21/02/2014 BBC News at Ten

but will it be enough for the protesters? Tonight, tens of

thousands of people, many of them sceptical, remain in Independence

Square and show no sign of leaving. The plan, signed by Ukraine's

president and opposition leaders, means a caretaker government within

days and an early election. But as yesterday's dead were carried

through Independence Square this afternoon, tensions remained high. I

think this deal is not working, because they are criminals. No deals

with criminals and terrorists. We'll be asking whether this peace

deal really can bring an end to months of political crisis in

Ukraine. Also tonight: The focus of protests,

now ATOS, the company running the government's fitness to work tests,

asks to end its contract early. At the hacking trial, Rebekah

Brooks, the former News International boss, talks about what

she calls her "car crash" private life.

Disappointment for Britain's curlers, as they lose out to Canada

in the men's finals. And ?300,000 a week - Wayne Rooney

signs a new deal with Manchester United.

In Sportsday, have Wales revived their Six Nations campaign with

victory over France at the Millenium Stadium?

Good evening. There's a deal tonight to end the

violence in Ukraine. Exactly three months after the protests first

began in the capital Kiev, the president has signed an agreement

with the opposition to stop the clashes between protesters and

police. This week alone, 77 people have been killed and hundreds more

injured. Under the plan, which was mediated by EU foreign ministers,

presidential elections have been brought forward by three months to

December, the president's powers will be limited within 48 hours, and

a coalition government will be formed within ten days. The question

now is whether the thousands of protesters camped outside in the

centre of Kiev will accept the agreement. Our Europe Editor, Gavin

Hewitt, is in Kiev for us now. This was a day of continued outrage

over yesterday's killings, but this was also the day when Ukraine pulled

back from the brink, when the country came under huge pressure

from the international community to compromise and to do a deal to stop

the violence. Late afternoon, they carried the

coffin is of some of those who had been shot into Independence Square.

The large crowd who had supported the anti-government protests shouted

"heroes". On their faces, the agony of seeing 77 people killed in two

days of violence. And this was also the day when the opposition came

under huge international pressure to agree a deal with a president who

many here regard as the enemy. The day had begun with the frenetic

building of new defences. Cobbles prised from the street, passed

hand-to-hand. And anti-government crowd fearful of new attacks by the

police. Even as they built, they knew talks were underway with

President Yanukovych, and here they were wary of any compromise. I think

this deal is not working. Because they are criminals. Not any deals

with criminals and terrorists. But there were signs that the

government's authority was crumbling. This was a police unit

from Lviv, joining the opposition, disgusted at the violence.

TRANSLATION: What happened yesterday was the last drop of patients of

people, of police officers, and we are here to fight against shedding

more blood. Today, both sides, protesters and police, continued to

buy each other across makeshift fortifications. -- continue to look

at each other. It was just up the road from here yesterday that many

of the shootings took place but protesters have been working

overnight to rebuild their barricades, and this is the third

time they have done it. When you talk to them, they are determined

that the president stands down, and stands down quickly. In the

parliament, government and opposition MPs had to be kept apart.

But whilst they were lunging at each other, a group of EU Foreign

Minister 's was shuttling back and forth, negotiating a deal to end the

violence. Finally, after marathon talks, they signed. The opposition

had been warned by an EU minister that the alternative was martial

law, so a deal was agreed ushering in new elections, a coalition

government and a reduction in President's powers. I am satisfied

it is the best agreement that could be had, and that it gives Ukraine a

chance to return to peace, to reform, and to hopefully resume its

way towards Europe. But when the opposition leaders returned to

Independence Square, there was no celebration. Vitali Klitschko, one

of the leaders, was drowned out with bullying and cries of" traitor".

Yes, Ukraine has an agreement, but not much trust on either side.

Independence Square in Kiev has been the focus of the crisis, with

thousands of protesters camped there for the last three months. But it's

not the only place to have seen eruptions of violence. Protests

against the government have spread to several other cities. The western

city of Lviv remains in the hands of the opposition, after protesters

stormed government buildings and security forces surrendered to them.

Our world affairs correspondent Mark Lowen reports.

