welcome to bbc news. let's turn to the main headlines. the princess of wales — apologises for confusion surrounding a family photo — saying, she was experimenting with editing. it came after major picture agencies pulled the photo over concerns it had been manipulated. the former conservative party vice chairman, lee anderson defects to the populist party, reform uk. as the crisis in haiti deepens — regional leaders meet injamaica for emergency talks. the situation in gaza remains desperate as a ship carrying 200 tonnes of food aid for the region continues to be stuck in a cypriot port. # i'm just port. # i'mjust cairn, port. # i'm just cairn, where i see love she sees a friend... # and ken steals the show at the oscars but it's oppenheimer that is the big winner. == oscars but it's oppenheimer that is the big winner-— oscars but it's oppenheimer that is the big winner._ i l the big winner. -- i'm 'ust ken. i encouraged * the big winner. -- i'm 'ust ken. i encouraged ben h the big winner. -- i'mjust ken. i encouraged ben thompson - the big winner. -- i'mjust ken. i encouraged ben thompson to - the big winner. -- i'mjust ken. i l encouraged ben thompson to have the big winner. -- i'mjust ken. i - encouraged ben thompson to have a suit like that but he said no but he has the news headlines. and the

business headlines. us investment firm elliott advisors has walked away from making a takeover bid for currys after being rejected by the retailer's board in its own words "multiple times". it had initially proposed an offer that valued the electricals chain at £700 million, and later raised it to 757 million. but currys rebuffed the approaches, saying they "significantly undervalued" the business. currys could still receive a bid from china'sjd.com, which said last month it was mulling an offerfor the firm. earlier i spoke with russ mould, investment director at the stockbrokers aj bell. there is but it it will focus on what the two main shareholders

in currys have got to say, redwheel and frasers. any bid will have to get their approval and one can only assume that wasn't forthcoming this time. they said it undervalued the business. it is rare we are in a position where we are talking about a high street retailer at the centre of a possible bidding war. we thought that bricks and mortar were done but currys proving there is to life in that model. i must admit if you had asked me at the start of the year what would be a good bet for a uk takeover target i think currys would have been a long way down my list, if truth be told. i guess you could say that the elliott bid was £750 million for nearly £9 billion of annual sales so you could argue that there is some potential value there. there's £1 billion of stock on the balance sheet and nearly £2 billion of assets but there are also leases on the stores, a pension deficit and a little bit of debt so the overall cost of acquisition is lot higher. elliott clearly felt there were more profits to be squeezed out of that business, i would assume, otherwise they wouldn't have looked at it at all. yes, that's the question. call me a cynic but we often talk about these sorts of takeovers and the bidder comes in,

fleeces it for any sort of value and then sells off the stores and it becomes an online—only retailer. i don't get a sense that that was going to happen in this case but as you say there is some value in their stores and stock. there is value in the stores and stock and you have the £i.2 billion of leases, so currys doesn't own all of its assets so if you were being cynical looking at the asset stripping angle i don't think it was really there if truth be told. there are other things happening at currys, its business in scandinavia seems to be turning around, it is selling its greek business to further strengthen its balance sheet, so there were other options and angles there. i couldn't find the asset strip angle, having said that elliott are smarter than i have and have made a lot of money than i have but it didn't seem like a straightforward asset strip and why i was surprised about it being bid for in the first place. china'sjd.com potentially mulling a bid, too. why would it want it because it is a huge online retailer? it is not short of places to flog

electronics on its own website. no, correct, again, you can argue that one of currys' attractions, it is now probably the only real uk electrical retailer with a physical or retail park presence which you could argue is worth is worth something. currys' own online offering has been improving under the current management team and chief executive alex baldock so there may be an angle there forjd.com using it as an initial start for warehousing and logistics in the uk. russ mould from a] bell. to the us now and president joe biden will map out his fiscal vision for the country later today as he unveils his budget for the year ahead. this being an election year of course his spending wish list it will be as much a pitch to voters as a policy proposal. what should we expect? let's get more with our north america business correspondent michelle fleury who's in new york fleury who's in new york. what do what do you what do you think what do you think he what do you think he can what do you think he can deliver what do you think he can deliver for what do you think he can deliver for voters? mm what do you think he can deliver for voters? , mm what do you think he can deliver for voters? , �* mm what do you think he can deliver for voters? , �* ., , mm what do you think he can deliver for voters? , �* ., , ., , voters? president biden has released his buduet, voters? president biden has released

