08/11/2017 Victoria Derbyshire

Hello, it's Wednesday, it's 9am,

I'm Victoria Derbyshire.

Welcome to the programme.

Can the International Development

Secretary hang on to her job? She

has been ordered to fly back from a

trip to Africa to face the music.

Priti Patel didn't tell the Prime

Minister about all the meetings she

had with Israeli officials.

Is it

time the Secretary of State faces a

Cabinet Office investigation or does

the decent thing and just resigns.

We've had exclusive access

to one of the world's

most hidden societies -

the freemasons - famous

Do you use secret hand shakes?

Of

course, we do.

Can you do it with me

now?

No, it's a secret.

What happens

and when do you do it?

It's a

secret.

It is fascinating. We will

find out too if claims and

corruption and collusion amongst the

female Freemasons is true. The

number of homeless people in England

has gone up according to Shelter.

They say there are over 260,000 home

people in this country. That's

around the population of Newcastle.

Hello and welcome to the programme.

We're live until 11am.

Are you officially homeless? You

will know that definition includes

anyone on the streets or in

temporary accommodation? If that's

you, let me know what led to your

homelessness and what is happening

to help you get somewhere permanent?

We will talk about that after 10am.

The International Development

Secretary's future in the Cabinet is

in doubt after details emerged of

further undisclosed meetings she had

with Israeli politicians. It is

believed Priti Patel, who is flying

back from Uganda at the request of

Theresa May, had two more meetings

after she returned from her summer

holiday in Israel, but failed to

tell the Prime Minister about them

when she spoke to Mrs May on Monday.

Norman Smith is at Westminster. So

she will be on a plane shortly. Is

that because Mrs May wants to sack

her to her face?

She is on the plane

now, somewhere over the Sudan. She

caught a flight back from Nairobi a

short time ago at the request of

Downing Street and I think we can

take it from that she will be

summoned into Number Ten to explain

what she didn't tell the Prime

Minister when she was called in for

that face-to-face meeting on Monday

to come clean, to receive that

formal rebuke, reprimand, warning

about her conduct, why at that

meeting she didn't come clean and

tell the Prime Minister all the

different meetings she had with

different Israeli Prime Ministers,

politicians, because it now

transpires there were two further

meetings which she neglected to tell

Mrs May about. At both those

meetings, there were no other

government officials there as they

normally are, at both those

meetings, The President of the

conservative Friends of Israel was

also there and they were not

recorded and reported in the normal

way. Highly, highly unusual

behaviour which she didn't tell the

Prime Minister about. More than

that, she didn't tell the Prime

Minister also that she had asked her

department to look into providing

tax payers cash to go to the Israeli

army on the occupied October Golan

Heights. She misled the Prime

Minister and more than that, she

misled Parliament because her number

two had to go to the Commons

yesterday to explain she had been up

to and he wasn't in the loop with

her ties with Israeli politicians.

The expectation is she will get into

London at 3pm. And she will be

hauled in front of the Prime

Minister and asked to give her

version of events and then she will

be sacked.

Go that does happen, and

Mrs May ends up losing her

International Development Secretary,

a week after her Defence Secretary

resigned. What does it mean for Mrs

May's government?

It is bad, bad,

bad, but it could be worse. Yes, of

course losing a second minister in

less than a week is a nightmare. You

also do not want someone like Priti

Patel, highly ambitious leading face

of Brexit on the backbenches

breathing down your neck, but look

at it this, what if Mrs May bottled

and decided to turn the other cheek

and not boot her out of the Cabinet,

how weak would that look and in a

way, the Prime Minister has no other

options. Priti Patel has already had

to issue in inverted commas

clarifications. She has already had

to apologise. She has already

received a formal rep pra manned

from the Prime Minister. What more

can Mrs May do but sack her. Yes,

it's bad, but believe you me t could

possibly be even worse if she did

nothing.

Thank you, Norman. Thank you very

much.

More reaction on that story at

9.15am.

Annita McVeigh is in the BBC

Newsroom with a summary

of the rest of the day's news.

Donald Trump has arrived in Beijing

as he continues his tour of Asia.

The American President took a tour

of the Forbidden City

in the capital alongside his Chinese

counterpart, Xi Jinping.

Mr Trump is expected to ask China

to cut its financial

links with North Korea.

Speaking in South Korea earlier,

Mr Trump urged all countries to join

forces to isolate Pyongyang,

saying the world could not tolerate

a rogue nation that threatened

nuclear devastation.

The weapons you are acquiring are

not making you safer. They are

putting your regime in grave danger.

Every step you take down this dark

path, increases the peril you face.

Yet despite every crime you have

committed against god and man, you

are already to offer and we will do

that. We will offer a path to a much

better future.

Our China Correspondent,

Stephen McDonnell, is in Beijing.

What sort of hearing are the Chinese

likely to give to that request from

President Trump that they cut their

financial ties with North Korea?

Well, I'm standing outside the

Forbidden City where Donald Trump

and Xi Jinping and their wives met

and had a cup of tea and an informal

chat. N sure if they have had this

difficult conversation. As to what

the Chinese will say to Donald

Trump. There is a difference of

view, Donald Trump said that he has

called on Russia and China to fully

implement the UN sanctions against

North Korea. China says well, we are

already doing that. Donald Trump

said this morning, he rhetorically

asked the question, why would China

be supporting the regime in North

Korea, given its horrendous Human

Rights record and its nuclear

weapons programme. Again, the

Chinese would say, we are doing more

than anyone else is to try and

pressure North Korea to come to the

table. But really the challenge for

both of them is to come up with

something that will further this

process because North Korea is

showing no inclination whatsoever

that it is prepared to talk about

giving up nuclear weapons. It wants

the world to accept it as a nuclear

weapons nation and Vladimir Putin

said the North Koreans would rather

eat grass than give up their nuclear

weapons. So possibly, if he's right,

it doesn't matter how much pressure,

China, the US, South Korea, Japan

can bring to bear on North Korea,

they won't give up their nuclear

weapons, we will have to see if

Donald Trump and his Chinese

counterpart, Xi Jinping, can come up

with anything which might move this

along.

