the prime minister says he bitterly regrets the coronavirus epidemic in care homes. borisjohnson was challenged by the new labour leader at their first meeting in prime minister's questions about the situation facing the care sector. i have to ask the prime minister, why hasn't the government got to grips with this already? there's an epidemic going on in care homes, which is something i bitterly regret. the prime minster also said some lockdown measures could begin to be eased next week. we'll have the latest from westminster. also this luncthime... the health secretary matt hancock again defends the government's testing strategy. good news on climate change, as lockdown results in the fastest decline in carbon

emissions ever recorded. wait, listen, did you hearthat? i heard duck sounds. quack, quack, quack. and archie turns one in california. harry and meghan release this video to mark their son's birthday. and in sport, as the premier league edges closer to a return, the crystal palace chairman says no one will be forced to play if they don't want to. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. borisjohnson has said he bitterly regrets the coronavirus epidemic which has swept through care homes. speaking at his first

prime minister's questions since recovering from the virus, the prime minister also said he's found shortages of personal protective equipment "enraging". he was responding to accusations from the labour leader, keir starmer, that the government had been slow to react. the prime minister also revealed that some lockdown measures could be eased as soon as monday. our political correspondent nick eardley reports. not much feels normaljust now, not at westminster, not around the country. here though scrutiny of the government's strategy goes on and questions are being asked, after the uk's death toll overtook italy's to become the highest in europe so far. after a six—week absence, during which he had coronavirus, the prime minister heading back to parliament to face some of those questions, for the first time from new labour leader xi keir starmer. i'm looking forward to it and i'm glad to see he's back in parliament.”

forward to it and i'm glad to see he's back in parliament. i would like to welcome the prime minster back to his rightful place in the chamber. his government was accused of acting too slowly at the start of the crisis. at least 29,427 people in the uk have now lost their lives to this dreadful virus. that's now the highest number in europe. it is the highest number in europe. it is the second highest in the world. that is not success, or apparent success , that is not success, or apparent success, so can that is not success, or apparent success, so can the prime minister tell us how on earth did it come to this. to the government has argued it is too early for international comparisons, and defends its strategy. at every stage, as we took the decision is that we did, we were governed by one overriding principle and aim, and that was to save lives and aim, and that was to save lives and to protect our nhs. mrjohnson also said he wanted testing increased again, up to 200,000 per day, but he faced pressure too on the situation in care homes. while

happily in hospitals it looks like deaths are falling, deaths in care homes continue to go up. he is absolutely right to say there is an epidemic going on in care homes, which is something i bitterly regret and we have been working very hard for weeks to get it down. to the prime minister will reveal the next stage of the government strategy on sunday. it is possible there could be changes as soon as monday. but while there is pressure here to get the economy moving again, few think doing that will be quick or easy. as the lockdown continues, this man, neil ferguson, one of the most prominent scientists advising the government, resigned after the daily telegraph reported his married lover had visited his home against the government's own advice. when it comes, normal might look quite different, lifting restrictions is likely to be gradual. scenes like this won't disappear overnight. nick

ea rd ley, this won't disappear overnight. nick eardley, bbc news, westminster. 0ur political correspondent jonathan blake is in westminster. the first meeting of the two men and there was an awful lot to chew over. yes, there prime minister's questions looks and sounds very different. with so few mps in the chamber and some asking questions remotely through video link. this first clash between borisjohnson and sir keir starmer over the dispatch box was fascinating and i thought had a far more forensic feel to it than the exchanges we had become used to between borisjohnson and jeremy corbyn. after initial pleasantries over the and jeremy corbyn. after initial pleasa ntries over the birth and jeremy corbyn. after initial pleasantries over the birth of boris johnson's child, sir keir starmer went in with some very blunt and brutal questions, criticising the government's strategy. borisjohnson accepted on many counts those challenges, if not the criticism of what the government had done. the prime minister talked about bitterly regretting that epidemic, as he put it, of cases in care homes. he said

