tonight at ten, borisjohnson introduces his "rule of six", the strict new laws on social gatherings in england from next monday. alarmed by the sharp rise in new cases of coronavirus, especially among young people, the prime minister and his senior advisers want to avoid another total lockdown. in england from monday, we are introducing the rule of six. you must not meet socially in groups of more than six, and if you do, you will be breaking the law. people should see this as the next block of time. that may not last for many months, but it is very unlikely to be just over in two or three weeks. as people take in the extent of the new restrictions in england, we ask residents in swindon for their response to what's going on.

i think all these gatherings between 2a and 3a years of age, they never take no notice at all, do they? christmas is going to be really challenging because obviously they are used to being around family and seeing everyone. the new legislation also includes the power to impose a curfew in england, if it's thought necessary. also tonight... a global trial of a coronavirus vaccine, partly developed by oxford university, has been paused after a volunteer fell ill. in brussels, there's dismay and anger over boris johnson's intention to change parts of the brexit deal that he negotiated with the eu. in greece, a huge fire rips through europe's biggest migrant camp, leaving 13,000 without shelter. and the premier league says it's "absolutely critical" that fans be allowed back as soon as possible, or clubs will lose hundreds of millions of pounds. and coming up in the sport on bbc news, serena williams marches on as she moves into the us open semifinals and stays on course for a

record equalling 24th grand slam title. good evening. in the clearest sign so far of the government's alarm at the spread of coronavirus, borisjohnson has announced a series of measures in england designed to avoid another total lockdown. senior health advisers warn that the period between now and the spring will be "difficult", and that the new rules were likely to be in place for months, not weeks. the prime minister outlined what he called the "rule of six", part of the measures prompted by a steep rise in cases, especially among young people. from monday, there will be a ban on groups of more than six from meeting anywhere socially, both indoors in homes, pubs and restaurants, but also outdoors.

there are some exemptions. the rules won't apply to schools, childcare, workplaces, or events such as weddings and funerals. 0rganised team sports will also be allowed. anyone going out to eat or drink will now be legally required to provide their contact details for test and tracing. the changes are for england only, and the police will enforce them. the rules are unchanged in scotland, wales and northern ireland. 0ur political editor laura kuenssberg has the details. glimpses of something like normal life, but the threat of another surge of the disease has been hiding in plain sight. reminders to take care have been all around, but replaced today by new instructions with the threat on the rise. i know that over time, the rules have become quite complicated and confusing. we are simplifying and strengthening the rules, making them easier for everyone to understand and for the police to enforce. in england, from monday,

we are introducing the rule of six. you must not meet socially in groups of more than six and if you do, you will be breaking the law. and anyone breaking the rules risks being dispersed, fined and possibly arrested. it does not include schools or work places, and some team sports, weddings and funerals can go ahead, but this is a big change after weeks of the rules being relaxed. i am sorry about that, and i wish that we did not have to take this step. but as your prime minister, i must do what is necessary to stop the spread of the virus and to save lives. and as we head into autumn and winter, we may be in it for another long haul. we will collectively as a nation have to look again at where things are and work out what are the right things to do. so people should notjust see this as a very short—term thing.

they should see it over the next period but i think putting an exact time on it is very difficult. so from monday, police in england would have the power to break up nights like this — a party in bristol on saturday night. cases have risen most dramatically among the young, but their power to pass the virus on is where bigger danger lies. you've admitted today the advice has been confusing, so why should the public listen to you today? for the last few weeks, you've been telling people to go back to work and go to eat out and suddenly, you are putting limits on people's lives again. we are dealing with a pandemic that has evolved over many months and in that period, we have been responding to the disease in its various phases. this is not the start of another nationwide lockdown, but for many like marion, who wanted to bring everyone together next month to celebrate her 90th birthday, for families and friends, it means plans on hold again. people that i have not seen for a long time

were all going to come and they were all saying, "it won't be postponed, will it, because of covid because we've had everything else cancelled 7 " i said, "no, i think it will be ok by october", but unfortunately, it is not going to happen. while families will have to grapple with the new rules, labour backs the tightening. i think the government has now acknowledged that their poor communications were a large part of the problem, so that has got to be fixed. but they also need to recognise that the testing regime is all over the place at the moment. they can't pretend that is not the problem. that needs fixing as well. we support the principle of the measures and we ask everybody to follow those rules. tighter rules will stay in place in areas with the worst outbreaks, like bolton in the north west of england. in wales, up to four households can get together, but the rules that allow up to eight people from three different families in scotland to meet could yet change. we are carefully reviewing existing guidance and regulation as well as considering what new steps may be necessary to keep covid under control.

