back into public life as she reveals she's making "good progress" after her cancer diagnosis. this is the scene live in central london as preparations for trooping the colour, the king's birthday celebrations, are about to get underway. i'm nicky schiller in the studio. also this hour... election campaigning reaches its halfway point — with less than three weeks until polling day, we'll have the latest from the campaign trail. president zelensky joins dozens of world leaders in switzerland for a summit focused on steps for peace in ukraine, but russia was not invited. and, it's arise sir alan — alan bates the man who campaigned to expose the post office scandal, receives a knighthood, joining dozens of famous names in the king's birthday honours. and, we'll have the build—up to day two of the euros — spain, italy and croatia are in action today, plus we'll be live from the england training camp.

live from buckingham palace, this is bbc news. welcome this is bbc news. to a rather rainy and chilly day welcome to a rather rainy and chilly day here, but it is a significant day. in the next hour, the princess of wales will make her first public appearance since she was diagnosed with cancer, and that is at today �*s trooping the colour, the military parade which celebrate the king's fund birthday. the princess will be in the carriage parade with her children for the king's birthday celebrations, beforejoining the rest of the family on the baclony at buckingham palace. a new photo of the princess from the palace.

taken close to her home in windsor, a place where she has been able to rest, recuperate, and spend time with her family. it marks the first significant announcement about catherine's health since she announced her cancer diagnosis in march. my work has always brought me a deep sense ofjoy and i look forward to being back when i'm able. but for now i must focus on making a full recovery. the princess has released a deeply personal statement, describing being blown away by the messages of support and encouragement from people across the world, saying they helped her and prince william through some of the harder times. she adds... the princess also says

she is looking forward to trooping the colour, the military parade for the king's official birthday. she will ride in a carriage with her children today before appearing on the buckingham palace balcony. she's also hoping to attend some events over the summer. this statement, written by the princess herself, is a message of cautious optimism after what's been an incredibly difficult time for her and herfamily. she's still continuing with treatment, but she now feels ready to attend some public events. but it's being stressed this isn't a return to full public duties, with catherine saying she is taking each day as it comes and allowing herself some much needed time to heal. charlotte gallagher, bbc news, kensington palace. our royal correspondent, sarah campbell is at buckingham palace. this absolutely is a message that this is not the prince has back to a full schedule of events, but clearly significant and clear she was

looking forward to and wanted to participate in the trooping the colour today. you might be able to see from this camera that there are crowds building up. i have to say, there are a lot of umbrellas out. the weather has slowly deteriorated, from bright blue sky is a few hours ago, to getting claudia and claudia, and now the rain has come. you also might be able to see on the left—hand side of your screen, just as it goes out of shot, yellow flags which are just a reminder that not everybody is a fan of the monarchy. they are shouting sporadically "not my king", and the spectators who come to watch trooping the colour are responding with a very rousing chorus of the national anthem. it is all very good—natured. that is the situation here at buckingham palace. everyone loves a bit of history. trooping the colour, it is because the king has two birthdays because it is supposed to be lovely and

sunny injune, right? it is supposed to be lovely and sunny in june, right?— it is supposed to be lovely and sunny in june, right? that's right! there we 90- _ sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it _ sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it is, _ sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it is, as _ sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it is, as you - sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it is, as you say. - sunny in june, right? that's right! there we go. it is, as you say. it i there we go. it is, as you say. it is always the second saturday in june because the king because my birthday is in november and you would not want a parade like this in the middle of november, so yes he has two birthdays. but it is more than that. it is effectively our national day because britain does not have a national day, unusually, and most countries do. around the world today is the day that everyone is celebrating the country, so embassy garden parties and so on. it has a double role as a very personal event for the monarch, celebrating that bond with the armed forces, but also it is a national celebration. and the armed forces have been rehearsing for this for weeks and months. we will see the parade on horse guards and it is absolute military position, isn't it? nothing going wrong. we'rejust

