plans over the next five years. to release from prison wil early plans to release from prison with early will be announced by the government early tomorrow to help reduce overcrowding in jails. hello. england are beginning preparations for sunday's euro 2024 final against spain in berlin. last night's 90th—minute strike from substitute ollie watkins sealed a 2—1 semifinal victory over the netherlands, to the delight of fans across the country. our sports editor, dan roan, reports on a dramatic night in dortmund. palmer finds watkins. watkins turns! watkins scores! he's the super sub who became england's hero on unforgettable night in dortmund. ollie watkins, that is wonderful! england fans in dreamland

after the aston villa striker�*s brilliant 90th minute winner ensured a first major final on foreign soil. lost for words, really. when you score there's emotions that come through your body, but this is just a different feeling. it was slow motion when i was running over to the boys and celebrating. and there was, ah, i didn't want to get off the pitch in the end because ijust wanted to soak it all in, because it doesn't happen often, obviously. come on, watkins, get in there, my son! ollie watkins, all. about ollie watkins. he needs to start. talk about a captain's moment. earlier, after england fell behind for the third match in a row, it fell to the captain to try and draw them level. here comes kane. here come england! oh, it was phenomenal, absolutely brilliant. i couldn't imagine much more. cole palmer and ollie watkins come on. gareth southgate faced criticism at these euros. but having brought on watkins with extra time looming, once again the manager

had been vindicated. once i saw him i thought, he's got legs, he's got a goal in him. so gareth knows best after all? i think so. we can't criticise him now. that's two euros finals in a row, you know. i and this time, will they do it? it's coming home, - what else can we say? i have a really good feeling about this one. england are on their way to berlin! and having knocked out the netherlands, england are now just one more win away from ending their 58 year long wait for silverware. spain have been the best team in the tournament, there's no question about that. and we have a day less to prepare, which makes it a lot harder. but we will enjoy tonight. but already as a coaching team we're thinking about preparing for that, that's how it is. hope you can enjoy it a bit. no, we will, don't worry. well, what a night here in dortmund. ollie watkins and these players have delivered quite simply one of the most important victories

in the history of the england men's team. and now they'll have a shot at glory and the first ever victory overseas at a major tournament. and after their best performance yet of these euros, they'll now believe that in berlin they can go all the way. dan roan, bbc news, dortmund. so england beat the netherlands, but will spain be a more difficult and different opponent? i asked our correspondentjohn watson who is in dortmund for us. i think they will be. just i guess, notjust around the results they have produced, having won all of their group matches, they have been this in form team, but the threat they carry out wide is something gareth southgate will be aware of. lamine yamal, this breathtaking, young and emerging star of the tournament, just 16 years old, so when england got against him, they will feel like veterans in the final to come on sunday. they certainly carry threats,

real dangers, which i think england will have to contain. but it is hard at the moment to gauge how you will split these two going into the final because with tournament football, it's so hard to predict, certainly for england, in the way they have played, some of the performances, the criticism aimed at gareth southgate for notjust his tactical approach but his selection. yet throughout this tournament, at difficult moments, england have continued to find a way and we saw it again last night. it looked to be going to extra time, possibly penalties again, ollie watkins, cole palmer brought on, combining late for the goal. gareth southgate, for all the criticism, he has found the right adjustments at the right time and it is why there is a growing feeling perhaps england, despite the difficulties they have encountered, they are just peaking at the right time, and i guess it is what you want to do in tournament football. last night probably was one of the best matches they have played probably of the tournament, certainly in the first half, signs

they are peaking at the right time. you are absolutely right, you cannot underestimate spain, it brings back shades of euro 1996, up against spain, goalless, settled on penalties, england won of course, and progressed to the semifinals. nail—biting days for england fans. tributes are being paid to three women killed in a crossbow attack in hertfordshire. the suspect was detained yesterday evening in a north london cemetery. the victims were the wife and daughters of bbc racing commentatorjohn hunt. aru na iyengar reports. we have seen images coming from the church which is holding a ceremony to remember the victims. trier? church which is holding a ceremony to remember the victims. very much so. it was organised _ to remember the victims. very much

so. it was organised very _ to remember the victims. very much so. it was organised very quickly - to remember the victims. very much so. it was organised very quickly of. so. it was organised very quickly of course. it started at i! so. it was organised very quickly of course. it started at 11 o'clock today are changing to his church in bushey, which is a very quiet town in south africa but the rector of bushey said it was important to come together as a community to pay their respects to carol and louise and hannah, who died in this house in ashlyn close behind me on tuesday evening. and to offer their support but respect the privacy ofjohn hunt and the rest of their family at this incredibly difficult time. there is been a steady stream of visitors to ashlyn close today, many of them young women bringing flowers to lay at the entrance to the road and they are so distressed, it is really hard to watch, actually. they are trying to watch, actually. they are trying to console each other but theyjust can't take in what has happened. the police are due to give an update about their investigation in a little while, not quite sure when, but we do know they are treating

this as a triple murder investigation. the man they would like to speak to is in hospital at the moment and as you mentioned in your introduction, his name is kyle clifford, he is 26, he was detained at lavender hill cemetery yesterday, in enfield in north london. there is also a house that is being investigated and searched again, having been searched yesterday, it is being searched again in enfield. we can also confirm that kyle clifford is a former boyfriend of one of the daughters of carol and john who died in this attack on tuesday. so we are waiting for an update and in the meantime hertfordshire police are asking for anyone with further information to come forward and if there is video footage or of any sort, there is a portal on their website that people

can send images to. they are very gratefulfor can send images to. they are very grateful for the help they have had so far, and overwhelming response, they have said. that is a reflection of the high regard in which the hunt family are held by here in bushey. many thanks. the water regulator ofwat has announced how much water bills in england and wales could rise by over the next five years. ofwat�*s projection is that the annual household bill could go up by an average of 21%. that's an extra £19 a year, although every water company has different plans in place, so the figure will vary depending on where you live. most people in england and wales get their water from one of 17 companies and have their waste water taken away by one of 11 companies. there will be a consultation on the final figures that will be decided in december. the increase is intended to fund investment for improvements — such as replacing leaking pipes and reducing sewage discharges into rivers and the sea. our cost of living correspondent, colletta smith, gave us her analysis.

