08/05/2017 BBC News at Ten

and France's new president will take office in just six days' time.

Side by side, the president-elect and the outgoing head of state

at a formal ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe, commemorating the end

As France enjoyed a bank holiday, we talked to parents in a Parisian

suburb about their hopes for the Macron presidency.

It will be hard for him because I'm sure lots of people vote for him

yesterday, but it's almost against Marine La Pen.

Also on the programme tonight: No backing down -

a Conservative Government would stick to its target of cutting

net migration to the tens of thousands says Theresa May.

An investigation into Rupert Murdoch's bid to take

full control of Sky - will it be engulfed by allegations

Record numbers of migrants have tried to reach

We have a special report on the rescue efforts

One of the women I see has got a little child with her.

And the rivers running dry in the UK before

summer has even begun, prompting fears of a drought.

And coming up in Sportsday on BBC News: Chelsea

are heading towards the title, but will it cost Middlesbrough

We will have all the news from Stamford Bridge.

Good evening from Paris, where, in six days' time,

Emmanuel Macron will be installed as president, after his decisive win

in yesterday's contest against Marine Le Pen.

He's already started work on forming a government,

and he's taken calls from world leaders, including Theresa May,

The official result was confirmed earlier today.

The centrist Mr Macron won with 66.1% of the vote,

with Marine Le Pen of the Front Nationale on 33.9%.

The turnout was 74% - the lowest in nearly half a century -

which means that some 11.5 million people didn't cast a vote.

The day brought a highly visible statement that the transfer

of power is under way, when the president-elect

and the outgoing head of state appeared side by side at a ceremony,

here at the Arc de Triomphe, to commemorate the end

of the Second World War in Europe, 72 years ago today.

Mr Macron declared that the time had come again to fight

Our Europe editor, Katya Adler, reports on the day's events.

It has been a day of reflection in France, paying tribute to the World

War II fallen. Taking stock of fresh challenges ahead. France's brand-new

and youngest ever President elect here at VE Day commemorations. A

little hesitant, a little unsure, taking his cue from the outgoing

head of state. It will be a steep learning curve. Emmanuel Macron is

pretty new to politics but the crowds here were hopeful. It's very

difficult to put some reforms in France and having someone who is so

young will help to change things. TRANSLATION: We hope he keeps his

promises, politicians normally don't, we want France for the as

well as the rich. Tonight Emmanuel Macron's fans and

foes will be watching this with interest. A fly on the wall

documentary filmed during his presidential campaign. This

intriguing because France is about to be presided over by a politician

known for his chance but whose person, party and policies are

pretty much unexplored. What we do know is that he is the Europhile, a

passionate one, and leading Europeans are cock-a-hoop, in

understated tones. TRANSLATION: Emmanuel Macron carries the hopes of

millions in France and across Europe. He led a courageous

pro-European campaign and stands for openness to the world. Emmanuel

Macron has raised high expectations, promising many things to many

people. To dramatically reform France, caring for the fragile while

boosting business, and to change the European Union and be very tough on

Brexit, but he doesn't have his own government or MPs in parliament so

is he flexing muscles he doesn't yet have? France's President-elect has

made Brexit threats are plenty. Damp and desperate in Calais today. After

Brexit, Mr Macron has vowed to tear up an agreement where France

prevents thousands of migrants making their way to Dover each year.

He has talked about tempting banks and businesses from the City of

London this side of the Channel. But domestic discontent, not press kit,

will be his main focus. It is what drew one in three voters to Marine

Le Pen, his far right rival -- not Brexit. She is popular here in the

pool halls of Calais where unemployed youngsters while

frustrated days away. In struggling towns like this, there is little

faith in elite educated metropolitans Emmanuel Macron. Young

people vote for Marine Le Pen because they can't find any jobs.

The unemployment rate is sky-high here in Calais unfortunately.

TRANSLATION: There are no jobs and too many migrants. He said almost

60% of Calais thudded Marine Le Pen and maybe next time the whole

country will be ready. -- voted for Marine Le Pen. That evening in Paris

there were small but demonstrations against Emmanuel Macron caused some

organised by the trade unions. As a centrist politician, he faces

opposition left and right. And only weeks away from crucial elections.

