tonight at six, new migration figures set off a debate about the effects of the brexit vote. net migration to the uk falls to the lowest level for three years. and there's a surge in the number of eu nationals leaving — many feel they're no longer earning enough in pounds. sterling is going down, you know? we want to go there because we can find good jobs for the same money. we'll have a close look at what's driving these migration changes. also tonight... a slight fall in gcse pass rates. in england these were the first students to take new, tougher exams. kim briggs died after she was hit by a cyclist — now her husband calls for new laws to tackle reckless riders. i'm doing it in kim's name, but i'm also doing it to ensure that, just perhaps, we can stop this happening again. once they were thriving communities — today people in mining towns claim

disability benefits at up to three times the national average. a walk a day keeps the doctor at bay — but millions don't even manage ten minutes a month. and coming up in sportsday on bbc news, after guaranteeing qualification last night, liverpool are one of six british clubs who discover who they will face in this season's champions league. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. there's been a sharp fall in net migration to the uk — that's the difference between the number of people entering and leaving the uk. it's at the lowest level for three years. let's have a closer look at the numbers. net migration now stands at 246,000

in the year to march 2017. that's a fall of 81,000 compared with the previous 12 months. more than half of that change is due to a fall in net migration of eu citizens, which is down by 51,000. but remember, this still means there are twice as many eu nationals coming to britain as leaving. here's our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford. for many eastern europeans, the time has come to go. the triggers, brexit and the falling pound. among the crowds at london's coach station, daniel, who is handing back to romania at christmas. he said leave voters had driven him out.” romania at christmas. he said leave voters had driven him out. i think they are a little bit racist with they are a little bit racist with the european people. for that reason. that is why you are planning

to leave? yes, and also because sterling is going down, you know? we wa nt to sterling is going down, you know? we want to go there, because we can find good jobs for the same money. at this chicken hatchery in west 0xfordshire, they have become reliant on workers from countries like poland that joined reliant on workers from countries like poland thatjoined the eu in 2004. it allowed their business to expand, year—on—year. but today's figures show that suddenly almost as many people from those countries are leaving as arriving. the owner is losing staff and struggling to find new ones. the referendum was when people really thought about it. over the last 12 months or so, it has got worse and worse. people have thought about it more and more and it is now becoming a reality. this isn't something that might happen in the future, in 2019. people like myself, recruiting staff, it is a problem today. further up the chain in chicken production they are even more reliant on eu workers. for the

first time in years, he is planning to shrink the business, not grow it. rightly or wrongly, huge sections of the agricultural, food production, hospitality and manufacturing industries in the uk have become reliant on a ready supply of workers from the european union. now, all of a sudden, that supply is drying up. today's figures show the total number of people arriving in britain to live, study or work, minus those leaving, is still almost 250,000 a year. but the headline figure is dropping and the single biggest factor is that fewer europeans are coming, and more are leaving. factor is that fewer europeans are coming, and more are leavingm factor is that fewer europeans are coming, and more are leaving. it is good to see that we have net migration coming down, but we can't be complacent, we won't be complacent. there are still a lot of work to do, and we will continue to do that to deliver ultimately on the long—term ambition to see it fall to sustainable levels. of course,

millions of eu citizens are still working in the uk commonplaces like this scandinavian cafe, and many will stay. but it is becoming less attractive. the uk economy is now performing less well, perhaps, than some of the eurozone economies. another one is that the value of the pound has declined, which means, firstly, it is more expensive to live in the uk, things cost more. also, if you are earning money in the uk and you want to spend it in another country or send it home to your family, it is worth less. the figures are the strongest sign yet of a brexit effect on immigration. the question is, what will the knock—on effect be on the economy? daniel is here with me. we have looked at the brexit effect, but there is another aspect, students? there has been concern that some people might have been using the route of coming to britain to study as a sort of back door into the uk. the government spent a lot of effort on closing down fake colleges that were being used as an illegal way of coming to britain. now, some work has been done to look