shortages of ppe had been enraging. there were also clues in terms of what the government plans to do next. the new ambition, as the prime minister put it, to carry out 200,000 tests for coronavirus by the end of this month seemed to come out of the blue and might well raise eyebrows about how and when it can be achieved. and then on lockdown measures as well, the prime minister confirmed he will make a statement on sunday, setting out some changes ahead. he also said some of those changes could come into force as soon as monday. interestingly, we have heard from the first minister of scotla nd have heard from the first minister of scotland this lunchtime, and she said she expected things to stay much as they are there for the next three weeks, but the prime minister passed my comments will only increase anticipation for how things might change next week. jonathan blake at westminster, thank you for now. the health secretary has again defended the government's testing strategy. matt hancock has also denied that the government had left people

in care homes more vulnerable to the virus, by prioritising hospitals. our health correspondent anna collinson reports. 100,000 daily tests by the end of april was the promise. and last friday the government said the deadline had been met.” friday the government said the deadline had been met. i can announce we have met our deadline had been met. i can announce we have met our goal. the number of tests yesterday, on the last day of april, was 122,347. but over the last three days, the government has failed to hit its target, most recently reaching around 85,000. testing capacity has increased in recent weeks with kits available to order online and testing sites popping up all over the uk. but the government and its advisers admitted should have happened sooner and faster. this morning the health secretary for england spoke to sky news. morning the health secretary for england spoke to sky newsm morning the health secretary for england spoke to sky news. it would have been wonderful if we had gone into this crisis with a global scale industry, yes. but, you know, in the

way that for instance germany did. but we went in more like other countries like france, which similarly have had to build testing capability almost from scratch. the health secretary also dismissed claims that the elderly had been sacrificed so the nhs wasn't overwhelmed. prime minister boris johnson says he bitterly regrets the epidemic in care homes. his ambition is now to reach 200,000 daily tests by the end of this month. the uk now has the highest number of coronavirus deaths in europe, a development described as a massive tragedy. as this graph shows, cases in italy were reported earlier in march but the uk saw a steeper curve at the end of the month and has now surpassed italy, with more than 29,000 deaths reported. currently only the us has a higher number of recorded deaths and labour wants a nswe i’s. recorded deaths and labour wants answers. why have we had so many more deaths than countries such as

germany? why did we pulled out of our testing and tracing in march? why did we miss opportunities to upscale testing? these are the questions we need to be asking. but we are questions we need to be asking. but we are being want to be careful when comparing countries. the uk and italy both use a similar definition for deaths, people who test positive for deaths, people who test positive for the virus before dying, but there are important differences that can influence the data. italy has so far conducted more tests. 0n the other hand, the uk has a larger population. when looking at 31 —— cava n population. when looking at 31 —— cavan deaths per capita, belgium has the highest number in the world. you have to take a lot of numbers into account. there are smaller countries which will naturally have a lower death rate. it is likely to be months, maybe years, before we can really know which country has the highest death toll. but that is little consolation for those

grieving loved ones now. anna collinson, bbc news. nicola sturgeon has confirmed that lockdown measures in scotland will continue for at least another three weeks. her announcement came as figures showed there'd been a fall in the number of coronavirus deaths. the data from the national records of scotland showed that last week 523 people had died with the virus, down from 658 the week before. the figures also showed that the majority of scottish deaths — nearly 60% — were in care homes. the coronavirus lockdown has resulted in the fastest decline in carbon emissions ever recorded because of the falling global demand for transport and energy. now the government is being urged to ensure that progress in tackling climate change continues, once the epidemic is over. 0ur chief environment correspondent justin rowlatt reports. how about you, lauren, i know you are working on that announcement this morning. we are all getting

used to new ways of working for kelly is a vice president of the credit card company mastercard. since lockdown she's been working from home with meetings moving online, and there is no more three hour to work every day. though she now has other challenges to contend with. look, we've got some visitors. hello, guys. how are you doing? you'll be surprised to hear they wa nt you'll be surprised to hear they want some food. i think lots of people used to work from home one day a week and it's hard to be good at something when you only do it once a week. i think we have all become experts at working from home so become experts at working from home so companies will now have more productive employees when they work from home and therefore you can enable them to do it more often. today boris johnson's enable them to do it more often. today borisjohnson‘s advises on climate change urged him to invest in making home—working easier. they say any attempt to kick—start the economy has to help us all move towards lower carbon lifestyles.

