this is bbc news. the headlines at four. a warning that the country is at a critical moment in the coronavirus pandemic. figures show the highest number of detected infections is in young people — as many students prepare to return to universities. several more areas of england have been added to the government's watchlist of places with high rates of coronavirus — they'll be closely monitored, and restrictions may be re—imposed. government departments in england are told to get civil servants back into offices as quickly as possible following the coronavirus lockdown — but one union has described the government's attitude as outdated. in france — the highest rise in coronavirus infections is recorded since the start of the pandemic.

in australia, tensions on the rise as anti—lockdown protestors clash with police. here, extinction rebellion activists have delayed the distribution of several national newspapers after protesters blocked access to three printing presses owned by rupert murdoch. and at 4.30 canadian mike corey rediscovers his scottish roots by heading to the isle of skye to see the negative impact that the downturn in tourism is having on scotland s historic buildings. good afternoon. the government is being warned that the country is at a critical moment in controlling the spread of coronavirus — as thousands of students prepare to return to university.

dame anne johnson — who is a member of the government's scientific advisory group — says she is particularly concerned by a rise in infection rates among young people. in leeds, people have been urged to socialise sensibly and responsibly this weekend, after the city was added to a government watchlist of areas with high rates of infection. council leaderjudith blake said there had been an increase in music events, house parties and illegal raves and said fines of £10,000 were being given. our health correspondent richard galpin reports. it is amongst young people now that there is mounting concern about coronavirus infections. although the virus has much less impact on the young they can spread it to other people.

soon thousands of students will be travelling to start winter term at university. they will be travelling to parts of the country that may not necessarily be seeing outbreaks and they might be carrying infection with them and may potentially infect more elderly relatives who may also be more at risk. now council areas regarded as hotspots are ramping up preparations to get young people to take risks more seriously. more young people are testing positive and they are spread around the city. it is now clear that the pattern is changing and a very strong message going out from us, to avoid having further restrictions put on us, everyone has a responsibility.

leeds is already being seen as a coronavirus hotspot. it has been added to the watch list of areas of concern. that list is growing. south tyneside, middlesbrough, rossendale, corby, kettering, norfolk, are also now on the list after increases in cases. it is a particularly big challenge the country faces as winter approaches — ensuring young people stick to the rules to prevent infections rising will be critical. yunus lunat lives in batley in west yorkshire 7 and works in leeds as an employment lawyer. you work in leeds. you live in batley. are you worried about lockdown restrictions being returned to the area was i do not know about being worried, because i live in correctly is where we had this

lockdown in place probably over a month. what concerns me is the attitude of people in power, government, mixed messages. i do not think people are taking this seriously, their message is not getting through. what evidence do you have that tells you the message is not getting through. in the report i have listened to, there was mention about increasing music events, street parties. i made a note about those particular items. there is increasing numbers of music events. i think it is staggering. i go running at the weekend. in the daytime, all the street parties that i have observed as i run through, and these are respectable areas with

and these are respectable areas with a street parties are taking place. the message is not getting home. it is the mixed messages from the government. are you seeing any kind of enforcement at the moment?” government. are you seeing any kind of enforcement at the moment? i do not know what the enforcement policy is. there may be lockdowns in areas but i do not think the message is getting on, people are not taking the message seriously. it stems from the message seriously. it stems from the dominic cummings affair, i think since then i have noticed peoples attitudes are seeing, if that is the standard that has been set by those that are supposed to be enforcing and leading this, why should we bother? what do you think the answer is to all of this? leadership. it is a lack of leadership. continually we are seeing mixed messages from the

government on this. in my community, we had a celebration recently, i ta ke we had a celebration recently, i take my hat off, there was an organisation that did this outside, to minimise risk, the council and their wisdom threatened prosecution. that is contrary to government advice. the advice of the health secretary was the same but my counsel threatened prosecution if this prayer took place outside. should there be lockdown reintroduced in leeds? that is not for me to say. the messaging that this coming through is not clear.

the leadership is not certain. i go back to the dominic cummings affair. people's attitudes have changed since the dominic cummings did. we do not hearfrom him now. this a further eight people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in england. all of the patients had underlying health conditions. in wales there has been one further death, while in scotland there were no deaths reported in the past 2a hours. the government is urging civil servants in england to return to work in the office. in a letter seen by the bbc, it wants 80% of civil servants to be at their workplace at least once a week by the end of the month. but unions have described the government's attitude as outdated. 0ur political correspondent nick eardley has more. a months ago this was unthinkable, but now

this is a common sight. many people have got used to working from home. now, ministers want that to change, encouraging more of us to think about returning to the office. the government is seeking to lead by example with the head of the civil service saying government staff should be back where possible quickly. mark sedwell writes that the prime minister believes increasing people in the office will be hugely beneficial for our workforce. in a letter to permanent secretaries he adds...

