following the actions of the prime minister's chief aide. junior minister douglas ross says he's stepping down because of the government's defence of dominic cummings and his family trip during lockdown. we'll be getting the latest reaction from westminster. also this lunchtime — weeks before they're back at work, retailers say they're worried about how they'll cope with stringent new restrictions, if shoppers do come back. before this all happened, 70% of retail sales were made in stores, so although it won't return to that in the next sort of three to six months, we're hoping that people will go out and support their high street. heading in the right direction — the trend in deaths from coronavirus continues downward, with the lowest rate for six weeks. back in business — doctors make final checks

on the greek islands, as they re—open to domestic tourism. and the final cut. councils get snippy as some hairdressers break the rules to treat customers‘ out—of—control lockdown hair. and in sport, world number one rory mcilroy says he believes the ryder cup, scheduled to take place in september, will be postponed until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic. good afternoon, and welcome to the bbc news at one. just when the government was hoping the row over dominic cummings was calming down, news of the resignation of a junior minister. douglas ross — who was under—secretary of state for scotland — quit as ministers contined to defend the actions of the prime minister's senior adviser during lockdown. mr ross said he believed

that mr cummings‘ view of the government guidance was not shared by the vast majority of people. our political correspondent nick eardley reports. has he done enough to save his job? mrcummings, were you has he done enough to save his job? mr cummings, were you telling the truth yesterday? do you think the public believe you ? truth yesterday? do you think the public believe you? dominic cummings leaving home this morning, flanked by two police officers. leaving home this morning, flanked by two police officersli leaving home this morning, flanked by two police officers. i think what idid was by two police officers. i think what i did was actually reasonable in these... in the circumstances. downing street is hoping yesterday's extraordinary press conference, his account of why he drove his family 250 miles during lockdown to isolate, would be enough to move this story on. people will make their own mind this story on. people will make theirown mind up, this story on. people will make their own mind up, and as dominic himself said, there will be many people who think his actions were wrong or mistaken, but looking at it

in the round, i think his actions we re in the round, i think his actions were reasonable. but this has been a mess few days for number ten. it has done damage to borisjohnson, and some fear it has harmed public health messaging, too, at a time when the government needs people to follow advice. douglas ross has resigned as a junior minister, one ofa number of resigned as a junior minister, one of a number of unhappy scottish conservatives. in a letter to boris johnson, mr ross said his constituents had missed funerals to follow lockd own constituents had missed funerals to follow lockdown rules, adding it, i cannot in good faith tell them that they are all wrong and one senior government adviser was right. there are others, too. i think they have to say this has gone too far stop there is a huge public backlash against what has happened, and the way in which it has been handled. it has become a distraction from the job of getting people back to work,

back to school, protecting health, and rebuilding the economy. there are tory mps who think that mr cummings' account yesterday helped, and are desperate to move on to talking about something else. but others are still deeply concerned, excusing mr cummings sends out mixed messaging and risks undermining the government's authority. the anger out there in the public shows quite clearly that they feel it is one rule for them and one rule for government advisers, and that is a very, very dangerous thing for the public, position for the public to be in the during a time of crisis, we need to entirety of the population to be working together to try to get through this crisis. the government wants to move the focus to ease in lockdown, but there

continue to be questions over its defence of mr cummings. 0h, bbc news, westminster. our political correspondent alex forsyth is at westminster. the government wants to move things on, but... it isa the government wants to move things on, but... it is a fairly big but, because downing street had hoped that dominic cummings appearing before journalists yesterday would draw something of a line under it. but it is also quite clear that that has not happened. we have heard from some conservative mps, including cabinet minister michael gove who was on the airwaves this morning, suggesting that they feel that dominic cummings' account of his actions is justified. dominic cummings' account of his actions isjustified. they say dominic cummings' account of his actions is justified. they say he became within the rules —— behaved within the rules and regulations, did not break any laws, and the prime minister's spokesman believes he acted reasonably and legally. but as you head and neck‘s report, some conservative mps are continuing to express their anger and frustration. more than 20 have now said dominic cummings should resign or be sacked.

