when the time is right we will declare any donations that we've received recently. a new study says the risk of death from alcohol, drugs or suicide is higher in more deprived areas in the north of england such as blackpool. russian voters go to the polls in the election where everyone already knows the winner — vladimir putin set for another six years in power. what you got there? it's a chicken. well, like, bruv, it's dead! the end of an era as sir lenny henry prepares to host his final red nose day. umpire: ladies and gentlemen, we are suffering with these. - and you cannot bee serious! a swarm descends on the quarter final at indian wells, forcing the players off the court. and coming up on bbc news...

manchester city could meet arsenal in the semifinals of the champions league. first, city will need to beat real madrid and arsenal, bayern munich. good afternoon. the chancellorjeremy hunt says the conservative party good afternoon. the chancellorjeremy hunt says the conservative party is absolutely transparent about the donations it receives. but so far the party has neither confirmed nor denied reports it's been given another £5 million by the businessman frank hester, on top of the ten million he's already donated. mr hester has been widely accused of racism after allegedly saying the mp diane abbott makes him want to hate all black women. the tech boss apologised for making what he said "rude" comments about her. here's our political correspondent hannah miller.

learning to use a camera on a visit to the university of sunderland, the chancellor and prime minister can't escape the glare of scrutiny over donations to the party. this week, they said that comments made by one of the conservatives�* biggest donors were racist, but now it's emerged that they may have received a further £5 million from the same man, a claim that the chancellor didn't deny. we follow all the right procedures when it comes to declaring our donations. and when the time is right, we will declare any donations that we have received recently. frank hester donated £10 million to the conservative party last year. that's a fifth of all donations. any further money wouldn't need to be declared until april and published by the electoral commission injune. mr hester has apologised for what he described as rude comments about the mp diane abbott, after it was reported that he said that seeing her on tv made him "want to hate all black women" and "she should be shot".

on a visit to inspect water quality in greater manchester today, the liberal democrat leader took the opportunity to suggest that the conservative party should stop mr hester�*s money from flowing into its account. i think the conservative party should hang its head in shame if it doesn't give these donations back, and i think anyone in the election who receives a leaflet from the conservatives should throw it in the bin, because they know it was paid for by someone who said in a conversation that an mp should be shot. that is a complete disgrace. and if there were any doubt that the election campaigning is ramping up, this is how the labour party chose to mark rishi sunak ruling out a general election on may 2nd. chicken squawks. the prime minister will be hoping that the noise about his party's funding doesn't roll on until polling day. hannah miller, bbc news, westminster. israel says the latest hamas proposals for a ceasefire in gaza

make unrealistic demands , as it prepares its own response to negotiators. meanwhile, the first ship bringing aid for gaza is now off the coast of the territory. we can show you some live pictures. the vessel is towing 200 tonnes of food, and a floating jetty has been built to unload the cargo. food and other basic supplies are desperately needed in gaza, where road deliveries have been drastically reduced during israel's military campaign against hamas. our middle east correspondent anna foster is in eastjerusalem here at damascus gate, the first friday prayers are ramadan have passed off peacefully this morning amid a tight ring of israeli security. while that was happening is ro�*s security and wall cabinets have been meeting to discuss hamas�*s

humanitarian ceasefire. that was described last night by the israeli prime minister's office as containing unreasonable demands. nevertheless, israel have said they will send a delegation to the qatari capital doha are to discuss the next steps and discuss, they say, the israeli position as well. it shows those channels of communication towards a ceasefire are still open. the international community is retaining that pressure for a humanitarian ceasefire, because the situation in gaza remains dire. as you mention we are about to see the first supplies of aid arriving by siege during this war, the spanish ship open arms is off the coast of gaza. it will be unloaded on a temporaryjetty. once the aid has been unloaded, the difficulty will been unloaded, the difficulty will be trying to distribute it to all the people who need it, securely,

safely and fairly. it is being made clear by international aid groups and lord cameron, that aid by sea is no substitute for aid by road. puma no substitute for aid by road. anna foster, no substitute for aid by road. anna foster. thank— no substitute for aid by road. anna foster, thank you _ no substitute for aid by road. anna foster, thank you very _ no substitute for aid by road. anna foster, thank you very much. the risk of death from alcohol, drugs or suicide is higher in more deprived areas in the north of england and in seaside towns, according to a new study. death rates were worst in in blackpool — six times higher than the area with the lowest rate — barnet in london. the report is based on deaths recorded by coroner's courts across england. our health correspondent dominic hughes reports now from blackpool. hugging my mum again... yeah. ..i'll love that, man. paul's had a long struggle with alcohol, but this could be a moment of change after years of drinking. i've got to do it.

