this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. barack obama takes aim at the trump administration over its handling of the pandemic. you know all those adults who you used to think were in charge and knew what they were doing? turns out they don't have all the answers. italy's prime minister admits coronavirus cases could rise as the country is set to ease travel restrictions from earlyjune. the uk education secretary warns the longer england's schools are closed, the more children will miss out as the government presses on with plans to re—open them. it's game on: germany's bundesliga becomes the first major european football league to restart, playing to an empty stadium. # waterloo!

# couldn't escape if i wanted to! and abba's waterloo has been named as the greatest eurovision song of all time by bbc viewers. hello and welcome to the programme. i'm samantha simmonds. we start with some of the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in the uk, and globally. more than 310,000 people have died as a result of covid 19 around the world. people in germany have been protesting against lockdown restrictions. the biggest gathering was in stuttgart, where 5,000 demonstrators turned out. in wuhan, where the first cases were detected, authorities say they've tested 3 million people. but residents are worried that the very act of being tested could expose

them to the virus. in india, a court has detained nearly 70 members of an islamic missionary movement for allegedly spreading coronavirus in the city of bhopal. and in the united states, the national high school graduation ceremony has taken place online. barack obama and a number of celebrities took part. the former us president delivered a scathing attack on the trump administration's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. he told thousands of students that america's inequalities were on show as the virus has a disproportionate impact on black communities. here's our north america correspondent david willis. well, samantha, in the three years plus since he left office, barack obama has shied away from directly criticising his successor donald trump, but now the gloves have come off. although he didn't mention donald trump by name, it was pretty clear what he was getting at when he said that the coronavirus pandemic had, as he put it, "torn down the curtain on the idea that the country's

leaders knew what they were doing," and he said "a lot of them weren't even pretending to be in charge". now, this comes days after increasingly withering attacks on him from president trump, who is blaming barack obama for, amongst other things, the russia investigation, and with barack 0bama's former deputy, the former vice president joe biden as the presumptive democratic presidential nominee, it's clear that barack obama feels that the time has come for him to weigh into the fight. now, the former president also urged students today to be bold and to fill the "leadership vacuum," as he put it, and in his commencement address to millions of students, mr obama also was joined by a list of celebrities, including the basketball star lebronjames and the actor timothee chalamet, amongst others.

you're going to have to grow up faster than some generations. this pandemic has shaken up the status quo and laid bare a lot of our country's deep—seated problems — from massive economic inequality to ongoing racial disparities, to a lack of basic healthcare for people that need it. it's woken a lot of young people up to the fact that the old ways of doing thingsjust don't work, that it doesn't matter how much money you make if everyone around you is hungry and sick, and that our society and our democracy only work when we think not just about ourselves, but about each other. it's also pulled the curtain back on another hard truth — something that we all have to eventually accept once our childhood comes to an end. you know all those adults who you used to think were in charge and knew what they were doing? turns out they don't

have all the answers. a lot of them aren't even asking the right questions. so, if the world's going to get better, it's got to be up to you. david, what kind of reaction has there been to barack 0bama's comments? it's interesting because these kinds of high school graduations are a rite of passage for many american youngsters, and they've been cancelled across the country because of the coronavirus. and president donald trump also made mention of that, and how the landscape for those graduating has changed because of this crisis. he said those who were looking to go on to university would find a very different landscape. he also said those who were going to be looking for work would find the situation had been radically changed. there are, what, 36 million people currently out of work here in the united states, and the president said the class of 2020 would have to "grow up faster," as he put

it, than previous generations, samantha. david willis in los angeles. the italian prime minister giuseppe conte says his country is taking a calculated risk by rolling back lockdown measures from next week. the country's daily death toll from covid—i9 has now fallen to its lowest since march 9. mr conte admits there could be another rise, but says the country cannot afford to wait any longer. freya cole reports. italy's wait is almost over. from monday, day—to—day liberties will slowly resume and byjune 3, there will be even greater freedoms, like domestic and international travel. but the process comes with a warning. translation: we are facing a calculated risk. to put it frankly, we know the contagion curve may rise again. preparations are taking place across the entire country to get ready for this

