more positive news about a coronavirus vaccine — the oxford team says its research is showing good results so far. the team has had a promising immune response in people over 60, offering hope to the age groups most at risk of the virus. what we've demonstrated is that, in the lab, we can measure good immune responses in adults of all ages, including those over the age of 70. what we need to do next is to see whether or not this translates into actual protection from infection, so protection from getting the disease in the first place. we'll be asking how soon we might get results of those next crucial tests. also this lunchtime: a boost to the defence budget — as the government announces the armed forces are to receive an extra £16.5 billion over the next four years.

prince william says the bbc investigation into how panorama secured its interview with his mother is a step in the right direction. covid in care homes — scientists who advised the government admit they never checked how the virus could be spread by staff working in multiple homes. and a £300 million rescue package for 11 sports struggling without spectators because of coronavirus. and coming up on bbc news, the seven—time formula one world champion lewis hamilton says he has unfinished business in formula one, as he prepares to sit down and discuss a new deal, keeping him with mercedes.

good afternoon, and welcome to the bbc news at one. there's more encouraging news this lunchtime about coronavirus vaccines. researchers in oxford say the vaccine they're working on shows a promising immune response so far in people in their 60s and 70s. crucial further tests still need to be carried out, and the vaccine isn't yet at the same stage as similar jabs being developed by pfizer and moderna. the uk has ordered 100 million doses of the oxford vaccine, if it eventually receives regulatory approval. our health correspondent naomi grimley has the details. more encouraging news, after months of upsetting headlines. 0xford university says its vaccine is well tolerated in older adults, and, crucially, that it induces a robust immune response, similar to that

found in younger people. it's always been a nagging worry that covid vaccines wouldn't work so well in older age groups. our results show that adults over the age of 70 have as good antibody responses as adults aged 18 to 55, and that's really important, because the older age group are the people who are the most vulnerable to severe covid disease. there are three stages to vaccine trials. these results come from its middle stage, phase two. researchers were studying 560 uk volunteers. 240 of whom were over the age of 70. but we are still waiting for 0xford's phase three results. that's the most comprehensive stage, which involves some 30,000 participants in the us, uk, brazil and south africa. it is only when that data arrives that we will really know whether this

vaccine actually works. then, things could move fast. the production has already begun, sol could move fast. the production has already begun, so i think that most people believe that the oxford vaccine will be ready to receive much quicker than the others. it could be as early as the end of winter. it really depends on the logistics and everything, but it is looking very promising indeed for swifter access to this particular vaccine. two other vaccine candidates, pfizer and moderna, are already on the verge of submitting their results to regulators. the uk has invested to differing degrees in all three of these leading vaccines, but, as this breakdown shows, hopes are pinned especially on the oxford one. overall, the uk has placed orders for vaccine doses totalling 355 million, but two shots will be required in most of them. globally, too, there is a sense of

expectation. the oxford team has done multiple deals with overseen vaccine makers, like this one, india's sarum vaccine makers, like this one, india's sa rum institute, vaccine makers, like this one, india's sarum institute, in a bid to make sure the world's poorest get access too. naomi grimley, bbc news. our health correspondent james gallagher is here. and it sounds positive but we are not there yet, james, are we? no, but we are allowed to be excited, after the year of gloom we have had, let's cherish every bit of good news we have had. so this isn't the final piece of evidence that you need but it isa piece of evidence that you need but it is a really important one along the way. phase two trials are the ones where you go, is this vaccine safe, is it doing what we think it should be doing, is it provoking an immune response? and it is, so yay for all of that. the next stage is proving that it stops people getting covid, those are the phase three trials, and it should be complete before christmas. but there is a temptation to think there is only one gold medal to hand out, only one

company wins, that is not true. everyone who crosses the finishing line with a successful vaccine gets a gold medal because we will need as many of these as possible. really interesting, thank you, james gallagher. downing street has defended the achievements of nhs test and trace in england, but acknowledged improvements could be made. it comes as the latest figures have been released. our head of statistics robert cuffe is here with the details. what do these figures tell us, robert? largely, the figures look quite similar to last week, but some of that is good news. so in terms of the performance of the system, the number of people getting contacted after they test positive, that is sta ble after they test positive, that is stable but it has been rising in recent weeks. tests are coming back to people faster than they were about a month ago. they haven't really changed very much in the last week. probably the less good news is that the number of contacts named by infected people, the proportion of those that gets reached, that is

