this is outside source on bbc news for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm kasia madera. we're covering all the latest developments and analysis here in britain and globally. everything is ready for the first commercial flight taking astronauts to the the international space station. i'm jane o'brien at the kennedy space centre — where the weather will be the deciding factor. but as of now, nasa says this launch ago. —— this launch is a go.

britain's prime minister, borisjohnson, comes under intense pressure from mps over his refusal to sack his top adviser, but he hits back during 90 minutes of questioning. i have no reason to depart from what i've already said. as protests rumble on in hong kong, the us secretary of state says the territory no longer merits special status under american law, because china is stripping it of its autonomy. welcome. in roughly 30 minutes we will reach a new milestone in space travel. for the first time a commercial spacecraft will take humans into orbit. we'll bring you that launch live on outside source. it's a weather permitting, of course. let's go live to kennedy space center. this is the spacex crew dragon capsule. it's at the top of a huge rocket, a falcon 9, also made by spacex. and on board are two nasa astronauts who will be launched into orbit where they willjoin the crew on the international space station.

they're scheduled to take off from the kennedy space center in florida's cape canaveral, at liz33pm local time, so injust over 30 minutes' time. jane o'brien joins us live from the launch site in cape canaveral. some are still not 100% sure whether this is going to happen, because the weather is so terrible there. this is nail—biting stuff. we are down to the wire. you can see the clock behind me, about half an hour to go, and we still do not know. apparently there will be a sort of round robin about ten minutes before the launch where various experts will say, is ita go? where various experts will say, is it a go? is it where various experts will say, is ita go? is ita go? go, go, and that there is the weatherman, he is the person who has the final say. if he can't see a window, a safe window

with no thunderstorms, no tornado warnings, no heavy rain that could cause flooding, and the is clear so that if something does go wrong, the astronauts can evacuate safely —— the flight path is clear, if he does not see that, it's not a go. all the preparation will have to be delayed oi’ preparation will have to be delayed or postponed until saturday. so fingers crossed because this is a historic launch and we still don't know whether it is going to happen. we always think the weathermen are the most important people, of course! but when it comes to this, it's so nail—biting, and they need a clear flight path right over ireland, don't they? that's the last time they could potentially evacuate, reject, if things go wrong. that's right, and we have now been told in the last few minutes, their escape capsule have now been armed, they've also closed their vices ready for flight, armed, they've also closed their vices ready forflight, so armed, they've also closed their vices ready for flight, so as far as those astronauts on board that tiny capsule are concerned, it's going

ahead. —— they've close their visors. but as i said, we don't know for another 20 minutes whether or not it's actually going to happen. my not it's actually going to happen. my goodness, another 20 minutes, bearing in mind it's due to launch in 30 minutes, that's really cutting it fine! we'll be back with you, that's a promise. and like i say, we are monitoring the seat from cape canaveral, we will of course bring you any details, any updates as we get it on that historic launch. —— monitoring the feed. boris johnson has been questioned by senior mps over his government's handling of the coronavirus outbreak. this is the first time since mrjohnson became leader in july last year that he has appeared before the commons liaison committee. and it comes amid a growing revolt within his own party over the behaviour of his top adviser, dominic cummings. mr cummings drove from london to the north east of england during the lockdown to isolate with his family, seemingly in breach of the rules. and yet despite the outcry, he has refused to resign

and the prime minister is refusing to sack him. here's what mrjohnson told the committee this afternoon. i do understand why people feel such indignation about the whole business, the pain of the whole business of the lockdown. but i really also think that what they want now is for us to focus on them and their needs, rather than on a political ding—dong about what one adviser may or may not have done. and there was this heated exchange with the labour mp yvette cooper. other than that, i don't really know what i can add. no, here's the problem, prime minister. the reason you are ducking this is because, the reason you're not giving people a straight answer is because you're trying to protect dominic cummings. the reason you sent all of your ministers out to say fudgy things and unclear things is because you are trying not to incriminate dominic cummings and you don't want to apologise for him. the problem is that means you're putting your political concerns ahead of clear public health messages to parents

who have coronavirus. 40,000 people are dead. we need you to get this right now. so can you tell us, you have a choice between protecting dominic cummings and putting the national interest first, which will it be, prime minister? well, i think my choice is the choice of the british people, i want us all to make, yvette, and that is as far as we possibly can to lay aside party political point scoring, and to put the national interest first, and to be very clear with the british public about what we want to do and how we want to take this country forward. this saga has made headlines around the world. the new york times writes...