it centres on two key points, one being the concern that mr cummings' actions may have undermined the government's public health message, and one that was reflected in the resignation letter of douglas ross, that they cannot defend his actions to their constituents. what will be

crucial now is how many more conservative mps enter into this as well as the opposition. thank you very much, alex forsyth. most shops are being allowed to reopen in england next month. car showrooms and outdoor markets will be able to welcome customers from next monday. other shops will follow on the 15th june. they'll have to place limits on the number of shoppers allowed in at the same time, and introduce a one—way system. pubs, restaurants and hairdressers will remain closed. some smaller retailers say they may struggle to have government measures in place in time. nick beake reports. truly scrumptious in the poole has been on the high street for years, but with nobody able to buy the suites for the last two months, they have been losing hundreds of pounds. _by have been losing hundreds of pounds. —— by they'r sweets. have been losing hundreds of pounds. -- by they'r sweets. i have installed a new glass screen and to protect my staff and their customers. the government's decision to let customers return from the middle of next month gives her

business a chance to survive. middle of next month gives her business a chance to survivem middle of next month gives her business a chance to survive. it is very important for my shop door to be open when it is safe to do so. we rely system. the two metre distance rule will still apply. if that is not possible to keep, the advice is to cover your face. we possible to keep, the advice is to cover yourface. we are possible to keep, the advice is to cover your face. we are urged to avoid touching stuff we will not buy, and when it comes to paint, contact is best. many shoppers will be delighted that their favourite stores will soon be reopening, but not everyone will be rushing back to the shops. that is because there is still the risk of catching the virus. although we are told it is much smaller now. of course, over the past few months, many of us have been doing much more shopping online, from the comfort of our homes. but retailers hope customers will go back to their old ways. as a nation, we have been penned up for some time now. before this all happened, 70% of retail sales were made in stores, so although it won't

return to that in the next sort of three to six months, we are hoping that people will go out and support their high street. there is still no word on when hair salons will reopen, so we word on when hair salons will reopen, so we will be at the mercy of our relatives' efforts for a while yet. but more places will be able to say they are open for business, yet it is far from a business, yet it is far from a business as usual. nick beake, bbc news. our business correspondent simon gompertz is in west london. all very well having the measures in place, but you need to be shoppers to come back, don't you?” place, but you need to be shoppers to come back, don't you? i think thatis to come back, don't you? i think that is right, and some stores will be worried that people will be too cautious going onto the high street,

and won't be spending. and they have the concern of that, in order to justify reopening, they need to have the turnover, the cash coming in, in order to pay their staff. particularly the case for smaller shops, and they'll have the challenge as well of doing all these measures within the shops to social distance when customers come in. and thatis distance when customers come in. and that is a bigger ask for smaller shops than, say, the big shopping malls which are well set up for that already and have been planning for some time. so imagine you havejust got one door into the shop, and you are doing one—way shopping for customers. 0ne are doing one—way shopping for customers. one suggestion that some stores are saying is that they will open a door at the back to let people out that way. what shoppers will see is complete setup. they might end up queueing up outside in order to restrict numbers, then when they go in, there will be hygiene facilities inside. that's the plan, and there will be perspex screens where the counter is. all sorts of

measures like that. and there will be challenges us well for charity shops for instance, which have a lot of second—hand items coming that have been touched by other members of the public. they will have to wait 72 hours before putting them on display and sorting them and making them available. so i think stores will find this quite a challenge, andi will find this quite a challenge, and i think the point about the high street reopening it is going to be more gradual. we are going to have big gaps still, pubs, catholics, tattoo parlours, hairdressers, barbers, they are all still hoping that they will be opening in the beginning ofjuly. simon, thank you very much. the number of people who've died with coronavirus in england and wales has fallen to its lowest weekly level in a month and a half. the office for national statistics says there were 3,810 deaths in the seven days to may the 15th. 0ur head of statistics, robert cuffe, is here. a downward trend, robert, this is good news? the overall trend is moving in the right direction. we can show the figures, and you can see there has been a slight blip in the last week.

