27/02/2018 Breakfast

Hello this is Breakfast,

with Dan Walker and Louise Minchin.

Commuters face heavy disruption

as snow storms sweep in from Russia.

Hundreds of trains and dozens

of flights have been cancelled -

and there are warnings of more

freezing weather on the way.

At the Met office has two Amber

warnings in place be prepared for

disruptive snow and they stand

across northern England, the

Midlands and parts of south-east

England, but elsewhere there will be

further snow showers and it will be

bitterly cold.

Good morning, it's Tuesday

the 27th of February.

Also this morning:

The International Trade Secretary,

Liam Fox, attacks Jeremy Corbyn's

Brexit plan as "a complete

sell-out", despite support

from some Tory rebels.

The body of a fifth person has been

found after an explosion

which destroyed a building

in Leicester - we'll be

live there after 7:00.

Good morning from Gateshead where

they are launching an exhibition of

the North. 80 days of events running

throughout the region over the

summer and I will be telling you

more about it.

In Sport, Britain's Winter Olympians

return from Pyeonchang,

with double skeleton champion,

Lizzy Yarnold, undecided

if she'll go for a hat-trick

of golds at the next Games.

All of that's coming up later.

Good morning.

First, our main story.

Snow and arctic temperatures

are expected across the UK

for the rest of the week.

The Met Office has issued both

yellow warnings and more serious

amber warnings for large parts

of eastern England.

Up to 10cm of snow is expected today

and as much as 20cm is predicted

in some parts of eastern England,

Scotland and Northern Ireland

by the end of Wednesday.

Drivers are being warned

they could face major disruption.

More than 200 trains

are no longer running,

while British Airways says over 60

flights have been cancelled.

Let's go to Jane Frances Kelly who

is at a given Hill were a snow

emergency has been declared. What is

the latest?

At Christmas scene, not the sort of

thing you expect at the end of

February. This arctic winds, Arctic

conditions P Southeast in their

grip. There is an amber warning,

overnight, bands of heavy snow went

over Kent and parts of Sussex. Kent

Police been using 4x4 vehicles to

respond to emergency call-outs. Kent

county councils highways agency has

declared a snow and emergency. It

says it wants to keep all the main

routes clear and have asked people

not to contact it unless it is

urgent. As I was driving down, there

were

were gritters, gritting the roads.

Travellers are being asked to check

trains are running and their train

hasn't been cancelled. Network Rail

overnight has been running empty

trains to actually make sure there

is no ice and snow on the tracks.

They have put on heaters and

installation onto the pointers. I

think the message today is, check

before you travel.

Absolutely, will

do.

Disruption to public transport

is already being felt this morning.

Ben Ando is at Colchester

railway station.

Nice to see you wrapped up warm,

what is the situation?

On a normal

warning, four or five trains would

have already left for London, taking

those early-morning commuters. But

at the moment they are waiting for

the first departure. Trains are

running later and finishing earlier

this evening as well, because there

is more snow forecast. It is not

just Greater Anglia who run trains

from the East of England into

London, but also great Northern,

greater Transport for London and

they are all suffering problems

because of the weather. It is the

engineering problems snow and ice

can cause to trains when they are

running. Points can freeze over,

branches that are laden with snow

can fall onto overhead power cables.

Trains that are running often have

to run more slowly because of speed

restrictions imposed by Network

Rail. That is the company that

manages the rail infrastructure, the

tracks and the power supplies to the

trains that are running.

Difficulties for commuters and

decisions were taken early. Perhaps,

you might think the snow hasn't been

as

as bad as forecast, but nonetheless,

the companies cannot take any

chances.

Thank you very much. We

will have more on that throughout

the morning. We will be speaking to

someone from Greater Anglia trains

later.

Who can guide us through everything

going on. There is only one person!

Carol has the very latest on those

weather warnings for us now.

We're looking at part of East

Anglia, Kent, heading down towards

the Channel Islands and locally,

more than ten centimetres, but

generally looking at up to three

centimetres. Because the showers are

aligned, if you are in that

alignment, that is when you will see

the heaviest snow. North-east in

particular, towards the Midlands,

ten centimetres, but we could see

more than that. It will be a windy

day. It will be blowing around and

drifting. Again, hazardous

conditions. Elsewhere there will be

further snow showers, not in the

high impact bang, the amber band,

the be prepared bands, but it could

lead to problematic travel

conditions. Through the rest of the

week on each day gets colder and as

the wind gets stronger, a

significant wind-chill and more snow

yet to come.

Carol will be with us every shoe

minutes on Breakfast this morning.

But thank you for the moment.

The political row over the UK's

future trading relationship

with the European Union

will continue later when Liam Fox

will tell businesses that

staying in a customs union

would be a "sell-out"

of the country's interests.

The International Trade Secretary

is the latest Cabinet

member to deliver a speech

on the Government's Brexit

negotiating position.

Our political correspondent

Alex Forsyth is in Westminster.

I get the feeling, as well as

talking about the weather, it will

be another Brexit week, Alex?

You

are probably right and this is

becoming the next big Brexit battle

ground. The customs union allows its

members to trade goods across

borders without any tariffs.

Yesterday we had fun Jeremy Corbyn

and why he thinks the UK should stay

in a customs union with the EU. He

said it would keep trade flowing and

stop any hardening of the border

with Ireland, which will become the

border between the UK and the EU,

once we leave. Today we will hear

from Liam Fox, saying why he thinks

the UK should leave a customs union.

He thinks staying in one will mean

we have two followed Brussels' rules

about having a say. It. Is making

trade deals with the rest of the

world and it will be a sell-out of

Britain's National interest. It is

about our future trading policy.

What is agreed will affect that

crucial topic of the border on the

island of Ireland, but this is

politically important. It is one of

the areas of real difference between

Labour and the Conservatives on

Brexit. Some Tory MPs are suggesting

they prefer Labour's position and

could try to defeat the government

on this. It is becoming a complex,

but crucial issue.

Alex, thank you

very much and coverage of that

speech later on across the BBC.

Five people are now known to have

died after an explosion destroyed

a building in Leicester.

Fire officers are due to continue

a search and rescue operation

on the site of the former shop

and flat this morning.

Five people remain in hospital

after the explosion,

one in a critical condition.

We will take you live to the scene

in Leicester on the search effort

just after 7am here on Breakfast.

The UK is facing a growing threat

from far-right terrorism,

according to the outgoing head

of counter-terrorism policing.

Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley,

who will retire next month,

revealed that four extreme-right

terrorist attacks were disrupted

last year, as well as ten

Islamist-inspired plots.

Of course, we've always

had right wing groups

who organise protests,

some hate crime and a

degree of criminality.

We've occasionally in the past had

lone actors committing

right wing terror acts.

But what we have now,

is a degree of organisation,

so about 18 months ago,

based on the intelligence

we provided, the Home Secretary

prescribed national action.

That means he declared them

a terrorist organisation.

They are, unashamedly,

home-grown and they are a

unashamedly neo-Nazi,

white supremacist

terrorist organisation.

That has to be a matter of concern

we now have that degree

of organisation here.

That reflects the increased number

of arrests and the fact we are now

announcing that a combination

of organised and individuals acting

have led to four plots

being foiled last year.

Today an "humanitarian pause"

is due to start in Syria's

rebel-held Eastern Ghouta,

which has faced an intense air

and ground attack by pro-government

forces for more than a week.

Russia's President, Vladimir Putin,

has ordered a daily five-hour pause

in the Syrian government's assault

on the enclave, so that civilians

can flee and humanitarian

aid can be delivered.

The International Committee

of the Red Cross says aid

organisations are ready to go

in as soon as possible.

A fifth British tourist has died

following a helicopter crash

in the Grand Canyon more

than two weeks ago.

29-year-old Eleanor Udall died

in a Las Vegas hospital,

four days after her husband,

Jonathan.

The couple were on their honeymoon

when the accident happened.

Three of their friends were also

killed in the crash.

Research suggests students

from poorer backgrounds are more

likely to live at home

whilst at University

than their richer counterparts,

and it could be limiting

their life chances.

Charity, The Sutton Trust says

moving to a bigger city to study

is often an "escalator"

for social mobility.

Our education correspondent

Elaine Dunkley reports.

An armed police officer criticised

by Donald Trump after the recent

school shooting in Florida has

defended his actions.

Scot Peterson was outside

the school in Broward County

when a gunman killed 17 people.

However, in a statement,

the officer's lawyer said

it was "patently untrue"

that his client was a coward.

The US President says he would have

gone into the school

even if he had been unarmed.

You know I really believe you don't

know until you are tested,

but I think, I really believe I'd

run in there even if I

didn't have a weapon.

And I think most of the people

in this room would have done that

too, because I know most of you.

But the way they performed

was really a disgrace.

We may all be bracing ourselves

for the cold weather,

but for some members of the animal

world adapting to the climate

is perfectly natural.

Have you seen this?

This is a rare white stoat,

caught on camera in a garden

in North Yorkshire.

The tiny mammals are normally

a rusty brown colour

but have the ability

to shed their coats and replace them

with white ermine when living

in areas with a low average

temperature - perfect for this week

on the North York Moors.

It is the most beautiful animal. Is

that what it has done?

Yes, it has shed its normal rusty

brown.

John is here. How do you feel about

stoats?

Can't say I am inspirational.

No Dom Parsons.

Where was he? I don't know, Lizzy

Yarnold came back sooner. But she

went back to meet them at Heathrow.

It was interesting, Billy Morgan

said he was nervous meeting the

media when they touched down

yesterday. That is the moment, you

return and see the cameras and

everybody welcoming you back but it

must be nerve-racking, when you are

out in South Korea, detached with

what is going on here. It was

special for them. Needless to say,

partition daily-macro conversation

turned about their participation at

the next Winter games.

not that skeleton gold medallist

Lizzy Yarnold would be

drawn on her participation

at the next winters.

She says she'll take a break before

deciding if she'll go for a hat

trick of golds in Beijing.

As Scotland look to follow

up their huge Six Nations win over

England, they could be without key

man Ryan Wilson for the rest

tournament, if he's punished

for making contact with the eye

of an England player on Saturday.

Arsenal legend Ian Wright says it's

time for a younger manager

to replace Arsene Wenger

at the club.

We talked about their defeat

to Manchester City in the League Cup

final yesterday, he says there's no

case for him to stay.

And the Davis Cup could

be set for a revamp.

The International Tennis Federation

are considering swapping it

for a World Cup of Tennis, that

could start as early as next year.

Andy Murray there is rumoured to be

in support, broadly, of the plans

which would essentially cede the

Davis Cup, which is played through

four weekends of the year. That

would go, and there would be a World

Cup of tennis. Over a two-week

period?

Yes, maybe a week.

It would be great to watch. It would

condense the calendar down.

Players are getting injured. So much

tennis being played. The Davis Cup,

as fantastic as it is is being

marginalised. It is a way of putting

the international tournament back on

the landscape.

We know that the beast from the east

is causing all sorts of problems,

let's get the details.

It's been a cold night, temperatures

fell to -6 in the south-east. There

is lying snow in Northumberland,

eight centimetres, seven centimetres

across part of North Yorkshire and

five centimetres across parts of

Kent. That sets the scene. The Met

Office has two amber be prepared for

disruption weather warnings for

today, also today, also some for

tomorrow, but today, the areas are

the north-east of England towards

the Midlands, and the south-east,

from East Anglia to the Channel

Islands. All of these areas could

see five to ten centimetres but

locally up to 15 centimetres. In the

south-east, at times, it could be

less. Cold air is coming all the way

from Russia, you can see the Blue

Cross the near continent and our

shores, it's quite common for us in

this wind direction to seat snow

showers or significant snow coming

our way at this time of the year. We

have snow heading all the way down

the East and in the East Anglia,

heading towards the Channel islands,

Guernsey will see up to eight

centimetres. It will be blowing

around in the wind but it will be

there is some dry weather and sunny

spells. Some of the snow will not be

as heavy in the West. Temperatures

two to three today, but with the

wind chill, it will feel colder.

Through the evening and overnight,

more snow piling in across the North

and east of Scotland and North East

England, and some snow showers

clipping the south coast of

Cornwall, Devon and Dorset. A cold

night in prospect, where we have

lying snow, there could be some ice.

In rural areas, it will be minus

double figures. Into Wednesday,

another be prepared for disruption

weather warning for the Met Office

across northern Scotland, eastern

Scotland and north-east England. The

showers in the South East will drift

further west so some more wintry

showers in western areas and it will

brighten up as touch with less

wintry showers in the south-east.