his budget. it — voters? president biden has released his budget. it is _ voters? president biden has released his budget, it is requesting _ voters? president biden has released his budget, it is requesting more - his budget, it is requesting more than $7 trillion to fund priorities we have seen similar to his budget from last year, so for example he wants more money to help the middle class through programmes, whether it is medicaid for better drug pricing or whether it is food programmes, and he plans to raise money by taxing corporations and high earners more. where you get a bit less detail, for example, is on things like entitlements in america, things like entitlements in america, things like social security, what are his plans to sort of preserve that. that i think is where people will be pawing over the details trying to see the fine print. but that is where we stand right now and it comes a couple of days after those in the house controlled by republicans released their version of a budget, trying to pre—empt this document in which they said they hope to save money by in part

scrapping joe biden�*s inflation reduction act. the other thing i should point out about president biden�*s budget is he is also asking forfunding to continue biden�*s budget is he is also asking for funding to continue payments both for enforcing the border and also more money for ukraine aid. big election issues and we know elections are won and lost on the state of the economy and the us economy is doing ok right now, it has actually bounced back. and yet a lot of people that you speak to would probably not feel much better off and that's because inflation has been such a big problem. that could been such a big problem. that could be instrumental in this election. yes and i think that really has influenced voters' perception of how the american economy is doing. and so this is a chance for president biden to kind of, if you like, expand further on a message he laid out in his state of the union address last week making his pitch on the economy and what his plans to do, drawing a contrast with his counterpart. but i think it's worth

pointing out this is not a document likely to become policy, this is a wish list and again it is one that is going to be used to kind of trying to sell his message on the economy to what has in the past been a somewhat sceptical american public, as you rightly point out, because the problem of inflation is something that they see in their everyday lives. something that they see in their everyday lives-— something that they see in their everyday lives. michelle for now, thank yom _ everyday lives. michelle for now, thank yom i _ everyday lives. michelle for now, thank you. i will— everyday lives. michelle for now, thank you. i will let _ everyday lives. michelle for now, thank you. i will let you - everyday lives. michelle for now, thank you. i will let you go - everyday lives. michelle for now, thank you. i will let you go and i thank you. i will let you go and pour over that detail. thank you. the film star idris elba is leading a regeneration project in sierra leone along with siaka stevens, the grandson of a former president. they recently announced plans for a wind and solarfarm, in a country where fewer than three in ten households have access to electricity. the site for the planned eco—city is sherbro island — off the coast of west africa. britain's octopus energy will build the project and our business reporter david waddell spoke to its chief executive, and with idris elba, who explained why the island was chosen. originally we went there looking

at how could we bring tourism to the most incredible 19 miles of beachfront that was there? and then we saw something a bit more innovative, a bit more exciting was this idea of building a sort of eco smart city, preserving what's beautiful about it, but at the same time attracting partners to help build it out, if you like, and explore it. so that's how it came about. this is a question for zoisa. there's a lot of work to be done to make this project work. have you identified local skills and experience that are needed to complete the project? absolutely. we would want to work with local communities to be able to upskill as much as possible. we even want the wind farm to be able to unlock new industry and actually to unlock old industries as well, such as fisheries and fishing. so, refrigeration suddenly gives us the opportunity to be able to do that again. what is it first attracted octopus to partnering with international tv and film star idris elba? well, i was going to say, the way you put it —