and while race day fashion was matched with masks at doncaster races today, tomorrow, horses and riders will run in front of empty stands. the government ready to put more limits on our lives rather than take a gamble. remember the measures relate to england only and this is not the start of a new national lockdown when the nation's doors will immediately clang shut but it is clear from the government if the steep rise in the number of cases cannot be slowed down by this change, they may well take a more radical tax. the government held out today the possibility of limiting opening hours across the country, essentially bringing in the kind of curvy that is already in operation in local lockdown like in bolton right now. that would be a more significant step yet. but as of tonight, ministers cannot be sure how much the public will be ready to

comply with this, nor can they be sure that we will be anything like back at normal life even by christmas and six months into this, it is still abundantly clear that ministers want everyone to pay very close attention to instruction but things are extremely uncertain still as far as the pandemic is concerned. laura kuenssberg with the latest at westminster, there. as we said, the measures were prompted by the recent steep rise in the number of new infections. the latest official figures show there were 2,659 new confirmed cases of coronavirus reported across the uk in the latest 24—hour period. that means the average number of new cases reported every day in the past week is 2,363. eight deaths were also reported of people who'd died within 28 days of a positive test for covid—i9. that means on average in the past week, 11 deaths were announced every day. that takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 41,594.

the health secretary for england, matt hancock, has claimed that one reason the covid testing programme is under strain is that people who don't have symptons and are not eligible are coming forward for tests. but the government says it wants to expand testing in the months ahead, precisely to identify people who are negative, so they can ultimately be free of restrictions. labour said the current shortage of tests is "ridiculous", and people are still being asked to travel hundreds of miles to get one, as our health editor hugh pym explains. cars queuing at a coronavirus testing centre. demand for tests has risen rapidly, and some are reporting problems getting bookings at sites close to their homes. the government argues that seeking a test might not always be appropriate. there have been stories of, you know, whole schools or parts of schools being all sent to get a test. that is not acceptable. it is not an appropriate use of our testing resources.

so we have a record amount of testing, and we need to use it on people who are symptomatic. claire's son does have symptoms, and from early this morning, she tried to book him a test. at first, the only ones offered were too far away, and for a while, nothing was available. since about nine o'clock this morning, i have done nothing other than refresh that page. nothing. itjust makes me have very, very little confidence that we are in competent hands. or rather, it makes me completely convinced that we are in incompetent hands. claire has now been allocated a home testing kit. 0verall, uk capacity for swab tests picked up a bit in earlyjuly, and then didn't move much until recently. it's now at about 250,000 today. the number of tests processed has moved closer to that, and is standing at about 175,000 today. in the commons, labour's leader said the system wasn't working and ministers were to blame. this is the very point we need a functioning testing regime,

but far from the world—beating system we were promised, the government can't even get the basics right. the government is lurching from crisis to crisis. the prime minister said the country had done more tests than any other in europe, and there would be a further massive increase. the government points out there has been a huge expansion in testing and laboratory capacity since march. it's now much easier to spot local outbreaks and also groups in the population where the virus is spreading fastest. government figures show the biggest increase in case numbers has been among 20—29 year—olds. it's been a slower rise among 30—39 year—olds. and for those age 70—79, who are less likely to leave their homes, the numbers are lower. ministers say the goal is regular mass testing for the whole population, but that's very much a long—term aspiration. hugh pym, bbc news. there'll be new guidance

for universities in england issued by the department for education on what they should do in the case of a coronavirus outbreak. the prime minster said today that while opening universities again is criticalfor students‘ life chances, young people attending this year should take great care not to spread the virus. 0ur education correspondent danjohnson has been speaking to students and staff at sheffield hallam. as the final pieces are put in place for socially distanced learning, students got a direct plea to do the right thing and stop the virus spreading. but more young people are already getting it and some can see why. i have friends from first year who were partying far too much and having whole house parties. it is obviously breaking the rules, it is spreading coronavirus and it gives young people a bad name but some people just simply don't care. there is a reminder here, though, that the majority are responsible. i am a student. i could understand the guidelines. i could follow it. i know the seriousness, so all the students, i think they will all adhere to the guidelines. sheffield is one of those cities