if you look at the red line here, the total number of deaths is slightly up, but it is an artefact. these are deaths not registered on the bank holiday on the friday, slipping into the next week, that is backed up further. if you look at the blue line at the bottom, deaths that mentions covid—i9 on the death certificate, you see the trend is continuing to fall down and down. we are now reaching a lower level than we have been out since april. still not back to normal. the total number

of deaths is kind of what we would expect to see at this time of year, the grey line in the middle of the chart, we are about 5000 above that, so chart, we are about 5000 above that, so not back at normal yet, but moving in the same direction —— the right direction. seen a picture in ca re right direction. seen a picture in care homes as the population at large. a slight blip in total registrations, but overall it is downward. who's been hardest hit? ca re care homes have born of the heaviest front, if you split this picture by age group, it is a very different picture if you are under a5. 0n the left—hand side of the graph, the red line in the real ensuring the total debts, it is much, much lower. and secondly, the red line is on top of the grey line, we are not seeing any excess deaths in the under a5. 0nce we move above a5, above both of our ages, you start to see an increase in the number of deaths, but nowhere

near as sharp as you see in the number of deaths, but nowhere near as sharp as you see on in the number of deaths, but nowhere near as sharp as you see on the other 75 is where you see most of the excess mortality. and it underlines a strong age effect here. we have seen about four deaths in people under the age of 50 compares to tens of thousands in those under 75. -- to tens of thousands in those under 75. —— four deaths in people under the age of 15. robert, thank you very much. the nhs is appealing for more people who've recovered from covid—19 to take part in a trial in england to see if their blood plasma can treat patients with the virus. three groups of donors — men, those over 35, and people who have had hospital treatment — are most likely to have plasma rich in antibodies that can help others. 0ur health correspondent laura foster reports. when alessandro contracted coronavirus and ended up on a hospital ventilator, he feared he'd never get to see his family again. it's why, when he recovered, he wanted to help others by donating plasma in his blood. instinctively, the last thing you want to do is go into a hospital environment again and have a needle put there, but then i thought actually that i had been given so much, and literally those people saved my life, and you feel so hopeless and you feel so unable to help others, and that was the only way i could figure out at that point to give some of this back. when alessandro was sick, his immune system produced antibodies to help fight the virus. these antibodies are found in the gold coloured part of our blood, known as plasma. the idea is that this plasma can be given to other people, whose immune systems are struggling, to help fight coronavirus. pop—up blood donation stations are being set up in unusual places, like the bar at the harlequins rugby ground. existing blood donation centres are also being made bigger, all part of the aim to take up to 8,000 donations a week.

it can be very, very emotional, and it does actually get you quite upset sometimes, but then you see these people have come out from the other side, and like i said, they're so enthusiastic and so willing. the researchers have found that men, those over 35, and anyone who was hospitalised with coronavirus, produce the most antibodies. there's no effective treatment known for covid yet. convalescent plasma is a potentially effective treatment, so we're really keen to explore this as a possibility. in fact, alessandro's blood contains a0 times more antibodies than the average donor. so that means i can give a lot of them away, which i'm very pleased to do, and suddenly, as my friends knew about that, they've all become very nice to me! in case they ever need it in the future. they're particularly asking for people to come forward in manchester,

birmingham, and london, where there have been a lot of cases of covid—19. starting today, plasma is now included in the biggest study in the world, the recovery trial, which looks at re—purposing existing treatments. if found to be successful, plasma could be used to treat covid—19 in hospitals all over the world. laura foster, bbc news. the time is 1:16. our top story this lunchtime. the first government resignation following the actions of the prime minister's chief aide — junior minister douglas ross — says he's stepping down because of the government's defence of dominic cummings. coming up — 80 years on and the miracle of dunkirk is remembered. we hear from a veteran recounting his remarkable story of one of the pivotal moments of the second world war. coming up on bbc news, as the latest round of coronavirus testing in the premier league continues, bournemouth goalkeeper aaron ramsdale confirms he's tested positive.