But Wednesday afternoon, when you

add on the wind, will be bitterly

cold. It will be continually cold on

Thursday and

Thursday and Friday with disruptive

snow and blizzards. This system is

coming up from the continent, it has

been named by the Portuguese weather

service as Emma, and it will be

bringing snow across England and

Wales. It will be accompanied by six

strong winds, there will be blowing

snow showers and blizzards. On

Friday, the snow is going to

continue to push steadily

northwards, this could be

disruptive, still windy, the snow

still blowing around with rain

coming from behind. You will notice

that difference in temperature in

the Channel Islands but for the rest

of us, it will be cold.

That's a dramatic picture, looking

at that maps. Let us know where the

temperatures are in the minus

figures, some people aren't telling

us already. The front page of The

Times, don't know why you would

still go punting!

He's still on his

shirt sleeves!

Rocking a T-shirt

there. Everyone else is very warm.

Not even looking where they are

going but I'm sure they enjoyed it.

And Liam Fox attacks did this over

support for Labour, he said, don't

back customs union.

He is making a

speech today. There are lots of

pictures of snow in various places,

that is a Household Cavalry card.

The Telegraph has a main story about

the rail operators who are accused

of benefiting from transport chaos

pipe pocketing millions of pounds of

compensation while passengers in

jewel cancellations and delays.

--

into your cancellations. We have a

penguin on the front page of the

Guardian, a report from the

Antarctic says that unless

greenhouse emissions are

greenhouse emissions are reduced,

70% of king penguins will be forced

to move their breeding grounds or

face extinction. The main story is

the health alert for diabetes, cases

doubling.

The Daily Mail has said

they have had a ten year battle with

plastic, they have quite a lot of

information the talking about why

there is not more deposit schemes.

The Mirror has a

there is not more deposit schemes.

The Mirror has story about a young

girl who has died after her GP

turned her away after her mum turned

up with her for an emergency.

The

beast from the East has a lot of

front pages, the son has the great

writ -ish flake off. -- British.

The

dangers of boxing in the sports

pages, the boxer won his match,

complained of headaches and then

died later on. There is an

interesting analysis on the BBC

website, we have had three deaths in

the last five years. He did some

interviews, he was touching his head

and he was in distress, he went down

in the tenth. There is work being

done about boxing near hospitals who

have brain injury units, doing MRI

scans, they are doing the best they

can but is still a dangerous sport.

The weeks before he was asked about

the dangers of the sport, and he

said, I embraced it. This is why we

get in the ring, there is a danger.

Sadly, that is what has happened.

Can I talk about handholding? I'm

not going to hold your hand.

I want

to hold your hand!

You know one of

your loved ones is in pain, you hold

their hands. They have proved,

neuroscientists, that it does make a

difference. That's amazing. The

effect is strong enough to diminish

the pain of a hot piece of metal

applied to form and seems to work

especially well with women.

Do you

fancy a hand-held?

I'm all right,

I'm not in pain.

Where on for three

hours so if you needed at any point,

I'm here for you.

Anyway, moving on!

Two leading animal charities

are warning Britain's cat population

is at crisis point with a surge

in the number of strays

across the country.

The RSPCA and the PDSA are now

urging owners to make

sure their pets have been neutered

to help reduce numbers.

Ali Fortescue explains.

MIAOWING.

Handing over a pet for surgery,

a tough moment for any animal lover.

They're part of the family,

you know, and it's like anything,

if I were having an operation,

I would be just as tearful.

But the RSPCA says the cat

population is at crisis point.

They're piloting a scheme

in Sheffield to let owners

neuter their cats for free.

It's unsustainable,

our centres are full.

Shelters are full.

And if the situation

continues as it's going,

there are going to be more stray

cats, there's going to be more feral

communities that don't have anybody

to look out for them

in the community.

Can I get some when you're ready?

As part of the pilot scheme,

vet Rob and his team are spaying

and castrating 70 cats today.

It's amazing how quickly these

animals bounce back from surgery

compared to if we had a similar

operation, it would take us

a lot longer to recover.

And also, it's often

a lot more health issues

if we don't get them neutered.

So they're much more prone

to getting cancers and womb

infections and things like that

if they're not spayed.

We are really recommending,

the PDSA and the RSPCA,

neutering these cats at four months

of age so before they hit puberty.

Nine out of ten cat owners have

already neutered their pets.

With more than 10 million

cats in the UK, that's

potentially 1 million that

are still not neutered.

And it's thought that one female

over five years could could be

responsible for 20,000 descendants.

And the trouble with unwanted

descendants is it means

there's more stray cats.

This is South Yorkshire,

where the problem is thought

to be particularly bad.

I've been here for just five minutes

and already we've seen several feral

cats like these ones.

The RSPCA says this is a problem

that's growing because the more

un-neutered kittens there are,

the more cats there will be

with nowhere to go.

Nowhere to go except rescue centres

like this one which staff say

is nearly at breaking point.

We can't take them on because we've

got so many but there's just

so many pumping out anyway,

and if they are feral and stray,

odds are, they're not

going to be neutered.

They'll be breeding,

and we're is going to be

absolutely inundated.

We may be a nation of cat lovers,

but too many kittens could mean

we simply can't look after one

of our favourite pets.

There you go. Scary cat news.

Steph is on Tyneside this morning.

More details about how big plans for

a great exhibition, hello, Steph!

Don't go away!

That was a sprint to

get in position!

The reason why I ran is because

we've been hiding inside until you

were ready to come to us because

it's freezing! Have a little look

over the side, you can see the snow,

where in Gateshead, the wonderful

Tyne Bridge behind me and it's been

snowing overnight. It's a really

exciting day for the region because

it's the launch of the great

exhibition of the north, this will

run for 80 days a summer at 30

venues across the North, it will

include things like water sculpture.

This is a mocked up version of it.

You will be able to see the

wonderful fountain that is going to

run across the Tyne Bridge. It's all

about celebrating the North and it's

going to be lots of different events

to inspire people as well and tell

us about the history of the region.

You can see some Lego models that

have shown what's been achieved in

the region as well. It's not just

about the north-east, it's the whole

of the North. There's a competition

running for children, they're

looking for the inventions of the

future, I love stuff like that. You

can see some of these, binoculars

which the into the future, wouldn't

that be useful? Especially for the

lottery! We have got a driverless

car that you can sleep in, one for

the future. And what's of other

inventions. We will see some of

these kids later and we will have a

choir, but more from me later on.

