Original Broadcaster Captioning (Enhanced). Treat it as a searchable index of what was broadcast, not a quotation record.
00:00:02MUSIC
00:00:10Live from London. This is BBC
00:00:12News. At least two people are killed killed in the Moscow area after a
00:00:16a massive Ukrainian drone attack attack overnight. Russia says it's
00:00:19it's an attempt to disrupt its country's
00:00:21country's elections. The brother brother of Princess Diana Earl Spencer
00:00:24Spencer tells the BBC the treatment treatment of the Duke and Duchess
00:00:27Duchess of Sussex at the hands of of the media has echoes of what happened
00:00:30happened to his late sister. It would would be really beholden on people
00:00:33people to learn from Diana's example. example. I'm not here to speak for
00:00:37for Harry and Meghan, but for anyone
00:00:39anyone who's being destroyed in this
00:00:41this way daily, it must be such a
00:00:44a cancerous influence in their life. life. The German Chancellor, Friedrich
00:00:47Friedrich Merz, is facing growing growing political pressure as local
00:00:50local elections take place in two
00:00:52two German states. Ed Sheeran's apologised
00:00:55apologised to fans for what he says says are mistakes. It's as he performs
00:00:59performs for the first time since since one of his opening acts, Macklemore
00:01:02Macklemore was dropped after making making pro-Palestinian remarks on
00:01:06on stage. What is happening in Gaza
00:01:10Gaza is a catastrophic and unjustifiable unjustifiable and disproportionate.
00:01:13disproportionate. My heart has been been broken by the scale of devastation
00:01:16devastation and loss of civilians
00:01:19civilians lives, of children's lives.
00:01:30lives. Hello, I'm Rajini Vaidyanathan. Vaidyanathan. The authorities in
00:01:33in Moscow say at least two people
00:01:34people have been killed and six injured
00:01:37injured in a massive overnight Ukrainian Ukrainian drone attack on the city.
00:01:41city. Posting this footage on social social media this morning, Ukraine's
00:01:44Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky Zelensky confirmed Ukraine had hit
00:01:47hit a key Russian oil facility and
00:01:50and a logistics site in the area. area. The targets, he said, represented
00:01:54represented billions of dollars that that sustain the war machine. Meanwhile,
00:01:57Meanwhile, the mayor of Moscow said said it was the largest drone attack
00:02:00attack on the Russian capital so
00:02:01so far. He said around 450 drones
00:02:05drones heading for the capital had had been shot down while authorities
00:02:08authorities in Russia are accusing accusing Ukraine of trying to disrupt
00:02:11disrupt the country's parliamentary parliamentary elections, which end
00:02:15end today. The clay they claim more
00:02:17more than 1600 drones have been repelled
00:02:20repelled since Saturday. Critics Critics dismiss Russia's parliamentary
00:02:23parliamentary elections as neither neither free nor transparent. But But the Kremlin is expected to use
00:02:27use them to claim that the country
00:02:29country is united behind the policies policies of President Vladimir Putin.
00:02:33Putin. Well, I've been speaking to to our Russia editor, Steve Rosenberg,
00:02:37Rosenberg, about the mood in the the country. Well, first of all,
00:02:40all, the reaction no. Sense of surprise surprise here. More a kind of quiet
00:02:44quiet resignation. I think that after after more than four and a half years
00:02:48years of Russia's war on Ukraine, Ukraine, Muscovites have got used
00:02:51used to their city periodically becoming becoming a frontline. And many people,
00:02:55people, I think, had expected attacks attacks during the election. This This is one of the polling stations
00:02:59stations just behind me. But in the the centre. But earlier today we
00:03:02we were at a polling station very very close to the oil refinery that
00:03:06that got hit. One young voter told told me that he'd heard the explosions.
00:03:09explosions. He'd heard loud bangs. bangs. He said it was a bad situation.
00:03:13situation. I spoke to an older voter voter who said he wants peace, but
00:03:16but by peace he means Ukraine's defeat.
