13/03/2018 Breakfast

Hello, this is Breakfast,

with Louise Minchin and Dan Walker.

Britain's ultimatum to Russia -

Explain your role in

the Salisbury spy attack

or face the consequences.

The Kremlin has until

midnight to spell out

what happened or Theresa May

says she'll take action.

It comes as tests conclude

the former double agent

Sergei Skripal and his daughter

were poisoned by a military grade

nerve agent made only in Russia.

Good morning, it's Tuesday

the 13th of March.

Also this morning:

The Chancellor prepares

to unveil his Spring Statement.

Yes, good morning from this flower

wholesalers where we're looking at

whether the economy is blossoming or

not ahead of the Chancellor's Spring

statement. We've gathered together

people from all parts of the

business world to find out what they

think.

I had no hope in the world and now

I'm going to be 21 and I've got my

life back.

And in the last of our special

reports we catch up with Tee

as prepares to leave one

of Britain's biggest secure

psychiatric hospitals.

In sport, Sky Sports

pundit Jamie Carragher

is backed by his

colleague Gary Neville.

Former Liverpool and England

defender Carragher has been

suspended from his job

after he was filmed spitting

from his car towards a girl

in another vehicle.

Matt has the weather.

Good morning. Steph may have the

Spring statement later but for me

we're talking winter towards the end

of the week. Before we get there,

some warmth in the sunshine today,

fewer showers around as well, most

of you will stay dry. Your full

forecast in around 15 minutes.

Thanks, Matt, see you later on.

Good morning.

First, our main story.

Moscow has until midnight tonight

to give the government

an explanation about the poisoning

of former spy Sergei Skripal

and his daughter last week.

President Macron of France has

condemned the attack and the US

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

called it a really egregious act

after Theresa May said Russian

involvement was highly likely.

Caroline Davies reports.

A supermarket car park shut down

to search for a lethal chemical.

Hundreds of police are still at work

in Salisbury, trying to find out

who poisoned a former Russian spy.

Sergei Skripal and his daughter

Yulia are still critically

ill in hospital.

They were attacked

with a rare nerve agent.

We now know it's a type only

developed by Russia, called

Novishok.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister gave

an ultimatum to the Kremlin -

explain how this happened

or there will be consequences.

Either this was a direct act

by the Russian state

against our country,

or the Russian government lost

control of its potentially

catastrophically damaging nerve

agent and allowed it to get

into the hands of others.

The Russian ambassador has

until midnight tonight to return

with an answer.

Russia has denied being involved.

President Putin brushed off

questions about the attack.

TRANSLATION:

We are busy

with agriculture here,

to create good conditions

for people's lives.

And you talk to me

about some tragedies.

First, work out what actually

happened there and then we'll

talk about it.

If there's no credible response,

the UK government has said it

will take action against Russia

for what happened here.

But how far they can go will depend

on whether they can get the backing

of other countries.

This diplomatic stand-off

between Russia and the UK could yet

turn into a crisis.

Caroline Davies, BBC News.

Later today the Home Secretary Amber

Rudd will chair a meeting

of the government's Cobra committee.

Downing Street will be

considering its next steps

and possible action against Russia.

Our political correspondent

Alex Forsythe is outside Number 10

for us this morning.

We know that this countdown to

midnight, the Russians have to

respond, and then what?

That is the key question, because up

until this point, Theresa May and

her government have been very

cautious, saying they want to

establish the facts of this case

before a portion in any blame and

taking action. All of that changed

yesterday when Theresa May stood up

in the House of Commons and

delivered that strong statement with

this crucial or ultimatum, saying we

want to know what happened here,

you've got a deadline of midnight

tonight and then we will consider

what action will take. The key is

what options are available to the

government. We know in the past

there have been sanctions on Russia,

some things they could perhaps do

this time, they could expel Russian

diplomats and stop Russian oligarchs

from accessing mansions in the City

of London and we've had pulled from

the Foreign Secretary, Boris

Johnson, about perhaps stopping

dignitaries and officials from

taking part in the World Cup. The

question now is which or any of

those will Theresa May choose to do

and key to this will be getting the

backing of other countries. We've

heard expressions of solidarity from

the US and France over this, so now

it's a waiting game, see the Russian

response and so far they have said

nothing to do with that, after that

it will be back to the Prime

Minister to take some sort of

action.

And away from that we're

expecting the Spring statement later

today, what can we hope to see in

that?

Normally around this time of

year we expect to see the Chancellor

marching out here with his red box

and have a spring budget but not

this year. This is a slimmed down

version. Philip Hammond will stand

up in the House of Commons and give

a short assessment of the state of

the economy. Things he will say,

things looking better than

predicted, growth up, borrowing

down, but don't expect him to splash

the cash. This won't be a big

unveiling of new tax and spending

plans, more an assessment of where

we are at, and you can expect the

Chancellor to say we might have more

money but

money but we still have to get the

debt down, is urging caution. One

thing to watch out for, we hear

ministers are looking anyways to

fund the NHS and so we may hear more

about that today.

Interesting. Alex,

thank you very much.

We'll be speaking to a former

Kremlin advisor after 6:30am.

Two victims of black cab rapist

John Worboys begin a High Court

challenge today against

what they have called

the irrational decision

to release him from jail.

The judicial review is expected

to hear for the first

time why the Parole Board plan

to free the sex attacker.

The board and Worboys,

who will appear via videolink

from prison, oppose

the legal challenge.

An agreement was last night reached

between lecturers' leaders

and university officials

over their bitter pensions dispute,

potentially paving the way

for strike action to be called off.

A deal would mean a new,

independent re-evaluation

of the pension deficit and temporary

arrangements to tackle

the funding gap.

The strike has disrupted action

at more than 60 universities.

Doctors in Northern Ireland have

seen 100 Ricketts cases over a

two-year period since 2015. Tim

Muffet will have a report on that

throughout the programme for you. We

are going to look at some of the

front pages of the papers this

morning. We were talking about Ken

Dodd yesterday, sad news about him,

he passed away at the age of 90, so

many lovely tributes coming from

people he worked with and so many of

our viewers and he's on the front

page of the Guardian this morning.

The main story on many of the front

pages, Theresa May points the finger

at Russia over reckless poisoning of

spy and we will speak to a former

Kremlin adviser about that just

after 6:30am to find out what the

Russian responses to that.

