the uk death toll from the coronavirus pandemic is now more than 30,000. as the number of deaths in hospital is falling, a plea from care homes as theirfigures in england and wales continue to rise. we need more help from the government on testing, on ppe and financial support, and i think we need more help so we can reduce the deaths in care homes going forward. we need to be at the centre, not on the periphery. we ll be looking at those coronavirus mortality figures in more detail. also this lunchtime. criticism of the uk s initial coronavirus testing procedure, from its own chief scientific adviser. i think if we had managed to ramp testing capacity quicker, it would have been beneficial, and, you know, for all sorts of reasons that didn t happen. the possible key to ending lockdown the trial of a new nhs app tracing the spread of coronavirus which, if successful, could go nationwide in weeks. scotland s first minister sets out plans for exiting lockdown, introducing social bubbles , allowing people to meet with a small number of other people outside their household. aer lingus launches an urgent review after pictures emerge of a packed flight from london to dublin with no apparent social distancing. and as production stops on some of our favourite television programmes under lockdown, what are we going to be watching now? and in sport, the boss of the players‘ union suggests games could be made shorter to improve player safety when football returns. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. more than 30,000 people have died with coronavirus in the uk since the epidemic began. new data shows that nearly a quarter of all registered coronavirus deaths were in care homes. there s been criticism of the uk s intital testing strategy chief scientific adviser sir patrick vallance said it would have been better if capacity had been increased more quickly, and the deputy chief medical officer for england, jenny harries, told mps things would have been done differently if more tests had been available in the early stages of the outbreak. 0ur health correspondent lauren moss reports. the true cost of coronavirus is becoming clearer every week. more than 30,000 people are now thought to have died with covid 19 in the uk to. up to the 24th of those deaths we re to. up to the 24th of those deaths were in care homes alone. although it s likely less than the week before, the total number is still more than double what we would expect this time of year. these are largely deaths that were taking place until around the 20th, 21st of april. that is about four or five weeks after the lockdown was first advised and then instructed, so if we think about the timeline of the disease, it often about three or four weeks from becoming infected to, sadly, death. but the real number of those who have lost their lives in the community is expected to rise further. they are notjust figures of course, they are someone put a great mother, father, sister, brother, a loved person and we must never lose sight of that but we need more help from the government on testing, on ppe and financial support and i think we need more hope so we can reduce the debt in ca re hope so we can reduce the debt in care homes more help. we need to be on the centre and not the periphery. today government advisers have been discussing the response to the pandemic and said wider testing earlier may have been useful. the pandemic and said wider testing earlier may have been usefulm the pandemic and said wider testing earlier may have been useful. if we had managed to ramp testing capacity quicker it would have been beneficial, and, you know, for all sorts of reasons that did not happen. and i think it is clear you need lots of testing for this but to echo whatjenny need lots of testing for this but to echo what jenny harries has said, need lots of testing for this but to echo whatjenny harries has said, it is completely wrong to think of testing as the answer, it s just a pa rt of testing as the answer, it s just a part of the system you need to get right. new documents from the scientific advisory group for emergencies, known as sage, detailed possible solutions for gradually easing lockdown restrictions including a traffic light system for high, medium and low risk activities, and a warning that any future antibody tests, which would detect if someone has had the virus, could be misused. the health secretary has announced that all nhs staff with or without symptoms will now be tested for covid i9 and he said getting personal protective equipment to all health and social ca res equipment to all health and social cares staff is still a priority. of course this is incredibly important to make sure that we protect those who live in social care, who received social care in their own homes, and i m glad that in the numbers released this morning, the data released by the office for national statistics and the number of deaths in care homes it slightly lower but it is still far too high and there is a huge amount of work still to do. as the death toll climbs, there are calls for small scale funeral services to resume in churches to honour the wishes of the deceased and their loved ones. each day of this pandemic brings new pain, but also some new hope for how to get through it. lauren moss, bbc news. 0ur head of statistics robert cuffe is here. better news in terms of hospital but bad news on care homes. yes, they are accounting for about 7000, just under the 30,000 covid registered deaths and that proportion is going up deaths and that proportion is going up and if we look at the data for the last couple of weeks, we can see the last couple of weeks, we can see the figures in hospitals had been declining over the last few weeks, coming down. but in care homes, there were about 2000 deaths may be a week ago and up to almost 3000 this week so we are seeing the pattern is one where care home deaths are catching up with hospital deaths are catching up with hospital deaths in england and wales. but in scotla nd deaths in england and wales. but in scotland and northern ireland, they have overtaken hospitals as the place where most coronavirus deaths are happening and we can see that clearly here. the hospital line at the top is coming down but the lute home is coming up the blue care home is coming up the blue care home line. rank you very much, robert. scotland s first minister, nicola sturgeon, says that it is highly unlikely the scottish government will relax lockdown restrictions this week but she has outlined more detail on what measures they will take when it is safe to do so. 0ur scotland correspondent lorna gordon is in glasgow. what has she been saying?‘ what has she been saying? a lot of interesting stuff coming out in a briefing, we found out that currently around 26,000 people are estimated to be infected with covid i9 in the scotland and that this number is too high at present to consider the virus under control. there was also, according to the new scottish government document, some evidence that the r number, that rate of infectious spread, it s slightly higher than elsewhere in the uk. first minister nicola sturgeon said social distancing must therefore continue for the foreseeable future but said the scottish government is looking at ways for how some of the lockdown measures could be eased at some future date. we are considering firstly if and how we could safely change our advice on spending time outdoors, to allow exercise outside to happen more than once a day, so long as we continue to stay apart from people outside our own households. second, we are also considering if a slight relaxation in the rules to allow meeting up with a small, defined group of people from other households in a sort of bubble might be possible, even if initially that was only possible out of doors and not indoors. this new document also had some interesting information about schools. it said that if there were to bea schools. it said that if there were to be a full reopening of nurseries and schools, the most likely scenario would see a resurgence in the virus such that hospital capacity in scotland would be overwhelmed in a less than two months. it did state of the options that are being examined for schools to open at some future point, possibly not this side of the summer, which include prioritising certain groups to go back to school first such as vulnerable groups, or if it were to be later this term, those transitioning from primary to secondary school. 0r modelling a new approach to schooling for the foreseeable future which would involve attending part time in blocks of a few days or even weeks ata time blocks of a few days or even weeks at a time to allow for the deep cleaning of schools in between the different groups. one final point of interest, it also states, this document, that there might also be potential for geographical variation in the easing of lockdown at some future point, be it across the uk or within scotland itself. lorna, thank you very much. a new nhs smartphone app is being made available on the isle of wight today in a key trial that will help shape the government s strategy for easing the lockdown. council and health care workers will be the first to try it, with the rest of the island able to download it from thursday. there are some concerns over privacy but if the trial is successful, it could be rolled out nationally within weeks. duncan kennedy reports. what are the indications in terms of take up of this? what are the indications in terms of take-up of this? we just expect to be leader of the isle of wight cou nty be leader of the isle of wight county council about 20 minutes ago and he thought there might be a take up of about 80% so welcome is this app on the island. 0thers take up of about 80% so welcome is this app on the island. others are more sceptical, with concerns about privacy and a take up might not be quite as high as that. the government has told the council hear that as long as it is above 50%, this trial will be valid. there are about 140,000 people on the isle of wight, about 80,000 homes and they think if they get about 50% of those, with their smartphones to download the app and start using it, the experiment will have worked. we also spoke to two of those nhs workers this morning, a nurse and a ca re workers this morning, a nurse and a care worker. the nurse was a little worried about her data being shared without her permission but the care worker said he fully embraces the app idea because it would be for the better of the health of the isle of wight and also said that you always share your data on twitter and facebook and instagram anyway and he was reassured by the guarantee is being given by the council and others that his data would be protected. and a lot is hanging on the success of this trial? very much so. the success of this trial? very much so. this is the test point, the experiment point to see if they can roll out this whole tracking procedure. we have testing at the moment taking place which is being ramped up, we have all these social distancing measures, but what they wa nt to distancing measures, but what they want to do is chase this whole covid 19 down in the community. they can only do that if this app system workers and it means that if your app can send a signal to another app, app can send a signal to another app.y°u app can send a signal to another app, you develop symptoms, your app can tell the other person to self isolate. they think that if they can get it up and running on they can get it up and running on the isle of wight, it will make it accessible to the rest of the country and if it is successful here, it will be rolled out in mid may. here, it will be rolled out in mid-may. thank you very much. 0ur political correspondent nick eardley is in westminster. as we heard, this is an important trial but there are concerns on privacy? there are, absolutely. the health secretary told the bbc this morning that people would be doing their duty by downloading the app but it is not without controversy and it is not without potential challenges as well. the basic idea is that you can figure out exactly where the virus is and isolate and test people and get a much firmer grip on the coronavirus crisis. but as you said, the questions over privacy had been paramount over the last few days with some people concerned about the idea of a centralised system. again, the government insisted this morning that this was no more information than needed to be gathered and it would ultimately be kept on a phone rather than sent to, as matt hancock put it, some massive scheme in the sky. that said, although the government is now ramping up testing, there are still those who think it did not act quickly enough and labour have said consistently government was too slow on this issue and we have heard from a couple of the familiar faces in government press conferences appearing before mps this morning. patrick balance, the chief scientific adviser, told mps, it would have it better to ramp up testing quicker. sir patrick vallance. jenny harries said that had there been unlimited capacity, things may have been done differently. frankly, there are no easy a nswe rs differently. frankly, there are no easy answers in this crisis but those questions over exactly how testing has panned out will be ones for the future i m sure. thank you very much. irish airline aer lingus is to review how its service operates after pictures emerged of an almost full flight yesterday morning, with no apparent social distancing. the firm has said any changes will be brought in as a matter of urgency . emma vardy reports. it was these pictures, taken by a worker travelling from belfast to london, which has led to concern over airlines running full flights despite the lockdown. there was no change today as there was two months ago or three months ago when we were getting the flight on a regular basis. no social distancing whatsoever, none whatsoever. boarding the plane, the queues were down the steps and on the tarmac as they were before all this happened no change whatsoever. i would say there was about 95% of the seats taken. it did look like the majority of the people on the flight were workers, travelling back and forth. since restrictions were imposed, the number of daily flights has fallen by around 80%. some 60 flights a day now arrive at london heathrow compared to 600 before the pandemic. but there is no government policy capping numbers on board. aer lingus has said there was unexpectedly high demand on the day those pictures were taken and that it is now urgently reviewing its procedures on board. but others in the industry have warned that on a plane social distancing is basically impossible. we don t believe social distancing on aircraft actually works. there are two reasons for that. one of which is the obvious economic one. the second of which is around the air conditioning systems on aeroplanes, which rely in part on recycling air within the cabin. that simply defeats the purpose of social distancing. the bbc has also heard from one member of british airways cabin crew, who wished to remain anonymous, told us that ba are still operating some short haul flights at capacity. the government said the aviation industry is important to the uk economy but that getting it back on its feet must be done responsibly. these are some of the big real challenges that we have got to grapple with safely in order to be able to get. ..to get things restarted. but the safety of people has got to come first. there is predictions passenger numbers may not return to previous levels for several years and currently no standard approach for how to operate on board. emma vardy, bbc news, belfast. we reported regularly on the problems facing the car industry before the pandemic but, with the country in lockdown, the latest figures are particularly grim. according to the society of motor manufacturers, the sale of cars in the uk has dropped to its lowest level since 1946. let s get more with our business correspondent theo leggett. asi as i say, these figures are shocking? well, they are absolutely dreadful. car sales were down 97% this april compared to april last year. that said, this is something that the industry was ready for. they knew the figures would be dreadful, because in april all the car factories were shut and, more importantly, all showrooms, so people simply could not get out to look at cars, test drive or buy them. the big issue for the industry is what happens when the doctor and started to be eased, and the society for motor manufacturers and traders is very keen that the car industry is very keen that the car industry is one of the first businesses to open its doors. there might be some pent up demand, but people who might be on furlough, worried about their jobs and future, are less likely to buy big ticket items like cars and some people who have already bought because may be struggling to afford them. the factories will be reopening this month, a couple have done so, but it will be key when the showrooms we open to see whether there is any demand. thank you, theo leggett. it is just after quarter past one. our top story this lunchtime. the uk death toll from the coronavirus pandemic is now more than 30,000. and still to come, football, cricket and rugby chiefs tell mps of the financial havoc the pandemic is wreaking on their sports. and in sport, horse racing in france will resume on monday after police gave permission for it to resume in paris. the sport has been suspended since march 17th. everyone, but for children the coronavirus lockdown is tough enough for everyone, but for children who rely on school for much more than learning, experts claim it s becoming damaging. children with additional support needs are without their vital routines and according to charities some families are being pushed into crisis. john 0wen reports. for weeks now, schools that are usually a hive of activity have looked more like this. and for most schoolchildren, the new normal looks like this. with the exception of the children of critical workers and some vulnerable children, most young people are attempting to continue their education at home, with schools relying heavily on online resources. but now school leaders and charities have warned of a growing gulf between disadvantaged pupils and their more affluent counterparts, and of the long term consequences that could follow for those young people who are currently being denied an education. we face a huge potential wave of educational poverty. there are some families that have had to stop paying for their monthly broadband because they haven t got the money to be able to do it. i think there could possibly be a lost generation of young people. carlton bolling academy is a comprehensive school in one of the most deprived areas of bradford, with 1500 students, most of whom are not currently attending school. at the present time, we have got only about 35% engagement in the online learning. part of the problem is that some of our young people do not have and their families do not have access to the internet or to laptops. so it means that all our interactive learning online, they cannot access so they have got paper based learning. jane explained that whilst many students have no access to the internet at all, some, like this year ten student, simply have very limited access. me and my brother bought a shared laptop. “ me me and my brother both share a laptop. and also i ve got an auntie at home who is also studying her lpc at this moment in time so between the three of us, there is one laptop that we have to share. research suggests thatjust a third pupils overall are taking part in online lessons each day, but those from private schools are twice as likely to so as their counterparts at state schools. the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged in our education system is already significant. we know that what is now happening is that gap is getting wider, even despite the best efforts of schools, the bbc and other people providing all kinds of online resources. the government has pledged £100 million to boost remote learning and has committed to provide laptops to vulnerable young people and disadvantaged pupils in year ten, although some say more urgent action is needed. the government need a national strategy to look at imaginative solutions to make sure that these left behind, vulnerable children, pupils and students are being looked after and educated. but with no clear end to the lockdown in sight, fears of irreparable damage to young people s educational prospects continue. john 0wen, bbc news. isolation is having a major impact on patients who suffer from severe mental health problems that s the warning from a psychiatrist at one of the country s leading mental health trusts. he says that the impact on patients who suffer from psychosis that s when people lose contact with reality and might hear voices has been profound. sima kotecha has been given exclusive access to a psychosis recovery tea m. got to try and keep the social distance. a consultation, coronavirus style. you are saying it s a struggle? the doctor meets his patient on a walk, and effective way of working during lockdown. the voice i m experiencing now will never allow somebody like you to suffer what i live. david suffers with psychosis. for years he s heard voices but since being in isolation a new voice has emerged, known as a command hallucination. how has self isolation been for you, david? that s when command came. when the voices came? yeah, yeah. the voice, yes, but command is something new. the doctor is going to work through with me for me to understand why command with voice is only negative. you ve put it very clearly that the command voice has come back in since the crisis. yeah. so psychosis is a mental disorder, it s a health condition, it s a mental health condition, but the crucial thing is it s an eminently treatable. psychiatrist steve church walks around the community to check on his patients. he says being alone could make psychosis worse. the whole treatment that we are about is trying to help people not self isolate, trying to help people to re engage with society. the self isolation is one of the red flag hallmarks of somebody becoming unwell in the first place, where they just take themselves into a psychosis induced lockdown. i think she s been quite disinhibited, not really acknowledging covid guidelines. at st giles clinic in south london, the central psychosis recovery team discuss which patients need urgent sectioning. we re just not seeing her, not physically seeing her. can t get access to the property. you know, when she becomes completely unwell she stops eating and drinking properly. even though the clinic is very much open, it is evenly quiet. open, it is eeerily quiet. most patients are at home self isolating and staff say that they are having to go to their homes instead to provide treatment there. anthony s being treated by the team and has regular home visits. it s a lot more slower, a lot more peaceful, do you know what i mean? it s not so. like a rat race, as it were. so you enjoy being on your own? i do. i m quite a solitary person, i wouldn t mind being reclusive. idon t mind. three to 4% of the uk s population suffers with psychosis. the majority get treated and are able to live a normal life. a lot of the time, these could be very unpleasant experiences and, you know, having a support network really helps them, and at this point, when that s not there, you know, they are having to deal with far more than the average individual would be managing at the moment. for people with severe mental health problems, the path ahead is a lonely one. sima kotecha, bbc news, south london. with sport at a standstill, senior figures from english football, rugby and cricket have been outlining the crippling financial impact of the pandemic on their sports. 0ur sports correspondent laura scottjoins us now. just underlining the huge pressure on all sports to try to get back to normal as soon as possible? exactly, we heard some severe warnings from the major sports today, speaking to the major sports today, speaking to the digital culture, media and sport committee. we had rick perry, the efl chairman, who spoke of a 200 million p financial hole by septemberfacing million p financial hole by september facing the 71 clubs, he described the situation is pretty grim and said decisions on a restart need to be made soon. then we heard from tom harrison, chief executive of the ecb, he said the worst case scenario for cricket is a massive £380 million, equating 800 days of cricket loss. in rugby, rfu chief executive bill sweeney said it could ta ke executive bill sweeney said it could take up to six years to recover from coronavirus and if the six nations next year were to be cancelled, it could have a catastrophic impact on english rugby union. it is notjust these sports, in the olympics and paralympics uk sport said team gb‘s success in the future could be impacted if they cannot sit an extra £50 million of funding. and sport england said that new data showed that 44% of children are not doing the recommended exercise during the lockdown. what is clear from today is the whole ecosystem of sport is under threat. fundamentally, if is the whole ecosystem of sport is underthreat. fundamentally, if the money is not coming in at the topical sport is not being paid, it cannot trickle down to the bottom. thank you very much, laura. social distancing rules and lockdown restrictions mean many of our favourite tv shows aren t able to be made as usual many of us are still wondering what we ll do after yesterday s cancellation of itv‘s love island. so with a big reduction in the number of programmes being produced, what are we watching instead? 0ur entertainment correspondent, colin paterson has been finding out. it s adios to love island in 2020, the latest show to disappear from our screens because covid 19 meant it wasn t safe to make a new series. coronation street say they only have enough episodes last intojune. eastenders will come off air in early summer. so when will tv run out of new programmes? let s start with a photograph. many big dramas were already finished pre lockdown, and ready to go, includingjk rowling s creation strike on bbc one, but new series will be very difficult to film. it s hard at the moment to imagine the big dramas, particularly if they re shot abroad. i think it s going to take us many months until we can fly talent and crews abroad to make shows. travel shows. i mean, race across the world has been absolutely brilliant but i can t see us being able to go back into production on that soon. so i imagine there is going to be a greater emphasis on shows that can be made in the uk. and one drama being made for the bbc during lockdown is talking heads, with the likes ofjodie comer filming new versions of the classic alan bennett monologues. the one person cast and a tiny crew are making it possible, but most shows will not be able to replicate this method. that s different. between the film industry in this country and the high end television industry, ie, the poshest tv dramas, the ones that get the tax credit, i think £1 billion of production has been stalled since the beginning of the year. that s £1 billion of economic activity that was in progress and has stalled. well, if you want to be in a chance to play, all you just have to call this number. one of the big hits of lockdown has been quiz, made for itv by left bank who also have an upcoming ibiza drama for netflix, white lines. they are preparing a police operation. the island needs to look clean. but the show‘s executive producer andy harris says a lack of new tv will become a reality. most broadcasters have probably got about six months‘ worth stacked up, but i think by christmas, certainly by spring next year, you will really start to notice the lack of new shows, for sure. which is likely to lead to more people turning to box sets. in the last week, there have been 16 million requests for normal people on iplayer, smashing the record for a bbc three show. i hope you don t find it too hard trying to resist me. sure, don t i always? do you? if there are going to be fewer new shows, the way audiences have been watching normal people could become the new norm. colin paterson, bbc news. since the start of the outbreak, we ve heard lots of positive stories about the ways many of you have been raising money for the nhs. three cricket fans set themselves their own goal to raise cash for charity. they ran the distance of a marathon between wickets in their gardens that s more than 26 miles injust underfive hours! and they ve even inspired england star ben stokes, who is having a go at running a half marathon between wickets himself. time for a look at the weather. here s ben rich. a bit ofa a bit of a change? quite a change is, temperatures will be swinging in both directions, initially upwards and bent downwards once again quite a change is. some warm weather on the way initially, this weather setup with low pressure at western high pressure drifting to the east will bring in a southerly flow, allowing us to tap into what has been some really warm weather across parts of spain and seven france, record breaking temperatures here over the last couple of days. a big pattern changed by the weekend, high pressure building to the west, low pressure high pressure building to the west, low pressure to the east, reversing the winds coming down from the north. i possibly