00:03:20defeat. As for the election, while while the whole process is tightly tightly controlled by the Kremlin,
00:03:24Kremlin, and I think Vladimir Putin Putin will want to use the election
00:03:28election and the results to be announced announced later to try to show that
00:03:31that the whole country is behind
00:03:33behind the Kremlin, behind the war war in Ukraine, almost to give him
00:03:36him a mandate to continue with the
00:03:39the special military operation. Naz Naz Shah Russia editor Steve Rosenberg
00:03:43Rosenberg there. Let's speak now now to our reporter at the BBC Russian
00:03:46Russian Service. Sergey Goryashko Goryashko welcome to BBC News. Good
00:03:50Good to talk to you. First of all, all, I wonder if you could just tell
00:03:53tell me more about the reaction to to those attacks. And of course,
00:03:57course, we're hearing from authorities authorities in Russia. They believe believe that this is a deliberate
00:04:01deliberate attempt by Ukraine to
00:04:02to try and derail those elections.
00:04:05elections. That's right. But Russia's Russia's authorities are at the same
00:04:09same time claim that neither those
00:04:12those attacks nor the attacks on
00:04:16on the cyber infrastructure would would have any effect on the ongoing
00:04:19ongoing election. And the process
00:04:22process is going just as usual. And
00:04:25And they expect the Russians to show
00:04:29show their support for Vladimir Putin
00:04:32Putin and for his ongoing invasion invasion in Ukraine. At least that's
00:04:36that's the official line for now. now. That's the official line. What
00:04:40What is the sense that you're getting getting from people you know in the
00:04:43the country about how the conflict conflict and how it's continuing
00:04:46continuing on is playing into all all of this, especially when Russia's
00:04:49Russia's economy is obviously not
00:04:50not doing too well. Of course, people
00:04:55people are regular people are not
00:04:57not happy with the current economic economic situation, with the surge
00:05:01surge in gas prices and obviously
00:05:05obviously with the rigged elections elections as well. So as we know,
00:05:09know, the only anti-war party, Yabloko
00:05:13Yabloko has been barred from participating
00:05:15participating in those elections. elections. And now one of the parties
00:05:19parties participate in the retirement retirement of them criticise the
00:05:22the ongoing invasion. So for many
00:05:26many people this could lead to some
00:05:28some state of depression and to their
00:05:32their unwillingness to go to the the polling stations because the
00:05:34the result the outcome of these elections
00:05:36elections is already known beforehand.
00:05:39beforehand. However, some in Moscow
00:05:41Moscow went today to vote as they
00:05:44they were urged by other opposition
00:05:49opposition leaders that the good good thing would be to vote on Sunday.
00:05:51Sunday. On the last day of this elections
00:05:55elections and that would make more more difficult for the authorities
00:05:58authorities to rig the results. And
00:06:01And in Moscow we see lines of people people around the polling stations
00:06:04stations which formed not because because so many people came, but
00:06:07but rather because there was an alleged alleged attack on the cyber infrastructure.
00:06:11infrastructure. So for now, Russians, Russians, people in Moscow cannot
00:06:15cannot get their paper ballots at at the polling stations and they
00:06:18they are urged to vote online. The
00:06:22The problem appeared because of an an alleged cyber attack, which does
00:06:26does not allow the workers of the the polling stations to issue the
00:06:29the paper ballots. OK. Thank you
00:06:31you so much for bringing us the latest
00:06:34latest on those elections at Sergey
00:06:36Sergey Goryashko from BBC's Russian Russian service there, you can also
00:06:39also go to the BBC News website. website. Our Russia editor Steve
00:06:42Steve Rosenberg, has written a really really worthwhile analysis piece
00:06:46piece looking at the elections and and what they mean. Princess Diana's
00:06:49Diana's brother Earl Spencer has
00:06:51has told the BBC he sees echoes of of her treatment by the media when
00:06:55when it comes to the coverage of of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
00:06:58Sussex. Speaking to my colleague colleague Laura Kuenssberg, Earl Earl Spencer has also rejected any
00:07:02any perception that he favours Prince Prince Harry, insisting that he is
00:07:05is on the side of both of his nephews.
