the prime minister says he's �*appalled' by the way police treated a jewish man during a pro—palestinian demonstration in london. the man was steered away during a protest after an officer said he appeared �*openlyjewish'. now on bbc news, it's newscast newscast from the bbc. hello, it is laura in the studio. it is paddy in the studio. and nick from newsnight. after months and months of wrangling, which we have talked about lots of times, on saturday evening us congress finally passed a bill to send just over $61 billion of aid to ukraine. not clear when it will arrive, so you have to be careful of politicians dangling big price

tags, but the package goes to the senate where it is expected to pass before president biden will sign it into law. let's have a moment to listen. the bill is passed without projection. if you break the down _ all of the house democrats voted if you break the vote down - all of the house democrats voted for the measure and more republicans voted against it than for it. _ inevitably, it is a reminder of why it was held up, - why it could be a political issue still in this election _ year in the us. radio four this morning we heard |from michael clarke the defence| think tank and expert advisor, and he compared this vote - to europe's great struggles for freedom in the past. i they have to stay in the war this year and next year things may change in a more structured way. but for the ukrainians, it is a bit like in the second world war, this is the 1941 moment. there was nothing but defeat before then, the balance shifted

for the allies during 1941, but the effect wasn't felt until the autumn of 1942. that was the first time the tide began to turn. that is so interesting to put it into that context because those are the kind of mornings we've had coming out of ukraine, are the kind of warnings we've had coming out of ukraine, saying unless this happens, the tide is going to go the wrong way, we know they have been struggling in recent months and i remember talking to the first lady of ukraine saying our guys at the front are running out of shells, this is a practical real problem right now. they have been saying that for months. how do you think are politicians will feel about the us being able to move on this? they will be delighted because the uk's commitment to ukraine across all parties is an ironclad commitment. but unless you have that crucial support from the united states, you are going to struggle. i was talking some time ago to one of rishi sunak's closest allies and i said as the following scenario going to happen in the year below

the us presidential election, donald trump is going to dominate the republican field and in congress they will get nervous they will not have support for ukraine. this person very close to the prime minister said no, that will not happen because the so—called national security republicans, put them with the democrats and all will be fine. that is not what happened. it has been held up, but it appears fundamentally the reason why speakerjohnson was able to get this over the line was he went and saw donald trump who said i agree with the dissenters, with marjorie taylor green, but you are doing a good job, speaken _ donald trump, not the president, has been crucial to these calculations. the big news cast assessing two nuclear superpowers funding a war in europe. that is not something to cheer about. the destination is a table, with peace talks. but what i am hearing

from michael clarke is that is a long, long way away. but if the definition is peace talks, and it was tomorrow, then russia would have significant chunks of ukraine and they would accept that, and then the concern is five or six years down the line, back we go, russia go in again. is the deep concern why there are deep fears about having a peace settlement now. i suppose, in a way, this vote closes down one episode in this ongoing conflict and how western politicians are grappling with it, because that package has now been passed. we will move on because lots to get to on the sunday round—up. but that vote happened, the reaction is coming in and we now move to the senate where it expected to pass. move to the senate where it is expected to pass. this morning, after we talked a lot about climate change yesterday, he said in his view rishi sunak assets the uk back. he had a telling off

for all politicians for being afraid to talk about climate change with the same vigour they did a couple of years ago. we put to the energy secretary this morning this accusation that the government is going the wrong way. they are not on track to meet the 2030 climate target, but it was interesting this morning, she very clearly said that target was going to be met and it will stay. we are not moving away from our i targets and i would just say, again, out of all of our targets, not only have we met, l we have overshot. if you look at the scottish - government, out of the last 12 targets, they've missed eight of them. - we have a strong tracki track record of delivery. we are going to do this in a fair- way and make sure we are protecting hassles, or take, for example, the labour approach, - the changes they want to make, - for example, shutting down the north sea, industry has said that will be the country on investable. -

sea, industry has said that will be the country uninvestable. - it is interesting, a lot of people think the government is not credibly on track to hit that 2013 target. all of this really matters because by law the country has to hit the net to zero by 2050. it is a live area. and i do think, as you heard there, i do think the tories are going to really try and make this a big dividing line, to use that terrible jargon, in the election. as you heard, rishi sunak's view is climate change is real, we have these targets and we want to meet these targets, but there has clearly been a watering down of some of the steps towards those targets, and i watched when that happened, it was the uxbridge and south rice lake by—election, it was not of a climate issue but a pollution issue which was extending the ultra low emission zone to the outer london boroughs. it was about to happen and it was a huge thing. i went a month before

the by—election, sitting on the beautiful axbridge cricket green talking to people playing cricket on a beautiful mid summers evening, and they said there is no way we can vote labour because you are going to make our lives difficult here by extending the zone, you do understand our lives. you don't understand our lives. i went back to westminster and said two tory mps, i think you can win that by—election and they said are you mad? they won it. was it all down to you? i met a member of the service, he cleans your home scratcher, and cleans your oven. his van wasn't compliant. he said if he makes me pay, i am going to get out of the business. inevitably, in riposte to the westminster bubble people say, this is just a matter of 600 or 800 votes. but it was so against the odds because it was the boris johnson seat, it was a big moment.

