on the general election trail labour launches its campaign in scotland as rishi sunak heads to northern ireland. the young woman rejected by the army because of a family history of breast cancer — a bbc investigation prompts a u—turn. can he? can he? yes! you beauty. yes he can. and the yes he can. teenage darts sensation luke littler wins his first major title — the premier league. and coming up on bbc news... manchester city and manchester united prepare to go head—to—head in the fa cup final for the second year in a row.

good afternoon. the former post office boss paula vennells has been accused of living in "la—la land" and being in a cloud of denial about her role in the horizon it scandal. she's giving evidence for a third and final day at the public inquiry on the day that a bill quashing the convictions of more than 800 sub—postmasters is due to come in to force. theo leggett has the latest from the inquiry. paula vennells, did you put profits before people? paula vennells, did you put profits before maple?— paula vennells, did you put profits before people?— before people? arriving at the inuui before people? arriving at the inquiry for _ before people? arriving at the inquiry for the _ before people? arriving at the inquiry for the third _ before people? arriving at the inquiry for the third day - before people? arriving at the inquiry for the third day of- before people? arriving at the inquiry for the third day of her| inquiry for the third day of her testament, paula vennells looked grim faced. but there was good news for the sub—postmaster is protesting outside. a new law means hundreds of people who were wrongly prosecuted had their convictions overturned today. i had their convictions overturned toda . ., had their convictions overturned toda . . ., ., had their convictions overturned toda. . ., ., ~ , today. i am so grateful to the mps and all the — today. i am so grateful to the mps and all the people _ today. i am so grateful to the mps and all the people who _ today. i am so grateful to the mps and all the people who made - today. i am so grateful to the mps and all the people who made thisl and all the people who made this happen because there is a fantastic group of victims here and they need

help, they need things to change in this battle is ongoing. you help, they need things to change in this battle is ongoing.— this battle is ongoing. you still continue to _ this battle is ongoing. you still continue to live _ this battle is ongoing. you still continue to live in _ this battle is ongoing. you still continue to live in a _ this battle is ongoing. you still continue to live in a cloud - this battle is ongoing. you still continue to live in a cloud of. continue to live in a cloud of deniat _ continue to live in a cloud of denial. , ., denial. inside the hearing the postmasters _ denial. inside the hearing the postmasters attacked - denial. inside the hearing the postmasters attacked miss i denial. inside the hearing the - postmasters attacked miss vennells. in 750 pages are self—serving accounts _ in 750 pages are self-serving accounte— in 750 pages are self-serving accounts. ,, ., , accounts. she defended her actions. i acce -t accounts. she defended her actions. i acce - i accounts. she defended her actions. i accept i was _ accounts. she defended her actions. i accept i was chief _ accounts. she defended her actions. i accept i was chief executive - accounts. she defended her actions. i accept i was chief executive and i i accept i was chief executive and as i said as a chief executive you have ultimate accountability. and thatis have ultimate accountability. and that is simply a fact. you are not responsible for everything that happens underneath you, you have to rely on the advice of internal and external experts. you rely on the advice of internal and external experts.— rely on the advice of internal and external experts. you covered up the faults in the — external experts. you covered up the faults in the horizon _ external experts. you covered up the faults in the horizon system, - external experts. you covered up the faults in the horizon system, didn't l faults in the horizon system, didn't you? _ faults in the horizon system, didn't ou? �* . ., . faults in the horizon system, didn't ou?�* . , faults in the horizon system, didn't ou? . , ., you? but the attacks kept on coming. and ou you? but the attacks kept on coming. and you dragged _ you? but the attacks kept on coming. and you dragged the _ you? but the attacks kept on coming. and you dragged the post _ you? but the attacks kept on coming. and you dragged the post office - you? but the attacks kept on coming. and you dragged the post office into | and you dragged the post office into financial_ and you dragged the post office into financial profitability over the debris— financial profitability over the debris that your firm had made of the lives — debris that your firm had made of the lives of— debris that your firm had made of the lives of sub—postmasters. that is what _ the lives of sub—postmasters. that is what happened here, miss

