good afternoon. teaching unions insist they're willing to work with the government to begin reopening schools in england, but they're calling for clear evidence that doing so won't put public health at risk. it comes after the children's commissioner for england called on the government and unions to, in her words, stop "squabbling" and agree a plan, over concerns that the most disadvantaged children are most affected by closures. here's our political correspondent, jessica parker.

pupils returning to school in france. in england, a second plan to do the same from earlyjune in primary schools, but amid disagreement woman appointed by government to stand up for children says it's time to stop squabbling. positions have really become entrenched and i fear that the best interests of children, which is what we are all meant to be looking at in this debate, are being overlooked. i have raised the issue of the hundreds of thousands of vulnerable children that will be carrying risks out of school first up they will not get a ccess out of school first up they will not get access to education, they may have fragile home environments and mental health will be suffering. she says opening things up again is sensible and has called on the unions and government to find a way forward based on testing and controlling the risk. but parents will also be weighing up the situation. i'm not waving a flag saying, let's go back to school and put 30 children in a class and have it as put 30 children in a class and have itasa put 30 children in a class and have it as a normal day. i think there

needs to be some kind of schooling in terms of some kind of non—contact at school. the government insists it is giving all the guidance schools need, with safety measures including staggered breaks, smaller class sizes without mixing between groups, but unions say more information is needed. we are calling on the government to set up a task force with the education unions to plan a safe way of going back to school. we wa nt to safe way of going back to school. we want to get back. we have set out five tests which we think are mutable. the government could meet them. parents will not be fined if they don't send children back, so what will families decide to do? cut out of 28 children in my class, we have a ten responses so far saying they will send their children but a lot of his parents still have reservations and queries they want a nswered reservations and queries they want answered before making that choice. the government says its plan is conditional on the scientific data, and it could also be conditional on

how unions, teachers, parents and local authorities choose to act. jessica parker, bbc news. it's the first weekend since some lockdown restrictions were eased in england, with members of the public now allowed out for unlimited exercise. local councils are warning people to stay away from beauty spots and beaches, over concerns that a surge of visitors will lead to an increase in infection. helena wilkinson reports. the beauty and tranquillity of places like the peak district will bea places like the peak district will be a temptation for people in england to head to. this, the first weekend since the easing of lockdown restrictions. as long as they don't travel to wales, scotland or northern ireland, they are free to go as faras northern ireland, they are free to go as far as they like, to enjoy the outdoors, but many councils and tourism bosses have a different message. if you don't go out this weekend, stay local. —— if you do go out. after several weeks of

lockdown, people want to turn to our great national parks and connection with nature, which is why i am asking people to consider keeping it local and, if you do come here, is self—reliant. facilities are not around. be flexible. if a car park is full, don't park in the villages oi’ is full, don't park in the villages or on the roadside verges, because that has an impact on the local communities and emergency services. there is particular concern in cumbria and the lake district, where infection rates are amongst the highest in england. the message to day—trippers wanting to head there is, stay away for now to protect the local community. 0ther is, stay away for now to protect the local community. other parts of england are also warning visitors away. in cornwall and devon, they are asking people to avoid their beaches and beauty spots. it is a similar message from blackpool, and there won't be any lifeguards on any beaches across the country. in london, the police are reminding people that gatherings are still not

permitted. make sure you only meet up permitted. make sure you only meet up with one other person from another household and certainly not to gather in groups of more than two people. we will have police officers out and about and we will be engaging with people throughout the day, but please be sensible and stay safe. is people enjoy the relaxation of rules in england this weekend, there have been reminders to use common sense to avoid social distancing and to think twice before heading out on long journeys. helena wilkinson, bbc news. andy gill is in grassington in north yorkshire. is there much sign of people coming out to admire that view? you can see why people would want to come here. there has been a steady increase in the number of people using the car park here this morning, but the local authority and the dales national park people wanted the government to delay changing the rules on the lockdown. they wanted