i need to, man. i need to do it. i know you do. his support worker, dave, has played a key role in getting him this far. he's more than a worker to me. but now paul is about to enter detox, then a long stint in rehab. it's going to be a tough journey. it's time to move on. yeah. it's time to live my life a different way. you've got to grab it and run with it. if i don't take it, i'll never get it again. i'm taking it, i'm doing it. this is where a lot of our. service users hang around. there's a lot of drugl use around the town. stephen knows exactly what paul is going through. after all, it's a life he too has lived, and against the odds has somehow survived. i didn't know that people recovered. you either went to prison, - you got locked up, or you died. more than 20 years of drug addiction and a life spent in and out of prison was changed forever by a prison talk given by a former addict. morning, everyone.

stephen is part of the lived experience team at the charity empowerment, staffed by those who've come through addiction and working alongside the local nhs and social workers, are trying to help others get clean. there's now a new thing now and a thing called nitrazine i land i think they're saying that| that's like 500 times stronger. and in blackpool that work is needed now more than ever. there are lots of different factors that influence our health — where we're born, raised, live and work, our level of education, the jobs we do. but in some towns like blackpool, those factors seem to conspire against us. so there's too much ill health and too many early deaths. fatalities related to drink, drugs and suicide, what are known as deaths of despair, are significantly higher in poorer areas, especially in the north of england and seaside towns. and blackpool has a higher rate of these deaths than anywhere else in england. so the uk is a wealthy country, but it's also quite an unfair country. unemployment and economic activity

are more concentrated in the north of england. the government has plans to narrow the gap in healthy life expectancy, increase spending on mental health and has a suicide prevention strategy. plus, there's money to tackle drug and alcohol related harms. but inequality is stalking the streets of blackpool. i started drink and drugs at a very young age, to the point of oblivion sometimes. so for those like kate, not her real name, who found herself pregnant, homeless and in the grip of a terrible addiction, the empowerment team are life savers. when i was really bad in addiction to now being clean and having someone there regardless and still trying and wanting to support me, it's an amazing feeling.

kate and paul were both at risk of becoming statistics, but with the help of the empowerment team, people who have lived the life, they are beginning, the long and difficult road to recovery. dominic hughes, bbc news, blackpool. national highways has advised drivers to "take the train" ahead of an unprecedented full weekend closure of a section of the m25. a five—mile stretch in surrey between junctions 10 and ii will be closed from 9pm this evening until 6am on monday. katy austin is there. how much disruption is this going cause? it has got the potential to be really disruptive, causing a lot of delays, a lot of congestion in the wider area. they have never closed a section of the m25 for this long since it opened in the 1980s. the section that will be closed is a particularly busy one. on the

weekend you would expect up to 6000 vehicles to be using it to travel in each direction every hour. why is it happening? it is to do with an ongoing programme of improvement works at this weekend they will be demolishing a bridge and putting up a big gantry as well. there will be a big gantry as well. there will be a diversion route in place, quite a long diversion route. drivers are being advised to follow that diversion otherwise national highways says if you follow your satnav it could lead to problems like rat runs and congestion on other small roads and villages. among the people who will be affected by disclosure this weekend, loads of people, really, including those heading to the airport, the channel ports, big events like football matches as well. this will be the first of five closures between now and september. the advice is to avoid this whole area if you can over the weekend. if you have got to travel, plan ahead and allow a lot of extra time. mil

allow a lot of extra time. all ri . ht, allow a lot of extra time. all right. thank— allow a lot of extra time. all right, thank you very much, katie austin reporting. it is an election where the result is a foregone conclusion. russians have begun voting to choose their president, and no one doubts vladimir putin will win another six—year term in office, allowing him to stay in power until at least 2030, longer than any russian leader since catherine the great. his most important opponents are either in exile, in prison, or in the case of alexei navalny — dead. our russia editor steve rosenberg reports from moscow.

across the country, there are polling stations that don't look or sound like polling stations. and there is voting in parts of ukraine which are under russian occupation — what russia calls its new territories. the ukrainian government called the election here illegal.

polls close on sunday night. expect a putin landslide. unpredictability is very much a feature of life now in russia, but that does not apply to elections. the political system here is built around one man, vladimir putin, and the kremlin tightly controls that system, including elections. so mr putin's re—election is not in doubt. it's absolutely impossible to say about our presidential election that this election is fair and free. politician boris nadezhdin had tried to get on the ballot but was barred from running, he claims, because his calls to end the war were becoming popular. we have propaganda and we have a myth that everybody in russia supports putin, and everybody in russia supports the special military operation. it's really not the fact. and my election campaign showed that a lot of people are against putin's politics and a lot of people are against the special military operation. you won't hear the kremlin saying that. this is an election designed to show that vladimir putin has the full support of his people. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow.