braced for thousands of young people arriving in the next couple of weeks. the people coming into the building will be walking through and we have got a temperature checking thermal imaging camera, here. if people have a temperature over 37.8, we would ask people to leave campus. at the entrance to every building, we will have the option where people can collect their facemasks. so we are issuing facemasks to students and to staff. staff can also have a face visor if they wish that, if they are teaching in classrooms. controlling the virus in university buildings in one thing, but it is what happens beyond lectures that will determine the full impact of the mass migration about to unfold across the country. we are confident that the overwhelming majority of students will behave sensibly, and where that doesn't happen, we will be doing a lot of work with individual students, groups of students, to ensure they understand their responsibilities, that they act sensibly for themselves and that they act sensibly for the community in which they are living. some universities are investing in their own testing capacity to make sure enough are quickly

available, but they have also been told, if there are outbreaks, students should not be sent back to their home towns because that would risk further spreading the virus. it is now down to students and how they behave and how universities respond to the cases that will inevitably come with more young people on the move. danjohnson, bbc news, sheffield. trials of a coronavirus vaccine being developed by the pharma giant astrazenica and oxford university have been paused for the time being, after one volunteer fell ill and was admitted to hospital. research into coronavirus and possible treatments and vaccines are developing at tremendous speed, as our medical editor fergus walsh explains. you're both in at quarter to one? more than 10,000 volunteers have been immunised in the uk as part of the oxford coronavirus vaccine trial. just relax. many of them are elderly — some were due to receive a second

booster dose this week, but that's been put on pause after a volunteer was admitted to hospital. oxford university said... so, for now, no one at any of the sites around the world, including south africa, brazil and the united states can be immunised with the oxford vaccine. we need to make sure with these vaccines that they work, they work well enough, and they are safe. therefore, a pause, obviously, is not good. you'd rather not see any side effects, but inevitably, you do see some, and it's sensible to look at that very seriously and understand what's going on. so when will we have a vaccine? there are at least 32 coronavirus vaccines in clinical trials. they are recruiting 280,000 volunteers in 3a countries around the world. we might get early indications

that one of them works towards the end of the year, but there are no guarantees. meanwhile, nine leading pharma companies have signed a pledge to put safety first and uphold scientific and ethical standards in the search for a vaccine. astrazeneca, gsk, pfizer and the others have said they will only apply for regulatory approval once all stages of the clinical trials are complete. volunteers on the oxford trial are still having blood tests and other routine exams. vaccinations could restart within days, although the final decision rests with the medical regulators. fergus walsh, bbc news. 0ur health editor hugh pym is here. just talking about the testing issues, when we talk about ministers admitting they have had problems

with capacity and testing, and yet they are considering much more radical plans? yes, what has become clear today is the prime minister has a strong belief that the best way forward in the months ahead to get something closer to normality is mass population testing, whereby you would go to your workplace, or entertainment venue and be tested, get a very quick result and if you are negative, you could go about your everyday life. leaked whitehall documents obtained by the british medicaljournal suggest there is a target of 3 million tests per day by the end of december and may be 10 million per day a few months after that, with an investment of tens of billions of pounds being contemplated. remember, the current level is just 175,000 contemplated. remember, the current level isjust175,000 per contemplated. remember, the current level is just 175,000 per day in comparison. that is the goal, but the reality as we have been saying for a certain number of people is a struggle to book a test online, a weight to actually get a slot and then finding it is some distance from home. just when you need a testing system is cases are increasing and you need to spot

outbreaks as winter approaches, it appears there is something which is not quite right with the system and it needs to inspire public confidence. hugh pym, there. borisjohnson has urged mps to support a new bill which changes parts of the brexit deal that he negotiated with the eu and signed injanuary. but mrjohnson has come in for a wave of heavy criticism, not least from two former conservative prime ministers who warn that trust in the uk's integrity as an international partner will be badly damaged if the plans go ahead. and the first minister of scotland nicola sturgeon has accused the government of planning to steal powers from the devolved administrations in the changes proposed. 0ur chief political correspondent vicki young reports. do you still trust the british government, mr barnier? here to talk about a future trade deal, but the eu's chief negotiator arrived in london today with a huge row raging over an agreement that he thought was done and dusted. are you happy to break

