22/12/2017 Victoria Derbyshire

Hello, it's Friday, 22nd December.

It's 9am, and Chloe Tilly.

Welcome to the programme.

Teacher vacancies are rising,

and with almost a third

of new teachers quitting the job

after just five years, what is being

done to fill the posts?

This programme has had exclusive

access to a pilot scheme

recruting top professionals

to retrain as teachers.

I just thought, if I just retire and

do nothing, all that's gone to

waste. And I didn't like the idea of

that. I wanted to do something with

it.

I've spent 20 years trying to do

my best for my country, and I want

to help students and children in my

own community.

We are talking to two people

who have swapped high-flying careers

for the classroom later

in the programme.

Boris Johnson, the Foreign

Secretary, is in Russia for talks

with his counterpart this morning -

the first time such a meeting has

taken place for five years.

So, what can we ecpect

to come out of it?

The Foreign Secretary is going to be

ensuring that when he is in Russia

he will be speaking in a very

hard-headed way with the Russians

about the concerns that we have

about the activity, but also about

the engagement that we want with

them.

So, what can we ecpect

to come out of it?

We will have analysis and reaction.

The British passport is going to

change back to its original colour

after Brexit, a move being

championed among some people as a

victory.

Hello.

Welcome to the programme.

We're live until 11am this morning.

Do get in touch on all the stories

we're talking about this morning.

We are going to be talking about

those passport covers. You bothered

what they are like? Also, tell us

what's going on with the cheating in

your children's schools, are the

vacancies which can't be filled --

with the teaching in your children's

schools.

Use

the hashtag #VictoriaLive.

If you text, you will be charged

at the standard network rate.

Our top story today:

The Prime Minister has said that the

first she knew about the allegations

against Damian Green was when she

read about them in the press.

The woman

who alleged that Damian Green made

inappropriate advances to her has

told BBC News that she spoke

to a senior Downing Street aide

about his behaviour last year,

before Mr Green was made

Theresa May's de facto deputy.

Kate Maltby had complained that

Mr Green "fleetingly"

touched her knee in a pub in 2015,

and later sent her

a "suggestive" text.

Let's talk to our

Political Correspondent.

Take us through this timeline of

events? It can be quite confusing.

There are two separate claims

surrounding Damian Green. There was

an investigation into the claims

that Kate Maltby made, she set out

those allegations in an article she

wrote for the times. She alleged

that he had touched her knee, sent

her a suggestive text message that

prompted a Cabinet Office

investigation which was subsequently

widened to investigate claims

connected to pornography which was

found on a parliamentary computer in

the office of Damian Green in 2008.

That is ultimately over claims

connected to that is what Damian

Green had to resign for. But Kate

Maltby now, the original person who

made the claims about sexual

harassment against Damian Green has

spoken out to say that she had

informed number ten about his

behaviour a year ago. Before he was

promoted to effectively the Deputy

Prime Minister. She said that she

told a senior aide at Downing Street

about this. Now, Downing Street last

night was emphatic that the Prime

Minister did not know. And this

morning we've heard from Theresa May

in Cyprus, saying that the first she

heard about it was when she read

Kate Maltby's on article in The

Times newspaper. So, you know, it is

a rather complex issue connected to

Damian Green. But I think if you

seem out of it and look at the

broader picture, it reopens those

questions about how serious the

claims of sexual harassment,

misconduct, inappropriate behaviour,

were taken in the past here in

Westminster, before we had this

recent flurry of allegations and

alleged victims coming forward.

Lots

of attention looking at who might be

Damian Green's successor,

effectively Theresa May's number

two. Jeremy Hunt being accused of

lining himself up from that one.

He

is one of the big names in the

picture. Remember that Theresa May

doesn't actually officially have to

replace that role. She could leave

it open. She certainly was denying

today that she was going to do

anything about it over the Christmas

period, so don't expect to hear much

movement on that until the New Year.

You know, there will be a gap felt,

if not in the actual role, certainly

by the absence of Damian Green

himself. Remember he was a very

close personal ally of Theresa May.

They go back a long way, to

university days, and certainly she

can rely on him for support. She

will miss his personal presence and

the role that he played as a key

ally of hers in the Cabinet. But

whether she chooses to replace him

in the role of first Secretary of

State, we'll have to wait I think

until January to find out.

Leila

Nathoo, thank you.

On the show this morning: Passports

- blue, burgundy or black?

Or do you even care?

They're bringing back

the old-style blue passports

following a redesign post-Brexit.

But anyone under 45

has never had one.

Let us know your thoughts on this.

Are you bothered? Is it hugely

important is to you?

Do get in touch with us

throughout the morning.

Use the hashtag #VictoriaLive.

If you text, you will be charged

at the standard network rate.

Annita is in the BBC

Newsroom with a summary

of the rest of the day's news.

Good morning.

Good morning, Chloe,

thank you.

The Foreign Secretary, Boris

Johnson, is in Russia meeting his

counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. He is

giving a news conference in about an

hour, in which he is expected to say

that Russia must rein in its digital

attacks or face retaliation from the

UK. Use also saying that he wants to

cooperate with President Putin on

international challenges. Theresa

May, who is in Cyprus this morning,

explained Boris Johnson's approach

the Foreign Secretary is going to be

ensuring that when he is in Russia

he will be speaking to

a very

hard-headed way with the Russians

about the concerns that we have

about the activity, and also about

the engagement that we want with

them.

Catalan separatist parties

have won a majority in Spain,

plunging it into crisis. The result

is a major setback for the Spanish

by minister, Mariano Rajoy. He

called the election after

reasserting direct control to

Catalonia following the declaration

of Independence.

The dark blue British passport

is to make a return after Brexit.

The Government said what it

described as the "classic" colour

would be reintroduced

from October 2019.

Here's our Home Affairs

Correspondent, Tom Symonds.

What does Brexit mean?

It turns out Brexit means no

more European burgundy.

Brexit means British blue.

And on the new passport,

the "E" word is nowhere to be seen.

Some, like this BBC Newsnight

reporter back in the early

days, will rejoice.

It is the reality of what we are,

where we feel we belong.

And for some people,

pocket-sized burgundy simply is not

British.

The passport is something so many

people still have fond memories of.

The British blue passport

was with you for many years.

I am pleased to let people know

we are going back to the classic

blue and gold design.

Not quite.