spain's el pais newspaper has the headline "brexit ideologist sparks johnson's worst political crisis". the article goes on to say "ifjohnson initially thought that he could settle the scandal with a firm response, he was completely wrong." and the irish times asks: "when did johnson become so dependent on cummings? was he always this weak?" here's our political correspondent rob watson on whether the prime minister has done enough to move past the matter. i guess the short answer is, it depends on what your point of view is! for those who support the prime minister and really do want to move on, the talk about using the

lockdown, no doubt it would have been music to their use. but i think for those in his own party and of course beyond in the country, you think, he doesn't get it, the prime minister doesn't get it, that we are very angry, that you can't have one rule for people in downing street and another rule for people who live and another rule for people who live and work in every other street in the country, i suspect it will have done very little to assuage notjust that anger but also vast amounts of mockery and joking at the government's expense, which is a lwa ys government's expense, which is always a difficult thing. there's been a lot of meme's, a lot of fun taken out, been a lot of meme's, a lot of fun ta ken out, especially been a lot of meme's, a lot of fun taken out, especially at that castle, barnard castle, which is at the centre of this controversy. yes, absolutely. and, of course, as you are suggesting in some of those headlines you read, it's notjust here. of necessity, i don't mean this is a criticism, any

country'spoliticians are rather parochial, as indeed are its political journalists, parochial, as indeed are its politicaljournalists, so i think a lot of people in the uk are not aware of how the country'sstanding internationally has been in absolute freefall. i talked to diplomats, business contacts, from across the world, and the sort of narrative, whether you think it's fair or not, ifi whether you think it's fair or not, if i was to sum it up crudely, there's a perception that the same people that led to the uk to brexit have led it to the highest death toll from the virus in europe, and again, whether that's fair or not, it has all sorts of implications for the uk's economy and its clout and standing in the world. you mentioned brexit, stay with us, we wanted to discuss this a little further. the new‘s chief brexit negotiator michel barnier has written a letter to opposition parties saying the eu is still up into a one or two year extension to the transition period but of course the uk is clear it simplyjust does not want an extension. so what bearing does this

have on the future relationship with the uk and eu? do you know, i think it's really interesting, and of course, we've also slightly forgotten brexit alittle these last few months! but i think it's a reminder, this message has come from the uk's chief negotiator david frost, the uk is envisaging a much more distant relationship with the eu and! more distant relationship with the eu and i think anybody really imagined based on what happens during the eu referendum. and i think that has all sorts of consequences. i think that has all sorts of consequences. i guess think that has all sorts of consequences. i guess it means either that the european union is going to have to blink in some way and give the uk some concessions, because at the moment, the eu's view is, sure, if sovereignty is your big issue, you want a more distant relationship, yeah, but obviously, you cannot expect the same kind of economic benefits. now, with the eu is going to blink or whether the uk is going to blink or whether the uk is going to blink, who knows? we will have to wait and see what

happens. but i think the really interesting thing is, i think it has taken people interesting thing is, i think it has ta ken people by interesting thing is, i think it has taken people by surprise here and around the world, just how the uk, the current government, is envisaging that more distant relationship with the european union, where sovereignty is absolutely prioritised. stay with us on 0ustide source, still to come... we are watching the nasa feet from the kennedy space center like hoax calls are wood and we still don't know for sure whether the launch will launch is planned in about 20 minutes' time. —— we are watching it like hawks and we still don't know for sure. but as soon as we know, you will, too. scotland's first minister has told msps that thirteen more people have died after testing positive for coronavirus in scotland, bringing the total number

of deaths to 2,304. ms sturgeon was also challenged on her government's policies over tackling the pandemic in care homes. patients with symptoms should not have been discharged to care homes. clearly i did not see every patient who was discharged to a care home, i cannot stand here and give a categorical assurance that no patient with symptoms was discharged, it would be wrong to do that, but the guidance that was in place was very, very clear. similarly with isolation, the guidance issued to care homes in march made clear that there should not be communal dining, that there should not be communal activities, that people in care homes should be isolated in a way that has been hard for others but particularly hard for older people living in care homes. this is 0utside source live from the bbc newsroom. a private company is preparing to take astronauts to the international space station

for the first time. we are of course monitoring to see as and when that, if that lunch does ta ke as and when that, if that lunch does take place. —— if that launch takes place. the us secretary of state, mike pompeo, has suggested that hong kong no longer qualifies for special us trade status because it has ceased to maintain a high degree of autonomy from mainland china. mr pompeo posted this tweet saying... here's a former director of the us national economic council explaining why that would be so significant. if the chinese try and over regulate the international banks and companies in hong kong with the same those they have in china, i would think you would see many of those international banks and companies leave china and leave hong kong for sure and probably go to places like

singapore with a more friendly business environment. for more, i spoke to zhaoyin feng from the bbc‘s chinese service in washington. many people describe the latest move from washington as a nuclear option on china. it means hong kong will be treated as the same as mainland china for trade and many other purposes was up and from an economic point of view, this might well be a lose, lose, lose situation for china, the us and hong kong, where hong kong is very important commercial and financial hub for china, it's where money from east and west meet, and its a unique city for china. and at the same time, the us has many business interests in this territory and they are going to feel the hurt, as well. and most importantly, hong kong is going to deal with a major blow to the economy. the banking sector and