this is a moment to unfreeze what was previously a set of things that we i’e was previously a set of things that were set in stone. so we will have to re—examine priorities across the whole economy and the government will have to lead us through the recovery phase. let's make sure that we recovery phase. let's make sure that we think about the climate priorities as we do that. these are sensible steps that will make the economy more resilient in the future and we should think about that right now. to the committee on climate change says the government needs to invest to make homes more energy efficient, to decarbonise our transport and energy systems, and to retrain workers for a low carbon world. the government told the bbc today that its working to ensure there will be a green and resilient recovery from covid—19. finland has enshrined the right to flexible working in law. 0ne enshrined the right to flexible working in law. one of its advisers says we working in law. one of its advisers says we can change working in law. one of its advisers says we can change the way we live and work as well. this situation forced us to change our behaviour. now i'm hoping people can somehow

think about their lives more generally. if i was able to change my life this drastically. so in the future i might be able to keep some of the good sides of these behaviour changes. lockdown has given us a glimpse of a cleaner, greener world, but we do need to get the economy going again. the challenge will be doing that in a way that locks in some of the low habits we have all been learning. justin rowlatt, bbc news, london. the boss of heathrow airport has warned that tens of thousands ofjobs will be lost in the aviation industry, unless the government takes action to get airlines flying safely again. 0ur transport correpondent tom burridge is here. detail about anxiety on that, but detail coming out as well about, if any of us do fly again, about what things will be like. heathrow confirming today they are trialling a temperature screening process for

some people departing at the airport. iam some people departing at the airport. i am told we will see that more often at all uk airports, temperature screening for people arriving and leaving. also more details from uk airlines to government suggesting measures like masks on planes, probably ppe for staff on planes coming from certain destinations. so that process is trying to be worked out and it's critical for the sector when it comes back to life. this morning the warning from the boss of heathrow essentially saying that the government is supporting the airline sector, tapping in airlines and airports into the existing loan scheme and the job retention scheme the government has set up, but he says the uk government doesn't take the aviation industry so importantly and doesn't see it as strategic for the economy as other governments like france, germany and the us. the government say they are supporting airlines, virgin atlantic is applying for a specific bailout from us, and we will look at individual cases. but there is a stark warning

and an underlying current from airlines and airports that they want the government to do more. tom burridge, thank you. one aspect of covid—19 that medics are trying to understand is why it affects people so differently. for many, the symptoms are mild, but for others the virus is much more serious. and some people struggle to shake off the symptoms for many weeks — leaving them exhausted and anxious. more details from our health correspondent dominic hughes. i have suspected coronavirus. what i was not prepared for wasjust excruciating leg pains. it has been seven weeks now. that feeling of being so diminished and so weak. it came back on week four. in the fifth week of being ill, my partner had to call out a&e. week seven i relapsed again and had my third wave. for six weeks now, felicity, aged 49 and from london, has been living with suspected coronavirus. david, 42, and living in bristol, has also spent almost two months suffering relapses.

this is where i have all my stuff. i make sure i'm keeping cutlery and bowls separate. david's world has shrunk to this room, self isolating to protect his wife and baby daughter. eating and sleeping here, separate from my wife for the last seven weeks. it's hard work. butjust when he thought he was getting better, he'd relapse and he's not alone. just knowing that people like me, i guess, who have experienced these waves on and off, because when i first relapsed, when it first got worse, it was quite a scary experience, because i thought that you don't know whether that means you are going down, down, down, so it is quite scary to get worse after you thought you were getting better. when i was really ill, i was going on my hands and knees, up and down the stairs... felicity has also struggled to shake off covid—type symptons and the weeks of illness have

taken their toll. this entire experience of being sick and trying to recover has been mentally overwhelming. the hardest part was, having got through the first ten days of being very sick and thinking i was getting better, things later getting much, much worse. i was experiencing such horrific abdominal pains that i wasjust calling out injust extreme agony. neither felicity nor david have been tested, but both were told by doctors they probably had the virus. they've also been reassured they are no longer infectious, but recovery has been slow. even the slightest uphill slope is a real struggle since being ill. so much about the coronavirus is unknown, including why some experience relatively mild symptoms, lasting a few days, while otherwise healthy people are left struggling for weeks. in many patients with other diseases who are recovering from an acute illness,