Stephen, thank you very much.

The Prince of Wales has been

criticised for failing to disclose

an investment by his private estate

in an offshore company.

The revelations come from a number

of leaked documents about tax havens

known as the Paradise Papers.

It's the second time

this week that a member

of the Royal Family has been named.

Andy Verity reports.

Prince Charles has campaigned

on the environment for decades

and especially for the rainforest.

Today, he is due to arrive in India,

after flying from Malaysia,

as criticism grew at home

of his failure to disclose

a secret financial stake

in a company in Bermuda.

On the right here is the late

Hugh van Cutsem, one

of the Prince's oldest friends.

He was a director of Sustainable

Forestry Management Limited,

a firm that managed tropical

rainforests, registered in Bermuda.

The company wanted to trade

in carbon credits, but tropical

rainforests weren't included

in carbon credit trading schemes

so it needed the rules changed.

In February 2007, the Duchy bought

50 shares in van Cutsem's

company worth $113,500.

At that time, SFM's directors

agreed to keep the Duchy's

shares confidential.

Mr van Cutsem asked for lobbying

documents to be sent to the Prince's

office and soon the Prince

was making speeches campaigning

for changes to two international

agreements on carbon credits.

In June 2008, the Duchy

sold its shares for $325,000,

a profit of more than $200,000.

Well, I think it's

a serious conflict.

There's a conflict of interest

between his own investments

of the Duchy of Cornwall

and what he's trying

to achieve publicly.

Clarence House said,

"The Prince does not have

any direct involvement

in the investment decisions taken

by the Duchy and he has certainly

never chosen to speak out on a topic

simply because of a company that it

may have invested in."

There's no suggestion of illegality,

nor that Prince Charles's

campaigning caused the share price

of his friend's company to rise.

Nor is it suggested that the Duchy

was seeking to avoid tax.

The First Minister of Wales,

Carwyn Jones, is under pressure

to give details about his decision

to sack Carl Sargeant

a member of his Cabinet

who was found dead yesterday.

He told Mr Sargeant

to leave his post last week

because of unspecified allegations

about his behaviour.

One Labour member of

the Welsh Assembly said

there was "deep

unease" in the group.

Thousands of people with the most

advanced cancers in England are now

surviving for several years

after diagnosis,

according to new research.

MacMillan Cancer Support said this

is down to the success

of new treatments but it warned

living longer with advanced cancer

can bring its own difficulties.

Our Health Correspondent

Sophie Hutchinson reports.

Carol Fenton has lived

with stage four breast cancer

for the past two years.

The tumour has spread from where it

started to another organ.

She says living with this level

of disease has meant

a lot of uncertainty.

The breast cancer has

actually spread to my spine,

my right and left hip and also

in my liver.

And it's incredibly devastating

to hear that when, you know,

I was doing so well.

Today, the charity MacMillan Cancer

Support says thousands of people

are now living longer

with advanced cancer.

Figures from England's National

Cancer Register from 2015 suggest

at least 17,000 people survived

for two years or more

after a stage four diagnosis.

They include people with breast,

prostate, lung and bowel cancer.

The charity says it's the first time

survival figures for advanced cancer

have been publicly available

and shows the impact of improved

treatments for patients.

I am taking oral chemotherapy.

I'm on my third range of treatment.

There has been some progression

in that two and a half years

but my scans have been

stable since January.

I've been on the same

treatment since January,

which is incredibly good news.

Today's report is calling for better

support and care for people

like Carol so that they can live

as long as possible and as well as

possible with the disease.

The head of NHS England will warn

today that the public wants to see

promises on NHS funding

made during the EU

referendum campaign

honoured by the government.

Simon Stevens will tell a health

conference that trust

in the democratic process will be

weakened, if higher

funding is not delivered.

Five rail operators are facing

disruption due to strike action

by the Rail, Maritime

and Transport union.

Workers on Southern, Greater Anglia

and South Western Railway

are striking for 48 hours,

while staff on Merseyrail

and Northern have walked

out for 24 hours.

The union is in dispute over

driver-only operated trains.

Sheep might not have the reputation

for being the cleverest of animals,

but new research shows they can

learn to recognise human faces.

A group of Welsh Mountain sheep

had special training

after which they could pick out

the faces of celebrities actors

Jake Gyllenhaal and Emma Watson

and former US President Barack

Obama.

They were tested to see if they

could identify the famous faces

among other photos.

Researchers say it shows sheep

possess similar face recognition

abilities to primates.

Andy Murray and his wife, Kim, have

announced the birth of their second

child. The couple gave birth to a

baby girl.

If you wonder why Fiona Bruce's name

is on Twitter, it is because the

sheep were trying to recognise her

as well!

Norman Smith told us that Priti

Patel is on a plane back to the UK

now. She didn't tell the Prime

Minister how many meetings she had

with Israeli politicians. What

should happen to her? Should she be

sacked? What does it mean for

Theresa May's government? If you are

getting in touch, you're welcome.

Do get in touch with us

throughout the morning -

use the hashtag Victoria LIVE

and if you text, you will be charged

at the standard network rate.

Let's get some sport

with Katherine Downes.

Andy Murray has made

a return to tennis.

First a new baby daughter and then

the return to court. We haven't seen

him since Wimbledon in July and then

he pulled out of the US Open two

days before the tournament was

supposed to start. So we haven't

seen him play since July. He had an

operation on his hip and he has been

gradually coming back to fitness

looking perhaps for a return to

competitive tennis at the start of

next year with an eye on the

Australian Open in January. This is

what he had to say about his return.

I'm in a significantly better place

than I was, you know,

in the build-up to the US Open.

And certainly at the end

of Wimbledon, you know,

I was really struggling there.

Walking was, you know,

a big problem for me, you know.

So I just try to get

myself back to 100%.

Yesterday he was playing in an

exhibition match against Roger

Federer. Roger Federer missed big

chunks of the year as well but went

on to win the Australian open and

Wimbledon by picking when he

returned to action. This was

Federer's first visit to Scotland

and they had a bit of fun with it.

