a leading scientist has warned that the uk is "on the edge of losing control" of coronavirus, as infections rise. professor sir mark walport, a member of the government's sage advisory committee, said people needed to to limit their socialising to ensure children can remain at school

and students at university. this report from our health correspondent, lauren moss. it's the final weekend before new restrictions are introduced across the uk. from monday, the rule of six will limit the number of people that we can socialise with. yesterday, there were 3500 new conformed covid cases, and scientists have warned the rate of infection is doubling every seven to ten days. i think one would have to say that we are on the edge of losing control, and you've only got to look across the channel to see what is happening in france and what is happening in spain. the french on thursday had 9800 new infections, and one can see that their hospital admissions, and indeed, their intensive care admissions are going up. the rate of infection is much lower than it was at the peak of the pandemic, when it is thought there were 100,000 new infections each day. but government advisers believe the r number,

the number of people an infected person can pass the virus onto, is between 1 and 1.2, which means it is growing. latest data from public health england shows the largest increase in positive cases is among 20 to 39—year—olds. but there has also been a steep rise in the number of people over the age of 80 testing positive, which is beginning to lead to an increase in hospital admissions. while people will not be able to socialise in groups of more than six from monday, in parts of the midlands the restrictions are going further. from tuesday, in birmingham, and nearby sandwell and solihull, 1.5 million people will be banned from mixing with other households. the onus is on all of us to do everything that we can to make sure that we are abiding by those rules. and those rules, of course, ensure that we can, with close family members and friends, socialise in appropriate circumstances and those rules also stress the vital importance of making sure that children are at school, that students can

study at university and that we can work in a covid—safe environment. in scotland, restrictions on two households mixing were expanded in lanarkshire at midnight. and there are still reported issues with testing in england, after dozens of people told the bbc they were struggling to get one. the department of health says capacity is being targeted at the hardest hit areas. as coronavirus cases rise, the country will walk a tightrope between containing it and maintaining a way of life. lauren moss, bbc news. the cabinet office minister, michael gove, has insisted ministers had properly "thought through" the withdrawal agreement, despite plans to introduce legislation to override part of it. brussels has threatened to take legal action if downing street presses ahead with its proposals. with me is our political correspondent, helen catt. helen, a lot of this sounds very familiar, taking us back to where we we re familiar, taking us back to where we were nearly one year ago now. yes, that withdrawal agreement, the brexit divorce deal, a big part of

that was about coming up with special arrangements for northern ireland, to make sure they would not have to be a hard border between it and the republic of ireland. the agreement for that —— provided a political solution but left a detail as to how it would work to be negotiated, and that is what we are seeing now. borisjohnson are seeing 110w. seeing now. borisjohnson are seeing now. boris johnson seeing now. borisjohnson are seeing now. borisjohnson is seeing, actually, there seems to be a serious misunderstanding between the two sides on what they actually signed up to. he is claiming that the eu's interpretation is extreme and that they cannot agree on alternative then it could see the eu agreeing to put tariffs on foods and exports between great britain or northern ireland because brussels has hinted this week it could refuse to grant the uk to export food. so, borisjohnson has said those theoretical risks are not acceptable, he wants to use new cable in the coming weeks to override some of it, providing, he says, a safety net. the eu has said that changing what is a done deal with gravely damaged trust and would

jeopardise the free trade deal negotiations which would actually solve a lot of us. helen catt, thank you very much. the speed limit is being cut on four sections of motorway in england as part of a trial to reduce pollution levels. speeds will be reduced from 70 miles per hour to 60 in areas which have seen higher than recommended levels of nitrogen dioxide. the limit will be imposed 2a hours a day and its impact will be reviewed in a year's time. the m6, m1, m5 and the m602 will all be effected. it's just over a week since schools in england reopened for the new term, but there have been a number of instances where pupils have been sent home to prevent possible covid infection. schools are required to isolate suspected cases, and as a last resort, close a school. 0ur education correspondent, elaine dunkley, has been to a school in darlington, which had to send home a teacher and 20 pupils as a precaution. who has got a new skill from being in lockdown? it's distance learning

