29/03/2017 BBC News at Six

Tonight at Six, history in the making - Theresa May calls

time on Britain's four decades inside the European Union.

Hand delivered - the official letter to the EU that puts last June's

Theresa May told MPs there's no going back,

it's a turning point in the UK's story.

Britain is leaving the European Union.

We are going to make our own decisions and our own laws.

We are going to take control of the things

The President of the EU Council says his priority is to defend

Brexit has made us, the community of 27,

more determined and more united than before.

Theresa May says she'll negotiate as one UK -

we'll be getting the reaction from around the country.

And we're in Dover - where 60% of voters

Also on tonight's programme, it's a week since the terror attack

Thousands gathered in a show of unity, remembering

We'll have more reaction and opinion to the historic events as the Prime

Minister triggers Britain's exit from Europe. We'll hear from

politicians and members of the public.

Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six.

A hand delivered, six page letter - with that Theresa May

She's written to the President of the European Council,

formally announcing Britain's intention to leave the EU -

a process that will see the end of four decades of membership that

have shaped so much in our daily lives.

The Prime Minister said Britain would be able

to make its own decisions but continue to have a deep and

For the European Union, the President of the Council said

this was not a happy day for either Brussels or London -

but he added, his goal now was to defend the interests

of the remaining 27 members of the EU.

For our first report tonight, here's our political

Some moments make us. This is one. The minute in Westminster, Belfast,

Edinburgh and Cardiff that the United Kingdom formally changed

course. The Article 50 process is now underway and in accordance with

the wishes of the British people, the United Kingdom is leaving the

European Union. This is an historic moment from which there can be no

turning back. Probably our last ambassador to the European Union

handing over the letter at 12:25pm. The document that says we are on our

way out. Theresa May's signature on our departure. Her job now, to make

it work. This, her hope. A country that goes out into the world to

build relationships with old friends and new allies alike. And that is

why I have set out a clear and ambitious plan for negotiations

ahead. It is a plan for a new, deep and special partnership between

Britain and the European Union. Her decisions about how mean we are out

of the single market to control immigration. As European leaders

have said many times, we cannot cherry pick and remained members of

the single market without accepting the four freedoms that are

indivisible. We respect that decision. A friendlier tone to the

continent, an ambition to bring this country together. Mr Speaker, when I

sit around the negotiating table in the months ahead I will represent

every person in the United Kingdom, young and old, rich and poor, town

and country and all the villages and hamlets in between. And yes, those

EU nationals that have made this country their home. And it is my

fierce determination to get the right deal for this country. In

perhaps the most important that she'll ever penned, the Prime

Minister spoke of her hope to give reassurance quickly to the millions

of EU citizens who live here and Brits abroad. We should always put

our citizens first, we should aim to strike an early agreement about

their rights. But no guarantees. The Prime Minister wants a free trade

deal with the EU of greater scope and ambition than any before. A bold

hope seen as naive by some to try to protect firms who do business around

the confident from rules and barriers. No overt threat to walk

away but a serious warning. A failure to reach agreement would

mean our co-operation in the fight against crime and terrorism would be

weakened. We must work hard to avoid that outcome. Her message, the EU

needs us. She want also to agree the terms of our future partnership

alongside those of our withdrawal from the EU, to work out how we

leave at the same time as sorting out the future. Labour aren't the

only one sceptical she can deliver. If the Prime Minister can deliver a

deal that meets our tests that will be fine, we will back her. More than

ever Britain needs a government that will deliver for the whole country,

not just the few. And that is the ultimate test of the Brexit deal

that the Prime Minister must now secure. The clock is ticking now.

Memories of today will be so different. A public party for some.

Even though that's not actually the Foreign Secretary. Almost awake for

others. That's the sense in the home of the EU. There's no reason to

pretend that this is a happy day, neither in Brussels nor in London.

Somehow was coming back from Brussels will bypass this place and

flow to Hollywood, Cardiff and storm on. For Remainers here and in the

Scottish Government those promises don't go far enough. The Prime

Minister still can't answer basic questions about what Brexit will

mean for businesses, the economy generally and for the type of

society we live in. This six simple pages will do much to determine our

place in the world in the future. The letter is less abrasive intent

to the rest of the EU than when to reason they started as Prime

Minister. But she still had to persuade her party she really was

committed to leaving. Now the clamour of the referenda misconduct,

the tone is politely plaque to call. -- practical. The message of the

letter, get real. You need us and we need you. Remember we bring a lot to

the table when it comes to policing, security and intelligence services.