the regulator has set the level that people's water bills across england and wales will be allowed to increase from next april, so it is a price period from 2025 until 2030. they are looking at those annual bill rises of £19 extra a year. that is what the regulator has suggested across the board as an average but it varies dramatically depending on where you are in england and wales and who supplies your water as a result. as you say, thames water have been the major focus over recent months. they are in significant financial difficulty at the moment and we have seen huge environmental impact that company has been involved in, with serious sewage spills into rivers, lakes and concerns over water quality in those areas. what has happened this morning is the regulator have said that that's

the level in different areas that bills can be raised by and already the water companies have hit back and said, if we are not allowed to raise bills by more than we are not going to be able to fix the leaks, make those environmental improvements. the question for the government and regulators, should the companies force their shareholders to pick up the bill rather than making the customers pick up that bill instead? how is that decision made by the companies? how much margin of profit do they have to do that? that companies? how much margin of profit do they have to do that?— do they have to do that? that is what the regulator _ do they have to do that? that is what the regulator is _ do they have to do that? that is what the regulator is looking . do they have to do that? that is| what the regulator is looking at. each of those individual companies, they look at the accounts, they go through them to find how much they are planning to invest, how much they say they want to get back to shareholders of the annual running costs are too ill be different for every company how much the regulator allows him to make a profit but it has been a big controversy over how much shareholders have taken over recent years and even how much the chief executives of these companies have taken in what is arguably a

failing system, there have been significant profits made by cut companies and individuals running the system over recent years and a lot of campaigners say that customers shouldn't be made to pick up customers shouldn't be made to pick up the bill because of those mistakes so each company will be a different level of profit margin they will be allowed to make and a different bill for customers, but even that £19 a year average which will be higherfor some increase in what is already a significant bill, 500 plus a lot of places a year, thatis 500 plus a lot of places a year, that is a huge increase for customers already struggling to pay their utility bills right the way across the board. james wallace is the ceo of river action — a campaign group committed to addressing river pollution across the uk. he says water companies should be held accountable. perhaps this could for the first time in 1a years be a sign of leadership by a new government. not that we want to get too overexcited but a request for water

companies for an increase in bills and ofwat are going back are seeing it needs to be less. we need to make sure we protect the lowest income and the most vulnerable in society and those that use water less and we need to make sure that with that, we have proper enforcement of the law and the water companies are held to account. when i as a thames water customer are contributing to their cost of the future, i don't want it to be used to clear debt, fixing leaky infrastructure they should have been investing in years in the past. what we need to see is new investment to build capacity and for shareholders to clear up the mess from the past. how do you think water companies should be made more accountable and do you think the whole system needs reviewing? absolutely, without any doubt river action and other campaign groups are asking for the same thing, we need to see root and branch reform of ofwat and of the environment agency so that water companies and other polluters can be held to account and let's not forget agriculture in this.

it should mean therefore that we have an end to self policing, we need independent monitoring pollution, on the spot fines that are punitive and make sure that what we're seeing now is just a general cost of business to pollute is instead seen as punitive and therefore dissuading people. we need to see things like permitting changing. this is important. currently, legislation does not prevent water comapnies from releasing treated waste water back into rivers without removing bacteria. we continue on the news channel. rachel reeves said the government was determined to get a grip on the water sector, describing the announcement today is a bitter pill. people are seeing today announcement about higher water bills, this

reflects 1a years of failure from conservatives to drive investment, reduce pollution and to ensure that families are not struggling in the way they have been with the cost of living crisis. it is why the secretary of state for environment steve reid has called into 16 bosses of the water companies today and also we have already announced tough new rules to ensure that money going into infrastructure cannot be paid out in bonuses and tougher rules around polluting. we are determined to get a grip on the water sector so it delivers for consumers and so we stop polluting our beautiful seas, rivers and we will get a grip on that. ., . ., that. the new chancellor rachel reeves. i take _ that. the new chancellor rachel reeves. i take you _ that. the new chancellor rachel reeves. i take you back - that. the new chancellor rachel reeves. i take you back to - that. the new chancellor rachel reeves. i take you back to our. that. the new chancellor rachel l reeves. i take you back to our top story. gareth southgate warned his team faced the tightest of turnarounds before the final on sunday. what are

england's chances and what did last night tell us about their strength? to get some perspective, i am joined by the spanish football writer. joining me now is guillem balague — a spanish football expert in berlin and marcel van der kraan — a dutch footballjournalist for de telegraaf. ifi if i can start with you. commiserations on last night's result but if you can't bear to go through it again, what did you make of england plasma performance in that controversial penalty? this was the real england, _ that controversial penalty? this was the real england, what _ that controversial penalty? this was the real england, what the - the real england, what the netherlands foot fiat would arrive at some stage in this tournament. the group stage was disappointing, also disappointing from the dutch side. we saw that england were improving and with all the quality on the pitch, we thought if it is going to be one of those big night for england, please let it not be against holland, but it was. the key man in that midfield, the key man who rose above everything else, who