still around 60%, the garment say thatis still around 60%, the garment say that is just not enough test and tries to have a big on the epidemic. the better news is probably in something called the positivity rate. over the summer, we saw both the number of cases rising every week, and of the proportion of tests that came back positive also rising, so we were suggesting that we were falling further and further behind the epidemic. now, cases are still rising, albeit slower than they were a while ago, that positivity rate, the proportion of tests coming back positive, that has started to flatten out. these sets of figures reflect the first week after lockdown. it is probably too soon to show through fully in the testing figures in the same way they already have in wales or northern ireland, but there are some signs in the data of that kind of flattening or slowing down of case growth, which isn't where we want to be eventually but it is a start of a move in the right direction. all right, robert, thank you. the number of people who've died with coronavirus in the united states has passed a quarter of a million.

the us has now reported more infections, and a higher death toll, than any other country in the world. yesterday, new york city ordered the closure of its schools until further notice, following a spike in cases there. the armed forces are to receive an extra £16.5 billion over the next four years. that means that, by 2024—25, annual defence spending will have increased by around £7 billion over previous manifesto commitments. speaking to the commons in the past hour, the prime minister claimed "the era of cutting our defence budget" would end. the extra money will help fund space and cyber projects. our defence correspondentjonathan beale has the details. britain's armed forces say they are about to undergo their biggest transformation since the end of the cold war. it will inevitably mean less of the old, like tanks and

heavy armour, and more of the gnu to defend in the domains of cyber and space. british troops here are already countering threats, such as this information. they will also now be part of a new national cyber force, able to conduct offensive cyber operations. and there will be a new space command, with plans to fire the first british rocket, like this us one, to launch their own military satellites, with concerns that russia and china are already developing anti—satellite weapons. announcing the biggest increase in defence spending in decades, the prime minister said it would bolster britain's influence and end an era of retreat. i've done this in the teeth of a pandemic, amid every other demand on our resources, because the defence of the realm, and the safety of the british people, must come first. defence spending has fallen by over eight billion pounds in real terms over the last ten years. over the same

period, uk regular forces have decreased by a quarter, and on top of that, the national audit office estimate there is a black hole of up to £13 billion in the mod equipment plan. the mod's annual budget is currently £41 billion a year. the government is now promising that will rise by 4% a year above inflation, which would mean an overall increase in the mod budget to nearly 52 billion by 2025. the government says the extra investment will also boost the economy, creating, it says, up to 10,000 extra jobs a year. at bae systems in lancashire, they have already started work on what they call their factory of the future, where they are developing the next generation of fighterjet. are developing the next generation of fighter jet. tempest are developing the next generation of fighterjet. tempest has been designed to fly with or without a pilot in the cockpit, but a former military chief worries about the cuts that will still have to be made to fund these new technologies.

obviously, there are some programmes, some historic programmes, some historic programmes, that could be cut, and i'm sure the defence chief will think very carefully about that, but the vast majority of our maritime, land and air capabilities that we currently have need to be fully funded before we spend too much of the additional cash in new and novel areas. the mod doesn't have a strong track record of staying within budget. it's still working out how to pay for the equipment it already once, including morejets for the two new aircraft carriers, and good news for the mod might mean less money for other government departments. jonathan beale, bbc news. our political correspondent, leila nathoo, is at westminster. it isa it is a lot of money, where is it all coming from? jane, i think that isa all coming from? jane, i think that is a question other government departments will be asking too. they have been negotiating with the treasury ahead of next week, when we are going to hearfrom the

