the government says it'll continue to pay tens of billions of pounds to protect the jobs of furloughed workers affected by the coronavirus lockdown. the chancellor, rishi sunak, says businesses will only have to start paying a contribution from august. i believe it is right in the final phase of this eight—month scheme to ask employers to contribute — alongside the taxpayer — towards the wages of their staff. support for the 2.5 million self employed receiving grants will continue through the summer. also on the programme: at last, reunions in scotland for the first time in weeks, as the lockdown eases. we'll explain what you can and can't do across the nation this weekend.

living with the virus, the longer term future of the nhs, in the age of covid—19. more violence in the us city of minneapolis, over the death of a black man at the hands of the police. donald trump weighs into the controversy. and hallelujah — handel's messiah gets an outing — as thousands of choirs beat the lockdown. and coming up on bbc news: liverpool's title—winning game could be played at a neutral venue when the premier league season resumes in just under three weeks.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the government will continue to spend tens of billions of pounds well into the summer, to protect the jobs of furloughed workers affected by the coronavirus lockdown, but businesses will need to start paying towards staff wages from august. the chancellor, rishi sunak, said the scheme — introduced to prevent mass redundancies — needed to adapt as the economy reopens. employers will have to contribute around 5% of salaries from august, rising to around 20%, before the scheme runs out at the end of october. the programme currently supports more than 8.5 million workers, with the chancellor also pledging to extend support for the 2.5 million self employed who now receive grants, through the summer. the estimated cost of both schemes stands in the region of £100 billion. the news comes as the number of people with covid—19 whose deaths have been reported in the last 2a hours stood at 314.

-- at 324. here's our economics editor, faisal islam. the editor, faisal islam. government'sjob scheme has helped the government's job scheme has helped keep 8.5 million workers on payroll is on tap effectively including here. the only change to that generosity might push them over the edge. it would not be viable for us the edge. it would not be viable for us for the farlow scheme to diminish and for us to contribute more if we do not have clarity as to what is going on because at the end of the dfm bar is closed and there is no money coming in how are you supposed to contribute to that scheme? it is going to mean lots of people out of work. at least i was 8.5 million workers will continue to get the bulk of their wages paid for by the taxpayer. injuly bulk of their wages paid for by the taxpayer. in july this bulk of their wages paid for by the taxpayer. injuly this can be on a

part—time offering flexibility for companies facing workers back to work. in august firms will have to pay national insurance and pensions, about 5% on average, and in september the taxpayer contribution will go down to 70% and then 60% in october. a further 2.5 million self—employed workers will be eligible for a slightly less generous grant representing 70% of income over three months. the car industry today revealed a 99.7% slump in sales in april, one reason by the total cost of both of these unprecedented schemes is heading towards £100 billion, we have essentially borrowed money. the chancellor says it is still value for money. first of all, in aggregate the scheme is very generous. eight months is a long

time to have the support. if you look at the employer contribution it will amount to the employer making a 596 will amount to the employer making a 5% contribution. the will amount to the employer making a 596 contribution. the opposition says it is taking risks with unemployment. some sectors like hospitality look like they could be locked down for quite a long time. they are not going to necessarily have the cash flow to have employers paying in to support staff so this could lead potentially to majorjob losses. the government has a delicate tv balancing act between controlling the pandemic, saving jobs and the cost to the taxpayer. it will make its judgment today is to carry on spending more than expected and that means a third of the workforce will continue to have the workforce will continue to have the vast bulk of their wages funded by the taxpayer for most of the year. it is the self—employed like this folk singer who feel relieved

by the announcement but still concerned about the future. first, i am appreciative we are going to be supported until august. i worry about my ability to keep touring, especially after years of training and graduating with a degree in music, it is very heartbreaking. the treasury said the self—employed were already treated differently, for example being allowed to carry on working while claiming support. the message from the chancellor, his spending will continue through the summer but as the economy reopens it must come to an end. our chief political correspondent, vicki young, is at westminster. it isa it is a tricky problem for the chancellor, changing a scheme that has been so successful in securing thejobs of millions has been so successful in securing the jobs of millions of people. of course, and announcing their help in the first place is in some ways the easy pa rt the first place is in some ways the easy part as everyone is going to be on your site, but the sheer scale of

this, the government paying the salaries of millions of workers and to extend it for eight months until october, a real sign of how hard the road ahead on the road to recovery is going to be, and in many ways the chancellor not shying away from that, talking about the recession and the fact he will not be able to save every singlejob. and the fact he will not be able to save every single job. labour broadly on side but will concern you are taking away some of that support before allowing things like pubs and restau ra nts a nd cafe before allowing things like pubs and restaurants and cafe is to reopen, so even making a small contribution to people's salaries could be a big problem. overall this has been a dose of painkillers to get people over the short term but listening to the chancellor it is very clear he thinks it is still going to hurt when that support before allowing things like pubs and restaurants and cafe is to reopen, so even making a small contribution to people's salaries could be a big problem. overall this has been a dose of painkillers to get people over the short term but listening to the chancellor it is very clear he thinks it is still going to hurt when that wears off, we just do not know how much. thank you. from today, people in scotland have