The classic 1980s era passport

was bigger and hard-backed.

The EU one, definitely easier

to slip into a shirt pocket.

The new British passport will be

broadly the same design.

The Government says the new colour

will not cost any more.

Passports are redesigned regularly

to make them harder to forge.

The blue one will start appearing

in 2019 as passports are renewed.

Tom Symonds, BBC News.

A man is being questioned

on suspicion of murdering a woman

who was stabbed in a supermarket

in North Yorkshire yesterday.

The 30-year-old woman was attacked

in an Aldi store in Skipton.

Police said the suspect, who's 44,

was detained by shoppers

and supermarket staff.

The Christmas getaway is beginning.

For millions of motorists, heading

for the festivities, hundreds of

roadworks are temporarily lifted,

but there are still warnings of

delays because it is expected to be

one of the busiest days of the year

on the roads and on the trains

today. MPs are calling for an

introduction of a deposit scheme for

plastic bottles. The Environmental

Audit Committee is considering

making firms that use plastic

packaging responsible for the waste

that they create. Roger Harrabin

reports.

The UK uses around 13 billion

plastic bottles every year.

Nearly half are put into landfill,

incinerated, or left as litter.

Many ultimately find

their way into the sea.

The MPs are urging the Government

to introduce a deposit

and return scheme for bottles

as soon as possible.

They want a new rule

obliging all cafes, pubs,

and restaurants to provide free tap

water so people can top

up their own refillable bottles.

And they want many more

public water fountains.

The MPs also propose

a sliding scale of charges

on plastic packaging.

So firms using easy to recycle

materials pay least,

and those using difficult to recyle

plastic pay most.

Ministers say they are consulting

with firms to find the best

solutions to what they say

are serious problems

with plastic waste.

Roger Harrabin, BBC News.

A policeman in the US state of

Florida has been dragged for more

than half a mile clinging to a car

door after he tried to search a

driver who was suspected of taking

drugs. Despite falling off at high

speed, the officer was unharmed, and

the whole incident was filmed on his

body camera.

A police officer in Florida putting

on protective gloves.

This car pulled over

with two suspects inside.

The officer has spotted

what he believes could be

heroin and needles,

and is about to search the vehicle.

But the driver has other ideas.

It's going to be in

front of Cambridge...

Whoa, whoa!

Clinging to the open door

and with one foot in the car,

he is hurtled along at high speed.

Despite his shouts, the driver shows

no sign of slowing down.

For the officer, this unexpected

ride is only ending one way.

Amazingly, the officer

gets back on his feet,

the suspect's now long gone,

but the video camera

is still recording.

You're a hero!

Awesome.

The Pembroke Pines police

force later posted this

footage on Facebook.

And with the evidence they need

to pursue these dangerous drivers...

We got the camera.

Good job.

All captured on camera.

What do you think a Japanese

Christmas tradition would look like?

Well, something like this.

SINGING

A choir of around 10,000 people get

together each year to perform

Beethoven's ninth Symphony. It's

thought the tradition began during

the First World War, when a group of

German prisoners of war being held

in the country sang out to joy at

Christmas time. -- ode to Joy.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

Let's get some sport.

Hugh Ferris is with us this morning.

That smack talk about the Boxing Day

Tasha is test. There could be a new

face for the England team -- let's

talk about the Boxing Day Ashes

Test.

The Australians have already

won the Ashes and they want a white

watch. It might make Mason Crane

leave a roast potato or two on the

plate -- they want a whitewash. He

is just 20, and he may become the

youngest specialist spinner to debut

for England in 19 years. At least

the Hampshire player has some

experience in Australia. But when he

was playing that this time last

year, did he think he would be

coming back with England?

It never

really crossed my mind. I like to

kind of live in the present. At that

moment in time, I was just worried

about the next game and where I was

going from there. It never crossed

my mind last year. As we've got

closer, I guess it's become a bit

more real. Like I said, I've got to

prepare as if I'm going to play the

same in every game. I'm going to

have to get my head around it and

train hard.

He is a leg-spinner, and

the MCG, actually home to the

greatest of all time, Shane Warne.

No pressure, then! Although Mason

Crane has at least had the chance to

talk to Shane Warne already on this

tour.

We've had a couple of chats in

the mornings, and we will hopefully

chat a bit more as the tour goes on,

he is the best ever stop and what

sort of thing is he saying to you?

Nothing about bowling just yet.

Hopefully I'll get him in the next

couple of games.

England have to

decide between Mason Crane or Tom

Curran, the Surrey fast bowler,

because Craig over to looks like

he's going to miss that game on

Boxing Day. We know it is the fee

for World Cup this year but there is

another tournament that they are

hosting, and it's not football.

Millions around the world will be

watching what is happening in Russia

next summer. Fifa hope that millions

will tune into the game version of

the World Cup, called the EE World

Cup, one of the tournaments which

the governing body have put the

media rights up for sale. It is

expected to attract a massive local

audience, particularly of young

fans. Here on the BBC we have been

showing is balls for a while now.

The first game is in January.

Qualifying for the EE World Cup on

the fee for game has already begun.

Just like the verbal tournament,

there will be 32 players competing.

If you were not sure how seriously

the game is taking gamers, some

Premier League clubs have already

hired players to represent them in

East boards. They are wearing kits

and everything. One thing to say

about them, compared to real

players, they are probably a little

cheaper to buy!

A lot cheaper, I'm

sure! Thank you.

Budget cuts, excessive workloads

and pay caps are some

of the reasons that teachers

are quitting the profession.

Almost a third of new teachers quit

the profession after five years,

leaving rising numbers

of teacher vacancies.

The Government though insists

there are record numbers

of teachers in our schools.

Now a brand new initiative

has been created which,

it is hoped, will help.

Now Teach takes top professionals,

already with successful careers,

and transfers their skills

to the classroom.

The pilot started in September,

and this programme has gained

exclusive access to two teachers

working on the scheme.

Our reporter Claire Jones has

been finding out how

the first term has gone.

And you can begin now.

Two minutes

left. DOS. You can read it in

Spanish.

I had come to the end of my

career, I had had an interesting

career and a fascinating career and

I thought if I retired and did

nothing, not all that would go to

waste, and I did not like the idea

of that. I wanted to do something.

I

spent 20 years trying to do my best

for my country and I want to help

students and children in my own

community.