our top story this afternoon. the conservative party is under new pressure over reports that the donor accused of racism has given them another £5 million at cheltenham, the 100th anniversary of the gold cup were last year's winner is the favourite. in sport, can willie mullins keep his record—breaking run going, we will be at cheltenham ahead of the gold cup as big rice sits 100th anniversary. —— big race marks eight. the comedian and actor, sir lenny henry, presents his final edition of red nose day tonight, after almost a0 years at the helm of comic relief, the charity he co—founded back in 1985.

it's gone on to raise millions of pounds for good causes. here's our reporter noor nanji. what are you doing? you need to... this is so unprofessional, man. i can't believe this. the big comic relief night of tv is back. time to once again do something funny for money. bleep. richard madeley, tell us what you think you could bring to red nose day. well, that's easy. obviously, you've got to be funny. and there will be a lot to laugh about, including when the cast of the tv series w1a reunite to find sir lenny henry's replacement. hi, yeah. yes, romesh ranganathan is here. great. romesh? yeah, i know, i couldn't stop him. well, i might as well get out of here. - what's the point? i mean, romesh gets . everything, doesn't he? good evening, ladies and gentlemen. there will also be a special show dedicated to sir lenny�*s 39 years of comic relief. what have you got in here, fam? it's a chicken.

well, bruv, it's dead. to see a new generation of people taking forwards, we've got maya jama, we've got david tennant, romesh ranganathan, there's such a huge amount of people coming up that... it'll be fantastic to leave knowing that there's — i'm getting emotional now — a new group of people taking over and treating it the way we did. the traitors — the movie. other highlights from the fundraising bonanza include an all—star line—up in the the traitors — the movie. prepare to die. it was the first time i felt real terror. this year's challenge took place in the arctic circle in norway. did you hear that? it was comic relief�*s coldest ever challenge. one of the mornings, we woke up in a hut and that was in a sheltered area and i looked at the thermostat and it said —13. and that was inside. and this is why it all matters.

the money raised on red nose day goes towards funding projects like this food redistribution charity in north west london. this year, we'll rescue about 15,000 tonnes of food, so that funding supports all of the infrastructure and distribution apparatus that gets that out into the community, which is incredibly important because last year, over 170,000 working families turned to food service organisations, the ones that we serve, for the first time. comic relief also supported the felix project with the cost of providing this massive walk—in freezer. having the increased storage capacity allowed them to give out more than 30 million meals last year. # you give me something i need. behind all the fun and games, a serious goal — raising funds to help people in the uk and around the world. noor nanji, bbc news. romesh ranganathan is one of the main presenters this evening.

what have you got in store for us tonight? we have that you are part of the new generation who are going we have that you are part of the new generation who are going to we have that you are part of the new generation who are going to be taking over. a pretty hard act to follow? . ., ._ �* , follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible- _ follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible. it's _ follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible. it's not _ follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible. it's not a - follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible. it's not a like - follow? yeah, i would say it's impossible. it's not a like for| follow? yeah, i would say it's - impossible. it's not a like for like swap. we arejust impossible. it's not a like for like swap. we are just going to give impossible. it's not a like for like swap. we arejust going to give it our best go. obviously, searle any is a legend and what he has done is incredible. —— sir lenny is incredible. -- sir lenny is incredible.— incredible. -- sir lenny is incredible. -- sir lenny is incredible. ., ., ,, , incredible. how would you assess his contribution — incredible. how would you assess his contribution over _ incredible. how would you assess his contribution over so _ incredible. how would you assess his contribution over so many _ incredible. how would you assess his contribution over so many years - incredible. how would you assess his contribution over so many years and | contribution over so many years and decades? ~ ., �* ~' contribution over so many years and decades? ~ ., �* ~ , ., decades? well, i don't think you can overstate it. — decades? well, i don't think you can overstate it, really. _ decades? well, i don't think you can overstate it, really. he _ decades? well, i don't think you can overstate it, really. he has - decades? well, i don't think you can overstate it, really. he has been - overstate it, really. he has been behind creating something that has become a part of britain's fundraising landscape. he's been doing it for so many years and he has created this thing which is now a part of our conscience in terms of