We will come to something else in a

minute but let's look at a couple of

other front pages. The Times, we

have talked about the deadline to

explain the spy poisoning. Also lots

of the papers looking today at what

could be the response, they are

talking about British retaliation

including a cyber attack. The Mail,

they are asking the question, which

we will put to someone from the

Conservative Party and labour later

on, they have asked about Boris

Johnson, he has talked about the

World Cup. The Daily Mail are asking

that. A few more of the front pages

and the back pages in a moment with

Kat.

MPs will vote today on planned cuts

to free school meals

for the children of parents

receiving Universal Credit.

Families earning more than £7,400

per year will have to pay for school

dinners under new proposals

but only if they live in England.

In Northern Ireland,

where the government has just taken

control of spending,

the threshold has already been set

at £14,000.

Salt content in takeaway dishes must

be urgently reduced in a bid

to tackle strokes and heart disease,

campaigners have warned.

A study by Action on Salt found some

Chinese meals including

sides like prawn crackers

contain more than double

the recommended daily intake.

The survey also revealed a selection

of ready meals were high in salt.

It should only be seen as a treat,

but I think in this day and age more

and more people are eating out and

about, whether it's going to

restaurants directly ordering in.

It's becoming a much more regular

occurrence. People may perhaps

consider the calorie content but not

necessarily the salt, because a lot

of the time these dishes don't all

taste extremely salty, particularly

when you're accumulating them all to

create a meal, it adds up to a

significant amount for your date.

Remember Paul the psychic octopus,

who correctly predicted the winners

of different games

in the 2010 World Cup?

I remember him.

Now Russia has named a deaf cat

as its official fortune-teller

for this summer's World Cup.

Here he is!

Meet Achilles the Cat,

who lives in Saint Petersburg's

historic

Hermitage Museum.

Oh, he is white against a white

floor!

He will have two bowls of food

representing either side,

and whichever he eats first will be

this cat's favourite

to win the game.

He doesn't look happy at all.

Back in 2010, Paul the Octopus made

headlines when he successfully

predicted all seven wins

for World Cup hosts Germany,

he picked a mussel from a box

with the country's flag on.

I believe they have a day of

mourning when he passed away after

the World Cup.

I remember that, too

much!

The death of Paul.

More on the World Cup, but not of

cat, possibly later. We have our own

Kat this morning in Belgium colours.

Maybe I would be picking Belgium,

not a bad shout for the World Cup.

Couldn't go far wrong. More about

Jamie Carragher?

He has been suspended at Sky Sports

after the video appeared of him

spitting at a 14-year-old fan in a

car. The story has moved on, Gary

Neville, who he presents the

football with, he sits next to him

on the sofa at Sky Sports, football

presentation, he has come out to say

he should lose his job over this. It

was a horrible and despicable thing

to do but at the same time there

should be no reason why they can't

continue working together. It looks

very much like he won't lose his job

fully over this, but he's obviously

facing punishment.

The former Liverpool and England

defender Jamie Carragher said he

will accept any punishment that

comes his way after he was filmed

spitting towards another -- a girl

in another car. It was after the 2-1

victory for Manchester United over

Liverpool, where he was working for

Sky Sports. He has been suspended.

Manchester City are two wins away

from the Premier League after two

David Silva goals beat Stoke city.

They can win the league against

local rivals Manchester United on

the seventh of April.

Southampton have sacked

their manager Mauricio Pellegrino

with just eight games

of the season left to go.

They sit a point and a place

above the Premier League relegation

zone with just one league

win in their last 17.

World number one Roger Federer is

the redhot favourite to win a record

sixth title at Indian Wells. That's

after he easily beat Serbian Filip

Krajinovic in less than an hour to

reach the last 16. Serena Williams

was beaten by her sister Venus

overnight.

Venus coming out on top in that

latest clash of the Williams

sisters, making a comeback six

months after having a baby but Venus

wins this one.

You really match the

set beautifully.

I have blended in

beautifully.

We will have a look at

the papers shortly but first, the

weather. The cold stuff is on the

way?

Feeling like spring in some

parts, good morning, cold weather on

the way towards the end of the week.

parts, good morning, cold weather on

the way towards the end of the week.

Today, compared to yesterday, a dry

and bright today with a few isolated

showers around, mainly this morning.

Let's have a look at the satellite,

a swirl of cloud with us yesterday,

slowly edging away into northern

Europe, allowing the breaks in the

cloud to arrive from the west. We

still have the cloud in some parts

of eastern England, East Anglia and

Kent, a few showers this morning.

Thicker cloud in parts of western

Scotland, western England, producing

some showers. Very isolated, most

will stay dry through the morning

rush-hour. The cloud will break up

as it goes east, allowing more

sunshine in most areas into the

afternoon, some of the brightest

conditions in western Scotland,

Northern Ireland and the western

fringes of Wales. With some much

sunshine on your back, feeling

pleasant, light winds, temperatures

in a few spots, double figures,

maybe some around 12 or 13. That

bodes well for the first day of the

Cheltenham festival. We have a light

wind and with some good sunnies

breaks out there, which takes us

into a fine evening. Should be a dry

commute home, clear breaks to begin

with and through the night the

breeze picks up in the west and more

cloud arriving, patchy rain and

drizzle in Northern Ireland, the

file west of Scotland and later into

the west of Cornwall and south-west

Wales. Clear skies in central and

eastern areas and here's where we

have the greatest chance of frost

into tomorrow morning. With this

area of low pressure to the west of

us, rain slowly edging in, what we

are going to do with southerly winds

is drag up milder air compared to

yesterday. You will notice that

especially when you get spells of

hazy sunshine, that is likely to be

in central and eastern areas on

Wednesday so tomorrow east is best

for the driest and brightest

weather, in the west, more cloud.

Rain and result coming and going but

the rain turning heavy and

persistent in Ireland, the far west

of Wales and west of Cornwall later

in the day. Where you have the hazy

sunshine, widely double figures,

some in parts of the Midlands, East

Anglia and the south-east, where we

have temperatures in the teams. That

area of rain goes east on Wednesday

night, not making too many inroads

before strong easterly winds

gradually develop. After a spell of

mild air mid week, 15 possible in a

few spots, towards the end of the

week, we drop those temperatures

quite markedly. Colder weather will

return, the sun of the beast from

the east, high pressure bills across

Scandinavia, easterly winds

developing and that will drag cold

air away into the weekend and there

I say it, we could see the return of

some snow. Back to you both.