They count the maters in Ukraine's Western heartland. Those from Lviv,

killed in the protests in Kiev. This is where opposition to Viktor

Yanukovych is strongest. Lviv has historically looked west, not least,

and it is under the control of the protesters, who have taken local

authority buildings and save a political deal will not wash here

unless the president steps down now. But at what cost? Maria lived here

with her 28-year-old fiancee. He was a Ph.D. Student. He fought and died

for change, killed by a sniper on Tuesday. A few days ago we were

talking. We stayed in the Ukraine. We were going to be married in a

free Ukraine. The Ukraine that he was dreaming about. No corruption. I

don't want to leave here. Nobody knowing if police will come to their

house and take them away. Nothing has changed. I can't imagine how to

accept it. She grew up as an independent Ukraine was born. Now

her country has been fractured and her life tournament. Can the wounds

of this week ever be healed? ? In a moment I'll be speaking to

our diplomatic correspondent Bridget Kendall but first let's go back to

our Europe Editor, Gavin Hewitt, in Kiev. Thousands of people still out

on the streets. What is the mood? Well, the mood is cautious and wary.

The problem is that quite simply there are quite a lot of people here

who do not believe in the deal. The opposition was told bluntly, do a

compromise or face a crackdown. So the next few days will be critical.

And the key is implementation, and that is why resident Putin and

President Obama will be talking tonight. -- President Putin. If this

deal is to stick, it is important for the international community to

stay engaged. If they do not, there are quite a few people out here who

are perhaps willing it to fail, in order for them to get rid of the

president immediately. Bridget Kendall, on the face of it, a

breakthrough, but can the peace deal hold? Very risky days in the next

few days. Incredibly challenging for the opposition leaders. It is so

raw. Yesterday people on the square were being shot at. Now they are

being told they have to do a deal with the leader who ostensibly gave

the orders for the crackdown. The difficulty is that although there

are a raft of concessions to the opposition, a national unity

government, early elections, changing the constitution so the

parliament is stronger, and it has a ready brought a series of new laws

which changes the balance of power, the key thing is that President

Yanukovych is still there and that is not what the crowd want. The

difficulty is that even if he were to go, for the opposition, this is a

country that has been nearly split in two, there has been a bloodbath.

How can they immediately have a strong leadership told country

together? Either way, it is going to be very challenging and Gavin is

right, people need to stay involved. I do not think Moscow wants to be

involved but the European Union will certainly need to be very involved.

And you can find much more analysis of the crisis in Ukraine on the BBC

News website. The private company, ATOS, which

decides whether sick and disabled people are eligible for benefits,

says it's seeking an early exit from the contract in part because of

death threats and abuse received by staff. The firm has been strongly

criticised by disability campaigners and MPs. Last summer, the Department

for Work and Pensions told the company to improve the quality of

its work. Labour says there's now a need for fundamental reform of the

system. Here's our social affairs correspondent Reeta Chakrabarti.

Public anger on the doorstep of ATOS. This week, campaigners staged

protests accusing the company of unfairly assessing sick and disabled

people as fit to work. After years of criticism, ATOS says it wants

out, its decision partly influenced, it says, by abuse of its staff.

Example, this threat posted on Twitter. If you know anyone from

ATOS, kill them. The company said of the contract with the government, in

its current form it's not working for claimants, the Department for

Work and Pensions, 04 at 's health care -- ATOS health care. Jean says

that they got her case completely wrong. She suffered an

alcohol-related collapse and her doctor said she could not work but

ATOS said she could, after an assessment that lasted, she said,

for a few minutes. They are not going about it the right way to

ascertain the truth from people. I feel the people who have problems

are not getting recognised and they are getting penalised for it. Work

and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith says those who can work should

work and many agree with him, but questions have been mounting about

the policy. Last year, MPs said 38% of appeals against ATOS were

successful. Even supporters of the Minister's aims question the scale

of the project. Inevitably, such a cumbersome, slow, bureaucratic

process is causing delivery problems on the ground. Even if the

department gets new providers in to deliver the assessments, many of the

problems are still going to be there because they are to do with the

nature of the assessment and the complexity of the task the

government has set itself. The government has placed so-called work

capability assessments under regular review and is bringing in other

companies to help do the work, but this is just the latest problem with

its ambitious welfare reforms. Personal independence payments, a

new benefit for people with disabilities, had its roll-out

delayed. Charities said terminally ill people were waiting months for

payments. The most far-reaching change, universal credit, merging

several benefits into one, has also been hit by delays. ATOS now wants

out of a project that has become toxic, which raises new questions

about the delivery of the policy. The former chief executive of News

International, Rebekah Brooks, has told the phone-hacking trial that

her private life was like a car crash for many years. She denied

having a six-year affair with Andy Coulson, the former editor of the

News of the World, but admitted to periods of physical intimacy. Mrs

Brooks, Andy Coulson and five other defendants deny the charges against

them. From the Old Bailey, our home editor Mark Easton reports.