Andy Murray wearing a Scottish hat

and Roger Federer putting a kilt

and!

Good to see Andy Murray back on

court. As he said, it's not about

being world number one any more.

He's dropped out of the top ten for

the first time in three years. He

said afterwards I just want to play

tennis again, it's my life and my

job.

What's going on with Tyson Fury

and the UK anti-doping agency?

The

UK anti-doping agency are a bit

worried they are facing insolvency

over a legal battle they've got

going on with the former heavyweight

champion Tyson Fury. He tested

positive for steroids in June last

year. Part of his defence was that

he ate uncastrated wild boar which

has high levels of testosterone in

it. This case has rumbled on to the

point where Tyson Fury hasn't fought

the two years. The agency are

worried that if he wins the appeal

he may sue them for loss of

earnings. The UK anti-doping agency

have an annual budget of £8 million,

so it would be financially a bit

difficult for them if they were to

be sued by Tyson Fury. However,

they've said they don't want to

pursue this case because it sends

out the wrong message if they drop

it -- they said they do want to

pursue this case because the

integrity of the sport is as

important. Also it sends a message

to sports stars that if they carry

on with long protracted legal

proceedings they'll be able to deep

the doping system anyway.

Can the International

Development Secretary survive?

It doesn't look likely -

she's been ordered this morning

to fly back from a trip to Uganda.

It was bad enough that she met her

boss the PM on Monday to apologise

for arranging and holding 12 secret

meetings with Israeli politicians

on a "family holiday" in the summer

without telling anyone in advance.

She apologised to Mrs May

for that earlier this week,

but it's now emerged she failed

to tell Mrs May about two further

meetings with Israeli officials that

took place in September.

With me is Crispin Blunt,

Conservative MP and former chair

of the Foreign Affairs

Select Committee.

Also joining us is Sir Desmond

Swayne, former Minister of State

for International Development under

Prime Minister David Cameron.

And Labour's Jon Trickett,

Shadow Cabinet Office Minister.

Good morning gentlemen. Crispin

Blunt, she has misled her boss, she

can't be trusted, doesn't she

deserved to lose her job?

That's

going to be for the Prime Minister

to decide and she'll have a full

picture.

What do you think?

She will

know who said what to who.

She

didn't on Monday, did she?

I don't

know whether that was correct, so it

will have to be a matter for the

Prime Minister, who will hopefully

have people picture as to what she

said and whether the apology...

It

doesn't look good, does it?

And

whether the apology she made

yesterday cuts it for her. No, it

doesn't look good and if she is

flying back from a ministerial visit

then plainly something is up. Laura

Kuenssberg has drawn the conclusion

that sometime this morning she may

be out of a job. It's up for the

Prime Minister to decide and time

will tell.

You're a former

international development minister.

Can you imagine you're then

International Development Secretary

holding secret meetings, so many

secret meetings, with officials from

another country including the Prime

Minister of another country, and not

telling anyone? Then when you were

challenged, not telling the Prime

Minister the full story?

Clearly

there weren't secret meetings

because they aren't secret.

Not now.

What has happened with respect to

the meetings that took place in

Israel, that has already been the

subject of a clear reprimand from

the Prime Minister. I'll confine

myself to these additional meetings

in September. All I can say is that

that is part of the routine business

of any department of state, and

particularly the Department for

International Development. I

conducted meetings with ministers

and officials from other countries

all the time, but I would not have

expected to have been reported to

Number 10. Of course they wouldn't

all have been properly recorded and

subject to any kind of search public

records.

If you found yourself in a

conversation with your ultimate

boss, the Prime Minister, having to

explain why you hadn't informed the

Foreign Office about meeting the

Israeli Prime Minister, at that

point might you think it would be

wise to mention a couple of further

meetings that happened in September?

You're asking me to speculate about

the nature of a meeting that I

wasn't at.

I'm asking you to tell me

what you would have done.

That

sounds entirely plausible the way

you put it. But I wasn't at that

meeting, and I'm not able to save

whether it would have been

appropriate to mention by the way I

met another minister on the 20th of

February or whatever it is. Of

course it's entirely plausible that

an opportunity may have arisen and

she ought to have used it, but

equally, given the nature of that

meeting that none of us were at, we

aren't in a position to say whether

or not it was appropriate. Only the

Prime Minister can make that

judgment and I'm sure she will.

What

do you think should happen?

You've

got a minister who has engaged in a

series of activities and attempted

to engage in a cover-up. She didn't

tell the Prime Minister of those

meetings, she had no civil servants

with her but a lobbyist. The two

meetings you've just heard Sir

Desmond referring to, actually her

department refused to set those

meetings up as far as we can tell.

She then used her own constituency

office as a way of getting around

the civil service. The point is

this, the Middle East is a very,

very delicate area. You cannot have

a cabinet minister who is not the

Foreign Secretary effectively

running her own foreign policy.

What

should happen to her?

She's clearly

broken the code of conduct.

What

should happen?

There's a code of

conduct, she broke it. I wrote to

the Prime Minister, I wrote again

yesterday. She should be sacked.

Crispin Blunt, the accusation is

that Priti Patel was running her own

foreign policy and also trying to

bolster support for any future

leadership campaign.

We are

extending things a bit there with

that last remark. She's always been

a strong supporter of Israel, and

she was on holiday in Israel and

decided with the support of Lord

Polak the president of the

conservative friends of Israel to

set up this series of meetings,

because they have these good

contacts. That would have been fine,

had the rest of the government known

about it and she could have been

briefed what line to take on those

meetings.

No Foreign Office

officials were present, no minutes

were taken.

All of that was in

process run, in principle wrong and

she has apologised for it. There is

an important duty on her coming into

this issue with Apus -- with a

perceived perspective that she

understands the Palestinian

perspective in the Israel Palestine

conflict. I chaired the Middle East

Council for five years and I took a

huge amount of trouble to make clear

that I understand the Israeli

perspective. Just so you can't be

charged you are unbalanced on the

issue. She and other ministers who

have done exactly this, no one would

accuse...