We

heard! No doubt you will mention it

again!

We gave you a sneak peek of some of

the papers. Leisure show you more

broadly what is happening. The

picture of Theresa May making that

speech in Parliament. -- let us show

you. We will show you throughout the

morning, Vladimir Putin was asked by

the BBC yesterday for his response

and he says he is dealing with

agriculture so he said, you sort it

out on your end and we will give a

response. We will be speaking to a

former Kremlin adviser soon.

And

speaking about Jamie Carragher, the

parents of the young fan who was

spat at, asking them not to axe the

pundits.

That was quick, wasn't it?

I think there may be some missing.

Cat is busy folding things.

I was

trying to, with just two papers, hit

up the main stories. The two goals

scored by Manchester City which

pushed them within two wins. They

could wrap up the title. Pep

Guardiola saying, it doesn't matter

when or where it happens, they are

basically going to do it. Pep

Guardiola celebrating his own quiet

way.

And inside pages, more about

Jamie Carrigan. This picture story

about his 48 hours yesterday after

the spitting incident. -- Jamie

Carragher.

He's taken on a motorbike

to the Sky News studio and given

this 14 minute grilling. The irony

of this piece, its punditry about

punditry. They are analysing what

happened yesterday. A really

interesting paragraph. In the

homogenous bust and a place that

football has become an anodyne play

-- anodyne players and media

management, Jamie Carragher bring us

colour. Trying to analyse why this

has blown up into a huge story. Not

just the fact that it was disgusting

behaviour. And it is chalk and

festival. The runners and riders. It

is going to be particularly heavy

going. How to pick a winner on heavy

ground today if you want to win a

bit of money on the opening day of

the Cheltenham Festival.

Jamie

Carragher said it was an out of body

experience.

There were stats about

how many times. Five times he said

"Moment of madness". They have

broken down everything.

So much

discussions yesterday including the

actions about the guy in the other

car. Stanley questions about the

incident.

That article there is what

it says about our attitude to

celebrity in football but also to

society that people are filming.

society that people are filming.

We

will see the moment in question

later. We will give people a

warning. Intelligence may be the key

to success and health. There could

even be a greater advantage for

those blessed with a higher IQ.

Genes linked to cleverness may also

help to prolong life. Genes which

make a clever and to live longer.

Dyoo memorise scoffing 's columns on

the programme yesterday?

I was about

to say, can we move on from this

column is? -- do you remember

scoffing scorns.

A farmer would like

the phrase eat like a pig taken up

of the dictionary because it is

offensive to pigs. Other derogatory

terms like pork, picking out to be

removed. He says pigs have gotten

leaner over the years and these

terms are no longer fair. He has

written to the Oxford English

dictionary on the behalf of the

country's pigs. He is from Maldon

NSX. The Sun tried to get a response

from the butcher. He says this bird

has gone funny in the head. A pig

can't understand. It's a very good

point. Obviously snowflake is quite

a popular term. The headline

a popular term. The headline is,

Sowflakes. That's why I mentioned

the scones. We were pigging out on

scones.

I was definitely pigging out

on scones. The scones are back.

Tackling drug and alcohol problems

can be a long and difficult process,

but in Australia they've come up

with a radical form of treatment

to help young people

with long-term addictions.

They're put in control of a plane

as it stalls and starts

to fall through the air.

The idea is that it teaches

them to deal with fear.

Here's our Sydney

correspondent Hywel Griffith.

This is how it feels

to be in freefall.

Flying as a way of tackling

addiction is unconventional

but the aim is to make

people take back control.

Flying, honestly, is just,

it's a different perspective over

everything and makes anxiety look

small, if you know what I mean,

because you're up high.

This group is from Australia's

largest rehab centre and the 2-day

flying course is part of a 10-month

step-by-step programme.

Gino has been fighting

an addiction to the drug

methamphetamine, or ice.

Yeah, lost my job, lost my family

and came here to get it all back

and I used a lot of ice with girls

and for criminal activities and got

lost in the wrong crowd.

OVER RADIO:

Now, waiting for 60,

here it comes, so let's ease back.

They learn how to take

off and fly with Paul,

a serving fighter pilot.

In the air, the engines

are deliberately stalled.

Now there's the stall.

It's up to them to recover.

OVER RADIO:

We can learn to work

through our stress and get

the brain under control.

Some of them, they just never have

anything they can hold and treasure

themselves without it being broken

by somebody else who's hurting

themselves and doesn't want

someone else to succeed.

Well, an experience like this

is very personal and something

that can never be

taken away from them.

Before this, most of the group

hadn't even been in an aeroplane

before, let alone got

their hands on the controls.

What they're meant to learn

here is the power of self-control

and when they're in the skies,

some perspective on life.

Most have met before rehab,

they were regularly in trouble

with the police.

Their case worker argues

that the flying lessons aren't

a reward for bad behaviour.

He says they've seen real results.

When they come back down,

they seem calmer and more mature.

There is a flow on effect

for the whole community.

Whether they just stop

doing drugs and crime

because they've been awoken

to new opportunities.

Most of the flights are funded

through donations and goodwill.

The bill doesn't go

back to the state.

The organisers don't claim

to have a magic solution

but they believe learning

through fear can help

transform lives.

I love the look of genuine shock and

some of their faces.

It has the

device desired affect the sum.

As the Chancellor prepares

to make his Spring statement today,

we've sent Steph to a flower

market this morning,

to see if business

is blooming there.

I see what you did there. Good

morning, everybody. We think we

start early. Mike and Natalie have

been in since two o'clock this

morning. We wanted to come here to

find out what's happening in the

economy. We be finding out a bit

later how things are doing at the

moment and quite a bit barometer of

what's happening in the economy is a

place like this. Our offer we are

flying in selling flowers. Robb,

tells about the business.

Since

2007, business is very good at the

moment. You've got about three

quarters of the flowers coming from

abroad. South America, UK when the

weather allows. The Far East. You

name it.

What is businesslike view

at the moment?

We have just had

Mother's Day, Valentines and

Christmas. The three peak periods of

the year. In the next few months, it

could be busy for us. Very lucrative

brass. It's a stupid time to in it.

It's interesting because you started

just before the financial crisis.