because liechtenstein, because thatis because liechtenstein, because that is landlocked between switzerland and australia, and either way outcome you are going to be going through territory which is on the no go list. are on what are the chances of british tourists were holidaying in these places that are quite far away like jamaica getting back in time for that deadline? very few british people actually injamaica on holiday. of course, it is a destination with many british citizens who have relatives there and they will be some long stay people. i m afraid for them it looks to me too late already, simply because you would have to travel via the united states and that in itself presents a large number of problems, andi presents a large number of problems, and i think you will have missed all the overnight flights tonight, which basically means that there s no chance of getting back by saturday morning. from the czech republic and from switzerland, it s is feasible. british airways has just put on a new flight from prague to heathrow tomorrow afternoon. similarly, there is going to be extra flights from geneva and from zurich. they are selling at about £300 one way but thatis selling at about £300 one way but that is better than some of the alternatives. we saw fares go with through the route within minutes of the announce meant being made but a really important point is that you cannot come back from switzerland if you fly out of basel airport because that in itself, being within french territory, the department for transport tells me that that will trigger the need to quarantine when you return. what happens to people who have got holidays booked to these countries? will appeal to get a refund, reschedule, rearrange? well, that all depends on the type of holiday you have booked. switzerland and the czech republic tend to be city break destinations and certainly a lot of people will be in the alps or may be enjoying bohemia at the moment but mostly to city breaks. if you fix it yourself it is really down to the airline to see how generous they are prepared to be. british airways and easyjet tend to say yet, you can take a credit note. brian evan was there tender says sorry, use it all lose it or spend quite a lot of interchange it ryanair and wizz air. tend to say. those people can 90, air. tend to say. those people can go, if they want to, instead to cuba which is now in the low risk list thanks to having a steadily reducing amount of infection in the country and on top of that, have a having an excellent local health service. since you mentioned ryanair since he got you here, i want to ask about something else that has broken this evening. we have got video of people hazmat suits boarding ryanair plain. tells more about this, is with coronavirus? extraordinary story. which has been reported in a lot of online sites in terms of passengers being dragged off the plane. that is not my understanding at all. a passenger and his companion turned up for theirflight from and his companion turned up for their flight from sta nsted and his companion turned up for their flight from stansted to pisa. it just so happened their flight from stansted to pisa. itjust so happened that he had had a test for coronavirus and it was an odd decision given that that is supposed to happen when you feel you ve got a risk of having coronavirus, it just so you ve got a risk of having coronavirus, itjust so happens that it tested positive and he got a message back. i believe that he told cabin crew what had happened, they immediately, obviously took steps, called on the fire service from the airport, and he and his companion left. they were not, in the words of one website, dragged off the plane. they left, but i must say, a very curious decision to take a test and then decide you re going to take a flight then decide you re going to take a flight and then put people at risk possibly but the airline and airport so it was all managed and that passengers were in no great risk at the flight left 18 minutes late and thatis the flight left 18 minutes late and that is the end of the matter as far as they are concerned, but i hope that this is a reminder to people that this is a reminder to people that if you re going to have a test for coronavirus, if you have got any reason to think you might be infected, for heaven sake don t go near the plane or indeed anybody else! figures released by the government show there s been the biggest daily increase in coronavirus cases in the uk sincejune 12th. there were 1,522 new confirmed coronavirus cases across the uk, in the latest 2a hour period. 767 people are in hospital with coronavirus, with 109 admitted today. the deaths of 12 people were also reported, under new rules recording those who ve died, within 28 days of a positive covid 19 test. that means the total number of deaths, across the uk is 41,477. an urgent manhunt is under way after a father abducted three boys from their foster home in south london. 6 year old bilal safi and his brothers mohammed ebrar safi, and mohammed yaseen safi aged five and three were taken from a house in coulsdon on thursday 20th august. detectives are looking for 26 year old imran safi who is said to have threatened the foster carer with a knife. commanderjon savell from the metropolitan police, has been giving more detail about the abduction. he said he was believed if the boys had been taken out of the country it would have involved some planning. so, as you can imagine, immediately that we get a report that a child has been abducted we would do all of those notifications to make sure that all the boulders are aware that we are looking for the people concerned, in this case ran into the three boys, so any formal exit out of the country should enable that to stop straightaway. there will be other ways of getting out of the country, i am sure, all of which would likely need a degree of planning. it is hard to say how we think they would have got out of the country if they have, whether or not they were smuggled out, whether or not they have got false documents, we are following all those lines of enquiry, but it wouldn t be beyond the realms of possibility that somehow they managed to get out without formal notification from the boarders. and it goes without saying that smuggling them out would be a traumatic experience for those children? it would be horrific. even if they are with their farmer or father or otherfamily if they are with their farmer or father or other family members or whoever you can imagine it would be a very scary experience. our home affairs correspondent tom symonds has been at the metropolitan police headquarters at new scotland yard and gave us this update. three very young boys were playing in the garden of their foster mother in the croydon area when their natural father turned up with a knife, threatened the foster mother and took them away. now, imran safi is 26 and police want to find him urgently. he disappeared off in a red nissan qashqai car which the police have found in the croydon area. but despite having hundreds of officers working on this for about a week, they ve come up with a blank so far. that includes looking at cctv, number plate recognition cameras and trying to track his mobile phone. they think, for that reason, that it is a well planned plot to remove these children, possibly because they were about to be adopted, and they ve arrested several members of his family and some friends. but their biggest concern is that these three young boys will be taken abroad. this man has some links to afghanistan and pakistan and their real concern is that he will try and smuggle them out of the country, possibly in the back of a car, which, of course, would be an extremely traumatic experience for such young children. so, after a week of really trying to find him, today, they have asked for the public‘s help. has anybody seen him, seen the car or seen the boys? joining me now is vicky mayes from the reunite international child abduction centre. thanks very much forjoining us, vicki. first of all this is an active case we have to be careful about avoiding specifics, but what are the chances of a reunion in this particular case, would you say? it s all going to depend on what happens next, basically. if it is that the children have been removed from the country, the chances of a successful reunion are going to depend on what country it is those children have been taken to, whether they are signed up to any kind of international conventions of agreements on how to deal with these particular kind of cases, as well as how easy it is to actually locate the children wherever it is that they have actually been taken. what sort of support as an organisation like yours offer to a family in this very difficult time? at reunite we provide ongoing advice, information and support to family members who are involved in international child abduction cases all other cases involving the international movement of children. we are able to provide ongoing support to families, because these situations can appear and can change incredibly quickly, so we are there to answer questions, to direct them to other sources of support such as police and legal professionals, in certain cases, not quite like this one where there is the possibility of the situation being resolved between parents through mediation, then that is also a service that we are able to offer, but really in this kind of case it is going to be ensuring that the foster parents is going to be ensuring that the foster pa rents or is going to be ensuring that the foster parents or whoever it is, you know, that is trying to help to resolve this case, have all of the information that they can to make the best possible decisions for how to move forward. this is a very tragic case, of course. how common are these kind of incident is now in the uk? welcome the pace cases of pa rental the uk? welcome the pace cases of parental child adult cases of pa rental parental child adult cases of parental child adult cases of parental child abduction a lot more common than people think. we did it ta ke common than people think. we did it take cases from all over the world but most of them a linked to the in some way and we love the between 500 and 600 each year and we also speak to some parents were trying to prevent an abduction from happening. we log between 500 and 600 each year. these are just the one ones that come through so was, so it is just the tip of the iceberg and will actually become far more common and can happen in some cases. this particular situation with the foster pa rents particular situation with the foster parents and the use of violence is slightly less common but as a whole pa rental slightly less common but as a whole parental child abduction happens much more than people realise. thank you very much forjoining us. the coffee and sandwich chain pret a manger has cut 2000 800 jobs the coffee and sandwich chain pret a manger has cut 2800 jobs from its shops as it restructures the business to cope with the impact of the pandemic. the high street chain says it has seen clear signs of recovery since lockdown was eased but trade is still down around 60% on last year. last month, the company announced plans to close at least 30 branches. the number of people getting vaccinated against flu has fallen according to a new bbc analysis. that s despite the eligibility for free vaccination being widened ahead of an expected increase in coronavirus cases this winter. scientists have called for greater awareness of the severity of flu, as our medical correspondent richard galpin reports. under strain for months due to the pandemic, the nhs faces another daunting challenge this autumn. the prospect potentially of a second wave of coronavirus combined with the flu outbreak, infecting the population and threatening to overwhelm hospitals. the key now is for as many people as possible to be given the flu vaccine. while the uptake of the vaccine is good amongst older people, for whom it is free, doctors are concerned about younger people, particularly those with serious underlying conditions. that s notjust for their benefit, it s actually also for the benefit of their relatives, so if, for example, we had somebody in their 40s who would be on one of these groups because they have diabetes it is notjust to protect them but it also might protect other people, for example, elderly relatives as they might be visiting, so it s important for the whole population to get behind this, and that s probably the main message. but figures show the proportion of vulnerable people having the vaccine has decreased, due in part, it seems, to complacency. in scotland there was a fall of 15% between 2015 and 2020. take up dropped 13% in northern ireland in the same period, and in wales it fell 7%. in england, the proportion of vulnerable people getting vaccinated fell 6%. with fears thousands more people could die in the autumn and winter due to flu and coronavirus, the government s planning the biggest everflu immunisation programme, up to 30 million people in england being offered the vaccine.
tonight at six deadlock continues in the post brexit trade talks, with fundamental differences remaining between the uk and the eu. downing street has made clear that the uk is ready to walk away from the talks, but, for now, negotiations continue in brussels. can you tell us about any progress, if a deal s still possible? we re still working very hard. i d like to be giving more positive news, but, at the moment, these negotiations seem stalled and the barriers to progress are still very much in place. we ll have the latest from our correspondents in brussels and westminster. also tonight. ready to roll out the vaccine tomorrow the firstjabs will be administered in hospitals around the uk. hashem abedi, the brother of the manchester arena suicide bomber, finally admits from prison that he helped to plan the attack. a glimmer of hope for debenhams as mike ashley founder of sports direct confirms he s in talks for a last minute rescue. rugby league s kevin sinfield completes seven marathons in seven days to raise money for team mate rob burrows, who has motor neurone disease. and coming up on bbc news, we will have all the details on which teams the home nations have drawn in qualifying for football s world cup in qatar in 2022. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. there s still deadlock in the post brexit trade talks between the uk and eu. downing street is pledging to continue negotiations for as long as long as time is available. but the eu s chief negotiator michel barner insists the talks in brussels will not go beyond wednesday. this afternon, the prime minister has been speaking to the president of the european union, ursula von der leyen. it s not known what was said, but we are expecting to hear more from the prime minister shortly. and a potential olive branch has been extended to brussels with the uk government saying that, if a deal is reached, it will remove controversial clauses in a government bill relating to trade in northern ireland. let s join our political editor laura kuenssberg. sophie, the call between the eu chief and the prime minister has finished in the last half an hour or so, i m not sure it has changed very much of what seemed, frankly, like a pretty tricky stalemate on both sides. remember, we have left the european union already. the government has also got a mandate to ta ke government has also got a mandate to take us out of the single market and the customs union, so things are changing in any way. in the last few months, these talks have been all about trying to sort out everything else. exactly what should our relationships be across the channel? exactly how your business work? how do we unplug from the european union after four decades inside without there being disruption? and that is really what is at stake here, something that could feel quite chaotic at the beginning of next year or a smoother change. so that s why it matters, but what, tonight, really are the chances of a deal? it s been a long day after a long few weeks and, tonight, it still seems in the balance. being in the dark. a common feature of these secretive talks. good morning. have you made progress? good morning. the eu s chief negotiator up early to greet a waiting audience of diplomats. the looks on their faces weren t just because of the early hour. the chances of a deal don t feel good. lord frost, can you tell us about any progress, is a deal still possible? we re still working very hard. that s why there is clamour around the uk s negotiator, lord frost. are you optimistic a deal can be achieved? in brussels this time, talks going round and round. both sides want a deal, so they can keep doing business from next month without too much disruption. the current rules will disappear at new year. there s been lots of activity, but can you hear much optimism around? having heard from michel barnier this morning, really the news is very downbeat. i would say he was very gloomy and obviously very cautious about the ability to make progress today. an agreement felt almost in reach when negotiations were happening in london last week. but, in brussels, in the last 2a hours, it moved further away. they can t agree on how much fish they can catch in each other‘s waters or how to share rules and regulations. a stalemate perhaps, since boris johnson last talked to the eu chief on saturday night. butjust before he picked up the phone today to ursula von der leyen, the uk confirmed it could drop its plans to give ministers the power to break the treaty they ve already agreed with brussels. a peace offering, yes. a total game changer? maybe not. of course, there are huge complications in terms of getting the guts of a dealjust right, and the uk has extended something of an olive branch to the eu this afternoon by promising to ditch controversial bits of a draft law, if everything can be sorted out. but, in the end, in the next couple of days, the question for downing street may be quite a simple one. is borisjohnson willing to take the serious, practical risks of no agreement to preserve a political principle? that leaving the eu was meant to be about the uk being completely in charge. according to his ministers, the answer s yes. we are at a critical moment in the negotiations. we are all working to get a deal, but the only deal that is possible is one that is comatible with our sovereignty. while an agreement is preferable, we are prepared to leave on so called australian style terms. in other words, no fixed agreement, using world trade organization terms. but no one wants to be seen to concede. france, happy to be seen as the strongman, knows time is nearly up. and, as borisjohnson‘s biggest judgment approaches, every minute really counts. whatever happens in the next few days or weeks, whether there s a deal or not, there will be changes for everyone when the transition period comes to an end at 11pm on the 31st of december, as our deputy political editor vicki young reports. the uk and the eu need a new set of rules for how we live, work and do business together. things are about to change, whether there is a trade deal or not. you will no longer be allowed to move freely between the uk and the eu to live or work. when it comes to holidays, visas won t be required but visits will be limited to 90 days in any six month period. you will have to make sure your passport has at least six months left on it and a free health care won t be guaranteed. you will need extra driving documents for some countries and extra paperwork for any pets. now, what about trade? whatever happens, businesses that importand whatever happens, businesses that import and export goods will need to fill out more forms and there will be added cheques which cause cause delays on key routes like the channel crossing which could cause. but if there is no deal, the disruption will be greater. while the uk was in the eu, companies didn t have to pay taxes known as ta riffs didn t have to pay taxes known as tariffs on the food and manufactured goods being bought and sold across the border. the trade deal the two are trying to thrash out would keep things that way, but, with no deal, many imports would be taxed. for example, there would be a10% many imports would be taxed. for example, there would be a 10% tariff on cars. 8% on imported fresh flowers a nd on cars. 8% on imported fresh flowers and 20% on apricots. some worry that food supplies could be disrupted. some goods won t come at all and that will mean shortages of certain products, and some goods, if they come, will cost a lot more and that will mean that some shoppers will decide they are not within their price range. so what you will see is a mix of less choice, or fewer choices on the shelves, and more expensive products. but the uk government says it will cut taxes on other things like dishwashers, making those cheaper. there are many other aspects of our relationship, including financial services, that also need to be ironed out. this won t necessarily involve a negotiation. the uk and the eu will make their own decisions. that is probably what we would see in areas like aviation and road haulage and oi i like aviation and road haulage and on areas like data and financial services, really the ball is in the eu s services, really the ball is in the eu s ought to make its own decisions there and the consequences of those decisions are quite important in terms of how easy it is to transfer data, how much access to financial markets uk firms will have. some aspects of our relationship with the eu will be more complicated, but brexit enthusiasts say the uk will be free to make its own decisions. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. our europe editor katya adlerjoins me now. so these talks between the prime minister and the president of the european union are paused, we are told. what reaction are you hearing? well, we are hearing that they paused, that they have actually ended now and of course speculation as to exactly what was discussed in that conversation, we are still waiting for details. all i can tell you is that here in the european court, everybody walking past is on their mobile phone. there has been a flurry of activity, diplomatic activity, this evening, just before the conversation between the prior minister and ursula von der leyen, the european commission president. prime minister. she spoke to angela merkel of germany and emmanuel macron of france, a scheduled call before the meeting of eu leaders on friday but they did discuss brexit, anxious to see whether a deal can be signed and, at the same time, positive news, finally, i think we can say, coming out of the eu and uk effort to implement last year s divorce deal when it comes to those details on northern ireland. altogether, it is like a swirl of noise, breaking through the fog are very grumpy negotiations because i can tell you, this morning, the weather here in brussels really mirrored the mood here. foggy and impenetrable, difficult to see the way forward. the eu s chief negotiator briefed eu member states, ambassadors that are here in brussels and then the european parliament, saying he really wasn t sure that a deal could be done and that pessimism was echoed on the uk side too. the mood feels a little more ambivalent this evening, everybody on their mobile phone every second are looking for clues but, still, we are on this roller coaster ride. clues but, still, we are on this roller-coaster ride. katya adler in brussels, thank you. the first coronavirus jabs will be given tomorrow in what s being described as a decisive turning point in the battle against coronavirus . the vaccine is being delivered to dozens of hospitals across the uk. people over the age of 80, care home workers and front line health staff will be first in the queue. the army may be drafted in to help transport further stocks of the pfizer biontech vaccine. it needs to be stored at around minus 70 degrees and moved carefully. here s our health editor, hugh pym. tomorrow, they will be part of history, among the very first to get the coronavirus jabs. harry and ranjan are in their 80s, so are in the top priority groups and they will go in together to be vaccinated at newcastle s royal infirmary. i m really excited now. i think that it is good that i have got the opportunity and so i am not nervous oi’ opportunity and so i am not nervous or anything like that. i m looking forward to it. the hopes of a nation or on your forward to it. the hopes of a nation or on your shoulders! the head of nhs england visited the royal free hospital in london to see their preparations for the start of vaccinations. we are going to have to continue to be very careful, but, if we do that, i think there is every chance that we will look back oi i every chance that we will look back on tomorrow as marking a decisive turning point in the battle against coronavirus. relax your arm and roll your sleeve right up. here, they are demonstrating how it will be done as they draw up plans to vaccinate 80 patients over the age of 80 tomorrow and, as the week goes on, care home workers and some nhs staff. and, of course, the vaccine needs to be stored at ultralow temperatures in specialfridge units. the stored at ultralow temperatures in special fridge units. the pace of it over the last three days or so has been particularly challenging and there are so many bits to get ready, particularly because this vaccine, it is not like any other vaccine and the handling of it, so we have had to make sure we ve had the right people to be able to support it. everything ready for tomorrow? staff say they are ready for what is being billed as the biggest vaccination programme in the history of the nhs. it will undoubtedly be a hugely significant moment when hospitals like this one start delivering the vaccine tomorrow, but then comes the challenge for the nhs of getting it out into local communities. gps in england have been told they can start vaccinating from next week. the complex logistics of getting the vaccine to care homes are still being worked out. in some areas, that will start before christmas. scotland s first minister, meanwhile, was being briefed on preparations at edinburgh ‘s western general hospital. this is day one of perhaps the final stage of this pandemic for scotland and i think it isa pandemic for scotland and i think it is a moment for us to feel more optimistic than we have in the past nine months. and, as the vaccine arrived at the centre in north wales, health chiefs around the uk we re wales, health chiefs around the uk were saying, although there was cause for optimism, the rules on social distancing were no less important. pym, bbc news. the latest government figures show there were 14,718 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24 hour period. that means that the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is now 15,472. 1,354 people have been admitted to hospital on average each day over the week to last thursday. and 189 deaths were reported that s people who died within 28 days of a positive covid 19 test. it means, on average in the past week, 427 deaths were announced every day. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 61,434. meanwhile, wales health minister has warned there could be further restrictions after christmas as covid cases continue to rise. vaughan gething said wales was the only part of the uk where figures were not falling at the end of november. latest data suggests there are more than 600 cases per 100,000 in some areas. mr gething said how people behave would determine how many die from the virus. the brother of the manchester arena bomber, salman abedi, has admitted for the first time that he had a full and knowing part in planning the suicide attack. hashem abedi was jailed for murdering the 22 people who were killed at the ariana grande concert in may 2017. during his trial, the 23 year old hashem abedi denied helping his brother to plan the suicide bombing. danny savage reports. he is the brother of the suicide bomber who carried out the manchester arena attack. at his trial for being complicit in the atrocity, hashem abedi pleaded not guilty. he told police his brother s actions were a shock to him. but the jury found him guilty of mass murder. now, though, he s changed his story, saying he knew full well what his brother was planning that night. in prison, serving his sentence, hashem abedi was interviewed by members of the inquiry legal team. that admission emerged for the first time today, at the ongoing public inquiry into the arena attack, as the lead lawyer interviewed a senior police officer. and on the 22nd of october, during the course of that interview, hashem abedi admitted that he had played a full part and a knowing part in the planning and preparation for the arena attack? yes, i think that s a fair summary. so, there is no doubt now that your team s prosecution of him and the crown prosecution service prosecution of him was entirely well founded ? it was, and there was no doubt in my mind. for the families caught up in the atrocity, this is a significant development. and there will be some satisfaction among investigators too that the brother of the suicide bomber, who s now serving a minimum sentence of 55 years, has finally admitted to what he was accused of, after previously denying it. ismail, bbc news. it also emerged today that a forensic link to ismail abedi, the elder brother of the bomber, was found in a car used to store explosives prior to the attack. he has declined to cooperate with the public inquiry. danny savage, bbc news, manchester. the time is 6:17. our top story this evening: downing street has made clear that the uk is ready to walk from the post brexit trade talks but for now negotiations continue in brussels. can you imagine running seven marathons in seven days? rugby‘s kevin sinfield has done just that to raise money for teammate rob burrows, who has motor neurone disease. coming up on sportsday on bbc news, england s cricket tour of south africa has been abandoned following concerns over a coronavirus outbreak at the teams shared base near cape town. the poorest areas in england have seen disproportionate cuts to public health spending. the institute for public policy research says these regions have also been hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic, with poor underlying health contributing to a high death toll. the study shows that england has seen public health spending cut by an average ofjust over £13 a person. but in the midlands, it s almost £17 per person. and the worst affected area is the north east of england, with spending cuts of more than £23 per person. 0ur health correspondent, dominic hughes, reports from gateshead. in deprived communities like bensham in gateshead, poor housing and a lack ofjobs are feeding ill health. cuts to public health projects targeting smoking, obesity or addiction haven t helped, so people are having to find their own solutions. charlie? yep. for the past decade, charlie dixon barely knew his neighbours in this sheltered housing project, but that s all changed with the start of a free food hub, ending isolation and loneliness. i ve been here all these years, and i didn t know anybody. you know, not even on my floor. you d only say hello to them, didn t know their names. now i know all their names, you know, everybody comes out and says, hello, charlie, or, hello, fred. it s great, it s fantastic. building strong, resilient communities is a powerful weapon in the fight against ill health, but new research shows how it s the poorest parts of england that, since 2014, have seen the biggest cuts to public health budgets undermining that work. well, that cut has led to the reduction in some of those really important programmes that get to work on the things that cause ill health. so, programmes like alcohol and drug reduction, things to help reduce rates of obesity and smoking. these are also some of the conditions that leave people more vulnerable to covid 19 a deadly combination of poverty and underlying ill health. we know people from our most disadvantaged communities are more likely to be working in front line occupations and therefore exposed to covid, but we also know they are more likely to have the underlying conditions that make them, you know, have an increased risk of a severe form of covid and, sadly, death. as the health gap between rich and poor widens, charities like the comfrey garden project are stepping in to help the most vulnerable. people like hosein, a refugee from iran, who has developed new skills and friends. you can imagine how difficult it can be when you are in an area you don t know, you don t have any friends or family and, you cannot speak the language other people speak. but i find a job in this project. they offered me a job. so, i can see how different my life can be with the comfrey project and without the comfrey project. the department of health and social care in england says more than £10 billion has been provided to help councils cope with the pandemic, but the coronavirus has only highlighted pre existing inequalities in health. today s report is a reminder that, once the virus has faded, those inequalities will remain. dominic hughes, bbc news, gateshead. mike ashley, who founded sports direct, has confirmed he is working on a possible last minute rescue plan for debenhams. but his company frasers group, which also owns house of fraser and jack wills says discussions must be concluded swiftly. our business correspondent, emma simpson, is outside debehams flagship store in oxford street. how realistic is this? sophie, this all comes down to how much mike ashley is prepared to pay and whether it is a credible enough offer for the administrators. he made a bid during the initial sales process , made a bid during the initial sales process, but this was rejected because it was too low so now he is having another go, at the 11th hour. you can probably see the signs in the window here, the closing down sale is already under way. and one potential sticking point might be how to value of the stock that has already disappeared out of the doors here. frasers group this morning said this had to be done quickly, time was short, it hoped for a rescue package to save jobs, but there was no certainty that this could be done. and of course, mike ashley has long had his eye on debenhams, he lost out big time last yearin debenhams, he lost out big time last year ina debenhams, he lost out big time last year in a battle for control. so this really is his final chance and possibly the last chance for debenhams. sophie, even if he did do a deal, it is highly unlikely he would keep all the stores in the longer term. gemma simpson, thank you. emma. the mother of a girl who died following an asthma attack has told an inquest that she would have moved house immediately, had she known the effects of dangerous levels of air pollution on her daughter s health. nine year old ella adoo kissi debrah died in 2013. a second inquest is investigating whether air pollution near the family s home may have contributed wbr id wbr14130 to her death. 