18/03/2018 BBC Weekend News

A new salvo from Britain

towards Russia.

The Foreign Secretary says Moscow

has been making and stockpiling

deadly nerve agents.

Two weeks after the poisoning

of a Russian spy in Salisbury,

The government believes Russia does

make interest in the substances was

for assassination.

From Moscow, Vladimir Putin has

dismissed the allegations,

as the presidential election gives

him another six years in office.

With international chemical weapons

experts due to arrive in the UK

we'll have the latest.

Also tonight...

A breakthrough in the treatment

of multiple sclerosis

after a medical trial involving

stem cell transplants.

A Sunday white-out as driving snow,

biting winds and ice affect

much of the country.

And the million dollar

teacher from London who's

scooped up a global award.

Good evening.

The Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, has accused Russia

of making and stockpiling the nerve

agents known as Novichok,

used in the Salisbury

poisoning two weeks ago.

Sergei Skripal and his daughter

remain critically ill,

but today President Putin said

it was nonsense to say that

Russia was responsible.

We'll hear from our

Moscow correspondent,

Steve Rosenberg, in a moment.

First, our diplomatic

correspondent, James Robbins.

Whatever the weather,

the decontamination work

and forensic investigation

in Salisbury goes on.

Two weeks after the chemical attack

on Sergei and Yulia Skripal,

it's clear that one focus

of the enquiry is his BMW,

amidst suggestions that the chemical

agent might have been placed

there to ensure that

the occupants were poisoned.

A team of international chemical

weapons experts from the global body

that polices their prohibition

arrives in Salisbury tomorrow.

They will begin a further

independent investigation.

Today, the Foreign Secretary

went further than ever,

blaming Russia and lifting the veil

a little on secret intelligence.

Boris Johnson says it shows Russia

has been making nerve agent

within the past decade.

We actually had evidence,

within the last ten years,

that Russia has not only been

investigating the delivery of nerve

agents for the purposes

of assassination, but has also been

creating and stockpiling Novichok.

The Foreign Secretary also dismissed

and derided a suggestion from one

of Russia's most senior diplomats

that the nerve agent used

in Salisbury could actually have

come from Britain's own military

research facility at Porton Down.

Porton Down, as we now all know,

is the largest military facility

in the United Kingdom,

that has been dealing

with chemical weapons research.

And it's actually only eight

miles from Salisbury.

You're not suggesting that

Porton Down is responsible

for this nerve agent?

I don't know, I don't know.

But Theresa May's government

got solid support from

Labour's Shadow Chancellor

after criticism of Jeremy Corbyn's

more questioning approach.

Putin has questions to answer,

because this is highly likely this

could be a state execution.

But, what we don't do in this

country is that we don't leap

to conclusions without the evidence.

As the investigation goes on,

in the next few days the government

will focus on broadening

international backing

for Britain's stance.

On Tuesday, ministers who sit

on the National Security Council

will discuss whether or not

to launch a second round of measures

against Moscow, at the risk

of an endless tit-for-tat.

Whatever precisely happened two

weeks ago in Salisbury,

one consequence is that Russia's

international reputation,

already very fragile,

does seem to have been

weakened still further.

Britain is having little trouble

gathering strong messages

of support from overseas,

although action against Russia

is harder to mobilise.

But Vladimir Putin shows no

sign of changing course.

This evening, President Putin said

claims that his country was behind

the Skripal poisoning were 'nonsense

but that Russia will

work with the UK'.

He was speaking after winning

another term in office

in the presidential election.

Steve Rosenberg has

the latest from Moscow.

He's been centre stage in Russia

for the last 18 years.

Tonight, by the Kremlin,

Vladimir Putin thanked his people

for re-electing him their president.

We are destined to succeed, he said.

Russia, Russia, they chant it.

But, in Putin's fourth term

are Russia and the west

destined for a Cold War?

Later, the president

dismissed British accusations

that he was behind the nerve agent

attack in Salisbury.

TRANSLATION:

It is rubbish, drivel,

nonsense, to think that Russia

would do something like that ahead

of the presidential

election and the World Cup.

President Putin's pitch to voters

had been, stick with me

and Russia will be strong.

And many Russians believe that.

He is a genius, he said, Putin wants

Russia to prosper and for Russians

to live in happiness.

It's thanks to Putin, she says,

that Russia still exists.

But critics of the Kremlin say

the election was fixed,

that only those candidates who stood

no chance of unseating

Vladimir Putin were allowed to run.