you do tend to see this kind of waxing and waning effect as you are slowly getting better and you have good days and bad days. there's some evidence to suggest that the prolonged features are the body's response to infection rather than the infection itself persisting in their bodies. the first week i started to keep a diary of the symptoms i was experiencing. david and felicity hope they are now finally recovering. a return to normalfamily life. my wife would bring my daughter to the window. it was lovely. i'm going to give you squidgies soon! dominic hughes, bbc news. the time is 1:18. our top story this lunchtime: in his first pmqs since recovering from coronavirus — the prime minister says he regrets the epidemic in care homes. there is an epidemic going on in care homes which is something i bitterly regret. and in sport, the bundesliga could be back later this month.

confirmation is expected later on this afternoon as germany eases its restrictions. president trump says the task force co—ordinating the us response to the coronavirus pandemic will be disbanded within a month, despite the persistently high number of cases in the country. president trump said a different group will be put in place, focusing on restarting economic activity. peter bowes reports. a rare trip out of washington for donald trump. after being holed up at the white house during the pandemic, the president toured a factory in phoenix that's making medical—grade face masks. like the executives he met, he chose not to wear one, only safety goggles. according to a sign in the facility, staff there are required to wear face masks. during his visit to arizona,

a state which will be a key battle ground in november's presidential election, mr trump confirmed that the coronavirus task force was winding down. the group has been co—ordinating the us response to covid—19. our country has to go back to being our country again. you have people that are not going to stand for this, and i understand them very well, and we are going to put out little embers and little fires, and maybe some big fires, but we still have to go back to work. the coronavirus pandemic is farfrom being over in the us with about 25,000 new infections every day. a trump administration agency says that number could rise to 200,000 by the end of the month, with the daily death toll reaching 3,000. the sobering projection comes as more states are beginning to ease their stay—at—home orders, with people going back to work at some shops

and nonessential businesses in about half the country. in an interview with abc news, mr trump acknowledged that more lives could be lost as a result of relaxing the guidelines. it's possible there will be some because you won't be locked into an apartment or a house or whatever it is, but at the same time, we're going to practise social distancing, we're going to be washing hands, we're going to be doing a lot of the things that we've learned to do over the last period of time, and we have to get our country back. mr trump also noted that some people were dying because of the economic stress of the shutdown by abusing drugs or committing suicide. horns toot. he said reopening the economy would not be perfect, there'd be new outbreaks of the virus, but america had to get back to work. peter bowes, bbc news, los angeles. chancellor angela merkel is expected to announce a further relaxation of restrictions in germany later today. with the infection rates continuing

to fall, it's thought more businesses will be allowed to open, and professional football will return — behind closed doors. jenny hill is in berlin a degree of confidence in germany, jenny? yes, i think so. actually, angela merkel has, just a few minutes ago, started to speak to reporters following the meeting with the heads of the 16 german states. we are expecting her to announce some fairly significant steps back to what passes as normality in these days of global pandemic. among the measures she is expected to announce, as you say, restaurants, hotels, shops to reopen, children to go back to school before the summer holiday. all of that, of course, with strict social distancing measures. the professional football league, we think may also be allowed to recommence, although gains will

be played behind closed doors. this all comes, of course, amid a background of falling infection rates, good hospital capacity still. nevertheless, angela merkel is really concerned, i think. she began the press conference really rather soberly. bearing in mind, all of these relaxations will come with some caveats and there is still to bea ban some caveats and there is still to be a ban on mass gatherings and they will still be a warning against international travel. we will wait to see what she has to say, but she will be urging germans to exercise caution. jenny hill, thank you. being confined to home during lockdown is difficult for many of us, and for people living in high rise flats the experience is even more restrictive. in march, fiona lamdin spoke to residents of a block of flats in bristol — seven weeks on, she's been back to find out how they've been coping with lockdown. these children living on the 15th floor have been stuck inside for 50 days. i spoke to the family

