC News at One

between the two countries grows. His reappearance comes as pro-Russian

armed groups take over a Ukrainian Parliament in the Crimea. Now in

Russia, Viktor Yanocovych declares he is still Ukraine's president -

We'll be getting the latest on the developments. Also this lunchtime:

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel warns Britain she can't promise a

fundamental reform of Europe in an historic address to Parliament. UK

net migration rises by almost 60,000 - fuelled mainly by people from EU

countries. Standard Life says it's drawing up plans to move some of its

operations to England, if Scotland votes for independence. Dividing up

your money before you get married - why pre-nuptial agreements could

soon become legal. Thousands line the streets of Preston to remember

the football legend Sir Tom Finney. On BBC London: Opposition to the Met

Police's plans to use water cannon. The Mayor is accused of jeopardising

hundreds of jobs after funding for a science park is cut. Good afternoon

and welcome to the BBC News at One. Ukraine's ousted president, Viktor

Yanukovych, has finally emerged in Russia almost a week after he fled

Kiev. He's asked for Moscow to guarantee his personal safety and

the Kremlin has agreed. In his first public comments since being toppled

from power he insisted he was still the Ukrainian president. This

morning there's been heightened tension in the Crimean region of the

Ukraine where what are thought to be pro-Russian demonstrators in

Simferopol have seized the regional government headquarters. Our

correspondent Duncan Crawford sent this report. Is this potentially the

start of a bigger conflict? Crimean's Russia says this sign.

Armed men had seized the building and government headquarters. The

Russian flag is now proudly on display. Once again, people power on

the streets is driving events in Ukraine. This time, they are

pro-Russian. It is not known who the group are. They have not made any

demands yet. They have been labelled by the authorities in Kiev as

provocateurs and extremists. This is a big part of why people are

worried. A surprise military drill in western Russia. 150,000 troops on

high alert. It is taking place on Ukraine's doorstep. The US has

warned that any intervention would be a grave mistake, a view echoed by

the interim president of Ukraine. TRANSLATION: Commanders must demand

that no troops leave the boundaries of the territories specified in our

agreement. Any mobilisation will be seen as military aggression. Crimea

has been part of Ukraine for 60 years. It was handed over by Soviet

leaders, but the Kremlin has kept the region close. The region remains

a key strategic location for the Russian military. This black sea

fleet is based there. On Wednesday, rival demonstrators clashed in

Crimea. They were split over the future direction of the country.

Today in Parliament, urgent discussions took place about

separatist forces in Ukraine. Outside, protesters still determined

to have their voices heard. Yet even as the politicians try to finalise a

new government here, they are struggling to keep the government

together. We can speak to our diplomatic correspondent, Bridget

Kendall, who's in Moscow. How serious are these latest

developments? Well, I think they are quite serious developments today. In

the first place, the news that former President Viktor Yanukovych

has resurfaced in Russia is quite surprising. He had been pretty well

abandoned by his former supporters in Ukraine, and was derided by many

politicians and commentators here in Russia, who said it was his failure

to show leadership that let to the crisis in Ukraine, so it seems

unlikely that the Kremlin would want to offer him sanctuary, and yet what

it seems like is not only have they agreed to his request that they

should provide him personal protection, but they have allowed

him to make a statement. This was read out on television and

disseminated to the main agencies of the media. He challenged the new

government in Kiev and set their actions were illegitimate, and that

he did not think that the Russian speaking parts of the Ukraine would

accept them. He still said he considered himself as the lawful

president of Ukraine. All of this comes as we have news of more unrest

in the Crimean capital. Armed gunmen took over the headquarters and

hoisted the flag on the roof. It is not clear who is behind that. There

are an awful lot of questions here that need answering. Thank you. The

German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has been making an historic address