Mature people who have

been through a career, who have

experienced life who want to change

and give something back into

different way, it is very exciting.

There is a problem in our education

system. Almost a third of new

teachers have quit the profession

after five years. Schools face

rising numbers of teacher vacancies.

Head says schools are reaching

crisis point. Now a brand-new

initiative has been launched which,

it is hoped, will help. Now Teach

takes top professionals with

successful career is already under

their belts into teaching. After a

two-week crash course on what to

expect, they start a year of

on-the-job training and we have been

to meet two of them. At this school

in London Simon harking is starting

a school day. He is now an English

teacher, having turned his back on a

high-flying career in the civil

service which saw him for working

for the Foreign Office.

I worked in

the Royal household at Balmoral

which was a great privilege, it was

fantastic fun, I had never done

anything like that before. I work in

the household office which is the

bit that runs the thing.

What did

your role include?

Security.

Generally speaking you do not go

into details about what you did and

who you knew and anyone who was

there.

From the Royal household

Simon went on to spend decades in

the Royal diplomatic service.

I was

there for over 25 years, but I

finished up as head of the

department in London, head of the

South American Department for three

years. After that I did three to us

as head of mission in west Africa.

He even received a medal for his

work helping tackle the Ebola

outbreak three years ago and his

work concerned some of the most

dangerous places in the world.

When

you are living with armed people

with you 24 hours a day, you cannot

go anywhere without it and that

takes a little bit of getting used

to.

At the waist says Shirley Park

School in Croydon for Belinda Burns

the day is also beginning. She is

now a trainee Spanish teacher, but

that is a far cry from her

glittering past career. She spent

decades working at the heart of

government from everything working

on the security at the Olympics from

being the UK's ambassador to Cyprus.

I spent 20 years in the Foreign

Office which in London meant I was

working in the ministry in Whitehall

advising the government ministers,

Number ten, about foreign affairs

and foreign policy. I was out in the

field working in embassies.

Her job

would often involve dealing with

life and death decisions.

The plane

was taken hostage and diverted to

Cyprus and it contained several

nationalities including British. At

one point we were worried and afraid

for the lives of everybody on board.

As the deputy you are managing the

team is on the crisis who are

constantly decision-making.

This is

Simon and Linda's first of teaching.

Simon's first lesson of the date is

teaching a Midsummer night's dream

to years seven, 11 and 12-year-olds.

A group of people begging someone

rich for money.

It does look like

that, doesn't it? I had come to the

end of my career, I had had an

interesting and fascinating career,

but I just thought if I just retire

and do nothing, all that has gone to

waste and I did not like the idea of

that. I wanted to do something with

it. It is a social responsibility I

suppose. If I can help in addressing

a gap, then why not do it?

The Now

Teach trainees receive some money

during their training year. The

amount depends on the subject they

teach. For English it is £15,000.

While on subjects where there is a

teaching shortage like Spanish that

could be up to £28,000. If they

successfully complete a year's

training they reach qualified

teacher status.

I have been lucky

enough to get a scholarship from the

British Council for teaching

languages. But you are right, the

second year will definitely be a pay

cut. At this stage in life you have

hopefully built up some savings and

built up some resilience and for me

it is never about the money, as long

as I have enough money, I want to do

the best job I can and something

that interests me. Ask me again next

year.

It sounds extremely arrogant

to say it, but I am not doing this

for the money. The salary when I

eventually get one will be very

attractive thank you very much! But

I am not depending on this for my

livelihood and I am not looking at

it as a career.

There certainly is a

need for more teachers. Government

figures from 2010-2015 show almost a

third of new teachers working in

state schools left within five years

of starting. Although the Department

for Education insists it is

investing £1.3 billion until 2020 to

attract more teachers and there are

now record numbers in our schools.

We are in a crisis in this country

in which we have a teacher shortage

and it is serious. Mature people who

have experienced life who now want

to change and give something back in

a different way because of the

crisis we have at the moment is very

exciting.

But is this the answer? It

is an untested pilot scheme and if

it goes wrong, it is the kids who

will pay the price.

I remember

saying, you are taking an enormous

punt because we, the Now Teach team,

I completely unknown to you, an

unknown quantity. No one has had any

dealings with us before. But she

would not see it like that before.

She thought I was taking an enormous

punt in doing it. We have different

views on it.

One thing we are good

at as a school is we are good at

training people. We have training

every week, every morning, in the

evenings where we consistently go

through what it looks like.

From day

one you have got 60 eyes upon you,

waiting for you to take charge of

the class and produce a great

lesson. So although you are learning

the job, you have to actually be

doing the job at the same time and

be credible in front of the

children. I think that has been a

major challenge.

The biggest

stumbling block has been actual

technology, using IT.

My IT skills

are embarrassingly poor, so I have

to work out how to do things. These

people do it so easily, the kids are

better at IT now. But if you are

coming in at approaching 60, that

will be the case.

You might think

the hours or the energy required

might be an issue, but that has not

been an issue. Simon is in very

early and stays very late.

Linda's

first lesson is also with year seven

students.

So, we played this game to

practice our Spanish and if we want

to join in, what language do we need

to ask in? Off you go. How quickly!

Really good. In diplomacy you are

dealing with very different people

around the world, different cultures

and languages, and you have to find

a way to express yourself and to

make your point is understood. So

with school I am trying to do that

with a different audience.

What do

the students think?

She is really

nice and helpful in Spanish and it

makes it even more fun for us to do

Spanish by playing games, like slap

the board, or we have a ball and we

have to catch and say stuff in

Spanish.

I was not really good at

Spanish last year, I struggled a lot

and Miss has helped me a lot. Now I

am at a higher level right now.

Thank you so much for having me...

The Now Teach training includes

regular feedback sessions for senior

and younger members of staff who act

as mentors throughout the year.

You

are going to copy this Spanish and

translate it into English.

At

lunchtime Linda joins the rest of

the team in the staff room and then

it is time for marking. Were you

surprised by the amount of marketing

and planning that teaching involves?

No, planning is something that is

really important and it takes time,

but you can whittle it down. Once

you know your classes well you can

get faster and better and marking is

a lovely opportunity to see the

kids' work. Some of them might be

quiet but their book is full of

beautiful work that you can give

feedback on.

This afternoon Linda is

heading into central London for a

group training session with other

members of the scheme. Simon's

lesson is over.

