Angolans are heading to the polls to vote for a successor for their veteran leader.

Jose Eduardo dos Santos has been in power in the oil-rich country since 1979, making him the world's second-longest serving president.
He is not contesting this election - Defence Minister Joao Lourenco is standing for the governing MPLA party.
His main challenger is expected to be Isias Samakuva, from the MPLA's rival in the 27-year civil war, Unita.
Africa Live: Updates on this and other stories
Is Angola's Dos Santos really giving up power?
Under Angola's voting system, people are choosing both the candidate and party in the same election.
Analysts says the MPLA, which has been in power since independence from Portugal in 1975, is likely to win.
In the previous election, the Casa-CE alliance gained the third most seats. It is led by Abel Chivukuvuku, who split from Unita.
Voters queued for the opening of polling stations this morning in Angola's capital Luanda.
The elderly were let in first to decide who will replace President Jose Eduardo dos Santos.
There is a relaxed mood in the business district of the capital city and everyone has the day off as polling day is a public holiday.
The opposition Unita party won 18% of the vote in the last elections. Analysts will be watching closely to see whether the opposition is able to increase its share of the vote this time around.
Opposition alliance Casa-CE says up to 20 of its election observers were arrested last night in Luanda for protesting.
They were demanding their accreditation to observe the voting, which they had not been given.
Protest was banned by the government during campaigning, but the last day of campaigning was Monday.
It is not clear if they are still in custody or the exact nature of their charges.
The BBC's Mayeni Jones in the capital Luanda says the young have very different priorities to their elders as they head to the ballot box.
The emphasis has previously been on stability, following the civil war, which only ended in 2002.
But young people have been telling the BBC that they want one thing - jobs. They blame what they refer to as simply "the crisis" for the lack of employment.
Critics of the government say rampant corruption means the country's oil wealth did not spread beyond the ruling elite.
After the war, Angola was one of the fastest-growing economies in the world because of its huge oil reserves.
But when global oil prices dropped two years ago, it affected the whole economy.
Given that the majority of the population is below 35, this demographic has a lot of voting power and its demands could be key, our correspondent says.
"You need to promise jobs, you need to promise housing, you need to promise study for their children," says political analyst Dalvan Costa.
"I think they will decide the outcome of the election."
Although Mr Dos Santos is standing down as president, he will remain the head of the MPLA, while his children also hold several key positions.


Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was bear-hugging and chest-bumping his triumphant players as Chelsea counterpart Antonio Conte was back in the dressing room contemplating a defeat about which he could have no complaints.

A Premier League collision between two of Europe's A-list coaches ended in a 2-1 win for Klopp's Liverpool that was far more comfortable and convincing than the Stamford Bridge scoreline suggests.
Conte, in contrast, suffered his first loss since taking over at Chelsea to complete an indifferent week after they had to battle to get a point at Swansea City last Sunday.
So what are the early lessons for Klopp and Conte as Liverpool's season continues to gather pace and Chelsea's suffers a setback?
Klopp made his intentions clear with a bold claim when Liverpool opened their new Main Stand at Anfield recently.
"We want to go to the best teams in the world and give them hell," said Klopp as his managerial mission statement - and he has made good on his promise on the domestic front at least.
Liverpool's three trips to London this season have yielded seven points from this win at Chelsea, with a 4-3 victory at Arsenal and a 1-1 draw at Tottenham that should have brought the maximum return.
While it may be stretching the point to call this a hellish experience for Chelsea, it was certainly uncomfortable from first to last on a night when much of the early-season optimism around the new Conte regime was suddenly tempered by a heavy dose of realism.
Liverpool's win should have come as no surprise given the manner in which they have performed against the teams that are widely accepted as the Premier League's most powerful since Klopp was appointed manager.
In 14 games against Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City and Spurs since arriving at Liverpool almost a year ago, Klopp has lost only twice. He suffered a 1-0 home defeat by Manchester United in January and lost the League Cup final on penalties to Manchester City at Wembley in February.
The sequence has included a 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge and a 4-1 triumph at Manchester City last season - as well as victory over two legs against Manchester United in the Europa League, which included a 2-0 win at Anfield and a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.
The only flaw in Klopp's masterplan is when Liverpool throw in the sort of dismal performance that saw them deservedly lose 2-0 at Burnley this season.
This latest win at Chelsea was Klopp and Liverpool putting down another marker that they are more than capable of competing with the best - and if they can put things right against the rest then their growing momentum will become even more ominous.
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The meeting between Conte and Klopp did not just carry heavy Premier League significance - it was a game where eyes were trained on the technical area as well as on the pitch.
Conte and Klopp are two of the game's most charismatic and animated managers, so it was always going to be an eventful evening for fourth official Bobby Madley.
Madley crossed swords with both, delivering an early warning to Conte for straying outside his designated area as well as being in regular conversation with Klopp.
Italian Conte prowled his technical area throughout, dark-suited and with shiny back shoes glinting in the floodlights. Klopp opted for a black Liverpool tracksuit.
In what might have been a sign of how the early phases were developing, Conte was all agitated, nervous action, while it took Klopp until the 13th minute to even leave his seat - and that was only to offer up a minor tweak at a Liverpool corner.
The real Klopp was unleashed when Jordan Henderson's magnificent 25-yard strike curved and dipped beyond Chelsea keeper Thibaut Courtois after 36 minutes.
Klopp leapt from his dugout with the exclamation "boom" as the shot flew in and Liverpool took control. It was a control they never seriously threatened to relinquish.
The goal may even be part of Klopp's wider plan because, since he took charge, Liverpool have scored 15 Premier League goals from outside the box, five more than any other side in that time.
The German was, however, furious at the manner in which his defenders, Joel Matip in particular, went to ground far too easily and allowed Nemanja Matic to set up Diego Costa's goal that gave Chelsea brief, albeit unfulfilled, second-half hope.
There was an air of increasing desperation about Conte, including one impromptu "Riverdance" jump on the spot when a decision went against Chelsea.
In the end he was as subdued as his Chelsea side and at the final whistle it was Klopp who embraced his Liverpool backroom staff before going around all of his players, back-slapping, bear-hugging and chest-beating before pumping his fists in the direction of their fans.
On this night, Klopp overcame Conte on all levels.
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Klopp's tried and trusted "gegenpressing" style and the pace provided by the likes of Daniel Sturridge and new £34m forward Sadio Mane appeared to leave Chelsea overcome with caution from the kick-off.
Conte's side, missing the influence and direction of injured captain John Terry, simply sat too deep and did too little, especially in the first half. It was an invitation to assume superiority that Liverpool, tactically progressive and proactive under Klopp, were never going to pass up.
Liverpool looked mobile, competitive, quick and fluent. Conte's Chelsea were laboured and lacking guile, with Matic and Branislav Ivanovic in particular looking like two players close to outliving their usefulness at Stamford Bridge.
The important Roberto Firmino was out with a groin injury but Klopp utilised a front three of Sturridge, Mane and Philippe Coutinho in a manner that compensated for the Brazilian's absence.
David Luiz looked exactly the same player that left Stamford Bridge for Paris St-Germain two years ago, although blame for this defeat could certainly not be apportioned to him.
Klopp's substitutions were more structured and logical than Conte's. Divock Origi came on to replace Sturridge just before the hour as the striker appeared to pick up a knock, while the tiring Coutinho was replaced with the more defensive-minded Lucas to lock down the 2-1 result with eight minutes left.
Conte, surprisingly, waited to make changes even after Costa, who spent the night isolated and toiling alone, pulled one back after 61 minutes. Chelsea failed to cash in on that rare moment of supremacy.
In the end, it was the 83rd minute before Conte made a change, with the odd voice in the stands having demanded them earlier - and then he made all three at once.
Cesc Fabregas was belatedly introduced for Matic, while Victor Moses and Pedro replaced Willian and Oscar. The big surprise was that £33m summer signing Michy Batshuayi remained unused as Chelsea chased a goal.
Conte has not made a substitution in the Premier League before the 71st minute this season - Moses at Watford - so he is clearly not a natural exponent of the early change.
In Conte's defence, though, his substitutions have generally been positive and helped get late wins against West Ham and particularly at Watford, where Batshuayi scored an equaliser and fellow sub Fabregas set up Costa's winner.
Here, though, Klopp's Liverpool were more organised and seemed more tactically aware of what their gameplan was.
As Liverpool's team coach pulled out of west London and headed back to Merseyside before midnight, it would have been accompanied by a growing sense of confidence, even excitement, about their prospects this season.
The loss at Burnley will act as the check on over-optimism, but Liverpool and Klopp can take great encouragement from Friday's win, as well as those performances at Arsenal and Spurs and the 4-1 dismissal of champions Leicester City at Anfield.
Matip, with the same languid gait and build of the young Rio Ferdinand, has started solidly in central defence and was given few problems by the poorly served Costa, while Dejan Lovren grows in stature alongside the free transfer from German side Schalke.
Klopp's big summer buys have also settled well. Georginio Wijnaldum was a solid, steady presence and the pace, verve and tireless running of Mane gives Liverpool the sort of defending from the front and menace they have lacked since the departure of Luis Suarez - although it should be stressed this is not to compare the two in terms of quality.
Liverpool's players clearly have faith in Klopp and the bond was shown by the warmth of the embraces between team and manager at the final whistle.
This has been - Burnley apart - a highly impressive start by Liverpool. It is too early to talk in title terms but they have no reason not to already set their sights on a place in the top four.
As Klopp also said when that imposing new stand was opened: "If there is one part of life where you can challenge the best in the world then it's football. It depends on your attitude.
"If always the people with the best circumstances would win, this world would be an ugly place. We all have the chance to fight for everything. It's not about having a guarantee; it's about having the opportunity."
Arsenal, Spurs and Chelsea will do the same. So why not Liverpool after emerging unscathed, and with seven points, from those three trips to the capital?