0ur environment correspondent, claire marshall, reports. this picture of ella, two months before she died, is on display in the court room, as details emerge about the story surrounding her death. the coroner s court has already heard how she was exposed to years of dangerous and illegal levels of air pollution. coughing ella became ill ten years ago. her mother, rosamund adoo kissi debrah, has fought so hard to be heard. their family home was beside /b london s busy south circular road. they would walk to school along it. rosamund said, at the time, no connection was made between ella s fatal asthma attack and air pollution. but then a new medical report said there was a direct link. the high court ordered a fresh inquest. in court today, the coroner asked if she d thought car fumes were having an effect on her. she replied, no. as her mother, i would have moved. we would have moved straightaway. we were desperate for anything that could have helped. this isn t just about wbr-id wbr14730 whether toxic air helped to kill ella. it goes much wider than that. government officials have been giving evidence. this is about who knew how bad the pollution was, what was being done to reduce it, and how much were the public being told? i m glad her voice has come out. and it s really important to me, still, to continue to talk about young people now who are still suffering from asthma. government figures say 30,000 people are killed by air pollution each year, but no connection to an individual death has ever been made. will ella make that link? claire marshall, bbc news, southwark coroner s court. let s have a look at some of the rest of today s stories. and the wife of a police officer who was poisoned in the salisbury novichok attack says he is fighting for part of his pension . sarah bailey made the comment after the wiltshire police federation chairman said the force had helped detective sergeant nick bailey get the compensation package he deserved . ds bailey left wiltshire police in october. the force said it would be inappropriate to comment. lord maginnis is to be barred from the house of lords for at least 18 months for the bullying and harassment of three mps and a security guard. fellow peers voted overwhelmingly to back the punishment of the former ulster unionist mp who sits as an independent recommended by the lords conduct committee. the remaining matches in the england cricket team s tour of south africa have been adandoned, after a number of positive coronavirus tests. a south africa player and two members of hotel staff tested positive, while england say two members of their party returned unconfirmed positive tests . and a monolith has mysteriously appeared in britain, just days after similar ones were spotted in the usa, the netherlands and romania. the unusual mirrored structure was discovered on compton beach, on the west side of the isle of wight, and is described as about 7.5 feet tall. an anonymous collective called the most famous artist has taken credit for the monoliths in america, but it has not claimed this one. the former england and leeds rhinos rugby league player kevin sinfield has just run seven marathons in seven days all of them in well under four hours. his extraordinary test of endurance was to raise money for his friend and former team mate, 38 year old rob burrow, who has motor neurone disease. and he raised far more than anyone expected. here s our sports correspondent, katie gornall. cheering it was a challenge powered by friendship and, this morning, that challenge entered its final strides. kevin sinfield had just run seven marathons in seven days to support the motor neurone disease association, and his former team mate, rob burrow. made up, overwhelmed. that was unbelievable. we never knew it d turn into anything like this. it was just six mates trying to raise a bit of money for rob. and my wife said to me this morning, if someone offered to double it, would you do it again? , and in an instant, i said, yeah, absolutely. i d do it because that s what mates do, don t they? probably the best week of my life. and then, in a couple of years, we ll look back hopefully with a great deal of pride on being able to help people. as a player for leeds rhinos, burrow constantly defied the odds. this is a sensational try! there aren t many in super league that could do that! small in stature, but with enormous ability, sinfield his captain and close friend was neverfarfrom his side. when burrow‘s diagnosis became public last year, his team mates rallied round. sinfield s initial aim was to raise around £77,000. that target was soon smashed. i ve had a few little private chats with him and he said, i burst out crying at this moment, i was thinking about this and that. because he s a very emotional character, and i can t imagine what the physical and emotional energy that s been drained from him this week must ve done. but i m just really glad that he s achieved it. you know, he s raised £1 million, over £1 million! and as he set out on his final marathon, burrow had this message for him. kev, from day one, has always been a role model to me and someone who i ve held in the highest regard. i hope you know i d do the same for you. it means everything to me. rob burrow knows there are significant challenges ahead, but he won t be facing them alone. katie gornall, bbc news. let s return now to our top story. deadlock continues in the post brexit trade talks with fundamental differences remaining between the uk and the eu. 0ur political editor laura kuenssberg joins me again. any sense of what has come out of this discussion between boris johnson and the president of the european commission? we don t have anything official yet, the fact we haven t heard even though the call finish sometime i think gives us a sniff of the fact they are certainly not on the point of about to say, eureka, hallelujah, the agreements have suddenly disappeared. i think if it is the simple fact they talked foran hourand a if it is the simple fact they talked for an hour and a half but somehow couldn t escape the stalemate in any way, that is likely to be quite a bad sign for the prospect of actually getting this agreement is nailed down in the next couple of days. let s just remember a nailed down in the next couple of days. let sjust remember a couple of brief things. firstly, both sides have always said and have believed that it would be better to be able to do that it would be better to be able todoa that it would be better to be able to do a deal. both sides know that time is extremely tight. it is at the end of this month that the existing arrangements come to an end. but we also know that all along, both sides have come up with the main principle that they disagree so fundamentally on. britain wants to be outside the european union s rules but still keep some of the benefits of being in that club, but the eu doesn t see why with the uk out, why it should give the uk any particular privileges. that has been a problem all along and it still seems the problem tonight. laura kuenssberg with the latest there, thank you. time for a look at the weather. here s darren bett. a cold day to day and freezing in some parts of england. in areas where the bug has persisted. and thatis where the bug has persisted. and that is thickening up now through tonight and developing more widely across lincolnshire, east anglia and the midlands and southern england, it will be still there into tomorrow morning. showers around threatening icy patches and the weather is changing further north, an area of low pressure in the north sea is bringing this wet weather into scotland, strengthening the winds and eventually that pushes down into northern ireland. generally keeping the
this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. plans for a huge increase in covid testing in britain. operation moonshot aims to do ten million daily tests by early next year. the idea is to have a test which would be carried out at the location, a bit like a pregnancy test that provides a very quick result, and that would completely revolutionise things. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials later over the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement. thousands of migrants desperately seek shelter after a camp on the greek island of lesbos was destroyed by fire. three people die as wildfires continue to rage in california, which is in the middle of a 20 year mega drought. wildlife populations are plummeting across the world according to a stark new report from the world wide fund for nature. hello and welcome if you re the world, and stay with us for the latest news and analysis from here and across the globe. britain s plans for a huge increase in coronavirus testing could cost tens of billions of pounds, according to leaked official documents. the papers set out how borisjohnson s so called moonshot programme could work, with an aim of 3 million coronavirus tests per day available by december, and up to 10 million early next year. the details of the project emerged yesterday, as the prime minister set out a ban on gatherings of more than six people in england. speaking this morning, the transport secretary grant shapps admitted this type of test didn t exist at the moment but claimed it could have the power to revolutionise the way testing is done. we ll have a moonshot attempt, in other words, something which doesn t exist at the moment. we are going to have to work on the science and technology, but the idea is to have a test which could be carried out at the location a bit like a pregnancy test provides a very quick result. and that would completely revolutionise things. if you imagine the test doesn t have to go back to a lab and you could test in the millions and on a daily basis, then you could open up testing where it doesn t exist at the moment, perhaps opening up larger sports events and that sort of thing. professorjenny harries is deputy medical officer for england. she said it was realistic to believe testing would evolve and the ideal you would be able to get up and take a test was not unreasonable. as everybody knows, we are living in unprecedented times and having ambitious plans to try and get it all back to a degree of normality is actually really important for us. but i think there are two aspects. obviously the economic side of this and the cost is very much for politicians and ministers to weigh up the benefits of that. on the technical side, though, i mean, there are a number of tests already in the pipeline and they are being on the technical side, though, i mean, there are a number of tests already in the pipeline and they are being evaluated currently so i think the fact that there will be technical solutions if you like to provide a test, and relatively quickly in some cases, it is reasonable. i think perhaps some of my professional colleagues, clinical colleagues have highlighted that actually the implementation of that is quite challenging as well. so the idea that you get up and have a test, is not unreasonable at all in months, but in a reasonably short time frame. we can speak to our health correspondent nick triggle about these ambitious testing plans. the prime minister yesterday talked about this test are being simple, safe and scalable and it certainly needs to be scalable to get it done in the numbers but we need the tech to work on the materials are needed and logistical challenges to be worked out, so how realistic is the so called operation moonshot. worked out, so how realistic is the so-called operation moonshot. as implied by the name it is super ambitious and many experts don t think it can be achieved in the timescale that these leaked documents seem to be suggesting. a number of new technologies are emerging that involve rapid testing and can give test results in 20 minutes and some that you saliva instead of the swab is currently used which have to be stuck quite far down your throat and up your nose and can be uncomfortable. the benefit of these rapid testes at the moment tests have to be sent off to la bs moment tests have to be sent off to labs and they can take a day to process “ labs and they can take a day to process of these rapid testes. they can be done as quickly as 20 minutes and that s what they talk about mass population testing. and they are beginning to pilot these new technologies. there is a pilot going on in southampton amongst university students and a pilot starting in salford. i wanted to ask you about that because how useful can the pilots be if we apparently we don t have a test that is reliable yet, but as we heard today various members of the medical professors and scientists have expressed concerns about the test giving a false negative when somebody thinks they are negative but they are not. that is what the pilots have to find out. how reliable are they an do they actually work. that s the first problem and we have to work out whether these tests are feasible and feasible to use anyway, and that will take some time. there is relatively low levels of infection around so it will take some time to establish that but once we do that you have to manufacture these on scale and find a system to distribute them around the whole population. everyone i ve spoken to said this will take months. it won t be here for this winter. this winter we have got some very difficult decisions to take and a very fine line to tread between introducing restrictions that we had about last night. and containing the virus and also learning to live with the virus. and that allow society to function. and if you impose restrictions it has a huge cough in peoples health, education and the economy as well so and this distracts us from the immediate problems we face. people were talking about involving local public health officials rather than a centralised approach. i know you have some figures from the nhs which have some figures from the nhs which have just been released this morning for how various branches of the nhs are coping given the pressures caused by covid i9. what have you got for us? this is actually some good news. if we remember back at the peak of the pandemic hospitals emptied and they postponed a lot of surgeries and the numbers of people is coming forward to a&e dropped and there was concern that non coded related illnesses and conditions we re related illnesses and conditions were being ignored non covid i9 related. if we look at the figures today they show activity levels across cancer, routine treatments and a&e and routine treatments like hip operations are not returning to pre covid i9 levels but are getting there. in a&e there were 1.7 pre covid 19 levels but are getting there. in a&e there were 1.7 million people who came to the units in august which is up from 900,000 in april at the peak of the pandemic. cancer treatments, over 21,000 patients started their treatment. again, that s up on the last three months. those two services are about three quarters to 80% back to where they were last year so not quite back to pre covid 19 levels but getting there. routine operations, just over hundred and 40,000 operations done in july just over hundred and 40,000 operations done injuly and that is still about half the level you would expect but going on the right direction. that is good to hear. nick, good to speak to you. let s speak now to marie chabgay who has been trying to get a test for her daughter since yesterday morning. thank you forjoining us. how old is your daughter, first of all? she is eight. she is eight. and what symptoms of covid 19 does she have? she has a temperature and a slight cough. so, tell us about your effo rts cough. so, tell us about your efforts to get a test for her. what has been going on?” efforts to get a test for her. what has been going on? i have been trying since nine o clock yesterday morning. i rang 119 to speak to somebody and they told me that they did not have anywhere available and to keep trying. there were no home test kits available because they had reached their limit for the day. they just reached their limit for the day. theyjust said, keep trying the websites. cancellations happen all the time. i was refreshing every ten or 15 minutes. about six o clock yesterday evening, i got aberdeen and inverness. they seem to crop up and inverness. they seem to crop up a lot, don t they? aberdeen and inverness. i ve heard so many people say they have been offered a test in aberdeen or inverness, which usually, in these cases, is hundreds of miles away. busily there are people in the locality who might be very glad to get a test there but for a lot of people it is not practical to travel those distances are not safe to travel those distances. so at that point what did you think? it was kind of laughable. it would be a 600 mile round trip for me. there was nothing i could do apart from keep refreshing and at eight o clock the new set of appointments, out come out. so gloucester came up which is about 20 miles from myself and i kept trying to book an appointment for gloucester and it kept saying there was a problem. so it took about another half an hour to book an appointment which i got for this afternoon. so you have at last got an appointment and that is going to be key to allow you and your daughter, and i think your son as well, i believe, to get back to school and for you to be able to do the things that you need to do. as a matter of interest, how will you get there? will you be able to drive to that test centre? yeah, i do need to drive. i m waiting for an operation on my elbow at the moment, so i m not meant to be driving long distances, so it will be have a drive, stop for a rest, drive, stop for a rest. my daughter needs to test so there s not a lot i can do about it, really. given the experience you have gone through over the last 24 hours, how do you feel about the system as it stands? it s not the best. i mean, with the children going back to school in the large bubbles they are in, there will be lots and lots of bugs going around. the child ren s will be lots and lots of bugs going around. the children s immune systems, with all of us being in isolation for so long and for so many months, children are going to be getting every bug out there at the moment. but with the common colds or sicknesses, children will be getting temperatures and coughs and with the policies at the moment, all of these children will need to be tested. so you d like to see a system that offers you something locally, a little bit faster, basically. summing up from what you seen to be saying, marie. yeah. we need something a little bit faster and a little bit closer to home in orderfor us to get and a little bit closer to home in order for us to get tested a bit more quickly, and to get back to school and back to work. i m going to keep my fingers crossed for your daughter that it is just a minor bug are nothing more serious, certainly not covid 19, but thank you very much for telling us your story. students arriving at universities in england this autumn should not return home in the event of a local outbreak, under new advice set out by the government. the prime minister said it was to avoid spreading the virus across the country. the guidance also says that higher education providers may wish to introduce their own testing programmes for staff and students. the university and college union has called for testing on campuses to be scaled up to help manage the risks. meanwhile, in the us, president trump has defended his decision to play down the danger posed by coronavirus at the start of the pandemic, saying he didn t want to create panic. he made the admission to the veteran journalist bob woodward in a recorded interview. his election rivaljoe biden has accused mr trump of knowingly and willingly lying to the american people. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials today about the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement, in breach of international law. borisjohnson has urged mps to support the bill but some senior figures in his party have warned that trust in the uk will be damaged if the plans go ahead. the outcome of the meeting will affect the future of the ongoing talks between the eu and britain about a trade agreement. our political correspondent jess parkerjoins us now from westminster. hello to you. it sounds like the eu officials involved in this they are going to be meeting at michael gove, and they really want to look him directly in the eye as it were and see what he has to say about all of this. what is going on now is we have two parallel sets of talks happening in london today, so you have michel barnier and lord frost talking about our future trading relationships and hoping to reach a deal before the end of the year when the transition period ends, but then also hotfooting it over to london todayis also hotfooting it over to london today is the vice president of the european commission, and he will be talking to michael gove, senior minister, cabinet office minister, and they are a separate group and have been looking at how to interpret bringing into effect the withdrawal agreement, the divorce settle m e nt withdrawal agreement, the divorce settlement that has already been signed, sealed and delivered. so we will have these two sets of talks going on in parallel but very much linked, because the european union have made it clear as far as they are concerned honouring the withdrawal agreement as they see it would be crucial to agreeing a future relationship, because of course, what a lot of this comes down to, they say, is trust, trust in the uk to honour that agreement. but from the uk s point of view they are saying we need a fallback plan if things don t work out in talks don t resolve some of these issues, to make sure that the uk s internal market remains free and flowing, protect peace in northern ireland, so they have drawn up this bill would put which would hand ministers the power to modify parts of the agreement going forward which has caused outrage in some circles, not least amongst some conservative party grandees who think the uk s reputation will be damaged if it goes down this path. having said that, some will maybe read this as sabre rattling by downing street but this is a crucial week because the government has said that there needs to be progress this week if there are to be hopes of reaching a deal in time, and of course the tone of this week has been very much set by the emergence of this legislation that has proved so controversial. jess, thank you very much. meanwhile, one of america s most important politicians, nancy pelosi, has told london there will be absolutely no chance of a us/uk trade deal if boris johnson overrides the brexit deal with brussels. in a statement on wednesday, ms pelosi who, as speaker, holds the top job in the us congress s house of representatives said: the uk must respect the northern ireland protocol as signed with the eu to ensure the free flow of goods across the border. she went on to say that, if the uk violates that international treaty and brexit undermines the good friday accord, there will be absolutely no chance of a us uk trade agreement passing the congress. she concludes by saying that, the good friday agreement is treasured by the american people and will be proudly defended in the united states congress. the greek government is trying to find shelter for thousands of migrants, who were forced to flee a camp on the island of lesbos after it was destroyed by fire. the blaze ripped through the moria camp late on tuesday, with a second fire wiping out remaining tents on wednesday. mark lobel has the latest. hundreds of unaccompanied children leave for greece s mainland from theirfire ravaged camp on the island of lesbos. just as new fires began destroying parts of the camp that had been spared the initial onslaught. the greek government says the original fire was caused by protesters after 35 residents who had tested positive for coronavirus were isolated. strong winds then fanned the flames in a tinderbox where families crammed into a space meant to house just a quarter of the 13,000 men, women and children who were placed there. these new fires at europe s largest refugee camp have opened up old wounds. after afghanis, syrians and iraqis headed for a new life in europe, a deal struck four years ago with turkey has was meant to offer accommodation there. but the problem was pushed onto greek shores is the closest destination. and now look. the truth of the matter is that people on the greek island welcome the refugees years ago but after so many years of continuous flows, there has been a lot of fatigue in local communities. the german government is under pressure at home to urgently house more migrants. demonstrators in berlin and frankfurt insist there is room. translation: the situation is such that the people there could simply come here to live normal lives instead of having to go to hell. that s why we are here, we are saying the city of frankfurt has room and so does germany. but angela merkel, who once opened the doors wide to migrants, is now more reluctant. she hopes this tragedy will give new impetus to the likes of poland, hungary and the czech republic to share the burden. for five years we ve been saying this is untenable, why are we doing this to human beings? why aren t we finding some sort of solution for them, whether it s the mainland or other parts of europe? there are so many other options than the inhumanity which has befallen these people. and now another challenge. as the coronavirus pandemic pushes the problem of migration further into the open. could it also make it more difficult for economically strapped countries to open their borders and keep the pandemic at bay? mark lobel, bbc news. our correspondent, bethany bell, hasjust arrived in lesbos and has the latest. there are people behind me who have taken shelter under the olive trees. some just sitting on the open road. the people we ve spoken to here say they come from afghanistan. they said that they tried to go back to the camp last night but couldn t, and spent the night here, and this whole road has been blocked off by the police and we ve seen people, migrants, trying to leave the area and the police shouting at them saying, no, no, covid, go back, go back. a state of emergency has been declared here. some people, over 400 unaccompanied minors, have been taken to mainland greece but many other migrants like the people you see behind me are out in the fields without shelter. greek authorities on thursday were racing to shelter thousands a number of children have been taken to hospital with injuries after a school bus hit a railway bridge in winchester. the roof of the bus was sheared completely off in the incident. an air ambulance has been at the scene on wellhouse lane. none of the injuries are life threatening though some are serious. others are walking wounded. parents are currently collecting children who all attended henry beaufort school. network rail s interim report on the stonehaven rail crash has been published this morning. it found that the train, which derailed nearly a month ago in aberdeenshire, struck a pile of washed out rock and gravel before derailing. it sets out plans to assess thousands of miles of sloped ground beside railway tracks to reduce the risk of landslips in the future. global wildlife populations have fallen by more than two thirds in the last 50 years, according to a major report by the conservation group wwf. the report warns that nature is being destroyed by humans at a rate never seen before and that the catastrophic decline shows no sign of slowing. it blames burning forests, over fishing and the destruction of habitats. joining me now is mike barrett, the executive director of conservation and science at the world wildlife fund for nature. thanks forjoining us today to talk about the living planet report, 2020, and as we spoke of, nature being destroyed by humans at a rate never seen before is the desperately sad conclusion of the report. give us an sad conclusion of the report. give us an example of some species that are being affected by what you are talking about. i m afraid that is right. as this report shows, wildlife population size has plummeted by an average of 68% by 1970 across the world and doesn t show signs of slowing down. this really matters, because wildlife needs to be regarded as a barometer for the broader environmental condition of the planet as a whole. we need to bear in mind that nature is the fundamental underpinning for our well being and for the health of humanity and it also underpins a healthy economy, and let s think about this if we compared it to an economy. if you saw a 68% decline in gdp that would be like wiping the ten biggest economies of the face of the planet and that is the scale of what we have done. in terms of species, it extends from iconic megafauna like the african elephant in steep decline, right down to the dormouse and the water bowl in the uk. the reason behind this is the degree to which we are changing our land as a result of our need to produce food. 75% of the earth s surface is now altered by humanity and half of that is now given over to agriculture, two thirds of which is used to produce livestock and to grow crops to feed those livestock. that is what is driving the losses that we are afraid to be reporting today. i just that we are afraid to be reporting today. ijust want that we are afraid to be reporting today. i just want to be that we are afraid to be reporting today. ijust want to be clear that we are afraid to be reporting today. i just want to be clear about this. are we talking about something that has been decades and decades in the making reaching critical mass, and therefore affecting populations of certain species, or are we talking about some pretty quick causes and effects? well, the data we presented a goes back to 1970 and the decline has been going on for a period of decades. the concern is that it period of decades. the concern is thatitis period of decades. the concern is that it is still continuing at a severe rate and the crucial thing in the report we are presenting today is that we also include new research which very clearly demonstrates that it is still not too late to turn this around. in fact, if we were to act quickly, immediately, with ambition, we can actually reverse these losses within this decade. let mejust pick you up on these losses within this decade. let me just pick you up on that. we can reverse losses within a decade. absolutely important to talk about this, because you look initially at the findings of this report and it looks incredibly gloomy and depressing, frankly, but this is significant new research from a global group of scientist that confirms for the first time that the actions that can be taken to reverse this. so tell us what needs to be done. this is crucial. it shows the importance of conservation and it is clear we need to be more ambitious in our conservation activities, but it shows that that alone is not enough and can never be enough. if we wa nt enough and can never be enough. if we want to reverse these losses and we want to reverse these losses and we wa nt we want to reverse these losses and we want to reverse these losses and we want to sent nature on the path to recovery, what we need to do, and the research is clear about this, is we have to change the way we produce and consume food. that means things like restoring degraded agricultural lands. it means eliminating food waste. we waste a third of all the food we produce. it means changing diet. eating less meat, which we over consume, and crucially it also means we have to get those products which drive deforestation out of our supply chains. we have to remember that here in the uk we are importing products that are driving deforestation in places like the amazon, and in south america, and we need regulation to help with that immediately. mike, really good to hear that there are positive steps that can be taken. a very important report from wwf. mike barrett, the executive director of conservation with wwf uk. wildfires are still burning out of control along parts of the west coast of the united states. the governor of the state of oregon has said the fires could bring about the greatest loss in human lives and property in her state s history. in california, three people have died in butte county, north east of san francisco. wildfires are still burning out of control along parts of the west smoke and ash have turned the sky a dark orange. tim allman reports. this is san francisco in the middle of the day. the city by the bay almost unrecognisable. look at the golden gate bridge. the same colour as the dark orange sky surrounding it. smoke and ash blocking out the sun making it feel like the end of the world. 