The problem with Russia

is that there is no such thing

as Russian politics.

Politics has been eliminated

in Russia altogether.

There is only one political

institution in Russia and this

is the physical body of Vladimir

Putin.

Which is why Vladimir Putin

was always going to win this vote.

This election was not

about choosing a new president,

it was about reappointing

the old one.

And although many Russians do

support Vladimir Putin, crucially,

it is the political system he has

built in Russia that

guaranteed him a landslide win.

These images are

embarrassing, though.

Caught on CCTV, a woman stuffs

a ballot box near Moscow.

Suddenly, there are

two of them at it.

And, during a vote count

in Siberia, balloons are moved

to cover the camera.

Election officials say

they will investigate,

but the result won't change,

neither will the name

of Russia's president.

Steve Rosenberg, BBC News, Moscow.

As the government blames

Russia for stockpiling

Novichok nerve agents,

a group of international chemical

weapons experts are due

to arrive in the UK tomorrow.

Our security correspondent,

Gordon Corera, is at

the Foreign Office now.

Gordon, what was behind

that assessment from

the Foreign Secretary today?

Today, Boris Johnson deliberately

revealed a piece of sensitive

intelligence that was the claim that

Russia has been stockpiling,

creating Novichok and looking at

using it for assassinations. Why?

Gaza is a battle going on over

information and for credibility.

British officials believe the

Kremlin's plan will Beatty Muddy

Waters and create confusion,

pointing to, including, the comments

on the Russian ambassador to the EU

today suggesting that perhaps Porton

Down had created the Novichok and

somehow released that in its own

backyard. I think the Foreign

Office, the British government, is

trying to put the Russians on the

back foot by asserting that they are

in contravention of the Chemical

Weapons Convention by having this

secret chemical warfare, chemical

assassination programme, at some

point in the last ten years. We will

get that independent inspection

coming from the OPCW but that is

likely to be the next battle ground

over credibility. They will be

looking at samples, perhaps blood

samples, from the victims and

whatever their conclusions, they may

be clear conclusions or disputed,

there may be questions about whether

the results were tampered with in

some way, that'll be the next over

credibility.

Gordon Corera, thank

you.

Scientists say they've achieved

a breakthrough in the treatment

of multiple sclerosis

after the results of

an international trial involving

stem cell transplants.

Doctors in Sheffield

were part of the study,

which showed an improvement

in symptoms and the progress of

the neurological condition halted.

Around 100,000 people

in the UK are affected by MS,

as our medical correspondent,

Fergus Walsh, explains.

It's so nice to finally get out.

It feels like my diagnosis

was just a bad dream.

Before her transplant,

Louise Willetts from Rotherham

had severe relapses -

attacks - of multiple sclerosis.

At one point she was

in a wheelchair.

It also affected her mind.

She struggled to read

and follow conversations.

Now, she is completely well and has

a newborn daughter, too.

It does feel like a miracle.

I almost have to pinch myself

and think, is this real?

Has it really gone?

Is it ever going to come back?

I don't live in fear any more.

I actually live every day

the way I want to live it,

rather than around like MS.

MS is caused by a faulty

immune system attacking

the brain and spinal cord.

Symptoms include balance

and muscle problems,

fatigue and loss of vision.

The BBC's Panorama followed

Louise's treatment -

originally developed

but cancer patients.

A high dose of chemotherapy

was given to knock

out her immune system.

Then these healthy stem cells taken

from Louise's blood and bone

marrow were infused.

Unaffected by MS, the stem cells

rebuilt her immune system.

Now, more than two years on,

she is back at Sheffield's Royal

Hallamshire Hospital for a checkup.

Good to see you.

The MRI shows there is no active

disease in her brain.

I'm completely delighted

that the scan shows stability.

So this is really good news.

Yes, it is!

I'm delighted, too!

Results from a trial of just over

100 MS patients showed that

in the half that were given a stem

cell transplant, there was only one

relapse after a year.

Compared to 39 among those given

standard drug treatment.

Transplant patients were ten times

less likely to see their treatment

fail after three years.

And their level of

disability reduced.

The results of this trial

are quite simply stunning.

It should mean that many more MS

patients are offered

a stem cell transplant,

with the hope of stopping

their disease in its tracks.

This is a game-changer.

It can fundamentally alter

the course of patients with MS

who have got resistant

and disabling disease.

The stem cell transplant involves

a one-off cost of £30,000.