Despite Mr Macron's compelling margin of victory,

there is nonetheless a real sense, even within the Macron team,

that his win was secured by people whose main motivation was to vote

against Marine Le Pen, rather than a positive desire to see

So to find out more, earlier today, I went to one of the Parisian

suburbs to meet some parents at a junior football

It's the annual bank holiday football tournament in this

eastern suburb of Paris, a typically diverse community

on the outskirts of the capital, and where the reaction

on the terraces to yesterday's election seems to be more

I'm sure that lots of people vote for him yesterday, but it's almost

against Marine Le Pen, and he's young, and he

Experience, so it might be difficult for him.

It is a complex picture, even in a mixed community like this one.

One of the coaches - who left his ballot paper

blank, by the way - told me that the issue

of immigration and social integration raised by Le Pen had

TRANSLATION: It is a big problem, even for established

Foreigners coming to France these days just aren't able to integrate.

That doesn't mean all of them are racist.

And it is abundantly clear that it was fear of a Le Pen

presidency more than anything else that drove many people to vote

TRANSLATION: I'm very happy it wasn't Le Pen,

As most people will tell you, this election was about voting

There had been talk on the left of sitting it out,

of refusing to take part, and while some certainly

did, it didn't change the dynamics of the 2017 race.

I have some friends from the left, from the right, and everybody

The first time that, when I have lunch with people,

everybody agree to vote for that man.

And in this Parisian suburb, another element

If Macron gets it wrong, Le Pen will be back in five

years' time, probably with a very different result.

And a flavour of some of the voices earlier today in eastern Paris.

Our Europe editor, Katya Adler, is with me.

We have seen the euphoria with the Macron team which is understandable

but let's talk about the challenges he faces. This was a very divisive

presidential campaign and those divisions don't there's a bit

overnight because the election is over. You pointed out that even

among those who voted for Macron, many did so just to stop his rival.

Namy has to somehow bring France behind him and the clock is ticking

with those all-important parliament elections coming up and he needs a

majority in parliament, a credible government to past the reforms he

has promised everybody and if he does not get that and as to build a

coalition, will he jump into bed with one of the traditional parties

he has distanced himself from? He would risk losing the reform

credentials before even starting. He will be a powerful voice in the EU

and there are challenges ahead, not least the Brexit process, so if he

likely to make a big impact on it? He has promised to be a hard line

but that is France, France is always a tricky negotiator with Brexit and

that is a bit of a status quo, at least for the British government.