to both houses of Parliament this lunchtime - the first German leader

to do so in four years. There was no red carpet, but otherwise, Angela

Merkel was given a royal reception. As Europe's most powerful leader,

she is trying to reshape Britain's relationship with the EU. The German

Chancellor described the unity of Europe as almost like a miracle,

given the bloodshed in the past and praised Britain's role in its

creation. TRANSLATION: We could not wish for a better partner. Our

relations are of prime importance, and Britain is one, if not the most

important anchor of stability in this relationship. In what some say

could be a threat to that stability, David Cameron wants to renegotiate

his ties to Europe, before the referendum in 2017. Speaking in a

mixture of English and her native German, Angela Merkel said the rest

of Europe was not prepared to pay any price to keep the UK in the

union. Some expect my speech to pave the way for a fundamental reform of

the European architecture which will satisfy alleged or actual revision

wishes. I am afraid that they are in for a disappointment. David Cameron

must win support from Angela Merkel if he is to successfully reform the

EU, but he knows that any concessions he gets from her will be

small and will be unlikely to satisfy is only Euro-sceptic MPs. We

have to make the case that we need looser regulation, less regulation,

and we need more of a union of nation state is rather than a United

States of Europe. In the privacy of Downing Street, the real business

will be done, and then it is off to tea with the Queen. There will be

further worrying of this powerful woman but she has made her position

clear -- wooing. Our Chief Political Correspondent Norman Smith is at

Downing Street. In terms of EU reform - was there a feeling that

she was letting Britain down gently? I think Angela Merkel was trying to

walk the British political classes down from the mountain of

expectation. She said: You are going to be disappointed. She did not

close the door to Mr Cameron's agenda but she did not leave it

open. She left it swinging. There was one telling phrase. She said we

need a strong written in the European Union and then we can make

necessary changes. In other words, stay in Europe and we can talk. The

reason we did not get more from her is because Mr Cameron has not put

anything on the table. The Germans do not know what he is asking for or

whether he will even be Prime Minister after the next election.

Significantly, if you listen to the language in her speech, she was

enthusiastic and affectionate about the EU, language you will properly

not hear from a British politician. That tells you that Angela Merkel

views the EU as part of Germany's success story and Germany's history.

In Britain and in David Cameron, we view the EU as more problematic

which means when the talks begin, they could prove decidedly

problematic. Thank you. Immigration as we know is a hugely significant

issue for many people who feel their towns and cities are already

struggling to cope with the influx. And today's figures show that number

has increased again. So net migration - that is the difference

between the number who came to live in the UK and the number who left -

in the 12 months to last September was 212,000. The latest rise comes

despite David Cameron's pledge to reduce immigration to the tens of

thousands by next year. Today's figures show that number has

increased again. So net migration - that is the difference between the

number who came to live in the UK and the number who left - in the 12

months to last September was 212,000. That is a statistically

significant increase of 58,000. The majority came from EU countries

including Poland Spain Italy and Portugal. Today the Immigration

Minister said the government is making the UK's welfare system less

attractive to migrants. That is why we remain focused on dealing with

the abuse of free movement, and also, addressing welfare and benefit

factors which may be a poll factor to attract people coming to the UK.

-- pull. In the year up until last September, the number of people from

Romania and Bulgaria rose by 167% and this of course was before the

restrictions on movement ended. All this means David Cameron's target to

reduce net migration to 100,000 by next year is looking increasingly

unlikely. And in an election year, with immigration likely to be a big

issue for voters, that must be a concern for the Government.

Immigration from eastern Europe is still forcing down wages, it is

having breaches of the minimum wage, ensuring that we have people run by

gang must as -- gang masters, and there is pressure on accommodation.

Thank you. Standard Life has become the first significant Scottish

business to warn that it might leave Scotland if there's a Yes vote for

independence. The pensions and savings firm which is based in

Edinburgh says in its annual report that it's putting in place

contingency plans to relocate to England. Here's our Scotland

Correspondent, Lorna Gordon. Standard Life has been stalled wort

in Edinburgh for 200 years. It is one of six FTSE 100 companies based

in Scotland and manages hundreds of billions of pounds. Today, while

remaining politically neutral on how people should vote in September's

poll, the chief executive made the concerns clear. He stated... At

Holyrood, Alex Salmond appeared confident about his government's

stance. Standard Life will find Scotland a good place to do business

and secondly, the Scottish Government has put forward the

concept of a shared currency and relative framework which have

exactly the sort of things that Standard Life have been calling for.

This drew an angry was once on the opposition. Standard Life is

actively making plans to leave Scotland. This is if the First

Minister gets his way. No amount of blood, no amount of bluster, and no

amount of leading from Alex Salmond can change that fact. -- bullying.

This company is important and iconic. If Standard Life were to

follow through in moving employment and funds out of Scotland then it

would cause real concern here. I think it is a bad decision to them

and the shareholders. If Standard Life moved, then obviously jobs

would be lost and people would have to leave Edinburgh which is a pity.

It is not just voters who have a stake in Scotland's future,

businesses have as well. Today, one significant company made its

concerns known. Let's speak to our business editor, Robert Peston. Have

you got any sense of other firms in Scotland doing the same? All firms

have to think about the implications of independence, and in particular,

independence in the absence of a currency union. What has brought

this to a head for Standard Life was the statement by the shadow

Chancellor and the Chief Secretary of the Treasury just a few weeks ago

that they would oppose a formal currency union, and what that meant

to Standard Life was the risk that their millions of English customers

would end up being regulated in Scotland by a regulator that has not

even the dreams are, rather than continuing to be regulated here in

London. They feel that that is to conflict and complicated. The same

would be true in surveyed for the big banks. Lloyds Bank and The Royal

Bank of Scotland both have their offices in Scotland and technically

banks. Both of those, there would be the risk that without currency union

and agreement on sharing regulation, that their customers

would be protected by Scottish regulators and, very importantly, a

Scottish compensation scheme, rather than the existing regulations in

England. They would worry that their customers would not have retention

in Scotland. Yes, the other banks are thinking how to react. It's been

another bad year for Royal Bank of Scotland. The bank, which is mostly

owned by the taxpayer, has announced annual losses of just over ?8

billion thanks to a combination of fines and compensation payments.