countries across europe are continuing to ease lockdown restrictions, as infection rates fall. greece, where the outbreak has had relatively little impact, has taken another major step. its islands have opened to domestic tourists for the first time in months. quentin sommerville is on the island of milos for us now. greece was one of the first to lock down and now hopes to be one of the first to exit the pandemic. bars and restau ra nts first to exit the pandemic. bars and restaurants reopen tomorrow, reopened yesterday, and it is hoped the islands that reopened yesterday also will attract tourists. on a 100—mile—plus journey, these athens doctors are the first visitors to sikinos in months. the greek islands are accepting visitors again. the mayor of the island welcomes them ashore. we're greeted with elbow bumps

instead of handshakes. there are enough coronavirus tests for whoever wants them. we do know that, so far, there haven't been any cases on the remote islands, but there hasn't been any testing also. there are only 250 people on this island and none of them have been tested for covid—19 until today. the village was built on a hilltop to safeguard it from pirates. they're hoping its isolation continues to offer protection. greece has had only 172 deaths from covid—19 and is leaving lockdown faster than expected. foreign tourists still have to undergo quarantine. terry harris has been living here for a0 years. i came here and i isolated myself for two weeks in my house and the lady from the supermarket — flora — she delivers everything, so they brought up, on a donkey,

water and any supplies i wanted. at the temporary test centre, father theodorus leads the way. these tests are essential as greece prepares to welcome back foreign tourists in the coming months. today is the first day that everything comes back to normal, including restaurants and all the borders and ships, so we are concerned about everything being planned in the best possible way. greece is emerging from the pandemic earlier than others — not unscathed, but in better shape than most. isolation is a way of life here, but so, too, is tourism. the health of the islanders depends on both. quentin sommerville, bbc news, the southern aegean. from june the 15th, foreign tourists will be allowed back to greece and its islands and they will no longer

have to do a quarantine, but every country is not included, those with high rates like the uk and russia will have to wait a bit longer. people travelling to spain will no longer have to self—isolate for two weeks from the 1st ofjuly. the spanish government said the worst was behind the country and it was looking forward to welcoming tourists. here, the foreign office still advises against all but essential international travel. guy hedgecoe is in madrid. there is an improving picture? yes, the country has been embarking on lifting restrictions over the past couple of weeks and here in madrid this week we saw a further lifting of restrictions with people using bars and of restrictions with people using bars a nd restau ra nts of restrictions with people using bars and restaurants although only at tables outside. we had news about the 1st ofjuly when foreign tourists will be allowed to enter the country without going into

quarantine. the feeling seems to be from the government that although the tourist season, which is so important in spain, it makes up 12% of gdp, although the early part has been pretty much totally wiped out, it wants to safeguard the peak season it wants to safeguard the peak season from july to august. it wants to make sure spain is seen as a com pletely to make sure spain is seen as a completely safe to make sure spain is seen as a com pletely safe cou ntry to make sure spain is seen as a completely safe country by the time july comes around, and that is the idea. it has decided on the strategy of opening up from july, which is later than other countries such as greece and others around the southern mediterranean, but the feeling is that can make sure there is some kind of peak tourism season here in spain. thank you. brazil says it will not change its recommendation to use a malaria drug to fight coronavirus, despite the world health 0rganisation suspending trials of the drug because of safety concerns. president trump has claimed that hydroxychloroquine can protect people from becoming infected, but a study published last week suggested it could cause heart problems and increase deaths among people with covid—19.

hong kong's leader has insisted that china's plans to impose new security laws on the territory would not damage people's rights. last year, the former colony was rocked by months of pro—democracy demonstrations. the new meaures are seen by critics as an attack on democratic freedoms, but carrie lam said this morning they would onlly target they would only target a handful of criminals. in january last year, 14—year—old jaden moodie was knocked off his moped and stabbed to death in east london. today, a serious case review has concluded authorities could have intervened whenjaden was being was being exploited by criminal gangs. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford is here. this makes for grim reading. the report paints a picture of the short and troubled life. jaden moodie was born to parents who separated in the year of his birth and his father was deported for drug dealing to jamaica and his mother brought him up alone and his mother brought him up alone and took him out of secondary school when he got in trouble for bullying and threatening a boy with a ball

bearing gun. she sent him to stay with his grandmother in london and she followed that could not stay in the same house. she was sofa surfing while he slept on the grandmother's sofa. in 2018 he was found in bournemouth in a drug dealer's cuckoo house and when he was returned from there, the police took him home and there was not a system put in place to rescue him. his mother was still homeless at the time of his death. this report says there needs to be a national system for rescuing and responding to children aged as young as 1a, even younger, who found themselves caught up younger, who found themselves caught up in the world of county lines. as most of us know lockdown hair is a thing. after months since a visit to the hairdresser — we're either letting nature take it's course — or risking a home trim.