First the news, travel where you

Hello, this is Breakfast

with Dan Walker and Louise Minchin.

It's 6.30am.

We'll bring you all the latest news

and sport in a moment,

but also on Breakfast this morning.

As the Beast from East arrives we'll

bring you all the latest travel

advice as train companies

and airlines are already

cancelling services.

He was born two months premature,

but survived and grew up to be one

of Britain's toughest soldiers.

Ex SAS serviceman Jason Fox will be

here to tell us about his latest

challenge aimed at raising money

for babies like him.

From plants to poetry.

Alan Titchmarsh is releasing

an album of gardening

verse set to music.

Later we'll find out

why he's branching out.

Good morning, here's

a summary of today's main

stories from BBC News.

Up to 20 centimetres of snow

is predicted in some parts

of Eastern England today as arctic

temperatures hit the UK.

Some train services and flights

have been cancelled,

and motorists are being warned

they could face major disruption.

Our reporter Phil Bodmer

is in Stamford Bridge

in East Yorkshire

for us this morning.

Everyone we have spoken to this

morning is very well wrapped up, we

can see a dusting behind you?

That's

right, I am not sure about 20

centimetres but we might have won or

two centimetres in East Yorkshire.

This is the centre of one of the

ball-macro amber warnings issued

overnight and this is in force until

11am this morning. But that bad

weather hasn't materialised. Maybe a

few flakes coming down. When I

arrived about 5am it was snowing

more heavily but the main roads are

keeping open and the pathways are

covered in a light covering. But the

main road between York and the

coastal resorts of Bridlington are

flowing freely. The snowploughs

haven't been needed and the gritting

they did last night seems to be

doing its job. We're not of any

major disruption around York. That

is about ten miles from us. We hope

we have survived the first phase of

the beast from the east without any

too much damage. I'm not aware of

any issue so far and people are

going about their business as normal

this morning.

It is not quite

nothing to see here because Carol

has been saying all week, it is

going to get worse. There are a

number of trains and travel

implications for many people going

out this morning. If you are going

out on the roads, please take care

and check with local BBC website

about school closures and any travel

issues.

Carol will be here in about ten

minutes to give us the details.

Staying in a customs union with the

EU would be a sell-out to Great

Britain, according to Liam Fox. He

is expected to save the future of

global trade will not be decided

through strict arrangements like a

customs union.

Five people are now known to have

died after an explosion destroyed

a building in Leicester.

Fire officers are due to continue

a search and rescue operation

on the site of the former shop

and flat this morning.

You can see the damage caused by

that explosion.

Five people remain in hospital

after the explosion,

one in a critical condition.

We are live there just after 7am on

Breakfast this morning.

This Assistant Commissioner, Mark

Crowley, who will retire next month

has revealed for extreme Right

terrorist attacks were disrupted

last year, as well as ten Islamist

inspired plots.

Of course, we've always

had right wing groups

who organise protests,

some hate crime and a

degree of criminality.

We've occasionally in the past had

lone actors committing

right wing terror acts.

But what we have now,

is a degree of organisation,

so about 18 months ago,

based on the intelligence

we provided, the Home Secretary

prescribed national action.

That means he declared them

a terrorist organisation.

They are, unashamedly,

home-grown and they are a

unashamedly neo-Nazi,

white supremacist

terrorist organisation.

That has to be a matter of concern

we now have that degree

of organisation here.

That reflects the increased number

of arrests and the fact we are now

announcing that a combination

of organised and individuals acting

have led to four plots

being foiled last year.

Today an "humanitarian pause"

is due to start in Syria's

rebel-held Eastern Ghouta,

which has faced an intense air

and ground attack by pro-government

forces for more than a week.

Russia's President, Vladimir Putin,

has ordered a daily five-hour pause

in the Syrian government's assault

on the enclave, so that civilians

can flee and humanitarian

aid can be delivered.

The International Committee

of the Red Cross says aid

organisations are ready to go

in as soon as possible.

A fifth British tourist has died

following a helicopter crash

in the Grand Canyon more

than two weeks ago.

29-year-old Eleanor Udall died

in a Las Vegas hospital,

four days after her husband,

Jonathan.

The couple were on their honeymoon

when the accident happened.

Three of their friends were also

killed in the crash.

Research suggests students

from poorer backgrounds are more

than three times more likely to live

at home whilst at University

than their richer counterparts,

and it could impact

on their future prospects.

Charity, The Sutton Trust says

moving to a bigger city to study

is often an "escalator"

for social mobility.

The Department for Education

is currently carrying out a review

into post-18 education,

they say it will consider how

they can support more flexible

learning and financial support

for disadvantaged students.

Scientists are warning as many

as 70% of the world's King Penguins

will be forced to relocate,

or could disappear over the next 80

years, because of global warming.

It's thought over a million breeding

pairs could struggle to find food

close enough to take back

to their young on native breeding

grounds in the Antarctic,

where the speed of environmental

change is now said to be faster

than the birds ability to adapt.

I once went to a talk on Emperor

penguins. It was very informative.

Good morning, John. We are

celebrating the return of the

champions.

We are, but no Dom Parsons. They

have come back at different times.

Lizzy Yarnold went to meet them at

Heathrow Airport yesterday. Very

nice, building the team dynamic.

nice, building the team dynamic. As

you can imagine, having returned,

questions looking ahead to Beijing.

Lizzy Yarnold as saying she has not

committed as to whether she will go

for a hat-trick of gold medals.

They're back and among

those touching

down was big air bronze

medalist Billy Morgan,

who said the waiting

media made him nervous.

Skeleton gold medallist

Lizzy Yarnold returned last week

but joined her fellow

Olympians at Heathrow.

She told the cameras she's taking

a break before deciding if she'll go

for a hat trick of golds.

It's hard to predict what I'm

going to feel like in a year

or four years' time.

It's taken so much hard work to even

get to this point, I've

done the sport now for nine years.

And it's really tough, actually,

it's a lot of grind.

So at the moment, I'm

just having a break,

showing people the medal

and celebrating that.

And I really will just see

how I feel later on.

Scotland could be without a key man

as they look to follow up that huge

Six Nations win over England.

Ryan Wilson's tournament could be

over if he's found guilty of making

contact with the eye of an opponent.

The incident happened in that

historic Calcutta Cup

victory on Saturday.