military position, isn't it? nothing going wrong. we're just the first of the band is approaching. it is an absolute spectacle. it is pomp, pageantry, all of that. it absolute spectacle. it is pomp, pageantry, all of that.- absolute spectacle. it is pomp, pageantry, all of that. it is. a lot of --eole pageantry, all of that. it is. a lot of people watching _ pageantry, all of that. it is. a lot of people watching think- pageantry, all of that. it is. a lot of people watching think i'm - pageantry, all of that. it is. a lot of people watching think i'm not| of people watching think i'm not quite entirely sure what is going on, but it is complex. they have been rehearsing it for months. the royalfamily been rehearsing it for months. the royal family themselves, they have grown up on this stuff. i mean, the king remembers seeing these parades as a small boy, so he knows what's involved. and the late queen would always be looking for the little things because it is always a different regiment, a different company that ships their colour each year. each year it is slightly different. lots of music. that will be very much a feature of the day. and of course it is the irish gurads trooping their colour today, hugely significant that the princess of wales can be here.— significant that the princess of wales can be here. very important. as colonel— wales can be here. very important. as colonel of _ wales can be here. very important. as colonel of the _ wales can be here. very important. as colonel of the irish _ wales can be here. very important. as colonel of the irish gurads - wales can be here. very important. as colonel of the irish gurads she l as colonel of the irish gurads she will have been determined to be here. everyone is celebrating the king, but every regiment has its

royal colonel as well so that matters. for her, we haven't seen herfor some months now, so on so many levels this is a big day. fix, many levels this is a big day. a really big day. and also we should remember that not only is the princess still undergoing cancer treatment, as we were just saying, this is not her in a full return back to full engagement. this is a one—off. we don't know what will happen from now on. it is according to her recovery and her medical team. , . , team. yes and she said in her statement — team. yes and she said in her statement last _ team. yes and she said in her statement last night, - team. yes and she said in her statement last night, "i - team. yes and she said in her statement last night, "i have | team. yes and she said in her - statement last night, "i have good days and bad days". it is one day at a time. as you say, this is not a return full stop it is a reappearance. over the course of the summer, she said if she can then she will if she is up to it and if a doctor say she can, so she may appear at other things but it will be done on a case—by—case basis. this is the drooping as we always see it, all the main members of the royalfamily are here. to

see it, all the main members of the royal family are here. to think back to february and there we were digesting the news that both the king and the princess were unwell, that they both had cancer, to see how far we have come and to be here today, forget the weather, it is great cause for celebration. there are some adaptations. _ great cause for celebration. there are some adaptations. the - great cause for celebration. there are some adaptations. the king, | great cause for celebration. there are some adaptations. the king, of course, still undergoing cancer treatment, as we know. he will not be on horseback as he was last year. no. last year he was riding quite a frisky horse called noble. i think we will see that horse today. i think the princess royal has gamely and bravely decided to write noble. if i anyone is capable of riding a frisky horse it is her. the king very wisely has decided and has followed the example of his late mother, and eventually she rode on this parade for many years, but

eventually switched to a carriage. so he will be in a coach. he will be with the queen. it does not detract from a great day.— from a great day. absolutely. and even the rain _ from a great day. absolutely. and even the rain does _ from a great day. absolutely. and even the rain does not _ from a great day. absolutely. and even the rain does not detract - from a great day. absolutely. and | even the rain does not detract from a great day. even the rain does not detract from a great day-— a great day. well look at the coronation, _ a great day. well look at the coronation, that _ a great day. well look at the coronation, that was - a great day. well look at the coronation, that was like - a great day. well look at the i coronation, that was like this, wasn't it?— coronation, that was like this, wasn't it? , ., , ., wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did _ wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did speak— wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did speak to _ wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did speak to the - wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did speak to the air - wasn't it? yes, we are used to it. and we did speak to the air vice l and we did speak to the air vice marshal who is leading the raf fly past. a fly—past is the only thing that can be affected by bad weather but he is clear that it will go ahead at 1pm, but he is clear that it will go ahead atipm, as but he is clear that it will go ahead at 1pm, as scheduled. there is another band behind me. there we go. just marching down. the statistics are phenomenal. there is something like 1400 are phenomenal. there is something like moo soldiers on parade, around 250 horses, and as you can see, lots of instruments. it really is a spectacle. all getting under and due to start very shortly. we will bring you all the very latest and things