by the end of the month ministers want four in five civil servants back in the office some of the time, using a rota system to limit numbers. there is a warning that if it is not a return to the office many businesses may close. if those workers do not come back until the new year, and that is a driver of footfall in city centres, you might see a huge wave of closures and redundancy as a result. the government has had some success in getting people back into city centres. eat out to help out saw 100 million meals claimed, ministers say protecting 2 millionjobs. some say the workplace has changed forever and ministers should spend more time preparing for the consequences. the government is virtue signalling, using the civil service to send a signal to the private sector. they are dreaming about a world of work that has quite frankly gone.

in scotland, wales, northern ireland, the message is still to work from home where possible but in england the government is hoping that more people can be persuaded back to their workplace. france has registered its highest daily infection rate since the start of the pandemic. the latest figures, over 2a hours between thursday and friday, show almost 9000 new coronavirus cases. transmission is mainly among young people, which means hospital admissions aren't nearly as high as what they were back in march. the increase is partly a result of more testing, but there are concerns after 12 million children in france went back to school this week. 0ur europe correspondent damian mcguiness explained more about what had lead to the situation in france. schools have gone back, dozens have had to close again because they have had a couple of outbreaks there as well. as life has got back to normal in france and people have gone back

to work infection rates have risen. it is a very worrying record. back in march at the height of the pandemic, at the strictest point of the lockdown, there were 7500 infection rates. this is a sharp increase in daily new infections. this is partly because of a sharp increase in testing as well. we are seeing a more realistic view of the figure. we are also picking up in france a lot more people who are possibly not showing any symptoms, so it is showing a more realistic view of the situation. the other thing happening is a lot more younger people are transmitting the virus between them, that is serious because it means it is spreading throughout the population, but the good news is they are less likely to suffer severe complications, so even though we are seeing a slight rise in hospitalisations it is not as dramatic as the total rise in infection rates.

it is a more realistic picture but it is a worrying trend because we are seeing across europe a sharp rise in daily infection rates. travellers returning to scotland from portugal now have to self—isolate for iii—days. the country was added to the quarantine list after a rise in infections there. wales imposed its own restrictions yesterday. there is no change for travellers returning from portugal who live in england and northern ireland. india has confirmed more than four million cases of coronavirus — making it the third country in the world to pass that mark, following the united states and brazil. dr ramanan laxminarayan is director of the centre for disease dynamics, economics & policy in delhi — he's been explaining how the virus has been spreading around the country. the first cases were mostly in urban areas where people are living cheek byjowl and things transmit quickly, but over a period of time the disease has also spread to rural areas, and you have to remember that most

of india lives in rural areas where healthcare facilities are poor, testing facilities are not great and for a while it is going to be an invisible epidemic in rural india but it will show up in the form of hospitalisations where these are possible and obviously a very large caseload as well. the medicaljournal, the lancet, has published data on the phase—one trial of the vaccine for covid—i9 developed by russia. russian researchers say early tests showed signs of an immune response and that every participant developed antibodies with no serious side effects. professor peter 0penshaw from imperial college london told us these findings are reassuring to some extent. i think this is perfectly credible vaccine. it is based on similar

sorts of technologies to the vaccine that has been developed in oxford and which has recently published a similar phase one results. the thing about this one is that they have been getting two doses are separated bya been getting two doses are separated by a few weeks of some very important component virus, and they have inserted a bit of the sars coronavirus into it so that generates a powerful reaction. hundreds of people have joined anti—lockdown protests in melbourne as tensions rise over the state s handling of the pandemic. at least 15 people were arrested as some demonstrators clashed with police. freya cole reports. chanting for their freedom, which these protesters say has been taken away from them. police form a barrier in return, pushing back against the crowd that has no regard

for the coronavirus regulations in place. it is not safe, it is not smart, it is not lawful, it is selfish for people to be out there protesting. the only protest they should be engaged in, the only argument, the only fight, is against this virus. it did not take long before things turned ugly. more than a dozen people were arrested. in some cases there was violence. melbourne is coming to the end of its second six—week lockdown. covid—i9 cases have fallen dramatically. there were 89 new cases in the last 204i was. that restrictions are set to end next week but the premier not ruled out a extension. divisions are growing deeper, a bitter rift between anti—lockdown protesters and those willing to comply. this the headlines on bbc news.