11.15. crazy. 11.15 in the morning. and it s like the middle of the night almost. they are saying it s coming all the way from oregon, which is hundreds of miles away. it looks like the apocalypse right now. it s like night time in the daytime. in los angeles, the sky is a more normal colour but the smoke is still there. a hazy mist enveloping most of the city and this is the reason. just one of the fires burning out of control here in california and also further north. this was a trailer park in the town of medford, oregon. there s not much left of it now. the fire has ripped through it. destroying property, destroying lives. sheriffs coming through going, level three, get out. get out . and, yeah, grabbed some papers and stuff. this is it. this is what i ve got. what you are wearing right now? this is what i ve got. i m so sorry. for oregon, this has been described as a once in a generation event and it a similar story for neighbouring states. this fire season is unprecedented. the flames continue to burn. tim allman, bbc news. meanwhile, here in the uk, levying a tax on frequent flyers and banning cars from city centres are among the climate change solutions members of the public have come up with, as part of the country s first citizen s assembly on the environment. more than 100 people looked at the changes needed to cut greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. our science correspondent rebecca morelle has more. our planet is heating up fast. with greenhouse gases causing temperatures to rise. now the uk s first climate assembly has a plan to tackle this. launched by sir david attenborough, the assembly brought together people from across the country to give their views on combating climate change. this report covers every aspect of our lives. it recommends stopping the sales of the most polluting cars. forfood, the suggestion is that we reduce the amounts of meat and dairy we need by up to 40% and the assembly members don t want to ban air travel, but they do say taxes should increase the further and more often we fly. leah, a student, and ibrahim, a gp, both took part. obviously we are a representation of the people and it s very important that the government listens because, as it s going now, climate change is a big issue and there s going to be big effects in my lifetime. there are also lots of little contributions that each person can do on a day to day basis and i would like to think that everyone as they look at this report will say, right, how can i as an individual improve my carbon emissions? energy was also looked at and offshore wind farms got the biggest backing while protecting forests and planting trees was also widely supported. the report has a vision for a greener future and will now be submitted to parliament. it should reveal which policies may or may not receive wider public support. rebecca morelle, bbc news. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines. plans for a huge increase in covid testing in britain. operation moonshot hopes to do ten million daily tests by early next year. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials later over the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement. thousands of migrants desperately seek shelter after a camp on the greek island of lesbos was destroyed by fire. three people die as wildfires continue to rage in california, which is in the middle of a 20 year mega drought. wildlife populations are plummeting across the world according to a stark new report from the world wide fund for nature. with virus cases rising in england, prime minister boris johnson has said we must act to avoid another lockdown. yesterday he set out a new rule of six , restricting gatherings to a maximum of six people, enforced with fines or arrests. he also outlined a moonshot plan to control the virus with mass testing. it comes as the uk reported another 2,659 coronavirus cases, the fourth day running of over 2,000 reported cases. so how will the new measures affect providers of services primarily in a group or social environment? well, we can speak now to sedona ferguson, owner of goldilocks entertainment. and to sally morash, co founder of party cloud, an online hub for parties, weddings and baby showers thank you both so much forjoining us thank you both so much forjoining us today. let s begin with you, tell us us today. let s begin with you, tell us what the situation was like for you during the height of lockdown and then had things started to improve as the restrictions were eased over the last couple of months? yes, during lockdown i took my party is online and made a virtual birthday parties so children could still celebrate so they varied from frozen parties to tick tock learning dance routine parties, and they happened in the comfort of their own home and they could invite friends from all over the world to those parties. then, as we saw the restriction is easing, ijust started to get bookings for live events again which is really exciting. but now, with those restrictions which are being put in place, it means those events will have to be cancelled and i have children expecting birthday parties next week. of course, we can offer them a virtual party as an alternative but it s a very confusing time for children. alternative but it s a very confusing time for childrenlj alternative but it s a very confusing time for children. i guess when you look at the rule of six, people are very, very limited. if you are there as an entertainment provider and one other adult then you can only have four children. yes, exactly, and even if they are siblings, they may only have one other friend and i siblings, they may only have one otherfriend and i think siblings, they may only have one other friend and i think this siblings, they may only have one otherfriend and i think this is especially confusing as children go back to school this week. children are now spending five days a week with their friends in groups of 30 and can play with their friends at playtime, all day with them in the classroom, but the new rules say as soon as they leave the school gates they can t socialise with their friends any more and i think that s very confusing, especially for those who have planned birthday parties in the coming weeks. sadly, tell us what the last few months have been like for you with your business. good morning, to be honest retailers our business really quick because we are online, we are lucky we can adapt our business quickly anyway. it was a huge blow to us and our suppliers when we first went into lockdown obviously. like has been discussed, we had to quickly tailor parties and luckily our suppliers are very creative so are doing great alternatives, so it s a huge blow. we found that over the last couple of weeks, we noticed a huge influx of weeks, we noticed a huge influx of bookings, and the announcement this week has had a huge effect on that. a lot of our suppliers have found that they are already receiving phone calls from customers worried and perhaps don t understand what they can and can t do. so already we are seeing cancellations coming in and deposits being refunded which has a huge effect on these businesses that rely so heavily on that money coming through ona heavily on that money coming through on a regular basis. that s interesting hearing about the cancellations, refunds having to be handed out. do you think that that is an initial reaction and people still want to celebrate parties during lockdown and other special occasions, do you think that s an initial reaction, the cancellation, and people will pretty quickly start to think how can we do this event in an alternative way? definitely. it s an alternative way? definitely. it s a knee jerk reaction and we always see this with any announcement which comes through. safety is always a priority for us and any business, especially regarding children. first and foremost that s a huge priority to us so we know there s going to be the initial reaction but it s about how we can get the customers to trust safety is so important with us. trust safety is so important with us. you know, we found that a lot of our suppliers, they could postpone. there s been a lot of bookings for this weekend which have been moved to this weekend so we are very busy this weekend. but, yeah, this is hopefully just temporary for this weekend. but, yeah, this is hopefullyjust temporary for now and we ve got so many alternatives for customers so i m not concerned about it going forward. we ve got some fantastic ideas on there where, for example, zoom parties are hugely popular. we have got entertainers who are adapting their businesses. i think this isjust who are adapting their businesses. i think this is just temporary and i m not concerned going forward. have you been surprised, i know people got back to and said this online party was one of the best we ve had, have you been surprised people have taken to doing parties in this way because one might imagine that actually something like that online would never be a replacement for physically being in the same place in the same building or whatever venue as everyone else? yeah, i think that was amazing actually. obviously we had to adapt quickly and get so imaginative to be able to hold peoples attention over a screen. it was very exciting. we got very imaginative, we had scavenger hunt parties, dance parties, and the feedback was wonderful. what s really magical about doing parties online is it allows children to invite friends from all over the world so i had a mac little lady from sweden who can invite her friends from england, a boy who invited his friends from bali and bahrain. grandparents who are isolated, and some of the feedback was amazing. they said it was the best party we ve had in lockdown and what s important is sometimes we get so distracted by these huge events but at the core of what makes these things special, and important, it s communication. we are almost out of time. are you fundamentally, despite the cancellations and the difficulties and the need to adapt, are you fundamentally reasonably optimistic about the future for your businesses? definitely, yeah. this is not as bad as it was originally in lockdown. before, obviously, we we re really in lockdown. before, obviously, we were really concerned at that point but not at all. we ve got some fantastic alternatives on there. we ve got our virtual parties, fantastic contacts coming through from our suppliers on a daily basis. i m not concerned. it sjust over the next few weeks we need to make sure our customers understand there are so many sure our customers understand there are so many alternatives and safety is our priority. you are having to a nswer is our priority. you are having to answer all sorts of difficult questions i guess from people about what you can and can t do but fundamentally are you reasonably optimistic about your business and what the future holds? absolutely. one thing this has taught us is you have to be adaptable and we are and we can be. i ve seen my business grow in many ways despite the difficulties put in place, so i feel really optimistic i can still have a magical birth date and do these events so i m very positive. i feel like a magical birth date are even more important in these times and other special events as well. thank you both very much. ronald khalis bell a founder member of the soul funk band kool and the gang has died. he was sixty eight. born in ohio, he started the band with his brother robert kool bell. their biggest hits include celebration , ladies night and jungle boogie . ronald died at his home in the us virgin islands. the cause of death hasn t been specified. the headlines on bbc news. plans for a huge increase in covid testing in britain operation moonshot hopes to do ten million daily tests by early next year. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials later over the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement. thousands of migrants desperately seek shelter after a camp on the greek island of lesbos was destroyed by fire. the first formal talks between afghan officials and the taliban are expected to begin in the coming days. but throughout the lead up to the negotiations, fighting has continued. and a new tactic of targeted assassinations in the capital kabul has rattled politicians and human rights groups. with a number of prominent women amongst the victims, it s fuelling concerns the peace process could result in a rolling back of the fragile progress made on women s rights in the country. secunder kermani reports. starred in and directed crime dramas. in real life too, she worked with the afghan police. as a woman ina with the afghan police. as a woman in a conservative country, she helped to push boundaries. but now she is recovering in hospital after being shot multiple times on her way to work. i rushed to the scene of the attack and saw her crouching. that s where she had been fighting with a gunman. by the time i got there, they had all gone away. i put my wife in my car and took to hospitalfor my wife in my car and took to hospital for first my wife in my car and took to hospitalforfirst aid. my wife in my car and took to hospital for first aid. huge suicide bombings had become regular tragedies in cobble but since the taliban signed an agreement with the united states earlier this year, there have been far fewer. united states earlier this year, there have been farfewer. at united states earlier this year, there have been far fewer. at least in the capital. but that doesn t mean the bloodshed has ended. in recent weeks, there has been a spate of assassination attempt in the city. targeting pro government liberal figures. city. targeting pro government liberalfigures. a city. targeting pro government liberal figures. a number of city. targeting pro government liberalfigures. a number of them women. she is a prominent politician and member of the team due to held negotiations with the taliban. she survived a shooting last month. the taliban denied responsibility. the attacks seem to be attempt to suppress strong voices ahead of crucial talks. she insists though she won t be silenced. when it comes to expressing my views and i do not ta ke to expressing my views and i do not take this lightly. it s given me more strength from a point of view where i could see the public stood by me. men have also been targeted in the assassination attempts. yesterday, a bomb exploded close to the convoy of the vice president. no one is clear exactly who was responsible. but the attacks on female figures in particular are feeding into fears about what the future will look like for afghan women. mother of three, razia, has runa women. mother of three, razia, has run a small bakery for more than ten yea rs run a small bakery for more than ten years now. under taliban rule in the 19905, years now. under taliban rule in the 1990s, women were not allowed to work. that s no longer the official policy of the group but many still worry upcoming peace talks could meana worry upcoming peace talks could mean a step backwards for women s rights. if the taliban come to power, i don t know if i ll be able to continue here, she says. i have lots of problems at home. my mother is sick and we can t afford the treatment. if not me, who will support my family? this is a city which has enjoyed so much pain. there is cautious hope for peace but also fear and uncertainty. i want to bring you up to date date now with some news from earlier, a bus crash, school bus crash which hit a railway bridge in winchester earlier today, a number of children taken to hospital with injuries after this incident in which the roof of the bus was sheared completely off. this is an image we have now for you of the vehicle involved. we have some details about the school on board now from the incident commander there. 57 and injured passengers, 12 with minor injuries, three children with minor injuries, three children with serious injuries but not life threatening thankfully, and five people in total taken to southampton general hospital. an air ambulance attended the scene but didn t take anyone in it and we don t believe the driver of the bus has been injured. this happened on the way to school this morning. children who attend the henry beaufort school, a shocking incident there. three serious injuries but not life threatening we are told as a result of this incident where the bus hit a railway bridge and the roof of the bus, as you can see, sheared off in that incident. let s bring you some news are developing from belarus. opposition politician maria kolesnikova said authorities put a bag over her head and threatened to kill her when they tried to forcibly deport her earlier this week. her lawyer reportedly said kolesnikova was seeking legal action against the authorities, including the belarusian kgb. as we were hearing earlier, students arriving at universities in england this autumn are being told no to return home in the event of a local coronavirus outbreak. the government s also suggested that universities and colleges introduce their own testing programmes for staff and students. the guidance comes as exeter university has signed a contract, thought to be the first of its kind in the uk, with the company halo, involving tens of thousands of potential saliva tests this academic year. let s speak now to sean fielding, head of the coronavirus testing programme at the university of exeter. thank you very much. so when did you decide to act on this, because it seems like a very sensible way forward , seems like a very sensible way forward, so how long has this been in the planning? we have been working on our plans for coming back to university pretty much the moment the lockdown happened. in fact, in many ways, the university has never shut, people have been doing covid research and undertaking all kinds of work on our campuses, but we saw the need to do testing for students as one of the key things that we should be preparing for and, over the summer, we ve been looking at loads of different routes for this and we ve ended up thinking that a saliva test particularly is really important because it s a much easier thing to do, less off putting, and the crucial thing for us is speed. we needed to get people to get identified as having a risk quickly, so we could isolate them so the rest of the community could carry on and people around us were not affected. how reliable is this test you have ordered up and how often would you envisage students having this? a weekly test for the university population or specifically having the test if they show symptoms? the testis the test if they show symptoms? the test is based on the normal test that people have if you go to a national testing centre, just use a saliva rather than putting something up saliva rather than putting something up your nose and down your throat. it equally accurate. there are some studies which say saliva is found in higher concentration, the infection, than in your nose, so in some ways it might be more accurate. we are, at the moment, intending to start this on people who have symptoms, so they will call our rapid response harbour which we have established, and to get a tester delivered to them immediately, within the next hour, and the idea is we will get a response back having sent it off to the lab in less than 24 hours. in some cases, as little as 12. we did samples some cases, as little as 12. we did sa m ples yesterday some cases, as little as 12. we did samples yesterday and found we could do it in11 samples yesterday and found we could do it in 11 hours, so that s great. our initial policy is a people of symptoms but then we are working up a plan for targeting groups that we think are vulnerable or have come from areas where there is a higher infection rate. you need to be adaptable, don t you? if you discover through examining your own data that there must be people who are asymptomatic, then you need to do something a little bit different. the approach needs to be different, doesn t it? absolutely, and this community is a young community, in many ways, and more likely to be asymptomatic, so they will be going around with an infection not realising they got it and they could be infecting other people. that could explode very quickly. what role does cost what will this cost? the total package for all of our returns to work as a multi million pound package and we have been developing that over several months, so this is just one pa rt several months, so this is just one part of the total. we think it s worth investing in this because it s going to give us peace of mind, give stu d e nts going to give us peace of mind, give students peace of mind in our communities around us peace of mind overall but it s a huge effort and a huge investment overall in making our campuses covid secured. finally and briefly, how much of a difference will this make in terms of the university experience both for students and all the staff? how close do you think you can get to normal with this programme? obviously we have to abide by all the national rules. and so it won t be the same experience, but we try all the time to give a first class student experience for people coming to exeter and we hope by having a testing programme alongside all those other effects will enable us to get as close to possible to a proper exeter experience and we hope our students who come this year will end up at the same sort of memories and opportunities as the students who have come in previous years. ok, very interesting to talk to you. thank you very much. while the coronavirus pandemic has revealed just how hard and dangerous thejob of nursing can be, it s also prompted a huge amount of public appreciation for the work they do. that might explain why applications to train as a nurse in britain are up by 16% the highest number in five years. phil mackie has been to meet some of the new recruits. these were some of the most uplifting images during lockdown. every week across the country we gathered to thank health care workers. up the nhs. this is the next generation already getting used to the new normal. and if you re working on the front line you need to be taught how to deal with unruly and aggressive patients. these first year paramedics are part of a new wave of people signing up for these types of courses. nursing, of course, as well. and that s largely because of what s happened over the past six months. ok, in your own time. off you go. in worcester, they ve doubled the number of health care students and have added an extra intake next year. we ve got a record year of nursing students who have started with us this september. they are very much from our local area but they are even more committed than usual because i think so many have been inspired to go into nursing by the effects of the pandemic. has that been a key factor, do you think? well, we are always very popular for nursing at worcester, but there has undoubtedly been a group of people who have been able to see what a valuable role nurses play in society. hi, patrick. my name is ricky. more men are applying too. 5% may not sound a lot but ricky baker, who used to be a children s entertainer, is about to graduate as a paediatric nurse, a discipline where there are very few men. he is up for some national awards too and has picked up plenty of hands on experience during the pandemic. i ve learned a lot about myself, about the resilience i need to be a nurse, and also to maintain that passion and always remember why i wanted to be a nurse. i think that nursing is such a varied wide profession, so people have seen the actual admiration of the nurses and what we do and the role of the nurse, and that is the big attraction because actually nurses are being recognised for the amazing work that we do do. many people who have lost theirjobs because of the pandemic see it as a chance to change careers. mike travelled the world is a skincare specialist in the beauty industry. for it to last so long and be forced out of work was really quite scary. i m an independent adult so i wanted a job that i knew i could have indefinitely until the end of time. i think there s kind of two types of people during the covid pandemic. people that want to help and people that want to stay away and stay safe, and both are ok. but i m more of a person where i feel like there s a lot of people out there that are vulnerable and need help and i m someone that can provide that help. just line up with the thumb there, so that s where you take the pulse. yes, i can feel that there. now he enrolled on a new course at university college birmingham. at 32, he s far from the oldest student on this year s intake. the whole covid 19 pandemic has raised awareness nationwide as to the extent of the work of nurses and has made people realise that it is a really high skilled profession and there is security and jobs at the end of degree programmes. the new students hope that when they graduate in three year s time the pandemic is over but the high regard in which they are held remains. phil mackie, bbc news, worcester. now, here s a new concept from japan that might have you on the edge of your seat the transparent toilet. this unusual new public toilet block has been erected in a park in tokyo. the glass cubicles are almost completely see through but thankfully, the walls turn opaque as soon as you lock the door. which isjust as which is just as well, isn t it? you re watching bbc news. martin will take you through to one o clock injusta will take you through to one o clock injust a few will take you through to one o clock in just a few minutes time but first, here is the weather forecast with matt taylor. hello. another burst of summer warmth on the horizon for many of you but for the time being, we are into slightly fresher spells of weather. a cool start to today but for most a dry day and it stays that day. for the rest of the day, as well. isolated showers in the west, but it s the north and west of scotland where the main showers will be. some of them becoming heavy in the afternoon as the breeze picks up. once you get breaks in the sunshine, feeling quite pleasant. not as humid as the south. 17-19. 11 13 in the north of west of scotland. overnight, showers to begin with in western scotland but those showers eventually merge together and we ll see longer spells of rain tomorrow morning. the odd shower in northern ireland. many places dry on friday morning but a little on the cool side with temperatures in the countryside in single figures, especially the further south you are where the high pressure system is there. low pressure in scotland and northern ireland pushing persistent rain through the morning through the west of scotland. heavy rains in northern ireland during the second half of the morning and the rain slicing through scotland and northern england in the afternoon which means it brightens up for sunshine and showers but a windy day. 13 15 miles an hour in the south. england and wales spending the bulk of the day dry. except north west england and north west wales as the rain arrives later. that pushes southwards at the start of the weekend but not much in the way of rain. a zone of thicker cloud and the odd isolated shower. england and wales start the day dry with sunshine. later in the day, in particular, we will see heavy and persistent rain arrive. temperatures similar to friday. starting to lift a little bit across the south. saturday night, persistent rain in scotland. minorflooding in the hills in the west to take us into sunday. sunday, the rain returns later but as we go into the afternoon, glasgow, edinburgh, southwards, longer spells of sunshine and temperatures more widely into the 20s because as low pressure and high pressure switch position, we bring in a southerly wind which will give us a boost of late summer warmth. temperatures could peak in the south east around 28 degrees. goodbye for now. this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. plans for a huge increase in covid testing in britain operation moonshot hopes to do 10 million daily tests by early next year. the idea is to have a test which will be carried out at the location, a bit likea will be carried out at the location, a bit like a pregnancy test provides a bit like a pregnancy test provides a very quick result, and that would com pletely a very quick result, and that would completely revolutionise things. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials later over the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement. a number of children are injured some seriously after a school bus hit a railway bridge in winchester in southern england. it all fell in on top of everyone. there was glass everywhere and eve ryo ne there was glass everywhere and everyone started screaming. we all managed to get off and down the stairs and out. thousands of migrants desperately seek shelter after a camp on the greek island of lesbos was destroyed by fire. three people die as wildfires continue to rage in california, which is in the middle of a 20 year mega drought. wildlife populations are plummeting across the world, according to a stark new report from the world wide fund for nature. hello, and welcome if you re watching in the uk or around the world ? and stay with us for the latest news and analysis from here and across the globe. iam martin i am martin cox. britain s plans for a huge increase in coronavirus testing could cost tens of billions of pounds, according an to leaked official documents. the papers set out how borisjohnson s so called moonshot programme could work, with an aim of 3 million coronavirus tests per day available by december, and up to 10 million early next year. the details of the project emerged yesterday, as the prime minister set out a ban on gatherings of more than six people in england. speaking this morning, the transport secretary grant shapps admitted this type of test didn t exist at the moment, but claimed it could have the power to revolutionise the way testing is done. we ll have a moonshot attempt, in other words, something which doesn t exist at the moment. we are going to have to work on the science and technology, but the idea is to have a test which could be carried out at the location, a bit like a pregnancy test provides a very quick result. and that would completely revolutionise things. if you imagine the test doesn t have to go back to a lab and you could test in the millions and on a daily basis, then you could open up testing where it doesn t exist at the moment, perhaps opening up larger sports events and that sort of thing. the transport secretary grant shapps there. professorjenny harries is deputy medical officer for england. she said it was realistic to believe testing would evolve and the idea you would be able to get up and take a test was not unreasonable. as everybody knows, we are living in unprecedented times and having ambitious plans to try and get it all back to a degree of normality is actually really important for us. but i think there are two aspects. obviously the economic side of this and the cost is very much for politicians and ministers to weigh up the benefits of that. on the technical side, though, i mean, there are a number of tests already in the pipeline and they are being evaluated currently so i think the fact that there will be technical solutions if you like to provide a test, and relatively quickly in some cases, it is reasonable. i think perhaps some of my professional colleagues, clinical colleagues have highlighted that actually the implementation of that is quite challenging as well. so the idea that you get up and have a test, is not unreasonable at all in months, but in a reasonably short time frame. professorjenny harries, deputy medical officer for england. joining me now is public health physician gabriel scally, who is also a member of a group set up to provide an alternative to the government s official scientific advisors, known as sage. thank you very much forjoining us here on bbc news. we will talk about this operation moonshot in a moment, but first let s talk about these restrictions that are being brought in again, if you like, from monday, restricting the number of people who can meet in england to six. what is your view of the necessity of that decision? well, there is a need for action. unfortunately, the number of people testing positive is going up. i would suspect within the next week or two that will start translating into hospital admissions and more deaths, but the situation does require action, but the question is will this work? now, when we were in lockdown some of the communities, and some of them are very deprived communities with really major housing problems and substantial numbers of people from ethnic minorities, particularly in the north west of england, even lethal lockdown didn t manage to bring the virus under control in those local authorities. so i don t really see how this one fairly minor adjustment about six people is going to work. and then secondly, it is completely out of step and people know this with what the government is trying to do and what the prime ministers try to do, trying to force people back into the workplace, open up the high streets, get people shopping again, schools and universities. it all doesn t quite add up i think to the average man or woman on the street. what would add up? what would be a clear, effective message and process? i think it is the process business and it is good that we are getting the chance to talk about this, the moonshot because putting in place an effective working system of find, test, trace, isolate and support is what is neededin isolate and support is what is needed in this is something that the sage committee, which i am a member, has been arguing for months now. and the government has not put that in place. it has set up a hugely expensive nhs test and trace national system, run by the private sector, which has failed. it has com pletely sector, which has failed. it has completely failed. it was meant to be world class and it was meant to be world class and it was meant to be fully operational by the end of september and here we are halfway through september and it is a shambles. if we want we can go on to talk about moonshot and. yes, let s do that in a second, if i may, but i just want to draw your attention to a statement we have had from the department of health and social care, saying, contradicting what your group, which has of course been critical repeatedly of the government s approach, they are saying that the nhs test entry system is working, that it is breaking trains of transmission and managing to reach 80% of contacts, where contact information is available, that they are already processing 1 million tests every week. they also make the point that week. they also make the point that we are all responsible, surely, for doing the right thing. it is hardly the fault of the system if people do not comply and provide contacts or can t provide contacts or refused to be tested when asked? well, that is a valid point, but what is happening is that where there are local systems and local public health england people working with local authorities, they are doing extraordinarily well at contacts. it isa extraordinarily well at contacts. it is a national bit of the system that isn t working and what the people at age are advocating is we move all that huge resource, billions of pounds, and we give that to produce local responses and local contact tracing because that is more effective and it involves community and ethnic minority leaders and the local nhs and gps, and that is really the way forward and that is what is missing, sage thinks. let s talk, just very briefly then, about operation moonshot and decided that there will be enough tests, potentially 10 million, available each day next year. not ready at the moment, but how helpful would that be if it came to thracian? just briefly. if it came to fruition, it would be helpful, but i think it is in the realm of fantasy. we have had the fantasies before about how an antibody test was going to sort everything out for us, nhs test entries was going to be world class and you know, as for moonshot, well, landing something on the moon. you know, this is not even hitting a barn door with their current strategy. in fact, they don t have a strategy. in fact, they don t have a strategy. what is their strategy to do with the virus? they don t give any indication of where they are trying to get us to or how they are going to get there. the best indicator of future performance is past performance and on that basis, one can t have any confidence at all that moonshot will ever get off the ground, let alone reach the moon. we hope to be hearing more about it from the health secretary, matt hancock, very shortly. dr gabriel scally, a member of the independent sage group, thank you for your time. thank you. senior uk ministers will hold emergency talks with eu officials today about the government s plan to override parts of the brexit withdrawal agreement, in breach of international law. borisjohnson has urged mps to support the bill, but some senior figures in his party have warned that trust in the uk will be damaged if the plans go ahead. the outcome of the meeting will affect the future of the ongoing talks between the eu and britain about a trade agreement. our political correspondent, iain watson, joins us now from westminster. how high risk is this as an idea? how high risk is this as an idea7m is high risk if you assume that the government actually want to get a trade deal with the european union, rather than simply clearing the ground for a new deal scenario when we leave the transition period and leave the eu s rules behind at the end of this year. if they want to get a dealfrom end of this year. if they want to get a deal from the trade talks, which are taking place later on today when the chief negotiators, lord frost on the uk side and michel barnier on the eu side will meet, those talks will i think be under a bit of a shadow because of what is called the internal market bill that has been published by the government, which does explicitly state that it would effectively overrule any international law. there is a phrase in it that says, notwithstanding international domestic law. that would mean the government would be taking powers to itself unilaterally to decide how some parts of the withdrawal agreement they have been negotiated with the eu last year would be implemented and it looks as though we are going to have a bit of a showdown at high noon because this emergency meeting you referred to was requested by the european union and around lunchtime today there will be a meeting between the eu and michael gove, the cabinet office minister is meant to be overseeing preparations at the end of the eu transition period and the eu s vice president arrived in london this morning for that meeting and this morning for that meeting and this is what he said. i call for extraordinary meeting of the joint committee, which is to take place in a couple of hours and i came here to express serious concerns for the eu. the european union has proposed a bill, so that will be much of discussion today. and you haven t lost trust in the government? let s hear what michael gove will tell me this afternoon and then we ll come back on that. is the government undermining the trust of the eu? thank you very much. serious concerns being expressed by the eu, but not yet ready to break off talks, they still wa nt to ready to break off talks, they still want to hear what michael gove has to say first. what i think the government will maintain is they are only simply putting in place, member about the backstop, this is a kind of safety net. if they cannot reach aan of safety net. if they cannot reach a an agreement on a joint committee between the eu and the uk, only then will they take powers unilaterally to decide how the withdrawal agreement, especially in relation to northern ireland, would operate, so it is still possible we may get a negotiated settlement, but at the moment it looks as if both sides are ina moment it looks as if both sides are in a state of truce. iain watson, thank you very much. meanwhile, one of america s most important politicians, nancy pelosi, has told london there will be absolutely no chance of a us uk trade deal if boris johnson overrides the brexit deal with brussels. in a statement on wednesday, ms pelosi, who, as speaker, holds the top job in the us congress house of representatives, said: she went on to say, she concludes by saying, three children have been taken to hospital with serious but not to hospital with serious, but not life threatening injuries after a school bus hit a railway bridge in winchester in southern england. the roof of the bus was sheared completely off in the incident and an air ambulance was sent to the scene in response. a further 13 students with minor injuries were dealt with at the scene. parents have been collecting the children, who all attended henry beaufort school. a short while ago our correspondent duncan kennedy spoke to one of the children on the bus, zoe kierans, about what happened so we were driving to school on the bus like normal and i think we were going the wrong route, but none of us going the wrong route, but none of us noticed because we re alljust chatting and then we suddenlyjust hit the top of the tunnel because it isa hit the top of the tunnel because it is a double decker bus and it all fell in on the top. i m not sure what happened on the bottom, i think they were all ok, but on the top it all fell in on top of everyone. there was glass everywhere and eve ryo ne there was glass everywhere and everyone started screaming. we all managed to get off and down the stairs and out, then there was quite a lot of people come from around here who must have heard the crash, who came and helped us until the ambulances all came, so. was at a single decker or double decker bus? a double decker bus. single decker or double decker bus? a double-decker bus. what happened when it hit the bridge? what did it feel like? itjust felt like a com plete feel like? itjust felt like a complete shock because it was just so out of the blue because none of us were so out of the blue because none of us were looking really noticed it was going to happen and itjust felt like a sudden are going to live or are going to die? you know, that kind of panic, so. were you on the top deck of the bottom deck? top deck. and was it the top deck that was sheared off? yes. what happened? to the roof just lift was sheared off? yes. what happened? to the roofjust lift off? everything just kind of came in and at the back i think it knocked off, but it was such a big panic everything was just crazy. but it was such a big panic everything wasjust crazy. you are 0k? everything wasjust crazy. you are ok? i am 0k everything wasjust crazy. you are ok? i am ok now, yes. what seems did you see after it happened? they were a couple of people with gashes on theirfaces. a couple of people with gashes on their faces. everyone was crying and shaking and people were being sat down and helped. it was just a huge shock and panic, but yeah. that was zoe there, who was one of the pupils on that bus. she was talking to duncan kennedy and we can hear the latest from him now. unsurprisingly, so we looked and shout sounded visibly shocked and traumatised she sounded visibly shocked and traumatised. no doubt the others are feeling the same way. exactly that, she was on the top deck of this bus, which you can see under the tunnel here behind me. when the whole thing was ripped off, so she was right at the centre of this deeply unpleasant interview. her father was there with her, so he was giving her reassurance, but she was pretty shaken by the whole event. i asked her if there was any social distancing on the bus and she said, no, not really, so it was pretty crowded. it was travelling down this road going in this direction to the tunnel and i just asked road going in this direction to the tunnel and ijust asked my cameraman to zoom in now so you can get an idea of what was going on here. we know that the bus was heading in the winchester direction when it went into this tunnel. as you can see, it is not a very wide tunnel and it was a double decker bus. zoe said that it was a school bus, but i m not sure that is correct or not or if it was just a sure that is correct or not or if it wasjust a general sure that is correct or not or if it was just a general bus sure that is correct or not or if it wasjust a general bus being used by the school. she said, as i said, it was pretty full of children at the time, it all happened after eight o clock this morning. they were unaware of what was going on until it hit this bridge. she said she thought it took a wrong direction from which way the bus normally goes. she wasn t quite sure of that. she felt it was taking a different direction to what they normally took. at first like the first she knew of what happens when it crashed into that bridge there. you heard it described there. an extremely harsh thud and then the whole of the booth around her was ripped off. we have had those casualty figures come through from hampshire police, saying that three children are seriously injured and a number of others are badly shaken up, so an extraordinary start to their day. the police are still very much at the scene trying to find out exactly what happened. duncan, thank you very much stop duncan kennedy in winchester. the greek authorities are racing to shelter thousands of asylum seekers left homeless on the island of lesbos, after the main migrant camp there was gutted by two fires in as many days. a ferry had been sent to temporarily accommodate them ahead of an expected arrival of the european commission vice president, margaritis schinas. these are the latest pictures from thursday morning. the moria migrant camp was ravaged by fire earlier this week, but now a second blaze has wiped out pretty much all that was left. firefighters have been battling to bring the fire under control at europe s largest refugee camp. last week it was the only shelter for more than 12,000 refugees. the greek cabinet is meeting to discuss the sitation and a state of emergency is expected to declared. mark lobel has the latest. hundreds of unaccompanied children leave for greece s mainland from theirfire ravaged camp on the island of lesbos. just as new fires began destroying parts of the camp that had been spared the initial onslaught. the greek government says the original fire was caused by protesters after 35 residents who had tested positive for coronavirus were isolated. strong winds then fanned the flames in a tinderbox where families crammed into a space meant to house just a quarter of the 13,000 men, women and children who were placed there. these new fires at europe s largest refugee camp have opened up old wounds. after afghanis, syrians and iraqis headed for a new life in europe, a deal struck four years ago with turkey was meant to offer accommodation there. but the problem was pushed onto greek shores as the closest destination. and now look,. the truth of the matter is that people on the greek island welcome the refugees years ago, but after so many years of continuous flows, there has been a lot of fatigue in local communities. the german government is under pressure at home to a urgently house more migrants. demonstrators in berlin and frankfurt insist there is room. translation: the situation is such that the people there could simply to go through hell. come here to live normal lives, instead of having to go through hell. that s why we are here, we are saying the city of frankfurt has a room and so does germany. angela merkel, who once opened the doors wide to migrants, is now more reluctant. she hopes this tragedy will give new impetus to the likes of poland, hungary and the czech republic to share the burden. for five years we ve been saying this is untenable, why are we doing this to human beings? why aren t we finding some sort of solution for them on whether it s the mainland or other parts of europe? there are so many other options than the inhumanity which has befallen these people. and now another challenge. as the coronavirus pandemic pushes the problem of migration further into the open. could it also make it more difficult for economically strapped countries to open their borders and keep the pandemic at bay? mark lobel, bbc news. our correspondent, bethany bell, has just arrived in lesbos and has the latest. you can see there are people behind me who have taken shelter under the olive trees, some just sitting on the open roads. the people we ve spoken to here say they come from afghanistan. they said that they tried to go back to the camp last night but couldn t, and spent the night here, and this whole road has been blocked off by the police and we ve seen people, migrants, trying to leave the area and the police shouting at them saying, no, no, covid, go back, go back. a state of emergency has been declared here. some people, over 400 unaccompanied minors, have been taken to mainland greece but many other migrants like the people you see behind me are out in the fields without shelter. bethany bell in lesbos. let s bring you some news developments from belarus. where opposition politician maria kolesnikova said authorities put a bag over her head and threatened to kill her when they tried to forcibly deport her earlier this week. her lawyer reportedly said kolesnikova was seeking legal action against the authorities, including the belarusian kgb. wildfires are still burning out of control along parts of the west coast of the united states. the governor of oregon says they could bring about the greatest loss in human lives and property in her state s history. in california, smoke and ash have turned the sky a dark orange. in butte county, a sheriff has reported that three people in two different locations have perished there. tim allman reports. this is san francisco in the middle of the day. the city by the bay almost unrecognisable. look at the golden gate bridge. the same colour as the dark orange sky surrounding it. smoke and ash blocking out the sun making it feel like the end of the world. 11.15. crazy. 11.15 in the morning. and it s like the middle of the night almost. they are saying it s coming all the way from oregon, which is hundreds of miles away. it looks like the apocalypse right now. it s like night time in the daytime. in los angeles, the sky is a more normal colour, but the smoke is still there. a hazy mist enveloping most of the city, and this is the reason. just one of the fires burning out of control here in california and also further north. this was a trailer park in the town of medford, oregon. there s not much left of it now. the fire has ripped through it. destroying property, destroying lives. sheriff is coming through going, level three, get out. get out . and, yeah, grabbed some papers and stuff. this is it. this is what i ve got. what you are wearing right now? this is what i ve got. i m so sorry. for oregon, this has been described as a once in a generation event and it a similar story for neighbouring states. this fire season is unprecedented. the flames continue to burn. tim allman, bbc news. president trump has defended his decision to play down the danger posed by coronavirus at the start of the pandemic saying he didn t want to create panic. he made the admission to the veteran journalist bob woodward in a recorded interview. his election rivaljoe biden has accused mr trump of knowingly and willingly lying to the american people. students arriving at universities in england this autumn should not return home in the event of a local outbreak, under new advice set out by the government. e prime minister said it was to avoid spreading the virus across the country. the guidance also says that higher education providers may wish to introduce their own testing programmes for staff and students. the university and college union has called for testing on campuses to be scaled up to help manage the risks. the conservation group, wwf has warned that humans are destroying nature at a rate never seen before. global populations of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish and amphibians have fallen by more than two thirds in the past 50 years. our environment and rural affairs correspondent claire marshall reports. wildlife is dying out at a rate which has never been seen before in human history, according to today s report. from the arctic to the warm seas of the caribbean, to the gardens of britain, it s happening faster than all the predictions and its global. the living planet report carried out every two yea rs assesses more than 20,000 creatures all around the world, species in all groups of animals on every continent are being lost. what we have seen is a wholesale destruction of some of our most important natural assets in the space of one human lifetime, 50 years. and this is a trend only increasing and accelerating and that s why we have to stop now and start to address it. intensive agriculture is one of the key drivers. these are huge banana plantations in ghana and it s a monoculture. wildlife is being driven out, so people around the world can eat the fruit whenever they like. it s the same story elsewhere. in the amazon, a football pitch of rainforest is lost every minute, cleared as grazing for beef cattle and to plant soy which goes into animal feed. and a third of the food produced in the world for human consumption is lost or wasted. but it is possible for food to be intensively produced working with nature and that s what s happening here in wiltshire. it s a very good hunting ground for birds of prey. this farm isn t organic, but still a haven for wildlife. the grey partridge, here filmed in a different location, has declined by 85% since 1970 but is thriving on his farm. it s a nice wildlife habitat. he believes agriculture has to be balanced with nature. if we have no fertility in our soil, if we have poor air quality, if we have poor water quality, then we are not going to have high yields of crops and we are not going to have healthy animals and healthy food and that directly feeds through to people. oil pours from a tanker shipwrecked off mauritius last month. this is about people destroying systems that we ourselves depend on, rather than just wildlife. humans are managing nature for their own benefit, whether it s for grazing animals orfor building on and it s having a dramatic impact all over the world. scientists say we can see this now by the pandemic we are living through. research suggests the emergence of covid 19 could be linked to bats. we are fairly confident that the driving forces which have led to the spread of that virus came through a combination of expansion into habitats, illegal wildlife trade, the removal of wildlife, and we are going to see those threats increase, so we ve had a clear warning that impacts on wildlife overseas directly affect us at home. but the report says we can stop and even repair the damage, but it will need unprecedented conservation action and radical changes in how we produce and consume food. claire marshall, bbc news. a couple of pieces are breaking news to now, both coronavirus related and how that pertains to england. first of all, regarding the test entry system that is in place in england. nearly 70% of close contacts of people who tested positive for covid 19 in england were reached through the nhs test entry system in the week ending september the 2nd, according to the latest figures from the department of health and social care. this is down by 0.6% since the previous week and is the lowest weekly percentage since nhs test entries was launched in may. we have, of course, seen at much higher, as the government is keen to point out. the case is handled by a local protection teams. 96.6% of contacts were reached and asked to self isolate in the week to september the 2nd. by contrast, those cases handled either online or by call centres, only 61.3% of close contacts were reached and asked to self isolate. that very much ties into what many critics are saying is wrong with this nhs test entry system, in that it shouldn t be run ona system, in that it shouldn t be run on a centralised basis, but should be devolved to local areas and local authorities, who know their population is best. the second piece of breaking news is regarding the number of people who tested positive for covid 19 full stop that was a total of 9864 people testing positive. this is an increase of 43% in positive cases on the previous week and is the highest weekly number since nhs test and trace was launched at the end of may stop and as we know, we re going to see restrictions reimposed across england from monday because of the rise in the number of infections, and no more than six people will be allowed to gather indoors or outdoors from next monday. and we are expecting to hear very shortly from the health secretary, matt hancock, about nhs test entries and no doubt he will talk about those restrictions as well. we will bring you that as soon as we see him appear. while the coronavirus pandemic has revealed just how hard and dangerous thejob of nursing can be, it s also prompted a huge amount of public appreciation for the work they do. that might explain why applications to train as a nurse in britain are up by 16% the highest number in five years. phil mackie has been to meet some of the new recruits. these were some of the most uplifting images during lockdown. every week across the country we gathered to thank health care workers. up the nhs! this is the next generation already getting used to the new normal. and if you re working on the front line you need to be taught how to deal with unruly and aggressive patients. these first year paramedics are part of a new wave of people signing up for these types of courses. nursing, of course, as well. and that s largely because of what s happened over the past six months. ok, in your own time. off you go. in worcester, they ve doubled the number of health care students and have added an extra intake next year. we ve got a record year of nursing students who have started with us this september. they are very much from our local area but they are even more committed than usual because i think so many have been inspired to go into nursing by the effects of the pandemic. has that been a key factor, do you think? well, we are always very popular for nursing at worcester, but there has undoubtedly been a group of people who have been able to see what a valuable role nurses play in society. hi, patrick. my name is ricky. more men are applying too. 5% may not sound a lot but ricky baker, who used to be a children s entertainer, is about to graduate as a paediatric nurse, a discipline where there are very few men. he is up for some national awards too and has picked up plenty of hands on experience during the pandemic. i ve learned a lot about myself, about the resilience i need to be a nurse, and also to maintain that passion and always remember why i wanted to be a nurse. i think that nursing is such a varied wide profession, so people have seen the actual admiration of the nurses and what we do and the role of the nurse, and that is the big attraction because actually nurses are being recognised for the amazing work that we do do. many people who have lost theirjobs because of the pandemic see it as a chance to change careers. mike travelled the world as a skincare specialist in the beauty industry. for it to last so long and be forced out of work was really quite scary. i m an independent adult so i wanted a job that i knew i could have indefinitely until the end of time. i think there s kind of two types of people during the covid pandemic. people that want to help and people that want to stay away and stay safe, and both are ok. but i m more of a person where i feel like there s a lot of people out there that are vulnerable and need help and i m someone that can provide that help. just line up with the thumb there, so that s where you take the pulse. yes, i can feel that there. now he enrolled on a new course at university college birmingham. at 32, he s far from the oldest student on this year s intake. the whole covid 19 pandemic has raised awareness nationwide as to the extent of the work of nurses and has made people realise that it is a really high skilled profession and there is security and jobs at the end of degree programmes. the new students hope that when they graduate in three year s time the pandemic is over but the high regard in which they are held remains. phil mackie, bbc news, worcester. the parents of a teenage motorcyclist killed outside an american airbase in northamptonshire, say they are angry with the us government for blocking their fight for justice for their son. harry dunn died in august last year, and the american national anne sacoolas has been charged in the uk with causing death by dangerous driving. the united states has refused to extradite her back to britain. andrea leadsom, the dunn family s mp, has called for a virtual trial of mrs sacoolas via videolink. yesterday, harry s parents met the crown prosecution service in the hope that this would happen, but harry s mum charlotte charles says the meeting moved nothing forward. you know, we need a trial to take place. it s the most important thing. without our trial we can t even have our inquest. so we still do not know the last hour of harry s life. we have got one hell of a jigsaw puzzle to still put together. and as a mum and a set of parents, not knowing what your boy s last hour of life held is more than mentally damaging. it makes you hurt morning, noon and night every day, and the longer we have to wait for a trial, the longer we have to wait for our inquest, then that is downright not fair. harry dunn s mother charlotte charles. hundreds of mexican farmers and peasants have seized control of a dam in the north of the country after violent clashes with members of the national guard. protesters threw petrol bombs and stones at the troops, who responded with teargas and rubber bullets before escaping. tensions began on sunday when the water authorities decided to open the gates of the dam in chihuahua state, to divert water towards the united states. our mexico correspondent, will grant, reports: water is so scarce in this part of northern mexico that blood was spilled over it. armed with little more than pickaxes and machetes, a group of localfarmers more than pickaxes and machetes, a group of local farmers and agricultural workers descended on la boquilla dam to force out the national guard, who had taken over the site. at least one protester was killed and another injured in the clashes. this is a reaction from citizens who are defending their homeland, said one protester. water is everyone s heritage, it belongs to everyone in chihuahua, to all mexicans, he added. specifically they are furious over a treaty reached with the united states in 1944 over the region s water. the mexican water authority say under the terms of the agreement they have to divert much of the precious resource to their richer neighbour. the farmers say their crops, animals and their livelihoods are suffering from the widespread drought, and this is no time to send any water north. translation: we are not going to have water for our crops. if we don t have water for our crops, people will not eat. this will end up people will not eat. this will end up being a big economic problem for the state. even the president chimed in on the conflict, and defended the action of his troops. translation: it s very unfortunate what happened. in a prudent manner the national guard left the scene so as to avoid confrontation. i consider it an adequate response to the guardsmen. maybe the president considered the response adequate, but the people who live around the dam do not. the attorney general‘s office has opened an investigation into the death of the protester. in the meantime the majority of the state of chihuahua is in drought. with many mexicans already in dispute with the trump administration over issues of free trade and immigration, it seems sharing water may be the source of more conflict ahead. will grant, bbc news. a tax on frequent flyers and banning cars from city centres are among the climate change solutions members of the public have come up with, as part of the uk s first citizen s assembly on the environment. more than 100 people looked at the changes needed to cut greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. our science correspondent rebecca morelle has more. our planet is heating up fast. with greenhouse gases causing temperatures to rise. now the uk s first climate