this is bbc news. i'm james reynolds with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. our top stories: britain's prime minister is moved to intensive care, ten days after testing positive for coronavirus. he's been receiving excellent care at st thomas‘ hospital and we would like to take this opportunity as a government to thank nhs staff up and down the country for all of their dedication, hard work and commitment in treating everyone who's been affected by this awful virus. political leaders in the uk and around the world send their best wishes and hopes for a speedy recovery. americans are all praying for his recovery. he's been a really good friend. he's been really

something very special. strong, resolute, doesn't quit, doesn't give up. the coronavirus has killed more than 10,000 people in america, as officials warn this could be the saddest, ha rd est week yet in the outbreak. in other news, australia's high court upholds cardinal pell‘s appeal over his conviction for sexually assaulting two choirboys. he has now been freed from prison and cannot be retried. boris johnson has been moved to intensive care after his coronavirus symptoms worsened over the course of monday afternoon. the british prime minister has been admitted to st thomas‘ hospital in london on sunday evening. earlier on, borisjohnson said on social media that he'd gone into hospitalfor some routine tests and that he was in good spirits.

the foreign secretary, dominic raab, has been asked to deputise for mrjohnson. buckingham palace said the queen had been informed about the situation. leaders around the world have been sending their best wishes to the prime minister. president trump sent america's well wishes to borisjohnson for a speedy recovery. the french president, emmanuel macron, said he hoped mrjohnson would overcome this ordeal quickly. the latest official figures showed almost 5,400 patients have now died in the uk — an increase of a39 on the previous day. in the united states, a senior new york city council member has now reversed his earlier warning that a massive increase in virus related deaths could see people being buried in parks — saying they would be buried on hart island, near the bronx. france has reported 833 deaths in the past 2a hours — its highest since the outbreak began. the figure includes people

who died in hospitals and nursing homes. we'll have more on those developments across the world. but first, our our political editor laura kuenssberg reports from westminster with the latest on borisjohnson. less than a mile from downing street, borisjohnson is in intensive care tonight, in a personal fight against the virus that the government and the country is trying to beat. who would have known on thursday night that the health workers he applauded would be caring for him like this? brief glimpses of borisjohnson on social media made it clear he was struggling to shake the virus off. i've done my seven days of isolation. alas, i still have one of the symptoms, a minor symptom, i still have a temperature. now, after being admitted to hospital last night for tests, he is conscious, but, as a precaution, downing street says he has been moved to intensive care, and the foreign secretary has been asked to step up for now. during the course of this afternoon, the prime minister's condition worsened and on the advice of the medical team, he was moved into a critical care unit. with the prime minister

now in intensive care, this is now an extremely serious situation. how worried should should people be about his health and who is in charge of the government? the government's business will continue. the prime minister is in safe hands with a brilliant team at st thomas‘s hospital, and the focus of the government will continue to be on making sure that the prime minister's direction, all the plans for making sure that we can defeat coronavirus and pull the country through this challenge will be taken forward. are you confident, though, that the government is under control tonight? there is an incredibly strong team spirit behind this is the prime minister and making sure that we get all of the plans that the prime minister has instructed us to deliver, to get the implemented as soon as possible and that is the way we will bring the country through the coronavirus challenge that we face right now. just after 8 o'clock, the official statement came from downing street, saying:

good wishes from friends and rivals of borisjohnson‘s from the first minister of scotland, and the brand—new labour leader, and from someone who knows him and the unique job very well. the prime minister is now suffering seriously from a disease that does not pick and choose. downing street itself, a place where the virus spread. power, no protection from harm. laura kuenssberg, bbc news. 0ur political correspondent chris mason gave us this update from westminster. it's a shocking turn of events, isn't it, when the person charged with co—ordinating the country's response to a national emergency is stricken by the very virus he spent much of the last month