No more expensive than the yearly

fee for some drugs.

It's not suitable

for all MS patients.

But the life-changing

results with Louise

and others are plain to see.

Fergus Walsh, BBC News.

Fergus, how soon might more people

with MS benefit from this treatment?

It'll take time to scale this up and

train the teams. Already, three

trusts, Sheffield, kings and

Imperial in London are offering

this. 350 patients who have had this

treatment, more than any other

country in Europe except for Sweden

and Europe, that is just scratching

the surface. Many neurologists have

been sceptical and have been waiting

for over one decade for the results

of this trial the report tonight.

Those results are convincing and the

beauty of this treatment is it is

the patient healing themselves.

Their own stem cells, no need for

any donor and they are resetting the

immune system to a point before the

patient had MS. It is a gruelling

procedure involving chemotherapy, it

is not suitable for patients with

advanced disease but it is

delivering life changing results.

Fergus Walsh, thank you.

Much of the UK has been in the midst

of a second significant

snowfall of the winter.

For many areas, it's been combined

with bitterly cold winds,

bringing misery to those who've been

travelling this weekend.

Sarah Ransome reports.

Snowstorms and snowdrifts.

The scene many people

woke up to this morning.

Strong winds causing blizzard

conditions, making driving

treacherous.

In the north-west, snow gates on

the A66 remained closed

between County Durham and Cumbria

and just getting outside the front

door in

Newcastle was no mean feat.

I have been here for

a good hour and I have

done about a quarter of this road.

I'm making headway.

There were severe delays

at Newbury as trains

were stopped in their tracks.

Railway stations across the country

have also seen delays and

cancellations.

In Gloucester, sporting

fixtures like the

Anglo-Welsh Cup Final had to be

called off for snow-stopped play.

And as the heavier snowfall

hit the South West,

Bristol Airport stopped flights,

with Exeter airport

cancelling flights for

the rest of the day.

The snow showed no sign of giving up

in Devon and neither did

those trying to keep traffic moving.

While snowploughs and gritters

cleared major roads, some drivers

got stuck.

And there were problems on the M5

and A roads, with motorists

seemingly ignoring repeated appeals

not to go out unless it was

essential.

When people ignore those warnings it

does get frustrating

because the already stretched

resources that us and our partner

agencies have just become even more

stretched to rescue people, to

recover people who really have no

reason to be out at all in this

weather.

It wasn't all doom and gloom

as the so-called Mini Beast

from the East swept through.

Another snow day -

play-day beckoned.

There is an amber warning

in place across the

south-west until the early hours

of tomorrow morning.

With ice being a major risk.

The amber warning is still in place

and it is still snowing and the

prospect of more snow and ice

overnight. The emergency services

say, please listen to the advice,

check travel arrangements in the

morning to check you can get to

where you need to go to safely, if

you need to get there at all. If you

have children of school age, you

might want to check that the school

is actually open. Hundreds of

schools across Devon and parts of

Wales have already said they are not

opening tomorrow so for some people

this is another snow day. Sarah

Ransome, thank you.

In Syria, President Bashar al Assad

visited Eastern Ghouta, a former

rebel-held area near Damascus.

Syrian state television showed

the president surrounded by soldiers

and civilians there,

after a month-long

government bombardment.

Syrian forces are now

thought to control some

80% of Eastern Ghouta,

with thousands more civilians

fleeing the area today.

Facebook has announced

an investigation into

whether the personal details

of 50 million of its users

have been compromised.

It's already suspended the data firm

Cambridge Analytica -

known for its work on Donald Trump's

election campaign -

after reports that it

inappropriately obtained user data.

Both companies deny any wrong-doing.

Live now to New York

and our media editor, Amol Rajan.

The revelation that tens of millions

of Facebook users have had personal

data harvested in this way has

caused dismay on both sides of the

Atlantic and might have indications.

Facebook and Cambridge Analytica

deny any wrongdoing and say they

have not broken the law. It could be

the fact they have not broken the

law that causes alarm because are at

least three layers to this. Who knew

what and when? The Cambridge

Analytica whistle-blower has given

an account of what happened which is

blatant inconsistencies with the

account given by Cambridge Analytica

and Facebook so we need to work out

what happened. Secondly, public

safety. We live in an era where are

few super firms have become

incredibly wealthy by amassing

personal data and consumers need to

wise up to the fact that every time

they go online to leave a digital

footprint and companies and

governments can use that data to do

things they may not like. Thirdly,

the politics. We have two regulators

in Britain think that whether

Cambridge Analytica was involved in

the Brexit referendum, the EU

referendum. In America there are

questions about their role in the

election of Donald Trump and if

proven, as Cambridge Analytica

claim, that they used psychological

profiling to target and influence

voters, if that is the case, perhaps

the fragility of western democracy

owes at least as much to our own

online habits as off-line.