the message to be, stay local, not stay alert, to avoid any tension between visitors and the people who live here. they have opened the car parks so that people don't park in the centre of villages or on verges, to avoid contact. the message from the lake district is also, please stay away. they point out here in yorkshire that quite a number of people in the local community are in groups vulnerable to covid—i9, the elderly, for example. what they want is for visitors to come back here onceit is for visitors to come back here once it is safe to do so, and they hope that the road map that the cove na nt has hope that the road map that the covenant has set out might allow that to happen. normally, more than 3 million day visitors a year would come to the yorkshire dales national park. one estimate has the local economy taking a 30% hit, which is something they really hope will recover quickly once lockdown ends. thank you. a leading medical expert has told the bbc that nearly a third of patients who are severely ill

with coronavirus are also developing dangerous blood clots. scientists believe the clots, which lead to more heart attacks and strokes, are contributing significantly to the number of people dying, as our health correspondent, richard galpin, reports. here in the laboratories of king's college hospital in london, staff test blood samples from patients with coronavirus to see how the virus is changing their blood — and, in particular, how sticky it's become, because sticky blood means a risk of blood clots, also known as thrombosis. i was taken around the laboratory by professor roopen arya, a specialist in this field. and also the airways are a bit squiggly... he showed me a scan of the lungs of a patient seriously ill with pneumonia due to coronavirus. highlighted on the second screen — blood clots, the result of severe inflammation in the lungs activating blood clotting, or fragments of clots getting into the lungs

from other parts of the body. thrombosis is a major problem, particularly in severely affected covid patients in critical care, where some of the more recent studies show that nearly half the patients have pulmonary embolism or blood clot on the lungs. 71—year—old artist brian mcclure was rushed to hospital last month with coronavirus. now recovering back home, he told me how doctors had discovered he had another medical problem. i went for a lung screening, and that showed up blood clots in the lungs, and that was very, very dangerous, and that was when i really started to get worried, because i wasn't improving. beverley hunt, medical director of the charity thrombosis uk, says the sticky blood which coronavirus patients are developing is notjust causing blood clots.

we also have higher rates of heart attacks and strokes where you've got such sticky blood as you have with covid, so, yes, the sticky blood is contributing to a higher mortality with covid. doctors are treating covid patients who have blood clots with blood thinners, but it doesn't always work, and high doses can lead to patients bleeding. global trials are now taking place to find the best way to treat this latest medical condition caused by the virus. richard galpin, bbc news. eurovision has been called off due to coronavirus for the first time in its 64—year history. instead, the bbc will be broadcasting a special night of programmes to celebrate the competition. daniel rosney‘s report contains some flashing images. # she got me dirty dancin‘...# it's one of the most watched live

events in the world. after coming last in 2019, the united kingdom was hoping to turn a corner with this year's entrant. # if we were deep sea divers...# for eurovision fans, no other event even comes close, and fans around the world were devastated. i was absolutely gutted, like, it broke my heart. but i know that it had to be done. to be honest, i'm gutted that eurovision is cancelled this year. at the time, i was in shock, because i really did think that they'd choose an alternative, like having no audience, but they did say it's not in the spirit of the contest, and i can respect that. to help them, the artists began performing online concerts. # in my head it's taking over... and tonight, under normal circumstances, presenters would be in rooms like this across europe and beyond, giving some subtle hints as to where they are,

delivering points to the artists, who would have performed in front of 200 million viewers around the world. 12 points from the united kingdom jury vote goes to... north macedonia. but, for the first time in its 64—year history, the song contest was cancelled. there will be no competition, meaning there is no winner and, for some of the artists taking part, they won't get this opportunity again. # ah, ah—ah, ah—ah, the crazy things i do...# even though it was a short fairy tale, it was amazing because of the fans, because of the support, and i think that's the most beautiful thing about eurovision — it's the whole community of it. the songs will instead be shown in a special show put on by eurovision bosses tonight, live from the netherlands but, for many, it's unlikely that it will be able to truly fill the void left by the event being cancelled. # we're moving mountains...# daniel rosney, bbc news.

