this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm tim willcox. the united kingdom becomes the first country in europe to record more than 30,000 deaths linked to coronavirus. all shops are to re—open in germany — and the country's top football league is to resume later this month. the us doubles down on its criticism of china's scientists and handling of the coronavirus, saying beijing could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives. president trump changes his mind and says the coronavirus task force will continue its work. a public sign of appreciation for hospital staff from the world's most private artist.

hello and welcome. we're covering all the latest coronavirus developments here in britain and globally. britain's prime minister, borisjohnson, has defended his government's handling of the pandemic. this is despite the uk becoming the first country in europe to record more than 30,000 deaths related to covid—19. mrjohnson also said he "bitterly regrets" the coronavirus crisis in uk care homes — afterfigures showing these deaths are continuing to rise even though hospital fatalities are falling. in germany, chancellor angela merkel has declared an end to the first phase of the coronavirus outbreak. schools and shops are to

re—open and top—level football matches will resume behind closed doors. president trump has described the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the us as worse than the atacks on pearl harbor and 9/11. he again criticised china for failing to warn the world about the virus in time to prevent a global catastrophe. those are the main developments. but before we get the latest from america, let's get this report from laura kuenssberg on boris johnson's first prime minister's questions with keir starmer. small clusters of commuters. westminster quiet, masks sometimes. but not lonely any more. one new normal has begun. weeks after keir starmer became the labour leader, the first of his weekly chance to put the prime minister under pressure. i'm looking forward to it and i'm glad to see he's back in parliament. how are you going to handle the new labour leader? with boris johnson back at work, back at the despatch box, too. i would like to welcome the prime minister back

to his rightful place in the chamber. but no hiding place from the rising coronavirus toll, now tipping 30,000. that's now the highest number in europe. it's the second highest in the world. that's not success or apparent success, so can the prime minister tell us how on earth did it come to this? he is right to draw attention to the appalling statistics not just in this country, but of course around the world. at this stage, i don't think that international comparisons and the data is yet there to draw all the conclusions that we want. comparing different countries' statistics is difficult, but it's not irrelevant. and every number is another heartbreak. just nine members of ron beard's family bade

farewell to him at a tiny funeral this afternoon. he passed away in hospital last week after contracting the virus in his care home, where his family had been told there was no infection and they say staff had no protective kit. my mum, sadly, had to go to the car park and say goodbye to her dad through the window, which was pretty heartbreaking for her after having been by his bedside for so long. i think that's been one of the hardest things for the family to deal with, not being able to hold his hand in times when he needed it, and i know especially from my mum and her sisters, knowing that he died alone after they had been at his side for so long was the particularly heartbreaking thing to come to terms with. the priest did an amazing job and it was a wonderful sendoff, albeit slightly strange. his last song as the curtains closed was you'll never walk alone. what was happening behind closed doors in care homes, now very much in public and political view. deaths in care homes continue to go up, 12 weeks after the health secretary

declared that we're in a health crisis. 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, and we've been working very hard for weeks to get it down. in the last few days, there has been a palpable improvement. there's no consistent evidence that situation is improving. but the prime minister suggested some lockdown measures could ease from monday. we will want, if we possibly can, to get going with some of these measures on monday. in a sparse chamber, mrjohnson sometimes looked around for cheerleaders who were not there. in this new contest of opposites, in the end, it's one—on—one. the german chancellor, angela merkel, has come to an agreement with regional leaders on relaxing the country's lockdown. shops, hotels, restaurants will re—open,

football matches will re—start — although social distancing will remain. but restrictions could be re—imposed, if new outbreaks of the virus occur. 0ur correspondentjenny hill reports from berlin. the country is in a good place, with infection rates falling steadily. there's good hospital capacity. but that's meant angela merkel has been under pressure from the leaders of germany's 16 states, who are desperate to restart their local economies. after a meeting today — a reportedly rather stormy one — they came up with a plan, which includes, among many other things, the reopening of shops, hotels and restaurants, albeit with very strict social distancing measures. they're also letting the bundesliga, germany's professional football league, start up again. the matches will be played behind closed doors. now, it's not quite life back to normal just yet. people here will have to wear masks on public transport and in shops. the authorities will continue to test and contact trace as aggressively as they can and, additionally, angela merkel‘s got those

regional leaders to agree to an emergency break. that means if an infection emerges a prescribed target set for the whole country anywhere in the country, local authorities will have to re—impose restrictions immediately. jenny hill in berlin. president trump says the fall—out from the coronavirus pandemic has hit the united states harder than the japanese bombing of pearl harbor or the 9/11 terror attacks. he was speaking shortly after his secretary of state, mike pompeo, again criticised china for failing to warn the world about the virus in time to prevent a global catastrophe. let's speak to our north america correspondent, david willis. so he was going to disband the coronavirus group and 2a hours later, he changed