Where you can see the positive side for Macron with Brexit is that the

UK needs EU unity to have a deal and make the future trade deal. Macron

will put EU unity first, Marine Le Pen would have caused chaos in the

EU, she wandered out of the euro and possibly the EU and the EU in

disarray would mean no deal for Britain. And for years he was the

French Minister of the economy Tom will not say no to a good trade deal

that is advantageous for the UK, France and the rest of the EU. Thank

you. So in just six days' time France

will have a new president in power at a critical moment for the future

of this country and for There's more detail and analysis

on the BBC News website: But, for now, let's join Sophie

for the day's other main stories. Here, Theresa May has confirmed

that the Conservatives will stick to their target of reducing net

migration to below 100,000 a year That's despite repeatedly missing

that pledge since it was first Meanwhile, Ukip says it wants

to have zero net migration over Here's our political

editor, Laura Kuennsberg. Her report contains some flash

photography. They couldn't leap to their feet

fast enough, gathered to hear their leader in marginal

Harrow in north London, who joked she is after the same

scale of support as the new French leader, who scored

nearly 70% of the vote. We need to ensure we've

got an equally strong mandate and an equally

strong negotiating position. But it was Team Theresa who,

year after year, missed their target for net immigration,

which has been three times higher What is the point of sticking

to an immigration target that many of your colleagues think it

unworkable, some people even think it is pointless,

and when you were in charge as Home Secretary it was a target

that was missed for six years? We do want to bring net migration

down to sustainable levels. We believe that is

the tens of thousands. And of course once we leave

the European Union we will have the opportunity to ensure we have

control of our borders So the target stays, but note,

you didn't hear a deadline. Three Cabinet ministers here,

why should voters believe the Prime Minister will meet

the immigration target this time? She didn't when she was

Home Secretary for six years. She's made it very clear

that once we leave But her record as Home Secretary was

she missed the target for six years! She missed it for six

years as Home Secretary. I think if you look at her record

as Home Secretary, you will find It wouldn't be a British campaign

without a banana somewhere. Whatever point this voter in

Leamington Spa was trying to make. Labour doesn't put a number

on its plans for immigration but says the target

just doesn't work. Theresa May made that promise

in 2010 and the same promise in 2015 and didn't get anywhere near it

on any occasion at all. Obviously our manifesto will set

out our policy when that's produced. Ukip has its own new idea

for tighter control. Ukip will go into this election

with a policy of balanced migration, which means zero net immigration

over the next five-year period. Scotland's First Minister,

pulling pints in Perth, wants power Having a Tory target that is not

practical, will not be met, but is driven by ideology,

will harm our economy and it's another reason why it's important

that we have MPs into this election standing up for

Scotland's interests. Close by, the Lib Dems

were after votes at St Andrews. The target was Tory policy during

the coalition and the Lib Dems Don't set a silly, artificial target

that you know you will break just because it will please

a couple of newspapers. Easier to hit in theory

after Brexit but no explanation from the Tories so far

on what they will do in practice. We are in rather a no man's land,

the time before the main political parties are ready

with their final manifestos. It's only then we will see exactly

what promises they are willing to make in black and white but it's

absolutely clear, however unworkable, however discredited,

Theresa May is adamant she will stick to her

immigration target. But how she plans to get there,

we're still in the dark. The most recent figures show that

net migration stood at just Many employers here say

they rely on workers Some business leaders have expressed

concern about the Government's plans to significantly cut the numbers

and say migration should be set according to economic need rather

than arbitrary targets. Our business editor,

Simon Jack, has more. A growing economy needs a growing

number of workers and the EU has been a plentiful supply of them

for businesses, like this food producer

in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland agri-food

industry is massively reliant on EU nationals to make

up their workforce. Some 48% of fulltime workers

in Northern Ireland agri-food That number exaserbates

when you take into account the casual agriculture labour that

comes in seasonally So the stakes are very high

to the agri-food industry That is precisely why some business

groups don't like this target. In its very own manifesto,

the CBI said with unemployment at near record lows,

this target is unhelpful The risk of a single,

blunt number is that it doesn't enable the needs of the economy

to be reflected in So we know we have great

ambitions for the country. We know we want to

build a million homes. We want to improve our

road and rail system. These are all ambitions

that need people. Net migration measures

the difference between the number of people arriving in the UK

and the number of people leaving. According to the latest

figures 273,000 more people Of that number, 165,000 more came

from the EU than went the other way. While the number arriving

from outside the EU was nearly So even if you reduce net migration

from the EU to zero, that 100,000 In fact, that target

was last hit in 1997. Some say that proves that if we've

done it before, we can do it again. For decades the UK economy performed

perfectly well with net migrations levels of about 60,000,

for example in the 1980s and 1990s. There's no reason we

can't do that again. It's actually good for the economy

in the long run to cut At the moment it produces a low

skill, loo productivity, -- low productivity, low-wage

economy. Businesses across many sectors have

been re-assured they will be able But can you re-assure everyone

whilst still cutting net That's one reason perhaps why

there is no delivery date on a promise first made

two elections ago. There's only one thing,

it seems, worse than missing an immigration target,

and that's not having one at all. Labour has promised to abolish

parking charges at NHS hospitals in England,

if it wins the election. The party says the policy would cost

around ?162 million, which it would meet by raising

the tax on private health insurance The BBC has announced

details of its general There'll be two Question Time

Specials in which party leaders The first will involve

Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn. There will also be a seven-way