been allowed to meet friends and family in small groups outdoors, for the first time since lockdown measures were introduced. it comes as wales' first minister announced plans for relaxing restrictions there, with borisjohnson saying yesterday that some measures in england would also be eased, from next week. in a moment we'll hear from our correspondent in cardiff, hywel griffith, and duncan kennedy in the new forest. but first, let's go to scotland, where one family have had an emotional reunion, as sarah smith explains. six—week—old penny meets her wider family for the first time. it is unnatural, carefully keeping two metres apart. you just want to reach across. in scotland to different households can meet. they are not to share food, cutlery or crockery and not to go indoors. you are desperate to show them off the people, particularly your family. did you go to the loo before you came?|j particularly your family. did you go to the loo before you came? i did. it was the last thing i said. only if people stick to the rosewell this

new freedom processed. if people stick to the rosewell this new freedom processedm if people stick to the rosewell this new freedom processed. if people do not abide to are going go backwards. the right to barbecue and picnic has been delivered on the hottest day of the year. the police did not have the year. the police did not have the legal power to enforce the new rules. it is scenes like this that led nicola sturgeon to say she is nervous about relaxing the rules in scotland. she says things should not feel back to normal because we are not back to normal. if you are in doubt about whether your plans are within the rules or not, air on the side of caution because however harsh these rules might feel right now, and i know that they do, abiding by them will never be as harsh as grieving the loss of a loved one. people in scotland can finally play some sports as long as they are outdoors. while we wait three weeks before the government reveals whether they can relax the rules even further.

too fast or too slow? the journey out of lockdown can feel exhausting. from monday, louise and herfamily will be able to meet relatives here in pontypridd with no limit on the head count, but they cannot travel more than five miles, so family in the midlands will have to wait. i think they are making changes according to people's behaviour. as we can see, people are getting lockdown fatigue and i think people are breaking the rules and maybe being irresponsible, so i think it makes sense in a way to be pragmatic. the changes in wales are meant to depend on data rather than a set of dates. the number of new coronavirus cases has gone down but the rate at which the virus is spreading hasn't. stay local and not sharing facilities with other people we think remain sensible, precautionary steps when the r rate in wales is no better today than it was three weeks ago.

shops have been told they may be able to reopen in three weeks, but some feel left in the dark. sian has several businesses here. she is anxious for pontypridd to recover after flooding earlier this year but she's frustrated. i think the longer we are dragging our feet and we are not getting any kind of clarity it's going to harm businesses, it's going to harm people's mental health. we are behind and it's causing issues. the welsh approach is unapologetically cautious. no plans have been announced for schools. this change comes one step at a time. hywel griffiths, bbc news, pontypridd. in england, from the beaches of brighton to the scenery of surrey, people are preparing for the changes that start on monday. in the new forest, most but not all families

welcome the adjustment that allows groups of up to six people to meet. i will not be out gallivanting around everywhere. it is dangerous. we have to keep on how we are doing, social distancing. police figures show fines for breaching lockdown fell below 900 in the past two weeks. guardians of popular places like there still have concerns about what is coming. across england the rules change from monday about social distancing. what is your message to the public? you need to plan your visit and you need to maintain that social distancing mentioned in the regulations. you cannot suddenly turn up of 20 members of yourfamily cannot suddenly turn up of 20 members of your family to have a party. from monday any meetings must be outside and keep to the two metre rule. this is evolution, not reparation, from lockdown. so, what do all these changes to the lockdown measures mean? how could they affect all our lives?

our health correspondent, catherine burns, has been looking atjust some of the key issues. how many people can i meet up with? this depends on where you live. northern ireland is allowing groups of up to 60 meet outdoors. from todayit of up to 60 meet outdoors. from today it will be up to 18 parks and gardens in scotland —— up to six to meet indoors. all four nations make the important point, social distancing is still vital. all this contact must be two metres away. in ink on the advice is if you have to go then you can go, but it is absolutely critical that you clean and wipe everything down after you. elsewhere the advice is to avoid the loo and other people's homes. any good you

can have a barbecue as long as eve ryo ne can have a barbecue as long as everyone washes their hands but it is bring your own in scotland, wales and northern ireland. can i travel to visit friends or family? this is another mixed picture. in england and northern ireland you can travel as far as you like. the scottish and welsh governments would prefer you stay local. they suggest about five miles. has anything changed if i am shielding? this is the same answer no matter where you live. if you have been told you need to shield, because you are at more risk of getting sick with coronavirus, nothing has changed. you still need to stay there until you are told otherwise. the story is changing quickly and new questions are coming in all the time. you can find more information on the bbc news website and the coronavirus tab. one of the scientists advising on the coronavirus response has said he disagrees with the decision to ease the lockdown and that it

