:00:23. > :00:27.Good evening. Labour have pledged to bring back the 50 pence top rate of
:00:28. > :00:30.income tax if they win the next election. The higher rate, would be
:00:31. > :00:33.introduced for those earning more than ?150,000 a year. In a keynote
:00:34. > :00:36.speech, the Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls, said those with the broadest
:00:37. > :00:40.shoulders should bear a fairer share of the burden. The announcement was
:00:41. > :00:43.quickly condemned by the Conservatives. Our political
:00:44. > :00:52.correspondent, Ross Hawkins, is in Westminster. Ross. Politicians know
:00:53. > :00:57.they need to be credible on the economy but they also know that they
:00:58. > :01:00.need to get noticed and today, Labour reached for a distinctive
:01:01. > :01:08.policy from when they were last in government. Showed high earners pay
:01:09. > :01:11.a top tax rate of 50p in the pound? That question is certain to loom
:01:12. > :01:18.over the general election campaign after Ed Balls said this. It cannot
:01:19. > :01:21.be right but David Cameron and George Osborne took chosen to give
:01:22. > :01:27.the richest people in our country a huge tax cut. That is why, for the
:01:28. > :01:30.next parliament, the next Labour government will reverse this
:01:31. > :01:36.government's top rate tax cut so we can finish the job of getting the
:01:37. > :01:42.deficit down fairly. No surprise that went down well with this
:01:43. > :01:48.friendly audience, and tonight it hit close to many of their hearts.
:01:49. > :01:50.Because, in 2009, Labour Chancellor, Alistair Darling, announced the top
:01:51. > :01:58.rate for those earning over ?150,000 a year would go up from 40p up to
:01:59. > :02:02.50p, just in time for the general election, perhaps guessing that
:02:03. > :02:07.three years later, a Conservative Chancellor George Osborne would
:02:08. > :02:11.bring it down to 45p, letting Labour accused him, as I have ever since,
:02:12. > :02:15.of cutting taxes for the rich, but the Tories say they've heard it all
:02:16. > :02:20.before. The reality is, what we've heard from Ed Balls today is the
:02:21. > :02:24.same old Labour. Their reaction to almost every economic problem is
:02:25. > :02:30.more borrowing and more taxes, and today is no change from that. Tories
:02:31. > :02:35.say official figures show cutting the rate costs just ?100 million,
:02:36. > :02:39.not much in tax terms. Labour dispute the sums, either way, the
:02:40. > :02:42.numbers are not huge. In terms of tax revenue, even on the most
:02:43. > :02:46.optimistic view, this will make next to no difference to the amount of
:02:47. > :02:50.money available for public services. It could make a big difference to
:02:51. > :02:55.the politics, though. Ed Balls has promised to spend less on day-to-day
:02:56. > :02:58.outgoings badly raising taxes, to ensure national debt was falling
:02:59. > :03:02.compared to the size of the economy. But politicians campaign
:03:03. > :03:05.with symbols not spreadsheets. Labour will help this one looks
:03:06. > :03:11.fair, and not the sign of a party poised for too much tax and spend. A
:03:12. > :03:15.former Labour city minister has warned against predatory taxation.
:03:16. > :03:22.Business groups have expressed their concerns. This will infuse some of
:03:23. > :03:25.Labour's core supporters. Can a high-profile tax rise, even one
:03:26. > :03:30.aimed at relatively high earners, appealed to voters at large? Ross,
:03:31. > :03:32.thanks very much. Syria's government and opposition have finally met
:03:33. > :03:36.face-to-face at the UN sponsored peace talks in Geneva. Today's talks
:03:37. > :03:40.were aimed at getting agreement for local cease-fires to allow
:03:41. > :03:45.humanitarian aid to be delivered. Tomorrow, they will discuss the
:03:46. > :03:46.issue of prisoners. Our World Affairs correspondent, Paul Wood
:03:47. > :03:59.reports from Geneva. Geneva has brought no relief yet
:04:00. > :04:04.from the agonies of Syria's Civil War. This is the latest fighting in
:04:05. > :04:07.a suburb of Damascus. Regime forces are dropping the much feared the
:04:08. > :04:19.barrel bomb. It's hoped that Geneva will bring a
:04:20. > :04:27.cease-fire here and in many other places. In coming here, the regime
:04:28. > :04:30.was forced to accept the Geneva one decoration for a transfer of power.
:04:31. > :04:38.But the government does not accept that means President Assad should
:04:39. > :04:43.go. This is a big lie, when we speak about President Assad to step down.
:04:44. > :04:46.This is not part of Geneva one, but a missed interpretation of the
:04:47. > :04:52.policies. For the opposition, getting rid of President Assad is
:04:53. > :04:56.the entire premise of these talks. The first day of meetings hasn't
:04:57. > :05:04.moved closer together. Or eased the rhetoric. Dictators usually don't
:05:05. > :05:10.like to listen. But today, they had to listen to us and to the voice of
:05:11. > :05:17.the Syrian people. Syrian people, they want a transition. From
:05:18. > :05:20.dictatorship to democracy. For the UN mediator, just getting regime and
:05:21. > :05:26.opposition into the same room was an achievement. But he knows there much
:05:27. > :05:30.more to do. We hope that they will exercise their influence on all
:05:31. > :05:41.sides inside Syria and in the region. To get out of the ditch that
:05:42. > :05:44.they are in. And work with us. These discussions have been inching
:05:45. > :05:49.forward, but so far, only because they have avoided the main issue.