Thank

you.

With all the sport,

here's Karthi Gnanasegaram

at the BBC Sport Centre.

Good evening, Mishal.

The FA Cup semi-finals will see

Manchester United host Tottenham,

while Chelsea face Southampton

at Stamford Bridge.

Both games will take place at

Wembley.

The draw for the final four

was made after Chelsea

beat Leicester City 2-1,

while Southampton knocked League One

side, Wigan Athletic,

out of the competition.

Holly Hamilton reports.

For Antonio Conte the FA Cup is not

always been a priority but out of

Europe and outside the Premier

League top four, some silverware

would be a Silva lining. Chelsea

took the lead just before half-time,

all borrowed frantic claiming his

first goal of 2018. After the break

Leicester went in search of the

equaliser, but Jamie Vardy

eventually find the back of the net.

Extra time and as the mercury

dropped, temperatures Rose, a

questionable decision by Kasper

Schmeichel gifted page of the empty

net and Chelsea a place in the

semifinals. In making the first test

for the new Southampton manager Mark

Hughes and while it was one whose

side who dominated the first half,

the visitors eventually capitalised

on their chances. With clock

ticking, Cedric made sure. Doubling

the lead and ceiling Southampton's

first FA Cup semifinal in 15 years.

Great Britain has won its first

and only gold medal

of the Winter Paralympics

on the final day of the Games.

Menna Fitzpatrick and her guide,

Jen Keyhoe, claimed

the visually impaired slalom gold,

which means the ParalympicsGB team

has met its medal target.

Kate Grey reports from Pyeongchang.

Kate Grey reports from Pyeongchang.

It was the golden moment

they'd been waiting for.

Menna Fitzpatrick and her guide,

Jen Kehoe, saved their best till

last to win gold in the slalom

on the final day of these Games.

The pair were in silver medal

position going into their second run

and displayed a perfect performance.

The time was unbeatable.

Watch the clock!

She's in front!

Their fourth medal here

in Pyeongchang, to become Britain's

most successful winter Paralympians.

It's astonishing the way this week

has gone, from quite

low to extremely high.

There was further success

as Millie Knight and her guide

Brett Wild managed to sneak

the bronze in the same race,

meaning that ParalympicsGB have

reached their target of seven

medals, but all dependent on one

sport, one classification

and a small number of athletes.

The Games came to a fitting close,

Britain's golden girls

And the international Paralympic

committee could celebrate with more

nations taking part than ever before

and a record number of tickets sold.

They now call these Games the

greatest Winter Paralympics to date.

Kate Grey, BBC News, John Chiang. --

John Chiang.

In the last few minutes,

Rory McIlroy has won

the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

It's the former world number one's

first title since 2016.

McIlroy won the tournament

in Florida by three strokes,

with a final round of 64.

The Masters, the only Major

that McIlroy hasn't won,

is less than three weeks away.

Details of the rest of the day's

sport is on the BBC website,

including Celtic's goalless draw

with Motherwell and Chelsea's

progression to the semi-finals

of the Women's FA Cup.

Mishal.

An art and textiles teacher

from London has won a million dollar

prize recognising an outstanding

contribution to the

teaching profession.

Andria Zafirakou works in a school

with a high proportion

of disadvantaged pupils and won

the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher

Prize at a ceremony in Dubai.

Sean Coughlan was watching.

Shush.

A big secret.

Who is the world's best teacher?

Andria Zafirakou.

An arts and textiles teacher

from a secondary school

in Brent in north London,

Andria Zafirakou found herself

centre stage as the winner

of the global teacher prize.

Good morning, girls.

Working in a deprived

inner-city community,

she was praised for going the extra

mile to build links

between school and parents,

and structuring activities around

students' individual needs.

To all the students all

over the world, I say,

whatever your circumstances,

whatever your troubles, please know

that you have the potential

to succeed in whatever your

dreams may be.

And that is a right that nobody

should take from you.

Andria Zafirakou ending that report

from Sean Coughlan in Dubai.

That's all from me.

Stay with us on BBC One - it's time

for the news where you are.