It's Ireland next for Scotland,

one of their greats,

Jamie Heaslip who after 95 caps,

two Lions Tours and two World Cups

has announced his retirement.

Not a bad run.

We talked about Manchester City's

heavy defeat of Arsenal

in the League Cup on Breakfast

yesterday.

Club great Ian Wright says someone

younger needs to replace

Arsene Wenger as manager.

It's thought club legend

Thierry Henry would be interested,

I would give him a year with an

option out of respect. If it plays

out like it is now, you just don't

take up the option, simply because

something has to change. I want

Arsenal to start challenging, sign

players to make them exciting.

Someone to come on the board to lay

down the law to people and the

manager, it will be. And the players

who are on easy street. A few of

them own easy Street.

I am sure that

is a view shared by other Arsenal

fans.

Britain's most successful

Olympian Sir Chris Hoy has urged

fans of cycling to stick

with the sport, despite doping

controversies in recent years.

British Tour de France champion

Chris Froome is currently under

investigation after returning

an adverse drugs test last year.

He denies any wrongdoing.

Hoy believes such issues do not

solely exist in cycling.

Cycling, like all sport,

has its challenges.

And, you know, I can't think of any

sport that hasn't had

controversy with doping,

with issues there.

And it's, yeah, sadly,

it's part of modern sport.

Not even modern sport, it's been

part of sport since day one.

But all we can do as athletes,

as ambassadors, is to remind

people that there are,

the majority of athletes out

there are doing it the right way.

It is three years ago since Great

Britain won the Davis Cup. Relish

these scenes because there is a plan

to propose a World Cup of tennis. It

would see 18 nations playing for a

prize of over £2 billion.

Interesting to see if that gets off

the ground.

With the start of the Formula One

season less than a month away,

we can bring you news of a "wheel

nut issue" in testing.

Fernando Alonso's McLaren span off

at high speed when a wheel came off.

You would like to think they will

sort that out before the start of

the season. It is quite important

the wheels stay on the car. Somebody

forgot to put and not on gesture

marked who knows, but the big thing

is Lewis Hamilton, whether he will

win another title. He became the

most successful British Formula 1

driver in history. When does it

start again? Couple of months, I

think a month away now. Thank you

very much.

People who swim, or take part

in water sports in the sea are more

likely to suffer from illnesses

including stomach bugs and vomiting

than people who don't.

That's according to new research

by the University of Exeter

which found that sea bathing doubled

the odds of ear ailments,

and increased stomach and intestine

problems by almost a third.

Dr Anne Leonard took

part in the research.

Good morning, thank you for joining

us. What did you find and what did

you look?

We look at people bathing

in the sea, are much more likely to

experience symptoms like EA,

diarrhoea, stomach ache, compared to

non-bathers. We look that studies

conducted in high income countries

across the world and summarised

their findings to produce these

results.

It is a great shame for

people who like swimming in the sea.

It is across the world, and did it

matter what the conditions were

like?

We didn't find any differences

in terms of certain countries being

better than other countries. We're

not trying to discourage people from

going in the sea or go swimming,

there are plenty of health benefits

to be gained from going to the beach

and being in the water. But people

need to be aware of the potential

risks and what they can do to

minimise those risks.

Why was it

they were getting ill more often,

what was it in the water?

We know

sewage pollution can sometimes be a

problem. For example, manure is

applied to agricultural land as a

fertiliser and sometimes when it

rains it washes the manure

containing things like bacteria and

viruses off the land and into nearby

waterways. So when people go

swimming, they might swallow some of

this water that contains

microorganisms that might make them

sick. Or it might get into their ear

and start an infection.

He talked

about what people will do to

minimise it, what can they do?

People can look at water quality,

the bathing waters they are

interested in going to. The

Environment Agency collect water

quality data during the summer and

then reports on it on their website.

People can access that information.

There is also a free app called the

Say The Sea Service and they give

alerts when there is likely to be

sewage at their favourite beaches.

People are less likely to go in the

water when there will be sewage and

they will stay healthy and reduce

the risks of getting sick.

How did the UK compared to other

How did the UK compared to other

countries you were looking at?

We

didn't find that where people went

swimming had any impact on their

illness.

So some people I know will

swim today because that's what

people do, if people are thinking of

going into the sea, you say, think

twice about weather conditions,

whether or not there could be

something in the water and check it

out yourself?

Absolutely, we still

want people to enjoy the activities

that they love but protect

themselves from getting sick.

Thank

you for talking to us.

Let's have a look at the papers.

I'm

a big fan of swimming in the scene.

-- the sea. She said if it has been

raining heavily, you don't know

what's in the order that wouldn't be

there otherwise.

You are a river

summer as well?

I have never got ill

swimming in the river or the sea.

Do

you swim free or easy order you

snorkel?

I don't in the UK, no!

There's not a huge amount to see!

Forgive my ignorant question. You

can see plenty down there?

Maybe not

as much as somewhere tropical. I do

wear goggles. Let's go with this,

lots of pictures in the paper with

snow and ice, front page of the

Telegraph, the Household Cavalry

guard with a bit of snow yesterday

in London. Their main story is about

rail firms, some train companies

have stopped services today ahead of

the weather. We will be talking to

one of them later. They say that

Britain's largest rail operators are

accused of benefiting from transport

cars by pocketing compensation while

passengers are delayed. -- they are

benefiting from transport chaos.

The

Daily Mail talking about their

plastic campaign, they say they

declared war on plastic ten years

ago, and MPs are saying, why haven't

we done more?

A lot of the papers

have this story, a young girl who

fell ill at school, she was taken to

an emergency appointment by her mum

but she was delayed for that

appointment and she was turned away

for being late and then she got

seriously ill later and died.

It's 6:48am. Plenty of Carol

throughout the programme today and

over the next two days, because

there's a lot of talk of the beast

from the East, you can tell us what

to expect?

The Met Office has quite a few be

prepared for this option snow

warnings out for today and into

Thursday. With each day, whenever

you see the weather warning, we are

seeing five to ten centimetres

generally of fresh snow, but for

some of us it will be more. Today,

that is what we have got, and Met

Office and the bee prepared for

disruption -- and Amber be prepared

for disruption weather warning. It

is across the north-east and the

Midlands and the south-east. Further

snow will be falling elsewhere but

it will not be as significant. We

will continue with the snow falling

across parts of south-east Scotland,

north-east England, moving over

towards Wales, equally we have a

snow shower line coming in across

East Anglia and Kent towards the

Channel Islands, especially

Guernsey. We will see some snow

showers into western areas that they

will be the exception rather than

the rule. In between those showers,

we are looking at sunny spells but

despite the sunshine, wherever you

are today it will feel cold. Through

the evening and overnight, more

snowfalls across the North and East

of Scotland and north-east England.