made the team play tick tack football on the english side and that was too much for the dutch up until half time and i know we started well but as soon as we lead with 1-0, started well but as soon as we lead with 1—0, england realise, let's put it on, just like they have done in every game in the knockout stages, once they get behind the play read football. == once they get behind the play read football. ., ., ., ,, football. -- realfootball. spain are through _ football. -- realfootball. spain are through to _ football. -- realfootball. spain are through to the _ football. -- realfootball. spain are through to the final. - football. -- realfootball. spain are through to the final. do - football. -- realfootball. spainj are through to the final. do you think they will be nervous? what do you think their strategy will be against england? i you think their strategy will be against england?— you think their strategy will be against england? i tell you who is nervous, against england? i tell you who is nervous. me! _ against england? i tell you who is nervous. me! i— against england? i tell you who is nervous, me! i saw— against england? i tell you who is nervous, me! i saw that - against england? i tell you who is nervous, me! i saw that england | against england? i tell you who is| nervous, me! i saw that england is getting _ nervous, me! i saw that england is getting better so i sent a message to the _ getting better so i sent a message to the coaching staff of spain this morning — to the coaching staff of spain this morning and said, oh, it is england, and he_ morning and said, oh, it is england, and he change my mind frame, he said, _ and he change my mind frame, he said. so, _ and he change my mind frame, he said. so, we— and he change my mind frame, he said, so, we have had croatia, germany— said, so, we have had croatia, germany at _ said, so, we have had croatia, germany at home and we are doing welt _ germany at home and we are doing weii~ this _ germany at home and we are doing weii~ this is — germany at home and we are doing well. this is a wonderful footballing adventure from players

who come from all over spain from different— who come from all over spain from different clubs who face the uncertainty of a game without fear. so that _ uncertainty of a game without fear. so that is _ uncertainty of a game without fear. so that is that most fear you actually _ so that is that most fear you actually sent from the group, that it is fine, — actually sent from the group, that it is fine, it— actually sent from the group, that it is fine, it is a final, in fact it is fine, it is a final, in fact it is— it is fine, it is a final, in fact it is last _ it is fine, it is a final, in fact it is last topside we need to beat in this— it is last topside we need to beat in this tournament.— in this tournament. interesting. from the dutch _ in this tournament. interesting. from the dutch viewpoint, - in this tournament. interesting. j from the dutch viewpoint, what in this tournament. interesting. - from the dutch viewpoint, what would be the lessons from the spanish team, if you can bear to give them. the most difficult part is to break england down. they are most mac almost unbeatable in this tournament. every time an opponent feels they have grip on them, in the second half holland bounce back, they had a grip in the midfield and higher position, 65% i think, completely different from the first half but then you see that resilience and the camaraderie among the england players. they fight for each other and spain will need to

super sharp with their wingers in particular, they have two high—speed trains on the wings in the spanish team. they need to do it because through the middle and centre, they are there. i think you need to see a really good spanish side, despite the fact they have beaten everyone so far. ., , ., the fact they have beaten everyone so far. ., i. .,, , so far. now your mind has been changed. _ so far. now your mind has been changed. are — so far. now your mind has been changed, are you _ so far. now your mind has been changed, are you predicting - so far. now your mind has been i changed, are you predicting victory and can you give us a sense of how you think that match might go? do you think that match might go? do you think that match might go? do you think it will go to penalties? no, stop it! now england take such -ood no, stop it! now england take such good penalties it would be a disaster— good penalties it would be a disaster for spain. we are not great at it either~ — disaster for spain. we are not great at it either. we haven't been certainty— at it either. we haven't been certainly great historically at it. it is certainly great historically at it. it is not — certainly great historically at it. it is not about... if we can't beat that— it is not about... if we can't beat that wingers, let's go through the middle _ that wingers, let's go through the middle but especially insisting, again. — middle but especially insisting, again, and again, more and more chances — again, and again, more and more chances. that is what the manager

has been _ chances. that is what the manager has been asking the team to do and the more _ has been asking the team to do and the more spain create, the more opportunities to score, it is that simple — opportunities to score, it is that simple. and never feel that if spain concede _ simple. and never feel that if spain concede that it is the end. this is that resilience they have managed to build throughout the tournament, situations— build throughout the tournament, situations we turned around and we faced _ situations we turned around and we faced att— situations we turned around and we faced all kinds of styles, we beat them _ faced all kinds of styles, we beat them all— faced all kinds of styles, we beat them all but there is a respect not fear for— them all but there is a respect not fear for england. the them all but there is a respect not fear for england.— fear for england. the fact spain have not fear for england. the fact spain have got an _ fear for england. the fact spain have got an extra _ fear for england. the fact spain have got an extra 24 _ fear for england. the fact spain have got an extra 24 hours - fear for england. the fact spain have got an extra 24 hours to l have got an extra 24 hours to prepare, does that matter? is that a huge advantage? in prepare, does that matter? is that a huge advantage?— huge advantage? in this case, i would give _ huge advantage? in this case, i would give one _ huge advantage? in this case, i would give one point _ huge advantage? in this case, i would give one point here, - huge advantage? in this case, i | would give one point here, look huge advantage? in this case, i i would give one point here, look at the bench of england. in every game gareth southgate has brought on fresh players at the vital moment and he did so again last night. he uses different players, but as soon as cole palmer came on, ollie watkins came on, there was new energy and normally you would never think, don't take hurricane off, the top scorer, don't take the best

player off. but he made those calls —— mark harry kane. holland couldn't handle manage fresh energy. cole palmer was bursting on the right, ollie watkins was there, and scored a fantastic girl. that is where i think the advantage to england is great players on the bench. == 5; great players on the bench. -- a fantastic goal. _ great players on the bench. -- a fantastic goal. spain _ great players on the bench. -- a fantastic goal. spain is - great players on the bench. —— a fantastic goal. spain is football mad, what is a mood in the country? there is a lot of excitement here and i'm sure it is a sign where you are. . . and i'm sure it is a sign where you are. , ., , , , .,, are. yes, with a surprise. those that like football _ are. yes, with a surprise. those that like football have _ are. yes, with a surprise. those that like football have been - are. yes, with a surprise. those i that like football have been getting more engaged in the tournament because — more engaged in the tournament because from the beginning the spain side show— because from the beginning the spain side show to be brave and courageous and adventurous and offensive because — and adventurous and offensive because they have the tick—tock generation, those between 16 and 20 or 22. _