that's it. the next news on bbc one is at 5:20pm. bye for now. hello and welcome to viewers on bbc news in the uk and around the world. a question we will be asking during the course of the next couple of hours is, what is the future for large—scale events? hours is, what is the future for la rge—scale events? as hours is, what is the future for large—scale events? as we know, the bundesliga in germany will begin its first matches on saturday and sunday

after a couple of months of suspension. what about other major sporting events? will they ever be the same again? and indeed, music festivals around the world. well, we will put your questions to guests who work in the events industry at just after 3pm bst, which is for pm gmt. you can get in touch by using the hashtag on—screen, or e—mail your questions. i mentioned the bundesliga. let's get a full round—up of the sporting picture now from gavin. hello, gavin. hello, gavin. hello, sean. nice to see you. yes, top—level european football returns today with the bundesliga getting back to action after being suspended for 66 days due to the coronavirus outbreak. all matches have strict guidelines in place for players and

staff. there will be no handshakes and substitutes have to be distance. there will be no real fans, and substitutes have to be distance. there will be no realfans, with some clubs such as borussia monchengladbach doing their best to create some kind of atmosphere for the teams with supporters buying seats for their own cardboard cut outs! 0ne seats for their own cardboard cut outs! one of the youngest supporters at the front there. you can even ta ke at the front there. you can even take your dog, albeit with this crowd, there will be the usual lack of passion and noise. we all started playing football without supporters. we love this game not because of the atmosphere in the stadium. meanwhile, we know thatis in the stadium. meanwhile, we know that is the real football, but we know we cannot play like this for a few months, hopefully only, but that does not mean the game is still not a wonderful game, and i really hope it works out in germany and that we can then start at some point in england as well. so, jurgen klopp there, a former borussia dortmund manager, of course. they host derby rivals schalke in the match today. schalke

manager david wagner has called it their biggest match of the season. all smirk face wolfsburg, but they will be without their coach, who broke quarantine rules after leaving his hotel to buy toothpaste. while the bundesliga is back and discussions are ongoing about the return of the premier league, it appears the league 2 season will be ended. clubs met on friday and descended to end the season —— decided to end the season because of the coronavirus outbreak and the option to of playing behind closed doors was not viable financially. it will still need to be ratified by the league, but it is likely that swindon, plymouth and crewe are promoted and plymouth could be saved the background is moving very fast. the bundesliga has just the background is moving very fast. the bundesliga hasjust begun. there has been a new antibody test released this week described as a game changer. more generally, i think we should play the season because that is what we are here for. as a football club, we want to compete, that is what we want to do.

plus we get the chance to try behind closed doors games now. it is almost certain next season will start that way, so it is a good practice at that, and we get to try streaming of live games in england, which has not been possible before, and see if we can engage our fans digitally been possible before, and see if we can engage ourfans digitally in that way, and replace the gate income we will surely lose this season and next. there is also uncertainty in the nba, with the season currently on hold. the president of the players association says they are keen to return when it is safe to do so. 0h, return when it is safe to do so. oh, man, we want to play. we want to play bad too, and i think that's the quys play bad too, and i think that's the guys around the league. we obviously wa nt guys around the league. we obviously want it to be as safe as possible, but the biggest thing is, we miss the game, not only from a player perspective, but as a fan. as a fan of the game, i miss knowing what i'm watching every night. right? like, ifi watching every night. right? like, if i don't have a game, i know what iam doing. if i don't have a game, i know what i am doing. not only as a player, but as a fan, i miss it.

yes, eager to return, as you can imagine. that is all the support from us for now. gavin, thanks very much. italy has said people can travel in and out of the country from the third ofjune. it's a significant change in a nation that imposed one of the world's most rigid coronavirus lockdowns, and suffered significant loss of life. more than 31,000 italians have died of covid—i9 since late february, but the infection rate has fallen quickly. 0ur reporter freya cole has more. italy is opening up. preparations are under way to welcome people back to the mediterranean for the start of the european summer. but there is still a lot of uncertainty. translation: with the measures that will be imposed, according to rumours, because we still do not know what they will be, we risk having 30—35% fewer umbrellas. tourist operators are planning as much as they can. everything could change if there is a second wave of infection.