vennells? | is what happened here, miss vennells?— is what happened here, miss vennells? . ., . ., vennells? i had an ob'ective, that is riaht vennells? i had an ob'ective, that is ri . ht as vennells? i had an ob'ective, that is right as the h vennells? i had an ob'ective, that is right as the chief _ vennells? i had an objective, that is right as the chief executive - vennells? i had an objective, that is right as the chief executive of l is right as the chief executive of the company to bring it... it wasn't profitability but commercial sustainability so that it consumed less funding and less subsidy from the government. find less funding and less subsidy from the government.— less funding and less subsidy from the government. and kept on coming. you fail to ask — the government. and kept on coming. you fail to ask the _ the government. and kept on coming. you fail to ask the right _ the government. and kept on coming. you fail to ask the right questions, - you fail to ask the right questions, you couldn't be bothered, could you, miss vennells? the risk was too great, _ miss vennells? the risk was too great, looking under that rock, you were _ great, looking under that rock, you were going — great, looking under that rock, you were going to find a problem and it would _ were going to find a problem and it would devastate the post office, ruin it _ would devastate the post office, ruin it you — would devastate the post office, ruin it. you couldn't let that happen, _ ruin it. you couldn't let that happen, could you miss vennells? | happen, could you miss vennells? i .ave happen, could you miss vennells? gave it... happen, could you miss vennells? i gave it- -- and _ happen, could you miss vennells? i gave it... and then _ happen, could you miss vennells? i gave it. .. and then her— happen, could you miss vennells? i gave it... and then her composure l gave it... and then her composure broke down _ gave it... and then her composure broke down as _ gave it... and then her composure broke down as she _ gave it... and then her composure broke down as she insisted - gave it... and then her composure broke down as she insisted she - gave it... and then her composure i broke down as she insisted she never meant any broke down as she insisted she never meantany harm. broke down as she insisted she never meant any harm-—

and i have made this clear previously, is, i did not recognise... and it has been discussed across the inquiry, the imbalance of power between the institution and the individual. i let these people down. i am very aware of that. but let these people down. i am very aware of that.— let these people down. i am very aware of that. but that is unlikely to attract much _ aware of that. but that is unlikely to attract much sympathy - aware of that. but that is unlikely to attract much sympathy from i aware of that. but that is unlikely l to attract much sympathy from the sub—postmasters across the country, who were affected by what has been described as the biggest miscarriage ofjustice described as the biggest miscarriage of justice the described as the biggest miscarriage ofjustice the country has ever seen. theo leggett, bbc news. azadeh moshiri is at the public inquiry. paula vennell�*s evidence comes on the day that hundreds of sub—postmasters should see their convictions quashed. yes, hundreds will have their names cleared once the her ryan bill received royal assent today. it is one of the final bills to pass before mps break for the general election. but timing of the inquiry is ongoing as paula vennells

continues to give evidence on her third and final day. it is a reminder that so many are still living with the consequences of the scandal. it clears the names of those found guilty of theft or false accounting between 1996 to 2018, as they were working in post office branches that were using the faulty horizon it system. but a lawyerfor the victims we have spoken to at the inquiry is that he is concerned some of them may not even know because the government hasn't written the s. the government hasn't written the 5. scottish the government hasn't written the s. scottish parliament only past its own emergency law on horizon last week and they don't have a timetable for quashing those convictions yet. this law doesn't apply to those who have already lost on appeal, so in short, people are still waiting to be exonerated.— the energy regulator ofgem has announced that the price cap, the amount paid by a typical

household for each unit of energy and standing charge, will go down. at the moment, the cap is £1,690 a yearfor an average home england, wales and scotland, which is two or three people in a three—bedroom house. from july until the end of september, it'll drop to £1,568 a year for that same household, meaning an average saving of £122 across a year. our cdost of living correspondent colletta smith reports. energy prices are always a hot topic in michelle's salon. bills at home have, like, tripled. although you hear it is coming down, you have no confidence that it actually will, not significantly for you not to have to save, not to have to budget more. my direct debit certainly hasn't come down, you know? today's announcement is the second consecutive fall in the price cap within six months. it is good news we are getting a reduction in the price cap now but that is not the direction of travel. it is expected to tip up again