Sir Desmond, if Mrs May

does sack Priti Patel, what does

that mean for the stability of this

Conservative government?

I heard the

report from your commentator earlier

about the hyperbole. Actually I

don't think it makes a great deal of

difference.

You don't think it's

unusual that within a week

potentially two Cabinet ministers

are out of a job?

There are 22

Cabinet ministers and there are

plenty of people who can step into

their shoes. It will not be a huge

destabilisation. Of course it's

unwelcome, but it's not the

catastrophe that some commentators

who spend little time thinking of

little else would have us believe.

Crispin Blunt, can I ask you what to

think about Priti Patel

commissioning her department to use

taxpayers money to help potentially

be humanitarian work of the Israeli

army, which Alistair Burt said to

MPs yesterday have been ruled out

immediately by the Foreign Office

has not appropriate?

Because plainly

it should have made some sense to

her that commissioning work by the

Israeli defence Force in occupied

territory that we don't recognise

should have been a no-no. The task

that she was examining was

assistance to Syrian refugees being

given by the state of Israel, which

is obviously something humanitarians

would want to support. It's not as

black and white as it would seem but

it should have been black and

white...

What do you think of her

doing that?

She commissioned the

advice, she got the advice and it's

not happening. She is entitled to

ask questions and explore

possibilities. That's what you would

expect a minister to be doing.

Really? Commissioned some work to

see if British taxpayers money would

be sent to the Israeli army?

It's

not a straightforward as that. It

was money to support the medical

treatment of Syrian refugees who

were then coming over the border and

being dealt with...

By the Israeli

army

in that territory.

In disputed

territory.

The issue was that she

was considering was the humanitarian

one. Plainly, an imminent's

reflection and a consultation with

the Foreign Office about our policy

towards that, it wasn't appropriate.

So the internal discussions within

the government would reveal that and

a decision was made.

Shouldn't she

have known that? Come on. You're

being very kind to her.

That is

where she is in trouble because

she's not demonstrated that she's

got a real grip on the whole history

of the Israel Palestine conflict.

When you get into foreign policy

issues such as this, or Kashmir

where things are very delicate

between the competing parties, you

have to be very careful if you

appeared to take one side of an

argument, where Britain has a long

developed policy position as we do

on the occupied territories.

Sir

Desmond, what do you think of that,

commissioning the department to see

of money could be sent to the

Israeli army for their humanitarian

work in disputed territory?

I think

it would have been a short piece of

work before it emerged...

And asking

about the act of even asking for

work to be done.

I think it's proper

to ask questions and think

laterally. I did think it would have

taken long to come up with the

answer that that wasn't a proper way

to use taxpayers money.

Jon

Trickett, your take on that?

She's

had a series of meetings kept secret

from the Prime Minister, not told

the full picture of when she's met

the Prime Minister, and then she's

asked the Department to effectively

explore giving money, our money, to

the Israeli army. It's

extraordinary. The Prime Minister

found out about it by listening to

the radio. Come off it, this is an

outrageous set of actions. It's very

disturbing to the Middle East peace

process to even think that the

British government might do that.

It's why, frankly, you have to have

civil servants with you when you're

a senior minister meeting members of

the country's governments. She has

to go.

Thank you.

Your reaction is welcome. You can

send us an e-mail or message us on

twitter.

Still to come:

The secret ceremonies and rituals

of Female Freemasons -

we get unique access.

It is fascinating.

And yet more revelations

from the leaked Paradise Papers

which show the tax arrangements

of the rich and powerful -

this time the spotlight

is on Prince Charles.

Time for the latest

news, here's Annita.

The International Development

Secretary, Priti Patel,

is flying back to Britain

from Africa at the request

of Theresa May amid growing

speculation about her future

in the government.

She had already been forced

to apologise for a series

of unauthorised meetings

while on a family holiday in Israel.

It has now emerged she had further

talks which she failed to disclose

to the Prime Minister.

Donald Trump has arrived in Beijing

as he continues his tour of Asia.

The American President took a tour

of the Forbidden City

in the capital, alongside his

Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

Mr Trump is expected to ask China

to cut its financial

links with North Korea.

Speaking in South Korea earlier,

Mr Trump urged all countries to join

forces to isolate Pyongyang,

saying the world could not tolerate

a rogue nation that threatened

nuclear devastation.

The head of NHS England will warn

today that the public wants to see

promises on NHS funding,

made during the EU

referendum campaign,

honoured by the government.

Simon Stevens will tell a health

conference that trust

in the democratic process will be

weakened, if higher

funding is not delivered.

The Prince of Wales has been

criticised for failing to disclose

an investment by his private estate

in an off-shore company. The

revelations come in a number of

leaked documents known as the

Paradise Papers. It is the second

time this week a member of the Royal

Family has been named.

Sky said it will consider closing

Sky News if it becomes a stumbling

block in its proposed merger with

21st Century Fox.

Thousands of people with the most

advanced cancers in England are

surviving longer after diagnosis.

Macmillan cancer said it was due to

the success of new treatments, but

it warned that living longer with

advanced cancers brings its own

difficulties. And that's a summary

of the latest BBC News.

If you want to find out more about

people living with advanced cancer,

there is more on our website. It is

really, really interesting.

Here's some sport now

with Katherine Downes.

It has been a busy 24

hours for Andy Murray -

welcoming his second

daughter with his wife Kim -

and making a return to court to play

an exhibition match

against Roger Federer -

its the first time he's played

in public since Wimbledon in July.

The UK Anti-Doping Agency say

they're worried an ongoing case

against Tyson Fury -

he tested positive for a banned

steroid last June -

and UKAD say if he sues them

for loss of earnings,

they will be bankrupt.

They're believed to have

asked the Government

to underwrite the case.

England's women are gearing up

for their must-win Ashes Test

which starts tomorrow -

while Mark Stoneman and Joe Root

have both scored half centuries

in one of the men's two warm up

matches before their series starts

at the end of the month.

I will will have more at 10am.

