this is bbc news. our latest headlines: six people are still missing after a cargo ship ploughs into a bridge in baltimore in the united states, causing it to collapse. two people have been rescued — one's in a critical condition in hospital — as the authorities continue to search the water. and in the last hour, presidentjoe biden says he expects the federal government to cover the full cost of rebuilding the bridge. let's get a full sports round for you, and at the bbc sport centre, it's gavin. hi, gavin. hi there, ben. in just a couple of hours' time, a huge match for wales, who take on poland, the winners going to this summer's european championship.

both had difficult regular qualifying campaigns up to the playoffs, but last week, wales comfortably dispatched finland 4—1while poland thrashed estonia. the wales manager, rob page, had been under intense pressure, but his young side has responded well. it would be a great achievement for us to qualify, and in the manner in which we have done. whenever you go three campaign, you're always going to get pumps in the road, especially we are in the tradition we had one in the summer, and will please me is the reaction since then, unbeaten in seven, two plate and the have done, concede the goals we have, scored the goals we have done, really, really pleased. full focus on getting that win first. translation: we finalised our anal sis of translation: we finalised our analysis of the _ translation: we finalised our analysis of the tactics _ translation: we finalised our analysis of the tactics of - translation: we finalised our analysis of the tactics of the - translation: we finalised our i analysis of the tactics of the welsh team, _ analysis of the tactics of the welsh team, we — analysis of the tactics of the welsh team, we are propelled where —— we are prepared — team, we are propelled where —— we are prepared well for the game. we know_ are prepared well for the game. we know it _ are prepared well for the game. we know it is _ are prepared well for the game. we know it is a — are prepared well for the game. we know it is a team based on good ring and counter— know it is a team based on good ring and counter they use their ringers, we need _ and counter they use their ringers, we need to— and counter they use their ringers, we need to limit those strengths and also use _

we need to limit those strengths and also use our— we need to limit those strengths and also use our style and focus on that _ also use our style and focus on that so. — also use our style and focus on that. so, we are hoping right from the start— that. so, we are hoping right from the start we — that. so, we are hoping right from the start we can manage the game mentally— the start we can manage the game mentally and physically and play the game _ mentally and physically and play the game on _ mentally and physically and play the game on our terms. keep our strength mentally— game on our terms. keep our strength mentally and physically in our —— and we are confident we can win the game — against the continuing backdrop of the war against russia, ukraine host iceland in their playoff final eliminator. that game is being played in poland because of what's happening in kyiv. of course, in the morning, i saw the players today, they are on the telephone saying they'll see what's happening in ukraine, and kyiv. it is difficult for them because some of the families is there. and i'm sure that they will be more angry and tomorrow they will be more motivated for this game. so confirmation of those playoff eliminators, then, for the final three spots at this summer's european championship. wales take on poland, ukraine face iceland, and in the final match, georgia — who are looking to make the euros for the first time — are up against 2004 champions greece.

currently goalless in that much there. there are also a lot of friendly internationals taking place later, including england against belgium. 18—year—old kobbie mainoo will start tonight along with brentford striker ivan toney. declan rice will captain the side as he wins his 50th cap. manager gareth southgate believes the game provides a great opportunity for new players to stake their claim to be in this summer's european championship squad. some of our core group some of oui’ core group came, some of our core group came, trippier, walker, maguire, not with us, so different feel about the group from a different dynamic, and that's a great opportunity for other people to step up, to lead and to grow, and that's important because a lot of the players involved that are with the squad now, they are the future of the team as well, for the mid and long term. and more of those experience as they can have, that's really helpful for everybody. sarina wiegman has named her england squad for the euro 2025 qualifiers against sweden and the republic of ireland. leah williamson is back in the squad

after her making her return to the arsenal first team after nine months out with an acl injury. williamson was initially called up for friendlies against austria and italy last month but had to withdraw through injury. we all didn't expect that one, and she leads, so that was a hard one to take, a big disciplined for her and for us too, but of course if you take it and get back and get back playing games. so i think she recovered really well and it didn't take too long, so that was good, and now she's getting into a rhythm. she didn't play that many games yet, but she's getting there and getting... yeah, she needs the minutes now. that's all the sport for now. cheers, gavin, thank you very much indeed. the wikileaks founderjulian assange faces a wait to discover whether or not he will be extradited to the united states after the high court in london