generation, those between 16 and 20 or22, people generation, those between 16 and 20 or 22, people that haven't been involved — or 22, people that haven't been involved in— or 22, people that haven't been involved in football at all, they are now — involved in football at all, they are now getting engaged. you see a lot of— are now getting engaged. you see a lot of people in the cities that are foothati— lot of people in the cities that are football mad like seville or malaga or biii— football mad like seville or malaga or bill bow, but you get them in barcelona — or bill bow, but you get them in barcelona there will be screened in the big _ barcelona there will be screened in the big cities and squares and squares— the big cities and squares and squares and there will be thousands of people _ squares and there will be thousands of people cheering for spain. enjoyed _ of people cheering for spain. enjoyed the build up and enjoy sunday if you can. thank you very much indeed for being with us. let us come back to uk politics. thejustice secretary shabana mahmood is expected to announce emergency measures to deal with overcrowding in prisons tomorrow. the bbc understands this is likely include automatic early release for some prisoners less than halfway through their sentence to free up space in the system. why might such drastic — and unprecedented — measures be necessary?

ben chu from bbc verify has been looking into it. how full are our prisons? the total england and wales prison population was 87,453, close to a record high and let's compare that with what is termed usable operational capacity of these presents. that was 88,864. that leaves spare capacity ofjust 1411. let's look at how that has changed over the years. we can see here that the leeway between the prison population and capacity has been contracting in recent months and years and by the way, this operational capacity is actually well above what analysts think a safe capacity and the population is already considerably beyond that point. this picture is why prison governors wrote to all the party leaders on the 25th ofjune at the height of the election campaign to

one that within a matter of days prisons across the uk will be full and they added, this will put the public at risk. why? because a court would have nowhere to place serious offenders who present a real risk to the public. so how did you get to this? part of the problem is a supply of prison places has not been meeting demand. in 2021 the conservative government pledged an additional 20,000 prison places by the middle of this decade, in what it said would be the biggest prison building programme since victorian times but so far only around 6000 extra places have been delivered. there seems to have been a problem in government getting that money out of the door. the chief civil servant in the justice of the door. the chief civil servant in thejustice department of the door. the chief civil servant in the justice department wrote of the door. the chief civil servant in thejustice department wrote in july last year that at that point only £1.1 billion of the £4 billion committed to this prison building programme had been spent. one of the obstacles has been the planning system and local objections to new

prisons being built, including from some conservative mps. but let's take a look at the other part of the equation, demand. the strange thing is that as the prison population has been rising in recent decades, overall crime rates have actually been coming down so how can this be? shouldn't lower crime rate mean a lower and not higher prison population? well, the institute for government think tank says part of the answer is at longer sentences. in 2023 the average custodial sentence given in a crown court which deals with more serious offences with more than 25% longer thanit offences with more than 25% longer than it was in 2012. longer sentences mean more people in the prison estate at any given time. and another part of the answer is reoffending. the number of people currently in prison for breaching their release conditions is around 12,000, a record high and roughly the double of the number eight years ago. all this is why the new prisons

ministerjames timson earlier this year stressed the need to break the cycle of reoffending by giving ex offenders economic opportunities it is done directly through his family firm timpson is, and also to reduce sentences and send fewer people to prison than we currently do. so this seems likely to be a government that will try to go down the road of reform, meaning things take shorter sentences and more community sentences. the absence of public money for building more prisons due to the government's chosen fiscal rules and its reticence around raising taxes seems to really know viable alternatives but before we can do that the first priority for ministers is likely to be preventing their presence from overflowing. is likely to be preventing their presence from overflowing. the trial of the hollywood actor alec baldwin has heard the opening statement from prosecutors, claiming he bears some responsibility for the deadly

shooting of cinematographer halyna hutchins on a film set almost three years ago. the jury were told that the gun could not have been fired without his actions. baldwin insists he didn't touch the trigger. our los angeles correspondent emma vardy reports. mr baldwin, are you feeling confident? is this a fair trial? returning to new mexico, where the shooting happened, alec baldwin arrived to face a jury who will decide whether the actor was responsible. how's it going, sir? during filming on set nearly three years ago, the pistol being used by alec baldwin fired a live round, killing the cinematographer halyna hutchins. oh, my god. the film's armourer, hannah gutierrez, has already been convicted for involuntary manslaughter. she had accidentally mixed up live bullets with the dummy rounds being used on set. but prosecutors believe alec baldwin was also at fault, and that the gun could only have been fired because of his actions. the evidence will show that someone who played make believe with a real gun,

and violated the cardinal rules of firearm safety, is the defendant, alexander baldwin. mr baldwin claims he never pulled the trigger, saying the gun went off accidentally, and that he was relying on crew members to make sure the gun was safe. safety has to occur before the gun is placed in the actor's hands. in this case, this unique case on a movie set, the prop gun was placed in mr baldwin's hands and "cold gun" was announced, meaning it had been checked and double checked by those responsible to ensure the gun was safe. the trial is set to last a fortnight. at the end of it, a jury will have to decide whether alec baldwin was truly negligent in the way he drew and pointed that weapon. emma vardy, bbc news, new mexico. lots more coming up. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol. hello again. where we've had all the heavy rain of late, today it is going to turn that bit lighter.

pollen levels today, though, are moderate or high across many areas. we're talking especially grass pollen and also nettle pollen. now, low pressure is driving our weather. it's pushing off to scandinavia. we've got this weather front which has split in two, and that's what's been producing the heavy and persistent rain we've seen in the north—east of scotland for the last couple of days. that's now easing. we also have a weather front at the other end of it, across parts of wales, the midlands and into east anglia — that's producing some showery rain. but through the day, it will brighten up in the north—east. the winds will also ease. but through the day, it will brighten up in the north—east. the winds will also ease. western scotland and northern ireland seeing some sunshine, but northern england, the north midlands, norfolk and wales hanging on to the cloud with some patchy light rain. but in the south, a lot of sunshine and here temperatures up to 23 celsius. in the north, 13 or 14, and it will feel cooler if you're in the northerly breeze. now, as we head on through the evening and overnight, a weather front continues to weaken as it pushes southwards.