to look out for, so do come back to us. thanks, sarah, and a reminder we have have live coverage of trooping the colour over the next few hours here on bbc news. to mark the king's birthday, a list of honours has been announced for the extraordinary contributions and service of people across the uk. among them is alan bates, who led the campaign for justice for victims of the post office it scandal. he has been given a knighthood. the former sub—postmaster fought for years to clear the names of hundreds of branch managers, wrongly convicted of fraud. he insisted the honour wasn'tjust for him, but for everyone who'd supported his cause. tracey emin who rose to fame in the 90s, when her artwork of an unmade bed was nominated for the turner prize has become a dame. there are also damehoods

for the actor imelda staunton, and the handbag designer anya hindmarch. the cyclist, mark cavendish has been awarded a knighthood, along with the composer, john rutter. you can get more on all of the honours on the bbc news website. we're at the halfway point in the general election campaign here in the uk. the politicial parties will be out campaigning again this weekend. it's now three weeks until the next government is formed. our political correspondent, hannah miller told us how the parties are going. three weeks to go, it does feel like a long time. it is worth saying, though, that some people will start voting this week when the postal votes start coming in. if we take a look and run through where the parties are at, labour broadly are pretty happy with how their campaign is going. they are miles ahead in the polls. i think over the coming days we can start to see their leader,

keir starmer, campaigning in some more ambitious seats, which is an indication, really, of their confidence and their sense that they can afford to be a little bit more ambitious than they may have been going into the campaign. but he has faced some challenging questions about what he stands for, about the plans for the party around taxation. and also particularly about whether he has changed his plans, what he said he would do when he became labour party leader, compared to what he is putting to the country now. he was asked about that by nick robinson. we had to change the labour party, and drag it closer to the country. and i did that, having thought long and hard about the last four elections because we lost in 2010, 2015, 2017, 2019, and i took the view that that was because we have drifted too far from working people,

our central purpose. as for the conservatives, some of them do tell us that they don't think it is as bad as the polls suggest for them when they are out on the doorstep, talking to people. but we have heard from some quite senior ministers over the past week, and seen their language shift. a kind of change in their tactics, if you like. rather than necessarily talking about winning for the conservative party, they are talking about what would happen if labour were to have a huge majority, which is essentially conceding that it looks like they are not hugely likely to win at this point. they have also faced a surge in support from reform uk, nigel farage's party, which threatens to take some people who previously have voted conservative, who might now look at voting for reform uk instead. i asked the veterans�* minister this

morning why that is. it is the frustration with politics, right? politicians making commitments and, you know, they are not fulfilled in the way people would like to see them fulfilled. if you look at things like immigration, which is a huge challenge for any government, you know, we had figures out two days ago seeing a reduction in applications for visas, and that will materially bring down migration. but people have not seen it fall as fast as they wanted to. often elections in the uk turned to a two horse race. what we're seeing this time around is people looking elsewhere, a little bit more to some of the smaller parties in a way that they haven't always previously in a general election. there is an early indication of a bit of an uptick in support for the liberal democrats, too. their leader, ed davey, doing a lot of campaign stunts early on in the campaign, and now talking a little bit more about his policies. but perhaps a sense that people

are continuing to look to them and think about voting for them as well. there are still three weeks to go, and they say that a week is a long time in politics. and a reminder that like every day during the election campaign we have a special live page up and running online where you can get the latest from the campaigns as well as analysis from our correspondents, whilst the bbc verify team will look at the claims made by the politicians. you can find that on the bbc news website or app. now, it was a sobering night for scotland at the euros, as they suffered a bruising 5—1 defeat to hosts germany in the opening match of the tournament. there are two matches today — croatia, led by their veteran captain luka modric, take on spain in their group b match. while in group a, hungary, meet switzerland. on sunday, england have their first match, against serbia. alex howell is at england training.