One of Scotland Yard's most senior police officers says criticism of the government's Prevent programme is based on "ignorance".

It was set up to stop people being drawn into terrorist activities, but has been labelled "toxic" by critics.
"They don't understand properly how Prevent works," Commander Dean Haydon told the BBC's Asian Network.
He added that some criticism came from parts of the community that "don't want Prevent to work in the first place".
The programme was set up by Labour in 2003 and its remit was widened by the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition in 2011.
Designed to support people at risk of joining extremist groups and carrying out terrorist activities, it is focused on schools, faith organisations, prisons and other communities where people can be at risk of radicalisation.
But the Muslim Council of Britain has said young Muslims were being targeted, and a former senior Muslim policeman, Dal Babu, said Prevent had become a "toxic brand" because it was not trusted by communities.
Dean Haydon, however, told the Asian Network that the counter-terrorism programme was not about spying on people but about keeping them safe, claiming it had achieved "fantastic" results.
"Some of the criticisms come from sections of the community that, for a variety of different reasons, political or otherwise, just don't want Prevent to work in the first place."
The government programme came under further scrutiny in the wake of the recent terror attacks in Manchester, Westminster and London Bridge - and was a talking point during the recent general election.
In May, the Green Party's Caroline Lucas told Andrew Marr: "Many in the Muslim community believe it's been an attack on their group in particular."
The strategy is backed by senior police figures, with some calling it "fundamental" in the fight against terrorism.
But in March this year, Home Secretary Amber Rudd admitted there needed to be more of an effort "to sell it to communities... to show that this is a safeguarding iniative."
Government figures say 150 people were stopped from entering conflict zones in Iraq and Syria in 2015 because of the programme.
In the interview with Asian Network, Commander Haydon spoke of his concerns about people returning to the UK from Syria and Iraq.
He said the "default" position was "arrest and prosecution".
Listen to the full interview on Tuesday 8 August at 10:00 BST on the BBC's Asian Network.


Derbyshire have appointed New Zealand international Hamish Rutherford as their vice-captain for all formats.

The 26-year-old batsman will assist new County Championship skipper Billy Godleman and Wes Durston in both one-day formats.
Rutherford has played 16 Test matches - the last of which came in January 2015.
"Hamish is an experienced international who already has a great relationship with the lads," coach Graeme Welch told the club website.


The capacity of Nottingham Forest's City Ground has been reduced to zero, 29 days before the new season starts.

Paul McKay, service director for public protection at Nottinghamshire County Council, said the club does not have a required safety certificate holder.
They are due to host Hull in a friendly on 30 July, with their season starting against Burton at home on 6 August.
"We had an audit and we had to make the decision to reduce the capacity to zero," he told BBC Radio Nottingham.
The ground, which was partly redeveloped in the 1980s and 1990s, normally has a capacity of 30,445.
However, due to recent staff changes at the City Ground there was no person nominated as safety certificate holder in time for the initial annual review of the stadium.
"It's unusual," McKay said. "Normally these things would be planned.
"They've had a named person, that person is unable to fulfil those duties at the moment so the club are looking to appoint a new safety certificate holder.
"What I want to assure people is that we are working very closely with Forest. We had a number of meetings with them and we are hoping this might be resolved in the next few days."
Nottingham Forest said they were working with the council to ensure a suitable person will be appointed as the club's safety certificate holder.
"[The club] has a healthy, long-standing relationship with the county council and all parties are working together to resolve this matter as quickly and efficiently as possible," a statement said.


Thousands of pounds donated as part of the "#nomakeupselfie" craze were sent to Unicef instead of Cancer Research UK by mistake, the BBC has learned.

More than Â£8m has been raised after the craze of taking a self-portrait with no make-up spread virally.
But those texting "DONATE" rather than "BEAT" found their money sent to the wrong charity.
Others accidentally inquired about adopting a polar bear from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
UN agency Unicef told the BBC that so far Â£18,625 has been identified as being accidentally pledged.
It said it was now working with Cancer Research UK to transfer the funds donated so they can be used as intended.
Mike Flynn, director of individual giving at Unicef UK, said it was a "genuine mix-up".
"Unicef believes this error has occurred due to those interested in donating to the #nomakeupselfie campaign sharing the text keyword 'DONATE' - rather than the keyword 'BEAT' - and the text number 70099, which has then been repeated across social media.
"'DONATE to 70099' is an SMS keyword and shortcode combination that Unicef have sole use of, specifically for any members of the public who contact us and wish to donate to us via SMS."
He added: "Unicef is not responsible for this error. However, we've been working hard to find a resolution to the situation for those affected.
"We contacted Cancer Research [UK] as soon as we became aware of what was happening. Unicef and Cancer Research [UK] have agreed that these donations will be received in full by Cancer Research [UK].
"We are now working closely with all parties involved to ensure that this doesn't happen again in the future."
The #nomakeupselfie craze has taken social media by storm since flourishing last week. Its origins are unclear, but since going viral the trend has raised more than Â£8m for Cancer Research UK and other cancer charities.
But it has not been without mishaps for some well-meaning selfie takers.
As well as the Unicef mix-up, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) acknowledged that it too had accidentally received text messages due to the wrong keyword.
Some people's smartphones had autocorrected the word "BEAT" to instead read "BEAR".
"Thank you for choosing an adorable polar bear," the reply from the WWF said. "We will call you today to set up your adoption."
The autocorrect blunder surprised many who took to Twitter to joke about their adoption news.
"Just told Jamie to text 70007 for cancer and he accidentally sent bear," wrote Twitter user @ChrisKirk07.  "Now he's got two polar bears."
The WWF said no money was taken from people who had sent the texts.
"Any texts sent to us instead of Cancer Research [UK] would not result in any donations going to help protect polar bears as WWF relies on human operators calling people back to confirm adoptions, so no money would have changed hands," said Kerry Blackstock, WWF's director of fundraising.
"When we realised there was a lot of interest in a campaign we weren't presently running we made sure our automatic text message response let the sender know their text had gone awry.
"We wish Cancer Research UK every success in their campaign and their goals. Polar bear selfies are harder to come by, though, as far as we are aware, none wear make up."
Follow Dave Lee on Twitter @DaveLeeBBC


A row has erupted over what to do with the land in Pakistan's Abbottabad city where former al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden lived and was killed.

Local authorities want to construct a children's playground there, while the military wish to build a graveyard.
The two sides have tussled over control of the land - and on Wednesday the military erected a wall around the site, surprising local authorities.
Bin Laden was killed in a US raid on his compound at the site in May 2011.
He had been living there in secret, in a three-storey building behind high walls, for several years before his death.
The land has remained empty ever since.
The grounds cover an area of 3,530 sq m (38,000 sq ft), with an estimated market value of over $285,000 (Â£218,000)
After Bin Laden's death, the land was handed over to the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province which tore down the structure and its boundary wall, apparently to prevent the place from becoming a site of pilgrimage for jihadists and their sympathisers.
Since then the land has been lying unutilised amid a growing neighbourhood.
Now, the local government and military authorities are in a dispute over how to use the land - and who should control its future.
How the lives of Osama Bin Laden's neighbours changed forever
Legacy of Bin Laden's death
Bin Laden files: Seven things we learned from second tranche
The military-run Cantonment Board of Abbottabad (CBA) moved to occupy the area in May, erecting a rope-fence around it. But they removed it after the provincial authorities intervened.
Cantonment boards are military-run organisations tasked with managing and regulating private and public construction in areas falling within the jurisdiction of military districts in major cities.
The CBA tried again this week, however, and this time they were more decisive - building a one metre (three ft) wall around the sprawling grounds, and catching the local government by surprise.
A member of the CBA council, Bashir Khan, said the military had decided to convert the land into a cemetery .
"It is needed because there is no graveyard nearby for the local population," he told the BBC.
But KP Information Minister Mushtaq Ghani dismissed the plan, saying the grounds were in the middle of a populated area and "not fit for a graveyard".
"Besides, the cantonment authorities have built the wall on land that belongs to the provincial government," Mr Ghani said, adding that the CBA had said they built the wall "to prevent encroachments".
The provincial government hoped to turn the land into a playground for children, Mr Ghani said.
"In addition to a playground, the place can be used for funeral prayers as well. The people of the area have neither a playground nor a place for funeral prayers nearby."
The dispute looks set to continue - and local residents have their own ideas too, with some demanding that the land should be used to build a girls' school.
Meanwhile, some other military officials have mooted plans to build a revenue-generating amusement park on the land.
What everyone seems to agree on is that any project should be chosen with care so it could not be easily associated with the name of Bin Laden - something which could become a source of continuing embarrassment for the military.
"A graveyard would be the safest bet, as nobody would like to call it the 'Bin Laden graveyard'," says one Abbottabad journalist who has been following the story.


Liberal candidate Moon Jae-in has claimed victory in South Korea's presidential election.