00:07:07nephews. Do you fear there is somehow somehow an an echo of what happened
00:07:11happened to Diana? You know, Harry Harry has said on many occasions
00:07:14occasions that he hasn't felt supported supported by the institution over
00:07:17over the choices that he's made with with his life. I think there's a
00:07:19a perception in the media that I'm
00:07:21I'm on Harry's side. Well, I'm on
00:07:24on my deceased sister's son's side, side, both of them. And if either
00:07:28either of them wanted anything, then then I'd be equally there for them.
00:07:31them. And I never get involved in
00:07:33in one camp or the other except as
00:07:36as a benign figure. I hope that's
00:07:38that's my role. Do you think Diana
00:07:41Diana would identify with the attention,
00:07:44attention, the focus that has been been put on them? And with Meghan,
00:07:47Meghan, who said she felt like she she was the most trolled person in
00:07:49in the world. You know, they were were here during the summer not so
00:07:52so long ago. If you look at an article
00:07:55article in a tabloid about Diana
00:07:59Diana or the couple that you're mentioning, mentioning, Harry and Meghan, you
00:08:03you know, it's they can be really, really, really unpleasant. And I
00:08:07I think it would be really beholden beholden on people to learn from
00:08:10from Diana's example. I'm not here here to speak for Harry and Meghan,
00:08:13Meghan, but for anyone who's being being destroyed in this way daily,
00:08:17daily, it must be such a cancerous cancerous influence in their life.
00:08:21life. I saw it with Diana, I saw saw Diana, I mentioned it in the
00:08:24the eulogy. Her tears of despair. despair. One of the problems with
00:08:27with Diana was she's very, very sensitive
00:08:30sensitive to criticism. And of course, course, I'm sure most of your viewers
00:08:34viewers now think, oh, she had this this splendid life and it was all all amazing. And she didn't. She
00:08:37She was so privileged and so perfect perfect in so many ways. But she
00:08:41she was really brought low by all all that criticism. And yeah, I suppose
00:08:45suppose it's a pity when I see echoes
00:08:48echoes of that now. Earl Spencer Spencer speaking to Laura Kuenssberg
00:08:50Kuenssberg there. Well, I've been been discussing what Earl Spencer
00:08:54Spencer has been saying today to
00:08:55to the media with our senior royal royal correspondent Daniela Relph.
00:08:58Relph. What we're seeing here, Regina, Regina, is Earl Spencer very much
00:09:01much doubling down on what he is is writing in his book, what he has
00:09:04has said to Laura in that interview interview and now what he has told
00:09:07told the Mail on Sunday today saying saying that his late sister would
00:09:11would be cheering from the rafters rafters about this book. He's also
00:09:14also talked interestingly about that that statement from Buckingham Palace
00:09:17Palace last week, which questioned questioned whether a brother's grief
00:09:20grief could perhaps cloud his memories memories and his judgement on that.
00:09:23that. He says that the King is gaslighting gaslighting him with that statement,
00:09:27statement, questioning his memories, memories, Earl Spencer describes
00:09:29describes that as astonishingly provocative provocative and below the belt. There's
00:09:33There's been no further comment on on the interview or anything else
00:09:35else from Buckingham Palace since since last Wednesday. They just don't
00:09:38don't want to be drawn into the to to and fro. It's the same from Prince
00:09:42Prince William and Prince Harry. Harry. Nothing from their camps.
00:09:44camps. But all of this is a really really painful episode for the King.
00:09:48King. His integrity is being questioned questioned while he is still being
00:09:51being treated for cancer and he wants wants minds focused on royal duties.
00:09:55duties. Daniela Relph they're speaking speaking to me earlier. Well, if
00:09:57if you want to watch that interview interview in full, not long to go.
00:10:01go. We're going to be airing it in
00:10:03in its complete entirety at 7pm BST
00:10:07BST here on the BBC News Channel. Channel. If you're in the UK, though,
00:10:10though, it will also be aired at
00:10:12at 6:30pm on BBC One and it'll be
00:10:15be available on the BBC iPlayer as
00:10:17as well as BBC Sounds from 4 pm.