More snow across the south-east, and

it's going to clip the south coast

of Cornwall, Devon and possibly

Dorset as well. Cold night in

prospect, some of us will have

temperatures as low as -8 minus

nine. There is the risk of ice on

untreated surfaces. Tomorrow's Amber

be prepared for disruption due to

the snow weather warning from the

Met Office is across northern and

eastern Scotland, the central

lowlands and north-east England. We

could see five to ten centimetres of

fresh snow falling on top of what we

already have, and for some of us, a

little bit more. We have snow

falling across the areas there, it

will be drifting south and west

jawing the day and south-western

areas, for example self -- Microsoft

Devon and Cornwall, and Dorset, will

see some flurries. It will be

bitterly cold tomorrow, this is the

wind-chill factor. -11 will not be

sneezed at, it is a day for wrapping

up warm. We are not finished with

this weather, towards the end of the

week there will be more disruptive

snow and blizzards. Coming up from

the near continent is a system which

has been named by the Portuguese

weather service as Emma, it will be

producing snow moving northwards,

there will be some drifting and

blowing snow and blizzards. As this

moves northwards, it is still snow

showers. Into Friday, that still

pushes northwards through the day

with blowing snow, drifting and the

potential for blizzards at well. A

lot going on.

Steph is out and about today, she is

going to tell us about big plans for

a great exhibition of the North this

summer but it is not looking like

summer.

Don't panic, she is.

--

shoes offer.

This is like challenge

Anneka, there you are, where is the

crystal?

I'm so sorry! I don't know

why that keeps happening! Lots of

people waking up to snow in

Gateshead, you can see the Tyne

Bridge, a lot of people going

through the snow. The reason we're

here is to talk about the great

exhibition of the North which is a

huge event running across the

region, 30 different venues for 80

days across the summer. Everything

to do with the arts, culture, the

innovation, celebrating what has

been achieved in the area and its

future. One of the things that's

going to happen is a water

sculpture, you can see what it might

look like on the Tyne, quite a

spectacular thing. A wonderful water

sculpture in the summer. We have got

Carol here, the executive director,

tell us about what's happening and

where we are.

We are here at the

Sage Gateshead but the Hanukkah

version will be across the city so

we are working in over 30 -- the

whole exhibition will be across the

city so we are working in 30 venues,

the rocket is coming back to the

city but we will have a virtual

reality experience, we are

celebrating the north's innovations

in Lego.

We can see some of them

behind you.

We have got some amazing

music, Lauren Laverne is curating

the great Northern soundtrack which

will be here in the Sage Gateshead.

We have Turner prize nominated

artists from the north, something

for everybody.

In front of us, have

a look at these guys, morning! These

are little inventors. Tell us about

them, they come up with fantastic

inventions and we will get our

cameramen to have a look at their

pictures.

Little inventors is as it

says on the tin, it's getting our

next generation to say, what are the

things of the future? They are

coming up with some designs and

we're going to make some of their

prototypes. They will be on display

on the discovery Museum.

I am going

to have a chat to some of them. Your

idea looks great, tell me what it

is.

It's a pen that tells you how to

draw thing. It can give you tips on

how to draw things, but it has has a

screen as well.

What made you come

up with this?

I know a lot of people

think they're terrible as drawing so

this makes them feel more confident.

That's cracking, I love that. What

have you got here?

Mine is a camping

stove that can also be a small pizza

oven and a toaster. And because you

can't really have tasted when you

are camping or pizza.

-- you can't

have toast. I'm coming camping with

you if you do that?

This is an

umbrella that can go to kid and

adult size and if you lose it, you

can have a finger scanner so you can

track it.

How did you come up with

that?

Loads of people lose their

umbrellas.

I have lost three

already. A wonderful idea. We will

meet all of the kids later on and

hear about their wonderful

inventions. This is such a big event

to be putting on so it will involve

a lot of work. One of the people

training the people involved is

Judith. Tell us about your role in

it all.

Gateshead College are

training 1000 volunteers who are

going to support everything that's

done across the exhibition. We know

how important it is to have great

volunteers, we know from London

2012, that was such a great part of

the event and it got people involved

so we are looking for 1000 people

could range of things and come along

and involved.

How you looking for

these people, have you found them

already?

We have had 800 people

expressing an interest but that's at

the first stage so we need loads of

people to come forward. People who

are going to be ambassadors for the

region, pioneers and showing people

around the exhibits, and help people

understand what's going on and how

it comes together. Or people who are

going to welcome visitors, the

thousands of visitors who will come

to our region.

Thank you. We will

talk later on about the legacy of

all of this and what impact it will

have on business. We have got a band

and acquire as well, good morning!

-- a choir. More from us a little

bit later.

I enjoyed that that'll be it, thank

you! More on the weather data,

headlines and a few moments, first

the news, travel and

We have travel updates on BBC

the news, travel and

We have travel updates on BBC Radio

the news, travel and

We have travel updates on BBC Radio

London, Vanessa is also discussing

the rise in five Right extremism in

the next few minutes.

Hello this is Breakfast,

with Dan Walker and Louise Minchin.

Commuters face heavy disruption

as snow storms sweep in from Russia.

Hundreds of trains and dozens

of flights have been cancelled -

and there are warnings of more

freezing weather on the way.

This is the scene outside the

studios in Salford. We are live

across the country as temperatures

continue to plunge.

The Met office

has two weather warnings today. The

first is the Midlands and the south

east. Both areas could see a further

five or ten centimetres. Away from

here, we're looking at further snow

showers and a bitterly cold day.

Good morning, it's Tuesday

the 27th of February.

Also this morning.

The International Trade Secretary,

Liam Fox, attacks Jeremy Corbyn's

Brexit plan as "a complete

sell-out", despite support

from some Tory rebels.

The body of a fifth

person has been found

after an explosion which destroyed

a building in Leicester.

Good morning from Gateshead where

they are launching the great

exhibition of the North. Be 80 days

of events across the region in 30

different venues and I will be

looking at what impact it could

have.