chancellor about the government's plans for spending across the board. now, we know that most other areas are going to get moneyjust for the coming year. that's because the treasury's immediate priority is still the coronavirus pandemic, and a focus onjobs, still the coronavirus pandemic, and a focus on jobs, so still the coronavirus pandemic, and a focus onjobs, so i think it is significant, and the ministry of defence has managed to negotiate a financial settlement over a number of years. why the priority for the military? borisjohnson says it is all about extending britain's influence, a post—brexit world, he will have one eye on the relationship with the us under a new president, but i think he is also keen to stress that this will help create jobs, but clearly spending here will have consequences elsewhere, and remember the context, massive government spending on the coronavirus pandemic, the economy having taken a hammering. the chancellor rishi sunak will have a lot of difficult choices in deciding who gets what, and what combination of cuts, borrowing or tax rises will eventually pay for it all. leila,

thank you. prince william has tentatively welcomed the bbc‘s decision to launch an independent investigation into how an interview was secured with his mother, princess diana, in 1995. lord dyson, a former seniorjudge, will carry out the inquiry into martin bashir‘s panorama programme. in a statement released last night, the duke of cambridge said... "the independent investigation is a step in the right direction. "it should help establish the truth behind the actions that led "to the panorama interview, and subsequent decisions taken "by those in the bbc at the time". let's speak to our royal correspondentjonny dymond. is it unusual, jonny, to have a statement of this nature? yeah, it is, it's very unusual, in fact i think it's is, it's very unusual, in fact i think its extraordinary. members of the royalfamily, think its extraordinary. members of the royal family, senior think its extraordinary. members of the royalfamily, senior members of the royalfamily, senior members of the royalfamily, senior members of the royal family don't really commentate on media coverage, and they certainly don't involve themselves in something as controversial, and for the bbc, embarrassing as this investigation.

and look at the phrasing that was used, his office said that he tentatively, cautiously, that is, welcomed the investigation, that it's a step in the right direction. since william isn't giving a round of applause to the bbc, he is effectively saying, look, i am looking at what you're doing, i am watching this investigation, i'm pleased it's happening, but i am also waiting for the conclusion. this was a very important moment in his mother's life, the 1995 interview she gave to panorama. it had very serious implications for the rest of her life, brief period of her life. the circumstances around it are very, very controversial. the bbc has pledged an investigation. prince william has said, extraordinarily, he is watching and waiting. jonny diamond, thank you for now. our top story this lunchtime: more positive news about a coronavirus vaccine — the oxford team says its research is showing good results so far. coming up...

loneliness in lockdown — we meet one man tackling his own isolation by helping others. coming up on bbc news... ..owen farrell starts at fly half for england — with george ford on the bench on his return from injury — as eddiejones names his side for their second autumn nations cup match with ireland. scientists who advised the government during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic have admitted they "never checked" how covid—19 could be spread by staff who work at more than one care home. the researchers were speaking to a bbc documentary focusing on the period before the first lockdown in march. our health correspondent, catherine burns, has more details. at catherine burns, has more details. all stages we h

the at all stages we have been guided by the science. we have been following the science. we have been following the scientific and medical advice. at each point we have been following the scientific... following the science, that was the mantra at the start of this pandemic but this documentary asks how good was that science? the risk to the public remains low. the modelling group is made up of academics who use computer models to make a best guess on how the virus can spread. their advice goes up to sage and then onto government. the first uk cases were confirmed on january the 31st. for the next month, life went on largely as normal. by march the 2nd, the prime minister chaired the emergency

meeting of the cobra committee. for the first time since the virus arrived in the uk. the next day, this press conference. for the vast majority of the people of this country, we should be going about our business as usual. by then, officialfigures had said 164 people in the uk had been diagnosed with covid—19. it is thought, though, the real number of infections was more like 14,000. the virus had been spreading across europe. if i could have known one thing, i think i should have thought, if northern italy has got an epidemic than she is quite likely that other places in europe have probably got an epidemic as well. and i didn't think that. by mid—march, the scientific advice was that the virus was doubling every 5—6 days and heading for a peak injune. that advice was wrong. i got really concerned because i realised the doubling time was closer to three days than to the five or six days we were talking about. and this is really important

and quite a massive game changer. what it would really mean is that within one week or two weeks we would be at saturation of the nhs. and so, march 23rd, lockdown. at all stages we have been guided by the science. it took until mid april. what made you think...? it took until mid april. what made you think. . . ? that is a good question. we never checked. he points out the scientists were