at people who come on a student fees, what happens next? actually, a very positive result for the government, 97.4% of people that come here on a student visa then leave and do not overstay in any kind of illegal manner. that is quite positive news for them. what the government wants to lock—out is whether or not having this large number of international students have a positive effect on the economy, so having got the thing under control, they are now keen to show that this is actually something thatis show that this is actually something that is a net positive affect the economy, not something that does not have any great benefits all. gcse results were out today. across england, wales and northern ireland there's been a slight dip in the number of students getting the top grades. in england, this was the first year when pupils taking english and maths were sitting new, tougher exams. and they're marked differently — the old a* and a has been replaced by grades 7, sand 9. b and c grades are now 6,5 and 4.

d, e, fand g are now 3, 2 and 1. but it wasn't just students in england who faced some changes — as education editor bra nwen jeffreys reports. ajumble of a jumble of letters and numbers. mainly cs... two sixes and a five. making sense of the gcse results. the first 16—year—olds to take the tougher exams. there is new content that you have to learn. there is not much time to learn it in. we are learning a level stuff as well as gcse. it is really difficult. it was a shock. it's making sure smart people get the grades they deserve, i think. maybe? at this

nottinghamshire school, tears mainly of relief. for the kids this year, the new gcses have been a real culture shock. they have had to learn so much more, remember so much more, and their grades have all rested on these final exams. the results here, much better than last year. but at a cost. they couldn't teach it all in the school day. we have had a compulsory session after school, particularly focused on english and maths, but on a rotation other subjects, for the increased content. that will get even tougher as we move towards the new gcses in all of the other subjects. the pass rate in england for 16—year—olds moved just a little. in english language, 69.9% got a four or above, a little better than in the old exam last year. in english literature, it

was 72.5%. in maths, 70.7%. both just slightly down, because the great points are moved to avoid a big drop in results. —— grade points. three a‘s, the rest bs. in wales, the results included six new gcses. many took exams a year early. asa gcses. many took exams a year early. as a result, fewer pupils got good grades, still counted here in a* to c. this is where they pick up the pieces. in england, maths and english resits are compulsory, for anyone getting a three this year. does that help us be a better skilled nation? it is a significant concern for us. notjust skilled nation? it is a significant concern for us. not just about how they are going to do it, but also they are going to do it, but also the appropriateness. a lot of young people come to colleges to go into

vocational education, into technical education and gcses, traditional gcse routes. are there was the right routes? today's results are just the beginning. what children learn in england is changing, with more tough gcses to england is changing, with more tough gcs es to follow. amongst those receiving their results today was teenager nikita murray. she sat one of her exams in the days after she found out that her brother martyn hett had died in the manchester arena bombing. the 16—year—old from stockport grammar was trying to revise while the rest of the family was waiting for news about martyn. so how did she do? today she found out she got 11 a*s. 0rdid you get or did you get in your gcses?. a*s! her school said they would accept her predicted grades when they heard her brother, martyn, was killed right in the middle of her

gcses. but nikita wanted to sit her exams. she said they gave her something to focus on, which helped her deal with the pain of losing her brother. was a massive shock. i think the shock lasted a long time. i wasn't really focused on sadness, it was more... it was just weird. everything was really weird. then exams are something that was something else. her family were impressed by her performance. her brother said, my little sister is an actual hero. 11 a*s grades. i've never been more proud or amazed by anyone. her parents couldn't quite believe it. after everything that had happened, ithink believe it. after everything that had happened, i think we were just hoping she would get... do well, but we expected there to be some sort of repercussion in the results and it affect her performance in some way. i thought, well, affect her performance in some way. ithought, well, if affect her performance in some way. i thought, well, if she didn't do well in some subjects, she could