:05:50. > :05:53.That is the future of President Assad and of his regime. As many as
:05:54. > :06:00.130,000 people have lost their lives over that question. It won't be
:06:01. > :06:03.solved quickly or easily here. Here, a senior police chief has warned
:06:04. > :06:07.Britons returning to the UK from Syria that they will be stopped at
:06:08. > :06:09.the border and face arrest. Sir Peter Fahy, who's the Chief
:06:10. > :06:12.Constable of Greater Manchester Police, told the BBC there was huge
:06:13. > :06:23.concern that Britons arriving back, after fighting in Syria could return
:06:24. > :06:27.as terrorists. There are very extreme groups now so people may
:06:28. > :06:31.have seen things, been subject to training, may be traumatised, may be
:06:32. > :06:34.radicalised, and therefore, we are saying anybody coming back and we
:06:35. > :06:37.believe has been in Syria, they will be stopped, they may well be
:06:38. > :06:41.arrested, because we need to find out what they have been up to so,
:06:42. > :06:44.clearly, there is a concern people are getting training in the Syrian
:06:45. > :06:50.conflict and could come back and pose a threat to this country. A
:06:51. > :06:53.murder investigation has been launched by Surrey Police following
:06:54. > :06:55.the death of a 17-year-old goal. Officers were called, to an address
:06:56. > :06:59.in Oxted yesterday afternoon after the body of the goal was discovered.
:07:00. > :07:05.A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is in
:07:06. > :07:08.police custody. The French President, Francois Hollande, has
:07:09. > :07:11.announced he has separated from his partner Valerie Trierweiler. The
:07:12. > :07:13.French First Lady is not married to Mr Hollande, but assumed the role
:07:14. > :07:17.following his election in 2012. Two weeks ago, a magazine claimed that
:07:18. > :07:20.the President has been having an affair with an actress. Let's cross
:07:21. > :07:28.to Paris and our correspondent, Christian Fraser. Christian, this
:07:29. > :07:31.wasn't unexpected? No it wasn't, Matthew. He signalled a week ago
:07:32. > :07:35.there were problems in the relationship and we have read about
:07:36. > :07:38.them in a magazine that he needed but clarity on the situation quickly
:07:39. > :07:42.because he is due to travel to the White House on the 11th of debris,
:07:43. > :07:45.and they were supposed to go together. I think you would like to
:07:46. > :07:51.have done it sooner but she has been in hospital suffering from nervous
:07:52. > :07:56.exhaustion -- February. I think it's been carefully timed because she is
:07:57. > :08:00.due to head to Italy tomorrow, sorry, India, on a long planned
:08:01. > :08:05.engagement, and he is going on a two-day visit to Turkey on Monday.
:08:06. > :08:12.According to sources close to the president, the new lady isn't likely
:08:13. > :08:16.to be moved in to his official residence as official partner.
:08:17. > :08:19.President Holland says he wants to be there alone for the foreseeable
:08:20. > :08:23.future. Kristin, thanks very much. Sport now, and it's been a busy day
:08:24. > :08:26.of action in the fourth round of the FA Cup. In the early kick off,
:08:27. > :08:33.Liverpool beat Championship side Bournemouth, 2-0. Emily Croyden has
:08:34. > :08:37.been watching the action. The sort of cup tie that football league fans
:08:38. > :08:41.dream of, a chance to take on the Premier League's finest on your
:08:42. > :08:46.patch. Championship Bournemouth more than matched Liverpool early on but
:08:47. > :08:49.Victor Moses brought them back down to earth. A spark of Premier League
:08:50. > :08:55.quality cutting through the home defence. Bournemouth kept pushing,
:08:56. > :08:59.though,. They came close to an equaliser. And they might have had
:09:00. > :09:05.the chance to draw level from the penalty spot. This misdemeanour was
:09:06. > :09:08.missed by the referee. Bournemouth were left wondering what might have
:09:09. > :09:13.been as, less than three minutes later, Suarez released Daniel
:09:14. > :09:15.Sturridge who finished clinically, one of the country 's most prolific
:09:16. > :09:20.strike partnerships proving the difference. Liverpool were not at
:09:21. > :09:28.their best, but their Premier League class means they can progress in the
:09:29. > :09:30.cup. In some of the day's other ties, Manchester City rescued
:09:31. > :09:33.themselves from two goals down at half time to beat Watford, Sheffield
:09:34. > :09:44.Wednesday beat Rochdale, while Hull beat Southend United. There was no
:09:45. > :09:46.giant-killing, as Premier League Sunderland beat non-league
:09:47. > :09:49.Kidderminster While Cup holders Wigan beat Crystal Palace. At half
:09:50. > :09:52.time, in the late kick off, Everton are beating League One side
:09:53. > :09:55.Stevenage, by 2-0. There is more throughout the evening on the BBC
:09:56. > :09:57.News Channel. We are back, with the late news at