What's it been like? Flowers are a

good barometer of how people are

feeling.

We had a lot of competition

but would gotten through that. We

are reaping the benefits. You are

feeling like things are OK at the

moment. It's good, there are a good

range of files. I may you been in

since midnight. I will let you crack

on. All of the stuff you have to get

the flowers ready for all the

customers. Hundreds of customers

coming to buy flowers. We are

talking about the economy. We've got

guests from lots of different parts

of the business world from retail

and manufacturing, exports, what is

going on across the economy. We'll

be hearing from them a bit later on.

Let's

Vanessa is looking ahead to the

Chancellor's 's

Vanessa is looking ahead to the

Chancellor's 's reinstatement and

small businesses are looking at it

because of the rising rents.

Hello, this is Breakfast,

with Louise Minchin and Dan Walker.

We'll bring you all the latest news

and sport in a moment,

but also on Breakfast this morning:

As Theresa May concludes it's

highly likely that Russia

was responsible for the Salisbury

nerve agent attack, we speak

to a former Kremlin aide

about where this leaves

the relationship between

the two countries.

Ken Dodd's been

described as the last

of the music hall generation.

After his passing, we take a look

at a tradition that stretched back

to the 19th century.

Essentially what you're saying is

mentally you're

Essentially what you're saying is

mentally you're already failing. All

the best!

And it's the clash of the channels.

Teams from the BBC and ITV prepare

to do battle in a boat race

for Sport Relief.

Dan's already in training and we'll

be getting a progress report later.

Good morning, here's

a summary of today's main

stories from BBC News:

Moscow has until midnight tonight

to give the government

an explanation about the poisoning

of former spy Sergei Skripal

and his daughter last week.

It was revealed yesterday the nerve

agent used in the attack against

Sergei Skripal and his daughter was

produced in Russia. The US Secretary

of State Rex Tillerson said that

those involved should face serious

consequences. The Kremlin has called

the accusations unfounded.

The Chancellor, Philip Hammond,

is expected to deliver some positive

economic news in his first ever

Spring Statement today.

The statement, which replaces

the Spring Budget,

will include the latest official

economic figures but it will not

impose new taxes.

Labour ministers say Mr Hammond must

take the chance to end austerity.

Two victims of black cab rapist

John Worboys begin a High Court

challenge today against

what they have called

the irrational decision

to release him from jail.

The judicial review is expected

to hear for the first

time why the Parole Board plan

to free the sex attacker.

The board and Worboys,

who will appear via videolink

from prison, oppose

the legal challenge.

An agreement was last night reached

between lecturers' leaders

and university officials

over their bitter pensions dispute,

potentially paving the way

for strike action to be called off.

A deal would mean a new,

independent re-evaluation

of the pension deficit and temporary

arrangements to tackle

the funding gap.

The strike has disrupted action

at more than 60 universities.

Doctors in the UK and Ireland have

seen 130 cases of rickets in

children under 16 over a two-year

period. It's the first study of its

kind into the prevalence of the

owners, which affects bone

development. A Department of Health

spokesman said healthcare

professionals should continue to

advise on the best way of getting

enough vitamins D and can prescribe

supplements if needed.

MPs will vote today on planned cuts

to free school meals

for the children of parents

receiving Universal Credit.

Families earning more than £7,400

per year will have to pay for school

dinners under new proposals

but only if they live in England.

In Northern Ireland,

where the government has just taken

control of spending,

the threshold has already been set

at £14,000.

Salt content in takeaway dishes must

be urgently reduced in a bid

to tackle strokes and heart disease,

campaigners have warned.

A study by Action on Salt found some

Chinese meals including

sides like prawn crackers

contain more than double

the recommended daily intake.

The survey also revealed a selection

of ready meals were high in salt.

That's disappointing, I love a prawn

cracker.

So do I.

It's great.

Are we

agreeing on something today?

Do you

ever dip it in the hoi sin?

We were

close to agreement then it has all

gone wrong.

I went off on a tangent,

sorry about that. Very early to be

asking about hoi sin and prawn

crackers!

Suite chilli sauce may be!

We're talking about Jamie Carragher,

the story that's dominating the back

pages and some of the front pages

because the family of the girl who

he spat at from the vehicle of his

car have said they don't want to see

him lose his job, they are happy

with the apology he issued yesterday

and everyone has a moment of

madness, which is a phrase that

Jamie Carragher has been using a lot

to talk about his own behaviour but

lots of people coming out, even

today, when we have been talking

about it, lots of people tweeting

today to say it is disgusting, he

should lose his job, others more

supportive saying everyone makes

mistakes so still a very divisive

topic.

Jamie Carragher says he's apologised

to the family he spat

at from his car on Saturday

and that he can't make any excuses

for his behaviour.

He was involved in the incident

following Manchester United's 2-1

win over Liverpool at Old Trafford.

He now works as a pundit

for Sky Sports but has been

suspended from his role,

including from working on last

night's live Premier League fixture.

I have apologised over the phone. I

spoke to the mother, who wasn't

involved in the incident, obviously

the daughter in the passenger's seat

and the father, and apologised. Of

course in the phone call they

weren't too happy with obviously the

situation. There's not any person in

the world who can condone speeding

no matter what has gone on before

that, anything really. It looks

awful and I accept that.

A

So a dramatic 48 hours

for Carragher, who'd been working

at Sky since his retirement

from professional football in 2013.

But his colleague at

the broadcaster, the former

Manchester United defender

Gary Neville, leapt to his defence

on social media, saying that

Carragher's apology means he should

be given another chance.

But for another former

Premier League player,

Carragher's actions

crossed the line.

Robbie Savage has had his own

experience with spitting.

I had a running battle with this

Hungary player, I can't remember his

name, all-night.

Then he came up to me and spat in my

face and it was the most disgusting,

vile thing. I don't mind if someone

smashes me in a tackle, I don't mind

if someone head butts me like I've

been head-butted on the pitch, I

don't mind, but spitting for me is

the lowest of the low.

There's something very invasive

about it, isn't there?

Manchester City are just two games

away from being crowned

Premier League Champions

after they beat Stoke

2-0 last night.

City opened the scoring

just ten minutes in,

David Silva with a lovely calm

finish to beat Jack Butland

in the Stoke goal.

And it was Sila who scored his

second and his ninth

of the season in the second half.