resit them next year. so to see that result, just... unbelievable. so, what would martyn think of his little sister's achievements? who would be so happy, tweeting about it. more excited than i am. and she will continue to do her brother proud. she plans to go on to study a—levels in maths, further maths, physics and classics. a woman who made up a string of false rape and sexual assault allegations has beenjailed for ten years for perjury and perverting the course of justice. jemma beale, who's 25, was found guilty injuly. one of the men she wrongly accused spent time in prison. the prosecution said investigating all of her claims had cost at least £250,000. yesterday we brought you the case involving kim briggs, who died after she had been knocked down by cyclist charlie alliston. the case has sparked off an argument about whether the law as it stands is fit for an age when more and more

people are travelling on two wheels. in court, the jury convicted alliston of wanton and furious driving, a crime which dates back to victorian times. kim's husband, matt, is now calling for a new law — as dan johnson reports. she had this mantra of make every day count. enormous believer in filling life with experiences, with travel. she was always happy. yeah, she was just fantastic. a wife and mother who died after suffering serious head injuries. she was hit by a bike that shouldn't have been on the road. it was designed for the velodrome — fixed gear and with no front brake. charlie alliston, in the middle, was riding. he was cleared of manslaughter, but convicted of causing bodily harm by wanton or furious driving, under a law from victorian times. the law is outdated. it refers back to 1861. i'm just asking that the law

catches up, as it is doing with technology, with social media. this case raises some broader issues about how cyclists and pedestrians share the same space. but the key question is how much responsibility should cyclists have for safety on the road? should that responsibility be at the same level as car drivers? it's prompted plenty of debate, especially amongst cyclists. we all have a responsibility to each other on the roads. i think, you know, if someone's causing death by dangerous cycling, why should that be different, in a sense, from causing death by dangerous driving? why not? you regularly see bikes that aren't fit for the road, basically and shouldn't be out on the road. bikes with freewheels, that have brakes that don't work, which are more dangerous than a fixed—wheel without brakes. some cycling groups want to see all traffic laws reviewed and brought up to date. the problem we've got is there's a stack of offences in relation to the conduct of people on the roads, where we use careless, reckless, furious, wanton,

dangerous, and there's a huge inconsistency. matt briggs rides a bike himself, but he thinks a change in the law could save lives. this is the right thing to do and, yes, i'm doing it in kim's name, but i'm also doing it to ensure that, just perhaps, we can stop this happening again. these deaths are rare. many more pedestrians and cyclists are killed by vehicles. but our streets are getting busier, with the potential for more conflict. danjohnson, bbc news, london. our top story this evening. net migration to the uk falls to the lowest level for three years and there's a surge in the number of eu nationals leaving. and coming up, a tune for a british summer. test match special marks its 60th birthday. coming up in sportsday on bbc news,

zlata n coming up in sportsday on bbc news, zlatan ibrahimovic says his back to finish what he started at manchester united, he has signed a new one—year deal after his debut season was ended by injury. you'd have thought a ten—minute walk a day is not asking much but you'd be surprised how few of us manage that. officials at public health england have found that over 40% of adults aged between 40 and 60 don't manage even one brisk ten—minute walk in a month. that has a cost — one in six adult deaths are linked to inactivity. and it turns out we are 20% less active then we were in the 1960s. here's our health correspondent dominic hughes. in the derbyshire peak district,

these walkers are about to head to these walkers are about to head to the hills. i believe the weather is going to be fine, we hope! the beauty of walking is it's free, you don't need any special training or kit, and there are physical and mental benefits. people like liam quigley whojoined this mental benefits. people like liam quigley who joined this club after putting on weight in his 50s. psychologically it's great, if you feel a bit down and you come to an area like this, get a few miles under your belt and you get home feeling 100% better. nothing seems as bad as it did before. now public health england says not enough adults are getting activity, but walking briskly at around three miles per hourfor walking briskly at around three miles per hour for around walking briskly at around three miles per hourfor around ten minutes per day can significantly reduce the risk of ill—health. that's the advice gp doctor zoe williams offers her patients. practising what she preaches, she