but from june the 3rd, the government plans to reinstate free movement around the country. holidays will be allowed, and encouraged. translation: in two months, we have only had two overnight stays. this gives you an idea of the situation. the newly published government decree also reveals plans to open italy's borders. but it is unclear what restrictions will be put on international travellers. already at airports in rome, thorough cleaning is taking place. as well as temperature checks at customs. it is a gradual process. from monday, beauty salons, shops and restaurants are allowed to open, but business looks very different. tables must be two metres apart, and there is more cleaning than ever before. translation: the challenge is huge, so big it is hard to quantify, but most of all,

there is uncertainty. but we are used to working hard, rolling up our sleeves, and providing the best for our customers. italians have waited more than two months to share their love of food with others, but the new era will come with new traditions. marina lalli is the president of italy's tourism federation. i spoke to her a little earlier to ask how she felt about the easing. oh, this is wonderful news. this is the type of news that we were waiting and hoping for. we have been preparing for this moment all these past weeks, and therefore, we are extremely happy with the decision. how different will the tourist experience have to be in visiting italy because of rules on things like social distancing, requirements to space people out on transport,

limits on the number of people, what impact do you think that will have? well, it will be a different way of travelling, that's for sure, but we have to live with this virus, and therefore, we have to make adjustments. that's exactly what all the companies working in the tourist industry are doing, just working their standard procedures in order to adjust to the measurements that a re necessary to welcome the tourists. what sort of measure have you been able to make, what sort of assessment of the damage has been done to the industry by the lockdown? because these are months where in italy, at least, you would have already experienced quite a significant number of travellers in the run—up to the summer season. well, of course, this is going to be... it has had a huge impact on our economy, and i am sure with the measures

that we are going to take, the impact is going to be strong, meaning that social distancing will allow companies to host many less people than we are used to, and the same one other means of transportation, buses, and the same on other means of transportation, buses, aeroplanes, everything. so, it is going to be a big impact and a damaging impact on the economy of our companies. probably. switzerland, germany, and austria are starting to relax border restrictions this weekend. along with france, they are hopping to fully reopen later injune. from today, friends and family members divided by the border closures will be able to meet again. but tourists and shoppers are still barred from crossing the frontiers. the four countries, all members

of the schengen open—border zone, shut their borders in march in a bid to control the spread of the coronavirus. 0ur correspondent bethany bell is in vienna. she explained more from there. certainly here, and in several other countries, there have been significant steps taken over the last few weeks to try and ease those lockdown is here. lockdown is here last few weeks to try and ease those lockdown is here in austria, for example, lockdown is here in austria, for exa m ple, cafe lockdown is here in austria, for example, cafe is and restaurants open for the first time. i had my first cup of coffee in a vienna cafe for a couple of months. so there is the sense that things are beginning to ease up. we had italy over night saying that it would allow travel to and from italy as ofjune the 3rd, and from italy as ofjune the 3rd, and we know that on monday, more businesses will be allowed to open there and people will be allowed to move around within their region. also, we've had conditions on a few borders in europe using up. germany, for example, and austria and

switzerland have eased the situation for people wanting to cross, families, for example, although it is not completely open yet. tourist visits are still not allowed. but step—by—step, very, very cautiously, governments are trying to restart europe's economies again. bethany bell in vienna. let's turn to greece now, where beaches are beginning to re—open from today for locals as lockdown measures begin to ease across the country. the country went into lockdown six weeks ago after the first coronavirus related death was recorded. social distancing measures have been put in place on the beaches, and greece's prime minister kyriakos mitsotakis has said that he hopes international flights could resume from istjuly. it is an unusually hot day, close to 40 it is an unusually hot day, close to a0 degrees. the people are on the beach, it is very nice. as you can see at the back, it is very nice. there are