It wasn't firing a shot but she was just making a reminder, remember

what is at stake here. It is exciting but I don't underestimate

the scale of the task that lies ahead in the next two years. What

has happened today is the biggest stimulation of British power and

sovereignty in my lifetime. A letter which is really about kicking off a

trade negotiation had six mentions of trade and 11 mentions of

security. It struck me as a reckless series of threats. Not that he ever

needs a reason to be pictured with a pint, today Ukip were celebrating.

Over the moon, happy. Today, for me, after 25 years of campaigning, the

impossible dream came true, I'm very pleased. And look who popped up

later. What matters now is that we have a successful negotiation and

try to maintain a close relationship between Britain and the European

Union. In a rare interview inside number ten the Prime Minister

promised, despite all the challenges, our relationship with

the rest of the continent will be just as good. What we are both

looking for is that comprehensive free trade agreement which gives

that ability to trade freely into the European single market and for

them to trade with us. It will be a different relationship but I think

it will have the same benefits in terms of that free access to trade.

An assertion that will take a lot to prove. One her counterparts in

Europe struggle to believe. Number ten's time for preparation is up,

now time to try to persuade. As we've heard the President

of the European Council said he would not pretend it was a happy

day but said the remaining EU members are united

and are determined to protect their interests during,

what he called the 'difficult Let's go to our Europe Editor Katya

Adler who is in Brussels now. The EU has now received a letter

from London and it wants a bit of time to digestives contents. We'll

be hearing more about the EU political guidelines for

negotiations on Friday. In the meantime the EU is trying to take

the enormity of today. It has been a long road for the UK since the

referendum but the EU has been anxiously holding its breath as well

with many believing it will never come to today, the day that Article

50 is triggered. The man with the burning

letter in his briefcase. He arrived without much fanfare

and the European Council This isn't just an historic

day for the UK. For the EU it is a momentus

and never to be forgotten Visibly unhappy, this

was the recipient of Britain's Donald Tusk, the man

who represents all EU member There is nothing to win

in this process, and I'm Well, the European Commission

is the lead negotiator for the EU Frans Timmermans is

the commission's vice president. But how can negotiations even start,

I wondered, with both The UK wants divorce talks and talks

of a new trade deal in parallel. Everyone starts with his

own interest and tries to formulate his own interest

in the best possible way, So what's the problem

in having parallel talks? Talking about trade at the same time

as divorce, for example? The position of the EU will be

determined on the basis of a careful There can be no future settlement

if we're not very clear on how the divorce settlement

is going to be. To make two years of complex

negotiations even thornier, the UK isn't talking just

to the European Commission. The real power behind the throne

lies in the EU capitals, Berlin, They will take any big political

decisions for the EU when it comes They don't and won't always

agree with one another. And the Article 50 time frame

is very, very tight. Just before everyone

heads into the lions den, there were conciliatory noises

all round in Europe today. Look at the front page

of this German newspaper. And then this from Germany's

powerful Europhile Prime Minister. TRANSLATION: We, the European Union,

will conduct fair and I hope that the British

government will approach Chancellor Merkel also stressed

the importance of deciding the fate of EU citizens living in the UK

and British citizens in the EU ASAP. Thankful for one issue,

at least, to unite around. In her statement to MPs today

Theresa May said she'd negotiate for the whole of the UK,

taking into account the interests Well, let's see how her

words have gone down. In a moment we'll be talking

to Chris Buckler who's in County Tyrone and Sian Lloyd

in Cardiff but first to our Scotland Scotland's First Minister today said

she does wish to reason a success with upcoming negotiations because a

good UK deal is in Scotland's interests, but she is not optimistic

about that. She described the process as a leap in the dark. The

Scottish Government have not been terribly impressed with the promise

of a significant increase in powers for the Scottish Parliament Theresa

May mention today because they said they haven't had any commitment on

what powers might come to Holyrood after Brexit. Of course Nicola

Sturgeon is busy writing a letter of her own at the moment, one she will

send to the Prime Minister making a formal request for a Scottish

referendum, what she already knows the answer. Theresa May will say

there can be no discussions about another referendum until this Brexit

deal is done and Scottish voters have had a chance to see how it is

working. I'm standing at one of the 260 crossing points between Northern

Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and this bridge will become part of

the UK's only land border with an EU country. This river might be seen as

a dividing line but it's not treated like that by people who live here,

they cross for work, for access to health care and other services, and

for trade. That's why the British and Irish government have been so

strong in saying they want these roads to remain open. If anything

European Parliament went further to date saying that they would not

accept a hard border on the island of Ireland. Theresa May has been

clear that they don't want anything that will threaten the peace process

here. In reality Brexit has already been divisive. At storm onto the

power-sharing government has collapsed. That was not caused by

the issue, however Brexit does have the potential to fuel political

differences. Irish Republican Army been listening closely to the push

for an independence referendum in Scotland. They point out that just

as in Scotland, the majority of people in Northern Ireland voted to

stay inside the European Union, and they are calling for a border poll,

an independence referendum, a referendum really on Irish unity.