uses a smartphone app to measure her progress. millions of adults are missing out. four in ten adults between the ages of 40 and 60 are not managing to achieve ten minutes of brisk walking per month, which sounds unbelievable, and lots of those people will be walking but not walking at a brisk pace and it's important to walk briskly because that's when you get the health benefits. but for many, time is the biggest obstacle to exercise. generally i will rather drive them walk because i need to get there in a hurry. we do go for a walk but not always brisk. you can always make time. one less cake, one more walk. this advice from health experts to do ten minutes of brisk walking per day sounds simple enough but many struggle to work that kind of activity into our everyday lives so here are some tips if you use public

transport to get to work you could hop off a stop early and continued the rest of yourjourney on hop off a stop early and continued the rest of your journey on foot. 0nce the rest of your journey on foot. once you get to work, don't take the lift, use the stairs. if you get a lunch hour, you could use that time to stretch your legs. walking can help with weight loss, back pain, long—term conditions like diabetes, even reducing the risk of cancer. now we are all being urged to get up and get moving. shares in dixon carphone slumped by almost a third this morning after it issued a profits warning. its blaming falling sales of mobile phones. our technology correspondent rory cellanjones is here. now with falling out of love with our mobile phones?” now with falling out of love with our mobile phones? i don't think so but it seems we may be deciding not to upgrade them so often. dixon carphone saying it will cost them a

lot of money. you only need to take a look at a handful of modern mobile phones, they all look exactly the same and every new phone has got maybe some slight wrinkle in it but people are finding it hard to justify the added cost and that's the other factor, they are just getting more expensive. the fall in the pound has led to big rises in prices. we saw samsung issue a phone which will cost £869 as a starting price, and there are rumours that the new iphone may cost up to £1000 so beginning to bite, that price rise. 0k, thank you very much. coal mining used to be one of the biggest industries in the uk but its demise has taken a heavy toll on many former miners and their once thriving communities. around half1 million people in those areas are claiming disability benefits — in some places its three times the national average.

0ur disability affairs correspondent nikki fox reports now from the village of horden in county durham. the old mining village of horden, nestled along the north—east coast. the industry is gone, but the people remain. show me some respect. and, most of all, some understanding. the strength is absolutely going out of me. do you feel let down? i do. and that's why i am grateful for any help that i get. both these men have spent years at the coal face. like so many on these terraced streets, their lives have been affected by disability. hello, my darling. for nick, that's looking after his recently disabled wife, dot. how did it go with your scan? rubbish. when she leaves hospital, he'll become her full—time carer and it's a daunting prospect. it is one hell of a struggle, financially. whereas when i worked in the pit, you never really even thought about it. you didn't have to. it was a dangerous job that left its mark on the miners

who risked their lives, leaving many with hearing loss, lung disease and physical disabilities. many lived on streets like this one. 0nce part of a thriving community — now neglected, forgotten. and what's left? high rates of unemployment, poverty and three times as many people claiming disability benefits than the national average. these people gave their life to this country to produce coal, they've just been left to wither on the vine. it's just not right. it's not humane. you shouldn't be treating people with disabilities like that, i tell you. ron worked here for more than 40 years. his life underground left him deaf, and now he's blind. he no longerfeels he belongs in the village he once loved. there's nothing in this area for us. nothing. i got depressed and... tried to commit suicide three times. and i couldn't. i couldn't. the community is trying to regain what it's lost.

i didn't know what i was entitled to... this friendly drop—in centre offers locals the chance to meet and get help with the very basics, like food, housing and transport. what we'll do is speak to the carers... nick is one of those getting that help, a referral to mental health services. a proud miner who has hit rock bottom. anybody asked for anything, i'd be there straight away to do it. now, if it's me needing help, i don't know. i don't want to ask anybody else. the demise of the coal—mining industry has left a legacy of disability. it's unlikely this generation will see the investment that's so badly needed to improve the lives of disabled people who live in these forgotten communities. nikki fox, bbc news, horden. test match special is celebrating its 60th birthday today