financial sector is really its lifeline, and this new deprivation from the us will likely hinder that. at the same time, the city has been hit very heavily by the months long protest last year, and its economy has not been doing well, and this is just another negative piece of news for the territory. china, in bringing about these stricter laws, aiming to do so, knew that this was aiming to do so, knew that this was a risk. it's china happy to see hong kong no longer be a crucial economic hub, then? that's an interesting question to ask. as you mentioned, only days ago, china also took another nuclear option on hong kong, beijing produced a —— proposed a new security law that will likely hinder the remaining freedom in hong kong. so many people are asking whether

the us move is actually pushing hong kong further away from the west, from democracy, putting it more towards beijing. and it's from democracy, putting it more towards beijing. and its expected that beijing will react to washington's ms very negatively, and very strongly, because china has long considered hong kong affairs is purely china domestic affairs and it will not like the us commenting or interfering, so called interfering, in hong kong affairs. just to add, of course, we are monitoring everything that is happening in cape canaveral with the spacex lodge, we will keep you up—to—date as soon as we know if it's going to happen. meng wanzhou, chief financial officer of chinese tech company huawei, has lost a key aspect of the trial on her extradition

to the united states. remember ms meng, who you can see in these pictures, was arrested in canada in late 2018. the us wants her to stand trial on charges including fraud linked to the alleged violation of us sanctions against iran. ms meng denies any wrongdoing, as does huawei. the judgment today revolved around a concept called ‘double criminality‘ — that essentially means the charges against ms meng must be considered crimes in both canada and the us in this case. and the judge ruled that in this case, they were. this case has international ramifications — it's caused a rift between china and canada — in fact on tuesday, beijing's foreign ministry spokesperson said this. translation: canada should really correct its mistakes, immediately release ms meng wanzhou, and ensure her safe return to china. remember as well that china is believed to have arrested two canadians in retaliation for ms meng's arrest. michael kovrig, a former diplomat, and michael spavor, a businessman — are both accused by china

of espionage. but canada's prime ministerjustin trudeau calls their continued detention "arbitrary". had ms meng won thatjudgment today, she could have been released. as it was, the extradition case continues. i asked our technology correspondent zoe thomas what happens next. so this means that the case is likely to stretch on for several more years in canada. there is's legal team has put up several legal challenges changing her extradition to canada. —— ms meng's legal team. the latest is whether canadian police violated her civil rights in arresting her. she could go free and go back to china. but there are many other levels of appeal and legal charges expected to go on, so we expect this case is going to stretch out. and it's going to continue to

put pressure on relations between the us and china and even between china and canada because of this trial stretching out. already, we are seeing that those relationships are seeing that those relationships a re pretty are seeing that those relationships are pretty tense, as it is. yes, there's quite a lot of tension going on. we see the tension expanding between the us and china over trade, over the coronavirus, over any number of things, and there are also putting particular pressure on huawei, ms meng's company. she is not just the chief financial officer, she is also the daughter of the compa ny‘s officer, she is also the daughter of the company's finder, and the us really doesn't want huawei involved in the creation of five—year networks around the globe. it's putting a lot of pressure on its trade partner, in countries including the uk, do not involve huawei. and if it can paint the company has kind of a bad actor with bad chief executives in charge, it certainly helps them to make the case that huawei should not be involved in creating what needs to be very secure networks. huawei, for

its part, says those charges are com pletely its part, says those charges are completely false, that it is a safe provider of five—year services, and this case really has, the us is making it about 5g and it shouldn't be about that, that this is, ms meng should be free because she did not commit fraud and this is the us trying to use its leveraged to prevent the company from expanding out and growing where us companies would like to be growing. some breaking news from the spacex lodge, i'm sad to say it has been cancelled due to bad weather. —— the spacex launch. jane, we can see that the plot behind you has stopped, it's not happening today. —— the clock. behind you has stopped, it's not happening today. -- the clock. it's not happening today. and what a nail—biting countdown it has been. just a few minutes ago whether experts were on the phone to the

flight experts were on the phone to the flight director saying, if you can delay this by ten minutes, we can get you whether opportunity, we have got a window. but that just get you whether opportunity, we have got a window. but thatjust didn't happen. the space director, the flight happen. the space director, the flight director said, that is not our timeline. and at that point, the decision was made to scrap the launch, and as you say, we can see, the clock has stopped, it is done. and now the crew are going to be taken off, and now the crew are going to be ta ken off, they‘ re and now the crew are going to be taken off, they're unloading the propellant, the fuel, and we are now looking at saturday as the next opportunity. and it's all because they absolutely had to hit that time, 1433 local time, they absolutely had to hit that time, 1433 localtime, in they absolutely had to hit that time, 1433 local time, in what is known as an instantaneous launch window, jane? that's right, that's exactly what the problem was, and they had three weather systems moving in, including in the clouds, electrical storms, it was just too dangerous. and we have been seen this all day. we had a tornado