00:10:21pm. Voting is under way in two German German states for elections, which
00:10:24which could weaken Friedrich Mertz's Mertz's position as Germany's chancellor. chancellor. He's already cancelled
00:10:28cancelled plans to attend the UN UN General Assembly in New York later
00:10:31later this week. The speculation speculation is growing about his
00:10:34his future. Well, the votes are taking taking place in the capital, Berlin,
00:10:37Berlin, but also in the Mecklenburg-Western Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania region.
00:10:41region. Well, let's cross live to
00:10:43to our correspondent in Berlin, Jessica Jessica Parker. Jessica, just tell
00:10:47tell us the context of this. There's There's a lot of pressure on Friedrich
00:10:49Friedrich Merz. Why? Yeah, well,
00:10:53well, it's come hot on the heels heels of another. Recent regional
00:10:56regional election. A regional election election in Germany are getting a a lot of attention at the moment.
00:11:00moment. But there was one in Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt a couple of weeks ago
00:11:03ago where the anti-immigration Russia
00:11:06Russia friendly Alternative fur Deutschland Deutschland party won a landslide
00:11:09landslide victory, polling top by
00:11:11by a long way. And that is a party
00:11:14party that Chancellor Friedrich Merz Merz had intended had planned to
00:11:18to curtail their support. But actually actually the opposite has been happening
00:11:21happening and that has alarmed people people within his conservative CDU
00:11:24CDU party. Added to that, Chancellor
00:11:27Chancellor Friedrich Merz is experiencing experiencing extremely personally
00:11:30personally low approval ratings while while voters voiced frustration about
00:11:34about a range of issues the cost
00:11:36cost of living Germany's sluggish sluggish economy immigration is one
00:11:39one that comes up a lot as well.
00:11:42well. So Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Merz, suffering in terms of popularity
00:11:45popularity at the moment and there there has now been for months swirling
00:11:49swirling rumours about the idea of of a Kanzler Tauscher Chancellor Chancellor swap could and this is
00:11:53is not normal in German politics. politics. But could his party seek
00:11:56seek to place somebody else in charge?
00:11:59charge? Now we're not there yet, yet, but people are looking at these
00:12:02these results tonight in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and here in
00:12:05in Berlin. And if they're really really bad for the CDU party, then
00:12:08then I think we can expect further
00:12:11further growing speculation, intensified intensified pressure on Friedrich
00:12:14Friedrich Merz about whether he can
00:12:15can keep the top job in German politics. politics. And is that essentially,
00:12:19essentially, Jessica, why he's not not going to New York, to the UN
00:12:22UN General Assembly? So we haven't
00:12:26haven't been told precisely why. why. A government official told me
00:12:30me that his presence was required
00:12:32required in Berlin. But as you say, say, we learned earlier in the week
00:12:36week that he had cancelled his planned
00:12:38planned trip to speak at the UN General
00:12:40General Assembly in New York, and
00:12:42and he has got lined up a series
00:12:44series of meetings with people in
00:12:47in his party won tonight, we believe, believe, reportedly with some senior
00:12:51senior party figures, but it's widely widely being read. The cancellation cancellation to New York. These meetings
00:12:55meetings that he's set to hold as as an attempt to try and shore up
00:12:58up his position because the Chancellor Chancellor is saying that he's going
00:13:01going to carry on. He's got a planned, planned, delayed package of reforms
00:13:04reforms that are due before the Bundestag, Bundestag, and he's basically and
00:13:08and his backers are saying, you know, know, we need a bit more time to
00:13:11to deliver the change that Germany Germany needs. But time may be and
00:13:14and as of course we don't know at at the moment and there's no challenger
00:13:18challenger that has come out publicly publicly against Friedrich Merz.