gave us authorities three weeks to provide assurances that he would not face the death penalty there. mr assange faces extradition over an alleged conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information after the publication of thousands of leaked documents relating to the afghanistan and iraq wars. ellie price reports. free julian assange! through every legal twist and turn, and there have been many, his supporters make their voices heard. althouthulian assange will not be immediately extradited, today was not a victory either. the judges dismissed mr assange's attempt to appeal on the grounds that the us was trying to extradite him for his political opinions. what the courts have done has been to invite a political intervention from the united states, to send a letter saying it is all 0k. i find this astounding. in 2010, through his wikileaks site, julian assange released thousands

of confidential documents which included evidence of the alleged killing of civilians by us forces in afghanistan and iraq. two years later, julian assange claimed asylum at the ecuadorian embassy in london, fearing he would spend the rest of his life in a usjail. but his incarceration here lasted seven years and in 2019, he was dragged out and arrested by british police. he's been in belmarsh maximum security prison ever since, fighting legal battles to stop his extradition. the us department ofjustice described julian assange's leaks as one of the largest compromises of classified information in the history of the united states, which they say put agents in afghanistan and iraq at risk of harm, torture or even death. they say the case against him has nothing to do with his political opinions and everything to do with his actions. if the usa does provide the assurances to the judges,

including on ruling out the death penalty, thenjulian assange could face extradition by earlyjuly. his only other hope would be an appeal granted by the european court of human rights. ellie price, bbc news, at the high court in london. two government ministers have announced their resignations in a double blow to the prime minister, rishi sunak. it will trigger a minor reshuffle. robert halfon has quit as skills, apprenticeships and higher education minister, while the already outgoing mpjames heappey has stepped down as armed forces minister. both will also stand down as mps at the next general election, so let's talk to our political correspondent peter saull. how would you assess the political significance of those departures?— the political significance of those deartures? , ., , the political significance of those deartures? , . , ., departures? usually when you get two ministers writing _ departures? usually when you get two ministers writing in _ departures? usually when you get two ministers writing in one _ departures? usually when you get two ministers writing in one day, - ministers writing in one day, it would sound alarm bells for the prime minister. i don't think that is really the case here was to james heappey had already said he would be standing down as an mp, so it was

really only a matter of time he announced he was going to stand out as a minister, to allow someone else to take over that brief, looking after the armed forces of and to give them a few months before we actually get to the general election. robert halfon of a bit more of a surprise, really, been the mp for harlow since 2010, but he has decided the time is right now for him to step aside and give someone else a chance he too has decided today that he is gonna step down from his position as a junior education minister. both of these individuals highly respected within the conservative party and more widely than that. there have been tribute from the opposition parties to both of these mps, actually, this afternoon, so it is a blow to rishi sunak in the sense that he is losing to respected, experienced figures within his government, but they have made a clear, both of these individuals in the resignation letters, they are fully supportive of the prime minister. they have not done this in any way to give him a bloody nose and they say they both still be fully behind him as we look

towards the general election. there might a case forjames heappey, you might a case forjames heappey, you might want to speak more freely on the back benches about defence spending. he alongside other ministers in the ministry of defence are known to be supportive of a more urgent move towards the uk committing to spend two and a half percent of its national income on defence, the government says it will eventually reach that figure, but perhaps some would like that to happen a little bit sooner rather than later, but, yeah, interesting to note we have got now 98 mps who say they are going to stand down at the general election the study clear majority of those are conservative. that is not out of the ordinary. if we look at other previous elections, a similar number step down. there is perhaps the suggestion here conservatives in particular see the writing on the wall, with the polls at the moment suggesting labour are going to win the general election. remember, though, politicians are human beings too and they might have personal reasons for one to stand down at the general election. this

job here at westminster is not for the faint—hearted, that for sure. thanks very much indeed. peter saull, our political correspondent. meanwhile, the prime minister has been facing questions from the liaison committee, a group made up of the chairs of all select committees, tasked with scrutinising the pm's work. rishi sunak was asked about the country's approach to china, the situation in gaza and the government's illegal migration act, with the pm insisting the government will do everything they can to remove people who enter the uk "illegally". the bill has to get royal assent. and then subsequent to that, the bill has to be put in force and there'll be choices about which cohorts to initially apply the policy to. there's a range of different options for that. that's all in the planning work that's being done. so ijust want to be clear, are you expecting that group will go to rwanda ?