trying to ensure impacts the uk in the most minimal way possible, while being well aware that the impact was always going to be very grave, both in health terms and in economic terms, and in terms of our liberty. we are now a fortnight on from his address to the country, beginning the lockdown and the social distancing measures that we been slowly adjusting to over the last couple of weeks. over and over again, this coronavirus crisis which has swept the world and swept the country has had the capacity to surprise us, to do the very thing that 2a hours earlier would have seemed impossible and here we are again with the prime minister in intensive care, with downing street having to point out, as of 8pm this evening, that boris johnson was conscious but that he had been moved to intensive care, having been given oxygen around about 6pm this evening, i understand, in order to ensure that if he required

a ventilator to help with his breathing, he was in the right place for that equipment and to be made available to him. and we understand that the prime minister had asked dominic raab, the first secretary of state to deputise. tell us a bit about dominic raab, does he have the confidence of his colleagues? dominic raab is the mp for esher in surrey, appointed foreign secretary by borisjohnson when he became prime minister. he was a prominent campaigner for brexit during the referendum campaign and in the months and years that followed the referendum leading up to the general election just before christmas, has been a minister in different departments around whitehall prior to his elevation to one of the great offices, appointed by boris johnson as first secretary of state which, in many ways, is often an honorific title which means very little.

other than occasionally deputising for the prime minister at prime minister's question time when the prime minister was at the european summit or event overseas that prevents him from being at westminster on wednesday lunchtime. i don't think dominic raab, when he accepted the job, though he would be asked to be effectively a potential stand—in prime minister for an unknown period of time if borisjohnson was not able to fulfil the range of obligations and duties that normally fall his way. i thought it was quite striking, james, this evening, and the downing street statement, that mrjohnson had asked mr raab to deputise where necessary, so it wasn't a wholesale exporting of his duties to mr raab. and the british constitutional system doesn't set out a clear path down which power is handed, if the prime minister finds themselves incapacitated. it's a cabinet system of government where cabinet ministers to a greater

or lesser extent are equal to the prime minister, first among equals amongst them and a big part of a general election campaign in the autumn was built around borisjohnson and his personality, known in the uk pretty much by his first name, such is his recognition value. and for a lot of people, frankly, they won't know a great deal about this man, dominic raab, who could quite conceivably be taking significant decisions on behalf of us all. 0ur chief political correspondent vicky young has been at st thomas‘ hospital, where borisjohnson is being treated. she sent this update. well, after nine days in self—isolation here under the care of doctors here last night, he was admitted to hospital. now, we know that he has been suffering from this persistent cough and temperature, something he couldn‘t shake off which is why he was brought into hospital in the first place. it‘s worth saying st thomas‘ hospital is one of the top hospitals in the country, it‘s just across the bridge from the houses of parliament. we were told by downing street

earlier the prime minister was working from his hospital bed here, we understand he was given oxygen before that decision was made to move him to intensive care. we are told that has been done as a precaution, it‘s been done in case he needed ventilation to aid his recovery. now, like thousands of other families that have been affected by the coronavirus, this is an extremely worrying time for him and his family, especially of course his fiancee, who is pregnant, and has been suffering with symptoms of the coronavirus herself. vicki young there. messages of support are coming in for boris johnson from around the world. this was the president trump a little earlier. i also want to send best wishes to a very good friend of mine, and a friend to our nation, prime minister boris johnson. we are very saddened to hear that he was taken into intensive care this afternoon, a little while ago, and americans are all praying for his recovery. he has been a really good friend, he has really been something special. strong, resolute, doesn‘t

quit, doesn‘t give up. 0ur north america correspondent, peter bowes, has more. he was quite emotional in what he was saying, paying tribute to borisjohnson as a good friend, someone who he respected who was determined in his frame of mind and clearly they get on very well in terms of the way they both deal with politics. as you said, 2a hours ago when we first learned that boris johnson had gone into hospital, he said, all of the country, all of america would be praying for him. white house medical experts say that they are cautiously optimistic about a number of places, including i think washington and california where you are. is that a feeling matched in california ? and it really is quite striking. if you look at the number of deaths, and somewhere like new york state