the law, prime minister? yesterday, the government shocked mps, admitting it was ready to break international law and override parts of the brexit treaty signed with the eu injanuary. the prime minister denied that he was tearing it up. this uk internal market bill is about protecting jobs, protecting growth, ensuring the fluidity and safety of our uk internal market and prosperity throughout the united kingdom. and the former conservative prime minister sirjohn major had a stark warning — if we lose our reputation for honouring the promises we make, we would have lost something beyond price that may never be regained. the withdrawal agreement included unique arrangements for northern ireland trade to avoid a hard border with ireland, which is in the eu. but goods going back and forth between northern ireland and the rest of the uk will need extra checks and tariffs so that this trade doesn't interfere with the eu's single market. but now the uk government has

published the internal market bill, which gives british ministers the power to decide for themselves how it will work. and the irish prime minister suggested this could all derail trade talks. unilateral actions which seek to change the operation of measures already agreed, included in an international treaty and incorporated into domestic law, do not build trust. when he met mrjohnson last month, talks were cordial. according to dublin, when the two men spoke tonight, the taoiseach set out his concerns in forthright terms. so why has the government taken this incredibly provocative action? well, it thinks that the eu will have too much say of a trade notjust in northern ireland, but the rest of the uk too. it wants to put pressure on the eu to compromise and even if the trade talks all collapse in acrimony, there are plenty in the conservative party perfectly happy with no deal. even conservative mps are unsure whether this is all a negotiating strategy. not for the first time, downing street is keeping

everyone guessing. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. tonight it's been confirmed there will be emergency talks betwen the uk and the eu tomorrow. 0ur europe editor katya adler is in brussels. the eu asked for emergency face—to—face talks so the government could tell them in person exactly what it intends to do with the withdrawal agreement that it signed last year. the eu is not happy. we had from the european commission president today. she said this undermines trust. we heard from vicky that the taoiseach, the irish prime minister, spoke to boris johnson said this is a serious development with particular implications for northern ireland. tonight eu lawyers are pouring over the print of the bill and there is talk that brussels could take legal action. but essentially here, this is seen as a tactic. the french

trade minister said this is part of a game of bluff. it is assumed that it is an attempt by the government to put pressure on brussels now that eu-uk to put pressure on brussels now that eu—uk trade talks are really coming toa eu—uk trade talks are really coming to a climax. we all know that there are big sticking point still between the two sides. but does this bill make it more likely that the eu will 110w make it more likely that the eu will now soften its red lines? that is certainly not the mood here tonight. but i have spoken to eu diplomats who say look, we are still going to persuade this trade deal with the uk. we still want this trade deal. but the atmosphere and those trade negotiations was already so bad before today that the chatter that talks could break down altogether is beginning to get louder. katya adler for us with the latest analysis in brussels. images of the 22 victims of the manchester arena bombing were displayed at the public inquiry today, as details were given of each of their lives, theirfamilies, and last moments before the attack at a concert in may 2017. experts have concluded that 21

of the victims could not have survived their injuries because they were so severe. 0ur correspondentjudith moritz has been listening to the evidence. all in the same moment, a husband and wife stood with their arms around each other. a schoolgirl told her friend she loved her. a teenager was asked what her favourite song was. but before she could answer, a bomb exploded and took these and 18 other lives away. men, women and children, their futures wiped out in a moment. the detail of their deaths heartbreaking to hear. but the manchester arena inquiry is examining every aspect of the 2017 attack. it is important in the highest degree that we understand what went well on the night of the bombing, but also, what did not. we need to know whether a different and better response by the emergency services would have saved more lives, or even a single life.

a life likejohn atkinson's. he had a leg injury and was initially conscious and able to speak, but he had no professional medical help for over an hour and was dragged out of the arena on a billboard. he died two hours later. no firefighters were on hand with specialist equipment to help lift people likejohn atkinson out of the foyer. there's been serious criticism of the fire service from the moment that the control room contacted the officer responsible for taking the first decisions. we are receiving reports of an explosion at the manchester evening news arena. 0k. so, it's already detonated. the police that we've got on the line are saying it is a bomb. 0k. the rendezvous point at the moment is the car park area outside the cathedral. cathedral, 0k. yes.