When many of us think of freemasons

we think of secret handshakes

and rolled-up trouser legs.

In a UK first this programme has

been given access to see exactly

what goes on behind the scenes

in the initiations,

ceremonies and rituals.

But not with the male freemasons

you might be familiar with,

we've had exclusive access to two

female fraternities.

Claire Jones has this

exclusive report.

They are one of the most secretive

organisations in the world.

There are certain secrets

that you have to earn.

PIANO MUSIC.

Famous for unexplained rituals.

Where were you first

prepared to be a Freemason?

In my heart.

Describe the mode

of your preparation.

My right arm, left breast...

There has been this notion

that we somehow use

goats in our rituals,

because we are somehow Satanic.

And they face regular

accusations of corruption.

There are people who are

genuinely afraid to declare

that they are Freemasons.

There are no more corrupt

than anybody else.

They are no more corrupt

than anybody else.

Whenever anything bad happens,

there are a whole horde of people

who are digging to see

whether freemasonry was involved.

All the men in my

family are Freemasons.

I'm the only girl

to go into masonry.

If a man can go in, so can I.

For the first time, we've been

given access inside this

highly secretive society,

to find out the truth

behind the intrigue.

We have nothing to

hide that's sinister.

We aren't trying to take over

the world come despite all these

conspiracy theorists.

THEY SING.

The Freemasons are a secretive

society that practice

rituals in a temple

and promote brotherly love.

Although they've always been

associated with men,

we've gained access to the two

female Freemason groups in the UK,

the Order of Women Freemasons

and the Honourable Fraternity

of Ancient Freemasons.

This looks like any other leafy

street in central London,

but this is the international

headquarters of one of the most

secretive and mysterious

organisations in the world.

For the first time,

they are exclusively

opening their doors to us.

ORGAN MUSIC.

This is the Order

of Women Freemasons.

There's a meeting today

for the quarterly communication

of Grand Lodge, where only members

of a certain rank can attend.

The most Worshipable Grandmaster,

Christine Chapman.

This is the second group we have

been given access to,

The Honourable Fraternity of Ancient

Freemasons.

Right Worshipful Assistant

Grandmaster, whom do you represent?

Prince of Architects,

Most Worshipful Grandmaster.

And your duty?

To lay plans, draw designs,

and assist the Most Worshipful

the Grandmaster in the execution

of her work.

Christine Chapman, a former

book-keeper, is hoping to be

re-elected to the top job

of Grandmaster for

another four years.

The Grandmaster has to lead

and guide the fraternity,

and she has to provide direction.

She is the person with whom the buck

stops if there's any problems.

She takes ultimate responsibility

for everything, and she is

the head of the fraternity.

The Female Freemasons

were formed in 1908.

Their male counterparts have been

meeting for at least 300 years.

Their practices involve

secret handshakes, rolling

up their trouser legs,

wearing blindfolds, and even

nooses around their necks.

They are currently headed up

by the Queen's cousin,

the Duke of Kent.

But Freemasons have been

accused of favouritism,

helping each other rise up

the career ladder and covering up

each other's mistakes.

A Home Affairs committee

have already called

for greater openness...

In 1997, there were calls from

former Home Secretary Jack Straw

for officers and judges to make

voluntary disclosures

about their membership.

By 2009, he scrapped the role

after the Masons threatened to take

the Government to court.

There are people who are

genuinely afraid to declare

that they are Freemasons

because of the public perception

that that somehow means

they are a corrupt individual

or they are somebody

who is a little bit dodgy

and that's categorically

not the case.

I would say quite

the opposite is true.

Over the years, sort of there has

been a negative reputation that has

been around Freemasonry,

especially around male

Freemasons around corruption

and favours going on,

you scratch my back

and I'll scratch yours.

What would you say to that?

Does that still happen?

I would say that you are

categorically not allowed

to use your member of Freemasonry

for either personal

or financial advantage.

It's very much frowned by us,

it's something we do not tolerate

at all within our organisation.

I've been a Freemason for over 40

years and nobody's ever offered me

a favour and I've never offered

anybody else a favour.

You hear the stories, certainly.

I've never come across it

in Freemasonry at all.

We've had the odd person that we've

had to ask leave us.

Since I've been Grand Master, only

one person, where their behaviour

was not suitable for a Freemason.

So what did they do

for their behaviour not to be...

They were convicted

in court of a criminal act.

Many people associate

Freemasonry with mystery.

Why do you think that is?

If it were written out

and publicised for everybody

to read, there would be no point

in anybody joining it

because there would be nothing

special left for them to discover.

You say it's to ensure

that it feels special

but people could see that

as there being something to hide.

No, that is the problem.

But we have nothing

to hide that is sinister.

We are not trying to take over

the world, despite all these

conspiracy theories on the Internet.

We are not trying to

overthrow the Government

or anything like that.

Do you think if it comes down to it

that it might be better to remove

that element of surprise?

No, I don't think so.

Even if it might mean a bad

reputation for Freemasonry.

We need to preserve an element

of secrecy for that reason only

because that's what's

made it special.

Has Freemasonry helped your career?

No, I worked in an accounts

department with lots

of bookkeepers and so on.

So no, no chance.

The police in particular have been

heavily linked to Freemasonry.

Is there any truth in police

officers who are Freemasons helping

people get away with crimes?

Not that I've ever seen.

We don't have many police officers

in the order of women Freemasons.

We do have some, I know,

but I've not seen anybody

being helped in that way,

so I can only speak

from a own experience.

Have you heard of Freemasons

doing favours for others?

Yes, I have, in the old days.

Many, many years ago

but that was mainly in the men

and they were rooted out as corrupt.

What sort of favours would they be?

Oh, you would get policemen

who were Freemasons doing

favours for other members.

Because there is obviously this view

that if you scratch my back,

I'll scratch yours.

No, it's not allowed.

It really, really isn't.

It is forbidden in our rituals.

You mustn't do that.

Have you ever heard

of that happening here?

Not in women's Freemasonry, no.

Female Freemasonry began in 1908.

Possessing and working

the same secrets, mysteries

and degrees and rituals.