and it was you don't understand our lives because the point of public transport uxbridge, you can get in and out of london, but to get around you don't have the public transport. we are not going to have people in london complaining about not having much public transport when newscasters around the country do not have tubes or buses or all sorts of other things. this will not stand. and you can get there on the elizabeth line. there is an embarrassment of choice in the capital. and people who do not live in greater london are curious. and people who do not live in greater london are furious. it was a hot button issue. am i right? you are deep boffins. it did, after that rishi sunak donated his plans. it shifted their policy no doubt, but it hasn't shifted since then. it is because the government has scaled back on some of the speed of its overall condition on climate, there is no doubt about that. but it hasn't shifted the polls. doesn't look like it was a genius idea at the time?

does it look like it was a genius idea at the time? that is a cunning bit of political fancy footwork, possibly. i think they were in complete shock they had won this by—election because they were astonished and they thought here is a great opportunity, but as laura says, fundamentally, it hasn't shifted the dialogue nationally. what about labour on climate? they are promising clean energy by 2030, which to a lot of people might sound like a good thing on the tin. the shadowjustice secretary emitted this morning they will have to have reserves of gas, which they don't like saying so much, it doesn't fit in with the slogan. but the question to them has always been for the last couple of months, how do you pay for this big expensive transition if they are no longer committed to the £20 billion, and also given the giant size of the promises they are making, how do you get there, in this bb are claiming? we have had to recalibrate our plans

given what is the likely economic inheritance that this government will leave for whoever is in the next government. we have had to do that, we obviously want to make sure everything we put forward is credible, fiscal responsibility is the basis for all of those plants, and we have to make sure any borrowing is within our fiscal rules. but that doesn't stop us from having an incredibly ambitious plan to get it clean power by 2030, we can do that with the commitments we have made. we have laid out the detail of our spending plans there. what will come from the windfall tax, what will come from recalibrated plans on borrowing, but some borrowing on the same to make sure we can have clean energy and the secure and get our bills down. that phrase because of the economic inheritance, we are going to recalibrate our plans, i am going to have to get used to that. i think you really are. it is not a full u—turn, because they are still committed

but they are not committed to the 28 billion. they committed to the promised but not the price tag. if i say i would like to buy ten bags of sweets and they are going to cost me £10, i can say i am not going to spend £10, but i still want to get the ten bags of sweets. you can see the tories will go after them again and again because it will allow them to save their favourite thing about the labour party, which is their subs don't add up. what is the planned vote labour? how will they foot the bill to invest in renewable energy? —— what is the plan for labour? there is a feeling in the shadow cabinet the other monumentally right to have this plan to move to clean power by 2030, but they were monumentally wrong not to brand it as clean power by 2030, but to brand it on 28 billion a year from day one. a lot of feeling in the shadow cabinet that is the fault of ed miliband who is profoundly committed to this, but comes from the gordon brown camp, and how did gordon brown define

what he was doing when he was chancellor? it was by a spending tag. we have moved on from that era, it is much more difficult era, and the concern is this is the right thing to do because you want to have clean power, it is the right thing to do because what you are talking about is regenerating areas that have been left behind, what you are talking about is taking joe biden's plan, the inflation reduction act, and putting it here. the mistake they believe they made was to define it around money, and that was fine 15—20 years ago, not fine now. and there is a worry you have damaged what is a very good idea by labelling it in the wrong way. big concerns in the shadow cabinet. when you see damage, just means being three times ahead in the pulse of the government. tony blair has given a interesting interview to the magazine, to newscasters looking to pay to journalism today.

he says a couple of things today. including this point, the economic inheritance the next government is going to get is not being properly addressed, what does it look like on day one for rachel reeves orjeremy hunt? this is one of the huge unsaid things, is that the conservatives do not want to talk at all in their campaign or their manifesto about the kind of squeeze there could be two public budgets on the plan so far they have laid out. and the labour party also absolutely does not want to talk about the squeeze there might be on budget, because what the squeeze on budget, because what does squeeze on public budgets mean? it means less money to spend on hospitals and schools, and also means if you want to do big snazzy reforms, which might save you more money in the long term, they often cost some money in the short—term, and there is not

going to be much of that around. anyway, coming into the election, it is not going to be like a cheque—book collection of old where everyone is promising huge amounts of billiards, but there is going to be something of a conspiracy of silence. that might be too strong, but a reluctance, a very distinct reluctance to spell out what the economic picture will mean in the brass tacks, although labour are happy to go around saying it is going to be the worst economic inheritance since world war ii. and marathon running jeremy hunt is not helping on that. after the general election, we do not have specific numbers on the tin, so if labour wins the election you will have a new chancellor who will have to outline those spending plans, which under the current plan will mean serious cuts in unprotected areas and they will have to take the can for that.