a leading epidemiologist has warned the country is at a critical moment in the coronavirus pandemic, with many students preparing to travel to universities. several more areas of england — including leeds and middlesbrough — have been added to the government's watchlist of places with high rates of coronavirus — they'll be closely monitored, and restrictions may be re—imposed. government departments in england are told to get civil servants back into offices as quickly as possible following the coronavirus lockdown — but one union has described the government's attitude as outdated. sport and a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. we're a0 minutes away from england's first fixture of 2020 — they‘ re in iceland. phil foden is set to make his england debut.

gareth southgate's side will be lookng to shake off memories from four years ago. this will be the first time they'e faced iceland since their shock exit from euro 2016. the team has definitely improved over the last four years. those games are always in your mind. you a lwa ys games are always in your mind. you always think about what you could have done better. we have moved on well. we are in a great place in the squad. exciting team. we are excited to be back playing for england. it has been great to training here with the boys. everyone is looking forward to it. also in england's group — belgium and denmark, who face off later this evening.. 0ne of three big clashes tonight — you've also got portugal and croatia while france are in sweden. it seems scotland's nations league game against the czech republic will go ahead on monday — after confirmation from both nations and uefa — following a covid outbreak within the czech camp. lewis hamilton will start on pole position at the italian grand prix tomorrow. the six—time world champion was pushed

all the way by his mercedes team—mate valtteri bottas, and posted the fastest lap in formula one history, averaging 164 miles per hour. ferrari had another wretched qualifying session, in their home grand prix. sebastian vettel could only qualify 17th, and charles leclercq was 13th. five time ashes winner ian bell has just announced he's retiring from first class cricket. the batsman, who scored more than 7000 test runs for england, will play his final game for warwickshire tomorrow. it is obviously a difficult decision to make. it is a career that i have loved. it is all i wanted to do was play cricket for a living. it is the end of a chapter, and moving on. thinking myself and talking to people around me, it is the right thing to do. i want to play at eight

level. physically now with injuries it is not possible. england's 0wen farrell was sent off for saracens as the premiership champions were beaten by wasps. farrell was dismissed for this high tackle on charlie atkinson, whow was assessed by medics for concussion before walking off the field. wasps had made a number of changes for this game but this late try from tom willis clinched a 28—18 win. saracens will be relegated from the premiership in four weeks time, but they are due to play in the champions cup quarter final in a fortnight. and just look at this, harlequins against bath welcomed back supporters to the stoop for the first competitive rugby in england to be played in front of a crowd since lockdown. 2,700 tickets were available for this premiership match as part of the government's pilot scheme. but bath kept the home supporters quiet — they won 111—27 which sees them close in on a play—off spot.

record—breaking mare enable has won herfinal race in britain — the september stakes at kempton under frankie dettori. the six—year—old went to the front early on and never looked in danger — winning by seven lengths from 33—1 shot kirstenbosch in second. for an historic third prix de l‘arc de triomphe next month. the british athletics championships have continued in manchester this afternoon. the finish of the day has to be in the men's 800 metres where there was a huge run from dan rowden who simply found an extra gear to glide pastjake wightman with 50 metres to go. yusuf bizimana was third. a big result for rowden. the 1500 metres has just the 1500 metres hasjust finished. the 1500 metres hasjust finished. the favourite has won that and claimed the title there.

that's all the sport for now. i'll bring you a full round up in tonight's sportsday after half past six. president trump says he hasn't yet seen proof that the russian opposition leader, alexei navalny, was poisoned with a deadly novichok nerve agent. germany — where mr navalny is being treated in hospital — says it has "proof beyond doubt", and is asking the russian government for an explanation. tx next) alexei navalny‘s supporters claim he was poisoned on the kremlin‘s orders, which russia denies. germany says a novichok agent was used — similar to the one that almost killed a former russian spy and his daughter in salisbury two and a half years ago. that assessment received support from some trump administration officials, including the head of the white house national security council. president trump, who had been criticised for not speaking about the case earlier, said that he would study the evidence.