warning just a few hours ago. the weather has been the deciding factor in this all along. all the systems we re in this all along. all the systems were at go, right up until a few minutes ago, nasa were saying, this launches ago, everything is working, all the technical creeks have been ironed out, it was simply the weather. it was always going to be about the weather and the weather has let everybody down on this occasion. and it wasn'tjust about the launch here, it was about making sure if anything did go wrong with the rocket, those two astronauts would be able to safely bail from their mission and splash land safely in the atlantic ocean, and that weather window also had to be safe enough to allow them to do that. but it's this window, it's the launch, that's been the problem. theyjust could not guarantee that the weather was going to co—operate. could not guarantee that the weather was going to co-operate. so a lot of disappointment, but it's not the end of what is a historic attempt, because they are now moving this saturday, that's my understanding?

yes, there is no doubt that this will happen. the issue is really when. and of course, there's been such a build—up, so much momentum for it to take place this afternoon, that has not happened. but, yes, everything will now move to saturday, that's the next window, and after that, sunday. and one of the reasons for that delay is because they have to make sure that the space station itself is correctly aligned with the rocket launch. so that the two can converge at the right moment, there was the capsule is playing catch up with the international space station and would not be able to dock. —— otherwise, the capsules plane kept up. so there are so many variables and that's why they had to hit that window, it was just about the weather on that score, it was about making sure they could successfully dock with the international space station. the next opportunity for that to happen will be saturday. and such a huge amount of interest, of course, this is a commercial company launching these astronauts, we have had the president, the first lady,

his children, as well, also touring the kennedy space center head of what would have beenjust the kennedy space center head of what would have been just an absolutely historic moment, and the astronauts being launched into, lodge from us soil for the first time since 2011. —— launched from us soil. that's right, this was a made in america moment, when you had an american made rocket launching from american made rocket launching from american soil carrying two american astronauts for the first time in almost a decade, ever since nasa retired its space shuttle programme, and the russians took over responsibility for transporting nasa astronauts to the international space station. that's one reason why president trump was here today, the first president to witness a launch since 1998, when bill clinton was here. so it really was a historic moment in so many ways and a moment that was going to define the whole

focus of future space exploration, by commercialising some of these more mundane, if you can call a rocket launch mundane, some of these more routine applications in order for nasa to start focusing on the big picture alike getting humans back to the moon, like getting humans to land on mars. as i said, it will go ahead, but it's a question of when, and were going to have to go through all this all over again, looking at the weather, monitoring the storms, and keeping fingers crossed. i say we, my feelings at the moment, frankly, are with the astronauts who were about to ta ke with the astronauts who were about to take off and are now going to have to get off that rocket and come home and stay on earth for at least another three nights. as always, thank you so much. jane o'brien there at cape canaveral on the breaking news that spacex is not lodging today and the astronauts jane mention, bob hurley and —— doug

hurley and bob behnken, will not be lodging, disappointment, but they're moving back to saturday weather permitting. and i'll be back in the next few minutes with the next edition of outside source. hello. cabbages were up as high as about 26 degrees today, highest in the south—east of england. —— temperatures were up as high. for many, a dry day, lots of sunshine. strong sunshine, too, and sometime developing for a while in scotland, but cloud amounts are increasing now. we still have high pressure in charge, but around the top of it, this weather front is moving in, increasing cloud in scotland and also bringing with it some outbreaks of rain. that's mainly going to affect northern scotland, for a welcome overnight, we'll see more cloud for northern ireland for a while, too, and some could come back and eastern parts of england. otherwise, sized for you. a warm night, there is temperatures probably in the north—east of

england, six or seven. as you can see, by the end of the night, not much rain left in scotland, what's left will move away into the north sea and global sin, in scotland, sometime will develop away from the northern isles, and a much sunnier day for northern ireland. some time for england and wales, after that, early cloud across eastern parts of england. a noticeable breeze, in the south—east of england, an easterly breeze pushing higher temperatures towards wales, the west country and the west midlands. again around about mid 20s. temperatures may not change a great deal over the next few days, low cloud for eastern england on friday, and then on friday dry day, plenty of sunshine, a breeze perhaps noticeable, but pushing the one of the further north, or the way up to scotland where we are likely to get temperatures in the mid 20s, warmer in the central part of scotland and perhaps across some south—eastern parts of england. it has been a dry weather for many parts of the country and it looks like staying dry for the next few days. could be

a record breaker considering some places in the south—east have had no ring at all this month. in to the weekend, the high pressure still in charge, weather fronts at bay and aircoming infrom charge, weather fronts at bay and air coming in from continental europe. temperatures again going to be around the mid 20s or so. for pretty much the bulk of the country, it's going to be high uv levels throughout this weekend, strong sunshine around, some patchy cloud bubbling up, maybe northern ireland and scotland, but not a great of that, blue skies and temperatures probably peaking at 26 or 27.