but then, the officer changed his mind and suggested keeping firefighters three miles away. we could do that first. we can get four pumps at one of the stations. probably not that close... 0k. today, new details also emerged about what the authorities may have known about the bomber, salman abedi, before the attack. in february 2017, a phone was seized in prison from this terrorist organiser, abdalraouf abdallah, who's known to have previously discussed martyrdom with abedi. when analysed, this telephone was found to have been used to make calls and attempted calls to salman abedi's number. and as will be obvious, this was just months before the attack. next week, the bereaved families will begin the emotional process of reading tributes to their loved ones. judith moritz, bbc news, manchester.

president trump knew full well that coronavirus was deadlier than the flu as the virus began to spread across the united states, but wanted to play down the crisis, according to the veteran journalist bob woodward, who spent hours with the president earlier this year. mr trump said he wanted to avoid causing panic. the remarks are included in mr woodward's new book, called rage, a book mr trump has already dismissed as a "fake" piece of work, as our north america correspondent nick bryant reports. even as the coronavirus began to claim scores of american lives, the us president publicly talked down the threat. it will go away. you know it is going away and it will go away and we will have a great victory. but at the same time, donald trump was telling the legendary watergate journalist bob woodward that he had deliberately played down the pandemic, even though he understood the deadliness of the virus. well, ithink, bob, to be honest with you... sure, i want you to be. i wanted to always play it down.

i still like playing it down, because i don't want to create a panic. this was impossible to dismiss as fake news and instead, the president tried to explain his comments. i am a cheerleader for this country. i love our country and i don't want people to be frightened. i don't want to create panic, as you say. and certainly, i'm not going to drive this country or the world into a frenzy. his democratic rivaljoe biden is already leading in the polls and he immediately weaponised what the president's critics will seize upon as a covid smoking gun. he lied to the american people. he knowingly and willingly lied about the threat it posed to the country for months. he had the information. he knew how dangerous it was. and while this deadly disease ripped through our nation, he failed to do hisjob on purpose. donald trump keeps on trying to change the conversation to law

and order, but we keep on returning to the health crisis that has claimed the lives of more than 190,000 americans. this feels like a covid campaign. nick bryant, bbc news, new york. in greece, a huge fire has destroyed much of europe's largest refugee camp on the island of lesbos, leaving 13,000 migrants without shelter. the former army camp had been placed under lockdown because of the spread of coronavirus. greece has declared a state of emergency, as our correspondent mark lowen reports. a camp often called a ticking time bomb has exploded. moria, four times over its capacity, has been almost completely destroyed, an inferno in a place where life was already hell. the 13,000 migrants here, mostly afghans, fleeing again, this time in europe. my house is finished.

many... all finished. at first light, it seemed the sun itself was on fire as a desperate attempt to douse the flames continued. inside, homes now a wasteland. pictures from the charity medecins sans frontieres show the gutted remains of europe's largest migrant camp. the government said the fire was started deliberately, a protest after 35 migrants who had tested positive for coronavirus were isolated. strong winds fanned it. the prime minister hit out at arsonists. translation: i express my sorrow over yesterday's events in moria. i recognise the difficult conditions. however, nothing can become an excuse for violent reactions to health checks, and even more so for such extensive unrest. hundreds of thousands have passed through here, waiting for asylum claims that went nowhere. there were repeated warnings

that the bottleneck couldn't last, its charred remains a symbol of how the eu turned a blind eye. lesbos is now in a state of emergency in a scramble to house the migrants and quarantine those infected. they had barely anything, but at least they had shelter. no more. mark lowen, bbc news. the pilot scheme for spectators at sporting events in england is to be reviewed. more than 2,000 spectators were allowed into the first uk horse race meeting with a crowd in six months at doncaster today, but racing from now on will be back behind closed doors because of public health concerns. during the day, the chief executive of football's premier league said it was "absolutely critical" that fans be allowed back as soon as possible, or clubs would lose hundreds of millions of pounds. 0ur sports editor dan roan has more.