Mr Moon favours greater dialogue with North Korea, in a change to current South Korean policy.
"I will be president for all South Koreans," he told cheering supporters in Gwanghwamun Square in the capital Seoul.
The early election was called after a corruption scandal led to the impeachment of the former president.
Park Geun-hye is accused of allowing a close friend to extort money from companies. She denies all wrongdoing.
With 80% of the votes counted, Mr Moon was ahead with 40% of the total, the National Election Commission said.
His conservative challenger, former prosecutor Hong Joon-pyo, was next with 25.5% followed by centrist candidate Ahn Cheol-soo on 21.4%.
Mr Moon is expected to be sworn in on Wednesday.
A Moon Jae-in presidency would represent a real shift in attitude towards North Korea.  His policy is to increase contact with North Korea, in contrast to the tighter sanctions of the last ten years. He is unhappy about the deployment of a US anti-missile system on South Korean soil.
When Mr Moon was last in government, in the early 2000s, South Korea had a "Sunshine Policy" which meant co-operation with North Korea, a policy which was abandoned as North Korea tested nuclear weapons.
As policy in South Korea looks like shifting, many sceptics remain who think that no amount of talking to Kim Jong-un will persuade him to renounce either his despotic power or his nuclear ambitions.
For the last eight years, Seoul and Washington have been in lock-step over North Korea, with ever tighter sanctions and isolation. That is not Mr Moon's way. Is it Donald Trump's?
The son of refugees from North Korea, Mr Moon was jailed while a student in the 1970s for leading protests against military ruler Park Chung-hee - Ms Park's father.
Later, he served in South Korea's special forces before becoming a human rights lawyer.
He served as a senior aide to liberal President Roh Moo-hyun, who committed suicide in 2009 after leaving office amid bribery allegations.
Mr Moon, of the centre-left Democratic Party, unsuccessfully ran against Ms Park in 2012 elections.
He has positioned himself as the man who can move the country on from the scandals of Ms Park's era.
"I feel that not only my party and myself but also the people have been more desperate for a change of government," he said while casting his vote.
Mr Moon has advocated greater dialogue with the North while maintaining pressure and sanctions, in contrast to Ms Park who cut almost all ties.
He has been critical of the two previous conservative administrations for failing to stop North Korea's weapons development.
But while tensions on the Korean peninsula ensured the election was closely watched, for South Koreans the priority has been corruption and the economy, with youth unemployment stubbornly high.
Mr Moon has talked of reforming South Korea's huge family-run conglomerates, known as chaebols, which dominate the domestic economy.


Scottish poet Liz Lochhead was moved to tears as she spoke to presenter Kirsty Young about losing her husband, architect Tom Logan, seven years ago.

The 69-year-old writer said she met Logan when she was 38, as she featured on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs.
He died following a short illness in 2010, six months before Lochhead was made Scottish makar (national poet).
Her voice cracked as she recalled thinking what her husband would have thought of her taking on the role.
She said: "I wasn't sure if I could do it and I spoke to my sister and she said 'What would Tom say?"'
"I never ever wanted to write about grief, but as part of the makardom I would just be asked to do all kinds of things.
"For the National Book League in Scotland I was asked to write a poem about a favourite place. I wrote about places Tom and I went to. I ended up writing about things we would do, what was not happening.
"Now people speak to me about it all the time and tell me their sad stories.
"So I'm glad that poem (Favourite Place) was helpful to people but sometimes at poetry readings people ask me to read it, and I can't."
But the Some Old Photographs writer also shared fond, even risque, memories about the pair's 24-year relationship.
Young described their meeting as a "kiss on Hogmanay," but Lochhead cut in: "It was a bit more than that, Kirsty."
"I know but it's Radio 4 and there are children listening," joked the presenter.
Lochhead also spoke about meeting the Queen in 2015 as she was awarded the Gold Medal for Poetry, and described the monarch as "funny".
Remembering the "fantastic surprise" of the accolade, she said: "The Queen was very funny.
"She told me about meeting Edith Sitwell when she was young and how she and her sister went to poetry readings when she was far too young.
"She said 'Margaret and I were quite naughty, we got the giggles', and she asked Carol Ann Duffy and I at the time, did we ever get giggles in poetry readings?
"We both looked at each other and said, 'Yes we do'."


Just five minutes after meeting sleep and energy expert Dr Nerina Ramlakhan in her central London clinic, she delivers some bad news.

"You've got the classic pattern of someone who's in a fatigue cycle," she says.
"You're running on survival energy. Your sympathetic nervous system is in overdrive. I would guess you feel pretty shattered mid-afternoon which would mean you are running on adrenalin, noradrenalin, cortisol."
I'm turning into a dopamine junkie - the brain chemical associated with pleasure that is released when we are stimulated, whether that is by food, sex, excitement... or screen time.
It sounds convincing. Or am I being blinded by pseudo-science?
Dr Ramlakhan works at the privately run Nightingale Hospital, and is a member of its technology addiction treatment team.
Surely tiredness is a by-product of a busy modern life - children, work, hobbies etc - rather than that relaxing time spent watching Netflix in bed?
"The thing many of my patients have in common is the fact that they are in front of screens all the time. Even when they try to sleep at night. It has become so pervasive," she says.
"They go to bed but can't sleep, or fall asleep exhausted and wake up tired. People started telling me they couldn't switch their brains off."
One patient was suspended from work after sending an inappropriate email to a client in the early hours of the morning, she adds.
"When we unpicked the story we realised he was spending more time at work and finding it more difficult to switch off."
He is now on the road to recovery - and hopes to return to his job.
Another recent patient was a 17-year-old who had suffered a seizure.
It turned out he was up all night playing computer games.
Tech-related burnout is also common in people with certain personality traits, Dr Ramlakhan continues.
"Are you a perfectionist? Are you a control freak? Do you grind your teeth at night?
"That's an A-type personality - they are driven, competitive, aggressive, run on imperatives - have to, must do, should do," she says.
"They are likely to find themselves unable to switch off, they can't relax, if they do they crash into exhaustion.
"Even if they are watching TV they have multi screens. It's a level of hyperactivity driven by a fear of not being in control."
I suggest that perhaps they just want to multi-task.
"It's the accessibility, the sensory experience of swiping that screen, the instant gratificationâ€¦ there is something quite pleasurable about that," she counters.
"Our generation hasn't got the hang of how to respond to it so we respond very reactively.
"For a lot of people it's the lack of offline time which causes hyper-arousal of the brain. People walk about in a state of distractibility."
Author and psychologist Catherine Steiner-Adair also thinks multi-tasking - or multi-screening - is a dangerous game, especially for children.
"We see a decrease in memory, a decline in grades, they're not developing the part of their brain that's a muscle that needs to be developed for singular focus," she told the BBC.
"It seems to decline the more people do split screening."
The Steiner-Waldorf School philosophy actively discourages any screen time at all for under-12s, and British health watchdog NICE guidelines suggest a limit of two hours of screen time a day for adults and children, although this is more in order to increase physical activity.
"It takes us decades to adjust to new technology," says Dave Coplin, Microsoft's curiously titled chief envisioner.
"Technology is a wonderful thing if we use it properly - and we need to use it properly."
It is the current generation, those of us who remember life before the internet, for whom the draw to technology is irresistible, agrees Dr Ramlakhan.
She says her 11-year-old daughter is already "bored" by Facebook and suggests I ask my four-year-old son to collect up the family gadgets as he will find it far easier than me to initiate switch-off.
"Up-and-coming digital natives will be more discerning than us," she explains.
"We're still in the 'Ooh, isn't it wonderful?' phase of technology, we are still excited by it. Our generation hasn't got the hang of how to respond to it so we respond very reactively."
After a few days of following Dr Ramlakhan's advice I have to admit that I do feel better. I am definitely sleeping more and despite medics disagreeing over whether drinking extra water is actually beneficial, it does seem to make me feel more alert.
Of course, it could well be a placebo effect - I know what I'm doing is supposed to be improving my wellbeing.
At the Wilderness festival in Oxfordshire, where the phone reception is terrible but it still costs Â£5 to charge your mobile, I meet Dr David Cox, a former Accident and Emergency doctor who is now chief medical officer at subscription-based meditation app Mindfulness.
He echoes Dr Ramlakhan's words.
"I don't believe we can be engaging with something to this extent and for it not to be having an effect on our brains," he says.
"The reason we are feeling stressed about all this stuff is that our brains aren't used to doing what we are asking them to do.
"Our brains are very good at adapting and they will continue to do that."
So how is the next generation shaping up?
A recent study by the London School of Economics suggested that in schools which banned mobile phones, children's test scores increased by more than 6%.
I pay a visit to my son's former pre-school, Wildflowers, in Hampshire - a forest school where there are no screens and outdoor play is non-negotiable, rain or shine.
Head teacher Helena Nilsson says children are like "bees to a honeypot" if she gets out her laptop but without the distraction they engage in much more creative play.
The little ones, however, seem less convinced about the benefits of their enforced digital detox.
"Do you think we should have a computer, tablet or TV at Wildflowers?" she asks.
"YES!" chorus the enthusiastic under-fives unanimously.
Listen to the Business Daily report on tech addiction, from the BBC World Service


A mother-of three found guilty of encouraging terrorism after she retweeted a speech by the so-called Islamic State leader has been given a suspended jail sentence.

Mary Kaya, 57, from Batley, West Yorkshire, had denied posting a link to an audio clip by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
She was found guilty after a trial of dissemination of a terrorist publication likely to encourage people to participate in terrorism.
Kaya received a 21-month term.
A week-long trial at Leeds Crown Court heard the Twitter account had been monitored after Kaya's previous address in Dewsbury was searched by counter-terrorism police, who arrested her husband in May 2014.
Her Twitter account retweeted a link to one of al-Baghdadi's speeches in November 2014.
Prosecutor Simon Davis told the jury: "The message was aimed at encouraging anyone who listened to or read it to participate in terrorist activity."
Kaya, who was arrested in October 2015, told police she used the account "to see what was going on in the world" and said no-one had access to the account but her.
She later insisted the account must have been hacked and she had not posted anything.
Kaya's custodial sentence was suspended for two years and will be subject to a curfew.
Sentencing her, Judge Peter Collier QC labelled the speech "a dreadful diatribe" but said that apart from the content of her Twitter account there was no evidence that Kaya held radical views or had tried to radicalise others, including her family.
He added that Kaya had attended the Prevent counter-terrorism programme and there was a reasonable prospect of rehabilitation - if it had not already been achieved
The judge concluded the level of culpability and harm was "low" and that she could not be classed as a dangerous offender.