assembly has a plan to tackle this. launched by sir david attenborough, the assembly brought together people from across the country to give their views on combating climate change. this report covers every aspect of our lives. it recommends stopping the sales of the most polluting cars. forfood, the suggestion is that we reduce the amounts of meat and dairy we eat by up to 40% and the assembly members don t want to ban air travel, but they do say taxes should increase the further and more often we fly. leah, a student, and ibrahim, a gp, both took part. obviously we are a representation of the people and it s very important that the government listens because, as it s going now, climate change is a big issue and there s going to be big effects in my lifetime. there are also lots of little contributions that each person can do on a day to day basis and i would like to think that everyone as they look at this report will say, right, how can i as an individual improve my carbon emissions? energy was also looked at and offshore wind farms got the biggest backing while protecting forests and planting trees was also widely supported. the report has a vision for a greener future and will now be submitted to parliament. it should reveal which policies may or may not receive wider public support. rebecca morelle, bbc news. an interim report on a rail crash at stonehaven in scotland has been published. the body overseeing britain s rail network found that the train, which derailed nearly a month ago in aberdeenshire, struck a pile of washed out rock and gravel before derailing . it sets out plans to assess thousands of miles of sloped ground beside railway tracks to reduce the risk of landslips in the future. let s go to the house of commons, where health secretary matt hancock is due to make a statement to mps. these are fast moving situations and i will ensure that i give the house its full attention and as i tried to a nswer its full attention and as i tried to answer as many questions fully as i can. with permission i d like to make a further statement on coronavirus. we have done much as a nation to get his virus under control. so we have been able to restore it so much. just one example, figures today show that radiotherapy services in england have now returned to pre pandemic levels. this is good news and will save lives. but as i said to the house on tuesday, we are seeing some concerning trends, including an increase in the number of positive cases, especially, but not only come amongst younger people. as the chief medical officer said yesterday, we must learn from the recent experience of countries like belgium, who successfully put in place measures to combat a similar rise in infections. and so today, mr speaker, i d like to update of the house on a number of new measures that will help us to get this virus under control, to make the rules clearer, simpler and more enforcea ble. clearer, simpler and more enforceable. first, mr speaker, we are putting in place new rules on social contact. we have listened to feedback from the public and the police and we are simplifying and strengthening the rules, making them easier to understand and easier to enforce. in england from monday, we are introducing the rule of six. nobody should meet socially in groups of more than six. and if you do, you will might be breaking the law. this will apply in any setting, indoors or outdoors, at home or in the park. it replaces the existing ban on gatherings of more than 30 under the current guidance on allowing two households to meet indoors. there will be some exemptions. for example, ifa indoors. there will be some exemptions. for example, if a single household or support bubble is larger than six, they can still gather. places of education and work are not affected. covid secure weddings, reading wedding receptions and funerals can go ahead with a limit of up to 30 people. organised sport and exercise is exempt. mr speaker, these are not measures that we take lightly. i understand that for many they will mean changing long awaited plans or missing out on precious moments with loved ones, but the sacrifice is vital to control the virus for the long term and save lives. and i vow that we will not keep these rules in place for any longer than we have to. second, mr speaker, we are putting in place stronger enforcement. hospitality venues will be legally required to request the contact details of every party. they will have to record and retain these details for 21 days and provide them to nhs test and trace without delay when required. this system is working well voluntarily, with minimal friction, working well voluntarily, with minimalfriction, and working well voluntarily, with minimal friction, and is working well voluntarily, with minimalfriction, and is very effective, but it is not in place in all venues and so it is only fair that it all venues and so it is only fair thatitis all venues and so it is only fair that it is followed by law. we are supporting local authorities to make greater use of their powers to close venues that are breaking rules and pose a risk to public health, and fines will be levied against hospitality venues that fail to ensure their premises are covid secure. mr speaker, our goal as ensure their premises are covid secure. mr speaker, our goalas much as possible is due keep schools and businesses open while controlling the virus. the data shows that while the virus. the data shows that while the cases amongst 17 to 30 year olds are rising, the number of cases amongst the under 16s remain very low. and we all know how important it is to keep schools open. as the chief medical officers have said, the long term risks to children s lives chances of not going to school are significant, and far greater than the health risks of going back to school. the latest data confirms this. and of course university stu d e nts this. and of course university students will soon be returning. the department for education has published the updated guidance for universities on how they can operate ina universities on how they can operate in a covid secure way. this includes a clear request not to send students home in the event of an outbreak in order to avoid spreading the virus further across the country. if you area further across the country. if you are a student who is about to return to university or go to university for the first time, then please, for the sake of your education, and your pa rents the sake of your education, and your parents and grandparents health, follow the rules and don t gather in groups of more than six. mr speaker, our ability to trust and tries on a large scale is also fundamental to controlling the virus, as we discussed in this house many times. the latest data shows that we are doing more testing per head than other european countries like germany and spain, and we have record capacity. with increased with increased capacity by more than 10,000 tests a day over the last fortnight. while there have been challenges in access to tests, the vast majority of people get their tests rapidly and close to home. the average distance travelled to a test site is 6.4 miles. and 90% of people book a test travel 22 miles or less. we are ready have more than 400 testing out sites in operation. we had 19 last week and plan 70 more this week. however, as capacity is increased, we have seen an even faster rise in demand. including a significant increase from people who do not have symptoms and are not eligible for a test. this takes tests away from people who need them. so if you have symptoms of coronavirus, or harassed by a clinician or local authority to get a test, then please apply. but if you do not have symptoms, and haven t been asked, then you are not eligible for a test. at the same time we are developing new types of tests which are simple, quick and scalable. they use swabs or saliva, get they can be turned around in 90 minutes, even 20 minutes, the so called operation moonshot, to deploy mast testing will allow people to lead more normal lives and reduce the need for social distancing. for instance, it could mean theatres and sports venues could test audience members on the day and letting those with a negative result. workplaces could be opened up to all those who test negative that morning. and anyone isolating because they are in contact or quarantining after travelling abroad, could be tested and released. we re piloting this approach right now. and verifying the new technology. then it can be rolled out nationwide. and mr speaker, i m going to depart from my script here because i have heard of the naysayers before and i have heard of the people on the other side saying, we will never get testing going. and they re the same old voices. they opposed the 100,000 tests. did we deliver that? yes, we did. they re saying what about testing and care homes? we deliver to ca re testing and care homes? we deliver to care homes earlier this week. they are against everything that is needed to solve this problem for this country and they would do far better to support their constituents and get with the programme. and i m looking forward to rolling out this programme and this work, which has been under way for some time already. i am absolutely determined that we will get there. and if everything comes together, and if the telling that technology comes off, it will be possible, even for challenging sectors like theatres, to get closer to normal before christmas. now finally, mr speaker, the most important thing that each and every one of us can do is to remember the small things that can make a big difference. hands, face, space. and if you have symptoms, get a test. hands, wash your hands regularly and for 20 seconds. face, where a face covering over your mouth and nose if you re in an enclosed space and in close contact with people you don t normally meet. space, always stay two metres away from people you don t live with or one metre, with extra precautions like extra ventilation, screens or face coverings. and of course if you have covid symptoms, get a test and self isolate. mr speaker, coronavirus is a powerful adversary and when called upon the british people have done so much to blunt the force of this invisible killer. and now at this importantjuncture we are being called upon once more to deliver our collective commitment to deliver our collective commitment to follow the rules, get this wi reless to follow the rules, get this wireless virus under control and i commend this statement to the house. i called jonathan ashworth. as always, i welcome and i m grateful for as always, i welcome and i m gratefulfor an as always, i welcome and i m grateful for an advance copy of the statement. we welcome the restrictions that the government have imposed. indeed we would have welcomed them on tuesday afternoon, had he confirmed what was being said on twitter that morning. we have seenin on twitter that morning. we have seen in recent days that cases have risen sharply across all ages and admissions to hospitals, sadly, are beginning to increase as well. we all want to avoid a second national lockdown. lockdowns extract a heavy social and economic price on those who are already suffering. and we should remember that today on suicide prevention day, we must remember the mental health impact of lockdowns as well. can i ask him particularly, before i going to the substance of his remarks today, particularly about schools? we have had many examples across the country of classes and year groups, of hundreds, possibly thousands now, pupils starting the new term as they finished the last term, at home and not in education. is it really the policy of the government that if there are one or two positive cases ina yeargroup, there are one or two positive cases in a year group, then the whole year group is sent home for two weeks? and if so, are parents and carers eligible for sick pay and financial support given they will have to take time off work to look after their children? mr speaker, we were promised a world beating test, trace and isolate regime by now. he says we ve got one. well, on tuesday, i highlighted its performance in finding contacts. the deteriorating performance. he said, on tuesday, i had modelled my figures. full fact is that i was right and he was wrong. so i will leave it to him to judge whether he wants to correct the record or not. but i would rather he just corrects test and trace. in one study researchers have found that 75% of people with infections did not self isolate. i know he is piloting extra support, but we need a system now, urgently, so that those who are low paid and in secure work can isolate without fear of losing theirjobs. we need a system immediately. we have been calling for it for months and months and months, as he knows. and on testing, i mean, he told us a few months ago to get with the programme. mr speaker, we just months ago to get with the programme. mr speaker, wejust want him to deliver testing for our constituents, mr speaker. we have had examples constituents, mr speaker. we have had exa m ples after exa m ples of people being told to go hundreds of miles. in telford the borough has been gridlocked because the system has been telling everybody to go to telford. and yesterday, yesterday he was touring tv studios trying to dampen demand, even though he previously told this house injuly, this was his quote, if you have symptoms, if in doubt, get a test. if in doubt! he was telling people to get tests, mr speaker. so having encouraged people to get tests and with 8 million pupils returning to school, with thousands going back to workplaces, as his prime minister has insisted upon, surely it was obvious they would be extra demand on the system and why didn t he plan extra resource capacity due process tests ? extra resource capacity due process tests? it isn t the fault of ill people asking for tests, mr speaker. it s his fault for not providing them. and we have no apology today to our constituents who have been told to travel hundreds of miles for a test. and having failed to provide the tests that people need, and, by the tests that people need, and, by the way, having failed to provide wider diagnostic tests, the waiting list has reached 1.2 million today, the highest on record, he now wants to deliver 10 million tests a day as pa rt to deliver 10 million tests a day as part of his moonshot. i have long been pushing him for a strategic testing regime. the world health organization told us to test, test, test. what we are all fed up with undelivered promises and world beating mass testing is too important to become another project that has failed. it s all very good talking about moonshot granted b or telling us we would be tested every morning. even better would be delivering the testing needed now arejust headline delivering the testing needed now are just headline figures. i delivering the testing needed now arejust headline figures. i have some very arejust headline figures. i have some very specific questions. firstly, the prime minister told the nation he wants this in place by spring. the chief scientific adviser pointed out it is completely wrong to assume this is a slam dunk and can definitely happen. how quickly will this be delivered and how quickly will the pilots in salford and southampton be assessed? secondly, what is the cost? according to the british medical journal, leaked documents suggest the cost would be 100 billion. is this correct? if it is not correct, can he tell us what his estimate is? can he tell us how much has been allocated? who watching bbc news. thirdly, who will deliver it? there are universities delivering projects, such as the university of leicester. what this wasn t as he had with them? it is reported he has already signed agreements and understandings for this project with gsk, circa and g4s to deliver this. what procurement processes have been undertaken and can he tell us if thatis undertaken and can he tell us if that is correct? fourthly, what are the priorities? he is still not testing the loved ones of care home residents were desperate to see relatives. and when will the government actually deliver the routine testing of all front line nhs staff that we ve been demanding for months? mr speaker, effective testing depends on quick turnaround and local access. it depends on effective contact tracing. given he s not even been able to deliver these basics, how on earth expect him to deliver this moonshot? secretary of state. well, mr speaker, i think the honourable gentleman was rather better when he was supporting the government action in the first part of his response. what i d say is he can t seem to decide if he is in favour of testing or if he is against it. we get complaint after complaint, rather than supporting his constituents and the people in this country in our quest to get through this virus. firstly, on who is eligible for a test, precisely, as i said and has he literally read out, if you have symptoms, get a test. but if you don t have symptoms, then you are not eligible for a test unless you have specifically been asked. and yes, if you are, if you have symptoms and if you are in doubt as to whether those symptoms are coronavirus or not, get a test. but if you don t have symptoms, don t get a test. it hasn t changed. it s exactly the same. what s changed is the honourable member opposite not knowing whether he is coming or going. and he doesn t seem to understand. he doesn t seem to understand. he doesn t seem to understand that the way that you build, the way you build a huge project like our testing, which is at record levels, is that you back all the horses. he once again complained about businesses supporting us in our roll out of mass testing. again this divisive approach is wrong. we support universities to deliver more testing, we support businesses to deliver more testing, we support the nhs to deliver more testing. we don t support the totally confused approach of the benches opposite. he doesn t know whether he is in favour or against more testing. he asks about the money. £500 million has thus far been allocated to this project. but it s likely that there will be more. and he asked about staff where staff testing in the nhs, where as he well knows we follow clinical advice but we always keep it under review. finally, he asks about schools and the policy on schools is that if summary tests then that bubble that does need to self isolate and a bubble is defined by those who are in close contact within a school setting. i would finally doubt like to end on a point on which we strongly agree. this world suicide prevention day all of us are world suicide prevention day all of us are united in our support for the mental health services that are provided across this country and our support for all those working hard for those who have mental ill health or who are at risk of suicide. it is a project on which all of us are on the same side and working together to support people. as someone who has long campaigned for mass testing i warmly welcome the ambition behind operation moonshot and the implied characterisation of the health secretary is this country because my a nswer to secretary is this country because my answer to neil armstrong. but 10 million is a huge target. i wonder whether he could give the house some idea of the proportion of that 10 million that is dependent on the new technologies? and the proportion that we can get to do with existing technologies? mass testing is so important to getting the country back to normal and whilst we want all new technologies do succeed, it would be helpful to have some view on how to expect expansion on the technologies we have. that is an extremely clear and strong position from the chair of the select committee. of course we are expanding the current technologies. we have a plan and are on track for this plan to get to 500,000 tests per day by the end of next month on the current technologies. on the next generation of technologies, i am not going to put a figure on it because it depends on the technology is coming off and the very nature of backing new technologies is you don t know which ones are going to be verified. this is why we have got so many that are being piloted, so many with whom we are working. we have tests right now in portadown being verified. we wa nt now in portadown being verified. we want this to go as fast as we can, we wa nt want this to go as fast as we can, we want to go as large as we reasonably can, but we do not put a specific figure on it. what we do is put all of our weight and support behind this project, which will have the positive benefits that my right honourable friend so eloquently sets out. heading up to linlithgow, martin day. thank you, mr speaker. yesterday we heard the prime minister described his operation moonshot is the only hope of avoiding a second national lockdown. already, some experts have described this mass testing strategy as being fundamentally flawed. so it does the secretary of state think the prime minister is gambling on something that the experts feel cannot be delivered? that the experts feel cannot be delivered ? on tuesday, that the experts feel cannot be delivered? on tuesday, the secretary of state failed to answer my honourable friend, the memberfor central air shire, when she asked if it would be better to allow tests to be carried out locally and just move the samples around the uk, instead of potentially infectious people? as he didn t give an answer then, will he didn t give an answer then, will he consider this now? and finally, will hejoin me in welcoming the launch of scotland s protect scotla nd launch of scotland s protect scotland mobile tracing app yesterday and what update can he give the house on his own government s plans to release a similarapp? government s plans to release a similar app? thank you very much, mr speaker, we have been working with the scottish government as well as with the welsh government and the northern ireland government and actually governments internationally on an update on the app technology. on the second point that he makes, it is simply a mischaracterisation of the policy. of course we move samples around the country all of the time. what we want to do is of course continue to reduce the amount of distance people have to travel and as i say, the average distance people have to travel to get a test is 6.4 miles. but i come finally to the first point that he makes because there were in the spring some people who complained about my determination to expand our testing capacity at a record pace. we are hearing some of those voices out this morning again complaining that we want to increase testing. the party. both the snp and the labour party opposite are making a huge mistake in opposing mass testing. it is an incredibly important tool in our arsenal. thank you, mr speaker. my right honourable friend is a great supporter of the uk s businesses and entrepreneurs. in his measures to tackle the virus, can he intercede with his public health colleagues to prioritise the businesses that generate economic growth, so that when this is over we have an economy that is prosperous enough to cash the very generous checks that we have written? my right honourable friend is absolutely right and speaks with great knowledge, experience and eloquence on this matter. we have to protect livelihoods as much as is possible, in the same way that we are trying to protect education as much as is possible. that does mean sometimes we have to take measures that people would prefer not to see on social contact, but unfortunately the measures that the prime minister outlined yesterday, that i set out in my statement are, in myjudgment, absolutely necessary, both to keeping the virus under control and to protecting education and the economy as much as is possible. thank you, there has been a significant increase in covid 19 cases can to liverpool in the last week, with widespread community transmission. yet i have been contacted transmission. yet i have been co nta cted by transmission. yet i have been contacted by constituents with symptoms who are trying to book a test and either can t or are being told to go to oldham, manchester, to powys, to colwyn bay, where there is a testing facility in liverpool airportjust on the road in the constituency. can the secretary of state explain why this is and why there is no availability of home testing kits given? there appears to be so much a news testing capacity. yes, as i said there is record testing capacity and most people get tested very close to home. however, we have got this challenge that some people without symptoms who are not eligible for a test have been coming forward. thus far, i have been relu cta nt to forward. thus far, i have been reluctant to put a barrier to end a strong eligibility check on the front of the testing system because i want people with symptoms to be able to get that test is fast and easily as possible. however, with this there a sharp rise we have seen the last couple of weeks of people coming forward for tests when they are not eligible, that is something we are having to look at. the key message to her constituents is that these tests are absolutely vital for people who have symptoms and therefore if you don t have symptoms and haven t been told by a clinician or bya and haven t been told by a clinician or by a local authority to get a test, then you should not and must not go and use a test that somebody else who needs it should be using. thank you, mr speaker. i understand the recent actions my right honourable friend is taking to limit gatherings of six people and i would encourage everyone in west bromwich eased and the wider west midlands to follow the new rules. however, does he agree with me that west bromwich should remain separate from any local lockdown in central birmingham, given they are two distinct areas with varying rates of infection? of course west bromwich isa infection? of course west bromwich is a distinct area and separate, of course, in its geography from central birmingham. however, i would caution my honourable friend that we are seeing some sharp rises in cases across many parts of the west midlands and so do take these decisions on a localised basis. we do not take the whole local authority or regional geography in one go, but we do follow the data andi one go, but we do follow the data and i will be sure to keep in touch with my honourable friend. she is a very strong advocate for her local area, but sometimes action is necessary. can a festival thank the secretary of state for the new test centre in wythenshawe town centre that opened this week? can i challenge him though and the consistency of government around his department? in greater manchester, the m are reporting that bolton has been subject to four sets of rule changes in the past fortnight. itv are saying that 74 local authorities have a higher infection rate now than greater manchester had before it went into lockdown. last week, my constituency of wythenshawe straddles manchester and trafford would have been split asunder here if the department hadn t you turned. restrictions on manchester are not working because infection weights rates have mushroomed. what is next? i have been in contact with the mayor of greater manchester this, on the question of what we do in greater manchester. of course, the national measures that were announced yesterday will come into force in greater manchester. it is very important that people follow them. we took further action in bolton. the case rate in bolton was coming down very well and thankfully before we implemented the rule change to remove some of the restrictions, we were able to act and stop that relaxation from happening and impact then had to tighten up, and so i m working very closely with the councils in greater manchester and talking to the mayor andi manchester and talking to the mayor and i will absolutely take on board his views as well and making sure that we get the measure is right. the message to everyone in greater manchester is the same as across the country, follow the rules and follow the social distancing because it is only by doing that but we will get this under control. go to the chair of the science committee. thank you, mr speaker. the secretary of state must accept there is a problem here. constituents of mine in kent this week displaying symptoms of covid 19 we re week displaying symptoms of covid 19 were advised to go to tests to beauty in cornwall and galashiels in scotland. and this is in a mild september before the autumn and winter, when people have coughs and colds that may look like symptoms of covid 19. and it is no good blaming people who are asymptomatic. i will be interested if the secretary of state can say what percentage of people are turning up for testing that don t have symptoms. i think this needs his personal grip. he referred to the need for him to increase testing capacity from 1000 per day to 100,000 per day. this is an urgent matter, it needs a grip before the autumn bites, the autumn and winter bites. will he commit by the end of the month to make sure that anyone who has symptoms of covid 19 can get a test at a reasonable place convenient to their home? that is of course my goal. it is my goalfor that home? that is of course my goal. it is my goal for that to happen immediately, and the challenges both to increase the capacity, subject my right honourable friend and i have discussed at length, and i know he isa discussed at length, and i know he is a strong supporter of. it is also a matter of making sure that capacity is used by the right people and this is why i am clear about the eligibility for testing. and it is really important that people hear that message that if you have symptoms of course you should get a test, we urge you to get a test because we need to find out if that is covid 19, for your sake and for everybody‘s. but at the same time, it is important that people who are not eligible do not come forward for those tests because otherwise you are taking a test away from somebody who has symptoms. and yes, absolutely, i want to solve this with ever more capacity, but i also wa nt to with ever more capacity, but i also want to make sure that the tests are used by the right people. we will go to manchester. thank you, madam deputy speaker. many of my constituents are incredibly anxious about schools reopening and want to send their children off to school in the knowledge that they are safe. i am sure the health secretary agrees that keeping schools open safely requires a testing infrastructure thatis requires a testing infrastructure that is fit for purpose. so can he explain to the house why each school has been provided with only ten testing kits? we have very strong protocols on the return to school and i am really glad that the success of the policy to get all of the schools back. and i would say that is one of the unsung successes of the government over recent weeks and that is working effectively, the guidelines set out very clearly when testing is appropriate. again, testing is appropriate. again, testing is appropriate for people who have symptoms. close contacts of people who have symptoms need to self isolate. not to get a test, u nless self isolate. not to get a test, unless they themselves have symptoms. the reason for that is because if they got a test it wouldn t allow them to leave self isolation anyway because of the risk of false negatives. so that is why we have the policy as it is. we have given each school ten or more tests, so that they can easily use them in an emergency, and that has been warmly welcomed, i know, but most schools. laura faris. madam deputy speaker. a successful return to school in west berkshire has been matched with a reduction in the availability of testing. i listened to my right honourable friend this morning and if there is a reluctance to impose more stringent eligibility criteria, would he consider an order of priority based on, for example, working parents, teachers being able to access test sooner? again, there hasn t been a reduction in capacity in berkshire or anywhere else in the country. there has been an increasing capacity. she makes a very good point, though, about the prioritisation and the question is how to enforce a prioritisation without putting in place barriers that slow down access to tests for people that need them? and that is something we are looking at now. now we go to lancashire to rosie cooper. thank you, but dipti speaker. could the secretary of state please explain the lack of availability of home testing kits, which has dropped dramatically in, for example, my area of west lancashire. dramatically in, for example, my area of west lancashire. .. this is where we say goodbye to our viewers on bbc two, you have been watching bbc news. 100 miles away and also the assurance he has given. lets leave these questions and the house of commons, where the health secretary, matt hancock, has been talking about the latest aspects of the coronavirus pandemic. we will discuss those now with our health correspondent, nick triggle. a lot of issues that needed to be addressed today. he began by talking about the need to address this latest increase in infections in england with the new restrictions are due to come in on monday. yes, those new restrictions were announced yesterday. obviously, groups of more than six people, whether it is indoors or outdoors, are now banned. i would say the guidance before that encouraged people to keep to that sort of size, but the police simply didn t have the powers to enforce it, so i think what we have seen in response to the rise in infection figures over the last few days is the government wanting to aid, make a point that we mustn t be complacent, and b, give the police those powers to intervene where they see larger groups gathering. on the infection rates, we have seen the average daily number of infections rise above 2000, that is four times higher than it was in mid july. although we are testing more, so that dampens down the rise slightly, but we are beginning to see numbers go up of course. some critics have said some of this guidance is contradictory, so it is the small groups, no more than six indoors or outdoors. but people can still go to the pub, they can still go to restaurants in small groups and yet councils are getting new powers to make sure that businesses are keeping to their side of the bargain, that they are taking contact details as well, so again, there is going to be more enforcement. it s a very tricky balance the government is trying to tread and get right here. it is trying to keep society functioning, it is trying to keep the economy going, whilst containing and curbing the spread of the virus, so you going to a restaurant or a pub you will of course see more than six people there, but the groups should be cut to six and they should be distanced between those groups of six, so that i think that is properly what people will see once these new rules come into force on monday is in pubs and restaurants a little bit more enforcing forcing others distances between people to try and create secure and safe environments. many appeals from all sorts of quarters that the members of the public that we all need to do our bit to maintain this distance is where we can, to observe these rules, particularly for next week, in england. we have also had the nhs test and figures out for the week ending september two like the nhs test entries figures. a slightly lowerfigure for the test entries figures. a slightly lower figure for the number of contacts that have actually been traced. yes, it is a bit of a mixed bag. there are three figures to keep an eye on. the first one is turnaround times, how quickly people are given their test results and the good news is that they are getting a little quicker. we saw the turnaround times exceed 24 hours two weeks ago, but they are now down at 23 hours for turning around test results where people go to either a walk in centre or a drive through centre. and for once done at mobile units, the tests are given within 20 hours on average. but when we look at the tracing system, so when someone is infected has a confirmed case, the contact tracers get in touch with them and those contact tracers reached 82% of infected people. i asked them to provide and asked them to play their close contact. and asked them to play their close co nta ct. 82% and asked them to play their close contact. 