his mind. why coachella a p pa re ntly his mind. why coachella apparently because it is so popular. quite how the president assesses popularity in this regard is a mystery. and you are right, 2a hours after announcing it would be disbanded, he said it would continue. he said its emphasis will shift slightly, though, to questions of safety and rebuilding the american economy. that's president trump's hobbyhorse at the moment as we near that election and his bid for reelection in november. but people like dr anthony fauci who, at times, haveissued anthony fauci who, at times, have issued statements at odds with those of the ministration, will continue to be part of this white house coronavirus task force, we are informed, and it will last for as long as it is needed — indefinitely, indeed, says the president. we have had daily briefings which the president took over. not clear if that is going to continue. let's move on to mike

pompeo, us secretary of state, and these comments china could have prevented thousands of deaths. where are the in this murky intelligent story about what china, what they did or did not do? that is a good question. nobody has been more critical of china than the us secretary of state, mike pompeo, and he went back today to the claim that china has exercised a lack of transparency as far as the coronavirus a break was concerned. mr pompeo said china had a choice. it could have spared the world from economic malaise or otherwise, but he chose to cover up the outbreak in wuhan. he went on and on with an accusation he has gone on before, that this operative not start in a wet market in wuhan but a laboratory in that city. it is something mr trump has taken up, saying last week he had seen evidence from his intelligence officials in that regard, but they would not be

drawn precisely and with that evidence was, but you're absolutely right. they are really going at it, the trump administration now, as far as the chinese are concerned. perhaps to cover up or distract attention away from criticisms of their own lack of action early in this crisis, tim. 0k, david with the latest there. thank you very much indeed. the cruise ship at the centre of a public inquiry about the spread of covid—19 in australia has entered philippine waters. the ruby princess has arrived in manila in order to repatriate filipino crew, but strict quarantine measures means an estimated 10,000 crew members remain stuck on board. howard johnson reports. the once broad blue expanse of manila bay now resembling a small city of towering cruise ships. more are arriving by the day because of the large number of returning filipinos who work in the cruise ship industry. but after 1a days of quarantine and testing on board these ships, they're slowly

being able to disembark. but for thousands of foreigners still on board these ships, they don't know how or when they'll be able to return home. so this is my cabin. this is where i spend about 22 hours of the day in. one of them is briton cassandra snowden. she's a children's entertainer on the royal caribbean ship voyager of the seas. she hasn't set foot on land for two months and has spent most of that time in self—isolation in her cabin. we've just been floating around the ocean — like, turned away from ports, ordered to ger out of waters. we are still doing strict social distancing. considering we disembarked our guests seven weeks ago, we haven't got off since. the philippine government had been allowing foreign nationals to leave through the country's main airport but, at the weekend, suspended all flights into the country for a week to reduce numbers in their quarantine centres. cassandra says the not knowing

when they will be allowed home is taking its toll on her health. i think it's getting to a point where our basic human rights are forgotten about. you know, we talk about this virus and how it kills people, but mental health does — and people want to go back to their mothers, their fathers, their husbands, wives, children. just... something needs to be done. and it needs to be done fast. we contacted royal caribbean, who told us they have already helped more than 12,000 crewmembers to return home. they say for those still on board ships in manila bay, charter repatriations will be put on as soon the philippine authorities clear the way. the philippine government says it will lift the ban on flights this weekend, offering a potential way out for foreign crew. howard johnson, bbc news, manila. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: a special report on testing for coronavirus:

what options are available, how they differ and why it matters.

this is bbc news. our top story: the uk becomes the first country in europe to record more than 30,000 coronavirus deaths. in brazil, there's growing pressure on president bolsonaro over what's been described as his "chaotic" response to the pandemic. south america's largest nation has seen 11a,000 cases and almost 8,000 deaths, with rates still increasing. but despite this and a health system under immense strain the president continues to deny there's a serious problem. 0ur correspondent katy watson reports from the east of sao paulo, the country's worst—affected area.

in brazil's favelas, coronavirus is seen as a rich man's disease brought in from abroad. but they know that the poor will suffer the most. death is ever present in these often violent neighbourhoods. covid—19 has become another killer, weaving its way into these narrow streets. aline used to earn $5 a day as a cleaner. now, both she and her husband are unemployed, bringing up three little girls on hand—outs and donations. social distancing isn't an option here, and authorities aren't around to enforce any rules. they're angry with how their president is dealing with this crisis. translation: bolsonaro is wrong. he tells people to go to work, then people die. and then he'lljust say, "another one died. well, it's not my son." what he should say is, "stay at home." jair bolsonaro isn't dubbed the tropical trump for nothing. just like his american idol, he's been railing

against lockdown. as crisis here escalates, so too does denial. yesterday, he said the worst was over. then came the biggestjump in the number of deaths so far. jair bolsonaro got the top job because he promised brazilians angry with corrupt politics a change for the better. but with families in the amazon burying their dead in mass graves and public health systems on the verge of collapse nationwide, many former supporters feel they were fed a lie. state governors are ignoring the president, introducing quarantine and lockdown to protect the public. the man in charge of brazil's wealthiest state has become bolsonaro's biggest critic.