i mean, several reasons in that when we met with both siaka and idris, the one thing that actually blew me away was their knowledge of renewable energy. they were describing to me how this was a wind tunnel and it has, you know, 16 hours of sunshine that we can be looking at. so it was that as much as, of course, a name like idris's and siaka who, of course, is the grandson of the former president of sierra leone as well. so we knew that relationships would have been built there. and idris, what is it that inspired you to lend notjust your passion, but also your name to a project like this? never in my lifetime would i have thought i could help build the foundation for a new smart city. no, i'm not qualified for that. but i am qualified to dream big. and my parents came to this country when they were young, late �*60s, with the aspirations of going home. my mum's still alive, but my dad isn't. so part of me wants to build that

beautiful retirement home for my mum where she can go back and say, "wow," you know, "my little guy that was born in hackney came back home and built this incredible island." and it's a dream, you know? but i work in the make—believe business and it's exactly that — make—believe, you know. your mum, i think, is ghanaian, but your father is sierra leonean, and you've just mentioned that he's no longer with us. how do you think he would feel to see you getting behind this project? i think he'd think that i was dreaming way too big. first of all, he'll say, like, why sherbro? like, "why sherbro? that's miles away from my village." and secondly, he'd say, "look, you know, if you're going to do it, make sure you do it properly. do it good. do it with all your heart," because that's the best you could do. i think he'd be proud, though. so from renewable energy to fossil

fuels. the world's biggest oil company saudi aramco has reported a sharp fall in its net profit, slipping 25% in 2023 compared to the previous year. aramco attributed the downturn to lower crude oil prices and decreased production. the company's net income dropped from $161 billion in 2022 to $121 billion last year. despite the challenges posed by declining oil prices, aramco will increase its dividend payments, providing a much—needed financial boost to saudi arabia. our middle east business correspondent sameer hashmi is in riyadh — from where he explained why aramco was increasing its dividend payout. it is a steep fall compared to 2022, but for saudi aramco it's still their second—best performance in terms of annual results at $121 billion. there are two reasons why they have increased the dividend payout. number one, of course, saudi aramco is the main driver of saudi arabia's economy.

the saudi government and saudi—owned entities own 99% of saudi aramco so they rely heavily on that income to really fund some of these massive projects that are being built in saudi arabia. so aramco tries to keep the dividend as high as possible. and a second is thatjust two months ago the saudi government announced they won't be going ahead with their plans of expanding oil production. saudi amco was supposed to invest money to increase its oil production saudi aramco was supposed to invest money to increase its oil production over the coming years but now they have stalled those plans which has freed up that cash which they are essentially passing on to the saudi government in the form of the dividend payout. this is all part of this big move, or trying to move away from oil. talk us through mohammed bin salman�*s spending plans for the country. well, yes, one of the main objectives of saudi arabia is to move away its economy from oil which is the main driver of its economy. they are investing billions and billions of dollars across various sectors. we have heard a lot about sports

and football but they are also building mega infrastructure projects including new cities, they are building cultural sites to boost tourism, building a cluster of new islands on the red sea to attract tourists in the coming years. they are investing in an electric vehicle company, they are building a new airline. so there are so many sectors they are building up, all with the main objective of building the economy for a post—oilfuture. and this requires billions and billions of dollars which they are investing right now. and not to forget they are hosting a host of high—profile events. there will be the host for the world expo in 2030, they are almost certain to host the 2034 world cup, football world cup. so these are all megaprojects with the hope that this would help steer the economy away from oil in the coming years because they expect peak oil demand to fall in the next 10 to 15 years. sameer hashmi in riyadh. those are

the top business stories. bbc news — bring you different stories from across the uk. for many of us, artistic swimming is something we only see at the olympics but across the country, it's very much alive and kicking. at the helm here in cheltenham, sisters sam and sarah, they've been involved in the sport for most of their lives, winning competitions and now setting up this new club. just really passionate about the sport of artistic swimming and we want to share that with as many people as possible. so, from the age of seven all the way up to, we've got swimmers in their 50s, we're just trying to make possible for as many as people to come and do the sport as we can. it's the fun aspect. i think, when anyone goes swimming, they're always doing handstands and throwing each other out the water. and we do that but without touching the bottom. it's really hard, it's very technical, there's a lot to things you have to learn as a new starter. but it'sjust really good fun. for more stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website. you're live with bbc news.