I am amazed at the

things they do and don't know and

the things they do and do not say.

They can be absolutely fantastic one

moment and you can give the class

that works and everything is fun.

Then you can do exactly the same

with the same kids later on in the

same day and it is a disaster. You

are thinking is it the kids? Was

there something wrong with lunch?

You are looking for explanations all

the time. But in reality the

explanation is you. What do the

students think? He is a good

teacher. He teaches good. If we need

some help, he also helps us to

understand.

I like this lesson

because we were talking about the

ancient times before we were born

and I also liked the pictures on the

board.

But it is still a work in

progress.

I am doing well less, but

it is taking all my time and my only

hope for a happy future is that I

get much quicker at planning and

organising and writing lessons and

so on. You are right to identify a

king, well done. I think I would

like them to see me as a reliable

source, someone they can trust with

the information that they are given.

That's what I am doing for them in

the classroom is what they need.

We will be talking in the next hour

to a couple of teachers who have

swapped their high-flying careers

for teaching in the classroom. Any

questions you have, put them to us.

A lot getting in touch on social

media. Anthony says, surely the

first thing to address is the reason

for the shortage. The low pay, the

long hours, the lack of respect from

parents and children? Bringing in

people with life experience will not

address these very real issues. Once

these issues are addressed, then

teachers with real-life experiences

will be invaluable. Sarah says

success in the business world is

different to success in teaching as

evidenced by this piece. People are

using children as guinea pigs and

they are not fully trained as the

children are in IT skills. I will

put that point to our teachers in an

hour's time. Keep those comments

coming in. Still to come: The

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is

in Moscow meeting his counterpart

Sergey Lavrov. The UK and Russia

have not always had the best of

relationships, so we will see if

that is going to thaw. A chat with a

couple of Russian experts. We will

be live in Kensington where a local

volunteer group is putting on a

Christmas dinner for 95 families who

survived the Grenfell Tower fire.

Time for the latest news.

Here's Annita.

The headlines this morning on BBC

News... The Prime Minister has said

the first she knew about allegations

of inappropriate conduct by former

cabinet minister Damian Green was

when she read about them in the

media. The comment comes after the

woman who made the allegations, Kate

Maltby, told BBC News that she spoke

to a senior Downing Street aide

about his behaviour last year before

Mr Green was promoted. She

complained that Mr Green fleetingly

touched her knee in a pub in 2015

and later sent her a suggestive

text. The Foreign Secretary, Boris

Johnson, is in Russia meeting his

counterpart, Sergey Lavrov. It's the

first official visit to Moscow by a

British Foreign Secretary for more

than five years. Boris Johnson has

warned Russia that Britain is ready

to retaliate to cyber attacks, but

also said he wants to cooperate with

President Putin on international

challenges.

Where we can find

possibilities of cooperation on

issues where I think we have

substantial interests in common,

such as Iran and the need to

continue with the Iran nuclear deal.

Catalan separatist parties have won

a majority in the regional

elections, although the biggest

single party is one that opposes

separatism, the result is a major

setback for the Spanish Prime

Minister, Mariano Rajoy. He'd called

the election after surging direct

control over Catalonia following its

declaration of Independence --

reasserting direct control.

A man is being questioned

on suspicion of murdering a woman

who was stabbed in a supermarket

in North Yorkshire yesterday.

The 30-year-old woman was attacked

in an Aldi store in Skipton.

Police said the suspect, who's 44,

was detained by shoppers

and supermarket staff.

The Christmas getaway begins. The

millions of motorists, hundreds of

roadworks are temporarily lifted. It

is expected to be one of the busiest

days of the year on the roads, and

that goes for the trains too. Ian

Palmer is at Euston station in

London. What's it like the? Is it

extra busy?

Well, it's not too bad

at the moment, but, frankly, if you

are watching this now and you

haven't left home, you're probably

going to be in for a very difficult

time. Starting with the trains,

Network Rail is saying that it's

going to be carrying out its busiest

and biggest Christmas investment

programme between Christmas and New

Year. And they are urging travellers

to complete the journey is at the

latest if they can buy early

tomorrow morning. Services are going

to be severely disrupted,

particularly in the south-east and

going through London Bridge stations

between the 23rd of December right

up until the 1st of January.

Millions of journeys will be taking

place between now and obviously

Christmas Day. If we move onto the

roads, the M25 of course is the

major bottleneck in the south-east.

That will be incredibly busy today.

The RAC is saying that that will be

particularly busy and congested from

about lunchtime onwards. So, if you

are quick and you can get onto it

very shortly, you might be able to

escape the worst of it. This time

last year, the RAC was saying that

the biggest bottleneck without there

being an accident was on the A303, a

seven mile tailback at around 6pm on

Christmas Eve. Onto the planes,

there are going to be around 4.5

million journeys taking place over

the next few days. Heathrow Airport

is expecting around 130,000

passengers today alone. And it will

be incredibly busy there. The buses

are putting on extra services to

make sure that passengers can get to

where they need to go quickly. But

frankly, it is going to be tough.

And on a day like this, of course,

many people will take to their cars

rather than using public funds

bought. It is going to be a very

difficult they.

Ian Palmer, thank

you.

The dark blue British passport

is to make a return after Brexit.

The Government said what it

described as the "classic" colour

would be reintroduced

from October 2019.

MPs are calling for the introduction

of a deposit scheme for plastic

bottles to help protect this is from

pollution. The Commons Environmental

Audit Committee said it should be

between 10p and 20p, which consumers

would get back when they return the

bottle. It wants all cafes, pubs and

restaurants to provide free tap

water for people to top up

refillable bottles. We are going to

show you the dramatic moment that a

policeman in the US state of Florida

was dragged for more than half a

mile clean to the car door. The

officer was trying to surgery driver

who was suspected of taking drugs,

when the driver set off in an

attempted escape, with the policemen

clinging to the door. The incident

was captured on the offers a's body

count. Despite falling at high

speed, the officer was unharmed. --

NB offers a's body count.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

Here's some sport now with Hugh.

Mason Crane says he is ready for an

England test debut if it comes in

the box and eight Ashes Test at the

MCG, the leg-spinner could well come

in for Craig Overton and become the

youngest specialist spinner to make

his England test debut in some 90

years. The festive football begins

later as Arsenal- Liverpool meet on

the first time on a Friday night

since the gunners won back in 1989.

