:00:07. > :00:12.Another Conservative MP defects to UKIP.
:00:13. > :00:15.Today I am leaving the Conservative Party.
:00:16. > :00:20.Mark Reckless made the announcement at UKIP's annual conference -
:00:21. > :00:23.it will trigger a by-election the party leader hopes they'll win.
:00:24. > :00:26.He's shown he's given up on the leadership with
:00:27. > :00:28.the Conservative Party, frankly not believing their sincerity.
:00:29. > :00:32.He's thrown his lot in with us and we will do everything we can to
:00:33. > :00:36.We'll be looking at what this means for UKIP - and the Conservatives.
:00:37. > :00:43.British jets fly their first combat missions over Iraq since MPs backed
:00:44. > :00:50.Plans to offer thousands of new homes at discounted prices to
:00:51. > :00:56.first time buyers are unveiled by the prime minister.
:00:57. > :01:17.And Europe increase their lead on day two of the Ryder Cup.
:01:18. > :01:20.A second Conservative MP has defected to UKIP
:01:21. > :01:26.Mark Reckless made the announcement at UKIP's conference in Doncaster.
:01:27. > :01:30.His defection follows that of Douglas Carswell.
:01:31. > :01:33.There'll now be a by-election in the Rochester and Strood constituency,
:01:34. > :01:37.which Mr Reckless won at the last election with a majority of 10,000.
:01:38. > :01:40.The chair of the local Conservatives there said he was "astonished and
:01:41. > :01:51.Here's our Political Correspondent Ross Hawkins.
:01:52. > :02:02.I would like you please to give a warm welcome to someone who is not a
:02:03. > :02:07.member of our party. Nigel Farage had another nasty surprise for the
:02:08. > :02:17.Conservatives. Today I'm leaving the Conservative Party. Once again a
:02:18. > :02:23.Tory MP defecting to UKIP. It is a decision borne of belief that
:02:24. > :02:31.Britain can be better. CHEERING. And of my knowledge of how
:02:32. > :02:39.the Westminster parties hold us back but also in my belief in the fresh
:02:40. > :02:47.start that UKIP offers. First one Tory defector, now
:02:48. > :02:53.another. How many more could go and how much more damage could UKIP do
:02:54. > :03:00.to the Conservatives? Only a month has passed since UKIP was cheering
:03:01. > :03:06.its first defection this year. Then the Conservative backbencher Douglas
:03:07. > :03:10.Carswell decided to resign as an MP, triggering a by-election. Now Mark
:03:11. > :03:17.Reckless, who said he would not effect, is doing the same. I believe
:03:18. > :03:22.we can get us out of the European Union, cut immigration, to all those
:03:23. > :03:27.things I promised as a conservative but we would do but none of those
:03:28. > :03:32.things have done. Mark Reckless will a tough job winning in the UKIP
:03:33. > :03:38.colours in his old constituency. The battle will not be easy.
:03:39. > :03:42.It will probably depend on who the Conservative candidate will be. I'm
:03:43. > :03:45.sure there are some strong Conservative candidates out there
:03:46. > :03:52.and this is a fairly conservative area. I'm very surprised. He is one
:03:53. > :03:57.of the last people I thought would do such a thing as that.
:03:58. > :04:03.He made a lot of new friends here and lost some elsewhere. One Tory
:04:04. > :04:06.back bench called this treachery and duplicity. Conservatives will fear
:04:07. > :04:09.there could be more of that to come. So UKIP have ended
:04:10. > :04:14.their conference on a high - but this threatens to overshadow
:04:15. > :04:28.the conservative conference. It was. You mentioned the
:04:29. > :04:30.constituency, the chairman saying he felt disgusted by this. Mark
:04:31. > :04:37.Reckless has set up a crucial by-election. The Conservatives
:04:38. > :04:43.convince themselves they stalled some of this UKIP progress but if
:04:44. > :04:46.Mark Reckless does triumph and plenty of Tory abuse will ask if
:04:47. > :04:50.they are likely to survive in politics at the general election as
:04:51. > :04:55.members of David Cameron's party or as members of Nigel Farage's.