for primary school children. today, mrs craghill is teaching year three by video link. she's currently self—isolating, but lessons continue at heathfield primary school. well, obviously, it wasn't the way i wanted to start the year with the children. i wanted to be in school, but circumstances happened. so it has been really beneficial for myself and the children to be able to have some connection each day, and just to connect with maths and english. and to see their faces, really, and for them to see me. children here are having recovery classes and lessons in mindfulness. helping them to adjust after missing months of schooling is vital. so, i liked being back at school to be with my friends and have education. like, really good education. like, face—to—face. i like being back at school, because i can see my friends and because if i am struggling, the teacher can help me, because i couldn't do that at home. the risks to children are low, but there are concerns about the virus spreading.

social distancing and hygiene are now an important part of the school day, but it puts pressure on budgets and time. 0bviously, paying out for more cleaning materials, but also there's some staffing costs as well. now, on a personal level, health and safety has just taken over my life as a head teacher at the moment, which is nobody‘s fault, that's the way, the situation that we are in. but it is frustrating because we want to be getting on with our usual dayjob of making sure that we do teaching and learning really well. if there is a suspected or confirmed case of coronavirus, schools have to get in touch with their local public health teams. claire has two children at the school. her son is still attending, but her daughter's class has been sent home to self—isolate. she is asymptomatic, which is great. you know, i am very happy about that. but should she get symptoms, my concern is that because my older son is still in school, obviously, if my daughter gets

symptoms and does get covid, then my son will get it and he will have moved it to year six. the vast majority of children across the uk are now back in lessons, but learning to deal with disruption is the reality of being back at school in these times. elaine dunkley, bbc news, in darlington. in the last half an hour, it's been announced that the british designer sir terence conran has died at the aged of 88. in a statement, his family said the retailer and restaurateur " passed away pea cefully" at his home. sir terance founded the contemporary home decor shop habitat “119611. habitat gave britons, who were still recovering from the war, a new, modern look to their homes. today the design museum described him as a "visionary" — saying he "revolutionised the way we live in britain". with all the sport now, here's sarah mulkerrins at the bbc sport centre. good afternoon, sarah. good

afternoon to you. the new premier league season is under way, with promoted side fulham hosting arsenal in the campaign opener. and there were some early nerves on show in the fulham box. alexandre lacazette was there to pounce and prod the ball into the net, to put arsenal 1—0 up with just nine minutes on the clock. and that's still the score with ten minutes to go until half—time. liverpool will begin the defence of their title at home against leeds united at 5:30 this afternoon. liverpool were top flight champions last season for the first time since 1990. they'll start this campaign against a side who, under highly rated manager marcelo bielsa, are back in the premier league for the first time in 16 years. we don't have to think at this moment about the whole season, we have to think about leeds united, thatis have to think about leeds united, that is enough to think about. honestly, because it is a premier league team, new in the premier

league team, new in the premier league this season, but really a premier league team quality wise, and with a world—class manager, and and with a world—class manager, and an incredible intense idea of football. and we have to be ready for that. so that is what i am thinking about, and not too much about the rest of the season. there are two more premier league games this afternoon. crystal palace host southampton in a 3 o'clock kick—off, while west ham united face newcastle united in an 8 o'clock kick—off. don't forget you can watch all the hghlights on match of the day this evening. some fans will be allowed back into a scottish premiership match today, for the first time since march. he ross county against celtic, and aberdeen‘s match with kilmarnock, will act as test events, with 300 fans allowed to watch both matches. fans are being advised to wear a face mask at all times, and no chanting will be allowed.