82% is good, the target is 80%. but where they are falling short is then they are given those close contacts and the job of the contact tracers is to reach them and ask them to self isolate and in the past week they are only reaching 69% of those people. again, they are meant to reach 80%, so they are falling some way short of that. that is concerning and over the last two weeks we have seen a decline in performance there and that is something obviously the system in england will be looking to resolve. nick, for the moment thank you very much. nick triggle, a health correspondent. a line of breaking news regarding british airways. the pa rent news regarding british airways. the parent company of british airways, iag, say they have reached an in principle agreement with the unite union over the future of british airways s cabin crews. it is part of a controversial cost cutting plan that the airline has introduced. this in principle agreement seems, then, to reduce the likelihood of industrial action being taken at the airline, although union members still have to be consulted on this deal. iag says it has also reached agreements with engineers and customer service staff at heathrow, although ground handling and cargo operations employees are still in talks with management. the company says it is now having to cut 13,000 jobs, rather than the forecast of 12,000. it says so far it has reduced headcount by 8200 and and 6500 people have left british airways voluntarily. let s take you to beirut, where a fire is burning at the port where that huge explosion took place last month. the blast killed about 190 people and thousands more were injured and left homeless. about 50 volunteers have been at the scene this week, still trying to find survivors. they found yesterday no sign of life in the rubble, despite the fact that they thought that they detected some sort of sign of life. they have cleared 95% of the rubble, but workers still haven t found the source of what looked like it could have been someone still alive. but now this is the latest thing they are having to cope with, this enormous fire, which has broken out, filling the sky with that enormous cloud of smoke. so yet more for the lebanese people. to have to deal with. a&e attendances at hospitals in england continue to be below levels a year ago, according to the latest figures from nhs england. a total of 1.7 million visits were recorded in august 2020, down almost 20% from 2.1 million in august last year. nhs england said the fall was likely to be a result of the covid 19 response suggesting that people are still staying away from a&e departments because of the coronavirus outbreak. just to let you now that later this afternoon at 4.30 we ll be answering your questions on coronavirus. we ll be speaking to virologist and lecturer in global health dr elisabetta groppelli, on the latest guidance on testing and about what the restrictions will mean for you send your questions in using the hashtag #bbcyourquestions or email us on yourquestions@bbc.co.uk. we are now going to edinburgh to hear from the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon, as pa rt of scotland, nicola sturgeon, as part of her daily corona update. as of last night to seven people were in intensive care, which is one more than yesterday. in the past 24 hours, no deaths were registered of patients who had been confirmed as having the virus and the total number of deaths under that measurement level remains 2499. i wa nt to measurement level remains 2499. i want to send my condolences again to eve ryo ne want to send my condolences again to everyone who has lost a loved one to this illness. let me turn now to the review of lockdown restrictions, as indicated a moment ago it is not possible at this stage to indicate a move from phase three to phase four of the route mapped out of lockdown. ican of the route mapped out of lockdown. i can therefore confirm we will remain in phase three for now and it is also important to stress that is likely to be the case for some time yet. for us to move to phase four, we must be satisfied, and i quote, the virus is no longer considered a significant threat to public health. as is obvious with the figures are reported in recent days and has has been confirmed to me and a bite on the chief medical officer, this is definitely not the case. when we reviewed lockdown measures six weeks ago, we had recorded 40 new cases a day on average over the previous week. three weeks ago that average daily rate had risen to 52 new cases a day and in the seven days up to yesterday the average daily rate was 155. our latest estimate of the r number is that it is now about one, possibly as high as 1.5. over the last week we have also had to impose additional restrictions on people living in five greater flow authority areas, glasgow city, western east dunbartonshire and east renfrewshire. rather than the threat to public health receding, the pandemic is at this stage accelerating again, albeit and tha nkfully accelerating again, albeit and thankfully from a low base and not as rapidly as it was back in march and april. it is worth stressing that this is not entirely unexpected. in recent weeks we have reopened significant parts of our economy, though many will be operating below full capacity. approximately 96% of businesses in scotla nd approximately 96% of businesses in scotland are now trading again. children have gone back to school and we had eased many social, leisure and travel restrictions. people are meeting up more, going out more on travelling law and order thatis out more on travelling law and order that is positive. but as we release ourselves from lockdown, we also released the virus and gave more opportunities to spread, and so it was always likely we would see a rise in cases. indeed, the reason we focused so firmly over the summer on suppressing the virus was to ensure that any increase was from a low base and to give our test and protecting is the best possible chance of keeping outbreaks under control. it is important, even in a period of rising cases, that we don t lose sight of that to keep infection levels as low as possible. that approach has been important. since latejuly, that approach has been important. since late july, for example, spain s weekly level of cases per 100,000 of population has increased from 34 to 126. france s has risen from 34 to 126. france s has risen from 11 to 16. scotland s rate has increased from two to just under 20. so we have come out of the summer with a relatively low prevalence of the virus. and of course without test and protect, as well as the effo rts test and protect, as well as the efforts of so many across the country, the virus would have already spread considerably further and faster, so i am very grateful to eve ryo ne and faster, so i am very grateful to everyone for the collective effort so far. it has made a difference. the cases are now rising again and we can see by looking around britain, europe and the rest of the world just how difficult it is to keep the virus under control when globally the pandemic is still accelerating. even new zealand, which at one stage reached zero covid 19 has now reimposed some restrictions. in scotland, having got the reopening of schools we are now welcoming students back to our colleges and universities. that is a necessary and positive development, but because it involves people moving around the country and mixing, it undoubtedly brings further risks. one point that is frequently commented on now is that the recent rise in cases has not been mirrored by an equally large rise in hospital admissions or deaths. that may partly reflect the fa ct deaths. that may partly reflect the fact that many of the new cases we are seeing are among younger people. but although that can provide some comfort, it should not and must not lead to complacency. although covid 19 kills relatively few young people, we know it can still be harmful to their health. it is not a virus anyone should be relaxed about getting. in addition, if covid 19 spreads too widely in the younger, healthier parts of the population it will inevitably reach older and more vulnerable people that could then lead to an increase in hospital admissions and fatalities, as we are seeing now to some extent in countries such as france. it is also worth noting that although numbers here are still low, we have seen a rise in hospital admissions in scotla nd rise in hospital admissions in scotland over the past couple of weeks. however, presiding officer, let me make this point very clear. i understand how hard this is for everybody, but perhaps for young people in particular, and it is not theirfault. younger adults people in particular, and it is not their fault. younger adults are people in particular, and it is not theirfault. younger adults are more likely to work in public facing jobs, more likely to have to use public transport and more likely to live in shared accommodation. that is simplya live in shared accommodation. that is simply a fact of life for so many young people in our society, but it also makes it more likely that they will be exposed to the virus and so, all the more important that we stress the ways in which they can protect themselves and protect others. presiding officer, taking account of all of the most up to date information we have i can confirm that it is the scottish government sjudgment confirm that it is the scottish government s judgment that we cannot at this stage risk the new opportunities for transmission of coded that reopening further services and facilities would entail. in my statement on the 24th august, i set out several changes that were provisionally scheduled for the 14th of september. of course i stressed then and i am quoting, given the volatility of the transmission of the virus, there is a very real possibility that some or all of these plans could change. u nfortu nately all of these plans could change. unfortunately due to the rising cases we have seen since then, we have concluded that these changes must be paused for a further three weeks. he knew indicative date for the resumption is monday the 5th of october. however, i must stress again that this remains an addictive date. a final decision can only be taken much nearer the time. that means taken much nearer the time. that mea ns u nfortu nately taken much nearer the time. that means unfortunately that spectators will not be able to return to sports stadiums and other venues over the next three weeks. there are two pallet events due to take place this weekend, which will proceed. however, after that we willjudge possible pilot events on a case by case basis in light of the latest covid 19 data. the other services and venues affected by this paws are theatres, live music venues, indoor soft play facilities and indoor contact sports activities for people aged 12 and over. in addition, outdoor events that have not yet been given the green light, such as those where a lot of people stand close together, cannot yet restart. i will give an update on funerals and weddings late on in my statement. now, iam funerals and weddings late on in my statement. now, i am well aware that for people who work in the sectors affected by it today s pause, this isa affected by it today s pause, this is a very hard message to hear. i know how long you waited to start up again orto know how long you waited to start up again or to pursue more of your activities and i know because i have seen this in so many sectors hammer network you have put into plans for space reopening. and i know the impact of continued closure. so i wa nt to impact of continued closure. so i want to stress that this decision to delay the indicative date by three weeks has not been taken lightly. but right now, given the rise in cases it is the only responsible decision we can reach. for the same reason, the reopening of call centres and offices where staff are still working from home will be reviewed again on the 1st of october, but we will definitely not ta ke october, but we will definitely not take place before then. for now, working at home will remain the default position. again, i am aware of the impact of long term home working on many businesses and employees and also on shops, cafe is and bars, which normally attract trade from office workers. we are currently working with parkers, including the scottish chambers of commerce and the s tuc to plan for a safe, faced reopening of these offices when circumstances allow. that planning will inform a future route map reviewing decisions. however, at this stage a full return to office working, which would substantially increase the number of people meeting indoors and travelling together on buses and trains, would risk a significant acceleration of covid 19 transmission. finally, before you move transmission. finally, before you m ove o nto transmission. finally, before you move onto further measures we deem necessary to reduce the spread of the virus, let me say a few words to those in the shielding category. we will continue to provide as much information and advice as possible. that, if you are registered with the shielding sms service and live in areas where there have been local outbreaks such as aberdeen or glasgow, you will have received text m essa g es glasgow, you will have received text messages alerting you to changes in local advice. we have also published a guide on the government website that suggest simple things you can do to lower your risk of exposure and you will receive an update letter soon from the chief medical officer. we understand the recent rise in cases will cause concern. however, at this stage we do not plan to reintroduce shielding. instead we will continue to give you the information you need to help you stay safe. in addition to pausing the reopening is planned for this month, we have concluded it is necessary to tighten some existing restrictions to help curb the spread of the virus, especially between and within households. as of now up to eight people from three households can meet indoors. larger outdoor gatherings are also permitted. i can confirm that we intend to change this so that a maximum of six people from two households will now be permitted to meet together. to help reduce transmission but also to simplify the rules as much as possible, this new limit will apply both indoors in houses pubs and restau ra nts, both indoors in houses pubs and restaurants, and also outdoors, including in private gardens. there will be some limited exceptions, for example for organised sports and places of worship. also, any children under 12 who are part of two households meeting up won t count two households meeting up won t cou nt towards two households meeting up won t count towards the limit of six people. and lastly, given the importance of these life events and the distress caused by not being able to mark them, we intend to allow a limited exception for funerals, weddings and civil partnerships. already up to 20 people can attend ceremonies for these occasions and we intend to retain that limit for now. however, from monday that a limit of 20 will also be permitted for weights and receptions, as long as they take place in regulated venues like hotels with strict guidance in place. i know that many have called for greater consistency in the arrangements for ceremonies and receptions, and i hope this will help deliver that. i am asking people to abide by these stricter new limits on gatherings immediately. however, the regulations that will give legal effect to them will come into force on monday and more detailed will of course be available on the scottish mint website. of course for now, for people living in glasgow, east or west dunbartonshire, renfrewshire, the advice is not to visit other households at all. let me also reemphasise the new limit of six people from two households will also apply in restaurants, pubs and beer gardens, as well as in our homes. we hope by reducing the risk of transmission in those settings, it will help to keep the sector open. however, i can confirm we have decided to implement two additional measures to reduce the risk of transmission in the hospitality sector. first, we intend to make it mandatory for customers in hospitality premises to wear face coverings whenever they are moving around and not eating or drinking. for example, when entering or going toa for example, when entering or going to a table or to a bathroom. second, subject to exemptions, we will make it mandatory rather than simply an guidance for staff working in hospitality premises to also wear face coverings. the hospitality industry has put lot of effort into creating safe spaces for people to meet and we hope these additional protections will help ensure the sector can remain open with high levels of compliance. presiding officer, i m aware the announcements i ve made so far are hard for people to hear. after six long, hard months we are still asking the public to make a lot of difficult sacrifices. that is unavoidable given the nature of the challenge we face. however, i wa nt to of the challenge we face. however, i want to be clear that while we still face a battle to keep, to get and keep covid under control, we are in a stronger position than earlier in the year. test and protect is working well and now taking a lot of the strain. without it the virus would be spreading further and faster and we would require more strict measures. the protect scotla nd strict measures. the protect scotland contact tracing app is now available for download and use. the app does not replace our current test and trace system. it adds to work of the teams on the ground, interviewing people who have tested positive, getting close with in touch with close contacts and making recommendations based on information gathered will remain the cornerstone of our approach. however, the app is an important addition to the work of those teams. if you download it you will receive a notification if someone you have been in close proximity to tells the app that they have tested positive. it will be particularly useful for settings such as public transport, where we tend to spend time in close proximity to people we don t know, and it will also be very valuable as stu d e nts and it will also be very valuable as students arrive back at university or college for the new term. the app is available now from the app on google play app stores and more information is available on the new protect thatscott website. the app operates anonymously and confidentially. the simple fact is the more of us who download and use it, the more effective eight and test and protect overall will be in helping us beat covid. so i encourage everyone to download it today and is bend spread to all of your friends and family. this is a simple but very powerful thing that all of us can do as individual citizens who help protect scotland asa citizens who help protect scotland as a whole. presiding officer, the powers and the new restrictions i have announced today are not welcome, know that. we did not want to have to impose them. but i they are necessary. and they reflect the fa ct are necessary. and they reflect the fact that scotland, like the rest of the uk, europe and the world, is currently in a very precarious position. however, notwithstanding that, as i said a moment ago, we are ina much that, as i said a moment ago, we are in a much better position than in late march. prevalence of the virus is lower thanks to the individual sacrifices that so many of you have made for the greater good. we are seeing a rise in new cases but it is not as rapid as it was earlier in the year. and test and protect is working well. it is allowing us, even with a rise in cases, to live much more normally than we were able to do under lockdown. so we still have grounds for cautious hope and optimism but we have no grounds whatsoever for complacency. it is vital to do everything we can to stop cases rising further before winter. that is the reason for the decisions i have outlined today. these steps are necessary to help curb a virus we know spreads rapidly whenever it gets the chance. of course, the success of these measures depends on all of us. this is still by necessity a collective effort. after all, while government actions like testing and contact tracing have a significant role to play, the virus unfortunately, doesn t respond to government instruction. it will rise and die according to how people behave. it goes into retreat when we deny at opportunities. and although none of us can guarantee opportunities. and although none of us can guarantee that we won t get or spread the virus, and it is not ourfault when we or spread the virus, and it is not our fault when we do, it is after all highly infectious. we can all do our bit to reduce the chances of that happening. i know that making these choices, keeping our distance from france, staying in small groups, washing hands regularly, these things all get much more tiresome as time passes but they are more important now than they have been four months. and the best way of remembering the key choices we almost make, of course, is facts. these are the rules that will help us these are the rules that will help us to protect ourselves, families, communities and the nhs, and ultimately they will help us save lives. we should not lose sight of that. so face coverings should be known where one enclosed spaces. avoid crowded areas. clean your hands thoroughly and hard surfaces after touching them. to meet a distancing remains clear advice and self isolate if you have symptoms of covid. those are symptoms of course area covid. those are symptoms of course are a fever or a loss of or change in your sense of taste or smell. keeping those basic rules is not easy but it remains the best way of expressing our solidarity with each other. my thanks once again to eve ryo ne a cross other. my thanks once again to everyone across scotland for your patience and for continuing to make these hard sacrifices for the sake of the people you love and for the sake of the country as a whole. thank you first minister. the first minister will now take questions. i will take all supplementary questions at the end after question seven from polly mcneil. the first question, ruth davidson. thank you, presiding officer command to the first minister for advance notice of her statement. the sobering news here in scotland and the rest of the uk overthe here in scotland and the rest of the uk over the past few days has been a reality check for anyone who thought of the pandemic was on its way out. it is clear that while we can still hope for further progress to be made over the rest of this year, there will be no swift return to normality. we all recognise the importance of sticking by the rules, washing our hands, social distancing and doing our bit, and it is down to each and every one of us and each and every one of us will benefit if we do. last night the new scottish contact tracing app was launched. experts at university college london have said the uptake of such an app would need to be between 56 and 95% for to be successful. reaching those numbers will take tremendous effort. this morning i come along with thousands of scots downloaded it to my phone and i have no doubt the first minister did too. but there are many people across scotland who don t regularly use apps and perhaps are not as addicted to their phones asa are not as addicted to their phones as a first minister and i. are not as addicted to their phones as a first ministerand i. can i are not as addicted to their phones as a first minister and i. can i ask what has been done to ensure everybody including the hardest to reach, having helped in adopting this new technology? can i thank ruth davidson for a question. can i also thank you for personally downloading the app and for taking the opportunity today to encourage others to do so. i would appeal to members across the chamber to follow that example. this is not political in any way. all of us have a duty to ask fellow citizens to do the right thing. uptake of course it is important, which is why it is so vital we do encourage people to download it. there are other views about whether you need to reach a specific percentage. i take the view the higher the better, but the more people that sign up the better. everybody that signs up is making out on contribution. when i left my office to come to the chamber of the download number had passed 150,000, which after a few hours is really good progress. i hope it rises further in the next few days. there will be, from tomorrow, a major advertising campaign to back it. the point about those who don t routinely use smartphones is an important one. it is for that reason, most other reasons, that we ve decided not to base our entire test and protect the system on a proximity tracing app. we built it from the bottom up using tried and tested approaches in our public health themes. and the app is an enhancement to that. if you don t have a phone, or you don t use the app, have a phone, or you don t use the app.y°u have a phone, or you don t use the app, you will not be missed from our testing system. everybody who tests positive, notwithstanding the app, will still be contacted and their contact details, of those i have beenin contact details, of those i have been in contact with, taken. the app adds to that system that i think it s really important to recognise that the real value of the app is that the real value of the app is that it will help us notify close contacts that it will help us notify close co nta cts of that it will help us notify close contacts of positive cases that are not known to the person who has tested positive. somebody you sat close to one a boss or a train, or ina pub close to one a boss or a train, or in a pub or restaurant. that is the importance of the enhancement. test protect is working well. i say that with not a shred of complacency. the most up to date figures on its performance were published by public health scotland yesterday. still at this stage more than well over 90% of index cases are being contacted and over 90% of close contacts have been contacted. it is working well. this is an important enhancement and i hope all of us get fully behind it. what we are also learning as we go through this is that to get ahead of the virus we must fight it on all fronts and testing is at the heart of that. and at present even with the increase in testing the first minister has outlined, her strategy focuses on symptomatic cases, on surveillance and the sick and high risk. she made no mention in her statement today on wider community testing. so can she say today whether the current position is going to be the long term one for the country, or is it a staging post towards mass community testing? we are working with the uk government to try to advance mass community testing. the prime minister spoke about the work the uk government is doing, yesterday. yesterday where we are engaging with them on that. not all of that technology currently exists. there is a lot of work to do to make testing available on a massive scale in a way that is rapid and easily accessible. but we continue to build a partnership with the uk, the capacity of our current testing system. our poster testing is set out in our current testing strategy game, which will keep under co nsta nt strategy game, which will keep under constant review. there are some strategies of people where test regardless of symptoms, care home workers are tested every week, whether or not they have since symptoms. there are categories of patients admitted to hospital and categories of staff working in our hospitals who are tested routinely as well. and of course people working in our education system can access to state testing if they need believe them and exposed to the virus. other than that the advice to people and it s really important advice is that you should access testing if you have one of the symptoms of covid 19 that we regularly remind people of. we have seenin regularly remind people of. we have seen in recent weeks that testing in scotla nd seen in recent weeks that testing in scotland has increased rapidly and substantially. the most recent figures that could be accessed comparing across the uk will show that we are testing proportionately more people per head of population. this is something we work at the uk government and will continue to do so as we develop capacity but also develop the approaches we take to testing in line with our learning about the virus. thank you. i accept the technology on community testing is complex and may not quite be there yet, but we have seen experts such as the chairman of infectious diseases at edinburgh university, and professor hugh pennington explained that we need more than the current measures if we are going to eradicate covid 19. identifying asymptomatic through mass testing is important. the first minister said she is working with the uk government towards mass testing. that is really positive but i was wondering if she can give more information about how this will be achieved and if she has any timescales for the public to be informed about that? we will keep the public informed on an ongoing basis. we have published our testing strategy available on the scottish government website. that is kept under review. i am a firm believer ina twin under review. i am a firm believer in a twin track approach. we have to focus on the future and we have two commit to try to develop approaches, evenif commit to try to develop approaches, even if they are not yet fully developed, to be implemented now. that is the right approach to developing, not just that is the right approach to developing, notjust mass testing, but mass rapid testing. we have also got to focus on the fundamentals right now with making sure that our current approach to testing can be properly implemented. that is why the development and launch today of protect scotland is so important, and why we haven t initially decided not to have a scotland specific app, we decided to do it when we saw the success on the one in which ours is based in the republic of ireland and more recently in northern ireland. we will focus on the here and now, making sure that people do need testing get access to that testing quickly. the testing system largely is with in a uk wide network, so we are required to work with the uk government to make sure that we can access that appropriately for scotla nd access that appropriately for scotland and we are doing that. but we will also look to develop new approaches in the future as soon as the technology and our ability to develop that is where we needed to be. i m sure everyone is in agreement on the importance of testing within the suite of tools at our disposal. can i ask the first minister about a specific aspect of the testing regime? we found out yesterday only 5% of those coming into our airports have been contacted by the national contact tracing centre. the most recent statistical report by public health scotland said six and on 31 people we re scotland said six and on 31 people were contacted out of more than 13,000 people who were required to quarantine. 