new phase of life. beauty salons and shops can resume trade on monday. gyms and swimming pools will open on may 25. cinemas and theatres will follow in mid—june. but measures must be taken to make sure people are kept as safe as possible. translation: we must accept the risk, otherwise we will never be able to start again. we should wait until a vaccine is discovered and distributed, but we can't afford this. italy has suffered immensely during the coronavirus pandemic. more than 31,000 lives have been lost — the third highest in the world. the rate of new infections has now dropped, providing a pathway to start opening up the country. the world's largest church is also opening on monday after a weekend

of deep cleaning. a diluted chlorine solution was used to protect the i6th—century marble floors and buildings. worshippers will be welcome back to st peter's basilica —— worshippers will be welcomed back to st peter's basilica but numbers will be reduced as the church finds new ways in this new way of life. freya cole, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. 0fficials figures from brazil suggest that the country now has the fourth largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the world behind the us, russia and britain. brazil recorded over 14,000 new cases in 2a hours. more than 15,000 brazilians have died. religious services are resuming in parts of australia under strict conditions, as lockdown measures are gradually being eased. but many churches, synagogues and mosques have decided to stay closed because of concerns for the older members of their congregation. borisjohnson has warned that a vaccine for coronavirus may never come to fruition. writing in a british newspaper,

he acknowledges that his government's new message about staying alert is more complex than just staying at home. meanwhile, the uk government has sought to reassure parents about reopening schools to some pupils in england from next month, saying the decision was based on the best scientific advice. teaching unions have expressed concern about whether schools can be made safe for staff and pupils in time for the target date of the first ofjune. here's our education editor, bra nwen jeffreys. classrooms empty now in england, but in two weeks' time, a few children are due back. some teachers and parents remain fearful. today, the government said it was the right decision. there are some who would like to delay the wider opening of schools. school governors will be involved in the plans, so i asked how they should weigh it up. they are going to be thinking about their legal

responsibilities in terms of making each school safe. how are they meant to reconcile that conflicting advice they're getting from you and from local councils? what we would ask them to do is look at the guidance very carefully and recognise the fact that we are there to provide the very best for every single child who goes to that school. and the best way of doing that, the best way of protecting children, the best way of giving them the best opportunities in life is actually to have them coming back into school. schools are getting ready as best they can, changing classrooms, contacting families. parents will choose whether to send their children, and some think it is time to start going back. i'm not waving a flag and saying, "let's go back to school with 30 children in a class and have a normal school day". i think there needs to be some kind of schooling,

in terms of some kind of non—physical contact at school. ministers point to denmark, where children began their return a month ago, but today, teachers' unions here raised concerns — too many cases, too little testing, among their five priorities. we really want to get schools back open again, as soon as it's safe to do so. we've got five simple tests that the british medical association on friday told us they agreed with our tests, and we think the government hasn't yet met them, but they are not obstructive tests. they are tests to encourage the government to meet them so that we can get back to school. we're not there yet, though. the gradual return to school remains a hope. the scientific evidence remains under review. a finaljudgement in england at the end of the month as schools in the rest of the uk remain closed. branwen jeffreys, bbc news.

this week, many towns and cities in the uk have implemented measures to encourage walking and cycling. the temporary changes are aimed at reducing use of public transport and cars. but as the country emerges from lockdown, these changes could signal a permanent shift, as our environment correspondentjustin rowlatt reports. deansgate, the main road through manchester, is changing. today, barriers and trees closed a key stretch to traffic. elsewhere, new walkways and pop—up bike lanes are appearing. we want to see change across the city. we want people to walk and cycle more, but we want to do that in a safe way. and it isn'tjust manchester. this week, pop—up cycle lanes opened in glasgow, leicester, york and brighton, and dozens more towns and cities have similar plans. london is closing some of its busiest streets to create what it claims will be the largest car—free area in any city in the world.