when you have two viruses to combat, the coronavirus and bolsonaro virus, it's not time to discuss ideology, politics, campaigns or individual positions. it's wrong. this is the wrong way. the right way — to save lives, and to respect the science, to respect the medicine. but in sao paulo's eastern suburbs, quarantine offers little opportunity. poverty makes sure of that. the most vulnerable are waiting in line for government hand—outs and in doing so, they are the most exposed. brazilians are confused. do they listen to their local politicians saying stay at home? or to their president saying get back to work? increasingly, rules are being bent here and ignored, and it couldn't come at a worse time for the country. even rio's most famous landmark has been enlisted in the fight against coronavirus. if christ the redeemer can't persuade devout

jair bolsonaro to finally don a mask, nobody can. katy watson, bbc news, in sao paulo. countries across the world are approaching testing for coronavirus differently. are approaching testing reality check‘s chris morris breaks down the different types of test and why they matter. to beat the coronavirus, we have to know how many people are becoming infected — where, when and how. that's what testing for the virus is one of the most important things we can do. it can tell us who might be infected with the virus, who might have been infected in the past and who might need to be in stricter isolation to stop the virus spreading. there are two types of tests. the first type — usually a nasal swab — tests for the presence of the virus, to find out if you're infected right now even if you're not displaying any symptoms and you're feeling perfectly well. if you are infected, you need to be isolated and treated if necessary, and people you've been in contact with can be traced and tested as well. that way, we can stop covid—19 from spreading so fast. countries like south korea and germany tested lots of people early on in the pandemic and they seem to have

been the most successful in keeping their death rates relatively low. other countries, including the uk, are scrambling to catch up. but you need to be able to get hold of the right chemicals, have the right expertise and make sure you have enough laboratories to be able to process tens of thousands of tests every day. the second type of test looks at whether you've been infected in the past and whether you might now have some immunity. it does this by searching for antibodies in the blood, which your immune system uses to fight off bacteria and viruses. sadly, reliable antibody tests are not yet widely available. while they are being trialed in various places and there are some pretty ineffective products on the market, scientists are cautious. not having a test is better than having a bad test that gives false results. it will be a huge help if a reliable antibody test that can be mass—produced

can be developed soon. if we know someone has some immunity, it should be easier for them to get back to work. if we know that lots of people have some immunity, it should be easier for us to start lifting lockdowns in safer and more sustainable ways. but there is a problem. the presence of antibodies may provide some immunity but not necessarily complete immunity. and it's still unclear how long any immunity might last. so testing can help us put other data, like the number of confirmed cases or the number of deaths, into context. but we are going to have to wait some time before a vaccine for covid—19 provides immunity. until scientists crack that, testing is key to help us deal with this pandemic. now, this week marks the 75th anniversary of the end of the war in europe. as part of the commemorations the contribution of thousands of people from caribbean nations who volunteered to serve with the british armed forces is to be marked with a permanent memorial. 0ur correspondent sian lloyd has

been speaking to some of those involved. her report was filmed before the lockdown was imposed. albert jarrett, aged 18, one of around 10,000 people who left the caribbean to join the war effort. we were needed at this height of the war. our services were needed. and we were very anxious to give our service to the country that protected us, because we were british citizens and this was our mother country, we were told. the place they set sail for was very different to home, on board ships that were cramped and uncomfortable. in those days, ships had to move in convoy because if they are not in convoy, don't forget, the german u—boat is going to get rid of them.

and for that reason, 23 long days on the sea before we get here, and we came here and i remember when we got to bristol, i saw the promised land! what was known at the time as a colour bar had restricted recruitment to the armed forces, but by 1941 advertisements in newspapers invited people from the west indies tojoin the raf. the contribution and sacrifice of all those from the caribbean who have and continue to serve the country will now be commemorated here at the national memorial arboretum. the campaign to raise the half a million pounds needed is being led by a former serviceman. up until now, a lot of people have had the perception or misconception that all that people of colour, shall we say, did in the war was dug trenches. that's not the case. a lot of people were pilots, navigators, engineers, the lot,