this is outside source on bbc news for viewers in the uk and around the world. we're covering all the latest developments and analysis here in britain and globally. everything was ready for liftoff — but the launch of the first commercial flight taking astronauts to the the international space station has been cancelled due to bad weather. it will take place on saturday now. britain's prime minister, borisjohnson, comes under intense pressure from mps over his refusal to sack his top adviser, but he hits back during 90 minutes of questioning.

i have no reason to depart from what i have already said. the death of a black man detained by police sparks violent protests in the american city of minneapolis. welcome. riot police have fired tear gas in the american city of minneapolis, as people protested over the death of a black man in police custody. video footage shows a white officer holding down george floyd with a knee on his neck. he could be heard repeatedly saying he couldn't breathe. four officers have now been sacked. our north america correspondent nick bryant has the latest. and a warning — from the start his report contains disturbing footage of the incident. this is the scourge of police brutality, a disease america has never been able to cure. i cannot breathe. you tough guy! an african—american pleading for air

as a white officer pressed his knee on the back of his neck. check his pulse, check his pulse! onlookers tried to help. but after being taken to hospital, george floyd was pronounced dead. the 46—year—old was being arrested following reports of the use of counterfeit money. what unfolded next we've seen many times before. protesters filling the streets carrying placards asserting that black lives matter and a kerb—side shrine, this time at the spot where george floyd was pinned down. i just want to say we are sick and tired of being sick and tired. too many lives have been taken. yesterday what we saw was a black who was lynched. right? they didn't used rope, he used his knee. then the fury broke loose, protesters targeting a police station in minneapolis, wrecking a patrol car and pelting the building.

officers responded with a volley of tear gas. and their own version of events. he physically resisted officers. officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs, and officers noticed the male was going into medical distress. but this security camera footage from the scene did not show george floyd resisting arrest, and the mayor of minneapolis denounced the firing of four of the police officers involved. ——announced the firing of four of the police officers involved. being black in america should not be a death sentence. this man's life matters. he matters. he was someone's son. this has become another american ritual, an african—american family going on television to express pain and dismay. they treated my brother like a scumbag, left him to die,

but they act like he was a piece of trash and just wanted to leave him there. racism has been the angriest fault line in american life, and even as the nation finds itself at the epicentre of the covid pandemic, we are watching it erupt again. nick bryant, bbc news, new york. tomorrow morning — from 9 am onwards — the government will launch a test and trace system in england. it marks the most significant change in the country's effort to tackle the coronavirus since the lockdown began nine weeks ago —— with the health secretary describing it as "your civic duty" to follow the new system. in scotland, a test and protect system will also be rolled out from tomorrow. first minister, nicola sturgeon, says the aim is to prevent "a second peak." here's our health editor, hugh pym, on some of the challenges facing the test and trace system.

it's billed as a new phase in the battle to contain the virus, targeting people at risk in the areas where they live so restrictions for others can be progressively eased. it will be a big ask for some — those who have been in contact with someone who tested positive will be told to self—isolate for 14 days. nhs test and trace means we can start to replace the national lockdown with individual isolation for those who have been in contact with the virus, and local action where it's necessary to respond to a flare—up. a local tracing system's already been tried out in sheffield. volunteers got in touch with individuals who had recently been in contact with people who had the virus, and it wasn't always easy. all you're saying to people is isolate, don't go to work, maybe don't earn, they're difficult things to say, and you're making people anxious they might get the illness, so that peace is hard. so will people self—isolate

if they're asked to? i guess there's a risk that some of your civil liberties are being infringed. but in the immediate instance, you've got to stay safe for the benefit of you and everyone around you. i'd probably initially be a bit scared, but i would be happy to isolate for 14 days. here's how it works. if you have coronavirus symptoms, you self—isolate and book yourself a test. if its positive, an official will call and discuss your recent contacts, anyone you have been two metres or less from for more than 15 minutes, or closer than one metre face to face, so that could be colleagues in the office or friends you may have seen. the tracers then call these people and tell them to self—isolate for up to 14 days, though ultimately it is voluntary. a smartphone app to help the process has been tried out but is not yet ready to be officially launched. so will the scheme work? some are cautious about how it might turn out in practice. it is a big undertaking, and the huge challenge is to link up

the testing and tracing people with your carers, the local gps, and the local public health system. but if we get it right, then it provides us with a fantastic community shield. it all depends on getting results back quickly after swab tests at centres like this. it's meant to be a couple of days, but some have had to wait longer. eight days later, i have still not received a result, and i am feeling very anxious. i'm just wondering when i'm going to get the text message to tell me. the scottish government's test and protect strategy will also be launched tomorrow. a scheme in wales is set to start next week. northern ireland's got under way last month. the aim is always the same — search out those who may be infected, get them to self—isolate, and hopefully contain the virus.