as we get into autumn and winter, so there is no room for any complacency. you might want the cost of living crisis to be over but it isn't and we can expect energy prices to go up again as we get into the end of the year. would it make a bit of a difference if you paid a bit less, do you think? possibly. i don't know. it depends how much it takes off monthly. you wouldn't really feel it, would you? j to be honest with you. you spread that over a year... no. anything will make a difference. it is all part of the vast increases we are getting with everything, not just with energy, but anything would help. the regulator says standing charges shouldn't increase injuly and each unit of electricity will now be 2p cheaper and gas will drop by 0.5p per unit. that adds up to an annual saving of £122 for a typical home. today's news will be a relief for millions of households who have been struggling to pay their high energy bills and, of course, it comes at a time through the summer where most of us expect to spend less on our energy anyway

because of the lovely weather we are experiencing. but for a lot of households, they have to have high energy use throughout the whole year. deborah depends on charging her wheelchairs in order to get out and to move around her home. the lowering is still not enough to pay for my wheelchair to be charged every day. this time i have had to put my gas electric bill, energy bill, on my credit card and hopefully pay for it the following month when i have a bit more money. so, summer, slightly lower bills for you, then, it must be... yes, a little bit, but that then is saved up for the winter bills. you know, i don't have that extra money, i have to save it, all that extra money from summer, to pay for the winter bills. today's reduction won't solve the problems for those already struggling with their bills. colette smith, bbc news, in wigan. well, the cost of energy has dominated day two of general

election campaigning so far, with the prime minister saying that the fall in the price cap is another sign the economy has turned a corner. keir starmer, launching the scottish labour general election campaign from glasgow, said a labour government would keep energy prices down across the uk. here's helen catt. for keir starmer, a trip to glasgow to launch labour's campaign in scotland. this is for you because this is an election about change and scotland's voice is vital, absolutely vital. though he was clear that his promise of change isn't at any cost. what i have decided is that against the economic damage that has been done we have to be clear that we will only make commitments during the election that we know we can fulfil. in scotland labour is hoping to take seats from the snp. we have got six weeks to lay out why voters can trust the snp to stand up for them at westminster and today

i am saying voters can trust us to stand up for rural scotland. at the very opposite end of the country the lib dem leader in eastbourne, another target seat, talking about the nhs. it is going to cost a billion pounds a year for the next four years and we think over the next parliament we could deliver 8000 more gps so people can get an appointment really quickly. i really can't mess this one up. while rishi sunak completed his tour of all four nations in belfast, answering questions about what is, or isn't, happening back in westminster, where his flagship smoking ban has fallen by the wayside. for now. the smoking ban, of course, at this point we will not be able to get that through at the end of this session given the time available, but what i say is that is evidence of bold action i am prepared to take. and while the parties are out campaigning for seats in the next parliament, the current parliament still has a few more days to run yet. helen catt, bbc news, westminster. well, in a moment we'll hear more

from helen who's in westminster, on the last working day of this parliament. first, though, let's head to iain watson in north london, because it was announced there this morning that the former labour leaderjeremy corbyn will stand as an independent. iam in i am in his islington north constituency and it is quite astonishing when you think about it. the man who lead labour into the last two general elections is now going to be fighting against the labour party at this general election. the current labour leadership made it clear he wasn't going to be selected as an official candidate. he had been suspended from the parliamentary party after he made remarks suggesting the problem of anti—semitism under his leadership had been overstated by his opponents. once the process got under way to select the new labour candidate to replace him, he announced he would stand as an independent and i am told the kind of issues he'll be campaigning on

here in islington north, will be the policies keir starmer —— keir starmer has ditched. i think his campaign will become something of a focus for those on the left who are disillusioned with the keir starmer leadership. that said, i think jeremy corbyn has done his successor a bit of a favour. keir starmer goes on aboutjust how much he has changed the labour party. what could be a better symbol of that than being able to announced, as they did this morning, that the man who'd once led the party has been expelled from the labour party. also once led the party has been expelled from the labour party.— from the labour party. also this lunchtime. _ from the labour party. also this lunchtime, some _ from the labour party. also this lunchtime, some news - from the labour party. also this lunchtime, some news about i from the labour party. also this - lunchtime, some news about another long—standing labourfigure, diane long—standing labour figure, diane abbott? long-standing labour figure, diane abbott? , , ., long-standing labour figure, diane abbott? , ,., m long-standing labour figure, diane abbott? , ,., ~ , abbott? yes, diane abbott served in jeremy corbyn's _ abbott? yes, diane abbott served in jeremy corbyn's shadow _ abbott? yes, diane abbott served in jeremy corbyn's shadow cabinet, i abbott? yes, diane abbott served in jeremy corbyn's shadow cabinet, a l jeremy corbyn's shadow cabinet, a friend ofjeremy corbyn and she represents the seat not too far away