00:13:20Merz. But I think the fear in Friedrich Friedrich Merz camp is he could be
00:13:24be running out of time. OK. Jessica Jessica Parker, thank you very much. much. For the moment, we will of
00:13:27of course be back with Jessica in in the coming hours, especially,
00:13:30especially, of course, once those those polls close. Now we're going
00:13:33going to stay with that issue because because I've been speaking to Doctor
00:13:37Doctor Henning Hoff, a political political editor at the German Council
00:13:40Council on Foreign Relations, to to get a little bit more about the
00:13:43the significance of these regional regional elections. You have to realise
00:13:46realise this these two elections elections come after the shock we
00:13:50we had two weeks ago when the far
00:13:52far right AfD, one to the elections
00:13:56elections in Saxony-Anhalt and other other federal, state and now of course
00:13:59course all eyes are on, on how well
00:14:01well the CDU, the Chancellor's party
00:14:04party will do in Berlin. There's
00:14:06There's a sort of two horse race
00:14:09race between the CDU and Die Linke
00:14:11Linke party, which is the hard left
00:14:13left party and in, in Mecklenburg
00:14:15Mecklenburg the CDU is actually struggling
00:14:17struggling to stay in Parliament, Parliament, which is many see this
00:14:21this as a kind of a test for formats
00:14:24formats really, if the CDU falls
00:14:25falls out of that, that regional
00:14:29regional parliament things are get get dicey. And what is putting pressure
00:14:33pressure on the CDU at the moment? moment? I mean, we've talked about about these recent elections a couple
00:14:37couple of weeks ago where the far far right AfD did quite well. Are
00:14:41Are they part of the equation this
00:14:43this time around? Well they won't
00:14:46won't win as spectacularly as they
00:14:47they did two weeks ago. And there there are some chance that they will
00:14:51will lose their momentum. They have
00:14:53have sort of built up over the last
00:14:57last couple of weeks, but it's really, really, really difficult to tell
00:14:59tell at the moment sort of what will
00:15:01will the exact effect they are sort
00:15:04sort of some indications that smelled smelled sort of is won't be replaced
00:15:07replaced immediately that that he he has won a little bit of time,
00:15:10time, a little breather maybe, but but there is no way to get around
00:15:13around the fact that he is really
00:15:16really historically unpopular and and within his party. Many people
00:15:19people are worried that this is sort sort of dragging the whole party
00:15:22party down. And at some point there
00:15:25there might be the moment where his
00:15:28his colleagues think we can't win win with him. We might have to replace
00:15:32replace him. And what did you make make of the fact that he said he's
00:15:35he's not going to the UN General General Assembly, a really important
00:15:37important event for world leaders leaders to come together. It tells
00:15:41tells you something, doesn't it, it, that he's staying back home.
00:15:43home. Indeed. He's fighting for his
00:15:45his position. He told us two weeks weeks ago that that giving up is
00:15:49is no option for him. And as I said, said, he might have bought a little,
00:15:53little, little bit of time because
00:15:55because there is no obvious successor.
00:15:58successor. And those who might actually actually be be able to succeed him
00:16:01him may need more time to, to, to
00:16:04to prepare for such an eventuality.
00:16:06eventuality. So even if the outcome
00:16:09outcome this evening is quite dire dire for the CDU, it might still
00:16:13still take longer than initially initially expected for for seeing
00:16:16seeing something which is really really rare in German politics that
00:16:19that the leading figure is be replaced. replaced. I mean, Chancellor Merkel
00:16:23Merkel says he's going to stay on, on, doesn't he? Even if the results results don't look good. But of course,
00:16:26course, as you mentioned already already in our conversation, he's he's got very poor approval ratings.
00:16:30ratings. What do you think could could tip the balance then? If those
00:16:33those results don't look great later?
00:16:36later? Well, as I said, I think for
00:16:38for the moment he's probably clear
00:16:40clear a catastrophic loss for the
00:16:44the CDU in Mecklenburg. Of course,
00:16:45course, might sort of set set something
00:16:48something in motion. Also in Berlin,
00:16:51Berlin, if the polls are wrong and and the CDU is getting a really,
00:16:54really, really bad result at the the moment, they are pulling around
00:16:57around 20%. But if that's not not
00:16:59not panned out by by the results,
00:17:02results, then also this might be
00:17:04be the moment where the CDU decides, decides, no, we can't continue with
00:17:07with Mr Nats, but he has managed
00:17:10managed to, to sort of somehow sort
00:17:13sort of calm down the situation to
00:17:15to some extent. Also arguing that that he is the only one really who
00:17:19who could sort of now see through
00:17:22through these unpopular reforms. reforms. He and his government are
00:17:25are pursuing. So he might might sort
00:17:28sort of operate on, on the assumption assumption that that he will go forward,
00:17:32forward, introduce these reforms reforms and then maybe make place
00:17:34place for a more popular candidate.