The win means they can still win

the title against rivals

Manchester United on April seventh.

So happy.

The first time after 18 years

Manchester City is able to win

at Stoke City away and at home,

and that means how difficult

it is to come here and to win.

We did well and now we are three

games, two games or three

to be champion.

Premier League strugglers

Southampton have sacked

their manager Mauricio Pellegrino

with the team just one point

above the relegation zone.

Pellegrino's side have won

just one league match

in their last

17, although they are into the FA

Cup quarter finals.

A 3-0 defeat to Newcastle

on Saturday sealed the Argnetine's

fate.

There are just eight Premier League

matches left in the season.

The Manchester United captain

Michael Carrick will retire

from playing at the end

of the season.

The 36-year-old has won every club

trophy in his 12 years with United

including five Premier League titles

and the Champions League.

He won 34 England caps.

He has only played four times this

season after having a procedure

to treat an irregular heart rhythm

that was detected in September.

There comes a time when as much

as you like it or you don't like it,

your body tells you it's time

to stop playing football.

That's pretty much where I'm at.

I wanted to finish on my own terms

were at least I could decide and not

be forced because of that,

so I was determined to get back fit.

I understood and I would be getting

back fit and I probably wouldn't be

playing as many games as probably

I might have done that that's

all been understood,

I've just been training hard

and trying to keep fit and I've

managed to play a few games

and so far and we'll see

what happens towards the end

of the season.

Another medal for Great Britain at

the Winter Paralympics in the last

few minutes. Let's go to Pyeongchang

and talk to Kate Grey. Cake, bring

us up to date.

Another medal for Great Britain at

the Jonzon amp Alpine centre, today

it was silver for Fitzpatrick and

her guide -- Kate. This time in the

super combined, a combination of the

super Gyan slalom. It started first

thing this morning in the super G,

the same course they did earlier

this week. -- super G slalom. --

super giant slalom. They moved into

the slalom. Tough competition from

the Slovakian athlete, who has won

every event in the visually impaired

category so far here. She was the

go-ahead of the Slovakian but the

Slovakian managed to beat her time

which meant the great British

athletes finished in second. Not

such great news for nearly Knight,

she was in third after the super G

but wasn't able to hold that

position -- merely. She missed out

on the medals. A silver medal for

Great Britain. The curlers are in

action, they had an unfortunate end

three in their game against

Slovakia, dragging behind 4-1. We

will keep you updated on that as the

week goes on.

More Slovakian is

causing problems. Another brilliant

silver medal -- more Slovakian is.

We are still waiting for that gold,

though.

World number one Roger Federer

is the red hot favourite to win

a record sixth title

at Indian Wells,

that's after he easily beat

Serbian Filip Krajinovic

in less than an hour

to reach the last 16.

Novak Djokovic is already out

and Andy Murray and Rafa Nadal

are missing through injury.

Odds-on for Roger Federer to pick up

another title and Venus Williams

beat her sister yesterday, another

matchup, as they often do, but Venus

came out on top, the first time she

has beaten Serena since 2009 emoji

has beaten her once since 2009.

Almost ten years. That is a good

start! Experiment, Kat. -- thanks

very much, Kat.

The Russian ambassador has

until midnight tonight to explain

the country's involvement

in the poisoning of a former spy

and his daughter, after it was

revealed a nerve agent developed

in Russia was used against them.

Moscow has dismissed claims

the state was involved in the attack

in Salisbury last week.

Joining us from there now

is Doctor Sergey Markov,

a former Kremlin aide and MP

in Vladimir Putin's United Russia

party.

Thank you very much for joining us

on Breakfast this morning. Can I

start by asking, how do you think

Russia can explain how Nova Jock

ended up in Salisbury in the United

Kingdom?

-- Nova shock. First of all we don't

know that it is Nova shock -- not

the Jock. ...

We know British intelligence service

community are very experienced in

classification, it could have been a

different chemical attack, it is

similar to what's been used in

eastern Ghouta, in Syria, in the war

there, there is an indication this

has been made in Syria as well as

now in Salisbury. Russia is waiting

on official documentation and letter

from British authorities and the

British authorities have no facts

and no real evidence of involvement

of Russian authorities in the case.

We will now see hysterical speeches

in Parliament and the media, which

is part of the campaign which we

have seen for years.

Just to

clarify, you do not accept the

British government assessment that

this was a Russian nerve agent made

only in Russia?

We don't trust the

British authorities, we don't trust

specifically British intelligence

service community. I think

personally our politically weak

Prime Minister

Prime Minister Theresa May... She is

hysterical. Theresa May is

manipulated by the politically

strong British intelligence service.

They may want to crash the football

World Cup in Russia.

Can I ask you,

do you think, given what you have

said, you think this is a British

ploy, is that why Vladimir Putin was

quite dismissive when asked by a BBC

journalist about what he thought was

happening in Salisbury yesterday? He

said he's here to talk about

agriculture, you sort it out and we

will decide what to say after that.

It's exactly what Vladimir Putin

wanted to save, he is trying to do

something good for the country.

Maybe I will say more strongly and

clearly, Russia is in the

21st-century and Russia doesn't kill

political opponents. Terrorists

preparing terrorist attacks only on

Russian territory can be afraid of

their lives, but Russia doesn't kill

political opponents. We don't

demonise Russia. Mr Skripal had

already been captured by Russian

authorities and we didn't kill him.

I understand you defending Putin, I

understand that, but can I say,

Theresa May after a week of

investigation, after looking at past

events and things Vladimir Putin has

said, and after careful analysis of

this substance has come to one of

two conclusions, either Russia has

attempted to murder to people with a

deadly nerve agent on foreign soil,

or someone has managed to access

that nerve agent developed in

Russia. Both of those require

answers, don't be?

Yeah, absolutely

agree that don't be? Russian

authorities should give the answer

-- don't lay. ...

This is exactly what the Russian

authorities... Ask the US

authorities about Russian meddling

in the US election. Please give us

documents, give us real facts, not

blah, blah pontificated by your

intelligence services. Russia is

waiting for documents and letters,

then let's sit down and decide how

we can do a joint investigation over

this issue.

You refer to it as blah, blah, blah,

in your mind, when the British Prime

Minister is making these points,

specifically she is saying it looks

like this was Russian inspired in

some way, why has there not been an

official response from Russia to

say, for example, we will look into

this and try to find out what we

know from our end, rather than flat

denial of anything possibly being

attributed to Russia in any way?