we have much more of course on coronavirus and a website. still to come we will be looking at the situation with space x. this is the live nasa feed from the kennedy space center. it is still going but the mission has been postponed until saturday all due to bad weather. we will have more on that. here in the uk, most of us, myself included, are desperate for a haircut — but as the rules stand, we have to wait until at leastjuly. while shops are allowed to reopen in england next month, hair salons have been told they can't open before the 4th ofjuly. rick kelsey has been finding out how hairdressers are getting ready. july the 4th. independence day for hairdressers. the day the government says silence may be able to reopen, but only if they are covid are

ready. welcome to our new silent. we have been knocking balls, changing the cell and for everyone. we had 12 chairs and now we have eight chairs to separate each person and we're going to be sterilising each station every time our clients finish. this station in north london has spent thousands of pounds reconfiguring for a socially distant future. in the space of four weeks it has transformed, knocking down walls, new boots, and taking out reception space. appointments will be ince blocks with clear start times. i was extended and you will receive a text before an appointment to confirm you have had no covid symptoms for a week. staff all working shift team so they can isolate one team and keep the cell and open if someone falls unwell. but how can you stay safe when cutting hair? we are going

to be wearing our ppe which is a face shield, face mask and gloves. normally we have assistants washing our clients hair but i will be doing everything. mrs lott and you will have to rebook. as well as changes to the way staff act, customers are going to have to change their behaviour too, which could involve turning up at a set time, not waiting around, and even possibly wearing one of these while getting a haircut. this is outside source live from the bbc newsroom. the launch of the first commercial flight taking astronauts to the the international space station has been postponed due to bad weather in florida. let's return to our top story, the historic spacex launch that was called off with minutes

to go at the kennedy space center in florida. the launch will now take place on saturday, if the weather permits, and it will become the first commercial spacecraft will take humans into orbit. the space historian and broadcaster, dallas campbell. and broadcastei dallas campbelljoining us now. is it normalfor is it normal for something is it normalfor something like this to be postponed at such a last—minute? it was pretty close to the why ever. yes, they had started loading all of the propellants on, 70 minutes, but they had a very fixed lunchtimes they couldn't extend it, and i was listening to the radio chatter and they were saying that maybe they could hold the lodge for ten minutes but they couldn't do it and yes, absolutely, when you're sitting on top of the rocket safety first is the main thing. but we get to do it all again on saturday, so that is the good news. yes, and i hope you are free. just talk us through that very narrow window, it is described as an

instantaneous launch window. why is it so crucial to hit that particular time once that decision has been made? to be honest, i am not entirely sure why they couldn't have done it, but there are a million things you have to think about when you are launching a rocket. the spacecraft itself, plus the weather, and everything has to be absolutely working together and i don't think the weather was particularly bad but there was one particular constraint that was just outside the margins, and even if it is the tiniest thing, thatis and even if it is the tiniest thing, that is it, there is absolutely no risk whatsoever, and so perhaps in another time they could have extended it a little bit, but not for today, the whole thing gets move to another launch window on the 30th and if that gets cold there will be another launch window later on but we will keep our fingers crossed for saturday. i think the weather is meant to be a little bit better but it isa meant to be a little bit better but it is a bit ofa meant to be a little bit better but it is a bit of a dice roll still, as it is a bit of a dice roll still, as it always is. is it always is. we we re it always is. is it always is. we were speaking to our correspondence

he was talking at the tornado warnings that were happening and yet they were still continuing with it. it just goes to they were still continuing with it. itjust goes to show how precise and also how historic this attempt is by space x given that this is a commercial enterprise, a commercial company. yes, it really is, it is a whole day of a whole launch of firsts. first conventional company, firsts. first conventional company, first astronauts launching to the international space station from american soil in 11 years, so every astronaut that has gone to the iss has flown from kazakhstan on soyuz for the last decade so this is a big moment of pride, and this is also where the saturn five lodge to the moon and the other shuttles launched from, that particular launch pad has such history and unfortunately at this time of year it has rather dodgy weather. that is putting it

mildly. two extremely experienced astronauts who are due to, well, have that the attempt on saturday. tells what you know about them. well, as you say, very experienced, both shuttle veterans, both have flown multiple shuttle missions in fa ct flown multiple shuttle missions in fact doug hurley i believe he flew on the very last shuttle mir soon, so the very last time astronauts left from that launch plaid he was there. that is another first. interestingly, they are both married to astronauts so, you know, it doesn't get more astronaut than those two families. but are also, you know, military test pilots. there is a reason why these two astronauts have been chosen. they are both... you know, naval test pilots and on air. test pilot so this is what this is about, it is a test flight, an end to end test flight test flight, an end to end test flight from the moment of launch all the way through to docking and all the way through to docking and all the procedures on the international space station coming back down into

the atmosphere and the splash landing so an end to end test flight, landing so an end to end test flight, you need test pilots. the first shuttle flight back in 1981, i remember it, i was ten, bob crippen and john young, again, extremely experienced test pilot. so yes this is the final flight merely paving the way up for space x to take cues up the way up for space x to take cues up to the iss regularly. i am really old. i haven't got much time, but also tell us about the connections, the incredible spaces, how they are built when they go up there. what do you think about the new space x suits? i'm a bit know about them. it is funny, it is basically a pressure bladder, that one of the backers is a replica of an apollo era neil armstrong space spacesuit but yes,

they have come a long way and when elon musk was talking early about the spaces he said the two most important things about space it is they have got to save your life but they have got to save your life but they have got to save your life but they have also got to look excellent because if you want to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers you need good looking spacesuits. i prefer these ones though. you are a brave man to say that elon musk‘s spacesuits look quite not quite up to scratch. you'll like it is a matter of taste. i'm old school. thank you so much forjoining us here.