Here's our business correspondent, Emma Simpson. RBS still very much in

the red with ?8 billion worth of losses last year. The worst result

since the financial crisis. The new boss Ross McEwan was visiting the

small business community in London this morning as he laid out his

strategy for the bank. He wanted to become smaller and simpler. My

aspiration is to build a bank that the UK can be incredibly proud of.

And to rebuild customer trust. What are his plans? They include

shrinking RBS from seven businesses into three. -- simplifying product

for customers. And RBS is cutting costs which would mean job losses.

But overshadowing those plans are the bonuses. Despite the eye

watering losses at they still pay out more than half ?1 billion,

although less than last year. I think the public will find it

incomprehensible that they are paying out these large bonuses at a

time when they are losing money. They still have a big investment

banking operation in the United States. I think when they

concentrate on the UK, that bonus culture hopefully will disappear. It

is in the interest of everyone that this bank is nursed back to health.

Will this latest overhaul work? The challenge is that as you shrink RBS

you also reduce its capacity for profits. That is why the share price

reacted quite badly this morning. This is a bank that lost a

staggering ?46 billion in the last six years. It is still paying a

heavy price for past misdeeds. There is little hope of the taxpayer

getting their money back any time soon.

Our top story this lunchtime. The Ukrainian leader, Viktor

Yanukovitch, has emerged in Russia. He's declared he is still president,

but appealed to Russia for protection. And still to come, we'll

have details of the government's latest plans to cut child poverty in

the UK. On BBC London: How German spies were

caught and punished during the First World War.

And what Jose Mourinho calls an "acceptable result" as Chelsea draw

away to Galatasaray in the Champions League.

It may not seem the most romantic thing to do before you get married,

but anyone can make a pre-nuptial agreement before tying the knot. But

they are not legally binding. That, though, may be about to change. The

government's law advisors say so-called pre-nups should become

legally binding, making it easier for couples to manage their

financial affairs if they separate. Here's our legal affairs

correspondent Clive Coleman. There was a time when discussions between

bride and groom about their respective financial assets before

marriage was just not the done thing. It remains difficult to

protect assets when separating. Eric went through a long and difficult

three-year divorce. I inherited a considerable sum of money from my

father a few years ago. And endeavoured to have that rejected

but their approved to be no way of doing so and so it is just in the

pot and has been dissipated. Under the current law couples can make

pre-nuptial and postnuptial agreements, setting out how their

assets would be split on divorce are on the dissolution of the civil

partnership. The courts may follow these agreements. But there are not

binding. So couples cannot be certain that they will be upheld.

But now the Law Commission once that to change. We recommend the

introduction of a new form of agreement which will enable couples

to make enforceable agreement about the way they share their property on

divorce or dissolution of civil partnerships. To be binding marital

agreements both partners must have had legal advice. This goes for all

relevant information about their finances. The agreement must be made

at least 28 days before the wedding or civil partnership. The agreements

would allow people to ring fence money and assets. But some oppose

any form of prenuptial agreement being strengthened. Pre-nups seem to

support the wealthy end the strong as marriages equalising and supports

the vulnerable. Anything that would undermine the rights of the

vulnerable and the poor would bother us. The government will now consider

a the recommendations of the Law Commission.

A threat from Northern Ireland's First Minister, Peter Robinson, to

resign has been labelled "grand standing" by the deputy First

Minister, Martin McGuinness. The threat to stand down follows the row

over a scheme under which up to 200 paramilitary suspects were told they

were no longer wanted by the police. Let's cross to Belfast and our

Ireland Correspondent, Chris Buckler. It was the case of John

Downie, who was accused of the hide Park arming that revealed this

secret scheme. Letters of assurance were given to suspected

paramilitary. What has deepened the crisis is the revelation that the

royal protocol of Mercy was also used in more than a dozen cases. The

IRA was Mac campaign of terror killed people across the UK. Years

of murder stretching from Belfast to London. And not just a suspect in

the killings of the Hyde Park has been told that he will not face

trial. There are scores of others. The Enniskillen bombing was one of

the worst atrocities. Murder is committed on Remembrance Sunday at

the Cenotaph. It is claimed the name of a suspect in this attack was put

forward by Sinn Fein as part of secret negotiations with the

government with assurances that some people would not be prosecuted. But

only now are the families of the Dick Dems learning of that deal.