In Sport, Britain's Winter Olympians

return from Pyeonchang,

with skeleton champion Lizzy Yarnold

undecided if she'll go

for a hat-trick of golds

at the next Games.

Good morning.

First, our main story.

Snow is falling across parts

of the UK as cold air begins

to sweep in from Russia.

The Met Office has issued amber

warnings for large parts

of the south east and north

east of England.

Up to 10cm of snow is

expected today and as much

as 20cm is predicted in some parts

of eastern England, Scotland

and Northern Ireland

by the end of Wednesday.

Drivers are being warned

they could face major disruption.

More than 200 trains

are no longer running,

while British Airways says over 60

flights have been cancelled.

We will keep you up-to-date with

everything you need to note about

the programme. Carol will have the

weather details shortly.

Jane-Frances Kelly is at Biggin Hill

in Kent, where a snow

emergency's been declared.

How is it affecting people?

It is

quite a Christmassy scene here, not

the sort of thing you expect that

the end of February. These Arctic

conditions have the south-east in

their grip. We have an amber warning

and there have been snow showers

over Kent, parts of Sussex and the

outskirts of London. Kent Police

have been using 4x4 vehicles to deal

with call-outs. The Highways Agency

have said they have seen two

stranded

stranded lorries on the M20. Kent

County Council has declared a snow

emergency. It says its resources and

focus will go into keeping main

routes open and is asking people not

to contact them unless it is urgent.

Gritting has happened overnight.

Also, on the railways there is

disruption, southern and

south-eastern have told people to

check their trains because there are

cancellations. Also, Gatwick appears

to be operating normally although

British Airways has grounded some

short-haul flights at Heathrow.

Thank you.

Let's go to Ben Ando Coclhester

railway station where the first

train left not so long ago. What is

the disruption there

this morning?

They are running fewer

than 50% of the services they would

normally run. This is one of those

towns where a lot of people commute

into London to go to work. Around

six trains every hour during the

morning rush. Massively curtailed

this morning, the first one not

running until 6:15am and that, you

wouldn't be surprised to hear, full

of people hoping to get to work. The

difficulty for the rail operators,

either they don't take enough action

and there are problems, or they take

too much and when the snow is

perhaps as heavy as expected, people

say, why did you cancel so many

trains? It is not just about the

snow, it is the freezing

temperatures that can cause points

to freeze up, cause difficulties

with the overhead power supplies. If

Network Rail, the company that runs

the actual infrastructure, tells cos

they have to cancel train services,

they don't have a choice. People are

making the best of it and we have

seen people who don't normally work

in the station, depot managers,

coming in to help passengers make

the best of bad conditions. While

there are clear skies, there have

been some snow falling.

Very cold

and part of the UK and Carol will

give us the latest in about ten

minutes. Elsewhere this morning...

Fire officers are due to continue

a search and rescue operation this

morning after an explosion destroyed

a building in Leicester.

Five people are now known to have

died after Sunday night's blast,

another five remain in hospital.

Our reporter James Waterhouse

is at the scene.

We have seen pictures of the

devastation caused by this

explosion. Tell us what is the

latest?

Right now there is a

spotlight shining on the gap in the

row of Victorian buildings where

Polish supermarket and flat once

stood. The priority for the last 36

hours is search and rescue, fine

people trapped beneath the rubble in

what they might be trapped in what

they called avoids. The authorities

cannot say the cause, because the

priority has been finding people who

may be trapped. The number of

deceased is five and five people are

in hospital and one of those is in a

critical condition. Rescue vehicles

are coming backwards and forwards

and what is affecting it is this

unusual cold temperature.

Thank you

very much.

The political row over the UK's

future trading relationship

with the European Union

will continue later when Liam Fox

will tell businesses that

staying in a customs union

would be a "sell-out"

of the country's interests.

The International Trade Secretary

is the latest Cabinet

member to deliver a speech

on the Government's Brexit

negotiating position.

Our political correspondent

Alex Forsyth is in Westminster.

Can you give us a bit more detail,

Alex?

We have been a bit Brexit

speech tastic. The government are

setting out what it thinks life will

be like beyond Brexit. The focus of

this speech by Liam Fox will be what

the next big battle ground in terms

of Brexit and that is the customs

union. At the moment, the UK is in a

customs union with the EU which

means goods can cross borders with

no tariffs. Liam Fox will say that

the UK should lead the customs

union. They will argue that if it

were to stay in it will mean

following trade rules set by

Brussels, without having much say.

It will hamper the UK's ability to

go off and strike trade deals with

other countries. He said it will be

a complete sell-out of the national

interest. It is about our future

economic and trade relationships

with the EU, but in addition, this

is one of the areas where there is a

big difference between conservatives

and Labour. Yesterday Jeremy Corbyn

said he thinks the UK should stay in

a customs union with the EU. Some

Tory MPs, they suggest they let

Labour's policy better so they could

defeat the government on this. It is

complex, but also a very crucial

issue.

Alex, thank you very much.

Today an "humanitarian pause"

is due to start in Syria's

rebel-held Eastern Ghouta,

which has faced an intense air

and ground attack by pro-government

forces for more than a week.

Russia's President, Vladimir Putin,

has ordered a daily five-hour pause

in the Syrian government's assault

on the enclave, so that civilians

can flee and humanitarian

aid can be delivered.

The International Committee

of the Red Cross says aid

organisations are ready to go

in as soon as possible.

A fifth British tourist has died

following a helicopter crash

in the Grand Canyon more

than two weeks ago.

29-year-old Eleanor Udall died

in a Las Vegas hospital,

four days after her husband,

Jonathan.

The couple were on their honeymoon

when the accident happened.

Three of their friends were also

killed in the crash.

Research suggests students

from poorer backgrounds are more

likely to live at home

whilst at University

than their richer counterparts,

and it could be limiting

their life chances.

Charity, The Sutton Trust says

moving to a bigger city to study

is often an "escalator"

for social mobility.

The Department for Education is

carrying out a review of post-18

education and there was see how they

can support flexible learning and

financial support for disadvantaged

students.

We may all be bracing ourselves

for the cold weather,

but for some members of the animal

world adapting to the climate

is perfectly natural.

Have you seen this?

This is a rare white stoat,

caught on camera in a garden

in North Yorkshire.

The tiny mammals are normally

a rusty brown colour

but have the ability

to shed their coats and replace them

with white ermine when living

in areas with a low average

temperature - perfect for this week

on the North York Moors.