all the indications are that italy's sports minister will give the go—ahead for series 80 resume next month. there have been some positive signs lesson next month but he have talked about the fact that he would like to see some series a match is on free to air tv. he is also said that the health protocols for a return to matches are quite similar to the return to training and the players have been back in training for most of this month. if they do get the green light they will be a meeting on friday to discuss the fixture list. what they would like to happen is that matches would start and june the 13th, that would be the four fixtures for match day 25 that would postpone including inter milan against andorra and on the weekend after all the teams

would be in action for match day 26 and they would go on for bare. if, as expected, the season does resume then we could be in for a cracking title race. the champions event is just one point to get a flat seo who only won the series a title twice in the history before. this might affect their thinking when it comes to resumption in italy, one side will have to go back to training individually after it was revealed that a member of staff was suspected of having coronavirus. if a positive tea m of having coronavirus. if a positive team test is confirmed the whole tea m team test is confirmed the whole team will enter group isolation but will then be able to train together as per the new guidelines regarding group everton football in italy. after over a thousand more tests of players and staff, clubs in the premier league voted to move on to

contact training next week per the government guidelines that were issued a feed to go. here is our reporter laura scott. it is a significant step because clearly the players need to be able to train in close contact to get anywhere near what they will face when they return to action service followed the government approving elite sports people to phase two of training. the players and the managers were confronted on this yesterday and then the clubs met this morning in another shareholders meeting. now, what this phase of training will involve his close contact, tackling, and it will enable the club is to bring players into full—time training so they could do 11 versus 11 from tomorrow so when a club will choose to do that or not is entirely up choose to do that or not is entirely up to them, clearly it would come with an increased risk of transmission, but, as i said, the players will want to feel that they have had a lot of that training before they return to matches. he said that the liverpool players are

feeling comfortable and safe and he described the measures that have been put in place and is amazing but then we have got a former goalkeeper who is one of the players that tested positive last week and he came said it came as a total surprise to him, he hadn't had any symptoms, and the manager said that it had shaken the whole squad so clearly there will be some concerns that still remain but it does seem that still remain but it does seem that they are happy to move forward in this sort of majority to this next stage. is a minority, some players have been excused from group training. watford is one of those who has remained at home. his young son knows his main concern there. his team—mates and the position he is in. of course, he has his reasons because he has someone at home, especially his son, of course you need to look after him. for a club like us, we cannot afford to lose a player like troy. it is going to be

another player that can fill this gap, but probably is not the same because he is left for the whole campaign, he is in the club for the la st campaign, he is in the club for the last ten years. lets move away from football now. the national hockey league in north america have cut short their regular season with a final position is being decided on average points per game. the still pale and, though, to have the standing play—offs but the formats will be very different. round robin qualifiers arejust will be very different. round robin qualifiers are just two hub cities. i think realistically if we are in training camp in mid—july that would bea training camp in mid—july that would be a good thing and if we can be playing by the end ofjuly or beginning of august that would be a good thing too but if it has to slide more than it will slide. there isa slide more than it will slide. there is a reason we slide more than it will slide. there is a reason we are not slide more than it will slide. there is a reason we are not giving you dates now because anybody who gives you a date is guessing, and we think

we'd rather take a more holistic approach to doing this. now, to the good news positive story of sports getting back on its feet. rugby league returns in australia on thursday, with the country regarding hardly any new cases of coronavirus. the league is ready to get going again. here is a report from sydney. it doesn't really lend itself to social distancing, but this will be australia's first major sport back after the covid—19 shutdown. rugby league's nrl wanted to return fast. now its biggest hurdle is winning public confidence. starting it up again this quickly seems to me ridiculously risky. if there was no such thing as a rugby league, and you had to invent a game way by covering the virus could be transmitted in the quickest manner possible as wide as possible among a group of two or three dozen men,

you've come up with rugby league.- try and make sure that doesn't happen, there are dozens of messes to minimise risk. from daily health checks and claiming match balls, to keeping outside well back. —— dozens of measures. and for those of the house of the game, tight restrictions on and off the pitch. the players, this officials and everyone have to make sacrifices, self—isolate and everyone have to make sacrifices, self— isolate and keep everyone have to make sacrifices, self—isolate and keep away from the community, so they go to the ground and go home again and it is already doing. so there is very little risk when you do that. it is a good example for all spots around the world but if you have a proper bio—security measures in place you can get spots going as long as everybody abides by the bio—security measures. that is not guaranteed. these three high—profile players we re these three high—profile players were fined after going on a camping trip and there are plenty of other controversies. this new zealand team has been allowed into play even though international travel is effectively ban for everyone else.