manchester united start their premier league campaign next saturday, and manager 0le gunnar solskjaer has confirmed that harry maguire will still captain the side. maguire was given a 21—month suspended sentence in a court in greece. he was found guilty of assaulting a police officer, swearing, resisting arrest and bribery during an incident in mykonos. maguire has maintained his innocence and lodged an appeal with the greek courts. there will be a new men's tennis grand slam champion for the first time since 2014. dominic thiem — who has lost all three finals he's previously appeared in — will take on alexander zverev in the us open final. second seed thiem beat daniil medvedev in three sets, but was made to work hard after cruising through the first set. austrian thiem was taken to tie breaks in the next two, before coming through. while zverev battled back from two sets down to beat beat spain's pablo carreno busta. it'll be the first time we'll see a male champion who was born in the 1990s, and thiem's already looking forward to taking on zverev.

i guess that we both try absolutely everything to win. me, i'm desperate to win this first big title. him as well. he tries to win it in his first attempt. for me, it is going to be the fourth one. well, if i don't do it, it is getting in the head probably soon, but i will try everything to avoid that, of course. that's all the sport for now. thank you very much, sarah. hello. you're watching the bbc news channel. let's return to the government's plans to introduce

legislation which overrides part of the withdrawal agreement signed last year with the eu. brussels has threatened to take legal action if downing street presses ahead with its proposals. we can speak to the conservative mp — and chair of the commons defence committee — tobias ellwood. good committee — tobias ellwood. afternoon to you. yoi what good afternoon to you. you have seen what the prime minister wrote in the newspaper today. you may well have heard what he had to say to you and your colleagues yesterday in your call with him around the country. has it changed your attitude to this bill? it has not changed my attitude in wanting to support the prime minister and get brexit over the line. it has been a battering journey since the nation committed itself to leave the european union. we need to do that. the date of the 15th of october has been set. in getting there, i do not want us to

lose our way, to lose our reputation asa lose our way, to lose our reputation as a force for good and as an exemplar as holding international law. i am afraid that as well find myself not wishing to support this particular bill, because it does mean that we would be challenging unilaterally a treaty and that goes against the principles that we stand for. the difficulty with this, i suppose, judging by a certain amount of reading between the lines here is necessary because there is a negotiation going on about a trade deal, but the difficulty is to know whether this is a case of calling the blah for whether the government will go through this? yes, absolutely, it is is it being used as tactic... —— calling the bluff.

ithink it is as tactic... —— calling the bluff. ithinkitisa as tactic... —— calling the bluff. i think it is a tactic we need to revisit this. i very much support bob neill‘s amendment, this is a clever amendments that puts it behind glass that you only break in case of emergency, and that emergency would be if we don't get a deal. i think we will be joining with the prime minister in saying let's get back to the table, let's negotiate and let's get that deal across the line. my real worry is i see assad is one of the founding fathers, if you like, —— like, -- i like, —— i see us as one of the founding fathers. let us not diminish our status as a global role model in these challenging times. the way that they have handled this, it seems that the british believed until relatively late in the day that it was a given that we would

get the status that is accorded to a lot of other countries that means we are effectively trusted to provide goods, meat products, that kind of thing, potentially things that can have health consequences if they have health consequences if they have not been properly produced. since we have been an eu member, we just left, that we could be trusted, oui’ just left, that we could be trusted, our standards were as good as the eu's and therefore there wasn't a problem? the eu seems to have cut russ over that? michael gove as part of thatjoint russ over that? michael gove as part of that joint committee. russ over that? michael gove as part of thatjoint committee. this is where these details must be knocked out. we have got to recognise that if you have a product that goes from here to northern ireland, orfrom ireland to northern ireland and back this way, there will be some necessary checks required. that was pa rt necessary checks required. that was part of the written agreement. boris johnson surprised everybody by returning to brussels with that deal