working with limited data. the government says it has constantly adapted its approach as new evidence came through. and you can see more on that story in the full documentary "lockdown 1.0 — following the science? " tonight at 9pm on bbc two, or shortly afterwards on iplayer. a woman whose father died with coronavirus in a care home is taking the government to court, arguing it failed in its duty to protect him. cathy gardner's 88—year—old father michael died on 3rd april. she's seeking permission for a judicial review of ministerial decisions at the start of the pandemic. the government says it can't comment on the legal action. there is "credible evidence" that australian elite soldiers unlawfully killed 39 people during the afghan war. a long—awaited report has uncovered what the head of australia's armed forces says is a "shameful record" of a "warrior culture" among some soldiers.

he's apologised to the afghan people. from sydney, shaimaa khalil reports. these are australia's elite troops, risking their lives in afghanistan, supposedly to help the people in their battle against unrelenting violence. but now it's been revealed that some of them could be responsible for alleged war crimes. a moment of shame for the special forces. australians had been warned that this report would reveal very difficult realities, but few thought it would be this bad, including the country's top military commander. these findings allege the most serious breaches of military conduct and professional values. the inquiry found credible evidence that 39 afghan men and teenagers had been unlawfully killed.

allegations include junior soldiers being coerced into executing unarmed civilians to get their first kill in a practice known as blooding, and that weapons were planted on victims to make it look like the killings were legitimate. in all, the report said that 25 soldiers had carried out alleged crimes or had been accessories to them, and it is recommended that 19 people be referred to the australian federal police. the defence chief's language left us no doubt about how grave the alleged violations in afghanistan were. general campbell used words like shameful and appalling. he also described the toxic culture of deceit and secrecy which allowed this kind of behaviour to go unchecked for years. as he announced the damning findings, general campbell also apologised to the afghan people. such alleged behaviour profoundly disrespected the trust placed in us by the afghan people, who had asked us to their

country to help them. a special investigator will now be appointed to look at the findings, gather evidence and then present it to the public prosecutor. it is a process that could take years. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, sydney. for most of this year, live sport has either been cancelled or played behind closed doors — and without spectators. many sporting bodies have warned of financial ruin. now the government is announcing a £300 million rescue package, which will benefit 11 sports — including rugby union, rugby league and racing. but elite men's football and cricket won't get any help. katie gornall reports. sport has been struggling. with turnstiles closed since march many clu bs turnstiles closed since march many clubs around the country have been facing financial ruin but help is on the way with the government unveiling a rescue package worth hundreds of millions of pounds. today the sports minister announced

we know the vast majority of sports, many of which operate on tight financial margins, i've been making serious cost reductions. the funding will target 11 sports, largely in the form of loans. horse racing will receive £40 million but by racing will receive £40 million but rugby union will be the main beneficiary and receive 135 million, reflecting the huge impact the closure of twickenham stadium to spectators has had on its income. there is also another 12 million for by there is also another 12 million for rugby league, which will come as a huge relief to hear at salford devils who played in the challenge cup last month but missed out on the usual financial windfall. we have a big community fan base. to keep going in light of covid, we have no

gate money, it is difficult. women's football and non—league football will receive money but there is no money for the premier league with the government saying that the sport is wealthy enough to support itself. for some clubs it might be devastating and they may have to restructure. we will probably see some towards the end of the season who that is but it is definitely not pretty. many will point to the £1.6 billion paid to the arts sector in the summer and question whether the rescue package for sport goes far enough. today's announcement will come as a relief but it is only when funds are allowed back that sport will get the relief it really needs. the formula 1 driver lewis hamilton made history last weekend, when he equalled michael schumacher‘s haul

of seven world titles — and he's now laying claim to being the most—successful racing driver of all time. he's been speaking to sally nugent about his victory. i've definitely not got used to it. i've had more messages than i've ever had in my entire life, some of them from some incredible people. go on, drop me some names. tell me who has sent you messages. the royal family posted a message, which was, i mean, wow! i was just, to see the royal family do a personal post, i think that was, for me, that was the most, that was one of the biggest honours i feel like i've experienced. how important is it to get that recognition, when you've worked so hard for so many years? in all honesty, i don't do it for recognition, you know? i've trained my whole life, i think the most important people when i got out of the race, and when i got home, was talking to, you know, facetiming with my sister, my brother, my mum