and new york city, especially compared with los angeles and california. and compare it with places in washington state, it is quite striking how low these numbers here in california are, especially when you consider that california is the most populous state in the country. and it seems to be, the president praising local officials here, generally on the other side of the political divide, but they seem to be on agreement about this. that california was one of the first states to enforce social isolation, stay—at—home orders, social distancing — was all those kinds of regulations that so many people now around the world have gotten used to, happened first in california and the state of washington. and people think that that is the reason why the numbers here are still relatively low. within the white house, president trump of course has a number of advisers, he has his own opinions. are there still noticeable divisions about when to end lockdowns? i think there is still a noticeable difference of tone

and president trump, at his daily briefings, his tone has changed. and some might say he is a little bit more realistic bearing in mind what he can see happening around the country. he isn‘t setting a day. he said again in the last few hours that he would like to see the restrictions lifted by the 30th of april but he isn‘t being certain about that. certainly, he talked about easter some time ago being his target date and i think he is a lot more open—minded. now, his officials generally prefer to talk more about the science and we keep hearing on and on again about if people only abide by those regulations, social distancing especially, but that time scale will come down in terms of people getting back to work. so, while his scientists — and they are actually quite optimistic if you look at the figures in new york and to some extent, newjersey, where the numbers of new admissions and number of deaths are slowing down. officials in new york especially are saying that when we talk about that curve, that it looks like it is beginning to plateau. so it‘s too early to be

definitive about it but there is a glimmer of hope. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: a special report inside one of the uk‘s biggest intensive care centres as staff deal with rising numbers of patients suffering the effects of coronavirus. no 25 years of hatred and rage, as theyjump up on the statue... this funeral became a massive demonstration of black power. the power to influence. today is about the promise

of a bright future. a day when we hope a line can be drawn under the bloody past. i think that picasso‘s works were beautiful. they were intelligent and it‘s a sad loss to everybody who loves art. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: britain‘s prime minister boris johnson who has coronavirus has been moved to an intensive care unit in a central london hospital after his symptoms worsened. political leaders in the uk and around the world have sent their best wishes and hopes for a speedy recovery. the latest official figures on those affected by coronavirus across the uk were released earlier. they show that in total 5,373 people have died in hospital from the effects of covid—i9.

that‘s a rise of a39 on sunday‘s figure. although they do not account for people who have died in the community or in a care home. as intensive care units in hospitals across the uk come under increasing pressure, including st thomas‘s, where borisjohnson is being treated, we have a rare insight into conditions at one of the biggest facilities in the uk — university college hospital in central london. this special report is by our medical correspondent fergus walsh and cameraman adam walker. this used to be a recovery area for patients after surgery. now it is an intensive care unit for covid—i9 patients. a huge part of the hospital has been transformed in order to deal with coronavirus. i‘ve been in intensive care nursing for about 23 years now,

and i‘ve never seen anything like this. even the london bombings. i‘ve never seen it in such a short, condensed period of time. many of the patients here are elderly or have underlying health problems, but not all. i think perhaps i was a bit naive when we started. i assumed that it would be the older and the sicker. and here we‘ve got a mixture from people in their 40s to people in their 70s. a lot of them have got high blood pressure and diabetes or a bit of respiratory disease. but some of them are coming through who are young and fit. the patients here have severe pneumonia, inflammation of the lungs. they must be heavily sedated while on a ventilator, a machine which takes over their breathing. patients can spend two weeks like this. many drugs are being tested, but there is as yet no proven treatment for coronavirus. so it‘s oxygen and...?