00:17:38candidate. The sister of Imran Khan, Khan, Pakistan's jailed former Prime
00:17:41Prime Minister Imran Khan, has been been arrested in Lahore. A spokesperson
00:17:45spokesperson for Khan's PTI party party says Aleema Khan was arrested
00:17:48arrested at her home on Sunday ahead
00:17:51ahead of a planned party protest protest march next week in the capital.
00:17:55capital. While the government and and police have yet to comment on
00:17:57on the arrest, former cricketer Imran Imran Khan has been in prison since
00:18:01since August 2023 after he was convicted convicted on a number of charges,
00:18:05charges, including corruption, all all of which he says are politically
00:18:08politically motivated. Now let's let's take a look at some of the
00:18:10the day's other news. The new school school year has begun in Gaza, with
00:18:13with more than 500,000 children returning returning to formal education for
00:18:16for the first time in nearly three three years. The UN says 97% of schools
00:18:20schools in Gaza were damaged or destroyed
00:18:22destroyed in fighting since the Israel-Gaza
00:18:24Israel-Gaza war began. Working alongside alongside the UN agencies, the Education
00:18:28Education ministry has opened around around 700 education facilities.
00:18:32facilities. Some are as simple as as a tent. Thousands of Argentines
00:18:35Argentines have marched through Buenos Buenos Aires to protect against protest,
00:18:39protest, I should say against President President Javier Marias labour policies
00:18:42policies and austerity cuts. Left Left wing political leaders and activists
00:18:45activists are calling for a general
00:18:47general strike. Ed Sheeran apologised
00:18:52apologised on stage to fans in Philadelphia
00:18:55Philadelphia and he admitted he'd he'd made mistakes. It's after the
00:18:58the controversy over his world tour, tour, currently on its American leg,
00:19:01leg, the singer has been dealing dealing with the fallout after his
00:19:03his support act, the US rapper Macklemore
00:19:05Macklemore was removed from the line-up line-up after he made pro-Palestinian pro-Palestinian remarks on stage
00:19:09stage that led to the other support
00:19:11support acts then pulling out of of the concerts. Ed Sheeran says
00:19:14says he questioned whether he wanted wanted to be an artist at all after after everything that's happened.
00:19:18happened. Carl Nasman reports from from the show. Ed Sheeran is used
00:19:22used to having the spotlight on his
00:19:24his music. Tonight it was squarely squarely on his words. This is not
00:19:28not usually how I would open the the show, but before I play some
00:19:31some songs tonight, I hope it's OK
00:19:33OK if I say a few words. Taking the
00:19:35the stage in Philadelphia, the megastar megastar apologised directly to his
00:19:39his fans for the recent controversy controversy surrounding his tour.
00:19:42tour. This week. The criticism was was about something much more important
00:19:46important and I've had to take and and make difficult decisions and
00:19:49and I am making mistakes and I'm
00:19:52I'm so, so sorry. He also clarified clarified where he stands on the
00:19:56the situation in Gaza. What happened happened in Israel and at the Nova
00:19:59Nova Music Festival on October 7th 7th was horrific and compounded centuries
00:20:03centuries of Jewish pain. What is
00:20:06is happening in Gaza is a catastrophic
00:20:10catastrophic and unjustifiable and and disproportionate. My heart has
00:20:13has been broken by the scale of devastation
00:20:15devastation and loss of civilians
00:20:18civilians lives, of children's lives
00:20:21lives and the systemic injustice injustice we're seeing unfold in
00:20:23in the West Bank cannot be overlooked. overlooked. Sheeran also addressed
00:20:27addressed the musicians not in the the room. His backing band and tour
00:20:30tour mates left in solidarity after
00:20:32after the rapper Macklemore was dropped dropped over his pro-Palestinian
00:20:36pro-Palestinian views. He said he he was deeply worried about venues
00:20:40venues pre-approving content or performers.