debate with senior party figures and interviews

with the main party leaders. You can find information on each

of the party's policies, along with detailed analysis

of what they mean in practice, that's on a special

section of our website. Record numbers of migrants have

already tried to reach Europe More than 7,000 have been rescued

from the Mediterranean over The Italian coastguard says as many

as 200 may have drowned. Most of them have set off

from Libya, attempting the treacherous crossing in search

of a new life in Europe. Reeta Chakrabarti has spent the last

week on a rescue ship. She joins us live

from Southern Italy. Sophie, thank you. The sea is calm

now that spring has come and that means that the migrant boats have

started again and in a big way. Over Easter weekend, more than 8,000

people were rescued from the Mediterranean and this weekend, as

you mention there, the numbers have been very similar. Now this ship I'm

on rescued over 500 people on its own. The charity Save the Children

said it was their biggest such operation so far. Those migrant

people are now safe on the shore, but the bigger question surrounding

this sort of migration and the criminal activity that sustains it

continues. Seven uneventful days at sea

with the rescue mission and then We have two rubber

boats possibly one wooden boat. Team, please prepare

on deck for rescue. A scene, said the crew,

like never before. First two, then three,

then as we were spotted, more and yet more boat loads

the people veering towards us One of the women I've seen has

a little child with her. This toddler named Blessing is one

of the tiniest travellers. Her mother Joy, who's Nigerian,

said she risked the journey because she couldn't return

to her home country. She was working in Libya,

but she was repeatedly kidnapped I asked her what she hoped

for from the future. Blessing is happily ignorant

of her mother's grief and oblivious Still they come, goodness knows how

many people were cramped into that They're all processed now, checked -

this man clearly in pain. The vast majority on board

are men of working age, from west and east Africa,

and also from Asia. There are many factors driving them,

but the turmoil in Libya is key. These scars, Imran told me,

were inflicted on him in Bangladesh, He says he was targeted

by the local Mafia and so left But he went months unpaid and was

beaten if he asked for his wage. He told me he took the rubber boat

because Libya was dangerous. Libya was intolerable,

he couldn't do it any more. Last year broke records

for the number of migrants making the crossing,

and this year looks set to top that. Italy has borne the weight

of housing and caring for them, but opinion is hardening with claims

that these rescue missions are a taxi service for migrants

and even that the aid agencies are colluding with Libyan

people smugglers to bring Our sole mission is to save

the lives of people and especially children who are escaping violence,

persecution and extreme poverty. We have no contact whatsoever

with people smugglers. Earlier in the week,

a body was spotted. This crossing from Libya has become

an established route run by ruthless criminals who care little

whether their desperate passengers A 35-year-old man has been charged

following a dog attack on a two-year-old girl

in Liverpool yesterday. The girl suffered injuries

to her head and body, when several dogs got into the garden

where she was playing in Toxteth. She's in a serious but stable

condition in hospital. Andrew McGowan from Toxteth,

is accused of being in charge of four dogs which were

dangerously out of control. The telecoms regulator Ofcom has

said it's very concerned about the rising cost of telephone

calls to directory enquiry services. The four largest providers charge

at least ?5.50 for a call Campaigners are worried elderly

people will be caught Ofcom says it's planning

to review the market. A senior official who worked

for President Obama has said she warned the Trump administration

that its original choice as National Security Advisor

was open to Russian blackmail. Giving evidence to a Senate

committee, the former deputy Attorney-General,

Sally Yate, said Michael Flynn had lied about his contact

with the Russian ambassador. He resigned after

less than a month. The Halifax bank says house prices

in the UK fell by 0.2% between February and April,

the first quarterly drop The lender says household

finances are being squeezed by rising prices in the shops

which is weakening The Fox News presenter Bill O'Reilly

has been one of the most famous in America for years,

but he stepped down last month, after being accused of sexual

harrassment by a number of women. Now one of them has flown to London

to block Rupert Murdoch - who owns Fox - from taking full

control of Sky. Today she met with the media

regulator Ofcom, which is investigating whether Murdoch's

company 21st Century Fox would be fit and proper to take

full control of Sky. Caution, you are about to enter the

no-spin zone... This anchor, Bill O'Reilly,

and the network's former boss are at the centre of sexual

and racial harassment claims that have led

to their departure from Fox News. Arguably, the three most

important men at Fox are out. This huge corporate scandal has

shaken it to the core. Over two decades, a mixture

of conspiracy, aggression and nationalism has made

Rupert Murdoch's channel the most watched cable news

network in America. For the Murdochs,

the timing couldn't be worse. They're currently trying

to take full control of the British broadcaster Sky

through an acquisition They declined an interview request,

so I said hello to the boss Are you worried about Ofcom at all?