we also have a system coming up from the near continent, which will bring in some showery outbreaks of rain to the south—east, and another one coming into north—west scotland. temperature wise, very similar to what we had last night. overnight lows, eight to about 13 degrees. tomorrow, we've got the dregs of our weather front in the south producing this cloud and also the odd shower. a ridge of high pressure is trying to build in from the atlantic. so, in essence, we're starting off on another cloudy note. we say goodbye to the showers in the south—east quite quickly. here's our weak weather front with the cloud and showers. that will break up through the day. and we also have our weather front pushing in across the north—west of scotland, bringing showery outbreaks of rain here. but there will be a northerly breeze. temperature values are low anyway, but it will feel a bit cooler if you're in the breeze. but where the cloud breaks around the glasgow area, we could well reach 20 degrees. as we move into saturday, you can see this ridge trying to stay with us, but low pressure is never too far away, so that looks like it's going to be cool down the east

coast, and we could well see some rain into eastern parts of scotland on sunday. so, saturday, fairly cloudy. the best of the sunshine in the south and the south—west, cool down the east coast. and on sunday, that low pressure could well bring rain into eastern scotland. this is bbc news — the headlines... england's footballers had to ben lane for the euros against spain. a man suspected of killing a woman and two of her daughters in hertfordshire remains in hospital after police found him injured near a cemetery. nato leaders pledge their support forfuture ukrainian membership and agree forty billion dollars of military aid for kyiv at their summit in washington new figures from nhs england show the waiting list for routine hospital treatment has risen for the second month in a row. hello, i'm geeta guru—murthy.

thank you for staying with us here on bbc news. the king has congratulated the england team on reaching sunday's euros final in berlin — but he's also urged them to avoid more last—minute drama — as he put it, "to alleviate the stresses on the nation's collective heart rate and blood pressure". that tension was definitely felt at fanzones last night, where supporters had gathered to watch gareth southgate's men attempt to book their place in history. our correspondentjoe inwood joined some of them in brixton. it always starts off so civilised. a nice bit of face painting, some vintage shirts, catching up with friends. and then a man shows you his tattoo in an area that we can't broadcast at the crack of dawn. nervous and excited at the same time. the stomach's doing this, you know? watching along were lewis and katie. they met exactly six years ago at the semifinals of the world cup. so feelings on england on their anniversary? well, i was saying i go off a lot what you say.

and you said the starting line—up isn't good. but to be fair, i do think he needs to make some changes in the beginning. # god save our king... being an england fan has not been easy at this tournament. it'sjust depressing. but that feeling didn't last long. england was soon on the attack. i feel like they maybe by conceding that early goal, they've stepped it up now. wild but potentially premature celebrations? and they've not actually scored. that's just a penalty being awarded. the mood was upbeat at half time. at least he finished the beer before throwing his pint in the air. coming into half—time, we were on top of the game, we dominated. we haven't come out firing. but that didn't stop one man making an optimistic purchase. it is 70 minutes into the game, and this man hasjust...

what have you just done? you've just showed me your phone. listen here. it's coming home. have you just... you've purchased hotel tickets? free cancellation, so it's fine. free cancellation. he was so certain of victory, he went and booked his trip to berlin for the final. the only things being cancelled were plans for sunday evening. cheering. i'm soaked in beer. i know, because he... he was throwing it. it's coming home! guys. what did you make of that? that was incredible. we didn't play very well in the second half, but it don't matter. we've just got to get the ball in the net. and he did it. watkins, baby! right around the country. manchester, sheffield,

norwich, chester. and in brixton... # looking back on when we first met... if this is what getting to a final looks like, imagine the scenes if we actually win. # southgate, you're the one. # you can bring it home... joe inwood, bbc news in brixton. # football's coming home again! this team and gareth southgate have taken their fare share of criticism — yet here they are heading into the finals. i asked dr gillian cook — senior lecturer in sports psychology at liverpooljohn moores university — about what their key to success has been. so i think the big thing they have done is as you say there has been a lot of criticism around the team, how they've set up. but what they've done, what gareth has done is he has had the confidence in his own ability. he is the manager that has got us through to two finals now, he has backed himself and the players have seen it too, they have trusted him as well. and when the subs have come on,

they have been able to deliver. and how do you think you would see the management of the next three days? because there is so much expectation and pressure on them now. so i think what the team will do is firstly they will take a bit of time just to have a breather, to relax, to smile and feel good about where they are. then they will review what happened last night, what we did well. equally where we can get better. and then it will be all about forgetting last night, the semifinal has gone. we are now into the final, and they will refocus where the focus needs to be said that we can go out and deliver and try to lower those expectations, because that is what worked so well last night. this is the first time england had gone into a match in these euros not overwhelming favourites, and that helped us, taking that pressure off. and in terms of the young players themselves, southgate has been

praised for trying to shield them. but we saw southgate having cups thrown on him earlier. how do these young stars, they are young, often not from wealthy backgrounds and earning huge amounts of money, but under the spotlight with every single person with a view and so much commentary on them. you can't totally shield people, because they can click on social media themselves. no, you can't, and it is a normal part of being a high—profile athlete nowadays, that we live in an era of hyper—punditry, so everyone has got different social media platforms, everyone thinks they can do yourjob better than you can, so it is really important that what the team have done and what gareth southgate himself has spoken about is he normalised this for the players. this is completely normal, it's not personal. and what the players may have gone through themselves is something called an arrow technique which is what i do when i work