I think a spokesman of Mr Putin

thought that Russia would have no

evidence, but somehow we would, and

we are awaiting official documents,

awaiting the letter. We will give a

response to that letter. No letter,

no document from the British side

but only propagandist attack.

We

have not seen it. OK, thank you very

much your time this morning. A

former adviser to the Kremlin,

Sergei Markov, and what he was

saying that Theresa May said to the

Parliament was "Blah, blah, blah. "

We will talk about this nerve agent

and where it was made. A very

interesting topic of discussion.

Matt, in the meantime, he can update

us with the weather.

A better day than yesterday in

Scotland and Northern Ireland, not

daring -- bearing much better.

Increasing amounts of sunshine. The

cloud that brought the rain across

England and Wales, pushing his way

off into the continent. One of two

showers here. A bit more cloud into

the West of Scotland. This is

producing the odd shower to take you

into the morning rush hour. Showers

will become less of a feature during

the day. Wishing its way eastwards.

We will see sunny spells develop.

Some of the sunniest conditions

across western parts of Wales. Not a

bad day at all. With the wind light,

strengthening sunshine on your back,

temperatures around ten, 11 degrees.

It will feel quite pleasant this

afternoon. Good news if you are

heading off to the start of the

Cheltenham Festival, it should

hopefully stay largely dry tomorrow.

Let's get you there first of all.

Some clearer skies across the

eastern half of the country. The

charts are some frost in the West.

Cloud increasing through the night,

the breeze picking up on some patchy

rain and drizzle into the West of

Scotland. Maybe the far west of

Wales and Cornwall. Mostly dry into

the morning. A change into

Wednesday. This big area of low

pressure edges closer, bringing an

increasing threat of rain but what

it does is a strengthening of South,

south-easterly wind. Tomorrow will

be the warmest day of the week

across the country. Hazy sunshine

across central and eastern area. The

breeze picking up. Always cloud is

in the West with the odd break here

and there that the cloud Picken up

some rain and drizzle. In the rain

turning heavy at times into the

afternoon and Northern Ireland, the

far west of Wales and Cornwall. But

note that temperatures, widely in

double figures. A few spots to

around 14 or 15 degrees. Rain in the

West. Tries to push its way

northwards and eastwards. Doesn't

make much on a wave in roads. This

area of high pressure is fighting

back. Pushing the milder away and

into the weekend, it is set to

produce cold air once again. With a

cold wind, temperatures set to drop

and we could see the return of some

snow. The good news, the snow is not

going to be as heavy as we have seen

over the last 24 hours. These

pictures are taken by my own brother

in Kentucky. Such heavy snowfall in

the middle of March is unusual. That

is said to combine with a weather

system over the east coast of the

United States in places like Boston

could see a foot and a half of snow.

The snow returns this weekend.

I like the way you get your family

members into the weather report.

Just cracking pictures, are they,?

Now as we've been saying

this morning, today

is the Chancellor's Spring Statement

so where better to send Steph

than a flower wholesalers

that's in full bloom.

Morning Steph.

What a great place to find out

whether the economy is blossoming or

not. This is a wholesaler selling

flower stall to different customers

around the country. You can see

Natalie and Mike have been here

since two o'clock picking flowers

for the customers. They are quite a

good barometer of how the economy is

doing. It's a type of luxury we

might spend a bit more money on if

we have it. Today will be finding

out from the Chancellor what is

happening in the economy at the

moment. We've gathered together to

get some different parts and

business sectors to find out. We

will sit on our sofa beautifully

decorated with flowers. Tony, I was

in your factory a few weeks ago

talking about what's happening with

your business. Tell us what you do.

We manufacture plastic housewares.

Bakewell. Since your visit, is this

is booming. Is that because of me?

Where is the growth coming from?

Within the country, it's going very,

very well. We had a record January

this year.

What I was interested was

the fact you sell the kind of

buckets and containers to places as

far as South Korea, for example.

What had been like getting that

business?

We get a lot of help. The

Chamber of Commerce is there to

help. The Institute of exports is

there. A lot of help even within our

own trade. We have our own

association. They grease the wheels

for us. We just go and collect the

orders.

Things going wealthy you.

orders.

Things going wealthy you.

--

well for you. We manufacture carpets

in Kidderminster. Manufacturing

carpets are the domestic market in

the UK mainly. How is business for

you? We are doing OK but we are

having to work hard to do it by

investing a lot in new product and

new design work and so on. It's OK.

We have to work hard to get it.

It's

the kind of business where people

can see how your feeling about the

economy.

Business is booming at the

house market is booming but at the

same time, a bit like the flowers

here, you can treat yourself a

refurbishment as well when things

are moving so well. By adding a

little bit more design element to

it, wearable to get a bit more of

that.

And Vicki, an economist here.

This gives as one flavour of the

economy. What's happening in the

rest the economy?

It's interesting

that exports are doing well. There

is a synchronised improvement in the

world economy. Domestically, things

are slightly tougher. The consumer

is being squeezed by higher

inflation. Rages -- wages are not

rising as high. The housing market,

slowing down right now. That is an

issue. Construction is suffering.

We've seen that in house building

and infrastructure more generally

but nevertheless, the Chancellor

will upgrade forecast the 2018

because exports are doing so well.

Manufacturing is really improving.

The rest of the sector is not so

good. There is better news coming

through. He is collecting a lot more

taxes. People will look to see, will

there be a bit of a manoeuvre so he

can give something back. We have a

benefit squeeze coming through. The

consumer nevertheless is the one we

should be focusing on. Not free

right this minute.

We mentioned

manufacturing exports. We have other

business people will be chatting to.

Some offer must later. A lovely

setting. Quite a bit of foliage.

The British music-hall tradition

stretches all the way back

to the 19th century,

and has produced legends

like Max Miller and George Formby.

They're names that are

still recognised today,

but following the death

of comedian Ken Dodd,

who was described as the last

of the music-hall maestros,

is it an art form that's been

permanently consigned to history?

Joining us now is Simon Sladen

a senior curator from the Victoria

and Albert museum.

Good morning to you. Looking a bit

at the history of musical, whetted

its start?

It's a very British form.