what is the mood amongst the camp this morning, having seen germany beat scotland 5—1? the this morning, having seen germany beat scotland 5-1?— this morning, having seen germany beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been ve aood beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been very good in — beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been very good in the _ beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been very good in the england _ beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been very good in the england camp - beat scotland 5-1? the mood has been very good in the england camp all- very good in the england camp all week since the side arrived here on monday night. it is their fifth training session. they are training here this morning, as you can see behind me. the england goalkeeper is going through their paces as before they travel to serbia on sunday. all 26 players are due to be out here on the pitch in the next few minutes. there was a little team news scare for england midway through this week. manchester city defenderjohn stones missed a session with a sickness bug but he recovered, so the only other question is around manchester united defender luke shaw, who continues his recovery from injury. he has not played for his club side since february. but everything is very positive here as

england gear up for that first game in their opening game of the euro is on sunday. in their opening game of the euro is on sunda . ., . in their opening game of the euro is onsunda. ., . , ,, ,., on sunday. how much pressure is on gareth southgate, _ on sunday. how much pressure is on gareth southgate, and _ on sunday. how much pressure is on gareth southgate, and the _ on sunday. how much pressure is on gareth southgate, and the fact - on sunday. how much pressure is on gareth southgate, and the fact that. gareth southgate, and the fact that england are one of the favourites to wind, but they have only won one in their last five matches?— their last five matches? that's riuht. their last five matches? that's right- coming _ their last five matches? that's right. coming into _ their last five matches? that's right. coming into this - their last five matches? that's - right. coming into this tournament, form probably isn't what they would have liked. he likes to build up a continuity of performances and coming to a tournament with momentum, but gareth southgate says that there have been reasons for those performances, introducing a lot of new players into the side. there is pressure on the england manager. he says, speaking to a german newspaper, that this would probably be his last tournament if england don't go all the way. but he has also said the expectation matches the reality, and that players say they can actually come here and win this tournament. you mentioned — here and win this tournament. you mentioned the _ here and win this tournament. you mentioned the scare around luke shaw. defence is the big issue, isn't it, for gareth southgate and

the england team at the moment? it really is. i mentioned that there is a number of young players in this squad. someone who is usually named in gareth southgate �*steam is harry maguire, but he has missed this tournament through injury. the crystal palace defender, a 23—year—old centre back, mark, has played for england around ten times and he is looking likely to come in to the defence. jordan pickford spoke to us yesterday at the england camp and said there is enough experience in this group, and they have got a good blend. if mark does come in or any of the other defenders if they step into that backline, they will be joined by ciaran, kyle walker, john stones, and jordan pickford, the goalkeeper i mentioned. they have all played for england over 50 times. there's lots of experience, but it is true that it lots of experience, but it is true thatitis lots of experience, but it is true that it is not as settled as gareth southgate would like usually coming into a tournament.—

into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course. — into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course. you _ into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course, you can _ into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course, you can follow _ into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course, you can follow the - into a tournament. alex, thank you. of course, you can follow the whole | of course, you can follow the whole of the euros tournament on the bbc sport website and app. dozens of world leaders arejoining president zelensky in switzerland to explore how to bring peace to ukraine. mr zelensky is hoping to sustain the momentum of this week's g7 meeting, where leaders pledged $50 billion of loans on the back of seized russian assets, and he signed a ten—year security deal with president biden. but no one from russia is invited to the two—day summit, and china is staying away. switzerland, which is the organiser, has been trying to downplay it a bit and say, "look we are not going to get a cut and dried peace deal here over the next two days, but what we might be able to do is lay the ground towards a path to peace" — that this is the first conference of perhaps many, there will be a second and a third, and that eventually, perhaps some clarity can come about how russia and ukraine