my general view, i probably wouldn't characterise it as being in limbo, is anyone who arrives here illegally should not be able to stay. that is the government and my very clear position and we will do everything that we can to remove them — either to their home country if it's safe to do so, or a safe alternative like rwanda. but there's no limbo about it. our intention is that everybody who arrives here illegally should be removed. the prime minister earlier... there was concern about inconsistencies in the clapham attacker�*s account of how he fled afghanistan and his later conversion to christianity. the documents also show he had been given limited rights to attend services at the church which supported his claim after they learned of a sexual assault conviction against him. government

figures show a big rise in the number of smart energy metre that are not working properly. at the end of last year, almost four million devices were failing to send gas and electricity readings to providers automatically — that's up by more than a million from lastjune. energy uk, which represents suppliers, says technical problems can be beyond their control, but providers must replace smart meters that malfunction. nina warhurst reports. more and more people have these in their homes — smart meter displays, showing how much energy they're using. and when those don't work, it can have a huge impact on your pocket. 75—year—old diane has been having problems with hers since she changed supplier, and she was unable to give manual readings because of physical disabilities. that's when her bills started to creep up. i was getting estimated bills all the time, which were about double... at least double what the monitor was suggesting that i was using,

and we've been fighting this on and off now for two years. it's always on your mind. you're always... i mean, i know electricity is expensive at the moment and everybody�*s got a problem with it, but it's not knowing what they're going to charge you, because they can charge you anything. british gas has apologised to dianne and an engineer has been out to resolve the issue. but it's notjust people at home having problems. leon runs a sports bar in southampton, but since it opened two years ago, his meter�*s been over reporting his energy use, racking up £250,000 for electricity that the venue didn't use. we were threatened with being cut off. we were told that we definitely owed this bill and we were just saying, "look, we want to pay the bill, but we're not doing that "until you sort out this meter." but we shouldn't have had

to sit there and fight. imserv, who handled leon's meter, said when it was set up in 2020, it was for a much more energy intensive business, and when the settings were adjusted, the bill was recalculated to the correct amount. consumer groups say it's important to regularly check in with your supplier. but the problem here is with smart meters, they're meant to be brilliantly convenient for everyone. that's the whole point in them. they are a meter, tells you how much energy is coming in and out. but the point is, it tells your energy company how much is going in and out so that you don't have to. but i do think every so often, it's worth you just double checking. the department for energy said the vast majority of smart meters are working correctly, but said reporting errors by a minority of suppliers have shown more meters aren't working in smart mode than previously thought. both the energy regulator, 0fgem, and the trade association uk energy say it's now on energy companies to look into these issues quickly and put billing errors right

as soon as possible. nina warhurst, bbc news. tens of thousands of people of already taking part in a new and adjusting than scheme offering long askance to current and past smokers askance to current and past smokers as well as a more general check up. it is also been successful in identifying cancer in the early stages. anti—viral reports. that's great. so you've come for a scan to look at your chest as part of the targeted lung health check programme. we're just going to move you in and out of the scan a few times while we take the pictures. in the last 1a months, the team here have carried out lung health checks on 1,500 patients, targeting people on portland and now weymouth and bournemouth. i'm just going to check your blood pressure, if that's ok.

lovely job. norbert smoked for ten years when he was younger and has worked in the building trade. when he came for his checkup, he was considered high risk and sent for a ct scan. i used to smoke when i was younger. yeah, so i used to smoke. and we've got a history of cancer in the family. and sadly, last year, my brother died. he was only 62, so i thought it was sensible to come for a test. thankfully, he has had the all—clear but will continue to be monitored. if the patient is low risk, we keep them under our programme until they reach the age of 75 and we keep seeing them and doing the physical lung health check every two years. and if we see that they are high risk, we offer them a ct of their lungs at their county hospital, and that's a low dose ct and that's the physical check to see if there's any lung cancer. in areas where patients are more deprived, they have a higher rate of cancer, and it tends to present at a later stage. so by going into those areas and developing lung health checks on their doorstep, it allows us to reach out to sometimes these harder to reach groups and then pick up the cancers early.