West Brom Captain Jonny Evans could

be leaving the club next month after

they failed to persuade him to sign

a new contract. The defender was

linked with both Leicester and

Manchester city back in the summer.

Much more coming up later on. Thank

you, is you. -- hue.

The Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, is in Moscow

for talks with his Russian

counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.

He has already described relations

with Britain this morning as being

at a low point. Mr Lavrov has

rebuked the Foreign Secretary for

comments that he made in which he

urged the Russians to cease

activities which I'd is the blazing

Europe. Mr Johnson said that whilst

frankness is Mrs Ari, so is the

British- Russian relationship.

--

frankness is necessary.

When I look at the difficulties

in our relationship,

whether it is over Ukraine

or the Western Balkans or

what's going on in cyberspace,

I agree with you that it's important

to talk about these

things and to be frank

about them and to accept

that

they are obstructions

in our relationship at the moment.

As you say, we are

both P5 members, we

both have a duty to our countries

and to the world to work together

for peace and security, and where

we can, I think we can find

possibilities of cooperation

on issues where I think we have

substantial interests in common,

such as Iran and the need to

continue with the Iran nuclear deal.

So, what is the UK hoping

to achieve with this visit?

And is there any chance

of a thaw in relations?

Here's John Owen on the

background to the talks.

It's been five years since a British

Foreign Secretary visited Russia.

But today, after cancelling

two earlier trips due

to diplomatic tensions,

Boris Johnson is at last in Moscow,

hoping to make some progress

towards increased cooperation

between Russia and the UK.

On the agenda will be some

of the big foreign policy

challenges of the day.

Ukraine, North Korea, Iran,

and regional stability

in the Middle East.

But in recent years,

UK-Russian relations have been

strained to say the least.

And whilst the objective

of this visit might be

increased cooperation,

there's no shortage

of reasons for tensions

between the two countries.

So, how did we get here?

Remember this man?

After the death of former Russian

spy Alexander Litvinenko in London

in 2006 and following an inquiry

that ended last year,

the UK Government accused

the Kremlin of his murder.

In 2014, Russia annexed

Crimea from the Ukraine,

making use of disguised special

forces in unmarked uniforms,

nicknamed Little Green Men.

In response, the UK has

supported the US and EU

sanctions against Russia.

Things took yet another turn

for the worst in 2015,

after Russia intervened

in the Syrian civil war

on the side of President Assad,

who the UK Government argued

was waging a brutal

campaign of repression

against his own population.

And, most recently, Theresa May has

accused Russia of meddling

in democratic elections in the West

and spreading fake news.

So I have a very simple

message for Russia -

we know what you are doing,

and you will not succeed.

All of this, combined with some

occasional nuclear sabre-rattling

and military brinkmanship,

has meant that the last few years

has seen some of the worst relations

between Britain and Russia

since the Cold War.

In this context, Mr Johnson's effort

to encourage any further cooperation

with a country that he himself

described recently as "cold, nasty,

militaristic and undemocratic"

might prove it for order.

-- might prove a tall order.

Of course, Britain has not been

alone amongst western countries

in criticising Russia's recent

behaviour on the

international scene.

But, with Mr Putin's grip on power

seemingly unassailable,

pragmatists will say that the only

way forward towards more normal

relations with Russia

and to a reduction

in military tensions

is is to increase

diplomatic engagement.

We can chat about this further now

with Sir Tony Brenton, the former

British Ambassador to Russia.

And James Nixey, the Head

of the Russia and Eurasia Programme

at the international affairs

think-tank Chatham House.

Good morning, gentlemen. First of

all, James, bearing in mind

everything we have just seen in that

the background, how much is there in

this trip?

Relatively good will, it

must be said. The fact of the matter

is, although there should be areas

where we can cooperate with Russia,

Russia its self simply isn't

interested at the moment. It want

something substantially different to

that which the UK wants. The UK, is

still a part of Europe and certainly

a part of the broader West, it does

stick to what we called the

Westphalia and system, a post-Cold

War order of where all states that

are recognised as independent are

just such. But Russia believes in

sovereignty but not in the area of

the former so but union, where

Russia desires, insists, that it

must maintain control -- the former

Soviet Union. As a result of that,

the two countries are not going to

get on and all there is a change of

position between the one side and

the other.

Tony, do you agree with

that?

I couldn't disagree more! Is

it so might and interesting charges

against Russia, the Russians have a

list of charges against us, they see

us as having supported by

demonstrations against the tin and

encouraged the Georgians to attack

them in 2008 and participating in

the overthrow of friendly regimes in

Iraq and Libya. To offer some

obvious examples. The point I'm

making, each side has its list of

charges against the other. The level

of tension is high end actually

dangerous. There are planes flying

appallingly close to each other over

Syria as we speak. It's important to

get that level of tension down. Ross

Thomson going to Moscow is a helpful

further step in doing that -- Boris

Johnson going to Moscow.

Is he the

man to do that? When we look at the

line but that has been used and his

track record, shall we say, for

putting his foot in things, is he

the right person to be headed to

Moscow when, as you point out,

relations are so bad was plot I

think the approach he has taken is

encouraging.

He has the cover his

back here in UK politics by saying

aggressive things about Russian

cyber attacks, of which there is

little evidence. But he has gone in

the same, we need to find areas

where we can work together. He has

identified some obvious ones, Iran

being an obvious one, North Korea,

and others. Islamic terrorism, for

example, we both have a dreadful

problem that we need to work

together to tackle. Most

interestingly, all of this stuff

about cyber warfare, each side

suspecting the other of doing or

threatening appalling things, we

need to begin to find a way of

controlling that area, as we did

with nuclear weapons back in the

60s, and establish some rules of the

road there as well.

James, do you

think that Boris Johnson, the

Foreign Secretary, should be going

over the ad being hard, playing

hardball on the allegations of cyber

attacks, or do you think there needs

to be a more consolatory town?

No,

playing hardball is reasonable, as

long as one can do it firmly and

politely, but I think a bit more

honesty in a relationship whereby we

understand the two countries are

simply actually not going to get on

well the current regime in Moscow

stays in power is actually quite

refreshing. It's not that Ross

Thomson shouldn't go to Moscow, he

can take the opportunity to deliver

certain messages. Those messages

with by that if there is continued

cyber intervention in the UK,

manipulation, I disagree with Tony,

I believe there is substantial

evidence for that, then there will

be repercussions. And I think that

rather than sort of freezing out and

isolationism, this is an opportunity

and for Russians to Boris Johnson,

he should simply give as good as he

gets.