:04:56. > :04:58.British fighter jets have flown their first combat missions over
:04:59. > :05:00.Iraq since Parliament voted to approve air strikes against
:05:01. > :05:05.Two Tornado aircraft carrying laser guided missiles took off
:05:06. > :05:08.from Cyprus, on an operation lasting several hours.
:05:09. > :05:10.Our Defence Correspondent Jonathan Beale reports from RAF Akrotiri
:05:11. > :05:26.For British pilots this is the March to war. RAF Tornado crews in Cyprus
:05:27. > :05:33.have been ready and waiting for this moment. We were allowed to film
:05:34. > :05:36.their final preparations for the first combat mission against Islamic
:05:37. > :05:39.State in Iraq. Within hours of Westminster giving the green light,
:05:40. > :05:44.laser-guided bombs and missiles have been loaded and armed onto some of
:05:45. > :05:49.the six Tornado jets flying from Cyprus. Two of them now poised to
:05:50. > :05:53.launch the first Turkish air strikes.
:05:54. > :05:57.This is potentially the first combat mission for RAF tornadoes. The first
:05:58. > :06:02.time they have been authorised to engage targets on the ground. The
:06:03. > :06:07.start of what could be another long war.
:06:08. > :06:11.As they took off there were no details about their mission. Nor any
:06:12. > :06:15.guarantees that they would be firing their weapons or when they might
:06:16. > :06:19.return. For the past six weeks they have only been flying reconnaissance
:06:20. > :06:24.missions, often under cover of darkness. Is not the first time RAF
:06:25. > :06:30.Tornado jets have been involved in combat over Iraq, but unlike the
:06:31. > :06:37.first Gulf War one and 20 years ago, it is against an enemy that will be
:06:38. > :06:39.harder to see on the ground. 30,000 fighters hiding in villages and
:06:40. > :06:45.houses, mixing with the civilian population. It will be impossible to
:06:46. > :06:48.kill each and every one of them. History has shown even if you do
:06:49. > :06:54.attack them more will come in their place. You have to attack the idea,
:06:55. > :06:58.the belief system. It requires people on the ground and politicians
:06:59. > :07:03.to do this. Britain joins the fight was than a month after the US
:07:04. > :07:07.launched its first air strikes. The Pentagon have already carried out
:07:08. > :07:14.more than 200 in both Iraq and Syria. The role of Britain will be
:07:15. > :07:19.more limited. The two tornadoes returned to base.
:07:20. > :07:24.The MOD said intelligence was gathered. They will be flying more
:07:25. > :07:26.combat missions it is a sign that the fight will not be easy or will
:07:27. > :07:32.not be one only from the air. The motion that MPs voted
:07:33. > :07:33.on yesterday, authorising military action in Iraq,
:07:34. > :07:36.was very clear in excluding British But many think that ground troops
:07:37. > :07:39.will be needed So where might those
:07:40. > :07:53.troops come from? With written just the latest country
:07:54. > :07:58.to join the US-led coalition, it is no surprise the militants reportedly
:07:59. > :08:03.taking steps now to avoid coming under attack. And so US military
:08:04. > :08:10.commanders are openly talking about the need for a ground offensive.
:08:11. > :08:16.The ideal force, in fact the only truly effective force that will be
:08:17. > :08:22.able to reject Islamic State from within its own population is one
:08:23. > :08:25.comprised of Iraqis and Kurds and moderate Syrian opposition. But put
:08:26. > :08:29.local soldiers and Kurdish fighters in Iraq and opposition forces in
:08:30. > :08:36.Syria take on the jihadists of the Islamic State? It is estimated that
:08:37. > :08:43.IAS as anything from 7000, 230,000 men as well as a significant amount
:08:44. > :08:50.of heavy weapons. Iraq has more than 200,000 regular troops. Many trained
:08:51. > :08:54.by the United States. But when facing the jihadists in June, the
:08:55. > :09:01.Iraqi soldiers simply turned and fled. The Kurdish fighters or
:09:02. > :09:04.Peshmerga also thought to number around 200,000. They have been more
:09:05. > :09:10.effective in the fight against Islamic State and they are
:09:11. > :09:14.increasingly well-equipped. Including 2000 armoured vehicles.