East Kilbride-based high-tech label producer Worldmark has been bought by Canadian firm CCL Industries Inc in a deal worth about £126m.

Worldmark employs 1,900 staff across manufacturing plants in Scotland, China, Mexico and Hungary.
It also has prototyping design centres and sales offices around the world.
The company specialises in high-performance labels and overlays for the technology sector, including smart phones, personal computers and tablets.
Private equity investor Equistone Europe had held a majority equity stake in Worldmark alongside the management team since 2007.
Worldmark will be part of CCL's design arm and will change its trading identity by the end of the year.
CCL, which is based in Toronto, is a leading company in the speciality label and packaging sectors.
Geoffrey Martin, president and chief executive of CCL, said: "We have admired Worldmark for many years as they built a unique, leading global position in the technology sector and are very excited to welcome their management team and employees to CCL, where they will continue to focus on this fast-moving industry.
"Two-thirds of the revenue base is derived in Asia, significantly expanding our presence in this important part of the world.
"Developing proprietary materials specifically designed for challenging end use applications has become an important operating model for the company. This acquisition brings these capabilities to CCL Design."


First Derivatives, the Newry-based financial technology firm, has bought a Canadian software company for £7.7m.

The purchase of Affinity Systems is First Derivative's third acquisition in 2015.
Affinity, which is based in Ontario, employs 45 people and has clients across a range of industries.
Brian Conlon, chief executive of First Derivatives said Affinity was "a natural fit" for First Derivatives.
The Newry company has its roots in managing and analysing the vast quantities of data produced by financial services firms.
It is now trying to use that expertise in "big data" applications for other industries.
Big data refers to the massive quantities of data produced from sources like the web, mobile, social media and customer contacts.
Companies are trying to find ways to use that data in useful and profitable ways.
Affinity's big data expertise includes working with power companies to create systems that allow customers to access their smart meter data.
Brian Conlon said the purchase would give First Derivatives expertise across a number of new sectors.


Manchester United need "five or six" new players to challenge in the Premier League, says club legend Paul Scholes.

"I'd bring in [Bayern Munich's] Toni Kroos, but United need five or six to get near the top," Scholes said in a blog for bookmaker Paddy Power.
Scholes also said new manager Louis van Gaal faces "a massive task".
The 39-year-old, who assisted interim boss Ryan Giggs for United's last four games, added he "did not expect" to be involved with the club next season.
In a wide-ranging article, Scholes also said:
Van Gaal is expected to be given funds to start a major revamp of the playing squad once his World Cup campaign with the Netherlands comes to an end and he is free to concentrate on his new role at Old Trafford
Scholes believes that Germany international Kroos should be his first target, describing him as "a top-class central midfielder".
Kroos, whose contract expires with the Bundesliga champions at the end of next season, is rumoured to have already agreed a £20m switch to Manchester United.
Securing the 24-year-old would represent an early start to United's summer's transfer business, in contrast to last year when the club failed to follow up interest in Cesc Fabregas and Thiago Alcantara, both at Barcelona at the time, with successful bids.
Everton and Belgium midfielder Marouane Fellaini was the only major summer signing, arriving for £27.5m.
But United could have got him for £4m less had they acted sooner, before a release clause expired.
"Edward Woodward has an awful lot to prove this time that he's good enough at his job," said Scholes.
"He has to bring the players in that the new manager wants. It's obvious that last year he didn't manage to do that. If he doesn't, we are not going to get anywhere near the top."
Scholes, who scored 155 goals in 718 appearances for United before retiring in May 2013, also believes that Rooney may have already peaked after making his Premier League breakthrough as a 16-year-old.
Rooney, now 28, signed a five-and-a-half-year contract extension, worth up to £300,000-a-week, at the club in February.
"There's a chance he's worn out," added Scholes.
"Wayne's peak may have been a lot younger than what we'd expect of footballers traditionally. With Wayne, it could have been when he scored 27 league goals in 2011-12 when he was 26.
"I'm not saying Wayne needs to be dropped, but if his form doesn't get up to scratch in the warm-ups, or in the first game of the World Cup, it'll be interesting to see if the England management team has the balls to make that decision."


A businessman has been jailed for 30 months after a man plunged to his death from a warehouse roof.

Tomasz Galwaz, 29, died after falling from the roof of Al Amin Wholesale in Aston, Birmingham on 5 January 2015.
Mafizur Rahman, 32, of Trinity Road, Aston, pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Birmingham Crown Court in December.
Police said his main priority had been to get roof repairs done as cheaply as possible with disregard to the safety of workers.
Al Amin Wholesale Limited, the company who own the buildings, also pleaded guilty to two breaches under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The firm was also fined Â£144,000 and ordered to pay costs of Â£44,600.
See more stories from across Birmingham and the Black Country here
Mr Galwaz and a friend were employed by Rahman in December 2014 to carry out repairs to the roof of the warehouse in Grosvenor Road, owned by his brothers and father, police said.
The deal was carried out through an interpreter as the two Polish men spoke little English. Police were later told by the interpreter that there were no discussions around safety procedures, personal protective equipment or risk assessments. There was also no mention of insurance.
The men were working on the roof on 5 January when it cracked and they both fell through on to a concrete floor.
Mr Galwaz was taken to hospital with a serious head wound and died from his injuries the following day.
The second man suffered minor injuries.
Det Insp Jim Munro, from West Midlands Police, said: "Rahman's main priority was to get the job done as cheaply as possible with complete disregard for the safety of these workers âˆ’ with tragic consequences."
A second man also arrested in January 2015 on suspicion of manslaughter was released without charge.


A disabled woman who collected her university degree on a stretcher has sat up for the first time in years thanks to a life-changing operation.

Melanie Hartshorn has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) which causes her skull to sink into her spine.
After well-wishers raised £100,000, surgeons in Barcelona operated for nine hours to fuse her skull to her spine.
The 27-year-old posted a picture of herself sitting up in a wheelchair on her Facebook page on Monday.
Miss Hartshorn, from Cramlington, Northumberland, wrote on Facebook: "So this happened tonight... and with no seizures!"
She added: "I was terrified, it was like running a marathon... but it was 100% worth it!!"
The surgery cost £80,000 and £20,000 was also raised to pay for the air ambulance flight to Spain.
It involved fixing her cranium to her vertebrae to allow her to sit up and prevent brain damage.
Miss Hartshorn's condition is degenerative and she has needed multiple operations because her joints dislocate and cannot hold her body together.
It is so severe she had to take her Newcastle University exams lying down.
Her mother Molly Hartshorn said doctors told her "they have never seen anyone with such extreme problems".


In the game of snakes and property ladders, winning now looks a lot more difficult for young buyers.

Not that long ago, lenders made it easy for people in their early 20s to climb onto the nearest ladder by offering interest-only mortgages.
As house prices rose year after year, homes looked like a solid investment. There appeared to be little danger of buyers slipping down to where they started.
Then the financial crisis hit, the board became a seething mass of snakes, and the property market did not seem as easy to play after all.
So, how has the game changed now, and what is facing those who fell back to having to start all over again?
With an interest-only mortgage, householders pay off the interest on the loan but not the capital. At the end of the mortgage term, borrowers are expected to repay the capital.
The attraction of interest-only mortgages was obvious to many young first-time buyers. Many were aged in their early 20s, had just started their first job, and were happy to put off any real consideration of how they would pay the loan back, or to rely solely on the rising value of their home.
In addition, they were cheaper than the repayment option.
But, as they became more and more popular, this type of mortgage was placed more frequently under the microscope of the City regulator - the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
In 2006, when 24% of all new mortgages were lent on an interest-only basis, the FSA said most people with interest-only mortgages did not have "robust plans" to repay them
"There is nothing wrong with interest-only mortgages," said Clive Briault, of the FSA, six years ago. "However, consumers must be very clear about how they are going to repay the loans they take out."
That comment may sound familiar because just a few weeks ago, Martin Wheatley, the managing director of the FSA said almost exactly the same thing.
"There is a place for interest-only," he told a mortgage industry conference. "Lenders must ensure these mortgages are taken out by consumers with a concrete repayment plan."
The fears may not have changed, but the market for interest-only mortgages certainly has.
In the last week or so, RBS, NatWest and the Coventry Building Society have pulled out of the market altogether. They followed a withdrawal in October by the UK's biggest building society, the Nationwide.
"Whether this is the ultimate final nail in the coffin remains to be seen, but it does look increasingly like interest only is destined to survive only as a niche product or the preserve of the wealthy through the private banking fraternity," said Andrew Montlake, director at mortgage broker Coreco.
The only lender to ease its stance is Santander which, after cutting back sharply on interest-only, is now allowing a mix of interest-only and repayment under a new deal.
The FSA would be pleased to see interest-only disappearing for good as a mainstream product, but that is not a view shared by everyone.
Source: Moody's Investors Service
Jonathan Harris, director of mortgage broker Anderson Harris, said: "Interest-only is increasingly becoming a niche product, the preserve of wealthier borrowers. It is a shame as you don't necessarily have to be wealthy to have a viable repayment strategy for an interest-only loan."
That refers to people like Malcolm King. He took out an interest-only mortgage more than 25 years ago, says he has never missed a payment, and has always had a plan to pay off the capital - based on investments and the success of his business.
"I made a decision and take total responsibility for it," he says. "Most people went into this with their eyes open."
He says that, as he is now aged 61, he had to "grovel" to his lender to be allowed to continue borrowing on the same terms, even though he had a successful business and a solid repayment plan.
It is likely that Mr King, who lives in Cobham in Surrey, will not be the only homeowner in his part of the world facing the need to grovel to a lender.
A recent report by Moody's Investors Service suggests that more than half of all outstanding mortgages are interest only in the south of England, compared with a third in the north of England.
"Less creditworthy borrowers [are] at risk of being unable to refinance onto new rates," the report said.
This means they face being locked into a mortgage, and have no choice but pay higher rates when their current deal expires.
Under FSA regulations, which will come into force in April 2014, lenders will have to put this repayment plan under greater scrutiny with a full affordability assessment.
To help these mortgage prisoners, the FSA has suggested that a new or existing lender can waive the rules for borrowers, who demonstrate a good payment history and do not want to increase the loan, to be able to shift onto a new deal.
In contrast, first-time buyers will be given the third degree.
The effect of this, according to estate agents, is that most are seeking the financial help of family and friends, and ensure they have their mortgage agreed before they even start searching for a home.
Beckenham in Kent is a prime spot for such buyers. Good schools and convenient links to London mean it is popular with young families and professionals.
But, according to Robert Dabrowski, of estate agent Langford Russell, the interest-only mortgage is a "dead market" to those first-time buyers they see.
As a result, he says that first-time buyers have got older recently, and he is seeing more people buying as couples rather than on their own.
Warren Pinner, sales director at neighbouring Curran and Pinner, says that first-time buyers with their finance already organised can make life a lot easier for estate agents.
However, he predicts a steady return among some mortgage providers of home loans with an interest-only element. This is not a view not shared by everyone, and would certainly not mean a wholesale return of solely interest-only mortgages.
This may place more snakes on the property board, but they should be easier to avoid for those seeking to climb onto the nearest ladder.