Tony, what's Russia's general

view of Britain? Does it see it as a

world power, something that's

important in the whole framing of

relations around the world?

They see

us as an important international

player, which will undoubtedly, a

permanent member of the Security

leading member of the security

corporation. They see us as among

the most rural and European

countries in our aversion to Russia

and Russia's behaviour at the moment

-- the relevant. They see us as

close to the United States. They

believe that by establishing common

ground with us that helps them to

establishing common ground with the

United States.

James, do you agree?

Absolutely, I think that is true. We

have the Americans' era on security

issues and we are part of the

European Union and we are leading an

Sangchan is in that respect,

although there is a Brexit element

here, -- we are leading on

sanctions. When the UK has left the

EU, maybe we will be looking for

other markets in the future, and

that may include Russia, which

doesn't currently exist as a market

because of the sanctions.

You have

mentioned the idea of working

together, Britain and Russia, or

North Korea and Syria. What about

the World Cup next year in Russia?

We know there is a potential for

flash points between Russian and

England fans, we saw that last year

in France. Can the two countries

work together, do you think, Sir

Tony? I have read that the two

intelligence services don't even

communicate at all.

You are right. I was ambassador in

Russia when we had a couple of big

football matches. Setting up the

process so that the Russian police

behave is a crucial part of the

process. And at the time of the

Olympics a couple of years ago, at

the moment we have no contact at all

between our security services, but

we waved that for the period of the

Olympics because cooperation on

intelligence threats was very

important. The World Cup offers

another opportunity to do a similar

thing and open up the possibility of

increased cooperation in general,

notably on Islamist extremism.

That

you both for joining us and talking

to us this morning.

to us this morning.

Coming up: The shortage of teachers

in our schools is often topped

about. One innovative solution is a

pilot scheme recruiting top

professionals to train as teachers.

We will be speaking to the

co-founder shortly.

Obviously at Christmas,

thoughts often turn to people

who aren't as fortunate.

We've been hearing from survivors

of the Grenfell fire

for the last six months.

For them, this festive season

is going to be anything but normal.

But one of the local volunteer

groups is putting on a Christmas

meal to remember for 95 families

who survived the fire,

many of whom also lost loved ones.

Let's talk to our reporter

Ashley John-Baptiste.

It looks festive down there. Tell us

more.

Yes, it does. I am at a

church, the main church hall. It is

called the Tabernacle Christian

Centre and it is literally down the

road from Grenfell Tower. This

church has been a key player in the

local community in the last few

years and it is led by Derek Wilson

who has been leading this church for

24 years. Since the Grenfell Tower

fire it has been a key part of the

support for the survivors. On that

tragic morning in June when the fire

occurred the church became a

makeshift donation centre handing

out food, clothing and other

essentials to survivors. It has been

over six months since the fire and

it continues to provide 95 families

with food, clothing and other

essentials and also emotional

support. Tonight is a significant

night because it will be hosting a

Christmas dinner for the Grenfell

Tower survivors. It is important to

say this is a dinner for all

survivors regardless of religious

background. Volunteers are currently

preparing halal food for the Muslim

guests. There is a lot of activity

going on. We have volunteers here

who are very excited, preparing the

dining tables. I assure you this is

a church hall. It looks like a

dining hall at the moment. That is

apart from the religious logos at

the back. How are you feeling?

Quite

excited.

We can speak to the pastor

of this church, Derek. Tallis about

the Christmas dinner and what else

that you have planned for the

survivors.

We are very excited for

the survivors, putting on this

banquet. We got together as a team

about a month ago thinking about

what we could do for the survivors

because they will still be in hotels

at Christmas. We thought let's put

on about as close to Christmas as

possible. We got on the phone and

started asking companies to help us.

His Royal Highness provided the

decorations. Casablanca provided the

chairs and the table. Look at this

wonderful 5-star spread. The Ritz

hotel, Waitrose, Tesco and quite a

few others have come on board.

Can

we look at this cake? It is

extraordinary looking. Is it a

donation?

This is the business, a

nativity scene. It is a work of art.

What food do we have on the menu?

For our special guests and for

Muslims we have got halal food being

prepared for them. We have got

turkey, potatoes, rice, we have got

gateau and this will all be provided

by people like Waitrose and Tesco.

More broadly how have you been

supporting survivors in the past six

months?

In the past six months this

has been a one-stop place were

survivors can come for donations

that have come in from all over the

country like clothes and toiletries

and food as well. But also comfort.

Spiritual comfort. They find this a

safe haven to come to. They feel

safe coming in. As long as they need

as we will continue to be here.

Fantastic. We can now speak to

Abigail Bolton, she is a volunteer

and has come all the way from

Gloucestershire. She moved to London

to this church after the fire with

her four children to help the relief

effort. She is currently living in

the prayer room. Hello, how are you,

Abigail? Very well. How are you

helping to prepare for tonight?

We

have got the gifts to get sorted and

we have got the marquee to get

sorted which will be the grotto.

Everything has to be prepped in here

and all the decorations are ready

outside for the reindeers. Tell us

more. Real reindeers coming all the

way from Oxford and they are

travelling up for the children to

see.

We have got two of your

children. Hello, Ellie. Your mum has

decided to move to London to help

the Grenfell Tower survivors. What

do you think about that?

I like it

because we go to the Tabernacle

School and we have a lot more.

That

is the local school. And do you like

London? Yes.

Zak, how are you?

Good,

thank you. How is it for you moving

to London and helping the survivors?

It is good moving and it feels good

to help the survivors if they are in

need. Yes, it is good.

Cool.

Abigail, we have heard a lot about

the trauma and the mental health

issues survivors face. What about

the volunteers? Are you burnt out?

We are tired, it is very stressful

for the volunteers as well. Anyone

who was here around about the time

of the fire it was an horrific

experience to be fair. Yes, you

naturally take it on board. It is

being like a sponge and somebody

explain to me it will eventually

leak. Finally we can speak to a

survivor who was on the 12th for on

the night of the fire and this

church has been a massive support to

her. I should say this is her first

time speaking to the media. Let's go

back and talk about how you escape

on the night of the fire.