quite strict rules, arent there are? how have your team been applying these? look, we follow the rules. we use our umbrellas. if people come on the beach, they bring the umbrellas themselves and some parts are only ta ke themselves and some parts are only take away. if people follow the rules, we have had good results now. there are reports people were queueing very early this morning to get on the beaches, because they wa nted get on the beaches, because they wanted to ensure they would get a space, because presumably as we can see behind you, it is nothing like as busy as it would normally be allowed to be a? yes. as you know, we are very lucky, because here in greece, we have a lot of kilometres of beach, and there is no problem. we can keep a distance very easily. this beach here is marathon bay. here is exactly the position of the marathon battle, and now, we have another battle, and now, we have another battle with coronavirus! absolutely.

and now we win! you win, and it's great news you have one. but how important is it going to be for you to get torres back during the summer? when i raise the question because the british, for example, have said anyone who leaves the country this summer will have to quarantine in britain for two weeks after they come back, and for families particularly who love going to greece, love going to the islands and your beach, it is a big price to pay if they come for their two—week summer holiday and have to stay at home for another two weeks. are you worried it might put them off no i hope, ifeel... worried it might put them off no i hope, i feel... we lose may and june, but we havejuly. you also have in your countries, much better results, and then it will not be so strict. the plane is the problem, and if you come with good health, you leave with good health. here, it is very safe. the temperature and

everything helps to solve the problems. you're watching bbc news. thanks for your company. scientists in britain have begun a trial of sniffer dogs to see if they can be trained to detect the presence of coronavirus before symptoms appear. the clinical trial is being boosted by half a million pounds of investment from the uk government with the hope that if the scheme works, each dog would be able to screen around 250 people an hour. dogs are already able to sniff out diseases such as cancer, malaria and parkinson's. professorjames logan is one of those working on the trial. so, what we know about other respiratory diseases and lots of other diseases, in fact, for hundreds of years we have known that diseases create changes in our body odour. we think the same thing is happening with covid—i9, and that's what this study is about. it is to determine whether our body

odour changes when we have that infection, and if it does change, then we are very, very confident that these dogs would be able to detect it, and we could have a new way of diagnosing people with covid—i9. professorjames professor james logan there. professorjames logan there. truly, dogs are man's best friend! just a few weeks after charity fund raiser captain tom moore hit the top of the charts in the uk, another centenarian has become a record—brea ker. dame vera lynn has become the oldest artist to have a top a0 album in the uk. the 103—year—old saw her greatest hits album re—enter the chart at number 30, boosted by last week's 75th anniversary of ve day. many congratulations to dame vera. now it's time for a look at the weather with tomasz. hello. it has been fairly pleasant for most of us. there has been a little more clout across northern areas, certainly scotland and northern ireland, and here, still a chance of a few spots of rain

through the course of saturday. to the south and east, the weather is better, and by the end of the afternoon or early evening, temperatures will still be around 16 degrees in london and the midlands. a little bit cooler there in glasgow, only 13 with that cloud cover. through tonight, the south—westerly winds will push in more cloud, and they will be some damp weather in belfast and the western isles of scotland, but much of england, particularly the south and east, will be dry, and it is a very mild night, temperatures in many areas around 7—10. tomorrow, the clodius weather in scotland and northern ireland. at times, they will be some rain. further east and south, it looks good. in fact, temperatures are on the rise, up to 20 in london.

you are watching bbc news. the headlines. the children commissioner for england calls for the teaching england and the government to stop score group “— england and the government to stop score group —— squabble over plans to return people to school. there are warnings to day—trippers not to visit rural areas this weekend as they could bring a increase in the number of infections. people in italy will be able to travel in and out from around the country from the beginning ofjune as the government go to ease one of the world was much strictest lockdown. this german football league will be back i will be the first major phenolic to return, much is being held in empty stadiums.