i don't know exactly what happened. i think it's tragic, it's terrible. it shouldn't happen. we haven't had any proof yet, but i will take a look. it is interesting that everybody‘s always mentioning russia — and i don't mind you mentioning russia, but i think probably china, at this point, is a nation that you should be talking about, much more so than russia. he went on to say that no—one has been tougher on russia than him, but he stopped short of criticising president vladimir putin, which has been a constant pattern throughout mr trump's presidency. the uk government has announced more than £7 million worth of funding to help some of the world's most vulnerable communities deal with the impact of the coronavirus. some of the cash will be used for remote healthcare access for patients in nigeria. the science minister, amanda solloway, said something as basic as ppe would make a big difference

to the countries affected. i cannot emphasise as an example how life changing it will be. that will be significant in the way that people are able to work and carry out their day—to—day life. things that we do seem very basic to us but something like ppe will have a significant impact. protesters from the environmental campaign group extinction rebellion have blockaded printing presses in england to stop some papers reaching newsstands today. they accuse the newspapers of failing to report on the climate emergency. 63 people have been arrested. earlier a spokesperson from the group explained why they were there. we feel the british media have been complacent about what button faces.

in 2018 the un general secretary said in this we cut emissions, by the end of 2020 we face an existential crisis. government's response is to pour hundreds of billions of pounds into the old economy. we are borrowing money from the future. we felt we had to make a dramatic statement. joining me now is ian murray the executive director of the society of editors. you heard what that spokesperson had to say. do you think extinction rebellion are targeting the right people here wish i know. it is absurd. it would be laughable if it was not so serious. these people need a good lesson in history and how the world works. you are attacking a free press. those are the actions of totalitarian dictators and horrible regimes the

world over, in other words, we are going to close down the message. just to say that the media, the printed press, broadcasters, have not covered the climate issue, and particularly the messages coming from extinction rebellion, in copious amounts, from all angles, is quite absurd. what they are seeing is that it has not been covered the way they want it. cabinets like this or remotely shut you down. you are not allowed to blackmail a free press in this way. you could point out that the media has led on campaigns against plastic, switching the lights off and governments department, all kinds of initiatives. at the heart of it there is the absurdity that in attacking a free press, a free press is essential to ensuring you have a free democracy. a liberal democracy is what you need to allow people

like extinction rebellion to make their protests and put their point across. they did have a point to put across, to be fair, and they have done it. they have done it of course but in doing so they have been attacking the free press and what they were saying was, you heard the spokesman, there has not been sufficient coverage, there has not been the kind of coverage that we wanted. that is absurd. you do not stop people from reading newspapers, going about their business, to make a point like that. how big an impact that this actually have in the distribution of those papers today? i believe it had an impact to start off with. the papers were delivered later. millions of newspapers were delayed. it is annoying to me and it is annoying to the press, very annoying with all the hard work that has gone in to producing them. the

harm is to readers, they are not getting their papers, they are not getting their papers, they are not getting their papers, they are not getting the papers delivered on time. they have every right to make peaceful protests but once again it is the public who are being affected. this time they are saying, if these people do not see what we wa nt if these people do not see what we want them to say we are going to stop them talking to you at all, thatis stop them talking to you at all, that is not on in a liberal democracy. if you were extinction rebellion how would you get your point across, make the headlines, they have today? they could get their protests across, make peaceful demonstrations, they have done that before. they have plenty of plenty of ways of doing it the same way as other organisations do. that media has taken their message across. what you do not do, and people were arrested for this kind of thing, and it is the thing that we only pandemic, what you do not do is harm the public and harm a free press and harm democracy. you can still get your message across. that is why we

have a free press in this country. it is absurd to say they have not been able to get their message across. they have. thank you for coming on and answering our questions today. police and anti—immigration protestors have been involved in clashes outside dover harbour. nine people have been arrested. a large group assembled to demonstrate against the arrival of thousands of people in small boats. traffic on the a20 was at a standstill in both directions for a short time. a larger pro—immigration rally also took place. 0rganisers said they want to show solidarity with refugees and migrants. both protests have now ended. an image of a nhs worker with a face mask and screen visor is one of the hundred winners of this years portrait of britain award. the picture was captured on shift at the whittington hospital during the pandemic. the pictures celebrating the faces of modern britain will be displayed on digital screens at airports, rail stations and high streets across the uk.

now it's time for a look at the weather with helen willetts. the sunny spells, the scattered showers will continue throughout the rest of the day. temperatures are a little down on those of friday. quite breezy as well on the wind is not as strong. we will keep that cool feel for the second half of the weekend. today, showers are dominating in the north—western parts of england, northern ireland, south—western scotland. and if fear rash of them in the north—east of scotland. they are being pushed further southward and eastward as we go through this evening and overnight. given the fact they are showers and the wind is slowly going to ease, it will be quite a chilly night. particularly in the glens of scotland. down to single figures in southern and eastern areas. sunday, the main differences high pressure

is building in from the west, windsor later in the