We have bought a builder to be think

of musicals, 19th-century, 1850s,

maybe 1880s, we have conjurers but

rather naughty songs,

cross-dressing, circus acts, you got

something for everyone in a very

rowdy environment week and have a

beer, have something to drink and

lots of different times of

entertainment.

entertainment.

The musical then

transforms into variety and the big

difference there is better venues,

but is whether senior march comes

in, and the acts generally clean

themselves up a bit.

It's a little

less gay. Most people might say that

varieties have died out and the

dead. But we will see some of those

acts, stand-up comedians. Pantomime,

were a lot of those set pieces and

comedy slapstick scenes are kept

within that but there are people

that still are within that musical

tradition today. We think of people

who do funny songs.

who do funny songs. Maybe Flight of

the Conchords, they are currently

touring. Bill Bailey, would that

eccentricity.

I love the idea that

it was all around food. There was a

participation element.

Absolutely,

and that is the thing that is key

about that form in particular. There

is no theatrical fort wall. There

was interaction. People might throw

things. That frenzy of the stars or

the acts quickly running off the

stage. Maybe for other venues that

night. There is this jostling, this

hustle and bustle about. You've got

your time to perform, to entertain

because if you don't, you are not

going to get a reaction.

You mention

Harry Hill and people like that. We

celebrated the life of Bruce Forsyth

on the weekend and the sad news

about Ken Dodd, one of those musical

greats. Are there many left?

With

comedy, it goes through generations.

Tommy Cooper was another person

rooted in that tradition. Looking at

those people we would have seen.

Today's generation are looking at

Tommy Cooper, Ken Dodd, but that

lineage stretches all the way back

so the roots are very much there.

Lovely to speak to you.

We will talk

music all a little later on. You can

get into contact us --

Hello, this is Breakfast,

with Louise Minchin and Dan Walker.

Britain's ultimatum to Russia -

Explain your role in

the Salisbury spy attack

or face the consequences.

The Kremlin has until

midnight to spell out

what happened or Theresa May

says she'll take action.

It comes as tests conclude

the former double agent

Sergei Skripal and his daughter

were poisoned by a military grade

nerve agent made only in Russia.

Good morning, it's Tuesday

the 13th of March.

Also this morning:

The Chancellor prepares

to unveil his Spring Statement.

Yes, good morning from this flower

wholesalers in Manchester,

where we're looking

at whether the economy is blossoming

or

not ahead of the Chancellor's

Spring statement.

We've gathered together people

from all parts of the business world

We've gathered together people

from all parts of the business world

to find out what they think.

I had no hope in the world and now

I'm going to be 21 and I've

got my life back.

And in the last of our special

reports we catch up with Tee

as prepares to leave one

of Britain's biggest secure

psychiatric hospitals.

In sport, Sky Sports

pundit Jamie Carragher

has the support of his

colleague Gary Neville.

Former Liverpool and England

defender Carragher has been

suspended from his job

after he was filmed spitting

from his car towards a girl

in another vehicle.

And Matt has the weather.

Good morning. Steph may have the

spring statement, I've certainly got

the return of winter. Later this

week things getting colder, but for

the next couple of days, when the

sun is out, quite pleasant, only a

few showers today, most will be dry.

I'll have your full forecast in

about 15 minutes.

Thanks, Matt, see you later on.

Good morning.

First, our main story.

Moscow has until midnight tonight

to give the government

an explanation about the poisoning

of former spy Sergei Skripal

and his daughter last week.

President Macron of France has

condemned the attack and the US

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

called it a really egregious act

after Theresa May said Russian

involvement was highly likely.

Caroline Davies reports.

A supermarket car park shut down

to search for a lethal chemical.

Hundreds of police are still at work

in Salisbury, trying to find out

who poisoned a former Russian spy.

Sergei Skripal and his daughter

Yulia are still critically

ill in hospital.

They were attacked

with a rare nerve agent.

We now know it's a type only

developed by Russia called Novishok.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister gave

an ultimatum to the Kremlin -

explain how this happened

or there will be consequences.

Either this was a direct act

by the Russian state

against our country,

or the Russian government lost

control of its potentially

catastrophically damaging nerve

agent and allowed it to get

into the hands of others.

The Russian ambassador has

until midnight tonight to return

with an answer.

Russia has denied being involved.

President Putin brushed off

questions about the attack.

TRANSLATION:

We are busy

with agriculture here

to create good conditions

for people's lives

and you talk to me

about some tragedies.

First, work out what actually

happened there and then we'll

talk about it.

If there's no credible response,

the UK government has said it

will take action against Russia

for what happened here.

But how far they can go will depend

on whether they can get the backing

of other countries.

This diplomatic stand-off

between Russia and the UK could yet

turn into a crisis.

Caroline Davies, BBC News.

Earlier on the programme a former

Russian MP told us how he does not

trust British politicians or

authorities stopped

, gonna.

The me tell you again, we

don't trust British authorities, we

don't trust British service

community. I think personally the

politically weak Prime Minister

Theresa May talks about

nationalistic hysteria to keep the

opposition Prime Minister in check,

also Theresa May is manipulated by

the politically strong British

intelligence service who is... It

may be to crush the Russian football

World Cup in Russia.

Joining us now is our Moscow

correspondent Sarah Rainsford.

We got a sense of what he felt about

Theresa May, the British government,

British authorities, all the rest of

it, what is your sense from Russia,

what are they saying and what is the

mood music?

That is the general mood

of the political class in Russia.

After Theresa May made her speech,

in Moscow the reaction was to call

it a circus and a show to talk about

a political campaign being mounted

from the UK against Russia.

Essentially turning the tables on

Theresa May and the British

government, suggesting rather than

rush of being responsible for this,

in fact the UK is responsible.

That's been the reaction all along

here, in fact, ever since Sergei

Skripal and his daughter were

poisoned a week so ago. A political

campaign, Russ Afobe, those are the

words we hear time and time again

and I think Russia will continue

along that path to obfuscate and to

deny and to continue to point the

finger of blame AACTA Awards the

UK's. It's been the method so far

and I don't really expect anything

to change right now.

Very

interesting to hear that about

what's going on. Sarah, thank you

very much.

Later today the Home Secretary Amber

Rudd will chair a meeting

of the government's Cobra committee.

Our political correspondent

Alex Forsythe is outside Number 10

for us this morning.

This is the story that has dominated

the headlines for a good week or so

and will continue to do so?