comes with a degree of risk. the scientific advisory group for emergencies released 50 documents and records of their meetings today. our medical correspondent fergus walsh is here with me now. who is the dissenting voice? this is professorjohn edmonds, who is at the london school of hygiene and tropical medicine. he said with the current level of infections in england, about 8000 new cases per day, you couldn't hope to bring them down any lower by replacing blanket measures by these targeted measures such as test and trace, and he said that that then would equate if you had a fertility rate of 1% to about 80 deaths per day, but he recognised that this is obviously a political decision that has to be balanced against the impact on the economy and on mental health and on children's education, so it is a political decision. there was a huge dump of sage data, the scientific

advisory group on emergencies, and the thing that struck me from these documents going back the last couple of months is the huge level of uncertainty amongst scientists. the government always said this is led by the science, but there is a massive level of uncertainty, and one particular paper said that on behalf of people with coronavirus symptoms self—isolate for a minimum of seven days as recommended, and thatis of seven days as recommended, and that is really worrying because it is the number one way in which we can control the spread of the virus. 0k, can control the spread of the virus. ok, many thanks. of an unarmed black man, at the hands of police officers. donald trump tweeted that "thugs" were dishonouring george floyd's memory. but twitter accused him of "glorifying violence" with a post that said, "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." our north america correspondent, nick bryant has more.

fires of fury, fires of frustration. phrases from the civil unrest of the 19605 that phrases from the civil unrest of the 1960s that apply once more in 2020 america. for the third night running, parts of minneapolis were burning. this a police station overrun and set ablaze. for protesters, a landmark of racial injustice. they believe that an unarmed african—american, linfield, was murdered by the police. to quell the protests, the state because my democratic governor sent in a national guard. he called the unrest unacceptable, but recognise there was a lot of pain and anger.|j cannot breathe. this was the spark for america's latest firestorm. a

white police officer filmed for america's latest firestorm. a white police officerfilmed kneeling on the net of george floyd, despite him pleading he could not breathe. mr floyd's family had said that the four police officers implicated in his death face murder charges. this morning, on television came what was widely seen as another act of racial injustice. the police handcuffing an african—american correspondence from cnn, who were simply reporting on the overnight disorder. donald trump initially called the video of mr floyd's death shocking, but went on twitter to describe the protesters as pugs, adding that when the looting starts, the shooting starts. that prompted the social media network to attach a warning to the tweet, saying that it violated the company's tweet, saying that it violated the com pa ny‘s rules has triggered protests in other cities. so a country already confronting a health and economic crisis is now in the midst of another racial reckoning.

detectives in kent are appealing for more information, after the death of a man in his 60s near a lake at lulling—stone castle, in eynsford, yesterday afternoon. police say they're investigating reports of an altercation with two boys in which stones were thrown. they're asking any anglers, cyclists orjoggers who may have been in the area at the time, to come forward. it's been more than 2a hours since the new virus testing and tracing systems in england and scotland were launched. but there's been some concern about fraudsters taking advantage of the way people are contacted — which could be by text, email or a phone call. public health officials in england have told the bbc they are working with the national cyber security centre to make the programme as robust as possible. our health editor hugh pym reports. hi, my name's ellie, i'm calling from the london coronavirus response cell. these are the highest qualified phone contact tracers, dealing with the most complex community cases.

here, they've dealt with ten since the launch of the new scheme yesterday, but they're expecting more. we've put this system in place to be able to deal with what arises over the next few weeks, so we're ready and able to respond to all of the positive cases that are identified in the community. these specialists are at the top the pyramid. thousands more working from home are tracing contacts of people who test positive. if you have symptoms, self—isolate, get tested, and also self— isolate if you are told to by an nhs contact tracer. but one tracer who wanted to remain anonymous told me so far she had made only one call. i'm a little bit frustrated at the roll—out not being quite as smooth as expected. i would have expected a little bit more support. there's nobody senior to speak to. we're all speaking amongst ourselves, but there's no team leaders as yet that we can contact.

some concerns have been voiced about possible fraud, hoax callers and fake invitations to log into websites. health officials say they're seeking to minimise the risk. we are concerned but we are working with the national cyber security centre and others to make sure that the programme is as robust as possible and that all of those issues are monitored. testing remains critical. some experts say more will be needed if the test and trace system is to work effectively. hugh pym, bbc news. all this week we've been reporting from one of the hospitals hardest hit by the coronavirus. in tonight's fourth and final report from the royal london hospital in east london, i've been looking at how the nhs is trying to adapt to the new reality of a virus that at the moment has no cure or vaccine, and the continuing grief of those in the local community, who've been worst affected.