and organ support and amazing nursing care, really. one thing that does help is turning the patients onto their front. it increases the oxygen getting into their lungs. what seems like a simple procedure takes time and lots of pairs of hands. everyone all right? yep. with ventilated patients, extreme care is needed. all of this while staff wear full personal protective equipment. 0k, can we just check on the ventilator... their only barrier against coronavirus. every time a doctor or nurse goes onto the unit, they must don full safety gear. you can‘t wear this and work for more than a couple of hours, because you‘ve got a crushing headache, you know, you‘ve got a dry mouth. you have to get out. staff write their names on their aprons so they can be quickly identified. so, there‘s an emergency on the icu, the head of critical care was saying via walkie—talkie whether he would give

a second opinion. doctor: do you want to doff and don, and come in? but he needs to be there. so the full kit has to be put on. they use walkie—talkies because their visors mean they can‘t communicate on phones. it‘s draining, physically and mentally. it is really hard and some of our staff really can‘t cope with it. you know, we‘ve got huge numbers of nurses, doctors and physios, and not all of them can deal with it, so they can only spend a short time, orjust not any time. it‘s not uncommon for some of our staff to have had panic attacks. just finding it so, so stressful. so we‘ve got to really support people. some people just can‘t do it. despite the possible risk to themselves, the medical staff carry on. 12—hour shifts, 60 hours a week is the norm. they worry about the patients, about each other, and about those they love.

i think it‘s very hard on our families. my kids are at home, my wife is homeschooling. it‘s easy in a way, for me — i‘m doing myjob, i‘m busy all day. they don‘t really know what it‘s like here, whether we‘re bringing home the virus. and they have just been amazing. just let me do what i need to do, and i‘m just incredibly grateful for them. what is striking here is the sense of calm. in the face of adversity, doctors and nurses simply get on with thejob. these staff here are dealing with the biggest challenge ever faced by the nhs. they can save many of the patients, but sadly not all of them. and still more patients keep coming every day. the german chancellor, angela merkel, has said the coronavirus pandemic represents the biggest challenge the european union has ever faced. france has recorded its deadliest 2a hours since the outbreak began.

italy‘s death toll continues to rise by the day, while in spain there are some improvements. but there are entrenched divisions within the eu which have come to the surface, as our reporter freya cole explains. siren blares. the daily call of sirens through the streets of france. more than 7,000 people are in need of intensive care and authorities warn the grim situation is farfrom over. translation: this is not over, farfrom it. we are not at the end of the epidemic‘s ascension. the path remains long, and nothing is over. in italy, the lockdown is working. day by day, fewer people are contracting the virus, but italy‘s death toll continues to climb — more than 16,500 people. the standstill is costing the country. milan is italy‘s finance capital, a globalfashion hub, but everything must remain

closed, and italy is not alone. german chancellor angela merkel says this pandemic is the european union‘s biggest challenge yet. but there are deeply rooted divisions overfunding, and which countries will bear the financial burden. translation: everyone is equally affected and it must therefore also be in everyone‘s interest, and this is germany‘s interest, that europe emerges strongly from this test. spanish police and nurses shared a moment in solidarity. they are on the front line of their country‘s war with coronavirus. there are signs of hope — the number of deaths have dropped for a fourth day in a row. it‘s all thanks to these essential workers, putting

their lives at risk to save others. freya cole, bbc news. let‘s move away from coronavirus because the former vatican treasurer, the australian cardinal george pell, will be freed from jail after winning an appeal against his conviction on charges of child sexual abuse. the appeal was upheld at australia‘s high court, all sevenjudges ruling unanimously. his conviction has been quashed and he cannot be retried. the jury, which found cardinal george pell guilty back in 2018, failed to eliminate reasonable doubt which is what cardinal george pell‘s defence team went to australia‘s highest court with. they said that the jury had depended so heavily on the testimony of one victim, and while they found the testimony compelling, they described it was uncorroborated. they said that they failed to acknowledge other evidence and essentially did not

eliminate a reasonable doubt. they couldn‘t decide without reasonable doubt that he was guilty and that‘s really what the seven judges, the full bench of the seven judges, had concurred and upheld. you say, james, that you followed this from the beginning. it‘s been quite dramatic, a monumental decision in a very dramatic and most closely watched case in australia essentially because of who george pell is. a very senior member, the most senior member of the catholic church to ever be accused of such crimes. today, he has been acquitted and will walk free. has he reacted at all? he has actually. he sent out a statement saying, "i have consistently maintained my innocence while suffering severe injustice." he thanked his family, he thanked his supporters and then he mentioned