in hackney. but she also has been suspended from the parliamentary labour party, which would mean she is ineligible to stand as a labour candidate unless the labour whip is restored to her. keir starmer suggested this morning we should get a decision on that relatively soon, because byjune the 4th, labour has to announce its candidates who are contesting the general election. a disciplinary inquiry is still going on into comments she had made about jewish people not necessarily suffering racism their entire lives. she has apologised to that and there are people in different wings of the labour party, the former deputy leader and the current deputy leader who would like to see her restore to the labour party and able to stand as a candidate. it will be a matter of days i think before we find out what decision is going to be taken on herfuture. what decision is going to be taken on her future.— on her future. fascinating, thank ou ve on her future. fascinating, thank you very much- _ helen, the final day of business, which laws are likely to pass, and what won't make it?

the government and the opposition had been negotiating over the last couple of days about what to push through. there are things we think will pass. among those is a bill that was related to the infected blood scandal. the one that would set up a compensation body to pay compensation to the victims of that. it is part of the victims and prisoners bill which has been tweaked this morning in the commons and is going back to the lords this afternoon. we are expecting that one will pass. another big bit of legislation we are expecting to go through is the leasehold reform bill. but as a bill that would stop new houses being sold as leasehold, not new flats. there has been some criticism that this bill has been watered down over time, although there are some in the lords who are not happy about the final result. however, it is thought that is still likely to pass unlikely to become

law in this parliament. there are a couple of big bits of the government programme which are not expected to pass and will not become law in this parliament. one of those is the renters reform bill. this one is the one that was designed to stop the so called evictions. that was a promise in the 2019 manifesto where a landlord can evict a tenant without giving them any reason. that bill was supposed to stop that but it will not pass. there has been a backlash among some conservative mps but a source had suggested it was amendments put in by independent crossbench members of the house of lords, which meant it wasn't suitable for pushing through. the other big bill which is not going to become law is, as i mentioned, the flagship bill of rishi sunak�*s to create a smoke—free generation, the tobacco and vague still. it would have brought in the first of a kind change and ban on people who are

born from 2009 onwards other being legal to buy cigarettes. it would have brought in restrictions on packaging and flavours on vapours that can be sale that will appeal to children, that will now not happen. a government source this morning suggested rishi sunak is still very much committed to this and labour had suggested in the past that it would back it also.— the court of appeal has ruled that the former nurse lucy letby cannot challenge her convictions, for the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six others. the reasons for the decision haven't been made public. judith moritz has followed the story throughout and joins me from manchester crown court. explain what has been happening. you ma explain what has been happening. you. may remember that last august after a ten month trial at manchester lucy letby was convicted of murdering and

attempting to murdering babies at the countess of chester hospital in 2015 and 2016. shortly after her trial finished, 2015 and 2016. shortly after her trialfinished, she lodged her case with the court of appeal and she argued that there were four grounds upon which she should be considered for appeal. this morning, after a very short hearing, less than five minutes, that court in london told the nurse that she has been denied permission to have her appeal heard and on all grounds, on all four rounds. now, we are not able to give you the full background to what was said during her appeal court hearing, but there will be in due course of fulljudgment hearing, but there will be in due course of full judgment which hearing, but there will be in due course of fulljudgment which is provided by that court, and has not been published yet. even so, there are heavy restrictions in place and thatis are heavy restrictions in place and that is because here in manchester there is due to be a retrial of lucy letby on one charge which has remained from the original case, a charge of attempted murder, which she denies, which the jury