But the society separated, creating

the two groups that exist today.

We broke away from the main group

in 1913 because of a difference

of opinion and we have stayed

separate ever since.

Although we are now on much

more friendly terms,

in the old days they didn't even

speak to each other.

With an ageing membership, the women

are turning to universities

to bring in younger members.

I can't believe I'm doing

this, I can't believe

the day has finally come.

It's surreal.

After joining the Freemasons

seven years ago, today optician

Roshni Patel will have a ceremony

to mark her reaching

the rank of a master mason.

I actually don't know what happens.

I don't know what will happen.

I know the beginning

of the ceremony, obviously

the end of the ceremony,

but as to me being put

in the chair, I don't know.

That's a secret, that's a mystery.

Despite opening the doors

to allow our cameras, they are not

letting us film everything.

The Order of Women Freemasons have

not allowed us to film

inside Roshni's

ceremony in the temple.

This is our grand temple.

Tonight, where there's

obviously a ceremony that's

going on that we can't get access

to, tell us why you would

want us to see it?

Because you haven't earned it.

Roshni has learned pieces of ritual,

she has worked hard.

She must have been working for five

or six years to achieve

the installation into this chair

and her reward for that is to be

given a beautiful ceremony.

So she will be sitting in this chair

down here at the moment before

she gets to progress up

into that chair.

What does one need to do

to prove themselves?

Each degree is like a little play

and it's all learned

by heart and recited,

so you have to learn your part

in it and do it well,

come to every meeting,

be there and be part

of the team and do your part

and if you are good then you get

moved onto the next step up.

In the lodge that's meeting tonight,

they will have a first degree,

a second degree and a third degree

and a ceremony of installation,

so that's four rituals.

And then you can go on to other

degrees, 33 in all,

if you keep going to the very top.

At the Honourable Fraternity

of Ancient Freemasons,

DeLaza is about to pass on to

another ranking society

called the second degree.

I'm feeling very happy,

I'm feeling confident.

I am excited, I am not nervous.

I am happy.

You will be hearing the questions

and answers shortly.

Now, that I would say

is the most secret thing that

happens in our fraternity.

Brethren...

But we are not allowed

to see everything.

We have got strict instructions

on what we can and can't film.

DeLaza is being asked

a series of questions.

Each answer provides an insight

into this secret organisation.

Where were you first

prepared to be a Freemason?

In my heart.

And where next?

A journey in the lodge.

Describe the method

of your preparation.

Is that what happens

in the initiation?

Yes, it's a symbolic way of getting

someone ready for a degree and it

all has different meanings,

what it represents.

How do you demonstrate proof

of your being a Freemason to others?

By sign, talking.

What would a sign be?

I took that to be maybe a handshake?

No, it's a particular type

of sign which demonstrates

you are one of those degrees

which are described.

And the token is this special

handshake which you would give

to demonstrate that you have

reached that degree.

So do you use secret handshakes?

Yes, absolutely, of course we do.

Can you do it now?

No, it's a secret.

What happens, and

when would you do it?

You would have to join to find out

and then I tell you what about it.

When would you use it?

Within the ceremonies there

are certain methods, yeah, grips.

Yes, they are called grips.

But I wouldn't use it outside

a lodge room, never.

Why not?

It's just not necessary.

This shaking hands,

it's just nonsense.

It's silly.

At the Order of Women's Freemasons,

it's a big moment for Roshni as one

of their youngest members.

We've had the ceremony,

it's almost over, and Roshni

is about to appear as a master

of the lodge.

Congratulations.

Thank you, thank you.

It was a lovely ceremony.

Well done.

I don't know how I feel.

I think I'm in shock.

I think it's a bit

of denial going on.

Thank you.

The whole process of me being put

into the chair, that was,

that was very emotional.

Especially by all my lodge

members, who I really

care about, so, yeah.

At the Honourable Fraternity

of Ancient Freemasons,

there's a problem with the vote.

If somebody had decided

to photocopy it, then it's void.

After fears some of the votes had

been spoiled, they've now been

recounted and the new Grand

is about be announced.

Most worshipful Grand Master, I am

pleased to announce that Eunace,

most worshipful Grand Master,

has been elected as Grand Master.

The result was close

but I eventually came

through and I am now going to be

the next Grand Master, in other

words I'm continuing as Grand Master

for another four years.

Although we were given exclusive

access, we still only gained

a glimpse of the workings

of this secret society.

There was a lot that

was off-limits to us.

Both groups of female Freemasons

dismissed all allegations

of corruption but to shake this

negative reputation and gain more

members, they may need to be more

transparent in future.

If you want to read more, go to the

website where there is more

information there. Is it for you?

Would you like to join? Let me know.

Still to come.

It has been one year since

Donald Trump was elected President

of the United States.

He's currently in China to discuss

North Korea amongst other things.

Polls suggest he has the lowest

approval rating of any

president in over 70 years,

we'll reflect on his year so far.

We'll be talking to some Trump

supporters to see if they are

pleased with what he's achieved in

the last 12 months.

There are more revelations

from the Paradise Papers -

a huge batch of leaked documents

detailing the financial arrangements

of some of world's richest people.

BBC Panorama has revealed that

Prince Charles campaigned to alter

climate-change agreements

without disclosing that his private

estate had a financial interest

in what he was promoting.

The papers show that in 2007

the Duchy of Cornwall secretly

bought shares worth around $113,000

in a Bermuda company that

would benefit from a rule change.

The prince's good friend

was a director of that company

Sustainable Forestry Management

Limited.

The Duchy of Cornwall says

Prince Charles has no direct

involvement in its investments.

Let's talk now to David McClure.

He wrote a book about royal finances

- he's previously reported

on Prince Charles' political

activities and potential

conflicts of interests.

Dame Margaret Hodge MP,

who last night made a speech

in Parliament calling for action

from the government

on tax avoidance.

And Sir Alistair Graham, the former

chairman and the committee for

standards in Public life. That

defence from Clarence how's that

Prince Charles has no direct

involvement in investments, do you

buy it?