and they won a lot of gallantry medals for their service. but that story has not been told nowhere near as widely as it should be. so this monument will tell that story. clay models give a sense of how the finished sculpture will look. an imposing nine metres wide and carved from stone, it features palm trees and four bronze figures to represent the different branches of the armed forces. i am so pleased about it, because it seemed so shocking to me that this government have never done nothing to show any appreciation. one of the few surviving veterans of the second world war, 95—year—old albert hopes he will see a monument during his lifetime. sian lloyd, bbc news. you're watching bbc news. a new painting by the street

artist banksy has been revealed at a hospital in southern england. it's called game changer — and the work will be auctioned later, with the money going to the nhs. 0ur arts editor will gompertz has been to see it. could this be a rare sighting of the elusive street artist banksy? undercover, making a special delivery to university hospital southampton. wow. it's certainly his handiwork. it was hung late last night and unveiled this morning. it depicts a young boy kneeling down, wearing dungarees and a white t—shirt. the waste—paper basket in front of him has two discarded old superheroes. instead, he's playing with his new model figure, a new superhero, an nhs nurse with a flying cape and arm pointing forwards like superman. she is on a mission. the idea of the hospital's management and banksy was to thank the staff of the nhs generally for everything they are doing. so, did it go down well? just the proudness of it.

the actual realising that we are thought of and respected. for years now, we've not, but now, with everything that's going on in this current climate, people are seeing us where we should be. we're superheroes. it's such a nice reward for all the staff that have been working really hard throughout this. we've had members of staff be unwell themselves, and obviously all our patients, and we've just pulled together and got on with our work. why, then, did the hospital want to work with banksy? he's really captured the emotion behind the way that the country's recognising the nhs at the moment. certainly since we've been talking about it this morning, people recognise him, they understand where he's coming from, and they're really appreciative that he's made southampton the place to recognise the nhs. the plan is to sell the artwork at an auction after the lockdown, with the proceeds going to the nhs, some of which will come to this hospital. it could fetch over £1 million. will gompertz, bbc news, southampton. let's hope so. plenty more on that story and others of course on the bbc website. 0r

that story and others of course on the bbc website. or if you're watching in the uk... for me and the team, see you soon. hello there. over the next few days, it looks like the temperatures are going to creep upwards. we could be looking at the mid—20s celsius across some southern parts of the uk, but we'll also have building humidity as well and that could increase the chance of some showers, some of which will be heavy and thundery. now, the pressure chart for thursday shows high—pressure largely dominating the scene, particularly towards the eastern half of the uk. further west, we'll have these weather fronts, but it will introduce more cloud and outbreaks of rain. so it could be fairly wet in one or two places during thursday morning, the patchy rain spreading northwards into scotland. and then further south, we should see some sunshine developing but a few heavy showers on into the afternoon. central—eastern parts of the country seeing the best of the drier and the sunnier weather. we could see highs reaching 23 degrees in the south, but up to 19 or 20 in the north too. now, there could be some evening showers

or thunderstorms across england and wales — into the midlands, certainly. these will tend to die off during the night. most places will be dry, but it will stay rather cloudy and damp across the north and the west of scotland. and a milder night to come as well, temperatures in double figures across central and southern areas. so, for friday, it starts off milder. so it's going to be a warmer day. bit more cloud around generally. certainly across the north and the west, we'll have further outbreaks of rain. certainly for northern scotland. elsewhere, some thundershowers will develop into the afternoon once again, particularly northern ireland, england and wales. look at those temperatures — up to 25 degrees across the south. now into the weekend, as we start to see some changes. for saturday, a cold front begins to push southwards across scotland. much colder air behind it, as the name suggests. some rain on it too. further south, it'll be another warm day with sunny spells but increasing chance of showers and thunderstorms. those temperatures, again, reaching the low to mid 20s in the south. much colder in the north, as that cold front begins to slip southwards. and then during saturday night,

it'll advance its way southwards right across the country, so by sunday, it's going to feel very different. unusually cold air for the time of year will make it feel very chilly indeed and we'll see some wintry showers across northern and eastern parts of the country, maybe even some settling snow across the north in scotland, even down to lower levels. that said, apart from a few showers, there will be some sunshine around. but look at these temperatures compared to what they expect for the next few days — ranging from 6 to 12 degrees.

this is bbc news. the headlines...

the number of deaths here in the uk has passed 30,000 people. the prime minister defended his handling of the pandemic during his first appearance in parliament, opposite the new labour leader, kier starmer. the government said it intends to outline its plans for coming out of lockdown this weekend. the german chancellor, angela merkel, has come to an agreement with regional leaders on relaxing the country's lockdown. shops, hotels, and restaurants will re—open and football matches will re—start, although social distancing will remain. but restrictions could be re—imposed, if new outbreaks of the virus occur. president trump has reversed a decision to disband the white house coronavirus task force — telling reporters he didn't realise how popular it was.