only six grounds are being used for the tournament's restart so that means for is no home matches. it might not be as big a disadvantage as it sounds, though, because one of the key conditions of the nrl coming backis the key conditions of the nrl coming back is that games are played in empty stadiums. i'm quite lucky to be out here which isjust like... for the players at least that is a price worth paying to resume their careers. obviously it is a shame and we love having all the fans there but they are going to watch from their homes anyway so even though we don't have that personal contact with them were going to try and do it. if the first few weeks of the season are trouble—free and if australia's coronavirus infection rates stay low, the league hopes there will be some spectators allowed byjuly, another big step for the spot‘s remarkable return here. simon atkinson, bbc news, sydney. good luck to them, although it is clear that not everybody is convincing australia that it is the

right thing to do. the return of rugby league. that is it for me and the rest of the team here at the bbc sport centre. for now. with no sieve and if you can rain in the focus on the next holiday that could be a record—breaking day. high pressure is dominating our weather. bit of rain overnight in scotland should be gone by thursday morning. i was planning on breaking something coming through. we will get much more sunshine arriving in northern ireland and after some early cloud based in england it should be a dry and sunny day across england and wales. not quite as one of the

south—east will we have got any sleep breeze that will push the rain further west towards eastern england. again temperature is likely to be in the mid 20s and it will be a one end to the day. we will keep those clearer skies in most areas except toward shetland and orkney. i purchased the land and as we head towards the end of this week and may be some slight changes, because we'll pick up a little bit more of a breeze around the area of high pressure. then we will start with some low cloud across eastern parts of england again on fire, won't last long at all, it is going to be blind sunny day on friday and pretty much across the board, little patchy cloud bubbling up here and there, heat is pushing northwards, mid 20s i think heat is pushing northwards, mid 20s ithink in heat is pushing northwards, mid 20s i think in scotland, probably warmer in glasgow on friday that it will be in london. into the weekend that area of high pressure is still with us. it starts to migrate more toward scandinavia, allowing the beast to pick up again, but will still keep those weather fronts that debate, so it is dry, it is sunny again on saturday, some patchy cloud bubbling up saturday, some patchy cloud bubbling up here and there is a wander through the day, may be more likely

for scotland and northern ireland but the temperatures aren't really changing a great deal so again we are round about the mid 20s. it will bea are round about the mid 20s. it will be a little bit cooler than some coast with more of a breeze and perhaps some sea breezes developing as well but the weather pattern is still the same, i think, during the second half of the weekend. again, no rain, it is staying dry right till the end of may. dry and sunny, the sun beating down, drying things off once again. those breezes pushing the warmth northwards as well, and some of those changes naturally changing room much on sunday from. public peak at around 27 degrees. maybe more warmth towards western pa rt 27 degrees. maybe more warmth towards western part of the uk. as we move towards the end ofjune the high starts to weaken. another one in 20 coming from the atlantic in between we have got a weak weather front. that will probably bring some clu bs front. that will probably bring some clubs and northern ireland and into the north west of scotland but at this stage it looks dry, but those areas will be a little bit cooler in the heat is getting squeezed down towards england and wales where we have got the sunny skies,

temperatures are going to be into the mid 20s once again. now, looking further ahead, a lot depends on high pressure building in from the atlantic, and at the moment it may not quite make it, with lower pressure towards the north of the uk, now we need to look at the jet strea m uk, now we need to look at the jet stream and also the air mass. so there is the jet stream, high—level wins, and they are going to be diving down to the west of the uk and we are going to be on the cooler side of thatjet and we are going to be on the cooler side of that jet stream and we are going to be on the cooler side of thatjet stream and we may well find pressure dropping as well. what does that mean? what it means that, first of all, we have got cooler air arriving in the north—west that will push its way south was, but as pressure drops as well, the potential for south was, but as pressure drops as well, the potentialfor some wet weather, and that is more likely in the north—west. as yet, nothing concrete for the south—east of the uk.

tonight at ten, borisjohnson repeatedly says no to an official inquiry into the conduct of his top adviser, dominic cummings. borisjohnson was giving evidence to a committee of senior mps, defending his government's handling of the pandemic. but the mps questioned his approach and whether he understood public anger about the conduct of his closest adviser. i think it's been a very frustrating episode, and i understand why people have been so concerned, because this country is going through a horrendously difficult time. we'll have details of what was at times a challenging session for the prime minister. also tonight... the new test and trace schemes will be rolled out in england and scotland from tomorrow ministers say it's everyone's civic duty, to cooperate.