0:00:21 > 0:00:23Good afternoon.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27All four board members of the government's
0:00:27 > 0:00:29Social Mobility Commission have resigned in protest
0:00:29 > 0:00:31at what they believe is a lack of progress towards what they call
0:00:31 > 0:00:33a "fairer Britain".
0:00:33 > 0:00:35The Commission's chairman, the former Labour Cabinet
0:00:35 > 0:00:38minister Alan Milburn, said the current focus on Brexit
0:00:38 > 0:00:41meant ministers were unlikely to have the energy needed to tackle
0:00:41 > 0:00:44"one of the biggest challenges" facing the UK.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47Downing Street said it had already told Mr Milburn that the Commission
0:00:47 > 0:00:50was to have a new chairman.
0:00:50 > 0:00:56Jonathan Blake reports.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00Your chances of getting a job, finding a good school for your
0:01:00 > 0:01:05children and being able to afford somewhere decent to live. Issues at
0:01:05 > 0:01:09the heart of social mobility and from day one in power, tackling
0:01:09 > 0:01:14inequality was a personal priority for Theresa May.The mission to make
0:01:14 > 0:01:17Britain a country that works for everyone means more than fighting
0:01:17 > 0:01:23these injustices. If you are from an ordinary, working-class family, life
0:01:23 > 0:01:29is much harder than many people in Westminster realise.But for the
0:01:29 > 0:01:32former Labour Cabinet minister Alan Milburn who was until now in charge
0:01:32 > 0:01:34of monitoring the government's progress on social mobility, not
0:01:34 > 0:01:39enough is being done.What is lacking here is meaningful political
0:01:39 > 0:01:43action to translate very good words into deeds. In the end, what counts
0:01:43 > 0:01:47in politics is not what you talk about, it is what you do and I'm
0:01:47 > 0:01:58afraid the divisions in Britain are becoming wider economically,
0:01:58 > 0:02:00socially and geographically.Downing Street says it had already told Mr
0:02:00 > 0:02:03Milburn it plans to appoint a new chair as his term in office had
0:02:03 > 0:02:05ended so is the former Labour minister's very public resignation
0:02:05 > 0:02:07sour grapes or political point scoring?Well, Alan Milburn and I
0:02:07 > 0:02:11both cared deeply about social mobility and equality of
0:02:11 > 0:02:15opportunity.You said that and he said he wanted to keep him on. Is it
0:02:15 > 0:02:19true?I'm not going to get onto the discussions we had inside
0:02:19 > 0:02:22government. He's done a fantastic job at his term had come to an end
0:02:22 > 0:02:26and I think it was about getting some fresh blood into the
0:02:26 > 0:02:30commission.The Education Secretary went on to defend the Governor's
0:02:30 > 0:02:34Greg Ward.We are seeing standards in schools rise, critically, we are
0:02:34 > 0:02:38seeing the attainment gap in schools narrow, the difference in outcomes
0:02:38 > 0:02:42between disadvantaged children and their better off peers.In its most
0:02:42 > 0:02:49recent report, the Social Mobility Commission found that people's life
0:02:49 > 0:02:51chances vary in everybody of England, two thirds of the areas in
0:02:51 > 0:02:53which young people have the best prospects of success are now in
0:02:53 > 0:02:56London while many rural, coastal and former industrial areas are being
0:02:56 > 0:02:58left further behind, with the Midlands the worst performing region
0:02:58 > 0:03:03in England. Deprived areas registered some of the highest
0:03:03 > 0:03:07support for leaving the European Union. The government is now facing
0:03:07 > 0:03:11criticism that it is so focused on the process of Brexit that it's
0:03:11 > 0:03:13ignoring some of the reasons that led people to vote for it. Jonathan
0:03:13 > 0:03:16Blake, BBC News.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18Rail passengers travelling to and from London Euston station
0:03:18 > 0:03:21have faced major disruption after all lines were closed.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25Emergency repairs are taking place on downed overhead wires.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29For the latest, live now to our correspondent, Lisa Hampele,
0:03:29 > 0:03:32who's outside Euston.
0:03:32 > 0:03:42Bring us up to date. 500 metres of wires were downed and
0:03:42 > 0:03:45emergency repairs have been carried out all morning and there have been
0:03:45 > 0:03:50no services in or out of the station here and that is affecting trains
0:03:50 > 0:03:55operated by Virgin, London Midland and London Overground so that is
0:03:55 > 0:04:00main arterial routes that include places like Birmingham new Street,
0:04:00 > 0:04:04Manchester, Glasgow, and Liverpool. I have just had a message in the
0:04:04 > 0:04:08last few moments to say that we do now have the all clear, those
0:04:08 > 0:04:12repairs have now finished but that does not mean that disruption here
0:04:12 > 0:04:16is going to end. A lot of services have been cancelled or they are
0:04:16 > 0:04:20being delayed and people are being told that they can use their tickets
0:04:20 > 0:04:24to travel tomorrow but I have been told that they expect there will be
0:04:24 > 0:04:28no cancellations, no problems for the morning rush-hour. But still,
0:04:28 > 0:04:33this is a busy weekend, about 40,000 passengers go through this station
0:04:33 > 0:04:36every day and coming up to Christmas, lots of shoppers but they
0:04:36 > 0:04:40are saying that there will be a knock on effect, there will be
0:04:40 > 0:04:44problems later today but services will be back to normal tomorrow
0:04:44 > 0:04:47morning. Thank you very much indeed. Lisa
0:04:47 > 0:04:49Hampele at Euston station.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53Children will be able to get access to mental health support at schools
0:04:53 > 0:04:55or colleges in England under plans announced by the government.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58£300 million of funding will be made available in a joint initiative
0:04:58 > 0:05:01between the Departments of Health and Education.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04Campaigners say the measures are welcome, but long overdue.