Almost a third of public payphones in Scotland have been earmarked for removal, BBC Scotland has learned.

BT is consulting on plans to remove about 1,500 phone boxes Scotland-wide.
The firm says payphone usage has declined by more than 90% over the last decade as the popularity of mobile phones has surged.
It revealed that, of about 4,800 payphones in Scotland, fewer than five calls were made from 1,280 of them over the last year.
No calls at all were made from more than 700 kiosks.
If all the removals go-ahead, it would leave about 3,300 operational phone boxes north of the border - fewer than half the 6,962 tally of 2003.
The move has raised concerns in some remote areas where mobile phone signal is patchy and phone boxes can be lifeline.
More than 600 payphones are facing removal in the largely rural areas of Dumfries and Galloway, the Borders, Fife, the Highlands and Aberdeenshire.
However BT said they would ask local councils for permission to remove phones where there was no other payphone within 400m (437yds).
If it receives objections from the local authority, the payphone will not be taken away.
Among those facing removal are 104 in the Scottish Borders.
Local MSP John Lamont said those in remote areas of his constituency provided a valuable, and sometimes lifesaving, service.
"These phone boxes provide a lifeline for many rural communities, both for visitors and the people who live there," he said.
"While their usage has inevitably fallen it remains vital to many local communities to continue to have access to a phone box where mobile phone reception is patchy or non-existent, and for those who choose not to have a landline.
"In an emergency, the closure of these payphones could cause real problems."
He urged residents who were worried about the plans to contact the local council.
"The key to keeping them lies with Scottish Borders Council's reaction to these plans." he said.
"Anyone who shares my concern must send the council the clear message that our phone boxes are important and should be safeguarded."
A spokeswoman for BT said: "BT is committed to providing a public payphone service, but with usage declining by over 90% in the last decade, we've continued to review and remove payphones which are no longer needed.
"Any removal of payphones is carried out in strict adherence to the Ofcom guidelines and, where appropriate, with the consent of local authorities."
They are also promoting their Adopt a Kiosk scheme, whereby councils or charities can "buy" a kiosk for Â£1.
About 155 red phone boxes have been adopted by communities in Scotland - some are used to store defibrillators, while others are used as tiny art galleries or libraries.


The Wales Audit Office is examining details of a pay-off worth more than £330,000 to Pembrokeshire council's chief executive to quit his job.

Bryn Parry-Jones will leave following a row over cash payments made to him in lieu of pension contributions.
The payments were judged by the Wales Audit Office to be unlawful.
However, councillor Jacob Williams claimed  the pay-off includes £16,695 compensation for breach of contract over missed pension contributions.
Pembrokeshire council has refused to confirm the full terms of the severance deal agreed on Thursday under which Mr Parry-Jones will leave his job at the end of October.
He is the highest paid council chief executive in Wales with a salary of almost £195,000 plus benefits in kind.
But Mr Parry-Jones had been under pressure to resign after nearly 20 years in post following the Wales Audit Office report on his pension arrangements in January.
Police inquiries into the cash payments were launched but later dropped after no evidence was found of criminal offences.
In September the council set up a disciplinary committee to look at allegations about Mr Parry-Jones's conduct after members passed a vote of no confidence in him.
But Mr Williams said the severance deal meant those proceedings would stop, "denying the possibility of a conclusion".
He published details of the agreement on his website, and claimed Mr Parry-Jones would receive:
The Wales Audit Office said: "The Assistant Auditor General is currently examining the detail of the severance arrangements before deciding what, if any, further audit action to take."
Referring to the details published by Mr Williams, Pembrokeshire council said: "All members should be aware of their responsibilities under the Council's Code of Conduct."


Public Health England has strengthened its advice on Zika, saying pregnant women should postpone non-essential travel to areas with disease outbreaks.

Previously it had encouraged expectant mothers to reconsider such travel because of the potential harm the virus might pose to babies in the womb.
If travel is unavoidable, they should take precautions to avoid bites from mosquitoes that spread the disease.
In recent months, Zika has been spreading across much of the Americas.
The infection has been linked to cases of microcephaly - babies born with underdeveloped brains.
In February, the World Health Organization declared the situation a global public health emergency requiring a united response.
Prof Paul Cosford from Public Health England said: "As our knowledge of the Zika virus, and the evidence linking microcephaly to Zika infection, becomes clearer a more precautionary approach is warranted. This advice will be kept under review and updated as more information becomes available.
"We expect to see small numbers of Zika virus infections in travellers returning to the UK, but the risk to the wider population is negligible as the mosquito vector is not found in the UK."
The symptoms of Zika infection may include:
A spokesman for ABTA, the travel association, said pregnant women due to travel to any of the destinations affected should seek medical advice from their GP.
"Where it is necessary to change or cancel their holiday arrangements in light of the NaTHNaC advice, they should request that their GP provides them with a medical certificate in order to assist them with any possible insurance claim.
"Travel companies will try and be as flexible as possible with pregnant customers who had already booked before the advice changed, and many are offering customers the option to amend their holiday to an alternative destination free of charge."
What you need to know Key questions answered about the virus and its spread
Key unanswered questions The many things we do not know about Zika
The mosquito behind spread of virus What we know about the insect
Abortion dilemma Laws and practices in Catholic Latin America


In the last week, we have seen the best and worst of computer technology.

In China, Google's DeepMind artificial intelligence program took on and beat the world champion of the complex game of Go, reducing him to tears. Nineteen-year-old Ke Jie described the AI computer as "perfect, flawless, without any emotions".
But in airports in the UK and elsewhere last weekend tears were also being shed over computers.
In this case, though, the primary emotions were frustration and rage over the chaos caused when British Airways' IT system collapsed, leaving thousands of passengers going nowhere and their baggage stuck they knew not where.
What is striking about both these cases is how difficult human beings found it to explain exactly what was happening inside the brains of the computers.
DeepMind's AlphaGo is largely self-taught - it was shown the basic rules of Go and then it spent time looking at millions of games and playing against itself, coming up with moves that astounded professional players and its creators.
BA's computers were not so smart. The company says its problems began when there was a power surge at a data centre at Heathrow Airport in London.
That shouldn't have been more than a temporary hitch - in fact one expert told me it should not have even set the lights blinking at the data centre - but it seems to have triggered a chain reaction which took out the entire system.
That meant the sea of complex data about passengers, baggage and aircraft movements was effectively frozen - and it took 48 hours to unfreeze it and get the airline working again.
Any major organisation is likely to have both a backup system to switch to when things go wrong and a disaster recovery plan, which should be rehearsed on a regular basis. But in British Airways' case neither appears to have worked as it should.
The trade unions blame cost-cutting and the fact that BA outsourced much of its IT operation to India last year.
The bosses deny that and say they are now clear what went wrong - but so far, have been unable to give an explanation that seems satisfactory to people with expertise in how data centres and major IT operations work.
But what is clear is that ever more areas of our lives are dependent on vast computer systems, often now hosted in data centres owned by companies like Amazon and Microsoft.
These systems have become essential to industries from banking to travel to healthcare and they are helping them become more efficient - sometimes by getting much of the work done in countries like India where costs are lower.
They are also making life better in all sorts of ways - just think of how time-consuming it used to be to book a flight or apply for a place at university and how much paper was involved.
But now we are beginning to find out just how helpless we feel when, for whatever reason, the computers fail.
In Britain, doctors whose computers froze during the recent ransomware attack had to turn patients away. In Ukraine, there were power cuts when hackers attacked the electricity system, and five years ago, millions of Royal Bank of Scotland customers were unable to get at their money for days after problems with a software upgrade.
Already some people have had enough. This week a letter to the Guardian newspaper warned that the modern world was "dangerously exposed by this reliance on the internet and new technology".
The correspondent, quite possibly a retired government employee, continued "there are just enough old-time civil servants left alive to turn back the clock and take away our dangerous dependence on modern technology."
Somehow, though, I don't see this happening. Airlines are not going to scrap the computers and tick passengers off on a paper list before they climb aboard, bank clerks will not be entering transactions in giant ledgers in copperplate writing.
In fact, computers will take over more and more functions once restricted to humans, most of them far more useful than a game of Go. And that means that at home, at work and at play we will have to get used to seeing our lives disrupted when those clever machines suffer the occasional nervous breakdown.