No. You should be worried about the BBC

as well. Fox News is getting record ratings,

so I'm not worried at all. You don't think Ofcom will consider

what is happening at Fox News? Nothing is happening at Fox News.

Nothing. You have lost three of your top

people, that is something, isn't it? There is a sexual and racial

harassment accusation. And the other two

are quite separate. The harassment scandal at Fox News

is the talk of Manhattan and it Federal investigators are looking

at whether fox concealed payments And the worry for Rupert Murdoch

and his family is that the echoes of the phone hacking scandal

are getting louder by the day. Lawyer Douglas Wigdall

is representing over 20 He wrote to Ofcom with details

of the claim and is meeting with them on Thursday to provide

background on the allegations They have let him stay for over

a decade because he was making So I am not confident

that they terminated Bill O'Reilly and gave him $20 million

on the way out just because they are not confident

that the other moves they have made have been done because they

want to create change. I think they are doing these things

because they have lost advertisers I experienced sexual harassment

as a job applicant at Fox News channel by an employee named Mr Bill

O'Reilly. Radio host Wendy Walsh seen

with her lawyer Lisa Bloom filed a complaint against Mr O'Reilly

by phone, only in America Mr O'Reilly and former Fox News

boss Roger Ailes denied The two women flew from Los Angeles

to London today to specifically to explain to Ofcom why

in their view the Murdochs are not fit and proper

to own Sky outright. I hope that the good people

of the UK no how openly 21st Century Fox has ignored the laws

protecting women's rights I know that women's rights

are valued here, and I hope that 21st Century Fox, parent

to Fox News, says it has taken prompt and decisive action

to improve its workplace, overhauling top management

and appointing women With pottable investigation

is now under way, Mr Murdoch's claim that nothing

is going at Fox News sounds like what some Fox contributors

would call fake news. This photograph was taken

at the weekend in Cumbria. It's a rare sight

at this time of year. But it's because large parts

of the UK simply haven't had much This Met office map shows the rain

across the UK last month. The darkest areas are those that

have had less than a third Danny Savage reports

from the Yorkshire Dales. Across large parts of Britain at

the moment there is a lack of water. A dry spring, preceded

by low winter rainfall, This wouldn't be an unusual,

widespread sight in late summer When I had a ride around up

there on Friday, you get a lot of small ponds and wet holes that

are usually there all year round. They're all dried out,

they're absolutely bone dry, there's nothing at all

in the bottom of them. Stuart Herd has farmed

here all his life. The riverbed drying up is not

unheard of but he's noticed You can tell that it's been a lot

drier because we're actually noticing sheep that have come down

to parts of the river where the water is still running,

noticing sheep standing Whereas ordinarily they would be

spread about up on these fells and drinking out of little springs

and streams and things like that, which suggests there isn't as much

water up there as what there has Southern England has seen the driest

conditions with just over half the average rainfall since last

July. The water company Affinity says

people must do their bit to avoid And these pictures were taken

in northern England over the last few days, showing rivers many miles

apart in a similar condition. But Yorkshire Water says

there shouldn't be widespread alarm. I think nationally

it's been very dry. Up in Yorkshire it's been a dry

winter, probably the driest in the last six years,

but we have seen recharge, every other month we've seen some

rainfall but in the last six weeks A few dry months doesn't

make a drought, though. It may be bone dry in some

of the headwaters of these river catchments but we're a long way

from a water crisis. A few miles down the valley,

the Wharf looks a lot more healthy, and reservoir levels

are holding up too. A prolonged dry spell may

change things but it Danny Savage, BBC News,

Upper Wharfedale in North Yorkshire. Newsnight's about to begin over

on BBC Two in a few moments. Paris is the centre of world

attention today. That's how they like it. We're here looking at how

politics is changing. Are there lessons for Britain and the West

from the rise of a 39-year-old former banker to the president of

France? Join me now on BBC Two. Here on BBC One, it's time

for the news where you are.