with athletes. so you help athletes see the arrow not as personal, so it is not being shot into you, but it lies next to you. you can either pick up that feedback, criticism and think of these different comments being made and take them on board, or you leave the arrow because everyone knows more about themselves and other people do, you yourself know the different factors that affect performance at other people don't know, so you might choose to leave that arrow down there and keep focusing on what you need to focus on to get the outcome and bring it home. with england securing its place in the euro 2024 final, many fans will be making last—minute plans to travel to germany for the game. let's speak to simon calder, travel correspondent of the independent, who's been travelling in germany this week — but todayjoins us from rovinj in croatia. good to see you. we have been checking when these tickets go on sale and it looks like it is friday

lunchtime but are people presumably also trying to buy flights? filth. lunchtime but are people presumably also trying to buy flights?— also trying to buy flights? oh, my goodness. — also trying to buy flights? oh, my goodness. yes. — also trying to buy flights? oh, my goodness, yes, and _ also trying to buy flights? oh, my goodness, yes, and a _ also trying to buy flights? oh, my goodness, yes, and a huge - also trying to buy flights? oh, my. goodness, yes, and a huge number also trying to buy flights? oh, my - goodness, yes, and a huge number of people will be heading over the fanzone is being set up in the centre of berlin, that magnificent city, including the biggest goal ever built at the brandenburg gate. a lot of people, regardless of tickets, will be happy to be there. as you say, i have just been in germany, fantastic mood. i think leonard cohen predicted, first we take the netherlands, then we take berlin, but people have been booking flights furiously overnight and this morning. for instance i was looking at all nonstop flights and they have been sold out from anywhere in the uk to berlin. i checked with the airlines, ryanair, which normally laze on extra flights and says they can't partly because pilots and

planes and cabin crew are pretty stretched over a weekend in summer anyway and also getting slots at the berlin airport would be difficult. we are seeing ridiculous combinations, going out from luton, maybe to turkey, and then coming back to berlin, that will cost you about £300 although that, i think, hasjust about £300 although that, i think, has just sold out. about £300 although that, i think, hasjust sold out. swiss, austrian airlines, lufthansa are offering various deals from various uk airports via combinations of airports via combinations of airports but you are still looking at 400, 500, £600. iwould recommend people actually look to a different country. if you for instance consider poland, the best gateway unfortunately, all the flights from liverpool and london stansted have sold out but you can try other

airports in the country and prague is not looking bad. if i were flying out tomorrow, coming back on monday, i would look at about £300 from luton to prague and from there it is a beautiful train journey. luton to prague and from there it is a beautiful trainjourney. i guess many people will be looking at the very fares on friday morning, car and five people, £205 return, £41 each, a pretty good deal, and from dunkirk it is 515 mile drive, about ten hours a. dunkirk it is 515 mile drive, about ten hours a— dunkirk it is 515 mile drive, about ten hours a. ., ., ., , ,, ., ten hours a. you have to be keen to do all of this- _ ten hours a. you have to be keen to do all of this. what _ ten hours a. you have to be keen to do all of this. what about _ ten hours a. you have to be keen to do all of this. what about when - ten hours a. you have to be keen to do all of this. what about when you | do all of this. what about when you get there? will there be enough hotels? �* . , get there? will there be enough hotels? �* ., , , , get there? will there be enough hotels? �* . , , . �* hotels? amazingly, yes! at reasonable _ hotels? amazingly, yes! at reasonable rates! - hotels? amazingly, yes! at reasonable rates! unsure, l hotels? amazingly, yes! at| reasonable rates! unsure, if hotels? amazingly, yes! at - reasonable rates! unsure, if you want a swanky place in the centre of the city you will find either it is completely unavailable because you have officials and media staying there, or it will cost you a fortune. but actually, berlin has a

fantastic public transport system and in the suburbs, typically about ten miles out, you are actually seeing quite a lot of budget hotel rooms around the £100 mark. that is understandable because berlin is an important political and convention city. in march i was there for the world's biggest travel trade fair, itb, 100,000 world's biggest travel trade fair, itb,100,000 people in town and we still managed to find room for everybody and compare that with the capacity of the stadium, 75,000. there will be enough room. although if you want to take a real budget trip, go and stay in frankfurt, the last german city before poland, an hour on the very cheap ferry with trains into berlin —— stay in

frankfurt an der oder. go and soak up frankfurt an der oder. go and soak up the excitement of the occasion. it sounds amazing and quite stressful. the sofa at home watching on tv also sounds quite good. simon calder, great to hear of all those options for those who want to savour the atmosphere in berlin this weekend. thank you. a us senator has joined a growing number of democrats in the house of representatives calling forjoe biden to step down from the american presidential race. writing in the washington post, vermont's peter welch says mr biden should withdraw his candidacy "for the good of the country". earlier, former democrat speaker, nancy pelosi suggested the president "still had a decision to make". three of the president's senior political advisers will meet the democratic senatorial campaign committee on thursday to discuss the concerns. hollywood a—listers — some of them influential democratic fundraisers — have also voiced doubts aboutjoe biden's viability as a candidate. george clooney wrote an opinion piece in the new york times urging the president to drop out. now another big hollywood name —

oscar winner michael douglas — has told the bbc of his concerns. he's been speaking to our correspondent tom brook in new york. let me ask you something that's on a lot of people's minds. what are your thoughts about president biden? should he drop out of the race? could he? yes, he could. should he? um... it's a painful, painful decision because i admire the man tremendously. i personally had a fundraiser for him at our house in april, and i think he's done an incrediblejob. but i am worried, not this week or next week, but let's say next year. and it's just so hard for me to imagine a man four and a half years down the line from now, particularly at a time that's so combative, that requires somebody to really be so articulate. i think the most disappointing thing for me in the debate was not necessarily how he felt but the inability to acknowledge all the lies that ex—president