A bit of a car crash. That's how Rebekah Brooks described her

personal life as day two of her defence focused on three men close

to her - Ross Kemp, Andy Coulson and Charlie Brooks. She met soap star

and TV hard man Ross Kemp in the mid-'90s, an on-off and on-again

relationship. Answering questions about it, Mrs Brooks said, pretty

good by 2001, and we brought up the subject of taking things more

seriously and buying a house and getting married and having children.

Later, the jury heard how Mrs Brooks had fertility problems.

Forgive me, I also need to delve there, her barrister said.

At that moment, her eyes welling up and her face flushed, Mrs Brooks

asked the judge for a break and quickly left the courtroom.

Shortly afterwards, Mrs Brooks was asked about her relationship with

Andy Coulson. The jury heard of periods of physical intimacy with

her co-accused since they first started working together at the News

of the World in 1998. But she said, Andy and I weren't meant to be.

The jury were reminded of a document produced by the prosecution, a

letter written by Rebekah Brooks and found on her computer but apparently

never sent, in which her love affair with Andy Coulson was sensationally

revealed. The letter was written while she was married to Ross Kemp.

At a time of hurt, she said, you come home at night after a few

glasses of wine, you probably shouldn't get onto the computer, but

that's what I did. I wrote my feelings down at that moment.

Asked about her relationship with her co-accused and husband Charlie

Brooks, she revealed the heartache of their attempts to have a child

and thoughts about a surrogate pregnancy. A solution was found, the

jury heard, when her mother and cousin met shopping in her hometown

of Warrington. My cousin said she would do it, and she did, Mrs Brooks

said. They now have a young daughter.

As well as her complicated personal life, Mrs Brooks' barrister focused

on her complicated professional life, taking the jury through

numerous financial documents and asking what she would have known

about as editor of the News of the World. As an example of her style,

the paper's campaign for what became known as Sarah's Law was discussed.

Describing herself as a hands-on editor, Mrs Brooks revealed how she

defied the advice of Rupert Murdoch and gave a television interview to

justify her stance. If you have paedophiles in society that aren't

monitored, they will strike again. It was an emotional day for Mrs

Brooks, which showed as she left the court in a taxi, her head dropping

onto a husband's shoulder. Mark Easton, BBC News, the Old

Bailey. Some farms in the south of England

could take up to two years to recover from this winter's storms

and floods. That's the warning from experts as farmers warn they are

struggling to survive. Thousands of acres of crops are water-logged and

many livestock farms are unable to operate. A ?10 million fund has been

set up to help farmers get back into business. Jeremy Cooke has been to

Oxfordshire to see how farmers there are coping.

Beneath the floods, the crops are dying. Much of Simon Beddow's

oilseed rape has been underwater since December. Not only is the leaf

covered in silt, but it's starting to die as well. In the Thames flood

plain, they expect this, but not for weeks on end. The impact is in the

deepest places there will be no crop and the likelihood of getting any

cropping in time for harvest is nonexistent. It's a write-off. It

will be a write-off, yes. Already the loss in this field alone

is running at ?40,000. And it's not just arable farmers who are

suffering. Brian Franklin and his grandchildren are feeding his cattle

on hay cut last summer, but it's hard to see where this year's crop

is coming from. Brian's grassland is six feet under, and the entire herd

may have to go. Disaster! Disaster, yeah, just

ruined everything. It's costing me a fortune. Well, my livelihood,

really. My livelihood and probably my grandchildren's livelihood, you

know. That's the heartbreaker, isn't it? Well, it's terrible, to think

those kids could have had a future. What future have they got?

Adding to the stress, the fact that some farms are flooded for the

second year running. One-in-100- year weather events are just

impossible for any business to absorb. So the financial impact of

this, as farmers go to the future, look forward, is going to be

substantial. The Government says it's now

spending a record ?2.4 billion on flood management and coastal

barriers. At issue is how best to target the money to protect homes,

businesses and farms too. Jeremy Cooke, BBC News, Oxfordshire.