that was signed back injanuary, and here we are actually wanting to turn oui’ here we are actually wanting to turn our backs on it unilaterally. and thatis our backs on it unilaterally. and that is the piece that i cannot support. i do believe we can get a deal. i do believe we need to refocus our efforts on getting back to that table and not being distracted by what has happened over the last few days. we can get an internal market bill through. that bill will be put in the back pocket. but with the amendment, i believe that could pass the house of commons quite easily. i do hope they will consider that. and what will that amendment achieve, finally? consider that. and what will that amendment achieve, finally7m consider that. and what will that amendment achieve, finally? it means we do not immediately challenge international law, but we actually practice as a concern. it is put in oui’ practice as a concern. it is put in our back pocket and we only revisit it if we end up with no deal. and only then does parliament have another opportunity to vote on whether we implemented. it does give us whether we implemented. it does give usa whether we implemented. it does give us a bit of space to be able to consider things in a slower time.

thank very much. sir terence conran, the designer and retailer best known for creating habitat, has died at the age of 88. in a statement, the design museum which he founded in 1989, said he was a visionary who ‘promoted the best of british design, culture and the arts around the world'. 0ur arts correspondent david sillito looks back at his life. i believe in what i call easy living. duvets, flatpack furniture, the wok. it wasn't just a shop. sir terence conran introduced britain to a new way of living. a design philosophy that had its roots in the festival of britain. bank holiday and the festival spirit pulls the crowd to the southbank exhibition. as a young industrial designer, he worked on the exhibits of this vision of the future. it had a powerful impact.

i just saw the faces of people coming in in their long macintoshes with their sandwiches and their smiles. they hadn't seen anything cheerfulfor so long. habitat. 13 years later, he opened habitat. light, bright, modern, continental — furniture for the swinging 60s. it was the beginning of an empire. bhs, mothercare, richard shops, heels, he helped turn old hepworth‘s into the high street titan next. he also had a chain of restaurants, and while they had their ups and downs, food, clothes, furniture, he touched the lives of millions. and all of it came together with this. his last major project, the design museum.

a shrine to the ideas that had been his life's work. this is the great day of my life to see the place sctually finished. actually finished. the life and style of modern britain owes much to sir terence conran. businesses in commuter towns have recovered from the coronavirus lockdown more quickly than those in big cities, according to new research. for those no longer commuting to city offices, the local high street and the coffee shop has become the new place to work. some businesses in commuter towns around greater manchester, like this cafe, are benefiting from people spending more time where they live. when it's at home, it is only really myself and my radio in the kitchen, really.

and the coffee is a lot better than what i can make at home as well. when do you think you will go back to the office? personally i think we will still be working from home byjanuary. leah used to work in birmingham city centre, but recently relocated here. that's almost kind of made me want to spend more time in quieter areas as well. i find myself wanting to spend more time locally, in like sort of small, quaint coffee shops, local businesses. hospitality has been one of the hardest hit sectors but bloom coffee is enjoying something of a revival. it really has surprised us. i was really quite concerned about it being quite quiet for the re—opening but it hasjust been busier than it was pre—lockdown. we're so busy that we can't fit anybody else in, and people have to wait outside for tables, which we have never had before so it is really, really good. researchers from manchester metropolitan university analysed visitor numbers between march and july at 154 locations in england.

in major cities, foot fall dropped on average by nearly 76%, but in local high streets it fell by 34% and the data suggests smaller commuter towns are recovery more quickly. i know one problem we had previously is that people would have worked till five o'clock. commuting home, they got home, the local high street was shut. now they have that flexibility. they can go any time of the day, any day of the week, and they're finding that it's got services perhaps they didn't expect. the challenges for those high streets is can they keep hold of that trade? they have got to keep reinventing themselves. in large city centres, like manchester, as office workers stay away, the surrounding shops and cafes which rely on commuter trade are really struggling. instead, people are living and shopping more locally, rediscovering what is on their doorstep. here in ramsbottom, just 12 miles from manchester, businesses have been surprised at how quickly trade has bounced back.