:09:15. > :09:20.But in Syria the situation is much more complex. Many groups fighting
:09:21. > :09:25.the Syrian government in the Civil War are jihadists. So the US-led
:09:26. > :09:28.coalition is to focus on the moderate opposition groups are
:09:29. > :09:35.initially training up to 5000 of their fighters. This is a multi-year
:09:36. > :09:39.campaign. Is the Iraqi army going to be in a better place in the year? It
:09:40. > :09:43.is the long-term perspective you have to take to understand why the
:09:44. > :09:48.US feels there will eventually be a force on the ground. But the Iraqi
:09:49. > :09:51.army is already had evidence of dollars and a decade of training
:09:52. > :09:56.from the Americans. With little effect.
:09:57. > :09:59.Our correspondent Paul Wood is in Suruc in Turkey on the border with
:10:00. > :10:03.Syria - close to where the US and other allies have been carrying out
:10:04. > :10:09.So Paul, how successful have they been?
:10:10. > :10:19.We spent 24 hours just over the border in a town under siege by
:10:20. > :10:24.Islamic State. All through the night and into the morning and heard the
:10:25. > :10:27.sound of war planes flying overhead. There were several loud explosions
:10:28. > :10:31.in the early hours which local people thought were multiple air
:10:32. > :10:35.strikes on three different fronts. Punch lines that the Islamic State
:10:36. > :10:40.is advancing along. And the Pentagon confirmed it hit an Islamic State
:10:41. > :10:46.base and two armoured vehicles. That was welcomed by the Kurdish Syrian
:10:47. > :10:50.forces but they say is not nearly enough. And as we left to cross back
:10:51. > :10:56.into Turkey this afternoon we watched artillery falling on the
:10:57. > :11:00.town. A number of people were killed and injured. If those air strikes to
:11:01. > :11:04.succeed in halting and then pushing back Islamic State, there are
:11:05. > :11:08.Kurdish forces just over the border capable of proving into those
:11:09. > :11:15.positions. Further west in Syria are hundreds of armed groups, many
:11:16. > :11:18.jihadis, many lining up for Islamic State. It is not at all clear that
:11:19. > :11:21.the Americans have a partner on the ground.
:11:22. > :11:23.The Conservatives, who as we heard are gathering in Birmingham
:11:24. > :11:26.for their annual conference, are pledging to help first-time buyers
:11:27. > :11:30.under the age of 40 to buy a home if the party wins the next election.
:11:31. > :11:33.They say they'll build one-hundred thousand new homes and offer them at
:11:34. > :11:43.From Birmingham, our political correspondent Ben Wright reports.
:11:44. > :11:48.Housing is hot politics. And David Cameron made the Conservative
:11:49. > :11:56.Party's latest pitch to would-be homeowners that this new development
:11:57. > :12:01.in Didcot. -- hat. We want to build less expensive homes for our young
:12:02. > :12:06.people who work hard to buy. That means exempting them from the usual
:12:07. > :12:12.charges and regulation. It cannot be bought by foreigners or buy to let
:12:13. > :12:18.landlords. The Prime Minister says if elected he would build 100,000
:12:19. > :12:21.new homes in England at a 20% discount for first-time buyers. He
:12:22. > :12:26.says that is possible because they would be built on Brownfield sites
:12:27. > :12:31.or places used previously. And the new homes would be exempt from some
:12:32. > :12:35.taxes, energy standards and the requirement by builders to provide
:12:36. > :12:39.some social housing. This is to the scheme is meant to help. Like
:12:40. > :12:43.thousands of young people Rachel is living in the spare rooms of her
:12:44. > :12:49.partner's parents house, saving money and striving to buy a place of
:12:50. > :12:52.their own. It is a good opportunity. I think there will be a lot of
:12:53. > :12:58.competition which usually makes house prices rise. I just think as
:12:59. > :13:02.well, I question if the government was to be re-elected, how quickly
:13:03. > :13:09.they would be able to make that possible. Labour has said it would
:13:10. > :13:12.build 200,000 new homes per year by 2020. The proposals today were
:13:13. > :13:16.welcomed by the big home-builders but some question the quality of
:13:17. > :13:22.homes to be built. Will be missed the energy efficiency standards into
:13:23. > :13:25.all new homes and our people going to be acquiring a substandard
:13:26. > :13:30.property which they will then have to sell on? New homes but these are
:13:31. > :13:35.being built but for many years demand has far outstripped supply,
:13:36. > :13:40.pushing up prices. Frustrated first-time buyers and their anxious
:13:41. > :13:43.parents are a big slice of the electorate so political parties are
:13:44. > :13:47.trying to outbid each other with their promises to build. The
:13:48. > :13:51.Conservatives not a recovering economy may not enough to win the
:13:52. > :13:55.election. The battle will be about what happens next.