Up until

this point the Prime Minister,

Theresa May, has been under pressure

to take action but she's been clear

alongside senior members of her

government they didn't want to

apportion blame before they were

sure of the facts and yesterday that

changed. We heard from the Prime

Minister clearly saying because of

the use of this nerve agent it was

highly likely there was some sort of

Russian involvement, hence us having

this ultimatum and deadline, this

threat of consequences. The big

question is what good those

consequences be? In the past the UK

has been accused of being too soft

on Russia. The options on the table

now? Well, the government could

choose to expel Russian diplomat is.

It could, as you've heard not send

dignitaries and officials to the

World Cup but to have any impact

here they would want support from

the international community. There's

been expressions of solidarity from

the US and France but for now it's a

waiting game. First, the reaction

from Russia and then the onus back

on Theresa May to see what she will

do.

Alex Coomber thanks very much.

Alex Forsyth outside Number 10.

We will be talking about that

through the morning.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer,

Philip Hammond, is expected

to deliver some positive economic

news in his first ever

Spring Statement today.

The statement, which

replaces the old spring

Budget, will include the latest

official forecasts but will not

impose any new taxes.

Steph is at a flower wholesalers

in Manchester with more details.

good morning. It's normally this

time of year where we are talking

about the budget, where the

Chancellor has his red box and

announces his plans for taxes and

spending but not this year. Now it's

what we call a spring statement, in

other words he will give an update

on what's been going on in the

economy. As you say, we're expecting

good news. For example, we've been

bringing in more money from taxes

than in the past, so it expecting

our budget deficit, the difference

between what we bring in from taxes

and what we spend, to be the

smallest since 2002. That's a bit of

good news. That means all so we're

not borrowing as much, which is

expected to be a bit of good news,

about £46 billion is the figure

we're expecting. But all of this is

still in a climate where things are

tough for people out there spending.

Prices are still rising, inflation,

the measure of prices, is still a

lot higher than most people's wages,

so that means people feel like they

don't have as much to spend in the

shops. Given we are an economy

driven largely by consumer spending,

that's putting a lot of pressure on.

We're not expecting the growth

figures to be great, about 1.7% last

year. It's not absolutely brilliant

in terms of the growth forecast but

it's good to hear a bit of good news

and the fact we're bringing down

that borrowing, that's been the

reason why we've had austerity for

so long. We get that statement at

around 12:30pm but I will be here

through the morning talking to

businesses about how they feel about

the economy at the moment.

Steph,

thank you.

Two victims of black cab rapist

John Worboys begin a High Court

challenge today against

what they have called

the irrational decision

to release him from jail.

The judicial review is expected

to hear for the first

time why the Parole Board plan

to free the sex attacker.

The board and Worboys,

who will appear via videolink

from prison, oppose

the legal challenge.

An agreement was last night reached

between lecturers' leaders

and university officials

over their bitter pensions dispute,

potentially paving the way

for strike action to be called off.

A deal would mean a new,

independent re-evaluation

of the pension deficit and temporary

arrangements to tackle

the funding gap.

The strike has disrupted action

at more than 60 universities.

Salt content in takeaway dishes must

be urgently reduced in a bid

to tackle strokes and heart disease,

campaigners have warned.

A study by Action on Salt found some

Chinese meals including

sides like prawn crackers

contain more than double

the recommended daily intake.

The survey also revealed a selection

of ready meals were high in salt.

Remember Paul the psychic octopus,

who correctly predicted the winners

of different games

in the 2010 World Cup?

Now Russia has named a deaf cat

as its official fortune-teller

for this summer's World Cup.

Meet Achilles the Cat,

who lives in Saint Petersburg's

historic

Hermitage Museum.

He will have two bowls of food

representing either side,

and whichever he eats first will be

this cat's favourite

to win the game.

Will he match Paul's record? Paul

had a 100% record with Germany.

It

remains to be seen.

Paul had to pick

a mussel from a box with different

signs on its.

It might not feel like it

but spring is in the air.

At least it is for the Chancellor,

Philip Hammond, who is expected

to deliver some good news

when he gives his Spring Statement

in parliament this lunchtime.

Peter Dowd is the Shadow

Minister to the Treasury

and he joins us from Westminster.

We'll talk about the Chancellor's

statement in a moment but another

huge issue for parliament

is the growing crisis

between the UK and Russia.

Theresa May was saying the Russians

have until midnight to explain their

role in what is taking place in

Salisbury, what type of sanctions do

you think Britain could impose on

Russia?

Well, there's a range of sanctions

we could impose. There's already

sanctions in place and I always work

on the premise that the best people

to give advice about sanctions are

experts, whether they be military,

security, or economic experts, they

are the best people to give advice

about what sanctions may be imposed.

How hard our Russia to deal with? We

spoke to a former Russian adviser

who essentially said Theresa May is

a weak Prime Minister being bullied

by powerful intelligence services to

try to blame Russia, I believe the

words he used were to try to ruin or

subvert the Russian World Cup this

summer.

That's a matter of opinion

that he has. I don't necessarily

accept it or agree with its. The

bottom line is, in all these

discussions, sanctions or otherwise,

there's going to have to be some

dialogue and most diplomats agree

with that. You can have sanctions,

but the nature of them and the

extent of them might be debatable,

but you need dialogue.

You're the

government in waiting, you might

need to deal with Russia in this

way, and Jeremy Corbyn said

yesterday we need robust dialogue,

how far does that get you with a

country like Russia?

It isn't just

about robots dialogue. I was sat on

the criminal finances Bill last year

and we were trying to set out the

resource in for the likes of Her

Majesty's Revenue and Customs to

deal with criminal finance issues,

including stuff like this, and a

clause which we tried to push only a

couple of weeks ago which can have

sanctions on people and

organisations where they have been

involved in civil rights abuses.

There are a range of actions you can

take but of course there's going to

be in all of that, as there always

is, some sort of dialogue.

Some of

his own Labour MPs have accused the

Jeremy Corbyn of using yesterday's

speech in the Commons to score

political points, talking about

Russian oligarchs and money to the

Conservative Party, do you think

that was the right time to make

those points?

The House of Commons,

used the word before, robust, that's

our democracy, that's when we have a

debate about anything, including

uncomfortable things, and the public

expect debates to tease out a whole

range of issues in areas that are