and my niece and nephew. that was, like, and speaking to my dad, and my step mum, linda. but you managed in that moment, when you crossed the line, to deliver a really powerful message over the radio. just remind everybody what you said in that moment, because it was really special. for the kids out there who dream the impossible, do not give up on that dream, because i am living proof that you can manifest your dreams, and even the impossible ones. i remember as a kid, adults, teachers, parents of other drivers, and youngsters, telling me that i would not make it, you'll never — you're not good enough, there's no way you're going to make it, go back to your country, you know? like, all these horrible things, and i remember, i'm going to prove you wrong. what's next, lewis? yes, i have won this seventh title, but we have another big, big fight to win, and that's for racial equality, across the board. lots of industries now work to have, you know, an ideal number of people

of colour within their company. should formula 1 be looking to do that? you want people to earn their position, you know, so no—one wants to be handed, and we don't want to, we don't want to create a position to force these people to just hire people, minorities, for the sake of filling a space. i want to find out what the real problem is first, so we can fix it, efficiently. i am working with the royal academy of engineering in london. this research that we are doing is trying to understand why there is a lack of young black kids applying to stem subjects. what are the barriers? life in lockdown has led to isolation for many people — and all this week bbc news has been looking at its impact on people of all ages. our correspondent elaine dunkley has been to walsall, to meet someone who's dealing with his loneliness — by helping others in a similar situation. loneliness.

it is a killer, there's no doubt about it, it's a killer. when i lost doreen, after 63 years of marriage, i don't know, it's like a curtain's come down, i thought, what am i going to do with myself now? i never said goodbye to her. ron davies is 86. he lost his wife, a daughter and grandson. a life of love and laughter replaced with loneliness and heartbreak. how can you not miss somebody that's been there every day of your life, 63 years? and that loneliness, it is a killer, there's no doubt about it. it's a killer to people, and i've experienced this, and it will overtake you, if you let it. ron is not alone. millions of people are feeling increasing levels of loneliness during lockdown. social distancing has broken social bonds. in walsall, a group of volunteers are reaching out to the most vulnerable. it's called neighbourhood natters. a chat on the doorstep that can make all the difference. 0h, hello.

are you 0k? i've brought you some parcels, 0k? how are you doing, are you 0k? angela is visiting 91—year—old adelaide with some shopping, and for a much—needed catch—up. it's lovely to see angela. she's made my day. i really enjoyed it, yes, and i feel very proud and thankful for the things they're doing for me. i think it's lovely. is it quite upsetting sometimes, when you get back in the car? no, i get in the car sometimes, and sometimes i am, like now, ifeelfull up. you get in the car and you feeljust like pulling on your heartstrings, you know what i mean? and they are lonely, and there's been some people worse than adelaide, and you think you don't even want to, you want to put them in the car and take them home with you and look after them. neighbourhood natters has changed ron's live, and now he is a volunteer. every day he makes calls to people who are feeling lonely. hello, kath. 0h, hello, ron. are you all right? yes, yes, not too bad. oh, good. you sound a bit better.

is everything ok? i've got 16 people now. ten o'clock in the morning, i can phone reg. two o'clock in the afternoon, i can phone brian, at the home. i never thought that i would do this, never in a million years, but i'm thankful i've done it now. we're not strangers now, we're all friends, you know? "oh, it's ron. "it's all right, love, it's ron, my mate", when you get on the phone, you know, and you think to yourself, "oh, that's ok, that is", and it is a wonderful feeling, there's no doubt about it. i hope it lasts a lot longer, i do. a heart—warming story there. time for a look at the weather. here's sarah keith—lucas. much of november has been very mild so far but we have a brief coder interlude in the weather not lasting too long. this is the picture in the isle of wight with a lot of blue sky but there are also some showers around as well which will be

gradually easing as we had to