:13:56. > :14:12.Europe have extended their lead over the United States on the first day
:14:13. > :14:18.of the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles. Another dawn, another din. The
:14:19. > :14:25.early-morning air crackling with European confidence. And at first it
:14:26. > :14:29.seemed fully justified. Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson with a record 12
:14:30. > :14:34.birdies in a win of almost ridiculous quality. Then came the
:14:35. > :14:41.comeback. The US raised to the next two matches and a lead in the last.
:14:42. > :14:44.Until the shot of the day as Europe's talisman Ian Poulter
:14:45. > :14:51.delivered in quite spellbinding style. The eyes bulged, the fists
:14:52. > :14:57.pumped. The fans loved it. His partner Rory McIlroy then showed his
:14:58. > :15:05.world beating touched to secure an unlikely half point. It was still
:15:06. > :15:08.America's morning. So Europe's players head into the afternoon with
:15:09. > :15:13.a slender 1-point lead. They know pressure is mounting. Can they hold
:15:14. > :15:19.their nerve? The early signs were encouraging. Victor Dubuisson,
:15:20. > :15:26.largely unheralded before this week, rapidly making a name for himself.
:15:27. > :15:30.Likewise Jamie Donaldson alongside Lee Westwood, taking the first point
:15:31. > :15:36.of the afternoon. It was now the US feeling the heat. More of this and
:15:37. > :15:41.they could have a mountain to climb. I can tell you they do now have a
:15:42. > :15:45.mountain to climb because in the last few minutes Europe have won two
:15:46. > :15:51.more matches and the score now Europe ten, the USA, six. Posts will
:15:52. > :15:58.take a commanding lead into the final day. -- the hosts. After a
:15:59. > :16:03.poor start the Premier League season points were as important as bragging
:16:04. > :16:07.rights in the Merseyside derby. Liverpool and Everton looking to
:16:08. > :16:11.break out of mid-table. But a draw helped neither. Liverpool and
:16:12. > :16:16.Everton are close neighbours in more than one way but on Merseyside derby
:16:17. > :16:21.day good neighbours do not become good friends. Just look at that. And
:16:22. > :16:26.the man who conceded that foul, Gareth Barry, may well also have
:16:27. > :16:29.conceded a penalty although not according to the referee. Just two
:16:30. > :16:34.minutes later Liverpool had an even better opening. Adam Lallana like so
:16:35. > :16:40.many others, foiled by Tim Howard. Not even the American could prevent
:16:41. > :16:44.what happened soon afterwards. Steven Gerrard loves to score in the
:16:45. > :16:49.Merseyside derby and did so once again. It should really be too for
:16:50. > :16:54.the home side. Mario Balotelli sporting a spectacular new haircut
:16:55. > :16:58.but not so spectacular finish. And that this was punished right at the
:16:59. > :17:05.end and from an unexpected source. Phil Jagielka with a memorable derby
:17:06. > :17:13.day goal. One -- one was at how it ended.