631. ruth quarantine. 631. ruth davidson, the conservative party leader at holyrood there. responding to the statement made by first minister nicola sturgeon. her usual corona update. saying that the r number of covid 19 in scotland could be as much as 1.5. she said they have to remain in the current phase, phase three of the lifting of restrictions, because the virus is clearly still a threat. stricter new limits also being introduced in scotla nd limits also being introduced in scotland from monday. only two households and up to six people will be able to gather socially indoors or outdoors. that is broadly in line with what is happening in england as well. the bus company stagecoach is carrying out an investigation after a school bus collided with a bridge in winchester. three children have been taken to hospital with serious, but not life threatening injuries, after a school bus hit a railway bridge in winchester in southern england. the airambulance the air ambulance was sent in response after the roof of the bus was completely sheared off. parents have been collecting their children, who will go to henry beaufort school. a short while ago duncan kennedy spoke to one of the children on the bus bus. we were driving to school on the bus as normal. we were going the wrong way but none of us noticed because we we re way but none of us noticed because we were just chatting. then we suddenlyjust hit the top of the tunnel because it is a double decker bus. it all fell in on the top. i m not sure what happened at the bottom. i think they were ok. but on the topic fell in on top of everyone. there was glass everywhere and everybody started to scream. we managed to get off, down the stairs and out. there are quite a lot of people who must‘ve heard the crash who came and helped us until the ambulance came. zoe ciaran is speaking to a micro correspondent duncan kennedy. a short while ago he gave us this update. she was on the top deck of this bus, which you can see under the tunnel behind me, when the whole thing was ripped off. she was right at the ce ntre ripped off. she was right at the centre of this deeply unpleasant interview. her father centre of this deeply unpleasant interview. herfatherwas centre of this deeply unpleasant interview. her father was giving her reassurance but she was pretty shaken by the whole thing. she said, i asked if there was any social distancing on the bus, she said not really, it was pretty crowded. it was travelling down this road going in this direction to the tunnel. i will ask my cameraman to zoom in so you can get an idea of what was going on. we know the bus was heading in the winchester direction when it entered the tunnel. as you can see, it s not a very wide tunnel. and it was a double decker bus. zoe said that it was a school bus. zoe said that it was a school bus but i m not sure that is correct, or it was just a bus but i m not sure that is correct, or it wasjust a general bus being used by the school. as she said, it was pretty full of children at the time. it all happened after eight o clock this morning. they weren t aware of what was going on until it hit this bridge. she said it until it hit this bridge. she said it where she thought it took a wrong direction from which way the bus normally goes. she wasn t sure of that. she felt it was taking a different direction to what it normally took. the first she knew of what had happened was when it crashed into that bus there. how to describe it as an extremely harsh thought, and the whole of the roof around her was ripped off. we have had those casualty figures coming through from hampshire police, saying that three children seriously injured and a number of others have been badly shaken up. an extraordinary start to their day. the police are still very much at the scene trying to find out exactly what happened. duncan kennedy in winchester. attacks on frequent flyers and banning cars from city centres are among the climate change solutions members of the public have come up with as part of the uk s first citizens assembly on the environment. more than 100 people looked at the changes needed to cut greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. our science correspondent rebecca morelle has more. our planet is heating up fast, with greenhouse gases causing temperatures to rise. now the uk s first climate assembly has a plan to tackle this. launched by sir david attenborough, the assembly brought together people from across the country to give their views on combating climate change. this report covers every aspect of our lives. it recommends stopping the sales of the most polluting cars. forfood, the suggestion is that we reduce the amounts of meat and dairy we eat by up to 40% and the assembly members don t want to ban air travel, but they do say taxes should increase the further and more often we fly. leah, a student, and ibrahim, a gp, both took part. obviously we are a representation of the people and it s very important that the government listens because, as it s going now, climate change is a big issue and there s going to be big effects in my lifetime. there are also lots of little contributions that each person can do on a day to day basis, and i would like to think that everyone, as they look at this report, will say, right, how can i as an individual improve my carbon emissions? energy was also looked at, and offshore wind farms got the biggest backing, while protecting forests and planting trees was also widely supported. the report has a vision for a greener future and will now be submitted to parliament. it should reveal which policies may or may not receive wider public support. rebecca morelle, bbc news. wildfires are still burning out of control along parts of the west coast of the united states. the governor of oregon says they could bring about the greatest loss in human lives and property in her state s history. in california, smoke and ash have turned the sky a dark orange. in butte county, a sheriff has reported that three people in two different locations have perished there. tim allman reports. this is san francisco in the middle of the day. the city by the bay almost unrecognisable. look at the golden gate bridge. the same colour as the dark orange sky surrounding it. smoke and ash blocking out the sun making it feel like the end of the world. 11.15. crazy. 11.15 in the morning. and it s like the middle of the night almost. they are saying it s coming all the way from oregon, which is hundreds of miles away. it looks like the apocalypse right now. it s like night time in the daytime. in los angeles, the sky is a more normal colour but the smoke is still there. a hazy mist enveloping most of the city and this is the reason. just one of the fires burning out of control here in california and also further north. this was a trailer park in the town of medford, oregon. there s not much left of it now. the fire has ripped through it. destroying property, destroying lives. sheriff is coming through going, level three, get out. get out . and, yeah, grabbed some papers and stuff. this is it. this is what i ve got. what you are wearing right now? this is what i ve got. i m so sorry. for oregon, this has been described as a once in a generation event and it a similar story for neighbouring states. this fire season is unprecedented. the flames continue to burn. tim allman, bbc news. now it s time for a look at the weather. hello. much of the country is staying dry for the rest of today. more cloud from the atlantic over north western parts of the uk, turning white as well. it is cooler thanit turning white as well. it is cooler than it was yesterday. these are the temperatures as we head into the early evening. particularly chilly in the northern half of the uk, with the breeze picking up. we have the breeze picking up as well. the wetter weather will continue across the north west of scotland. many other web areas will be dry. the wind continues to freshen, particularly in the northern half of the uk. it won t be as cold as it was last night. a significant change for eastern scotland and north eastern england. into friday we have got a weather front, an area of low pressure to the north, bringing wet and windy weather to the northern half of the uk, for the south still dominated by high pressure, so it is dry and that path will continue into the weekend as well. we have got a band of rain moving down across scotland, northern ireland, heavy rain over the hills of the west, eventually it pushes him cumbria through the afternoon. rest of england and wales probably dry at this some sunshine at this time. temperatures around 20 degrees. cooler further at this time. temperatures around 20 degrees. coolerfurther north, when you re as well, heavy blustery showers in northern scotland, with winds gusting at 45 mph. that weather front takes rain southwards across northern parts of england and wales, then it peters out. the next weather system sweeping in from the atlantic. again that is mainly going to affect the northern half of the uk. we start saturday with some showers in the northern and western scotland, they get swamped by thickening cloud the winds picking up, north western areas turning wetter. england and wales generally dry, some sunshine at times, temperatures 21 celsius. through the rest of the weekend we have got a speu rest of the weekend we have got a spell of wet and windy weather on saturday night for scotland, perhaps northern ireland. then some more rain on sunday pushes towards the north west of scotland, threatening some flooding as well. elsewhere, increasing amounts of sunshine, the winds dropping. temperatures responding to that sun xiang, maybe into the mid 20s across eastern parts having an. it is likely to get hotter still as we head into early next week. we have still got a weather front loitering in the north west of the uk. an area of high pressure across continental europe and we tap into some of that heat and we will see ten which is rising everywhere early next week. briefly in the south east temperatures could reach 30 celsius. mass coronavirus testing is promised by early next year but some scientists question whether it s achievable. the health secretary, matt hancock, defends the government s ambition of achieving up 10 million tests a day. the so called operation moonshot, to deploy mass testing, will allow people to lead more normal lives and reduce the need for social distancing. talk ofaiming talk of aiming for the moon is all very well, but actually it s a distraction from the concrete problems we have in the here and now. nicola sturgeon says social gatherings in scotland in any location will be limited to six people, from no more than two households. we ll get all the latest from our health editor.
tonight at ten the devastating effects of coronavirus on the economy. it shrank by over 20% in the first full month of lockdown, april. empty gyms, offices, restaurants, and shops large swathes of the economy ground to a halt, in the sharpest contraction on record. it is going to be tough for a few months but we will get through it and we will bounce back very strongly indeed. but the governor of the bank of england does see signs of a gradual recovery, and says he s ready to take action to limit the long term damage. also tonight. the government rules out prolonging trade talks with the eu beyond december, but checks on goods coming to the uk will be phased in next year. coronavirus has hit deprived areas twice as hard as wealthier ones, according to new figures. the prime minister says it s absurd and shameful that a statue of churchill has had to be boxed up to protect it from anti racism protesters. and the ancient treasures of persia. we get rare access to the culturaljewels of iran. and coming up on bbc news, the premier league allows players to wear the words black lives matter on the back of their shirts when the season restarts next week. good evening. the dramatic economic effect of the lockdown was laid bare today, with figures showing that the uk economy shrank by more than a fifth in april. that s the largest monthly contraction ever recorded, in our first full month in lockdown. the slump of 20.4% in economic growth is three times larger than that seen during the whole of the financial crisis 12 years ago. the office for national statistics says it s affected almost all areas of economic activity, with house building and car manufacturing particularly badly hit. the uk is now on course for a recession, which is two consecutive quarters of negative growth. but analysts say that april was likely to have been the worst month. our economics editor faisal islam has this report. a massive hit to the economy is no surprise when streets are silent, shops are closed, factories idle and tens of billions in sales don t happen because they cannot. but such a slump on this scale in one month isn tjust a record, it was unimaginable and way beyond any normal scale. marlow zoo is one example of a leisure attraction whose shutdown during this pandemic is seen in these numbers. april had easter this year, so we were expecting about 70,000 guests to come here to enjoy the zoo and in the end we got nobody at all. whilst we were expecting £1.8 million in terms of visitor income for the month, we didn t receive anything at all, so disastrous really, april, for us. in april, the first full month of lockdown, the economy fell byjust over 20%, losing a fifth of its total value. it means since the pandemic and lockdown began in march, the uk economy has lost a quarter of its value, that is the cliff on this chart, making the financial crisis in 2008 resemble a small blip. the question where do things go from here? for a dynamic, creative economy, we depend so much on human contact and we have been badly hit by this, but we are also amazingly resilient and creative. we will bounce back. there was a report that came out a couple of days ago from the 0ecd, that group of industrialised nations, and it suggested that the drop in gdp for this year for the uk would actually be worse than for every other industrialised nation so we are in a very difficult situation as a country. in 0xfordshire, an airfield with tens of millions worth of vehicles waiting for the showrooms to sell again. and in turn meaning the car factories will be far from full tilt. so this is what those grim numbers look like in reality. up and down the country, storage areas, airfields, ports, full of unsold cars. in april, a 99.7% fall in car sales. the challenge now, as lockdown just starts to ease, is will it actually return to normal? will these cars actually sell or is the economy fundamentally damaged 7 in germany, they funded thousands of euros for new purchases of green cars, and slashed vat as part of a massive second rescue package. here, more support on its way, signalled by the bank of england. we have to be ready and ready to take action, notjust the bank but more broadly on what we can do and offset those longer term damaging effects. for the moment, the government is focusing on a gradual reopening, for example, of the housing market. we are just starting to recover. i believe it will take until the end of the year to come close, whether we will even get there, but i feel positive that there is enough people who want to move, and if there s enough people who want to move then people will sell and people will buy. and there is much lost ground to make up in gyms too with the added challenge of whether people will use them in a new normal. the fitness sector has proved before that it is particularly resilient in a recession, and i think we will benefit greatly from the tailwind provided by the pandemic, actually. we have never seen a weaker month, the economy far from fighting fit. the question isjust how long the process of rehabilitation will take. faisal islam, bbc news. well, the economic uncertainty has led to calls for trade talks with the eu following brexit to be extended beyond the end of this year. but the government has ruled that out, with cabinet minister michael gove saying he d formally confirmed to the eu that there will be no delay. but checks on goods coming here from the eu will be phased in next year, to give businesses time to adjust. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth reports. it s not been business like this for months. many firms disrupted because of the virus and at the end of this year, another big change could be brewing. our current trade terms with the eu end and there ll be no extension whether there s a new deal or not. we would not be extending. that s it. we are leaving the transition period on december 31st. that provides clarity and certainty to business and our announcement today allows business to plan in an appropriate and flexible way. the uk left the eu onjanuary 31st, allowing a year where not much changed to work out future relations. those talks haven t made huge progress, so on monday, the prime minister will meet eu figures to try to get things moving because december 31st is the deadline for a new trade deal to be agreed, and that won t be extended. although some still think it should be, and why? to take away the risk of a no deal outcome and also to make sure that all of us remain focused on supporting business through the post covid recovery and not making the challenges that the economy and our businesses face any worse than it already is. for some businesses, though, some relief today. this fashion firm imports from and exports to the eu and today, the government said from january, it would relax new rules on some goods coming in. six months‘ grace for customs paperwork and payments, which was welcomed here. setting up a whole new border control system in seven and eight months wouldn t be realistic, and i think the uk consumer will benefit from that. the government insists it s not backtracking on previous plans, arguing that a phased approach to new customs checks is pragmatic in the current economic climate. but the eu is not reciprocating, saying it will be ready for controls on imports come january. brexit may not have dominated here of late, but that doesn t mean the political pressure‘s eased. the government was re elected with a significant majority, with a strong mandate to get on with brexit. if the government s going to fulfil the commitments on which it s elected, we need to have those customs processes and our borders fully operational as soon as we can. for businesses, certainty, as ever, is key, even more so given the turmoil of coronavirus. while a slower approach to new border checks might be welcomed by some, it s whether a trade deal can be done which remains crucial to many. alex forsyth is in westminster. coronavirus and brexit, two huge issues in the government s in tray. yes, i think that s right and on brexit, the fact that government is relaxing the timetable for those new customs checks is something of an acknowledgement of the disruption that businesses are currently facing but the big question of causes whether a trade deal can be agreed in the timetable the government has now committed to. both the eu and uk state is possible and they have agreed to accelerate talks in the coming weeks but there are still big gaps between the two sides so it will require significant compromise. of course, the backdrop to all of thatis of course, the backdrop to all of that is the economic picture that was painted so starkly by those figures released today. it may not bea figures released today. it may not be a surprise, of course, that the economy took such a hit during the lockdown period but what is key now is whether the recovery is fairly, relatively quick or whether there is lasting and deep damage. remember, this was a government that was elected on a platform of getting brexit resolved but also to tackle some of the regional, societal and economic inequalities in this country and i think what is clear now on both fronts is simply the scale of the challenge the government is now facing. alex, many thanks. alex forsyth westminster, there. coronavirus has hit the most deprived parts of england and wales twice as hard as wealthier areas, according to official figures. urban regions, which are more densely populated, were worse affected than rural areas. meanwhile, in the last 24 hour period, the number of deaths reported in the uk in hospitals, care homes and the wider community related to coronavirus were up by 202, bringing the total number of deaths to 41,481. 0ur health editor hugh pym reports. big cities with big populations the virus spread fast with a higher risk of deaths. 0ne message underlined by today s new data. richard musa worked as a nurse in london for 26 years. he died in hospital with covid i9 and his family couldn t give him a final farewell. covid and the rules around it made it extremely difficult for us, as a family, and it added to our grief. so, it felt like grief upon grief that we couldn t see him, we couldn t be near him, we couldn t see him before he was buried. all of the things that we would have wanted to do, that proper goodbye, we were denied that opportunity and it s really, really difficult. the north east of england has been hit hard by coronavirus. following the peak in april, the number of deaths fell across the country last month, but slower in this region than elsewhere. and local health experts say there were a number of factors. as a gp in inner city newcastle, we have large numbers of people living with long term conditions or chronic diseases, and the ones that we see a lot of include chest diseases. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is very common. and that clearly puts you at greater risk if you were to catch the virus. figures out today for england and wales show a range of death rates linked to covid i9 between march and may. they re adjusted for differing age profiles in each area. in england, in the north east, the figure was just over 97 per 100,000 of population. in london, the highest, it was 137 per 100,000 of population. and the lowest in england was the south west, with just over 41. in wales, the highest area, once again a big city, was cardiff, at 125 per 100,000 deaths. wales as a whole, at 67, was below england. the figures show death rates in the most deprived areas were a lot higher than in the wealthiest parts of the country. in england, more than twice as high. there is a higher death rate from covid amongst people who, for example, work in unskilled labour, and it s quite likely that there are higher proportions of people in that nature of work in deprived areas. similarly, we know that if you re in an area of high population density, it s harder to do your social distancing effectively. many of the deprived areas we are looking at are areas of high population density. the medical director for nhs england acknowledged these were challenging issues. those things that mean you are more likely to do badly when you get the infection, like diabetes, like obesity, like heart and lung disease, we see more frequently in more deprived areas of the country. in scotland and northern ireland, there are no comparable figures for death rates adjusted for age demographics. there will be a lot more research on health inequalities, prevalence among bame communities, and underlying conditions. today s figures do add a bit more to an understanding of the impact of coronavirus. hugh pym, bbc news. from monday, face coverings will be mandatory on public transport in england. transport operators will be able to refuse permission to travel to those who are not wearing a face covering, and it could lead to fines. the transport secretary grant shapps confirmed that new volunteers called journey makers will be deployed to remind people. scotland s first minister nicola sturgeon has insisted that a programme to test care workers for coronavirus is accelerating. so far, just over a third have been tested that s despite a promise last month that all care home staff would get a weekly test. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith reports. right, i m just going to take yourobs, darlin‘. all staff working in every care home in scotland are supposed to be tested for coronavirus every week. a big promise. the big problem is that nearly four weeks after that commitment, only around a third of staff have been tested even once. at this home in dumfries and galloway, they ve had no confirmed cases but they ve also been unable to get hold of the tests. i think it would ve been beneficial for us to have been tested earlier. it would have kind of put us all maybe a bit more at ease. we re further down the line now, having been closed since march, it s quite scary thinking that if somebody comes back with a positive test, that ll have a huge impact on the home. across the whole of dumfries and galloway, only four care home staff were tested in the first week of this month. of all the people in scotland who have died of covid 19, 47% of them have been in care homes, that s more than have died in hospital. and the government know that without visitors, it s staff who pose the greatest risk for bringing the virus into homes that s why they want to test them all every week. but it s a target they ve yet to meet. the charity that runs this home say they have only been able to get 5% of their scottish staff tested compared to 90% in their homes in england. i welcome the commitment to weekly testing because that is a commitment that has ‘t happened in england, but the reality has to catch up with the government position. the first minister will not set a date for when the government might reach the testing goal. why is a commitment to test all care home staff not being met even though it s over three weeks since it was first made and when will that promise be fulfilled? it does take time to put in place a programme of testing that number of people in place and health boards have been doing that. the health secretary and i have, i think, given a fairly direct indication over the last week or so that we think that progress should be accelerating and that s why the health secretary has made that very clear to health boards. 0n the other side of that is that we ve made clear to health boards that the scottish government is there if they need additional resources and support. the scottish government is working on a deal to cover sick pay for any care home workers who do test positive and have to isolate. figures for staff testing will now be published every week, intensifying pressure to increase the tests. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. a report by the national audit office says it is not known how many of the 25,000 people in england discharged from hospitals into care homes at the height of the pandemic were infected with coronavirus. it says that due to government policy, priority for testing was given to patients with respiratory illness or flu like symptoms. the prime minister says it s absurd and shameful that a statue of winston churchill has had to be boarded up because of fears it may be vandalised. last weekend, protesters daubed it with graffiti saying that churchill was a racist. borisjohnson also warned people to stay away from protests because of coronavirus. tonight, the metropolitan police has imposed conditions on those intending to protest tomorrow, as chi chi izundu reports. take it down, take it down! it s been a week of anger. peaceful anti racism protests marred by violence. 99 police officers reported injuries over all the protests so far. today does not protest had fewer people but a heavier police presence and tonight, a change in tactics. london s metropolitan police say its imposing conditions on a stricter route and a definite five o clock finish for the black lives matter, right wing and left wing affiliated protest tomorrow. we will try to prevent protest tomorrow. we will try to p reve nt a ny protest tomorrow. we will try to prevent any confrontation and any violence and, indeed, damage to buildings, to memorials and to statues. last weekend, this is how the churchill statue outside parliament was left. this is how it stands now. 0ver fears today s march would result in more damage. the prime minister calling it shameful the monument had to be secured. the statue of winston churchill, who is a national hero, has had to be boarded up for fear of violent attack. i think it shameful we have a lot of these statues in the first place. a lot of these statues shouldn t be put up in the first place. it no longer serves us put up in the first place. it no longer serves us to have statues of men that don t represent the society we live in today. even though it s pa rt we live in today. even though it s part of the british history, i don t think it should be celebrated and memorialised by statues. tearing them down doesn t mean tearing all them down doesn t mean tearing all the pages out of the history books. a demonstration planned for tomorrow was cancelled and brought forward to today because of concerns there could be trouble between people determined to defend the monuments and those who may have wanted to deface them. this is now a second week where people have taken to the streets are anti racism marches and the protest organisers have said again and again that these marches should remain peaceful and they said again and again that this won t be the last one. but the debate around statues continues. police are now investigating after this bust to black playwright and poet was attacked with bleach earlier this week, while the thomas guy statue outside the hospital in london he founded has been boarded up because of his links to slavery. but not all the protests have ended like today s and its organisers are concerned that the discussion about whether statues should remain up or a is