this is the story of one hospital, and one community. in the time of covid—19. their harmony in the face ofan covid—19. their harmony in the face of an almighty challenge. what does the future hold for the men and women in and out of uniform? and can the nhs adapt to a new normal way of working with a virus that could be here to stay? we were given unprecedented access to the covid—19 award of the royal london hospital in the east end. we had permission from all the patients or their families to film. go, go, go. we watched the agonising attempt starts

to save this man, who was just 55. and we spoke with a nurse, the only person by his side as he slipped away. i just person by his side as he slipped away. ijust sat on a tear and just held his hand to be with him in that time. he was the proud father of four sons, including one here on his graduation day. he wanted to speak to us about his dad. i only got married last year, so it has been one year and married last year, so it has been one yearand a married last year, so it has been one year and a bit, so... married last year, so it has been one yearand a bit, so... again, you know, number of us would have thought this time last year in that kind of happiness that something like this would have happened, actually, so we have to try and move on. i think that's going to be the ha rd est on. i think that's going to be the hardest thing for the first few weeks, months. he was only two and a

half weeks shy of his 56 birthday, actually, so he didn't even make it to that. but trevor smith has led to see another summer. his 65th. his voice box is no longer silent. for weeks, his life hung from a plastic tube inserted into his throat to provide the supply of oxygen his body needed, that covid—19 had choked off.

trevor survived, after being in the deepest and darkest of places. now the sun is shining. but when will the sun is shining. but when will the sunshine for us as a nation? when can a collective morning begin? all the deaths have so far been wrapped up in charts and graphs, close to 40,000 are dead. but this pandemic isn't about numbers. it's about people. for vetera n for veteran trauma consultant surgeon martin griffiths, it's the humanity of the nhs in this pandemic

thatis humanity of the nhs in this pandemic that is now attracting scores of new recruits. people are running towards it, the medical students are running towards hospitals to become medical support workers and to start their training early. we don't have the people on the ground to support the effort. and there is kindness everywhere. the nhs is thriving for now. there are even two new gleaming floors at the royal london for possible covid—19 patients, but what about cancer screening or heart disease? many who are sick in the community had stayed away, worried they might catch the virus. hello, sir. good morning. intensive care co nsulta nt sir. good morning. intensive care consultant nick bunker wants them back. all of the people who would normally have presented here with ailments, where are they?” normally have presented here with ailments, where are they? i suspect some of them have died, some of them are at home. for cancer, we have not been doing a lot of diagnostics, so if you are not doing a diagnostic you don't pick up the cancer with

the few symptoms that people have early on, so perhaps we are notjust detecting. it's still out there. the fervent hope as the lockdown eases is that people will drift back to the nhs for whatever hurts them, and the nhs for whatever hurts them, and the service will be able to help eve ryo ne the service will be able to help everyone if we help ourselves. there are friends and there are colleagues who we know who are dying or sick. people i care about being lost to cuaron of. you can't overstate how simple measures are having a huge effect. i know it is boring and i know it is challenging, but look at it from my perspective. i don't need to see any more dead people. what happens to the nhs now the clapping has stopped? will the reverence and

esteem way? will the extra funding dry up? whatever happens, the commitment of the men and women we came across at the royal london won't transform, because this is personal. working to help the community they serve is part of a deeper reward. you think to yourself, is this what i want to do with my life? yourself, is this what i want to do with my life ? and yourself, is this what i want to do with my life? and the answer is yes, absolutely. this is the one time i need to stand up and do myjob. this is the one time i absolutely have to be there. and that was my final report from the royal london hospital in east london. the series was produced by sam piranty and filmed by cameraman david mcilveen.

we've all missed being with friends, families and colleagues over the last few weeks, but the two million people in the uk who belong to choirs, have missed the experience of singing together. this weekend thousands of them will gather online for a singalong of handel's messiah, which lasts hours. jon kay has the story. if i could ask everybody if possible to stand up for me. what would handel have made of this? # hallelujah #. it was mark strachan's idea. missing his friends in a dorset choir during lockdown, he suggested singing online. music is more than just notes on a piece of paper. the feeling of singing with your friends, there's a feeling of going to the same place to be together. there's a feeling of the performance where you're doing it together with other people.

this virus has taken all that away. meet choirmaster ben england. just make sure... he agreed to lead nightly rehearsals of the messiah. hello to andrew. he expected a couple of dozen to sign in. but soon, there were three and a half thousand. andrew and nora are twins. he's in berkshire, she's in yorkshire. but the choir means they can be together, despite lockdown. what's it like singing on your own with headphones on a computer? it might be a little bit odd, but knowing that andrew might be 300 miles away but he's singing at the same time as me and three and a half thousand other people just makes it good. this has just been a fantastic way of still getting that togetherness and still getting the fun that you get from singing the messiah.