trump was talking about. do you think, though, that figures in the entertainment industry like yourself can bring about real tangible action in terms of president biden making a decision, as opposed to statements from politicians in washington? yeah, i do think so. i mean, we've been accused of having a little bigger voice than we should have, but we're all involved, you know, as celebrities. so you saw the attention george got today, clooney, with his statement. and maybe it's going to help move along the politicians who have been waffling, kind of waiting for somebody. nancy pelosi, bless her soul, the first one today said, "you got to make a decision. either get on the bus or off." michael douglas. joe biden is hosting the nato summits, the 75th anniversary in washington. member states have

pledged their support for an "irreversible path" to membership for ukraine, as well as pledging tens of billions more dollars for the country's defence against russia. a formal timeline forjoining the military alliance hasn't been agreed at the summit in washington, but the group's 32 members said they had "unwavering" support for ukraine's war effort. nato's also announced closer integration with ukraine's military and a commitment to $40 billion of aid in the next year, including the delivery of us—built f—16fighterjets, and more air defence systems. china has warned nato against "provoking confrontation" over the country's ties with russia, after the alliance accused beijing of playing a key role in helping moscow's war on ukraine. nato leaders said china had become a "decisive enabler" of russia. beijing has hit back, claiming the alliance is looking for excuses to expand its influence eastwards. i spoke to our securirty correspondent, frank gardner, and asked him how significant are these exchanges between nato and china. they are very significant because it's the first time that nato has called out china and essentially accused it of not being neutral — as it would like to make out —

in russia's war with ukraine. this summit is really about three things — it's about ukraine — ukraine/russia — china, and president biden. and let's deal with the latter one first, because hanging over this is the kind of cloud of uncertainty about whether presidentjoe biden is still up to the job. an increasing number of democratic figures and backers — including george clooney, in the last 24 hours, who raised a lot of money forjoe biden's campaign in the past — they have come out and said, look, he's not up to the job any more, he's too old. he's six years older than nato, and nato is 75 years old. so that is a bit of a worry and i think the leaders who've gathered there from these 32 nations will be looking very closely at him, thinking, if this guy wins... first of all, can he beat donald trump in the november elections? and if he does, can he still be the leading light of nato over the next four years?

when it comes to ukraine—russia — yep, they've pledged lots of money but there are cracks here. there are, um, movements afoot in europe of far right and far left — not even far — where these are groups that don't necessarily see russia as a threat, and would like to force ukraine to reach some kind of a peace deal, some kind of accommodation with russia, which basically means surrendering all the land that russia has already taken. then there's china and, as you say, that's a... they've issued this final communique where they've accused china of essentially aiding and abetting russia's war effort in ukraine. china denies this, and also warns nato against getting involved in the asia pacific region, where china has been steadily taking over the south china sea. and, frank, just to go back to the top point and the question that is really dominating political debate in the us and the future ofjoe biden —

there is another moment where the president's going to be under scrutiny today because he's taking questions from the press. but we're not yet seeing the the key democrat leaders come out and say that he has to go, even though there are a lot of noises and, you know, a lot of concerns being raised — including, as you say, by fundraisers. yeah, that's right. so far, only one senator has come out to say he should step down — or step aside, rather — but privately there are quite a lot of voices. there have been a few congressmen and women who have asked him to step aside for the sake of the country. but the us system is rather different from from ours in the uk. so here in britain, as alastair campbell once put it — tony blair's spin doctor — he said look, the men in grey suits will come in and have a word with the prime minister and say, look, come on, you've got to move aside, it's time. in america, it doesn't work like that. it's down to the president alone. onlyjoe biden can step aside, and he's convinced he's still the right guy for the job.

he said, "only god can move me aside." i mean, it's sort of, frankly, a little bit delusional because clearly there are signs that his cognitive ability in that debate with donald trump are... it's worrying. and george clooney has seen him in private and has reportedly said, actually, what you saw there in the debate is repeated in private. and there is something called the six—minute theory, which is that if russian intercontinental ballistic missiles are heading for the continental united states, in theory you've got six minutes — actually, you've probably got a lot less — but a president has got to decide, how do they respond? is it a false alarm? do they retaliate? and the question is, is the commander in chief in this case up to the job?

frank gardner, our security correspondent. let me bring you some news from germany. they are applying to phase out the use of components from chinese telecoms giant huawei and zte in their next few years due to national consumer 80 —— security sense. we are protecting the central nervous system of germany and protecting consumers, companies and the state. that news just coming in on huawei's use in germany being phased out. johnny mercer is following a potential prison sentence after withholding the names of those who told him about alleged special forces murders was rejected by the chairman of the inquiry. let's get more on this. this is quite a complex story but has been

running for a while. bring us up—to—date on what we now know. let's meet starts with some background. the afghanistan inquiry is tasked with establishing three things. whether there is evidence that members of the british special forces carried out the extrajudicial killing of civilians in afghanistan between 2010 and 2013, whether, if that happened, there was a subsequent cover—up, and with at the royal military police who were asked to look into the allegations did so properly and effectively. johnny mercer, who many people will know was the former veterans minister, he himself is a military veteran, he was a conservative, just lost his seatin was a conservative, just lost his seat in the general election last week. he was asked by the then defence secretary to look into some of those allegations, many of which were made in reports in british broadcasting reports and so on. he had a look into them. he has given evidence to that inquiry over

several times now. he has always maintained that a number of military figures approached him and warned him that there was truth in some of those allegations. he has given that evidence to the inquiry. the inquiry wanted to know who those people work. they wanted johnny mercer to name names. he has always refused to disclose the identity of his sources saying it is a matter of integrity. chairman of the inquiry actually set out a proper legal order, threatening johnny mercer with jail or a fine if he did not comply. he has challenge that order and today his challenge has been rejected and the chairman of the inquiry has announced that rejection, saying thatjohnny mercer is refusing to disclose information which may be important to the inquiry. he accepts the inquiry has secure processes in place to protect the identification of those sources. he goes on to say