fundraising and doing great work for charity. so i think what he has done has been amazing and growing up watching him on comic relief has been an incredible thing, so to be able to be part of it is a real honour. ~ ., �* able to be part of it is a real honour-— able to be part of it is a real honour. ~ ., �* ., ., honour. we don't want to give too much away. _ honour. we don't want to give too much away. but — honour. we don't want to give too much away, but give _ honour. we don't want to give too much away, but give us _ honour. we don't want to give too much away, but give us a - honour. we don't want to give too much away, but give us a few- honour. we don't want to give too l much away, but give us a few clues about what is in store for us tonight. about what is in store for us toniaht. ~ , ., about what is in store for us toniaht. ~ y., about what is in store for us toniuht.~ n~ tonight. well, you saw the w1a sketch tonight. well, you saw the ma sketch and _ tonight. well, you saw the ma sketch and we _ tonight. well, you saw the ma sketch and we have _ tonight. well, you saw the ma sketch and we have obviously l tonight. well, you saw the ma l sketch and we have obviously got tonight. well, you saw the ma - sketch and we have obviously got the traitors the movie. kate winslet is doing a bedtime story that has to be seen to be believed. it's very much one for the parents. that will be a highlight in the but we have loads of stuff. it is a cliche. it is not literally packed with jam, but it is a jam—packed night. find literally packed with “am, but it is ajam-packed night._ literally packed with “am, but it is ajam-packed night. and it's going to be an emotional— ajam-packed night. and it's going to be an emotional night _ ajam-packed night. and it's going to be an emotional night because l a jam-packed night. and it's going | to be an emotional night because it is sir lenny�*s final farewell to red nose day. is sir lenny's final farewell to red nose da . . ., , ., ., nose day. yeah. that is one of the reasons i'm _ nose day. yeah. that is one of the reasons i'm involved _ nose day. yeah. that is one of the reasons i'm involved with - nose day. yeah. that is one of the reasons i'm involved with comic i reasons i'm involved with comic relief. sir lenny is not only a

comedy hero, but somebody who has done so much for charity. and it being his last night, it's an amazing thing to be involved in and it will be sad. what he has done is incredible. he is looking to step back from now and we hoping part of tonight will be to give him the sendoff he deserves. it’s tonight will be to give him the sendoff he deserves. it's amazing, what he has _ sendoff he deserves. it's amazing, what he has achieved. _ sendoff he deserves. it's amazing, what he has achieved. thank- sendoff he deserves. it's amazing, what he has achieved. thank you l sendoff he deserves. it's amazing, i what he has achieved. thank you for your time and good luck tonight, romesh ranganathan. mps have been debating a bill to crack down on puppy smuggling. a ban would stop puppies and kittens younger than six months old from being brought into the uk. it was first pledged by the government more than two and a half years ago. it has the support of several major animal charities, but organisations which rescue dogs from abroad have some concerns. our political correspondent helen catt reports. just a few weeks ago, five—month—old puppies zonic, leo and togo were in romania and life was looking very different.

puppies of that age are very vulnerable in romania. the shelters aren't heated, they're not lighted. they don't have regular veterinary care. no dog over there receives prompt veterinary care, so it is significantly riskier. rachel's not—for—profit dog rescue has brought them to merseyside with their mum magda. she says all the dogs which she imports are jabbed and tested for diseases. she thinks the law does need tightening, but under proposed changes, these puppies wouldn't yet be able to be in the uk, and that worries her. i believe that there is a need for change. what i would hate is for hard—working, not—for—profit rescues who are desperately needed within the countries that they operate to fall foul of that, and those dogs to suffer. several major animal welfare charities do support raising the minimum age to six months and have been campaigning for it for years. this bill is really going

to help to crack down on the age at which puppies can be brought into this country, meaning meaning they're not being taken away from their mothers too early. they're not being exposed at such a young age to so many illnesses and so many potential things that could cause behavioural problems later in life. and it also means that it's making them less marketable to the people who are exploiting their cute puppy charms. the proposed new law will also close a loophole on mutilations like ear cropping. it's currently perfectly legal to import an animal which has been mutilated like this in a way that would be against the law here. the government first promised to make these changes in 2021, but dropped its own legislation last year. it is expected to back this bill, which is being brought by a conservative mp. we really are a nation of animal lovers, a parliament of pet lovers, and this legislation will ensure that the uk is leading the world when it comes to animal welfare. it's still not completely guaranteed that the bans will make it into law before an election,

but animal welfare charities hope this may finally move the long promised crackdown on those who import puppies without care for their welfare a step closer. helen catt, bbc news. it's one of the biggest events in the racing calendar — the cheltenham gold cup, which takes place this afternoon and which is celebrating its 100th anniversary. record—breaking irish trainer willie mullins is hoping to win the showpiece event for the fourth time in six years. laura scott has the latest from cheltenham. a serene start to gold cup day for some, less so for others. after one of the wettest winters on record, it's been heavy going for the team in charge of the car parks this week, and on the course, some have been better suited by the mid—march mudbath. after irish—trained horses dominated the first two days, the home side fought back yesterday, with two winners owned by former manchester united manager sir alex ferguson.