It is the most beautiful animal.

Let's return now to our top story.

Up to 15 centimetres of snow

is predicted to fall in parts

of eastern England this morning,

as the current spell

of cold weather continues.

With temperatures tumbling,

it's thought we could be facing

the coldest weather since 1991.

Joining us now from Colchester train

station is Juliette Maxam

from Greater Anglia Trains.

And in the studio with

us is Chris Chadwick

from Highways England.

Good morning to both of you. Chris,

some people will be looking outside

their window and think it is cold

but no snow. But there are parts of

the UK where there is snow falling

and there are hazardous conditions

in places?

Most definitely. Snow has

been falling overnight and we have

been out treating the roads, so the

roads are pretty clear but mainly

minor roads will have more snow at

the moment.

the moment.

Can you give us an

update on the situation on the

trains and what is running?

Well, we

are working with Network Rail and

they are keeping the key routes open

so the commuter routes into London

Liverpool Street. But we are

operating a reduced service and

there are fewer trains than normal.

The service is only running from 6am

up until 10pm and Norfolk and

Suffolk are suspended at the moment.

We are working really hard to keep

trains running, we have people

de-icing the doors and special

things fitted to stop ice getting in

the Horn. If the horns aren't

working they cannot go as fast

stomach causes further delays. We

apologise for the inconvenience but

the weather that was forecast was

extreme weather, not average winter

weather. It isn't just know that

causes problems, it is ice. If the

points I is over, the trains cannot

go in the right directions and all

of the signals turn red. We working

with Network Rail and doing what we

can to keep the service is open for

commuters and we have tried to give

plenty of notice the service will be

disrupted today and tomorrow.

We

have people contacting us and asking

the question and I know it is good

you are one of the few rail

operators willing to speak this

morning, but why was there a need to

cancel so many trains and services

before there was even a flake of

snow falling?

This was a decision we

made with Network Rail. They are in

charge of the tracks and the points.

They were looking at keeping key

routes open. The forecast back came

over from the Met Office was for up

to 30 centimetres of snow, which is

more than we have had in East Anglia

for 25 to 30 years. There is a lot

more snow forecast still. In the

meantime, if we don't get the snow

as forecast and the temperatures

aren't as cold, we are looking, with

Network Rail, to see if we can

reinstate some services, because we

do appreciate this is a huge pain in

the neck for passengers.

We are

hearing there are various problems

on the road, getting messages about

a number of crashes. Why is it we

cannot cope, we knew it was coming,

why do we seem unable to cope very

well with it?

We have had gritting

out in the night, treating the

roads. But the snow comes down but

heavy sometimes it is difficult to

deal with. By the time we get back

up, there is potentially a vehicle

that could have had an accident but

through the night there was only one

that caused any real problems on the

M 20, but with preplanning and

getting recovery in place, it was

cleared within an hour so it didn't

cause much of a delay.

I'll be unique in having snow panic?

I have seen pictures of Moscow where

it is -15, the rivers are frozen but

life carries on. There seem to be

issues in the UK where yes, it's

very cold, but it's not like it's an

Arctic winter.

I think with us, we

have had some mild winters over the

last few years, this is the coldest

it's been for five years. So when

the snow does start coming down

people do panic. All we can advise

is to prepare, drive safely, and we

will do everything we can to keep

the roads open.

You explained to us

what you were doing to be able to

try and keep trains moving as much

as you can, I wanted to ask that

question, why is it that other

countries are better able to cope

than we are?

Because its extreme

temperatures we're dealing with, not

average winter weather. Our

infrastructure, both road and rail,

is built for our climate. We don't

normally see in East Anglia foot of

snow and temperatures as low as

this, we're quite a warm, dry part

of country. So that's why it's not

normal weather for us so the rails,

if you speak to Network Rail, they

are built for certain temperatures.

And extreme heat or cold cause us

problemss for that rails, potential

for cracking and overhead wires

coming down. 90% of trains run on

time in normal weather.

We can see

that they are calling up the trains,

thank you both very much.

I was

trying to hear whether that

announcement was a cancellation!

It

ended like it was going. Talking

about the troubles on the roads, the

art a lot of difficulties on the

M62, and M6. I know you've got lots

to say this morning, Carol, so will

we start?

Yes, let's start with the weather

warnings. There are two Amber

weather warnings, be prepared for

snow. The north-east of England

towards the Midlands and the

south-east. Here we could see five

to ten centimetres of snow falling

but locally more than that. In the

south-east, the showers are coming

in line and they will be down to the

travel islands. Because they are

showers, not all of us will see this

snow, some of us will see a bit

less. Heavy snow across north-east

England, heavy snow across the

region. At the same time, the East

Anglia and the Channel Islands will

see some snow. Away from most areas

and we will see some sunshine but

further snow showers, just not as

disruptive as we are expecting in

the amber warning areas. The bridge

is nothing to write home about, it

is going to feel cold. -- the

temperatures are nothing to write

home about. More showers across the

south-east tonight, clipping their

south coast as well, then

significant snow across northern,

eastern Scotland and the central

lowlands and north-east England.

Temperatures in towns and cities,

but in the countryside, especially

where they have a lowering snow, we

could get down to minus ten. Another

Amber weather warning for tomorrow,

be prepared for disruption.

Generally speaking, ten to 50

centimetres of snow but we could see

more than that as well. -- ten to 15

centimetres. That is the volume in

addition to what we are looking at

today. It's drifting steadily

towards the West, fewer snow showers

across south-east England but more

snow showers across southern part of

Hampshire, Dorset and Wales,

Northern Ireland and western

Scotland. They will be fewer and

further between. Tomorrow,

significant wind-chill, these are

the temperatures you can see. But if

you are stepping outside, this is

how it will feel, -12 in Aberdeen.

Bear that in mind, -11 around

Norwich, it is going to be

absolutely bitter. I cannot stress

that enough. Towards the end of the

week, there is more to come but

there are blizzards in the forecast

as well. We have got a system coming

up from the south, that's going to

be moving steadily northwards

through the Portuguese Met Office

have cold this Emma, it will be

bringing significant snow and it

will be windy. There will be blowing

snow, treacherous travelling

conditions. North of that, snow

showers packing in but in between,

something brighter. That same system

pushes northwards through Friday,

something milder comes in behind it,

so it will be freezing rain. Another

treacherous weather element if you

are travelling. In the North,