we'll never ever get that three months back, when we were closed — we will never get that back, but we are building on it monthly. are you seeing a different type of customer than you did before? a lot of people from out of town who do not feel comfortable going to the big shopping centres, so we are getting a lot of new faces. and as commuting distance to the office has suddenly become less important, people are also reassessing where they want to live. we're seeing in these areas, perhaps more on the edge of city centres or further commuter city centres, we're starting to see more demand. the flip side to that would be that you would anticipate a cooling of interest in values in the real city centre hotspots that historically have been a one—way trade. i do think there's going to be a migration. the knock—on effects of these changes in the world of work are huge and the appeal

of the suburbs is growing. sarah corker, bbc news, in ramsbottom, in greater manchester. around one million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction. that s the grim statistic behind a special documentary presented by sir david attenborough. this loss in biodiversity has catastrophic consequences for us all, threatening food and water security, and reducing our ability to control the climate. 0ur chief environment correspondent justin rowlatt reports. during his long career, sir david attenborough has seen first—hand some of the most extraordinary natural phenomena. there's more meaning and mutual understanding in exchanging a glance with the gorilla than any other animal i know. but he has also lived through the most profound changes in the natural world

in human history. his latest film contains the stunning images you'd expect from an attenborough production, but this is not a celebration of the incredible diversity of life on earth. this is a warning. the natural world is being destroyed more rapidly than ever before. what's different is it is happening simultaneously in the amazon, in africa, in the arctic. it's happening not at one place and not with one group of organisms, but with all biodiversity, everywhere on the planet. for some animals, zoos like this, london zoo, are the last refuge. many, like these asiatic lions, are at risk of extinction in the wild. the programme says of the eight million species on earth, one million are now at risk of dying out completely.

species have always come and gone — it's a key part of evolution. but scientists estimate extinction is now happening at 100 times the natural rate, and it is accelerating. the programme features the last two members of one iconic species. i am caretaker of the northern white rhinos. we only have two left on the planet. they are mother and daughter. we do not allow any other species to walk this tragic road of extinction. you don't have to go far to understand what is driving this crisis. we are all responsible. the rise in human population and our insatiable appetite

for new things stamps an ever bigger footprint on the natural world. but, says sir david, all is not lost. his aim is not to try to drag people down into the depths of despair, but to take people on a journey that makes them realise that if we understand what is driving these issues, we can also solve them. the coronavirus pandemic is a result of our encroachment into the natural world. it originated in bats, and was first spread in a chinese market that sold wild animals forfood. but maybe the pandemic provides an opportunity for a rethink, the programme suggests. if we can reduce pollution, if we can stop wasting 40% of the food we produce, if we can cut the impact of the things we consume, then nature can begin to be restored. the programme revisits the gorilla sanctuary in rwanda.

the government has increased protection and worked with local communities. the programme team finds some of the children and grandchildren of those gorillas david attenborough met back in the 1970s. this is the daughter of poppy. the population is now thriving. i do truly believe that together, we can create a better future. i might not be here to see it, but if we make the right decisions at this critical moment, we can safeguard our planet's ecosystems, its extraordinary biodiversity, and all its inhabitants. what happens next is up to every one of us.

you can see the programme on sunday at 8pm on bbc one. now it's time for a look at the weather with tomasz schafernaker. it isa it is a mixed picture, isn't it? talks of high temperatures and rain in other places? the heavy rain is going to come first but it is going to affect the very west of scotland. most of us will not be getting the rainfall in fact. the heat is going to be more widespread. this is right now, so temperature is low 20s in the south, mid teens in the north. a lot of bright weather around. the rain will affect northern ireland. the dark blues and greens they're affecting scotland, south—western areas as well. here, we can see a lot of rainfall over the course of the night and also it will be very windy. thus wind approaching 40 or 50 miles an hour in scotland. to the south of that, it is a different

story. dry with some sunshine, but again in western scotland there could be as much as a 100 millimetres of rain, so from one extreme to another, to the blustery and wet north here to about 25 degrees in london. a brief hot spell on monday and tuesday. temperatures up on monday and tuesday. temperatures up to 20 only in the south—east.