On the

night of the fire I was in the flat

with my close friend and sister. She

came to do a Bible study with us.

When the other members left we slept

and we were woken up by a phone

call. We could not leave the flat

and we started praying and reading

the Bible. We prayed all the way

through and the firefighters came

and they rescued as at 3:30am. The

fire started at one o'clock.

And so

they guided you down the stairs from

the 12th floor. How was that?

The

smoke was very thick and that is why

we could not leave the flat. I do

not know how they did it thinking

back. It was very difficult, but

they did take us out. I was shouting

and I was calling, Jesus, Jesus. It

was a difficult moment.

Very quickly

how are you now and how has this

church supported you since the fire?

Yes, this church has supported me to

giving me these nice clothes, this

code and scarf I received from this

church. It was donated to them, and

some other things as well from this

church.

And tonight was my Christmas

dinner, what will it mean to you and

other survivors?

This is special and

the place looks great and amazing.

For me this is a very special time

of the year. In idea 9.6 it says for

us a child is given and a child is

born and the government shall be out

on his shoulders.

That is a

religious scripture. What will it

mean for the community more broadly?

For the community is great because a

lot of people are in a hotel and

they are not with their families and

it is good to have something like

this, a special celebration.

Finally, where will you be spending

Christmas day? I will be spending

Christmas Day at my friend's has,

she was with me on that night. As

you can see there is some excitement

and expectation for tonight's

dinner. Over to you.

Over to you.

The dark blue British passport

is to make a return after Brexit.

The government said what it

described as the "classic" colour

would be reintroduced

from October 2019.

A lot of you getting in touch about

that and we will get more reaction

after ten. Let's get some weather.

My kids keep telling me there are

three sleeps to go. Any chance of

any white stuff anywhere?

Yes, there is, but not with you. You

will find it if you Christmas

Mountains on Day. But this morning

we have some lovely pictures. This

one has come in from Essex. And this

morning we had a lovely sunrise, but

it was quite misty. If you like it

cloudy, mild and damp, you are in

for a treat because that is the

forecast! Today we have got a

weather front sinking southwards.

High pressure is building in and in

the north of the country it is also

rather breezy. We have got four in

Northern Ireland, Scotland and

north-west England, Wales and the

South West. That will slowly lift

into low cloud. Some brighter breaks

in north-west England this afternoon

and also in parts of eastern

Scotland. North-west England still

remains fairly murky. These

temperatures are good for the 22nd

of September. Temperatures lower in

Scotland, but the West sees

outbreaks of rain and some murky

conditions. 11 degrees, it is not a

bad temperature in Northern Ireland

at this time of the year. In Wales

the fog lifts into low cloud. The

same can be said of the South West

England. Highs of 12 Celsius in

Plymouth. In Southern counties it is

still cloudy with the remnants of

the drizzle continuing to push into

the Channel Isles. This evening and

overnight it will be cloudy once

again and we will see a return to

patchy mist and fog. A weather front

coming in from the North West will

produce some rain. Some of that will

be heavy at times and it will also

be windy. 5 degrees in Aberdeen and

in the countryside it will be lower

than that. For much of the UK it is

eight or nine. Tomorrow the fog will

be slow to left. In the north of

Scotland there will be some heavy

rain and it will be windy. There

could be gusts up to gale force. In

the South we will see some brighter

breaks, but look at the temperature

in Aberdeen. Today it is a five or

six and tomorrow it is 12. On

Christmas Eve the weather front is

still an northern Scotland and

getting into Northern Ireland and it

is a South westerly wind which is a

mild direction, but it also brings

in quite a lot of cloud and dampness

in the coasts and the hills.

Temperatures 8-11. Finally for

Christmas Day we have got a band of

rain sinking southwards and

eastwards. A level uncertainty as to

the timing of that. Head of it we

are looking at cloudy, breezy and

still mild.

Hello, it's 10am.

Teacher vacancies are rising,

and with almost a third

of new teachers quitting the job

after just five years, what is being

done to fill the posts?

This programme has exclusive

access to a pilot scheme

recruiting top professionals

to retrain as teachers.

I just thought, if I just retire and

do nothing, although that has gone

to waste. And I didn't like the idea

of that. I wanted to do something.

I've spent 20 years trying to do my

best for my country, and I want to

help students and children in my own

community.

Will be chatting for two

people whose what high-flying

careers for the classroom in the

next few minutes.

Boris Johnson is in Russia, and has

warned the Russians to stop cyber

aggression or risk retaliation, but

also said that he wants to cooperate

with President Putin on

international challenges.

Where we

can, I think we can find

possibilities of corporation on

issues where I think we have

substantial interests in common.

And this has to be one of the most

memorable Christmas number one is...

A bit of George!

The winner of the biggest chart

battle of the year will be revealed

later today when we find out

who will be this year's

Christmas number one.

Ed Sheeran, Eminem and George

Michael are hot favourite's to take

the coveted top spot.

Good morning.

It is 10:02am.

Here's Annita in the BBC Newsroom

with a summary of today's news.

Good morning.

The Prime Minister has said

the first she knew about allegations

of inappropriate conduct by former

Cabinet minister Damian

Green was when she read

about them in the press.

The comment comes after the woman

who made the allegations,

Kate Maltby, told BBC News

that she spoke to a senior

Downing Street aide about his

behaviour last year before

Mr Green was promoted.

Ms Maltby complained that

Mr Green "fleetingly"

touched her knee in a pub in 2015,

and later sent her

a "suggestive" text.

The Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, is in Russia

meeting his counterpart,

Sergey Lavrov.

It's the first official visit

to Moscow by a British Foreign

Secretary for more than five years.

Boris Johnson has warned Russia

that Britain is ready

Mr Lavrov has this morning described

relations with Britain as being at

the low point after warnings that

Britain is ready to retaliate to

cyber attacks. But Mr Johnson said

that he wants to cooperate with

President Putin an international

Challengers. -- international

Challengers.

Where we can, I think,

we can find possibilities

of cooperation on issues

where I think we have substantial

interests in common, such as Iran,

and need to continue

with the Iran nuclear deal.

Catalan separatist parties

have won a majority

in the regional elections.

Although the biggest single party

is one that opposes separatism,

the result is a major setback

for the Spanish Prime

Minister, Mariano Rajoy.

He'd called the election

after asserting direct

control over Catalonia

following its declaration

of independence.