There is no deal for a perfect DIMMs. I was standing beside my dad

in 1987 and saw his decapitated body. 26 years later I have more or

less been told we will never get justice. The revelations have led

the Unionist First Minister to threaten to resign. Unless the

secret letters of assurance that were issued arbour sintered. He made

that clear at a meeting with the Northern Ireland Secretary last

night. They're not just dealing with on the runs received letters but

also with people who received a royal prerogative of Mercy. Today

the Northern Ireland Secretary arrived at Stormont for what have

now been described as crisis talks. This time with the Sinn Fein deputy

First Minister. We have to work together, work through these issues,

stop the grandstanding and deal with the difficulties presented. But the

politicians at Stormont seemed set for a stand-off. And the clock is

ticking. The First Minister says what he tells the assembly depends

on what he's told why the government between now and then.

Nearly a quarter of all children in the UK live in poverty according to

the charity Child Poverty action, meaning they live in a household

whose income is 60% below average earnings. Well, new government plans

could see low income families having their water, food and fuel bills cut

as a way of tackling the problem. Michael Buchanan reports. One in

four children live in poverty in a household earning less than 60% of

average earnings. That is under ?256 per week at the moment. Sarah

Collins and her family know what is like to live on little money. Some

evening meals for herself, husband and three children are just soup and

bread. We try to go down to the park, free things like that. With on

the street parking and parking costs we cannot even afford to do that

because you have to pay for parking. Or take them into town or

up to Dartmoor. There is no money for petrol. The government hopes

that families like this will benefit from the consultation paper. They

want to cut costs by reducing fuel bills. They want to help with debt

problems and tackle worklessness. Ensuring at least one parent has a

job. This is a good school were a lot of pupils get free school meals.

Giving youngsters the best start in life. A good education is crucial to

ministers who want to stop children growing up into poor adults. The

document today is expected to contain new anti-poverty targets.

But in fact they never appeared much to the annoyance of the Liberal

Democrats. They should have been common ground between the coalition

parties on those policies. We should have been able to come to a

conclusion. It is not good for government that this is not the end

of the debate. Some say the strategy does not do enough to help the

majority of poor children. The government remain committed to

eradicating child poverty but experts say their goal is unlikely

to be met regardless of today's puzzles. -- proposals.

The funeral of the England football legend Sir Tom Finney is taking

place this lunchtime. He spent his entire career with just one club -

Preston North End - but he also played 76 times for England. He died

last Friday at the age of 91. Our correspondent, Ed Thomas, is at

Preston Minster. Thousands at the Minster here and

thousands more at Preston North end and all for Sir Tom Finney. Not just

to remember the foot wall but also the man and what he meant to the

people of this city. For one last time Sir Tom Finney made his way

past his beloved Preston North end. And here in his home city how could

he ever be alone? Thousands, as they did in his life, stood alongside

each other to remember and admire one of their own. Tom Finney makes

the score 1-nil. For many he is England's greatest player. It was

said he was the perfect player. This from the 1958 World Cup sums up his

talent. Under pressure facing the Russian keeper, he shoots and scores

with his weaker right foot. I decided I was going to take it with

my right. Search Tom Finney came from a different era, a time of luck

and white newsreel. And not just a sports man. He fought for his

country during the Second World War with the Desert rat. At the time it

was a great thrill. It was a great thrill driving them, but not in

action. Even as he played, the most he ever and was ?20 per week. But

his talent made him a star. With 76 England caps and 30 goals. Sir Bobby

Charlton, and England team-mate, said he was in all of his genius.

People would go hundreds of miles just to actually see him in the

flesh. To say that they had seen him. And today they came out once

again for Sir Tom Finney. A reminder of what there once was and maybe

what has been lost. This is a man who meant so much to so many. One of

his fans as the question of war, will we ever see the light again? --

but like. Time for the weather now.

It has been an exceptionally wet winter. The wettest since 1910. But

for England and Wales, in some places we had almost half a metre of

rain. It has been the wettest winter for 250 years. And even without the

extent that flooding across Northern Ireland and Scotland, we have had

50% more rain than we would normally see. And we still have tonight's

rain to take into account. We have some pleasant spring-like sunshine

tomorrow but also some showers mixed with hail and thunder. But the main

cause of concern for tonight is behind me. How far ignored it will

come will impact on where we see the strongest wind. And also no. We are

quite likely to see some significant snow falling on the hills of Wales

by morning. And further north it is a cold and frosty night. And given

the fact that we have no in the South, it will be pretty slippery

where we see that settling. In the heavy breasts we could even have

some snow at lower levels, the first this winter across England and

Wales. So that could take as by surprise. And because it is a

slow-moving situation, quite a cold and bank day as well. But it does

slowly improve. And further north it is quite a decent day with scattered

sunshine and showers. Not as mild as today further north. That weather

system is slow to clear. Then we have more rain and snow on the way

for the weekend. Still more rain to come on