The governance of the Duchy

of Cornwall is that the Prince does

have hands on involvement in it. But

what does that mean? Maybe he didn't

have direct involvement in the

choice of investments, but he set

the overall pattern. The pattern of

the journey, really.

Is it

interesting to you that one of

Prince Charles' closest friends who

runs this company suddenly gets

$100,000 investment from the Duchy

of Cornwall and then sends him

papers about carbon trading

arrangements?

Yes, it is interesting

in that Prince Charles didn't make

any public speeches about amending

the protocol of another climate

change agreement until after the

investment had been made, prompted

on the recommendation of his close

friend.

Does that damage him? Does

it damage the Queen?

It raises a

question about the link between

investment and the activities. My

concern is, if a member of the Royal

family wishes to lobby for change in

public policy, then I think they

should apply the rules that apply to

all other public officials, that

they have to declare any financial

interest in the area that they are

seeking to achieve a change.

Margaret Hodge, what do you think?

I

don't think Prince Charles

deliberately set out to do anything

wrong.

Is it a coincidence that his

close friend gets this investment?

What we should do to put things

right...

I will ask you that but do

you think it is a coincidence or is

there something more to it?

We don't

know but if we had greater

transparency about the affairs of

the Duchy of Cornwall, which we ask

for when we looked at these affairs

when I chaired the Public Accounts

Committee, so we knew exactly where

the investments went, if we had

clarity but the Prince actually

didn't get involved, he stayed away

from any decision around those

investments, and if Treasury did the

job they are supposed to do which is

to monitor what happens in the Duchy

of Cornwall, to defend the public

interest, then I don't think we

would have this embarrassing

conversation today on the

television, which I think brings

questions over a valued and highly

respected and much loved

institution.

If Margaret gave a

speech in Parliament about a certain

subject in which she shared a

financial interest, she would have

to declare an interest. When Prince

Charles makes a variety of speech is

an ecological issues while at the

same time he has had a shareholding

in companies, we know nothing about

it. Maybe it is totally innocuous

what has happened but it would be

far better if he registered all his

interests. What is he hiding?

Either

there is a conflict of interest or

he was careless?

He shouldn't really

get involved in decisions around

where his investments are. Both in

relation to this and in relation to

the story about the Queen, I think

the fact advisers felt they could

invest money in offshore tax havens

where there are questions about why

are you hiding your money and are

you avoiding tax, and perhaps also

in questionable companies,

demonstrates the extent to which the

whole way in which very rich people,

very big corporations, very powerful

institutions, feel that they can use

tax havens and that there should be

no question about it. That's really

scary. It's really ingrained in the

establishment of our society.

You

said that last night to Parliament.

He said it's the establishment norm

now for the rich and powerful. I

have to ask you, is that not what

your family did in the tax haven of

dine?

Quite rightly you ask me the

question but that was my father. It

was when he came out of Germany and

escaped... Well, he was a German

refugee. I think it was wrong and

the moment we discovered it, we

stopped it. But that... I can't be

held responsible for my father 's

actions which I would not have done.

That is absolutely fair but you want

transparency. When you've benefited

from the foundation based in that

tax haven, should you not have been

transparent and told people about

how much was there?

The moment we

uncovered it we closed it down...

When you are challenged you were

transparent.

I was, yes.

But you

hadn't been before that.

I've always

been completely transparent about

all my affairs.

You want a public

register of beneficial ownership.

What with that achieve? Explain why

that would deter tax evasion, tax

avoidance etc.

It's not a silver

bullet but it's one of a number of

actions I think we could take

immediately, which would deal with a

lot of the way in which people hide

their world, avoid tax and do worse

things than that. Launder money,

engage in crime and in bribery and

things like that. At the moment, a

lot of British Overseas Territories

and Crown dependencies, many of them

are tax havens. If we could open up

and have public registers of who

owns what where, you would

immediately at a stroke stop a lot

of the attempts that people have

tied their money and to avoid tax. I

would do that together with other

actions. I would toughen up our

regulatory authorities, so they

really go after people. Opening all

of this up to public account, that

immediately stops bad behaviour, it

stops people doing things wrong.

Another thing, there are many more

eyes looking at what's happening. At

the moment, where there are secret

registers of ownership, its only if

you are alerted to something that

you might start investigating it. We

have such poor resource think of

institutions like HMRC that very

often people get away with it.

Do

you think that opening up would make

a difference, would change people's

behaviour? A lot of what we've seen

is not legal after all.

Know but I

think increased transparency would

be a significant step forward. I

agree with the general approach of

Margaret Hodge on this matter. But

I'll sit think individuals have to

take responsibility for their own

standards in these matters. I still

think we expect members of the Royal

family to have the highest possible

standards, and I'm sure on most

occasions they do. It's unfortunate

that on this particular occasion

when there was a change of public

policy being sought, which would

have benefited this particular

investment offshore, then we should

expect any member of the Royal

family to declare their interest.

And if they don't know about their

interests, that they checked before

they made public statements.

When it

comes to Caribbean tax havens, maybe

some light is the best disinfectant.

Thank you. -- sunlight.

Let's get the latest weather update.

Let's get the latest weather update.

Good morning. It's been a cold start

to the day. It is still cold, we've

got freezing fog around Manchester

Airport for example. That is

dragging its heels in terms of

clearance and we've got thicker

cloud and patchy rain across East

Anglia and the south-east. That will

be eroded from the West during the

day. Many of us having a dry day

with sunny spells. Wet and windy

conditions coming in across the

north-west. The strongest winds

across the far north of Scotland and

the Northern Isles. Through the

evening and overnight, the band of

rain pushing south, turning lighter

in nature as it does so. We'll see

some frost in the Glens of Scotland

and it will be called to start the

day tomorrow in the far south-east.

Then the weather front trundles

down, clearing the south-east,

leaving some residual cloud in its

wake. It will brighten up behind it

from the North with a fair bit of

sunshine. Showers across northern

Scotland and highs above average for

the time of year.

Hello, it's Wednesday, it's 10am,

I'm Victoria Derbyshire.