Despite the upturn in the economy and falling unemployment, there was

a smaller than expected surplus in the UK's public finances in January,

due to lower receipts of income and corporation tax. Official figures

show the Treasury received ?4.7 billion more than it spent, compared

with January last year when the figure was ?6 billion. Government

borrowing over the ten months of the financial year so far is still lower

than the same period last year. At the Winter Olympics in Sochi, it

didn't quite go to plan for the British men's curling team. They

were beaten 9-3 in the final by Canada, who won gold for the third

Winter Olympics in a row. But the men's silver medal means Team GB

have now won four medals in Sochi, their best ever Winter Games result

since 1924. From Sochi, here's Andy Swiss.

It is a sport and a team that's captured the country's imagination.

As British fans flocked to the curling arena, the feel-good factor

was plain to see. David Murdoch and his players had reached the final

via a series of cliffhangers, but what followed proved more of a

landslide. Canada 5-1 up in a flash. Well, this has got to be right.

Murdoch, so unflappable until now, was suddenly making mistakes, as a

shot to get Britain back in it went horribly wrong. Stop there, stop

there! Oh, no! By the tiniest of margins, another one to Canada. The

captain's face said it all. There was simply no way back. After so

many final-stone thrillers, this one didn't get to the final end. With

two still to go, Murdoch conceded. Enough is enough. Britain

emphatically beaten but proud of their achievement.

There's been a lot of dark days, and you know, now there's a good day, a

silver medal, and that's just the most incredible thing, something

I've chased for a long, long time! And although that's been a bit of a

kick in the teeth today, I'm just proud of these guys. After such high

hopes, then, not quite the result the British fans came for. A silver

medal still a fantastic achievement, but they hoped for even better. Back

in David Murdoch's home town of Lockerbie, though, any

disappointment was soon outweighed by pride. Not least for his family,

watching at home. I couldn't be more proud. I can't wait to see Dave on

the podium tomorrow! An absolute dream come true, I am so excited.

For another of Britain's medal hopes, Elise Christie, though, it

was a day of yet more heartache. Disqualified in her first two

events, surely it would be third time lucky. And she falls! Christie

felt she was blameless for the crash in the 1000m semifinal and she would

be reinstated. But she wasn't, a cruel end to her Olympics. For

others, though, it was a day when even disappointment came with a

silver lining. Andy Swiss, BBC News, Sochi.

In the Six Nations rugby, Wales thrashed France 27-6 at the

Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. Wales ran in two tries, the second near

the end from Sam Warburton. The was older leaves Wales, France and

Ireland all on four points. -- the result leaves.

Wayne Rooney has put an end to months of speculation about his

future by signing a new deal with Manchester United. He'll be paid

?300,000 a week. The contract will run for five and half years and now

means that the striker is the highest paid player in the Premier

League. Here's our sports editor, David Bond.

At last, after months of uncertainty, Wayne Rooney today

signed a new deal with Manchester United which makes him the best paid

player in English football. Tonight he told the club's TV channel how

the manager convinced him to say. I was really pleased when David Moyes

coming, I've got a great relationship with him, and he's

shown a lot of trust and faith in me, and I was delighted to, you

know, the talks have been going for a long time now, and thankfully they

are over and I am delighted to obviously be signed up. Ramage's

header falls to Rooney! The new five and a half year contract is worth up

to ?300,000 per week and should see the 28-year-old end his playing

career at Old Trafford. For a team which has lost its air of

invincibility in recent months, the move is a clear signal of intent.

After such a difficult season here at Old Trafford, Wayne Rooney's

record-breaking deal is a major boost for Manchester United, but

with the wages paid to top players continuing to rise, it also tells us

something significant about the financial state of English football.

Just look at how players' salaries have exploded in the last 20 years.

In 1994, Blackburn's Chris Sutton became the first player to be paid

?10,000 per week. In 2001, Sol Campbell became the first star to

break the ?100,000 per week barrier. Now Rooney is the first player in

England to earn ?300,000 per week. The club's share price might have

dipped recently, but they are still the richest team in the world, and

with TV income growing, the players stand to make even more money from

the English game's economic boom. Players certainly believe that they

are the ones who generate the revenue for the clubs, for the

league and who make it an exciting product for people to buy. At the

same time, I think there's a question whether this is sustainable

in longer run. Rooney hardly looked the high roller as he caught a train

to London with his team-mates for tomorrow's match, but his new deal

ensured he will end his career on the game's super-rich. David Bond,

BBC News. That's all from us, Newsnight is

starting over on BBC Two in a moment. They'll be live in Kiev

assessing what chance today's deal has of restoring peace.