00:20:42performers. I was in some of the the front rows inside that stadium
00:20:45stadium as Ed Sheeran made that speech speech and this was clearly an emotional
00:20:48emotional moment for him. He said said he was worried about how he
00:20:52he might be perceived tonight and and he was thankful that fans came
00:20:55came out at all. I thought it was was beautiful that we got to witness
00:20:58witness him in his element, like like what he's used to being in from from the start, you know? So he started
00:21:02started by himself and he's just just as good by himself then with
00:21:05with all these extra people. So I'm I'm glad we got more of Ed Sheeran
00:21:09Sheeran than we would have otherwise. otherwise. He stayed neutral and and I think he covered both sides
00:21:12sides nicely. I think everyone leaves leaves happy and a big fan of his.
00:21:16his. Sheeran is an artist who likes likes to stay out of politics, but
00:21:20but that has become increasingly increasingly difficult. Before the
00:21:22the concert, dozens of pro-Palestinian pro-Palestinian protesters near the
00:21:26the stadium only added to the pressure. pressure. Sheeran said tonight that that he wants his concerts to be
00:21:30be a place where everyone is welcome, welcome, and he likely hopes now
00:21:34now the focus can return to his music.
00:21:38music. Carl Nasman, BBC News. To To British politics now and the leader leader of the Liberal Democrats,
00:21:42Democrats, Sir Ed Davey, has been been urging the Prime Minister, Andy
00:21:45Andy Burnham, to cut fuel duty by
00:21:47by £0.10 a litre. At least until until Christmas to ease pressures
00:21:50pressures on the cost of living. living. Mr Davies been speaking at
00:21:53at the Liberal Democrat Party conference conference in Brighton. We've got
00:21:57got to help people with the cost cost of living, particularly the
00:21:59the rise in filling your car up at at the pumps with petrol and diesel.
00:22:03diesel. Thanks to Trump's idiotic idiotic war with Iran. People are
00:22:06are paying a fortune just to fill fill up the car, so we think we should
00:22:10should have a cut in fuel duty tax tax for the next three months to
00:22:13to cut the price you pay at the pumps
00:22:16pumps by 12PA litre. That would really really bring help just when it's
00:22:19it's needed. And it will pay for for itself because the government government is getting huge amounts
00:22:22amounts of tax revenue from these these higher oil and gas prices. prices. They should give it back
00:22:26back to people. Our political correspondent correspondent Damien Grammaticas Grammaticas is at the conference
00:22:30conference in Brighton. So the party party are doing is trying to respond
00:22:33respond to this situation. They find find themselves in flat lining in
00:22:36in the polls. Yes, they did very very well in the last general election,
00:22:40election, but they're not really really getting anywhere at the minute.
00:22:42minute. So they've got a lot of MPs, MPs, but they're not getting much
00:22:46much of a hearing. How do they do do that? Ed Davey is trying to talk
00:22:49talk about tax cuts. That's something something he's talked about today
00:22:52today and wants to talk about later later in the week. His deputy leader
00:22:54leader Daisy Cooper, she's talking talking about growth in the economy.