from the bottom of the tower block. there is no space to play on. sometimes they try to play on the sofa, on the bed, on the tables. so that's why they've broken some stuff. mohammed is worried his children will catch the virus if they go out. his daughter is five years old. i asked her what she misses the most. park! she misses the park. we've met samuel and his two boys, who live next door, before. they do go out but now, with one of the lifts broken, sometimes they are forced to take the stairs. step, step, step, step, step, turn. you can imagine going up. going down it's ok, but going up, that's a slog. i have to carry this one, carry the buggy, if i ever use the buggy, or i'll have him on the sling. it's a matter ofjust going for it. so i'll stop, a couple of flights, take a break.

go again. up a couple of flights, that's the way i deal with it. and also if you've got shopping. and the shopping, yeah. definitely turned into our new playground. we've got to bring our own equipment. would be nice if there was equipment there. we tried the other parks, but they've really locked them down now. the gates are chained up. six weeks in, and samuel's neighbours are also finding things tough. these kids are getting frustrated. yeah, the government have to do something, man. even me, also. cannot go to work, cannot do nothing. so what can i do? how are you passing the time, all of you? it's bored. very bored. they may not be able to play with their friends, butjust seeing them makes the journey, and all those stairs down from the 15th floor, worth it. fiona lamdin, bbc news.

most of us are struggling with our ‘lockdown hair', because hairdressers and barbers are closed. but a bbc investigation has found some are flouting the rules by offering appointments, despite the risk of breaching social distancing restrictions. colin campbell reports. barbers, like many businesses, they have been banned from opening, to stop the spread of covid—19. but we have discovered not all are adhering to the lockdown laws. hi, i'm trying to find somewhere to get my haircut. five o'clock, is that 0k? five o'clock, to the shop, yeah? yeah. we have to sit down in the kitchen because i want to be private, i don't want anybody to see you because it will be a problem for me. just phoning to see if you would be willing to cut my hair? what, today? yes, please. i've got a customer.

i am busy till saturday, only sunday. i am busy today, tomorrow. sunday, i'm free. so, obviously they are seeing quite a few clients. that is interaction with quite a few different people who also may therefore have been interacting with other people, and this alljust gives any person who may be infected and asymptomatic the opportunity to spread the virus quite rapidly. only a few of the barbers i spoke to showed any real concern for the dangers posed by the virus. do you want me to wear a mask or take any other safety precautions? i don't care. for me, i don't believe in this coronavirus or whatever. for me, it doesn't matter. responding to our investigation, celebrity hairdresser nicky clarke told me he was disappointed but not surprised. well, i think it's wrong. the fact of the matter is that they are not putting into place anything that could even justify their behaviour. in total, i phoned 50 barbers.

19 agreed to cut my hair. 12 declined. 19 didn't answer my call, but many who did admitted they had increased their prices, seemingly cashing in on the crisis. for those responsible barbers abiding by the law, now financially suffering, there is understandable frustration. it just makes me angry, to be honest. the fact that people are still profiting from this... yeah, itjust makes me really angry. really angry. controlling the virus has taken the hard work and sacrifice of many. it is the irresponsible actions of a few that could jeopardise that. colin campbell, bbc news. captain tom moore captured many of our hearts when he raised more than £30 million for nhs charities.

now, he's inspired a 97—year—old russian sergeant who served in the second world war to fundraise for russian medics — our moscow correspondent steve rosenberg has been speaking to her. a message to captain tom... ..from sergeant zina. when 97—year—old russian war veteran zina korneva saw these images of tom moore doing his sponsored walk for the nhs, she realised her country needed her. zina couldn't do 100 laps of her garden. last year, she broke her hip. instead, she's been sharing wartime memories online and asking for donations. it's to help the families of russian doctors who have died in the pandemic.

zina is a real russian hero. she served in an anti—aircraft brigade and fought in the battle of stalingrad. these days, when she is not fundraising, she's knitting and she hasjust finished a pair of socks for captain tom. zina's socks are now winging their way to britain, express delivery. so if captain tom ever wants to do more charity walking, at least his feet will be warm.