most of these measures are presented as temporary, providing social distancing space. but often, the aim is to make them permanent, which is why some motorists are describing this as a one—off land grab conducted under the cover of covid and designed to create new fights on the ground. what's worrying about this is that it feels anti—motorist, anti—cars, anti—lorries, anti—vans, and yet all those methods of transport are essential for economic recovery and for the things we need in britain, so don't punish one group at the expense of the other. 0lympic—winning cyclist chris boardman says making these changes in our cities is about more than just finding new ways to get to work. we've stopped talking about a climate crisis and stopped talking about pollution and dirty air, but all of those crises are still here. and if you really want to protect the nhs, as well as clapping for them, we can actually make ourselves

a healthier nation. people certainly seem to be voting with their feet and their wheels. ken foster says his bike shop in manchester is the busiest it's been since his granddad opened it almost 70 years ago. ken, what about when it's raining? there's no such thing as bad weather, only inappropriate clothing! you won't be surprised to hear that ken thinks it's time we all should get on our bikes. justin rowlatt, bbc news, manchester. this is bbc news, the main headlines: barrack obama has delivered another scathing attack on the trump administration's handling of the pandemic. in an online address to university graduates, mr obama said many officials didn't even pretend to be in charge. italy's prime minister has said coronavirus cases could rise — as travel restrictions are set to ease from earlyjune, but that the country couldn't afford to wait for a vaccine.

throughout the coronavirus pandemic, cuba has suffered only one fatality and the caribbean as a whole has performed well. the islands acted early and decisively after outbreaks in asia, europe and north america. by last week, just 84 deaths had been registered from coronavirus in 20 caribbean nations. will grant reports on what they got right. cuban government hasn't changed its message the start. don't leave home unless it is strictly necessary, says this doctor in a village outside havana, amidst the symptoms of coronavirus one more time. they also do shoe leather epidemiology. 2—person teams of medics going door—to—door with a click board. the survey helps the authorities mapped the state of health of the town and anyone showing symptoms of covid—19 is closely monitored.

it is largely —— it has largely worked up cuba had no recordings of coronavirus last week and it has been a similar success week and it has been a similar success story week and it has been a similar su ccess story a ci’oss week and it has been a similar success story across the caribbean. most island nations locked down early to ensure it stayed within the capacity of their healthcare systems. when their healthcare systems. when the first cases came, the leaders acted very decisively, so, by and large, responded within a week or two of each other lockdowns. almost in all cases before the first death and in some cases before the first case. the caribbean has established protocols for zeekah mac and other infectious diseases and has ten laboratories carrying out extensive testing and contact tracing for coronavirus. these la bs tracing for coronavirus. these labs have done and it fantastic job in turning around revolt —— and turning around results in hours and sometimes within a day. you are able to identify and do the contact tracing so

thatis and do the contact tracing so that is executing at containment strategy and the caribbean was very well prepared. —— zika. caribbean was very well prepared. -- zika. the caribbean is also used to disaster management like in late 2016, a hurricane wrecked the region. although coronavirus wasn't a hurricane 01’ coronavirus wasn't a hurricane oran coronavirus wasn't a hurricane or an earthquake there were parallels which saved lives. nowhere in the world is to as dependent upon tourism as caribbean was a bit as the region's economic lifeblood and without it, many island nations will go under but as a cautious reopening beckons, the regions phase of difficult balancing act. talk to me in a month and see if i am just as happy because coming out of this first wave and also trying to have a foundation for economic viability, while saving life, like i said, is the hardest