can agree on a piece but russia isn't here. it's not a question of whether they were invited or not, they said they wouldn't come. the swiss did not invite them. hard to have significant negotiations about peace when one of the warring parties is not even here. let's ta ke let's take you to some live pictures from the liberal democrat campaign. ed davey, the liberal democrat leader, is on a giant bouncy castle at the moment. there we can see him jumping. he almost went for one! i have been on one of these giant sort of bouncy castles that are on the ground, and you do sometimes take a tumble on them. i certainly have. the liberal democrats are out campaigning as a lot of the parties

are today. they are focusing on crime today. they are calling for a boost to front line policing in a bid to tackle car crime. there we can see the liberal democrat leader, sir ed davey, jumping up and down on a giant bouncy... i don't know what you would describe it as. it is not a castle or anything like that. jumping up and down there. i am told it is a bouncy cloud. a bouncy multicoloured cloud. he certainly seems to be having fun. of all the leaders during this election campaign, he is the one that has done the most of these stunts will stop he does them because we take pictures of him, and of course the liberal democrats, compared to labour and the conservatives, don't have as much money given to them to campaign, so they look for stunts that ed davey can take part in. and there he is on a bouncy cloud. i don't think i will make the olympics!— don't think i will make the olympics! don't think i will make the gi mics! ., .,�* ~ olympics! no, i don't think you will. you can _

olympics! no, i don't think you will. you can get _ olympics! no, i don't think you will. you can get more - olympics! no, i don't think you will. you can get more on - olympics! no, i don't think you will. you can get more on the l olympics! no, i don't think you i will. you can get more on the bbc news website or app. let's go back now to ukraine. as we mentioned, ukraine was a big part of the g7 summit of world leaders that has been taking place in italy. it will wind down today after migration, chinese trade policy, and artificial intelligence were discussed on friday. pope francis made a historic address, championing talks on al. it's the first time a pope has participated in a g7 summit. earlier, our southern europe correspondent gave me the main takeaways from the summit. i think the headline achievement was this decision by g7 leaders to agree on a loan of $50 billion to ukraine, which they hope will be delivered by the end of the year. it will be secured against the interest on frozen russian assets, so russia has about 300 billion euros of assets frozen in europe and that is generating interest. the interest every year will be used to secure

this $50 billion loan, with several parties contributing to the money. so that was the key concrete achievement of the g7. there is also achievement of the g7. there is also a ten year security deal that has been struck between ukraine and the us, with the united states committed to assisting ukraine with defence and security over the next ten years. and then that were harsh words against china. there was an unequivocal condemnation of china for using trade subsidies to flood the market, basically, to saturate the market, basically, to saturate the market, basically, to saturate the market, an overproduction of chinese goods on the market which g7 leaders feel is a stifling competition from other countries and creating a trade imbalance. they also hit out at china for its financial institutions continuing to fund russia �*s arms industries, threatening to take action against chinese banks in that respect, and also they hit out at china for what they called "corrosive and intimidation actions" in the south

china sea, around taiwan. finally as you pointed out, this session on artificial intelligence attended by the pope, the first time ever a pipe has attended the g7, in which they discuss the possibilities and opportunities provided by ai, and also the potential threats that al poses to human rights and dignity and ethics. to saudia arabia. muslim pilgrims in mecca are facing extreme temperatures at the climax of the annual hajj. 1.5 million muslim pilgrims are expected to make at the climax of the annual hajj. 1.5 million muslim pilgrims are expected to make the demanding assent of mount arafat on the fifth day of the annual hajj in mecca. temperatures are forecast to reach into the forties celsius. the saudi authorities have warned that climate change is making the hajj almost half a degree warmer each decade. let's go back to central london now

because very shortly trooping the colour will take place. this is the scene at buckingham palace. this year, the princess of wales will make her first public appearance at the event since she was diagnosed with cancer. kate will be in the carriage parade with her children. this event, of course, is for the king's fund shall birthday celebrations. catherine will then join the rest of the family on the balcony at buckingham palace where they will be a fly past has part of they will be a fly past has part of the events that take place. also, the events that take place. also, the king and queen will be taking part, of course, in this procession and he will inspect the troops on horse guards parade. the king said that he was delighted that catherine will be at the ceremony. we will have live coverage of it here on bbc news. stay with us.