to say this programme is saving lives is an understatement. the team here have found nine people in the early stages of cancer and a host of other conditions. there are still 100,000 people to check in dorset, but this programme will be rolled out everywhere in the coming years. anna varle, bbc news. fox hunting has been banned for almost 20 years in england and wales. trail hunting is now a legal alternative which sees a scent laid for hounds and riders to chase instead. campaign groups often watch and record the hunts to ensure no animals are hurt, but in east yorkshire, those on both sides say tensions are at an all—time high. linsey smith reports. hunting needs to be preserved. some people say it's stronger than the church in the countryside. many, manyjobs depend on it. trail hunting is generallyj a smoke screen for them

to continue to illegally hunt. they've got a fox! and when they don't get what they want, they become aggressive. i genuinely thought - i was going to be trampled and i was scared for my life. please, can you stop, please? i'm a man, you don't want to say you're scared, but you never know who's behind that mask. it's the last meeting of the season for the holderness hunt, a group for whom hunting is more than sport. it's a load of like—minded people, and it's just a social cohesion, it's a community spirit. some people say it's stronger than the church in the countryside. as riders gather, so do the hull wildlife protectors group. we just try and monitor the hunt and monitor for any wildlife crimes. and if they're committed, then we evidence them and report them to the humberside task force. both groups say they're experiencing more tension and aggression than ever before.

hunting with dogs is illegal. what's perfectly legal is for the holderness hunt to set a scent trail and to chase that with their pack of hounds. i've got a scent on a rag and i'm running a mile and a half pulling this behind me for the hounds to follow. the tension comes when an animal is killed in that process. like this incident last year. they've got a fox. call them off, do the right thing. got a fox, south of the plantation now. leave it, leave it! you know what they've just done?! bleep you did nothing to call them off. this incident was investigated

by humberside police. no further action was taken because of insufficient evidence that the fox kill was intentional. hull wildlife protectors say they've reported three incidents of wildlife crime this year. is it alljust a smoke screen? it couldn't be a smoke screen. with trail hunting, you can't do ifs, buts and maybes. it's absolutes and definites when you're laying trails. foxes do get killed at times. well, you know, you're going in the countryside, you've got how many animals living in the countryside, accidents will happen. anybody got eyes on hounds? is the tension getting worse here? 100%. you know, whether it's threats of them telling me they know who i am, my name, where i live, i had somebody repeatedly run their horse at me. but the tension is felt on both sides. i genuinely thought i was going to be trampled and i was scared for my life, to be honest.

but the tension is felt on both sides. tom is the huntsman whose full—time job is to care for the hounds. there were points where the antis would turn up at the kennels at 3:30 in the morning, sit in three or four cars. why are you sat outside my house? where i am, where my kids are? it can make you quite anxious. you never know who is behind that mask. are you scared at all? i'm a man, you don't want to say you're scared, but when there's people sitting outside your house at 3.30 in the morning, what do you think? tom said he's reported harassment to humberside police. we approached humberside police for comment on the tensions. both the holderness hunt and hull wildlife protectors say none of their members have been charged with crimes relating to the hunt this year. during ourfilming, no animals were killed. we witnessed trail hunting, trespass and tension in this idyllic corner of east yorkshire. lindsey smith, bbc news.

linsey smith, bbc news. scientists have been working with beer brewers to secure the future of the great british pint. they are trying to identify genes in hop plants that are more resilient to climate change, while also producing new varieties and flavours of bitter. 0ur science correspondent pallab ghosh has more. it's a great british tradition, but one that's now under threat. mmm! that distinctive flavour is down to the hops that are used in the brewing process. but there's a problem. the hop plant doesn't like the hotter, drier conditions we've had in recent decades, and production has plummeted. it's also affected that lovely, bitterflavour. and with climate change, the problem is only going to get worse. dr helen cockerton is identifying genes in hundreds of different hop plants that will make them more resistant to climate change.