what i would say is that a real nerves in the shadow cabinet at the moment about what happens after the election. you talk to them, and privately they say, of course we are going to win the election, of course we are going to have to majority but we're not saying that because we cannot be complacent. what they are worried about is not so much they don't have the plan. there is sue grey who is getting them ready. what they are worried about is the not ready politically for what they are going to do. the big concerns in the rachel reeves circle at the moment. what is going to the of her chancellor issue? it was going to be bidenomics. they are really nervous and not have heard enough politically for that governance for a day one. it is that phrase be careful what you wish for. yesterday, you promised us tittle

tattle about election timing and you refused to give it to us. i was going to keep that as a fun thing at the end of the podcast but i will tell you now. i am not saying this is going to happen at all, but to add to the endless running fountain of election date speculation, there has been a lot of chatter about early election, will rishi sunak be forced into naming a date after the local elections if there is some kind of tory armageddon or if things like andy street loses in birmingham however it was suggested to me this week there was a potential even more cunning plan to try to avoid jangling horror of a post—local challenge to rishi sunak, kid actually call the general election before the local elections, some it called the general election at the end of april, have the general election injune and therefore avoid a postal local election armageddon and a challenge

to his leadership because by that point mps will be scurrying around trying to hold onto their seats. that is potentially very clever and it is a constitutional point there. now we have to stand extremely pompous talking about the constitution. i find it very easy to do this. you have to be very pompous when talking about the constitution, becoming the election is technically a powerful demonic and the prime but calling the election is technically a powerful and the prime minister has to request the monarch to dissolve parliament. and the monarch as i was happy to do that assuming you are a fully functioning prime minister. what is the definition of a fully functioning prime minister? how long have you got? you command the confidence of the house of commons, which means at the moment, you command the confidence of the conservative party. if there is any question,

a challenge to rishi sunak that he doesn't command the confidence of his party, and therefore he doesn't command the confidence of the commons, demonic may have to pause, or the golden triangle as it is known, that have the discussions before the prime minister make the request, they need to pause at the is any question mark about whether he is a fully functioning prime minister. and the argument that was put to me about somebody who believes they ought to take this tack, and i am not saying this is what is going to happen, we are in the business of scenario understanding, but this has been put to me and it is worth it to put it out there amongst other election speculation. a summer election is a possibility being discussed. that is being discussed in serious political circles. the cabinet minister said it is not the most likely option but possible. the point about going early

and calling in april would basically be rishi sunak using what is one of the last things left to him, which is the power of surprise. it might not be that surprise and now we are talking about it today. nothing else seems to be moving for him or helping, so actually if he could stun everybody, notjust by going early but going even earlier, that might help him regain the agenda. he has implied the opposite, and isn't there also a case for going long. i have said why not january? no one is going to take what i say seriously on this, i hope you don't! it is totally new thinking laura is making me do. i was talking to one of his close friends the other day who is an advocate for going as late as possible and we were talking about this potential summer election and this person has said i have got to go see rishi sunak and talent this is not a good idea.

was the original rishi sunak thinking information is heading in one direction, down, interest rates following much bigger than relatively modest tax cuts, single rate. —— inflation. the problem with that is they had seemed in downing street, we would start to be seeing the beginnings of those interest rate cuts in may. that is clearly not going to happen because of persistent inflation in the united states. it is having a knock—on effect on us. we may not see interest rates go down until september, which lends the argument, the credence, to the potential laura scenario of getting on with it. the other thing is in tory h0, the feeling is to be things can't get worse, but then they did and then they did again and again, and whether it is fully am a rag

popping up one week, mark menzies the next week, you have got a by—election in the other week. the feeling is the economy will improve and maybe if that will come to pass, people might have been able to afford the first holiday in a while, but england will do well in the football. all of these things matter to the national mood. the theory that things couldn't get worse have been tested to destruction. who knows? a significant tory said to meet the key signal to look at on election timing is when does conservative central office imposed by election rules for the selection of candidates. so when you impose by—election rules, that means conservative central office has massive power over the selection of candidates, which normally they don't have. so they can triangle it by the by—election. but it is tory hq imposing different by—election rules for the selection of candidates,

it is not by—election is for normal people. it is when the central party can go right, sorry local people, we're not going to consult you and put a favourite people into this pot. your election tittle tattle was worth waiting 24 hours for. election tittle tattle? a well researched piece of intelligence from a distinguished journalist speaking to leading members of the governing party. we have to stick together, as political hacks. i feel educated looking at the two of you. aren't you lucky? we are going to move around the new style because time will defeat us if we don't get to the giant met mess. we spoke about this yesterday and i gladly spoke about it, notjust because it is important because it is a story that has been building some significance, and if you didn't hear the episode or watched the news, a jewish man gideon voltaire