charge of attempted murder, which she denies, which thejury in charge of attempted murder, which she denies, which the jury in that trial were unable to decide. that is scheduled to begin on the 10th of june and for that reason reporting in general is limited, butjust to say today she has lost her fight for appeal against her conviction. thank ou, judith appeal against her conviction. thank you, judith moretz. _ our top story this afternoon... the former post office boss paula vennells is accused of being in denial about her role in the horizon it scandal, at the public inquriy. and still to come, we look ahead to one of this weekend's key sporting fixtures — chasing the cheese in gloucestershire. coming up on bbc news... teenage darts sensation luke littler is celebrating after the 17—year—old claimed his first major title, winning the premier league darts final in london. following a bbc investigation, the army has said it will now accept a 17—year—old recruit they'd earlier

rejected because two members of herfamily have had breast cancer. carys holmes has a 50—50 chance of inheriting a gene fault from her mother, but hasn't been tested for it. a lawyer had said the army's actions could have been discriminatory and a serious own goal. after the bbc broadcast carys's story this morning, she was told she can start basic training in october. here's our health correspondent dominic hughes. carys holmes worked hard to get ready for her army selection. it paid off, she passed the test with flying colours. but then she was told that because of what was described as an extensive history of breast cancer in herfamily, she was being rejected. i quit myjob to train for it and everything. and ijust felt so crushed, like, this is it, it's over, i've got no chance. i'd worked so hard and i proper like put all my dedication

into getting in and then itjust felt like something so little like that had just ruined it all. it really upset me, yeah. extensive family history of breast cancer, hardly extensive... both carys' mum and her aunt have had breast cancer and both were found to have the brca 1 gene variant that increases the risk of the disease. but carys doesn't even know if she's inherited the faulty gene. having this gene doesn't guarantee she's going to get breast cancer. and even if she did have the gene she can take steps against that, she can take preventative measures which will mean her chance of getting the breast cancer will be less than the general population. the medical policy for recruitment into the armed forces does exclude some disorders that can be passed on genetically. for example, huntington's disease which affects nerve cells in the brain, but they don't seem to exclude

anyone with a brca 1 gene fault. carys appealed against the initial decision but that was also rejected. one legal expert thinks this could be discrimination. this is a really surprising decision and on the face of it, _ if the army is operating a blanket policy of automatically _ excluding applications _ from all women who have a history of breast cancer in their family, that would appear, on the face | of it, to be unlawful because it's. discriminatory, may even amount to a human rights violation. and this is at a time _ when the army really should be doing all that it can _ to improve its reputation amongst women and encourage more and more young people loioin uu _ so it does seem to be a very serious own goal on the part of the army. i stand at ease! after we contacted the army last week, carys was told the decision was being reviewed. and today, some good news. carys has been accepted and can start basic training in october. in a statement, the army admitted there had been a mistake and that carys was medically fit and said there was no policy of discrimination.

carys is now excited about the future, but without the publicity around her story, it's unclear whether she would have been able to pursue her dream. dominic hughes, bbc news. wet weather kept shoppers at home in april, according to the latest figures from the office for national statistics. retail sales volumes fell by 2.3% on the month before. clothing retailers, sports equipment, toys and furniture stores all did particularly badly as poor weather reduced footfall. online sales were down too by 1.2%. craig mackinlay, the mp who returned to parliament this week after having his hands and feet amputated following sepsis, has announced he will not be contesting his thanet south seat at the election. mr mackinlay received a standing ovation when he entered the house of commons on wednesday, just hours before rishi sunak announced the election.

he said his return was an experience he'd "neverforget". but, after 36 hours of intense soul—searching he's accepted he would find the rigours of an election campaign impossible at this time. four people have died and sixteen others were injured collapsed on the spanish island of mallorca last night. the foreign office says there are no reports of any british nationals being involved. simonjones reports searching through the night for survivors. people were enjoying a drink or something to eat at medusa beach club on playa de palma when part of the building came down, showering debris on those below. many of those hurt were tourists. pictures from the immediate aftermath show ambulances at the scene and the injured being taken away on stretchers. police asked shocked onlookers on the beach, in several different languages, to remain quiet while the emergency

services listened for any signs of life in the rubble. we have four confirmed deaths. the rest of the people are injured to varying degrees. many of them are slightly injured, but there are also serious and very serious injuries. majorca is the largest of spain's balearic islands, which attracted 17 million visitors last year. the spanish prime minister, pedro sanchez, said his government was ready to offer any support that was needed. he sent his condolences to the families of those who died. the foreign office in london is in contact with the spanish authorities, although there are currently no reports of any british people being involved. this morning investigations are continuing. one line of inquiry is whether the terrace, which collapsed through to the basement, was overcrowded. the city council has announced three days of mourning. simonjones, bbc news.