with a cricket match in yorkshire. teams of celebrities coached by the bbc‘s cricket correspondent jonathan agnew and the former england batsman geoffrey boycott have been playing at the university of leeds. 0ur media correspondent, amol rajan, looks back at a sporting institution. it's the sound of the english summer and this year it turned 60. he got there in the slips! four sixths decades, test match special has marked the fluctuating fortunes of english cricketers at home and abroad, and in 1991 it delivered perhaps the most famous episode of cricketing commentary ever when brianjohnston cricketing commentary ever when brian johnston and jonathan agnew caught the giggles. he just didn't

quite get his leg over. for goodness' sake, stop it! it's obviously funny because people laugh at it and it's amazing really, it captured everything about test match special i think. there are people having fun in the commentary box, that innuendo that goes on at the same time. it's a bit charming and silly. cricket lends itself to talk radio. the long pauses and epic drama which unfolds over five days have to be filled with something, and that's something for the past 60 yea rs has and that's something for the past 60 years has been the eccentrically english banter in the commentary box. cricket itself has changed irreversibly over that period and test match special celebrating today has always tried to move with the times. it's the stories, the characters behind the microphone that bring the sport we love so much to life. ebony played as a

professional and is now part of the test match special team. it was a fast, dynamic way of getting into the game, and more women have got involved with different types of games and shown we are adaptable across all formats. the game, because it has moved on, it has kept up because it has moved on, it has kept up with the times. in recent decades television rights and then the internet drugs this most traditional of games into modernity but before thenit of games into modernity but before then it was the old transistor radio that being the latest score to an engrossed public. and 60 years on, test match special is bowling over new audiences as never before. the uk's only female giant panda, tian tian, is believed to be pregnant. her keepers at edinburgh zoo say they don't have an exact due date but she's being closely monitored. tian tian was thought to have been pregnant several times before but has never given birth to a live cub. time for a look at the weather. here's ben rich.

i suspect we will have to wait a little while to see if we get the baby panda and we will have to wait and see if the weather changes as well because it's not going to change much over the next few days. the sort of whether you had today is the sort of whether you will get over the next few days so northern ireland for example seeing some rain at times, not all the time and it will feel fairly cool. further south and east largely dry, not too many showers and pleasantly warm in any sunshine, as it was for this weather watcher in kent earlier. we have this low pressure to the west but rather than moving through quickly it will spin around aimlessly over the next few days. it will continue to feed rain into western scotland and northern ireland overnight. tomorrow, very little changes. still outbreaks of rain into northern ireland and western scotland, nothing desperately heavy. eastern scotland

and northern england seeing a few showers. more cloud developing into the afternoon but the vast majority will stay dry. while temperatures in glasgow and belfast will top out at 16 or 17 degrees, in london we could be seen 25 degrees. into the start of the weekend our area of low pressure spinning aimlessly to the north, but one subtle change, a weather front which will introduce some cloud across england and wales on saturday. maybe the odd shower. some spells and sunshine in between, 17-25d. as some spells and sunshine in between, 17—25d. as we get into the latter pa rt 17—25d. as we get into the latter part of the weekend, sunday and monday, a bank holiday for many, central and eastern areas should be dry, further north the chance of a shower on sunday. that's all from the bbc news at six so it's goodbye from me — and on bbc one we nowjoin the bbc‘s news teams where you are. good evening, this is bbc news, the

headlines tonight. net migration to the uk falls by a quarter — to 246,000 a year, the lowest level for three years. it follows a surge in eu nationals leaving the uk since the brexit vote. what we a seeing is a third quarter net reduction in the migration figures but it also highlights how we cannot and will not be complacent about working towards that long term aim and desire that we outlined to people across the country that we want to see migration fall to sustainable levels. the number of students getting top gcse grades in maths and english has fallen slightly — after the introduction of new tougher exams. a 25—year—old woman has been jailed for ten years for making a series of false accusations of rape and sexual assault. the husband of a woman who was knocked down and killed by a cyclist calls for a change to the law to tackle ‘irresponsible and reckless' actions.