but the new varieties also have to be acceptable to the brewing industry. brewers want good tasting beer, so they need their hops to produce the flavour profile that is particularly desirable for the beer that they hope to produce. whereas growers are more interested in having plants that are able to survive but also providing a good yield in order —— to survive within the field, in the presence of diseases and in the presence of droughts, but also providing a good yield in order to give them a large crop. can you have both? yes, and that's exactly what we're hoping to do. so we have some new hop varieties here in these beakers. they are all different new varieties. these new varieties are created by hop breeders such as dr klara hajdu using the rub and sniff method. this one is an american variety. smells of beer. experts can tell from the aroma what the beer will taste like and they're cross—bred

with english hops that grow well in the current climate. nowadays, arguably the most important is to have competing varieties with the import hops and they have to be very fruity and punchy. clara then asks a brewer to make beer out of her new hops for a taste test. but this entire process can take up to ten years to develop a commercial beer. but identifying the key genes can dramatically shorten the development time. if we can speed up this breeding process because we know what traits to look for in the dna, it will be much easier to select those plants that we want to breed again with. and the research will also speed up the selection of genes to produce the stronger flavours that beer drinkers want these days. the great news on this, from my perspective, is that sort of ten to 15 years ago, when new varieties were being given to me to have a little rub and a sniff of, i was skeptical that we could grow intense

varieties in this climate. and what the breeders have definitely shown in the last couple of years is that absolutely we can. britain's oldest brewing company in faversham in kent says that the research is vital for the future of the british pint. i mean, i think without it, it's going to die off. i mean, those hops are vital to the british pint. whether it's a new british pint or an old—school british pint. but without that, we're just going to be importing beer. we won't have that culture here any more. it's a race against time, with british summers becoming hotter and drier. but the scientists are optimistic that their research will give brewers a fighting chance of saving the pint. pallab ghosh, bbc news. and that's it from me. i'm off for a

pint! justjoking. maryam is up next, do stay tuned. hello. the barometer�*s falling, with heavy weather expected over the next few days. strong winds around some coastal areas, but inland, too. and on top of that, big shower clouds with downpours, hail and thunder. now, the satellite picture looks quite turbulent already, all these cloud patterns swirling around notjust the uk, but much of western and central europe. a big dip in thejet stream as well has allowed that colder air to filter in from the north as well. and the colder air will be responsible for generating some of these big shower cloud given the strength of that sunshine. it's that temperature contrast that creates all this turbulent weather. now, through the early hours, we'll see a weather front moving northwards across the uk. it has been quite wet already in some areas. notice that by the end of the night, it even turns quite wintry there across the scottish hills. and temporarily, some dry weather there across central parts of the uk. very quickly, we'll see

strengthening south—westerlies and the heavy showers will be sweeping into south—western england, into wales, particularly wet in northern ireland. we could see up to 30, a0 millimetres of rain, perhaps even more than that in some areas. but those winds really will be very noticeable, pushing in those big shower clouds, cumulonimbus clouds, bringing the downpours, with the hail and at times thunder. and a chilly day, temperatures in some areas not making double figures. then into thursday, if anything, the winds will strengthen further, in fact. so this area of low pressure has been named by the spanish met service storm nelson. severe gales for a time possible on the coasts, very windy inland too, frequent showers across the country. a really turbulent day with those dramatic cloud scapes. and, again, on the chilly side, with those strong winds and particularly in those showers. look at good friday, i think the winds will be a little lighter, but still quite breezy on this day. and also showers expected, particularly across some western areas. and then as we head into the easter weekend,

we start to see some changes. the air actually starts to come in from the south, and that means that the atmosphere will warm up at least somewhat, so the temperatures will rise. we're possibly talking about the mid—teens across southern parts of the uk, about 12 degrees expected in belfast. but, really, it is looking like a mixed bag until then. bye— bye.

at six: a search for the missing after this. the bridge in baltimore was hit by a huge cargo ship in the middle of the night, sending cars and people into the water. to have been rescued, one without injury and one in critical condition. the search and rescue operation was continuing for all those remaining as we speak. this is the scene now. we'll be piecing together how it could have happened in one of america's busiest ports. also tonight: fresh details emerge about how the clapham attacker abdul ezedi was granted asylum despite being a convicted sex offender. the bbc looks to its future, as the director general says the public will be asked to drive the debate on reforming the licence fee.

and alan titchmarsh and having his