Trump on Britain First retweets, and BBC presenters’ pay cut

Hello. Here’s your morning briefing:

Donald Trump came in for heavy criticism when he retweeted posts by a British far-right group last November. And he became involved in a Twitter row with UK Prime Minister Theresa May afterwards. But the US president now says he knew “nothing” of the Britain First group when he shared three of its videos.

In an interview with ITV’s Piers Morgan, to be broadcast on Sunday, he says: “If you are telling me they’re horrible people, horrible, racist people, I would certainly apologise if you’d like me to do that.” We’ll have reaction to the president’s comments as it comes in.

Some of the BBC’s best-known news presenters have agreed to take a salary cut, following recent revelations over equal pay. It’s not yet known by how much.

Brexit Secretary David Davis is to insist the UK will be free to make its own trade deals as soon as it leaves the EU in March 2019. The comments, in a speech later, come amid a row within the Conservative Party over the government’s approach to Brexit.

A fire at a hospital in South Korea has killed at least 41 people and injured dozens more. It’s thought to have started in an emergency room specialising in cardiology at the hospital in Miryang. Firefighters said the deaths appeared to have been caused by smoke inhalation.

Last week, the head of the Army warned that the UK would struggle to keep up with Russia’s military capabilities without more funding. Now Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has cited specific threats he says Moscow poses. He told the Daily Telegraph that Vladimir Putin’s forces were “trying to spot vulnerabilities” in the UK’s energy supply. There are four gas and a further four electricity connections under the sea between the UK and the continent. Mr Williamson said Russia had been researching these types of connections and would be willing to take the sort of action that “any other nation would see as completely unacceptable”.

By Branwen Jeffreys, education editor

The scandal that has enveloped the Presidents Club fundraiser at the Dorchester Hotel this week shows how cultural norms are shifting. What’s remarkable, given the string of allegations that have emerged from the world of entertainment and sport, is the organisers of the dinner don’t appear to have given a second thought to how it would be seen in the cold light of day. You only have to read the tapestry of testimony gathered by the Everyday Sexism Project to get some understanding of how pervasive unwanted sexual contact or innuendo is in women’s lives. While the inquiry is concentrating on what happens in public places, for many women this is also an issue in the workplace. And sadly, as the BBC has uncovered, for girls in school.

Theresa May’s meeting with Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos is pored over. The Financial Times says the US President felt “no chill” from the UK prime minister after his recent tweet cancelling a trip to London. The i reports that Mr Trump is expected to make a “working” visit later this year. Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror leads on the speech in Parliament by former cabinet minister Baroness Jowell, who has cancer and called for more funding and research to fight the disease.

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08:30 Defending champion Roger Federer plays Chung Hyeon, ranked 58 in the world, in the second semi-final of the Australian Open.

14:00 Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney takes part in a session on the global economic outlook at the World Economic Forum, in Davos.

1998 US President Clinton denies allegations that he had an affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, and rejects accusations that he asked her to lie about the relationship on oath.