his accuser. he said, "i hold no ill will towards my accuser. i don‘t want my acquittal to add to the hurt and bitterness so many feel." it was a really interesting point, james, which i‘m sure you also covered when this case started. he said, "my trial was not a referendum on the catholic church and not a referendum on how church officials and authorities deal with crimes of paedophilia." this was really one of the biggest points to be made of his case — how the catholic church has dealt with abuse. and the judge who was presiding over the initial case also made that point — that this was a trial of george pell, not a trial of the catholic church. and — you can find out more about the coronavirus pandemic on the bbc website, including the latest on the british prime minister — and a feature on the treatment patients receive in an intensive care unit.

that‘s all at bbc.com/news. or download the bbc news app. you can reach me on twitter, i‘m @jamesbbcnews. please stay with us. hello. the warmth of the weekend was replaced by something a little bit fresher through the day on monday, but many of us were able to enjoy a bit of blue sky and a bit of sunshine from our windows and our gardens too. a bit more of the same on tuesday, things are looking mostly dry after a chilly and a misty start. but high—pressure very much dominating our weather through the day on tuesday, and into wednesday too. things are going to turn a little bit warmer over the next few days. because, as you can see, the blue colours, the colder air that‘s been with us gets pushed away, and these yellow colours, the warmer air, starts to move in from the south. but for the here and now, tuesday dawns on quite a chilly note, touch of frost, and some mist and fog patches, particularly across england and wales. lots of dry weather with some long spells of sunshine. cloudier towards the far northwest, but the odd shower perhaps for the western isles, perhaps northern ireland by the end of the day too.

also quite breezy, particularly for the northwest of scotland, but, elsewhere, lighter winds and the sunshine lasting through the day, but there will be more cloud just pushing into southern counties of england as we head on into the afternoon. but temperatures likely to reach about 20 degrees in london. elsewhere, typically the mid to high teens. so, we‘re looking at a largely dry night tuesday night into wednesday, particularly across england and wales. scotland and northern ireland will have more cloud, and a few outbreaks of patchy rain moving in here. if you‘ve been during some gardening recently, we are not expecting a frost overnight tuesday into wednesday, so it won‘t be as cold as it will be first thing tuesday morning. through the day on wednesday, again, most places, largely dry. plenty of sunshine across england and wales, a little bit of cloud drifting around too. thicker cloud for scotland and for northern ireland, with the odd light shower. across scotland and northern ireland, temperatures here around 13—14 degrees, whereas further south, 1—2 spots could get up to 23—24 degrees. wednesday probably being

the warmest day of the week. into thursday, high—pressure still holding on. so, again, quite a bit of dry weather, if you‘re able to open the window, get out in the garden, perhaps go for a walk if you can on thursday. temperatures in the warmest spots up to about 21 celsius, always a little bit cooler and fresher though further north. into good friday, and it‘s all change, as we start to see this weather front moving its way in from the west. so some patchy outbreaks of rain heading west to east, and things are turning cooler into the easter weekend. so a bit more unsettled, a drop in temperature, but whatever the weather‘s doing, remember the rules on self isolation, social distancing, wherever you can, stay home and stay safe. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the prime minster, borisjohnson, has been moved to intensive care after his coronavirus symptoms worsened. he was admitted to st thomas‘ hospital in london for some tests after doctors said his symptoms were persisting. on social media, the prime minister said said that he was in "good spirits". president trump hasjoined political leaders in the uk and around the world in wishing borisjohnson a speedy recovery. mr trump said the prime minister was "strong, resolute, doesn‘t quit and doesn‘t give up." he added that americans are "all praying for his recovery." australia‘s high court has upheld cardinal pell‘s appeal over his conviction for sexually assaulting two choirboys in the 1990s. cardinal pell was jailed for six years, with a non—parole period of three years and eight months. he has now been freed from prison.