but there have been fewer people here to witness their winners, with crowd figures down by over 6%. we are still still talking here about nearly a quarter of a million people over the four days, but i don't think we can ignore the fact that we are now in a cost of living crisis in this country. from three day s to two or two days to one, which suggests it is not just about the cost of the ticket, it's the price of the whole package. today, one of the most prestigious races in the calendar has drawn fanfare and a sell—out crowd. the cheltenham gold cup is the one that everyone wants to win and in its 100th anniversary year, even more so. one horse who loves it here and loves the spotlight is galopin des champs. he won the race in 2023. can he do it again for trainer willie mullins? we're very hopeful. you're never confident in this game.

you never know what's around the corner. on his form this year, he looks like he has a really good chance. but that is why we have to go out and race. there are so many fences out there, three miles and a quarter. anything can happen. for a century, the race has posed a stern test. recent history has favoured the irish, and they hold the favourite once again. thankfully, the rain has stopped here at cheltenham, but there was another nine millimetres overnight and that has affected conditions not just in the car park, but out on the course as well. for the first time in 35 years, the gold cup looks set to have the word heavy in the description of the ground. that could have a big impact on how the big race pans out. willie mullins has enjoyed a brilliant week, with six winners, bringing up his century of festival wins. on the centenary of festival wins. on the centenary of the gold cup, few would bet against galopin des champs galloping to glory once again.—

to glory once again. laura, thank ou. to glory once again. laura, thank you- from _ to glory once again. laura, thank you. from racing _ to glory once again. laura, thank you. from racing to _ to glory once again. laura, thank you. from racing to rugby. - the men's six nations reaches its climax tomorrow with ireland the favourites to lift the trophy. they face scotland in dublin knowing that england could sneak the title if they beat france in lyon, while wales will want to avoid finishing last. from dublin, our sports correspondent andy swiss joins us. yes, it is st patrick's day weekend here in dublin, but they could have plenty more to celebrate here if ireland can win the six nations title. the ireland players are out training inside the stadium behind me earlier this morning. the permutations are a little bit tricky, but if ireland beat scotland here tomorrow or if they get a draw, they will be the champions. in fact, even a narrow defeat will almost certainly be enough. but anything else, and we could be heading for a dramatic finale, because england could then snatch the title in the

last match of the entire championship, but they would have to beat france in lyon and they would have to beat them emphatically. as for wales, they are up against italy in cardiff. it's been a tough championship for wales. they lost their opening four matches they know and they have to beat italy tomorrow to avoid finishing bottom of the table for the first time in more than 20 years. as far as the title is concerned, ireland very much in pole position. they won the title last year, so two titles in a row — that would be some achievement. and that would be some achievement. and the , that would be some achievement. and they, thank you very much. this extraordinary photograph of a football covered in barnacles is the winner of this year's british wildlife photography awards. the picture was chosen from more than 111,000 entries by both amateur and professional photographers. ryan stalker, who took the image, says the football washed up in dorset after making a long ocean journey across the atlantic.

now, at the end of the programme, a sting in the tail, because a swarm of bees stopped play in the indian wells tennis tournament. carlos alcaraz tried to swat them away with his raquet and ended up getting stung! these were just some of the bees — sitting on a camera here — and they eventually forced the players off the court, as patrick gearey reports. this is not a horror movie, but a tennis match under attack. a swarm of presumably uninvited bees flash—mobbing the indian wells quarterfinal... play cannot continue, play will pause for a while here now. ..and sending tennis�*s young superstar carlos alcaraz into a rapid retreat. these bees were no respecters of ranking — carlos was stung on his forehead! i tried to stay away, away from from them.

but it was impossible, as i said, stuck in my hair, so i was running out. i am a little bit afraid of them. the bees had seemingly been attracted by a spider—cam — the camera which hovers over court. and so into this chaos came a man named lance, official tournament beekeeper. not all heroes wear capes! this one didn't even wear protective clothing. thanks to some high—stakes vacuuming, lance davis removed the bees so they could be released later. lance, fast becoming a celebrity, was called back for a second round of pest control and the match could resume. it was eventually won by alcaraz. .. ..partly thanks to the net. lance didn't even need that! patrick gearey, bbc news. time for a look at the weather, here's ben rich. no bees in the studio. although a big bumblebee did fly past my window yesterday, a sign of spring, perhaps. but spring weather can bring its ups and downs, as it will

this weekend. it will