hello. we have got a little bit of sunshine in the forecast as we head through the weekend. but really, it's the unsettled, changeable theme that is set to dominate things. low pressure bringing us that mix of sunshine and showers through the weekend. temperatures still on the cool side for this stage injune. but the sunshine, where you do see it, is strong this time of year. so here's the low pressure sitting right across the uk. on the peripheries of that low pressure, we've got quite windy conditions, particularly through the english channel here — 30—a0mph gusts. lighter winds further north, but you can see a rash of showers developing through the day almost anywhere, really. and by the afternoon, they could be heavy and thundery, too. gusts are going to be stronger than this. this is the average wind speeds that we're going to be seeing. so highs between about 13 to 16 across northern areas. further south, in the sunnier spells, 17 degrees or so possible. into the evening hours, and the showers will ease a little bit, not as many of them as earlier on in the day. and then there'll be more persistent rain working in across the north of scotland through the course of tonight. clear spells and a few

scattered showers elsewhere. and overnight lows between about 7 to 10 degrees, as we head on into sunday morning. so sunday, then, still very much dominated by low pressure. we've got this frontal system you can see here moving its way in from the north. that'll bring a little bit more persistent rain. further south, i think, not as many showers associated with that low pressure as we've got out there today, but still a few cropping up through the midlands, east anglia, south—east, for instance, as well. there's that cloud and rain sinking south across scotland and northern ireland. so a bit of a damp, cool day here in the north. but further south, though, sunshine and with fewer showers than we've got out there today, it'll be a little bit warmer — 19, 20 degrees possible in the south, but still only in the mid—teens further north. head into monday and we've still got a cool northerly flow across the north—west of scotland. but actually, across much of the uk, there'll be a little bit more sunshine, not as many showers as we've seen, and it'll be a touch warmer, especially towards the south — 20, 21 degrees. so not as unsettled as it has been, but still that chance of a few showers around, too. heading through the week, then, high pressure tries to nudge its way

in from the atlantic, but we've got low pressure both to the south and the north of the uk, potentially throwing us some showers around at times. not a write—off into next week, though. there'll be some sunshine in—between any of these showers, and you'lljust notice those temperatures will be creeping up by a few degrees, certainly, compared to the last couple of days. bye— bye. you're watching bbc news. i'm nicky schiller.

i want to take you to central london where, very shortly, we will see the princess of wales appearing in public for the first time in six months since being diagnosed with cancer, when she takes part in the trooping the colour parade to mark king charles�*s official birthday. catherine will be in a carriage procession with her children. she will then make an appearance on the balcony of buckingham palace. in an official statement, the princess said her treatment for cancer would continue for a few more months, but she was hoping to attend more engagements. the king's birthday parade is traditionally celebrated in the summer rather than in his actual birthday in the november. we will see a military parade with inspection and music and pageantry. the king will be in a carriage rather than on horseback this year to inspect the troops on horse guards parade. clare balding is

there for live coverage of trooping there for live coverage of trooping the colour on bbc news. today marks the official birthday of his majesty the king and everyone at wellington barracks is polished and ready for one of the world's most spectacular military displays. and when i say everyone, that does include seamus, the regimental mascot who will proudly lead the irish guards as they trooped their colour at the king's birthday parade. —— troop. overhead, these are perfect conditions in central london as we welcome you to horse guards parade,

where the crowds are