Gary Player was one of a record nine players to shoot a hole-in-one during the Par 3 Contest - the annual pre-Masters competition at Augusta.

The 80-year-old nine-time major winner holed out on the seventh to claim the 31st ace of his illustrious career.
English debutant Andy Sullivan and Americans Rickie Fowler, Zach Johnson and Webb Simpson were among the others to shoot a hole-in-one.
Jimmy Walker, who won with a record eight-under 19, also carded an ace.
Sweden's David Lingmerth, Smylie Kaufman and fellow American Justin Thomas did likewise, the latter on the same hole as playing partner Fowler.
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Player, who now holds the record for holes-in-one in the event with four, was grouped with Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson for Wednesday's event.
The Par 3 contest is played over holes ranging from 70 to 140 yards in the north-east corner of the Augusta National Grounds.
It is a nine-hole event and no winner in its 55-year history has won the Masters the same year.
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Spain's Alejandro Valverde won a thrilling fifth stage ahead of rivals Chris Froome and Alberto Contador to take the lead at the Volta a Catalunya.

Movistar's Valverde left his rivals behind with a superb burst on the steep climb to the finish in Tortosa.
Team Sky's Froome, the Tour de France champion, beat Contador to the line for second place and trails Valverde by 21 seconds with two stages remaining.
Welshman Geraint Thomas of Team Sky came in 14th and lies seventh overall.
American Tejay van Garderen, the leader going into Friday's stage, dropped to sixth place overall.
Valverde broke clear in the final two kilometres of the 182km mountain stage from Valls to Lo Port to finish 13 seconds ahead of Froome and Spaniard Contador.
The 2009 winner also won stage three on Wednesday, after he and his Movistar team-mates were each penalised one minute penalty for illegal pushing during Tuesday's team time trial.
Stage Five result:
1. Alejandro Valverde (Spa/Movistar) 4hrs 14mins 52secs
2. Chris Froome (GB/Team Sky) +13secs
3. Alberto Contador (Spa/Trek) Same time
4. Marc Soler (Spa/Movistar) +25secs
5. Adam Yates (GB/Orica) +32secs
6. Daniel Martin (Ire/Quick-Step) +46secs
7. David Gaudu (Fra/FDJ) +58secs
8. Hugh Carthy (GB Cannondale) +1min 04secs
9. Jakob Fuglsang (Den/Astana) +1min 11secs
10. Steven Kruijswijk (Ned/LottoNL) Same time
General classification:
1. Alejandro Valverde (Spa/Movistar) 17hrs 44mins 27secs
2. Chris Froome (GB/Team Sky) +21sec
3. Alberto Contador (Spa/Trek) +47secs
4. Marc Soler (Spa/Movistar) +1min
5. Adam Yates (GB/Orica) +1 min 15secs
6. Tejay van Garderen (US/BMC Racing) +1min 18secs
7. Geraint Thomas (GB/Team Sky) +1min 34secs
8. Samuel Sanchez (Spa/BMC Racing) +1min 59secs
9. Daniel Martin (Ire/Quick-Step) +2mins 13secs
10. Steven Kruijswijk (Ned/LottoNL) +2mins 40secs


As the world mourns the passing of the "Greatest", in the pubs around Dublin the locals will be retelling old yarns of the week more than 40 years ago, when Ireland was in thrall to the magic of Muhammad Ali.

Ali was arguably the greatest fighter who ever lived.
He was blessed with an irresistible mix of speed, skill, charisma, intelligence and courage.
But he was always far more than simply a fighter - he transcended sport.
The "Rumble in the Jungle", the "Thrilla in Manila" - Muhammad Ali was involved in some of the most iconic fights in boxing history, overcoming boxing greats including George Foreman and Joe Frazier.
While it is fair to say that Ali v Al 'Blue' Lewis at Croke Park, Dublin, may not roll off the tongue like those historic bouts, the legend of Ali's visit to Ireland in 1972 grows with each passing year.
After losing to Joe Frazier in March 1971, Ali went on something of a world tour, fighting 13 times in six countries before defeating Frazier in a rematch in January 1974.
The promotion was the brainchild of a character from Kerry named Butty Sugrue, as Cork-born author Dave Hannigan explained.
"Butty Sugrue was known throughout Ireland as a circus strongman, whose alleged claim to fame was pulling double-decker buses by a rope in his teeth, he was also a publican in London,"  he said.
"It was his idea to bring Ali to Croke Park and it was so outlandish a notion that the Dublin journalists laughed at him when he first announced his intention," said Hannigan, who wrote the book The Big Fight, which chronicles Ali's visit to Ireland.
Irish roots
But despite the scepticism, the fight was arranged for 19 July 1972. As soon as he got off the plane at Dublin Airport, Ali, ever the showman, immediately captured the heart of a nation by announcing that he had Irish roots.
Between 1850 and 1880, 100,000 people left Ireland for north America. One such emigrant was Abe Grady who left his native Ennis in County Clare sometime in the 1860s. In Kentucky, he met and married an emancipated slave. A century later Abe Grady's great grandson Muhammad Ali touched down in Dublin.
In the week leading up to the fight, as was typical of the man, Ali met people from all walks of life in Dublin.
He spent time with celebrities, including actor Peter O'Toole and playfully sparred with director John Huston, whose boxing movie, Fat City, was screened with both Ali and Lewis in attendance.
He also met politicians, including Taoiseach Jack Lynch in Leinster House, and political activist Bernadette Devlin.
The Cork Examiner newspaper commented on how popular Ali had proven with politicians in Ireland.
"Not since the late President John F Kennedy was in Dublin in 1963 has a visitor from abroad been given as big a welcome at Leinster House as that accorded to Muhammad Ali," the newspaper said.
As the tales continued to grow of Ali's week in Ireland, it can be difficult to separate fact from fiction.
There are a number of stories about him spending time with everyday people, stopping in for tea with an elderly lady and having a lengthy chat with a road sweeper outside Croke Park.
A meeting was also arranged between Ali and one of Ireland's leading sportsmen, hurler Eddie Keher, who gave him a tutorial in hurling.
Keher later reflected on the difference in Ali's private and public persona.
"He was a hero of mine," Keher said, "but I was surprised how quiet he was until we met with the press."
Ali recorded an advertisement for the Irish tourist board extolling the virtues of the Emerald Isle, but remarking on "how rough" hurling and Gaelic football were, and so he thought he would stick to boxing!
Ali had an innate ability to empathise with people wherever he found himself.
This empathy was in evidence during a memorable interview he gave that week to RTE's Cathal O'Shannon, comparing the Troubles in Northern Ireland with the US civil-rights struggle.
The interview caused a stir in America as Dave Hannigan explained: "What was interesting to me is that some of the American hacks at the time tried to paint a picture that Ali's presence in Dublin brought peace to the north for a week!
"The truth is it was one of the bloodiest weeks ever in Northern Ireland. But, in newspaper interviews and in the recollections of those around him, Ali was very aware of the situation in Northern Ireland and what was going on there."
For Hannigan, the social impact of the visit was encapsulated in one encounter in Dublin's O'Connell Street.
"He was walking down O'Connell Street in Dublin with groups of kids following him chanting 'Ali! Ali! Ali!'
"At a time when Dublin was one of the whitest cities in Europe, this icon comes along and is welcomed so warmly that some in Ali's entourage say that the reception he received compared only to two other places - Atlanta and Harlem!"
Muhammad Ali was always about so much more than boxing, and that week in Dublin was another case in point, as the fight itself was not a classic.
Ali had a cold and was wary of Lewis, who was a dangerous fighter (and a man who had previously served time in prison for manslaughter). Ali who, prior to the bout had predicted that his opponent's chances of victory lay somewhere between "slim and none", eventually won with a TKO in round 11.
Legacy
In 2009, Ali returned to Ireland to visit Ennis in County Clare, the home town of his ancestor Abe Grady, where he was granted the freedom of the town.
The huge crowds who came out to meet him were testament to his enduring appeal.
But the magic of Muhammad Ali left an indelible impact on Ireland after his 1972 visit as the late Budd Schulberg, a legendary boxing writer, said.
"Ali was like the Pied Piper. It was really kind of magical. He had enormous influence over there. He was a fellow Irishman."


A Kenyan inquest into the death of a British Lord's son three years ago has heard from his mother who said he died "violently" at the hands of police.

Alexander Monson, 28, died while he was in police custody in Diani, Mombasa.
Kenyan Police have denied any involvement and said he died of a drugs overdose while Mr Monson's family argue he died from a head injury.
Giving evidence in Mombasa, Hilary Monson said her son's death came as a "great shock".
Alexander Monson was the son of Nicholas, the 12th Baron Monson and had moved to Kenya to live with his mother in 2008.
An inquest into his death was opened and adjourned in February to give the family more time to study police statements.
Mrs Monson told the hearing she received a call on 19 May, 2012, to say her son had been arrested after a night out with friends on suspicion of smoking bhang, a form of cannabis.
She was later told her son had been found on the floor of the police station convulsing.
Mrs Monson said she visited her son in hospital where he was chained to a bed.
"He was having very great difficulty breathing," she said.
"I sat with him and in about an hour he was dead."
Hilary told the Mombasa Law Courts that hospital workers found multiple injuries on his head and scrotum.
She said: "My son was a gentleman. He was polite and would never have been aggressive.
"He was a loving person and it was a great shock to discover that he had died violently, which is a very difficult thing for a mother to cope with."
Mrs Monson admitted Alexander had drug problems in England but that he had started getting his life together.
An independent pathologist hired by the family found Mr Monson died from a fatal blow to the back of his head.
Toxicology reports also showed he had no drugs in his system at the time of his death.
Lord Nicholas Monson has previously said he believes senior police figures are responsible for his son's death, but claims they are being protected by political allies.
The inquest continues.