the un secretary—general has called for a ceasefire in gaza to mark ramadan, the muslim month of fasting. antonio guterres called for the release of hostages held by hamas and the speedy delivery of aid to the palestinian territory warning a threatened israeli assault on the southern city of rafah could put gaza into a deeper circle of hell. it comes as a ship loaded with aid for gaza remains stuck in cyprus. the cypriot government have said it would leave within hours but that was about 2k hours ago. the ship is expected to deliver 200 tonnes of food and medical supplies. earlier i spoke to a professor of government at georgetown university in qatar and i started by asking what he made of these newly proposed methods for getting aid into gaza, ships or airdrops. getting aid into gaza, ships or airdro s. , . getting aid into gaza, ships or airdros. , . . getting aid into gaza, ships or airdros. , ., ., , ., airdrops. these are all acts of desperation. _ airdrops. these are all acts of desperation. gaza _ airdrops. these are all acts of desperation. gaza badly-

airdrops. these are all acts of| desperation. gaza badly needs humanitarian assistance and there is no way to get the humanitarian assistance in there. and we have seen on at least two occasions when trucks do make it through, a trickle of trucks do make it through, there is potential for mayhem, of trucks do make it through, there is potentialfor mayhem, crisis of trucks do make it through, there is potential for mayhem, crisis and massacre. these are acts of desperation. we need a ceasefire. exactly on that point, ceasefire, the hostage deal, where are we with all of that? . , ~ the hostage deal, where are we with all of that? ., , ~ ., ., all of that? last week we heard from president biden _ all of that? last week we heard from president biden that _ all of that? last week we heard from president biden that a _ all of that? last week we heard from president biden that a hostage - all of that? last week we heard from president biden that a hostage deall president biden that a hostage deal was imminent. then we had what has come to be known as the flower masker and from the countries from the egyptians to the french come all the egyptians to the french come all the different parties that had been involved in brokering a ceasefire, we hear nothing. ramadan has already started. so it does not appear as if ceasefire any time in the future is in the offing. that is another

tragedy in itself.— in the offing. that is another tragedy in itself. you referenced joe tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden. _ tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden. and _ tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden, and of— tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden, and of course - tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden, and of course lots - tragedy in itself. you referenced joe biden, and of course lots of| joe biden, and of course lots of people urging him to use us leverage. in of leverage from qatar on hamas, what else do you think could be done? fin on hamas, what else do you think could be done?— on hamas, what else do you think could be done? on hamas qatar has tried to use — could be done? on hamas qatar has tried to use all— could be done? on hamas qatar has tried to use all the _ could be done? on hamas qatar has tried to use all the leverage - could be done? on hamas qatar has tried to use all the leverage it - tried to use all the leverage it has. it has told hamas, we have given you residence, a place to stay when no one else wanted to touch you with a ten foot pole. and so i think qataris have used their leverage with hamas. what they have not used as they leverage with the european union, particularly with the germans, the other europeans, to whom there major energy supplier, particularly since 2022, after the start of ukraine war.— particularly since 2022, after the start of ukraine war. more on that sto in start of ukraine war. more on that story in the _ start of ukraine war. more on that story in the next _ start of ukraine war. more on that story in the next half— start of ukraine war. more on that story in the next half hour, - start of ukraine war. more on that story in the next half hour, we - story in the next half hour, we speak to the chair of the uk foreign