A man is being questioned

on suspicion of murdering a woman

who was stabbed in a supermarket

in North Yorkshire yesterday.

The 30-year-old woman was attacked

in an Aldi store in Skipton.

Police said the suspect, who's 44,

was detained by shoppers

and supermarket staff.

The Christmas getaway begins,

and for millions of motorists

heading off for the festivities

hundreds of roadworks

are temporarily lifted,

but it's still expected to be one

of the busiest days

of the year on the roads.

That goes for the trains, too.

Railway stations are busy up

and down the country.

The dark blue British passport

is to make a return after Brexit.

The Government said what it

described as the "classic" colour

would be reintroduced

from October 2019.

MPs are calling for the introduction

of a deposit scheme for plastic

bottles to help protect the seas

from pollution.

The Commons Environmental Audit

Committee says it should be

between 10p and 20p,

which consumers would get back

when they returned the bottle.

It also wants all cafes,

pubs and restaurants to provide free

tap water for people to top up

refillable bottles.

This is the dramatic moment that

a policeman in the US state

of Florida was dragged for more

than half a mile

clinging to a car door.

The officer was trying to search

a driver who was suspected of taking

drugs when the driver set off

in an attempted escape,

with the policeman

clinging to the door.

The incident was captured

on the officer's bodycam.

Despite falling off at high speed,

the officer was unharmed.

That's a summary of

the latest BBC News.

I'll be back with more at 10:30am.

Thank you, Annita

Thank you, Annita.

Here's some sport now with Hugh

With the ashes already gone, England

are likely to decide between two

potential debutants for the fourth

Test. Mason Crane, he is just 20, if

he is preferred to Tom Curran, he

will come in for the injured Craig

Overton. He does have some

experience in Australia, but did he

think he would be coming back with

England?

It never really crossed my

mind. I like to kind of live in the

present, and at that moment in time

I was just worried about the next

game and where I was going from

there. It never crossed my mind last

year. As it got closer, I guess it's

become a bit more real. Like I said,

I play as if I'm going to play the

same every game. I have to get my

head around it and train hard.

Last

time that Arsenal and Liverpool met

on a Friday night was back in 1989.

In the final game of the season, it

was the gunners who won at Anfield

to claim the league title in

dramatic league circumstances. This

takes not quite as high this time,

but even with both languishing well

behind Premier League leaders

Manchester city, Jurgen Klopp's team

don't want to be headed home for

Christmas with a defeat.

We have to

be ready for a different challenge

on Friday. Its arsenal, and we have

quite a talented group there. They

can create chances as well. We need

to be spot on. All the players need

to be spot-on in this specific part

of the game.

It looks like Jonny

Evans could be one of the big names

to move in the January transfer

window after West Brom failed to

convince him to sign a new contract.

It is understood he has no intention

of extending his stay at the

hawthorns. Many teens expressed an

interest in the Northern Ireland

international back in the summer.

Stoke manager Mark Hughes says he

doesn't recognise stories that he

only has one game to save his job.

Reports have surfaced that defeats

in their next match against West

Brom could spell the end of his 4.5

year reign. Hughes says the longer

it goes on the more difficult it

gets, but he doesn't sent any

apprehension about where they are.

Fifa have put the media rights for

the E World Cup, which is expected

to have massive audiences of Young

fans. Just like the real thing,

there will be 32 players competing

in the main event. But in the gaming

tournament they will be playing for

cash and not the famous trophy.

That's it for now. The headlines

just after 10:30am. Thank you, is

you. -- hue.

Budget cuts, excessive workloads

and pay caps are some of the reasons

that teachers are

quitting the profession.

Almost a third

of new teachers quit

the profession after five years,

leaving rising numbers

of teacher vacancies.

The Government, though,

insists there are record numbers

of teachers in our schools.

Now a brand new initiative

has been created which,

it is hoped, will help.

Now Teach takes top professionals,

already with successful careers,

and transfers their skills

to the classroom.

The pilot started in September,

and this programme has gained

exclusive access to two teachers

working on the scheme.

Our reporter Claire Jones has

been finding out how

the first term has gone.

Me gusta la musica clasica.

There is a problem

in our education system.

Almost a third of new

teachers have quit the

profession after five years.

Headteachers say schools

are reaching a crisis point.

Now, a brand-new initiative

has been launched

which, it is hoped, will

help.

Now Teach takes top professionals

with successful careers

already under their

belts into teaching.

After a two-week crash course

on what to expect, they start

At Arc all Saints School

in London, Simon Harkin

is starting the school day.

He's now an English teacher,

having turned his back

on a high-flying career.

I work in the Royal

Household at Balmoral,

which was a great privilege.

It was fantastic fun, I had never

done anything like that before.

From the Royal household,

Simon went on to spend decades

in the Diplomatic Service.

I was there for over 25 years,

but I finished up as the head

of the South America Department,

and then after that I did

three tours as head

of mission in west Africa.

At Oasis Shirley Park School

in Croydon, for Linda Burns,

the day is also beginning.

She is now a trainee Spanish

teacher, but that is also a far cry

from her glittering past career.

She spend decades working

at the heart of Government,

on everything from the security

at the 2012 London Olympics to most

recently being the UK's deputy

Ambassador to Cyprus.

I spent about 20 years

in the Foreign Office,

which in London meant that

I was working in the Ministry

in Whitehall advising

the Government, ministers,

Number Ten about foreign

affairs and foreign policy.

Then I was out in the field

working in embassies.

The Now Teach trainees receive some

money during their training year.

The amount depends

on the subject they teach.

It sounds extremely arrogant

to say it, but I am not

doing this for the money,

I am not depending on this

for my livelihood, and I am not

looking at it as a career.

The Department for Education insists

it is investing £1.3 billion

until 2020 to attract more teachers,

although there are concerns

about the future.

We are in a crisis at

the moment in this country

in which we have a teacher shortage,

and it is really serious.

Typical clothes that they wore

in ancient Athens.

But is this the answer?

Now Teach is an untested pilot

scheme, and if it goes wrong,

it's the kids that

will pay the price.

My IT skills are embarrassingly

poor, and so I have

to work out how to do

things from scratch.

These people do it so easily,

the kids are better at IT than I am.

This afternoon, Linda is heading

into central London for a group

training session with other members

of the scheme.

Simon's lesson is over,

but it is still a work in progress.

My only hope for a happy future