challenge in my career. the caribbean‘s covid—19 response may have been simple but it has been effective. with just 84 coronavirus related deaths in 20 different caribbean nations, the results speak for themselves. will grant, bbc news. a committee of the us house of representatives has launched an investigation into the sacking, late on friday night, of the state department's inspector general, steve linick. the white house has said the removal was recommended by secretary of state mike pompeo and president trump agreed. democrat members of the house foreign relations committee say the sacking was politically motivated. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes explains. this is the inspector—general in the state department, essentially an independent government watchdog, and he was, in a very late—night announcement on friday night, dismissed by the president, who said he no longer had confidence in him, and that he would be out of the job within a month. this is the fourth time now

in a matter of weeks that the president has dismissed people in similar positions, whose job it is to essentially investigate those members of the government where complaints exist, and in this case, reportedly, and there has been some reporting over the last few weeks about this, that this was instigated by mike pompeo, the secretary of state, because he was being investigated himself over alleged irregularities, the allegation being that he used some members of his staff, government members of staff, to carry out personal errands for him and his wife, things like picking up takeaway food and picking up his dog from the groomers. well, this inspector—general is now out of a job. he has been replaced by someone who worked as an aide to the vice—president, and is very likely, therefore, to be within president trump's camp. the question is, what will

happen to that investigation of mike pompeo going forward? the german football league has become the first major competition in europe to resume, since coronavirus lockdowns brought the sport to a halt in march. six bundesliga matches took place without spectators. with near empty stadiums, and some social distancing protocols in place, it was anything but an ordinary saturday of match action, as jenny hill reports. # and you'll never walk alone...# theirs is a passion that endures. fans who'd follow their team anywhere must make do now with watching from a distance. "two hearts beat inside me", sabina tells us. "of course, as a dortmund supporter, i'm glad it's back, but it doesn't feel right like this." they call them ghost games. no crowd to roar

victory, lament defeat. an odd prospect for the players, who quarantined for a week before the match. 0ff pitch, strict social distancing. it's two months since they last played. that doesn't seem to have thrown dortmund off their stride. dortmund just scored, and you could hear a pin drop out here. it's hard to believe a top—flight game of football is going on inside that stadium. the german football league admit this is largely about money. they feared smaller clubs would go out of business if they didn't resume matches. for this footballing nation, a strange day. polls suggest the majority of germans think it's too soon to play again. some league players and staff have already tested positive. even as dortmund celebrated in the new style today, there is no guarantee that this season will run its course. jenny hill, bbc news, dortmund.

abba's waterloo has been named the greatest eurovision song of all time by bbc viewers. ‘eurovision: come together‘ saw the british public vote for their favourites on the night that this year's song contest was due to take place. the competition was cancelled in march amid the coronavirus pandemic. speaking later, on a europe—wide broadcast, bjorn ulvaeus from the band, made a special appearance from his home. and it still remains one of the most genuinelyjoyous events of the tv year. and it is so disarmingly european, it allows you to escape and be happy, even forget about the coronavirus for a little while. alasdair rendall is president of the world's biggest eurovision fanclub. he gave us his reaction to the show. the shine a light programme, where the bbcjoined up with other broadcasters across europe,

was an amazing show. really quite emotional. i wasn't the only fan who was sitting there watching the tv tonight with a tear or two in the eye. it really hit the right tone and it was a really well put together programme. do you think it was the right thing to do something in place of the actual competition? because there were some people taking part tonight who should have been performing — others not. absolutely. you had over 40 songs selected to represent their country at eurovision, and it was absolutely the right thing to do to celebrate those songs. yes, they will never be eurovision songs in the sense of the the cancellation of the contest this year, but it was absolutely right for the broadcasting union, all the broadcasters, including the bbc, to celebrate those songs and to note them. as you said, only 40 contestants chosen to take part. what happens next year? will it be the same contestants? does it depend on each country? so the broadcasters announced at the end of the show tonight