affairs select committee who is just back from the region coming up on the programme. let's take you to hollywood. the film industry has just celebrated its biggest night — the oscars. as expected, the big winner was the christopher nolan epic oppenheimer — which racked up seven awards, including best picture. next, with four wins, was the quirky period drama poor things. our entertainment correspondent colin patterson reports. oppenheimer. these were the oppenheimer oscars. cillian murphy. the biographicalfilm about the father of the atomic bomb won seven — with cillian murphy becoming the first—ever irish—born winner of best actor. for better or for worse, we're all living in oppenheimer�*s world, so i would really like to dedicate this to the peacemakers everywhere. christopher nolan, oppenheimer. christopher nolan was best director. movies are just a little j bit over 100 years old. i mean, imagine being there 100 lyears into painting or theatre — i we don't know where this incredible journey is going from here. - robert downey jr! while robert downeer

won his first oscar — more than 30 years after he was first nominated. i'd like to thank my terrible childhood... laughter ..and the academy — in that order. and while oppenheimer won the big awards, the night's standout moment belonged to the other half of the barbenheimer phenomenon. # i'm just ken, anywhere else i'd be a ten... ryan gosling bringing the kenergy with slash from guns n' roses. # a life of blonde fragility...# # i used to float, now ijust fall down...# and barbie did win one oscar — best song — billie eilish becoming the youngest ever double oscar winner at the age of 22. emma stone. there was a second best actress oscar for emma stone at the age of 35 for the twisted fantasy poor things. my dress is broken! i think it happened during i'mjust ken. and da'vinejoy randolph was best supporting actress for her role

as a grieving mother in the holdovers. i thank you for seeing me. have a blessed night. thank you so much. while 20 days in mariupol — about the russian invasion of ukraine — was best documentary. this is the first oscar in the ukrainian history. talking points from the show included a naked john cena presenting best costumes, an appearance from anatomy of a fall's canine star, messi the dog... while earlier on the red carpet, the us media personality liza koshy took a nasty tumble... ohh! that's all right! ..but styled it out. the oscars are over. it was oppenheimer�*s night. but barbie once again won hearts and minds. colin paterson, bbc news.

great stuff. you're watching bbc news. as we have been seeing it as commonwealth day, one of the highlights of the royal calendar. the queen and the prince of wales have been attending a ceremony at westminster abbey and missing was king charles who recorded a message instead. let's play that for you now. the 75th anniversary of the commonwealth is a moment to reflect on the remarkable journey that our unique family of free and independent nations has made since 1919. last year the bahamas celebrated its 50th anniversary of independence, as grenada has this year, and papua new guinea will next year. each of these milestones and many others like them represent the fulfilment of countless aspirations and the achievements of such remarkable potential. the commonwealth's growth with new members continuing

to join our family of nations demonstrates clearly that whilst we may not all have a shared history, we have common ambitions for a betterfuture, working together to build resilience and respond to global challenges. the commonwealth family is strongest when we are connected through friendship. as i have said before, the commonwealth is like the wiring of the house, and its people, our energy and our ideas are the current that runs through those wires. together and individually, we are strengthened by sharing perspectives and experiences, and by offering and borrowing the myriad ways we have each tackled the challenges of our time. this is true both at the level of nations and indeed at the local level. we recognise today that our

diversity is our greatest strength. the commonwealth represents a third of humanity from all regions of the world, with all the different experiences, knowledge and aspirations that this brings. wherever we live, we are united by the many challenges we face, whether it be climate change, the loss of nature, or the social and economic changes that new technologies are bringing. our diversity means that these challenges affect us all differently and that we experience their impacts in different ways. their seriousness, however, is common to each one of us. all of this means that we must work together to understand each other�*s perspectives, including the inequalities and injustices which still

resonate to this day. we must find ways of healing and to support each other to pursue solutions. i cannot say often enough that it is by coming together that we create the best chances to improve our world and the lives of people everywhere. indeed, over the years, countless people across the commonwealth have been inspired to form their own commonwealth associations, from lawyers and accountants to business and trade networks, and many more besides. the work they do is absolutely vital, sharing professional knowledge, experience and expertise across the continents for the betterment of each one of us. the commonwealth above all retains a particular focus on our young