scientists have discovered an "earth—like" planet that could potentially support human life. although it's a0 light years away, scientists say that's closer to us than most of the stars. it's thought to be only slightly smaller than earth, and once they probe the atmosphere, there's a chance they could find signs of life already there. at the moment, we don't know, but we are on the cusp of being able to tell, because when we probe atmospheres, we can actually... like our atmosphere shows evidence of life — the abundance of oxygen produced by photosynthesis, methane produced by decaying living matter. those sorts of abundances, they are biomarker signatures, they are evidence of life on going on our planet, and we are capable now of being able to try and find those signatures in other nearby planets. the teenage darts sensation luke littler has won his first major

title taking the premier league and a prize of £275,000. the 17—year—old made history with what's known as a "nine—darter", using the minimum number of darts possible, to help secure victory over world champion luke humphries. matt graveling reports. he has done it! "the greatest night of my life." the reaction of luke littler, premier league champion, in his debut season. almost 111,000 filled the o2 arena and the calmest of them had darts in his hand. the man on top now needed tops and that was never in doubt. luke littler is the premier league champion! my mum and dad, they are the ones that put money into me, got me the sponsors i have got today, and i can't thank them enough. i burst out crying and just hugged them. whenever i win something, i will always go to them and the emotions just come out.

in a repeat of the world championshipfinal, littler played luke humphries. after topping the premier league table, it was hard to see how littler could get better. and then he showed us. you beauty! only the second man to throw nine perfect darts in a premier league final. i just thought to myself, don't do anything stupid. let all your energy out. just give it a little "come on" and i still had five legs to win. the thing for me that amazed me about him so much is his composure under pressure more than his talent. for a 17—year—old to be so composed under pressure is what impressed me the most, i think, to be honest. so, in 17 weeks, this 17—year—old has won more than £300,000. he says he doesn't know what he will spend it on but he is sure he will think of something. matt graveling, bbc news. a rather different kind of sport now. a rather different kind of sport now.

now, here's an idea for something to do this weekend. how about chasing a wheel of cheese down a very steep hill? the centuries old tradition attracts people to gloucestershire from far and wide, all vying for the prize — a giant piece of double gloucester. our reporter steve nibbs has more. yes! a—tumbling they go down the one—in—three gradient chasing a three—kilo cheese for 200 yards. before often landing with a bump. the biggest challenge, of course, staying on your feet. some run and hope for the best. others roll like the cheese. and when the weather's not so good, there's the option to slide. there's an often talked about moment when defending champion craig brown was stretchered off the hill. his body had ended up in positions that it probably hadn't been in before, and certainly haven't been in since. let me take you back to 2002. craig ended up with 22 stitches

and plenty of aches and pains. no regrets? none at all. it was good fun. we took a lot of people up there with us. because when somebody you know is doing something quite crazy, all yourfriends want to be on board with it. they don't want to do it as such, but they're on board to watch you do it. look out for one of last year's champions, delaney irving, from canada, as she flies into shot. there she goes. and face plants herself into unconsciousness. but don't worry, she was fine. i remember running and then i hurt my head. and then i woke up in the tent. the question is, are you going to come back next year and do it again to reclaim your title? i think i will. despite the injuries. despite the injuries, i think it's worth it. once more the stage on cooper's hill is set. oh, the anticipation. stephen nibbs, bbc news.

imean, i i mean, i like cheese, but, you know? good weatherfor i mean, i like cheese, but, you know? good weather for cheese? i mean, i like cheese, but, you know? good weatherfor cheese? is it ever good weather for cheese rolling? whatever you do this weekend the weather is mixed. but some of us will see spells of sunshine through the weekend, but that is not the whole story. there will also be some really heavy downpours. now, some areas still do have quite a lot of clout today and that is producing bits and pieces of showery rain as you can see from the radar picture. the thickest cloud this afternoon likely to be across parts of south—west scotland, and northern ireland. we may see a few sharp showers in the north—east of england, the best of the sunshine towards the south. temperatures around 16 to 19 degrees. this evening and overnight much of the remaining clyde will tend to break

up. it will be