Wales voted to leave the European Union. There was a recognition of

that this morning when Carwyn Jones said he would be working with the UK

government to get the best deal for Wales. By this afternoon, the cracks

had begun to appear and you sensed his frustration when he said he it

was regrettable the Welsh government had not been able to contribute to

the Article 50 letter and the devolved administrations had been

treated with a lack of respect. He'd already voiced his concerns about

economic subsidies. He wasn't sure what would be happening after 2020,

he said. There were no guarantees. Add the moment, some of the poorest

parts of Wales share ?2 billion of grant aid. The leaders of the Welsh

Conservatives said that is scaremongering and Theresa May has

said the specific interests of the nations will be taken into account.

The clock started ticking from the moment the letter

was delivered to Brussels this morning and the parties will have

two years to conclude negotiations on Britain's exit from the EU.

On Friday the European Council will make the next move

by setting out its proposals for the negotiations to come.

A month later, at an EU summit, the remaining twenty seven countries

are expected to debate and then agree on those proposals.

The talking will then start but big decisions may have to wait till

after the French and German elections held in May and September.

The negotiations should finish by October next year when the UK

and EU parliaments will both vote on the final deal.

That's the plan but we are in uncharted territory.

Our Political editor Laura Kuenssberg is at Westminster

Ultimately, what have we learnt about what the next two years might

look like? The tone of these important six pages tell us a couple

of important things. First of all, the Prime Minister feels the need to

persuade the rest of the EU we are not out to harm them, we're not out

there to do them damage, that we still share what she called European

values. That tells us she is aware how difficult this may be and there

were hints between the lines, too, she may be ready to compromise, that

she is up for some form of give and take in different areas but it is

also absolutely plain she isn't going to just play nice. The letter

featured prominently the issue of security. That has been something

that has been mentioned before but quietly. She is willing to make that

part of the negotiation. Her supporters would say it's common

sense because this has to be a deal in the round but it is controversial

in some quarters and it has raised some eyebrows here and around the

EU. Her close confidence always a of the Prime Minister she is fearless

in the pursuit of what she wants to achieve but, my goodness, she will

need to be. Just an early glimpse of the first responses from the rest of

the EU, they give a taste of the kind of resistance she may well face

in the next couple of years. All right, thank you.

Pe referendum was one of the biggest boats in EU history. 33.5 people

took part, revealing the divide about the relationship in Europe.

How do people feel now? Our home editor has been to Dover where more

than 60% of people voted to leave. The ancient town of Dover reminds us

of our closeness to mainland Europe, In the Town Hall, festooned

with relics of Britain's complex relationship with the lands

across the Channel, we have We briefed our Article 50 jury

on what the negotiations What I am proposing cannot mean

membership of the single market. We do need to take back

control of our borders. Losing our single trade deal as part

of it, it has to happen. What about the trade stuff,

are you worried that economically, I think in the beginning we may

well take a nosedive. But it's something

we will recover from. If we take a nosedive,

who actually suffers? We are going to be, the country

is going to stagnate economically. I don't think it will ever come out

to be Billy-no-mates because this country is too well loved

all over the world. I just hope that this Brexit thing

does not affect many So you're worried we somehow create

division when we disentangle My son is 24 and it terrifies me,

he and his generation might be in a situation that

we end up in a war. I think it's up to us

as people that voted out, That everything is

going to be all right. Let's imagine we get

to the two-year point, John, what do you

think should happen? Put our arms out to

the rest of the world. It will take more than two years,

more than five years. We have just got to go in and show

them that we do mean business. So how does our jury feel

about triggering Article 50? Happy, unhappy, or

worried and confused. Four happy, three

worried, one unhappy. Our jury and indeed Britain

is deeply divided on its reaction to the triggering of Article 50

and similar arguments will be played out in the months

of detailed talks ahead. In other news - a minute's silence

has been held this afternoon on Westminster Bridge to mark

the moment Khalid Masood Four people were killed,

including a police officer. The inquests into their deaths

were opened earlier today. Their anguish and pain so obvious.