that rotterdam will be hosting the contest next year. in terms of who is going to be taking part, a number of countries have already said that the act they've selected for this year will represent them automatically next year. what it won't be is of the same song, because all the songs that have been chosen for this year's contest, the cancelled 2020 contest, won't be eligible to take part next year, but many of the singers that were going to represent their country this year will hopefully be onstage in rotterdam next year. the bbc had a vote asking viewers to choose their best eurovision song for all time, and abba's waterloo was chosen. did you vote for that song? if i'm honest, no. controversial, i know — it's not my favourite of all time. where did your vote go? of the ones on show tonight, i voted for rise like a phoenix, a fantastic song that lifted eurovision other gear a few years ago, but realistically

there was no surprise for abba's waterloo to win, but to be honest, not my personal favourite. there was a rare appearance from abba's bjorn, though. yes, he appeared on shine a light and he gave an emotional message is really about how the contest will survive — long live eurovision. it was just what people wanted to hear — the fans that have been preparing for months. i think the words he spoke really resonated with people across europe. really good to have you with us. glad you enjoyed the show, even though you didn't vote for waterloo — we'll let you off! and you can keep up to date with all the latest news about covid—19 on our website. you'll also find features on the uk's five—tier coronavirus alert system, and how yourjob compares to others in term of exposure to the virus. that's all at bbc.com/news, or you can download the bbc news app.

you can reach me on twitter — i'm @samanthatvnews. hello. temperatures are set to climb over the next few days, peaking around the middle of the week with highs of 26 or 27 degrees in the south. a lot of dry weather as well, but the further north and west you are across the uk, the greater the chance of seeing some outbreaks of rain. that's certainly the case on sunday — this frontal system passing across the northern half of the country, but that front running up against this area of high pressure, which will be keeping things dry down to the south, and the squeeze between that high pressure area and the frontal systems pushing in from the west will drive the air up from the south — an increasingly warm feel over

the coming days. so, for sunday, we see some rain across the northern half of the uk. parts of north wales, northern england, just the odd spot of drizzle, which should tend to peter out during the day, and the rain across northern ireland and northern scotland will tend to fizzle around lunchtime but we expect more wet weather from the west into the late afternoon. further south, we'll see some spells of hazy sunshine, light winds here, more of a breeze further north you are and those temperatures, well, 17 degrees in aberdeen, 20, maybe 21 towards the south—east of england. just nine degrees there in lerwick, but shetland will spend much of the day under sunny skies. now, as we head through sunday night, we'll see these outbreaks of rain once again pushing across northern areas. further south, it stays predominantly dry with some clear spells, and certainly not a cold night — actually quite a mild one, nine to 11 degrees as we begin monday morning. and monday's weather setup is a similar one. high pressure to the south, frontal systems to the north. notice, though, there is a bit of a gap between these two frontal systems, so even across northern areas, there will be a fair amount of dry weather. we see these outbreaks of rain drifting away from mainland scotland and up across the northern isles, then something a little bit drier, still with a fair amount of cloud. similar story for northern

ireland, northern england — the odd spot of rain. further south, it's dry with some spells of sunshine and slightly warmer. again, 23 degrees in london. as we go into tuesday, it's another fine, dry, largely sunny day for much of england and wales, but for northern ireland and scotland, again we see cloud, we see some splashes of rain at times but not all the time. temperatures here, well, between about 14 and 18 degrees, but the further south and east you are, highs of 25 or 26. and we could touch 27 in the south on wednesday. by thursday, the increasing chance that we'll see rain spreading from the west, and it will start to turn a bit cooler.

this is bbc news. the headlines:

barack obama has delivered another attack on the trump administration's handling of the pandemic. in an online address to graduating students from historically black colleges and universities, mr obama said many officials didn't even pretend to be in charge. italy's prime minister has said coronavirus cases could rise as travel restrictions are set to ease from the beginning ofjune. giuseppe conte said italy must accept the risk, otherwise the country will never be able to start again. the uk government has defended its plan to reopen schools in england, and warned that the longer they're closed, the more children will miss out. teaching unions say they're not convinced that it's safe for more pupils to return byjune. the uk education secretary has insisted he's following the best scientific advice. coming up at 6 o'clock, breakfast with chris mason and rachel burden.