0:05:04 > 0:05:10Tom Burridge reports.
0:05:10 > 0:05:15I did not have any therapy, it was just a talk about things.One young
0:05:15 > 0:05:19person's story of suffering from an eating disorder and depression for
0:05:19 > 0:05:24five years. She waited two years before she got help.I just feel
0:05:24 > 0:05:28like I've never been properly treated for the mental side, it is
0:05:28 > 0:05:32just sort of, they sort of put me in hospital when my physical side is
0:05:32 > 0:05:35bad and then don't treat anything else so then they wonder why it
0:05:35 > 0:05:38keeps happening, why I keep having to go back into hospital.The
0:05:38 > 0:05:42hospital she was sent it was hundreds of miles away, and
0:05:42 > 0:05:44nightmare scenario which the government now promises no family
0:05:44 > 0:05:51should face. So ministers, chatting here with few bills in east London,
0:05:51 > 0:05:54are publishing plans to provide support in schools for so many
0:05:54 > 0:05:58children who face issues regarding their mental well-being. Teachers
0:05:58 > 0:06:06will be trained at spotting problems early.I put excessive pressure on
0:06:06 > 0:06:11myself, for wanting to achieve high grades.And there will be new mental
0:06:11 > 0:06:15health support teams, the idea being to bridge the gap between schools
0:06:15 > 0:06:20and the NHS.If your child has a mental health issue, we want to make
0:06:20 > 0:06:24sure that you get the help much, much earlier than happens at the
0:06:24 > 0:06:29moment and if possible, we want to work within the school system to
0:06:29 > 0:06:32prevent that condition deteriorating.But Labour claims
0:06:32 > 0:06:38mental health care in England has been desecrated by cuts.Services
0:06:38 > 0:06:40are really overstretched and children are waiting years for the
0:06:40 > 0:06:44vital support they need so this is a drop in the ocean compared to the
0:06:44 > 0:06:48cuts unfortunately that many services have faced.The government
0:06:48 > 0:06:53is facing up to the scale of the issue and it now hopes school scans
0:06:53 > 0:06:56spot problems and address them early. Tom Burridge, BBC News. --
0:06:56 > 0:06:58schools can spot.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00The Metropolitan Opera in New York has said it will investigate
0:07:00 > 0:07:02allegations that its former music director sexually abused
0:07:02 > 0:07:05a teenage boy in the 1980s.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08The Met said it was deeply disturbed by media reports about James Levine,
0:07:08 > 0:07:11who stepped down last year after 40 years in the role.
0:07:11 > 0:07:16He's reported to have denied the allegations.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19Cricket, and rain has ended play early on the second day of
0:07:19 > 0:07:22the second Ashes Test in Adelaide.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25England are 29-1 in reply to Australia's first innings
0:07:25 > 0:07:29total of 442-8 declared.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33From Adelaide, Andy Swiss sent this report.
0:07:33 > 0:07:38If day one had been tricky for England, day two
0:07:38 > 0:07:44was to prove even tougher, as first, their hopes
0:07:44 > 0:07:46of restricting Austria's batsmen were emphatically dashed.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48Shaun Marsh has had a stop-start career, and he seemed
0:07:48 > 0:07:51a strange selection to many but as he completed a brilliant
0:07:51 > 0:07:52century, it suddenly made sense.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Vindication for him, euphoria for the Adelaide crowd.
0:07:56 > 0:07:59When he finally offered a chance, this pretty much
0:07:59 > 0:08:00summed up England's day.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04Alastair Cook and James Vince with a moment they would both rather
0:08:04 > 0:08:07forget, a symbol of England's struggles, as Marsh simply
0:08:07 > 0:08:10piled on the misery.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14Australia eventually declared on 442-8, leaving England
0:08:14 > 0:08:18with a cricketing mountain to climb.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20Under floodlights and the fiercest pressure, the openers
0:08:20 > 0:08:21needed a solid start.
0:08:21 > 0:08:27They did not get it.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29Mark Stoneman trapped by Mitchell Starc for just 18.
0:08:29 > 0:08:30Australia in utter control.
0:08:30 > 0:08:31It was cricket at its most compelling.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Cook surviving another big appeal.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37England were jittery but then in the nick of time,
0:08:37 > 0:08:42the rain arrived, ending play for the day but still leaving
0:08:42 > 0:08:47the visitors facing a huge batting challenge.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50Shaun showed it is not only possible to score runs out there,
0:08:50 > 0:08:52a lot of their batters made starts so it is not impossible
0:08:52 > 0:08:54to score runs.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57There's a long time left in the game.
0:08:57 > 0:09:02So, you know, it will be up to one or two of our guys to go out
0:09:02 > 0:09:05and make a big score, not just that 40 or 50.
0:09:05 > 0:09:11For England, then, a frustrating and deflating day.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15They now need to bat at their very best if they are to save this
0:09:15 > 0:09:16match and realistically, save their Ashes hopes.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Andy Swiss, BBC News, Adelaide.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22A so-called super moon will be visible across parts of the UK later
0:09:22 > 0:09:25when it will appear larger and brighter than normal.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29The full moon in December, traditionally called a Cold Moon,
0:09:29 > 0:09:32will be closer to earth than usual in its orbit.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34It will be brightest at midnight when it's at its highest
0:09:34 > 0:09:39point above the horizon.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43Worth staying up for.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46You can see more on all of today's stories on the BBC News Channel.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48The next news on BBC One is at 5.55pm.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50Bye for now.