Taiwo Awoniyi secured a brace as Nigeria beat Hungary 2-0 to progress to the last 16 of the Under-20 World Cup in New Zealand.

The victory for Nigeria ensured they finished second in Group E, and sets up a clash with Germany in the next round.
The Hungarians also qualify as one of the best third-placed teams and will face Serbia in the knockout stages.
Awoniyi scored in each half of their last Group E fixture.
His first goal came in the 33rd minute, volleying in from a pinpoint cross by Saviour Godwin.
He added the second in the 54th minute when Attila Osvath and Akos Cecskes, who had both gone up for the same header, collided near half-way.
That left the ball to Awoniyi who beat a defender and rounded goalkeeper Gyorgy Szekely before tucking the ball into the net.
Brazil finished above Nigeria as Group E leaders and will face Uruguay in their last-16 match on Thursday.


Not many debutant playwrights can sell out a theatre.

But then again, not many debutant playwrights used to be the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Set in 1581, Dr Rowan Williams' first play, Shakeshafte, opens this week at Swansea's Dylan Thomas Theatre.
The work, which deals with the so-called lost years of William Shakespeare's life, imagines he was a Catholic fleeing Elizabeth I's Protestant spies.
It depicts a meeting between Shakespeare - posing as a schoolmaster under the pseudonym Will Shakeshafte - and martyred Jesuit priest St Edmund Campion.
Swansea-born Dr Williams was Archbishop of Canterbury between 2002 and 2012, and since stepping down has spent four years as master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, studying the life of the Bard.
Although it was written in 2014, this week will be the first time the play has been performed in public, to coincide with the 400th anniversary celebrations of Shakespeare's death.
Speaking on its completion, Dr Williams said: "Shakespeare knows exactly where he does, and doesn't, want to go, in matters of church and state.
"He deliberately puts some of his plays right outside the Christian, Tudor/Jacobean framework.
"King Lear takes place in a pre-Christian Britain. Some people argue that Cymbeline is about a rupture with Rome, leading to a reconciliation.
"I think Shakespeare did have a recusant Catholic background.  My own hunch though is that he didn't go to church much."
Although a fictional account, Shakeshafte draws on known historical events.
While there is relatively abundant information on Shakespeare's early life and family background, during his 20s in the 1580s, virtually no documentary evidence can be found of his existence.
In 1985 literary academic E. A. J. Honigmann unearthed a will, which he claimed showed that in 1581 a 'Will Shakeshafte' was acting as a schoolmaster for a Catholic family in Houghton Tower, Lancashire.
Mr Shakeshafte had been recommended for the post by John Cottam, who is reputed to have been Shakespeare's last schoolmaster in Stratford.
Edmund Campion is also known to have visited Houghton Tower around the same time as part of the Jesuits' campaign to re-catholicise England, although the meeting between the two is purely Dr Williams' conjecture.
He added: "We know they both stayed at the same house in Lancashire. I found this a wonderful idea to play with: what might a Jesuit martyr and Shakespeare have said to each other at a time when Queen Elizabeth I was spearheading a brutal repression of the Catholic faith?"
Shakeshafte is being performed by the Swansea Little Theatre - Swansea's oldest company - for which Dr Williams himself was an actor in the late 1960s.
Swansea Little Theatre chairman, Dreena Morgan Harvey explained: "I read an article a couple of years ago about Rowan's research into Shakespeare, and we thought at the time, what better way to mark the 400th anniversary than to bring the play to life back home in Swansea.
"We wrote to Rowan, and he was delighted that we'd like to put it on.
"I hope we've done it justice.  I think it will look spectacular, with specially-commissioned Elizabethan music and dancing, and wonderful costumes and scenery."


Antrim hurling manager PJ O'Mullan has stepped down from his position after less than five months in charge.

O'Mullan was appointed successor to Kevin Ryan in early November.
Ryan quit after a disastrous 2015 when the Saffrons were relegated to Division Two of the Hurling League and also demoted to the Christy Ring Cup.
However, O'Mullan's side failed to challenge for promotion in the current League with dismal defeats by Westmeath and Carlow ending their hopes.
O'Mullan guided his native Loughgiel to the All-Ireland Club title in 2012 and was the obvious candidate within the county to succeed Waterford man Ryan.
The new manager appointed Cork hurling stalwart Justin McCarthy as his assistant and the duo spoke of their high hopes of turning Antrim's hurling fortunes around.
However, the Saffrons ended their Division Two A campaign with an ignominious defeat in London two weeks ago and the county board announced on Friday that O'Mullan had stepped down for "personal reasons".
"At a meeting earlier today in the offices of Antrim GAA the current senior hurling manager, PJ O'Mullan, has decided to step down from his post due to personal circumstances," read the county board statement.
"PJ would like to thank the back room team and the county board for their support and assistance during his time in charge.
"The county board would like to thank PJ and his back room team for their efforts and wish PJ the best of luck for the future."
The statement added that the board would "consider its options regarding the management of the team for the upcoming Christy Ring campaign".


A national pigeon racing association has launched an investigation after allegations a former champion cheated to win a race from France.

Eamon Kelly, 52, from Didcot, was described as "distraught" by his partner.
National newspapers have reported he admitted cheating in this year's race from Tarbes in France to his home town.
He allegedly registered 14 birds for the race, then kept them in his loft while sending another set to France.
The National Flying Club said it has now launched an investigation.
Ron Cook, a former member of the club and friend of Eamon Kelly, said: "There will be high level meetings over the next few days - where all the evidence will be examined.
"Until such time before the matter goes before the national flying club committee there is no more comment."
Mr Kelly is reported to be the reigning champion of the "Tarbes National" race from France, after winning last year.


A "grumpy" cockerel is facing eviction from a tourist attraction in order to prevent visitors from being attacked.

Staff at Claythorpe Watermill, near Alford, Lincolnshire, said Stan the cockerel had a reputation for chasing toddlers and pecking ankles.
They said with the busy summer season approaching it might be better if Stan found somewhere else to live.
Owner Rebecca Agate said she wanted people to enjoy a trouble-free visit to the watermill.
She said: "We get a lot of small children visiting the park and if he is chasing you, or pecking, he can be a bit intimidating.
"So, rather than people going away remembering their visit for the wrong reasons, we thought someone might be able to offer him a nice home."
She said Stan, who is thought to be at least part Dutch bantam, has "lots of personality and likes being around people".
However, she added: "He has a bit of a grumpy side as well."
There have been numerous other cases of birds attacking either people, animals, or other objects.
Last year in Cambridgeshire, a "terrorist" pheasant attacked vehicles and chased cats and dogs at a farm in Hail Weston.
One delivery driver was trapped for 20 minutes after the bird blocked his way, flew at the bonnet then chased his van.
Another pheasant, named Phil, started attacking members of a Shropshire family, forcing one of them to carry a badminton racket for self-defence.
Claythorpe Watermill and Wildfowl Gardens is home to numerous animals, including waterfowl, wallabies, chipmunks and peacocks, as well as a family of otters.


Mental health patients are being placed into overstretched A&E departments as police crackdown on the number locked up in their cells, it has been claimed.

Devon and Cornwall Police has announced a 73% drop in mental health patients detained in cells since January 2015.
Dr Anne Hicks, who runs the A&E department at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, said they had seen a sharp rise in evening and weekend cases.
She warned the police policy was causing "tension" between the services.
In January 2015, Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer wrote in confidence to NHS bosses and told them police would take mentally ill people to hospital and other places of safety, rather than keep them in custody.
It said that police would be encouraged to call an ambulance if they detained a mentally ill adult, and should take a child to an A&E Department.
Dr Hicks, mental health lead for the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said "agitated mental health patients" were brought into the hospital by officers, which "created real tension between us and the police".
She said the police policy had coincided with an overall rise in mental health admissions after normal working hours finished at 17:00 BST, which she estimated to be around 20%.
"We don't feel we can deliver that safe nurturing space those patients need," she added.
Suzy Franklin, branch secretary of Unison at the hospital, said the rise added pressure to A&E, which "has a knock-on effect for waiting times".
In his letter Chief Constable Sawyer said health services should be providing care for mentally ill people.
It said: "Nearly every week my force is experiencing detentions where mentally ill people are in our custody centres for a number of unacceptable hours and even days. This cannot be allowed to continue."
The letter said the force would take mentally ill people to hospital and other places of safety rather than keep them in custody.
Ordinarily those people who police believe to be a threat to themselves or others due to mental illness would be sent to a secure part of a mental hospital.
Since the letter, there have been 192 detentions under the Mental Health Act - a drop of 73% compared to the previous 12 months.
Mr Sawyer said mental health calls put "an awful lot of time and pressure" on officers as they know "they're not the best person to deal with them".
He said the "intention was not to pass" them on to hospitals, but if they are not at risk to themselves or others, then "A&E is the next best place to consider before a police cell".
The government has pledged Â£247m to improve mental health services in A&E.