was told by a member of the metropolitan police when he was passing a pro—palestinian demonstration he was openlyjewish, which is something many people took offence at —— gideon falter. i suggested he moved on from the demonstration. and suggested he moved on from the demonstration. fast forward 24 hours, suella braverman is calling for the met boss to go and there is a lot of political discussion about what should happen. james cleverley has written to the metropolitan police commissioner, i understand they will have a meeting to discuss what happens in the coming days. i was asking the cabinet minister this morning, should mark rowley have to go. these are questions for the home secretary, i know he will be meeting with ministers in coming days, but the really important thing is we get policing right. if you look at what has happened in this incident, a member of the public has been told

they cannot go about their daily life, walk around the streets of london because of their identity. that is not what equality means in society. because of that, do you believe mark rowley should lose his job? i personally wouldn't go that far because i haven't had the conversations with him, i do understand yet what he is going i personally wouldn't go that far because i haven't had the conversations with him, i do understand yet what he is going to say to the home secretary. this compositions need to take place. but it is important we stand by the jewish community and other communities and say we will not stand for this, this is not what equality means in society today. two things, the met has re—apologised. but since then gideon falter has been speaking on camera and on the radio to broadcasters including the bbc and here is what he said. i think it is time for mark rowley- to go, he has had long enough to get to grips with this situation, l to get his police force under control, tell his front line

officers do not worry, - we are going to send enough police to back you up so you can make - the right decisions. instead he hasn't done that because of that he has - to go, the time has come. let me give more of what the met said. using the term openlyjewish by one of our officers is hugely regrettable, we know it will have caused offence to many. we reiterate our apology. in an effort to make a point about the policing at a protest because further offence, this was never our intention. we caused further offence, this was never our intention. we have removed that statement and apologised. being jewish is not a provocation, jewish londoners must be able to feel safe in the city. the combination of the met and politics gets very messy very quickly, but it is too many newscasters staggering that the met continues to find itself getting into things. we have talked about so many things. come back another time, especially

after you have been so polite. thank you and goodbye. goodbye. northern ireland was the place to be on sunday led winds, sunny skies and are not to be the warmest day of the year so far with temperatures reaching 19 degrees. by contrast, much further east across the uk, it remains cool. particularly because the northeastern parts of the cloud in the breeze coming out of the north sea. i pressure close by but will be turning to edge away that is lying these fronts to bring a cloud and even rain subcodes overnight but that of that, clear country sangria and some of these temperatures will be close to freezing first thing in

the morning before that cloud comes and that there will be a lot of cloud on monday and have the slight rain affected northern england, midlands, wales, and was a southwest and moving down towards scotland before areas see the sunshine in the afternoon but it will not be as much sunshine in northern ireland and not his arm on monday and in the glasgow to be particularly chilly for the midlands and eastern parts of england. that area of high pressure continues and will be pushed away by the feds moving southwards overnight with clear skies following in the scotland in early frost and eastern parts pink netting to the southeast in a northerly wind follows on the light shower around the seacoast and cloud will build up in western scotland and northern ireland and wales in temperatures will be 13 or 14 degrees spell be colder further east and west is going to be best. i

pressure no longer with us but still in the cord airstream with a northerly wind and bringing the odd shower down real feel particularly cold. doctorfrost shower down real feel particularly cold. doctor frost for the cloud within the build up to the day on wednesday and that can lead to a few showers and mainly for england and wales, looking a bit sunnier around scotland and northern ireland but in belfast, w typical number of and stay in her ability chilly week i had dropping around northern areas and even the risk of frost overnight before lower pressure or maybe bring some rain by the end of the week.

welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm steve lai. the headlines: grieving in gaza, as 20 members of one family die in an israeli airstrike in rafah. more than a million displaced people are sheltering in the southern gaza city. we have a special report. president zelensky says a new $61 billion us aid package, will give ukraine a chance of victory in its war against russia. translation: i think this support will really strengthen _ the armed forces of ukraine. british mp — mark menzies — quits the conservative party and will stand down at the next general election — after claims he misused party funds.

and friendship never ends — the spice girls get back together to celebrate victoria beckham's 50th birthday. we start in the middle east where israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, says the only way to secure the release of hostages in gaza is to increase the military pressure on hamas. in his message to mark thejewish holiday of passover, mr netanyahu vowed to hit hamas with painful blows. he said the army will launch a ground operation in the southern city of rafah, where more than a million displaced palestinians are sheltering — and in the latest air strike on the city — 15 children are among the dead.

fergal keane now reports on the continued suffering