00:22:57economy. Closer ties with the EU. EU. Someone who's watching all this
00:23:00this closely. Holly Cole from Times
00:23:03Times Radio and this kind of framing framing of these policies. What do
00:23:06do you see in it? Lib Dems looking looking for ways to connect to voters. voters. Well it's sort of the party
00:23:10party looking for a soul again basically basically is how I read it from having
00:23:13having conversations with members members here and MPs. They've got got this historic amount of MPs in
00:23:17in Parliament. They haven't quite quite worked out what to do with with them and also how to make sure
00:23:21sure that that's not sort of a limit limit to their ambitions. So that that means that they are looking
00:23:25looking at whether they are actually actually liberal, you know, like like the Liberal Party, the Orange
00:23:29Orange Book, sort of Lib Dem party party of 2004, the looking at the
00:23:32the economic liberal policies or or are they tax cutting cuts, things
00:23:35things like that, talking big on on the free market or are they more
00:23:38more a big state party, which is is where the party had drifted to
00:23:42to just shortly before that and where where a lot of MPs think Ed Davey
00:23:45Davey has drifted to with his promises promises on social care and similar
00:23:49similar ideals. So there is a sort sort of battle for the soul of the
00:23:52the party here. The question is they they know they need to find an answer answer to it. The answer is quite
00:23:56quite hard to come by because politics politics is, as we know, a lot more
00:23:59more fractious and as we saw from from that, more in common polling polling earlier, the question of
00:24:02of who are the Lib Dems and what what do they think of Ed Davey? The The answer comes nothing or don't
00:24:06don't know. And so filling that gap gap is their real challenge here. here. Now, one thing people have
00:24:09have been talking about is is part part of the answer. Changing not
00:24:13not just the strategy but the leadership. leadership. You know, does the party
00:24:17party need a refresh? David's been been around for a long time. He's He's had success. But should they
00:24:20they change? There's some rumbles rumbles about that. We've had one
00:24:23one council leader saying to the the BBC that he thinks they're struggling
00:24:26struggling for relevance and not not sure that Ed Davey is the right right person. Do you think that's
00:24:29that's something that's really genuinely genuinely being thought about here?
00:24:32here? Yeah, it is. And if you talk talk to MPs, the parliamentary party,
00:24:35party, they think that this needs needs an injection of energy. The
00:24:38The whole party system needs a move move forward and that means potentially
00:24:41potentially getting rid of Ed Davey. Davey. He's given 7 or 8 leaders
00:24:44leaders speeches at Lib Dem conferences. conferences. So he's been in charge charge for some time and no one can
00:24:47can sort of knock his record for for whether Liberal Democrats are
00:24:50are now stand. The issue is, is whether whether people believe his energy
00:24:53energy going forward. I mean, he he stood up on the conference stage stage yesterday and tried to get
00:24:57get the crowd here who were pretty pretty forgiving crowd to the Liberal Liberal Democrats. You would hope
00:25:00hope to chant we care. We fight their their conference slogan. There was
00:25:03was a really quite muted and it didn't didn't really get off the ground. ground. And so is there someone with
00:25:08with that energy now the problem problem is the who. There's a lot lot of old guard liberal Democrats
00:25:11Democrats who have been sniffing sniffing around the leadership for for some time, but everyone thinks thinks they've basically be sort
00:25:15sort of Ed Davey but in a different different set of clothes. The only
00:25:18only other option is a very, very very fresh MP, someone new to the
00:25:21the parliamentary party who they're they're not quite sure the public public knows yet or is quite right
00:25:24right to lead. But you always get get this sort of party conference conference mid between election moment
00:25:27moment where there are jitters and and they're not sure yet whether whether to jump off the cliff edge
00:25:30edge or whether to stick. Well, the the leadership and those around him, him, you talk to them. They're very
00:25:34very clear. They think actually they they were they did well. They are
00:25:38are under the headlines doing well. well. They you know, council elections.
00:25:41elections. They now have more councillors councillors than the Tories that
00:25:43that they control the Conservatives Conservatives in England. And they're
00:25:46they're kind of position they say say to yes, they could sharpen their
00:25:49their message but be a player, particularly particularly at the next election election if there is a hung Parliament
00:25:53Parliament and they think that's that's likely, they do. But you have
00:25:56have to remember that actually they they were a very different party party when they went into coalition.
00:25:59coalition. The last time. The Liberal Liberal Democrats don't like to talk talk about their record in government
00:26:03government because they've spent spent the last few years bashing bashing the Conservative Party that
00:26:06that they were in bed with. But the the reality is the direction of the the party was very different under
00:26:10under Nick Clegg and the ideals of of the party were clear to go into
00:26:13into that coalition and draw those those red lines. So they need to to work that out again. And this
00:26:17this is what this weekend is. All All about. Holly, thank you. Very
00:26:19Very much for your time there. So So yes, a party putting out new ideas
00:26:23ideas but also struggling for direction direction and for focus. Back to to you. Damien
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