The family of the American victim, Kurt Cochran, came to Westminster to

remember. They mourned his loss together at the place where he was

hit and thrown from the bridge. Kurt Cochran was the first to be hit when

the vehicle careered onto the pavement. Teacher Aysha Frade also

died, she had two children. Leslie Rhodes was also killed on the

bridge, he was 75 years old. The final victim was PC Keith Palmer. He

died despite the desperate efforts to save him. Earlier, at exactly

2:40pm, the moment the attack began a week ago, the family joined others

on the bridge whose lives had changed last Wednesday. They

included this man Fromm Romania who suffered a broken foot. His

girlfriend was thrown from the bridge and she remains in a stable

but critical condition in hospital. Doctors, nurses and ambulance crews

were also in Westminster, with schoolchildren and representatives

of different faith groups. They stopped in silence and solidarity.

The memories of last week will have been particularly war for the

Metropolitan police officers. A group who had lost a one of their

rent. They recalled the sacrifice of PC Keith Palmer. This afternoon is

about remembering the victims of last week's events. Our thoughts and

prayers go out to everyone who was affected by the events last week. It

was a moment of calm after the chaos here of exactly one week ago. It was

also a united front against the horror and violence of the attack.

Today, inquests opened into the deaths of three of those killed. It

was also announced there would be two separate reviews of security

following the Westminster attack. But this afternoon was about an act

of remembrance, a chance for Londoners to stand together.

A private funeral for the singer George Michael has taken

His publicist said it was a small ceremony, attended by

The singer's family thanked his "fans across the world

"for their many messages of love and support".

George Michael was found dead at his Oxfordshire home

Returning to our main story. Britain's exit from the EU. Let's

sum up where we are at the end of today. Through this whole debate,

the economy has been a key issue. Were there any clues today what we

might see on that front? This is often fashioned as a titanic

struggle between the politics of Brexit, sovereignty, taking back

control, less immigration and the economic self Brexit, the freest

possible trading relationship with the EU. Today, to an extent at

least, the economics won out. Theresa May talked about ensuring

prosperity. She spoke about the need for an ambitious free trade deal.

Wasn't it interesting Philip Hammond was sitting right next Theresa May

as she spoke in the House of Commons? He is the man, the

Chancellor in charge of the UK economy. There wasn't any talk of no

deal being better. Walking away from a deal would be better than a bad

deal. No talk of that. So quite a lot of conciliation. There is a big

sense behind this in Number Ten, although recent polling has revealed

that, for the public, Brexit and the economy have leapt to the top of

their concerns. Theresa May knows that disruption to the relationship

of our biggest trading partner, the EU, is and economic risk and a

political risk for heart. Let me turn this on its head. What

affect will Brexit have on the EU? Well, many in the UK celebrate

Brexit is a chance for a brand-new start but there are no upside for

the EU. It loses an influential member, a powerful economy, one of

only two military powers in Europe and a key contributor to the EU

budget. While EU leaders defiantly say Brexit brings you closer

together, it actually puts pressure on an already weakened EU whose

members fall out over funding, over the euro and migration so how will

they keep a united front on each country has different priorities

when it comes to Brexit? Poland is more likely to want to appease the

UK. It wants to safeguard the rights of its citizens living in Britain,

whereas Germany what's politics before practicalities and it wants

to ensure the integrity of the single market and the EU as a whole.

There is anyone a ray of light to the EU. When it comes to the

negotiations, it believes it has the upper hand. Far less under time

pressure than the UK to get a deal. And Andrew Neil will interview

the Prime Minister Theresa May That's in half an hour

here on BBC One. There is some warm weather on the

way. Today it has been cloudy, not much sunshine. We had some rain in

Pembrokeshire and it would continue to be wet at times mainly across the

North and west with heavier rain running northwards across Scotland.

Later in the night, some bursts of rain in the south-west, heading into

the Midlands and the south-east. But a really mild night night, 11-12

fairly typical with a lot of cloud. This rain in the Midlands pushes

away then we have brighter skies with sunshine hedging up into the

South. The wetter weather is restricted to areas around the Irish

Sea. Northern Scotland should be warmer than it has been, especially

in the north-east, thanks to the wind changing direction. Southern

Scotland is still wet, with rain across the north-west of England,

not far away from Northern Ireland. For most of England and Wales, we

get brighter weather, much warmer weather coming up from the south

with temperatures as high as 22! Heading into Friday, the main focus

of the rain is with the low pressure, taking it away from

Northern Ireland and up into Scotland. That weather front is

weeks so there isn't much rain in the UK. Some fresh air following in

behind, and it'll feel pleasant in the sunshine. The weekend, a weekend

of two halves. Saturday will have some sunshine at showers as well.

The wind is slow-moving so slow-moving showers. Then the

showers move away and a Julie Bob start to Sunday, a dry and brighter

day with sunshine around, quite pleasant again before we get the

wind and rain ie the end of the day. The letter has been delivered to

Brussels marking the start of Britain's departure from the

European Union after 44 years of membership. That's all from the BBC