people who make up two thirds of the entire commonwealth population. whether in kenya or malaysia, vanuatu, or dominica, malta or canada, i never cease to be impressed by their creativity, innovative skills and hard work, often in the most challenging circumstances. their energy is transforming approaches to development, technology and preserving and restoring nature. and will, i hope, help to shape and safeguard our common future. having recently celebrated my own 75th birthday, it warms my heart to reflect on the way the commonwealth has been a constant throughout my own life, a precious source of strength, inspiration and pride. in recent weeks i've been most deeply touched by a wonderfully kind

in recent weeks i've been most deeply touched by your wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes for my health. and in return i can only continue to serve you to the best of my ability throughout the commonwealth. my belief in our shared endeavours and in the potential of our people remains as sure and strong as it has ever been. i have no doubt that we will continue to support one another across the commonwealth, as together we continue this vital journey. the king's message on commonwealth day. a busy five o'clock hour to come. we have the latest on the princess of wales picture story and talk to the royal biographer hugo vickers on the programme. on anderson, the former deputy chair of the conservative party —— fixing de maeght defecting to reform uk, talking to chris mason and henry hill from conservative home. i will show you live pictures of the al—aqsa mosque in the middle east

and talk to alicia kearns, the chair of the foreign affairs select committee just back from the region, her frustration at seeing aid still not getting in. all of that coming up not getting in. all of that coming up after the weather with ben rich. good afternoon, it's turned into a pretty grey day across many parts of the uk, the cloud producing spots of rain and for some it is on the chilly side. through this week, i can't promise we will lose all the cloud, in fact there will still be some rain at times but it is going to start to feel milder. on the earlier satellite picture you can see the extent of the cloud, that cloud producing some rain and drizzle in places. a few brighter glimpses particularly across parts of south—west england and wales, one or two brighter spells elsewhere, conversely some slightly more persistent rain pushing across the western side of scotland. exposed to the breeze in north—east scotland, temperatures only five, six or 7 degrees, the highest values in the south around 12. this evening and tonight we keep a lot of cloud, some mist and murk in lots of places, few clear spells but some outbreaks

of rain swinging in from the west across northern ireland, wales, the south—west of england, perhaps getting into south—west scotland and north—west england by the end of the night. if you do see clear skies for any length of time it may turn a bit chilly to start tuesday morning. but you can see the frontal system working in from the west. in fact, various pulses of moisture, pulses of rain running along this frontal system. here is the first one pushing its way eastwards as we go through the day on tuesday. pretty wet across a good part of england and wales, some of that rain getting in scotland as well. perhaps a bit drier and brighter for a time in northern ireland and the north of scotland will also see some sunshine at times. generally quite a cloudy day but starting to feel milder, 13 in cardiff, ia degrees in belfast. through tuesday night and into wednesday these various frontal systems continue through. this frontal system here, this cold front, pushing a bit further southwards on wednesday, outbreaks of rain with that. to the north of it, some sunshine, it will be quite windy in the far north with some scattered showers.

to the south of our weather front, a lot of cloud and here it will feel very mild indeed, may be 16 degrees, if you get a bit of brightness. towards the end of the week, we will see mild air surging northwards. temperatures may peak around thursday with values up to 16, possibly 17 degrees in parts of eastern england. it stays pretty mild as we head towards the weekend. but there will be a fair amount of cloud and rain at times. live from london, this is bbc news.

the princess of wales apologises for confusion surrounding a family photo — saying she was experimenting with editing. it came after major picture agencies pulled the photo, saying it had been manipulated. the former conservative party vice chairman lee anderson defects the queen and the prince of wales and others have now left here, but the headlines are very much about that royal photo rather than the commonwealth day service. the former conservative party vice chairman lee anderson defects to the populist party, reform uk. he talks to the bbc�*s political editor. as the crisis in haiti deepens, regional leaders meet injamaica for emergency talks. a ship with 200 tonnes of aid for gaza remains trapped in a cypriot dock. we'll talk alive to the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, just back from the region. and ken steals the show

at the oscars, but it's oppenheimer that's the big winner.