Can the International Development

Sec hang onto her job?

She's currently flying back

from a trip to Africa to face

the music after the BBC revealed

Priti Patel didn't tell

the Prime Minister Theresa May

about all the secret meetings she'd

had with Israeli politicians.

Some are calling

for her to step down.

It is extraordinary and the Prime

Minister found out about it by

listening to the radio. It is

disturbing to the Middle East Peace

Process to think that the British

Government might do that. She has to

go.

There are now more than 260,000

people who are officially

homeless in England -

that includes anyone on the streets

or in temporary accommodation.

If that's you, get in touch.

And let me know what led to your

homelessness and what help you are

getting to get somewhere permanent.

The secret ceremonies and rituals

of female Freemasons.

In a UK first, we get access

to their secret societies.

Do you use secret handshakes?

Yes, absolutely.

Of course we do!

Can you do it with me now?

No, it's a secret.

LAUGHS.

What happens, and

when would you do it?

It's a secret!

You'll have to join to find out!

We'll speak to three female

Freemasons live.

Good morning.

Here's Annita in the BBC Newsroom

with a summary of today's news.

The International Development

Secretary, Priti Patel,

is flying back to Britain

from Africa at the request

of Theresa May amid growing

speculation about her future

in the government.

The International Development

Secretary, Priti Patel,

She had already been forced

to apologise for a series

of unauthorised meetings

while on a family holiday in Israel.

It's now emerged she had further

talks which she failed to disclose

to the Prime Minister.

Crispin Blunt said she should have

been more cautious when dealing with

Middle East policy.

She has not

demonstrated that she has got a grip

on the conflict. When you get into

things like this where things are

delicate between the competing

parties you have to be careful.

Donald Trump has arrived in Beijing,

as he continues his tour of Asia.

The American President took a tour

of the Forbidden City

in the capital, alongside his

Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

Mr Trump is expected to ask China

to cut its financial

links with North Korea.

Speaking in South Korea earlier,

Mr Trump urged all countries to join

forces to isolate Pyongyang,

saying the world could not tolerate

a rogue nation that threatened

nuclear devastation.

The head of NHS England will warn

today that the public wants to see

promises on NHS funding,

made during the EU

referendum campaign,

honoured by the Government.

Simon Stevens will tell a health

conference that trust

in the democratic process will be

weakened, if higher

funding is not delivered.

The Prince of Wales has been

criticised for failing to disclose

an investment by his private estate

in an offshore company.

The revelations come from a number

of leaked documents about tax havens

known as the Paradise Papers.

It's the second time

this week that a member

of the Royal Family has been named.

At least nine school children have

been killed and more than twenty

others injured in an explosion

at a primary school

in north-west Tanzania.

Initial reports say the primary

school pupils died when an object

they were playing with exploded.

Thousands of people with the most

advanced cancers in England are now

surviving for several years

after diagnosis,

according to research.

MacMillan Cancer Support said this

was due to the success

of new treatments but it warned

living longer with advanced cancer

brings its own difficulties.

That's a summary of the latest BBC

News - more at 10.30am.

Thank you very much. A couple of

comments on Freemasons and some on

Priti Patel, the International

Development Secretary. Rob says,

"When I first started, when I

started my first job my boss told me

to join the Freemasons, but I never

did. Since then I have witnessed

many promotion and it is because of

membership of the Freemasons and

that is fact." Another viewer says,

"I know a guy caught drink-driving

three times, it is a Freemason. As

is the judge." The International

Development Secretary cannot be

trusted. It is disgusting she met

with the Israeli Prime Minister and

did not tell Theresa May. How do we

know what else she has done? Sack

her." Another viewer says, "Priti

Patel can't be a team player so she

should be booted out of office. I

wouldn't want her watching my back."

Thank you for those.

We will be talking to the vice

president of actors union Equity. It

is the first time they have done an

interview about the sex scandals.

Here's some sport now

with Katherine Downes.

It has been a big week

or so for Andy Murray,

welcoming a second daughter

with his wife Kim,

but it unclear when she was born.

And before that, making his return

to the court for the first

time since Wimbledon.

It wasn't exactly a serious

competition though.

He was playing an exhibition match

against Roger Federer

in Glasgow last night.

Federer even wore

a kilt for part of it.

He won

the deciding tie break 10-6.

Murray is hoping to back to full

fitness for the Australian Open

at the start of next year.

I am in a significantly better place

than I was in the build up to the US

Open. At the end of Wimbledon I was

really struggling. Walking was a big

problem for me. So, I am trying to

get myself back to 100%.

The UK Anti-Doping Agency say

they're worried about an ongoing

case against former heavyweight

champion Tyson Fury.

He tested positive for

a banned steroid last June

and UKAD say if wins his case,

and sues them for loss of earnings,

they will be bankrupt.

They're believed to have

asked the Government

to underwrite the case.

Fury is hoping to be back

in the ring next year

where he'll be set to rejoin

an exciting heavyweight division.

Anthony Joshua is the man

they all want to fight,

including American Wilder.

He holds the WBC heavyweight world

title, and told BBC 5 Live earlier,

he is desperate to face Joshua.

I want Anthony Joshua. I want him

ASAP. Not only will it be the

biggest fight in boxing history. I

will travel anywhere in the world to

fight. The UK is only the size of

Texas in my country. My country is a

huge country. The megaof boxing and

the money will always and forever be

in America.

England winger Jermaine McGillvary

has been cleared of biting Lebanon

captain Robbie Farah

during Saturday's World Cup

group game in Sydney.

The Huddersfield player was facing

a ban of up to 12 weeks had

he been found guilty,

but his exoneration means he will be

free to play in England's final

group match against France

in Perth on Sunday.

England's women are completing

their final day of preparation

before their must-win

Ashes Test in Sydney.

They're currently 4-2

down against Australia.

If they lose the test,

which starts tomorrow,

England cannot win the series.

They have got the Ashes. We want the

Ashes. It is a very different group

now. The squad that's out here, the

side that will play will be very

different to the side that played

then. So yeah, although there is