earlier this month our correspondent colin campbell reported on barbers in kent breaking the rules and offering haircuts. now, council officers are stepping in to remind barbers of the consequences. here's colin's latest report. posting prohibition orders through barbers‘ doors, this is trading standards‘ enforcement action to stop the spread of covid—19. they are targeting shops suspected of continuing to operate during the pandemic. some are alleged to have been secretly cutting hair at the rear of their premises. is there evidence this barber has been cutting hair? yes, absolutely. at the moment, the premises looks empty, although there are signs that somebody has been into the premises. the post has been picked up and there are signs that the till has been opened. but, at the moment, the shop is empty. posing as a prospective customer, at the beginning of the month, i found 19 out of 50 barbers willing to break the law. 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, you have to sit down in the kitchen, because i want to...like, private. i don't want anybody to see you because it's going to be a problem for me. can you get to my shop in about ten or 15 minutes? to your shop in ten or 15 minutes? yeah. at the time, few 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, so, for me, it doesn‘t matter. cracking down on rogue barbers, kent trading standards has now issued prohibition orders to 30 shops. what these select number of barbers are doing is unfair. they are not complying with the legal requirements and they are putting people‘s lives at risk by continuing to trade. this action welcomed by those sticking to the rules. those reputable salons that are out there, that are sitting tight, worrying about their financial

future, are quite rightly feeling angry and undermined by the irresponsible actions ofjust a few in the sector. barbers are not expected to be allowed to reopen before the 11th ofjuly at the earliest, and that is if they are able to meet social distancing measures. colin campbell, bbc news, kent. it‘s 80 years since 0peration dynamo, the evacuation by small boats of more than 300,000 troops from the beaches of dunkirk during one of the darkest periods of the second world war. duncan kennedy has been to today‘s commemoration in southsea and has been hearing the remarkable story of one 99—year—old veteran. plays last post. dunkirk, said churchill, was a miracle of deliverance. lawrence churcher was a witness to that miracle. today, aged 99, he came

to portsmouth to recall dunkirk. its story of salvation and its tally of great loss. in may 1940, lawrence found himself in the chaos of dunkirk. evacuation the only hope against a german advance. lawrence had two brothers serving somewhere in the army. but his only thought was to get off that beach. when i first started bringing them back, of course, i didn‘t think about my brothers. i thought, well, how am i going to get back, that‘s the thing, you know. but, in the confusion of evacuating more than 300,000 men, lawrence, here in the middle, literally ran into his two brothers — george on the left and edward on the right. their reunion in the bomb—cratered

sand dunes of a beach under siege was a moment lawrence will never forget. relief, just relief. because there were so many soldiers there and continuous aircraft coming over, dropping bombs and things, you know. all three brothers made it off the beach with the help of the armada of little ships that had been sent from britain. and all three sailed home safely to their mother waiting in portsmouth. she was pleased, obviously, the fact that i was there for them. and then when the fellas leaned over my shoulder, came a sigh of relief, and said, "thank god we‘ve got a navy."

covid—19 means this year‘s gathering of little ships to mark the 80th anniversary of dunkirk cannot take place. but one small naval ceremony was enough for lawrence churcher to remember the salvation of his country and his family. duncan kennedy, bbc news, in portsmouth. before the weather, as britain continues to count the cost of the coronavirus pandemic, a look ahead to what‘s coming up on bbc news later tonight. music plays. i‘ve felt broken on many an occasion. everything's 0k. you are at the royal london hospital. we were 20 beds away from being overrun. it has ripped into the heart of our community.

time for a look at the weather. here‘s chris fawkes. there are a number of places that have seen very little rain this month and although we have a weather front today bringing cloud, it is not strong enough to bring rain. just a little bit of disintegrating cloud drifting southwards. it means for the majority, another dry day with long spells of sunshine. temperatures around greater london might reach up to 28 degrees. the air is fresherfurther might reach up to 28 degrees. the air is fresher further north but warm in the sunshine with a high of 17-20. warm in the sunshine with a high of 17—20. 0vernight, cloud drift southwards and perhaps low cloud. some fog patches forming in the