that integrity requires moral courage to do what is right, not what is popular. is it's the case that he could actually face a prison sentence, the former veterans minister? ., ., ,, ., , sentence, the former veterans minister? ., ., , ., sentence, the former veterans minister?— sentence, the former veterans minister? ., ., ,, ., , ., , minister? that appears to be the case. minister? that appears to be the case- when _ minister? that appears to be the case. when this _ minister? that appears to be the case. when this inquiry - minister? that appears to be the case. when this inquiry puts - minister? that appears to be the case. when this inquiry puts that order in place, saying that he must name his sources, it was made clear that he could face a fine or time in jail if he refused to do so. what is not quite clear at this stage, we have onlyjust heard his order, his application to challenge the audit was rejected, what is not clear is what happens next and what the timescale is. he now has two weeks in which to provide the names of his sources to the inquiry, which takes us to the 25th ofjuly. at that point, presumably further action will follow. johnny mercer has always said, as far as he is concerned, it is a matter of integrity him to protect the

identity of his sources. we don't see any reason for that change at this stage although we have not yet heard from johnny mercer in reaction to announcement today.— to announcement today. thank you ve much to announcement today. thank you very much indeed _ to announcement today. thank you very much indeed for— to announcement today. thank you very much indeed for outlining - to announcement today. thank you | very much indeed for outlining what has happened. new figures from nhs england show the waiting list for routine hospital treatment has risen for the second month in a row. an estimated 7.6 million treatments were waiting to be carried out at the end of may, up slightly from 7.5 million at the end of april. and more than 300,000 patients had been waiting over a year for treatments. the new health secretary, wes streeting, has announced an independent investigation into nhs performance. he told the sun newspaper that the health service could be fixed — but the problem needed to be diagnosed before the government could write a "prescription". our health correspondent nick triggle has this update. it's going to be led by lord ara darzi, who is an nhs surgeon and sits as an independent peer. he also advised and worked as a health minister under tony blair and gordon brown, so he's well versed in how the health service works and how westminster and the government

interacts with it. he's been told to do a quick review, i understand, expected to report back by september, because the new health secretary, wes streeting, wants to produce a ten—year plan for the nhs, setting outjust how he's going to tackle those nhs backlogs. and i think the figures published today — the first set of monthly data since the new government came to power — set out the scale of the challenge. alan milburn has also been advising wes streeting in the last few months — and possibly longer in fact — and, you know, the labour party have have talked about needing growth before they invest, and yet, the nhs is a key concern for the public, so they have to be seen to be acting, don't they, pretty quick? yes, they do. they have promised that they will increase the number of appointments and operations being done almost immediately. they want to see 40,000 extra appointments and operations a week.

to put that into context, that's an increase of about 1% to 2%, which doesn't sound a lot. but if they can do that, experts think that would be enough to start making significant inroads into that backlog straight away. but one of the things the health service has struggled with — even over recent years, under the last government — the amount of funding being put in was going up, the amount of staff employed have been going up — but the number of patients they're seeing has barely risen, and that's because of a productivity problem. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol a pleasant day for those of you who have the sunshine but where it has stayed cloudy it has been distinctly cool and if anything it gets cooler more widely over the next few days. blue indicates where temperatures are below average, run the chart through friday into the start that the weekend, the blue colour is deep in, temperatures drop further and spread across much of western europe. the heat remains towards the east. our transition to something

colder is because area of low pressure which brought rain in north—west scotland yesterday pulls away, starts to drag in more of a northerly air flow. mainly to the northerly air flow. mainly to the north this weather front which is been producing cloud, outbreaks of rain, drizzle. that will continue to drift southwards through tonight. some clearer skies, chance of a few showers to the south—east overnight, something more dry to the north and west but here is where some of the coolest conditions into tomorrow morning. temperatures in rural parts down into mid single figures. for tomorrow, parts of south—west scotland and northern ackland where we start brightest, carving in wales, a few breaks here and that the further south and east you are but the showers we have across wales and the south—west could become heavy and thundery through the day, the cloud thick enough for a few spots of rain elsewhere and quite a keen breeze going down those eastern coasts which will make it feel especially cool. when slighter further west, especially cool. when slighter furtherwest, but especially cool. when slighter further west, but still a northerly breeze. get out of the sunshine, into shelter, 20 degrees possible in glasgow but for most, mid to high teens, always coldest weather when

the strongest in the north sea coast. into friday evening, with the breeze continuing, a few spots of rain, many will become dry. as you go into the weekend we are watching this area of low pressure, due some stormy weather across central europe in the next few days, into the weekend. it drifts into scandinavia, the big question is the influence across eastern areas. it starts to close in a bit towards eastern england, eastern scotland on saturday, so the breeze picks up even more, cloudy, outbreaks of rain, and further away from that we are likely to see some breaks in the best in southern england, south wales and northern ireland but even here one or two showers and temperatures are still lower than we would want at this stage injuly. into sunday, the area of low pressure starts to pull away again, back towards europe, only slowly, could still be close enough to bring a breeze to begin with across eastern areas but the breeze falls lightly through the day, the cloud and the showers start to fade to a bit more sunshine to end sunday and it should feel a little bit warmer, as well. take care.

today at one, england fans celebrate as their team reaches the final of the european championships. watkins turns! from non—league to national hero in nine years, substitute ollie watkins slotted home england's winner. also on the programme... a vigil is held to remember hannah, louise and carol hunt — the family of bbc commentator john hunt who were killed

in a crossbow attack in bushey. water bills in england and wales are set to rise by more than 20% over the next five years. and the actor alec baldwin is accused of playing make—believe with a real gun at his involuntary manslaughter trial in new mexico. and coming up on bbc news, on women's semifinal day at wimbledon, alfie hewett takes a step closer to the only wheelchair singles grand slam title he has yet to win. good afternoon. england's footballers have defied expectations and made it to the euro 2024 final. a win in berlin on sunday would bring an end to almost six decades without a major trophy for the men's team. king charles urged the team to beat spain without needing, in his words,