League One Bristol Rovers have signed unattached goalkeepers Adam Smith and Sam Slocombe.

Smith, 24, made 86 league starts for Northampton before leaving at the end of last season.
Ex-Scunthorpe trainee Slocombe, 29, had a spell at Oxford and helped Blackpool to promotion to League One last term.
Rovers offered previous stopper Steve Mildenhall, 38, a goalkeeping coach role earlier this summer, while fellow keeper Will Puddy was released.
Manager Darrell Clarke told the club website: "I am delighted to be signing two excellent goalkeepers who will provide us with competition for the number one spot."
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


An under-fire health trust, criticised after a teenager drowned in a bath, has been told to significantly improve protection of mental health patients.

Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust was issued the warning notice by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an inspection in January.
An inquest found neglect contributed to the death of Connor Sparrowhawk, 18, at Slade House in Oxford in 2013.
The trust said it was "completely focused" on tackling the concerns.
Last year an independent report blamed a "failure of leadership" for failing to investigate the unexplained deaths of hundreds of patients.
It was ordered after Mr Sparrowhawk was found unresponsive n the bath following an epileptic seizure at the Oxford learning disability unit, which has since closed.
The CQC found the trust's investigation of incidents, including deaths, was not robust enough.
It said not enough was done to learn from incidents to prevent future risks to patients, and concerns raised by patients, their carers and staff were not effectively responded to.
Dr Paul Lelliott, CQC deputy chief inspector of hospitals, said the safety of patients with mental ill health and or learning disabilities required "significant improvement".
"We found longstanding risks to patients, arising from the physical environment, that had not been dealt with effectively.
"The Trust's internal governance arrangements to learn from serious incidents or investigations were not good enough, meaning that opportunities to minimise further risks to patients were lost," he added.
Following the report's publication, trust chief executive Katrina Percy said she had been "clear and open" about the work needed to address concerns raised.
"Good progress has been made, however we accept that the CQC feels that in some areas we have not acted swiftly enough," she said.
"My main priority is, and always has been, the safety of our patients. We take the CQC's concerns extremely seriously and have taken a number of further actions."
Earlier this year the trust said there would be no resignations.
Mr Sparrowhawk's mother, Sara Ryan, responded to the report on Twitter by repeating her call for resignations from the trust's senior leadership.
She posted: "Completely baffled the board are still in place."
"Nothing else is needed. Just action. Why the feet dragging? Astonishing," she wrote in another.
Dan Scorer of learning disability charity Mencap, said the CQC warning notice showed little had changed since the independent report was published.
"Families are being left questioning whether the death of their loved one should have been investigated and whether the death might have been avoided," he said.
"The lack of urgency to tackle this national scandal is unacceptable," he added.
The trust is one of the country's largest mental health trusts, covering Hampshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire and providing services to about 45,000 people.


Not unlike Stormont, there is little sign of agreement in Wednesday's papers as the four biggest dailies lead with very different stories.

The Belfast Telegraph speculates that one of Northern Ireland's biggest firms could shift most of its operations to Great Britain, because of Brexit.
Meat processer, Dunbia, employs more than 1,000 people in its NI plants.
The paper understands management is concerned about the possibility of delays at local ports, post-Brexit.
On its inside pages, the paper boasts another exclusive over a Civil Service investigation into allegations of bribery at MoT centres.
It quotes an anonymous County Antrim businessman who claims "public safety is at risk" and alleges that even vehicles with faulty brakes can receive an MoT "pass for cash".
Police investigating the claims arrested a 64-year-old man in Ballymena last month, who was later released on bail pending further inquiries.
A photograph of an empty Great Hall takes up much of the front page of the Irish News - is a dormant Stormont a sign of things to come?
A pause in the talks for the Easter weekend has avoided the embarrassment of a Good Friday Disagreement, 19 years after the original peace accord.
The paper notes that Sinn FÃ©in leader Gerry Adams is "quite relaxed" about extending the talks and appeared to suggest power-sharing could be restored without agreement on how to deal with Troubles legacy cases.
However, such a situation would be considered "unforgivable," by the campaign group Relatives for Justice.
Troubles victims are not the only people whose lives are on hold while the folks on the hill take their sweet time about sorting out their differences.
Child abuse survivors were told they were in line for state compensation, following the findings of the Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) inquiry in January.
The Irish News and other papers carry a statement from campaigner Margaret McGuckin, who said she fears many victims could face death of financial ruin before the payments are sorted out.
"Many have been left in debt, buying things on credit on the understanding they were to be compensated," she said, adding her campaign group was "ashamed of our government for not getting itself together".
The News Letter leads with reaction to Tuesday's BBC Panoroma documentary on Stakeknife - the Belfast man alleged to have been the Army's top spy inside the IRA.
The programme said that in order to protect one of their most important intelligence assets, the security forces failed to protect other police informers who were murdered by the IRA.
However, a former senior police officer defended the actions of the intelligence services and said infiltrating the IRA had saved "thousands of lives" during the Troubles.
Ex-RUC Special Branch office Alan McQuillan told the paper it was important to remember the pressure staff were under when life-or-death decisions were being made.
A bitter row between former Ulster Rugby player Simon Danielli and his estranged wife, Olivia, makes the front page of most of the papers in some shape or form.
"What a ruckus," the Daily Mirror's headline exclaims, as it reports on how Mrs Danielli was fined Â£500 for damaging a Jaguar car at the player's home in Holywood, County Down, in a row over "babysitting".
The 29-year-old model's weapon of choice was an umbrella, which she used to smash a wing mirror of the vehicle in a case the judge described as "nonsense on stilts".
Romance is in the air in another part of County Down but not everyone is feeling the love, according to the Irish News.
The paper carries a photograph of a heart-shaped sign that has appeared on the slopes of Slieve Comedagh in the Mourne Mountains.
Shot through with Cupid's arrow, it is engraved with the words: "Jay + Lisa, she said yes here on 4.3.17."
Lisa may have said yes but the powers that be have firmly said no to the "proliferation" of signs and memorials on the Mournes.
The paper reports that such displays of affection are causing dismay among regular visitors who come to the beauty spot to "get away from it all".
The chief executive of the Mourne Heritage Trust told the Irish News that the sign has since been removed.
"We will put it in safekeeping here and then put out an appeal via social media for the owners to retrieve it," Martin Carey added.
So who are Jay and Lisa?  Get in touch - we wanna know!


The UK is in a "unique position" to negotiate a tariff-free trade deal with the EU after leaving, a senior figure in the Vote Leave campaign has said.

The UK had a trade deficit with many of Europe's key economies and there was no incentive for them to "retaliate" via trade barriers, Matthew Elliot said.
Angela Merkel would not want UK markets "cut off" to German firms, he told MPs.
But Tory MP Mark Garnier said Leave backers were "deliberately obsfucating" free trade and tariff-free trade.
He said countries such as Norway and Iceland, which are outside the EU, have theoretically got free access to European markets, but still have to pay substantial trade penalties on certain exports.
Leave campaigners argue the UK could have the best of both worlds after leaving the EU's single market of 500 million customers, by no longer having to abide by EU law or freedom of movement rules but still being able to have unfettered access to European markets.
Mr Elliott, who is chief executive of the campaign group backing Brexit, told the Treasury Select Committee - which is looking into the financial arguments surrounding EU membership - that the UK was the "biggest customer" for many European countries and therefore in a "better position" to negotiate an advantageous deal than countries such as Norway and Iceland.
"I think we are in an uniquely good position to get an extremely good trade deal," he said. "I think because we are moving from a situation where we are part of the single market already, I think we will continue to have full levels of access to the single market outside the EU."
He added: "The UK, as the second largest economy in the EU and the biggest export market for the rest of the EU, we will have tariff-free access to the rest of the EU when we vote to leave. I believe that will happen."
Mr Elliott said the realities of trade were being somewhat ignored as the campaign intensified and claimed that Lord Rose, one of his opponents in the Remain camp, had acknowledged the likelihood of reprisals from EU members was remote.
"We are their biggest customer. To quote that Stuart Rose said, you put your arm round your biggest customer and make sure you keep them close to you. I believe they would do that...I am actually very confident that we will get that tariff-free access."
But Mr Garnier said he knew no other country which had the "golden model" of EU relations that Vote Leave aspired to and if it left the EU, the UK would probably be subject to WTO regulations.
"I don't see how anybody would possibly give us that trade deal," he said. "Of course we can trade with anyone we like. Free trade arrangements does not necessarily mean it is tariff-free in all goods.
How trade and the UK's economy are affected by membership of the EU.
"You talk about a European free trade zone as if it a non-tariff zone, it is not a non-tariff zone."This whole debate about free trade, trading freely, free trade arrangements and access to the single market, is to my mind deliberately obfuscating the whole debate.
Earlier during Monday's hearing, Mr Elliott was chastised by MPs for what they said was his reluctance to appear before them.
Conservative MP Andrew Tyrie, who chairs the committee, said Mr Elliott had "sailed close to the wind" by turning down three opportunities to give evidence, forcing the committee to summon him to do so by parliamentary order.
Mr Tyrie said Mr Elliott had "mucked around" the committee by declining to reschedule a trip to Switzerland and opting not to attend alongside rival campaign group Leave.EU.
Mr Elliott said he had had to turn down the first invitation for personal reasons and had suggested other senior members of Vote Leave, such as former chancellor Lord Lawson, who might attend in his place. He said he "regretted" how long it had taken to arrange.
But Mr Tyrie said it was a "matter for Parliament, not for you" who MPs called to give evidence while Mr Garnier said the former chief executive of the Taxpayers Alliance had shown "extraordinary contempt" for Parliament.