this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. british prime minister borisjohnson comes under pressure from some of his own mps to end covid restrictions by the end of april. government ministers however urge caution. we are not going to be able to give certainty unless we are basing it on the evidence we have got that the vaccine is doing its job. so far the prognosis is pretty good but we have to keep monitoring it as the roll—out proceeds. rolling out to the under—70s in the uk. more than a million people aged between 65 and 69 are to be offered a coronavirus vaccination. president trump suggests he could make a political comeback after he's cleared of inciting insurrection in his impeachment trial. democrats are furious

with the verdict despite the results of the vote on donald trump's conviction in the court of impeachment, he deserves to be convicted. i believe he will be convicted in the court of public opinion. thousands of protestors in myanmar return to the streets for a ninth day of demonstrations against the military coup and skating on thin ice — a rare skating event could return to the netherlands thanks to the cold weather — but will covid restrictions get in the way? hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. britain's foreign secretary dominic raab has rejected calls by members of his party to lift all coronavirus restrictions by the end of april. more than 60 mps on the covid

recovery group have backed a letter to borisjohnson demanding he commits to a strict timetable for ending controls in england. mr raab says he shares their desire to leave lockdown, but that it had to be driven by evidence the uk's vaccination programme is working. our political correspondent, damian grammaticas, joins me now. i suppose this is an issue for the government, the more successful vaccination programme is, the more the pressure to ease restrictions quickly? the pressure to ease restrictions cuickl ? w , the pressure to ease restrictions cuickl ? , the pressure to ease restrictions cuickl? , , quickly? exactly. the uk has this vaccination _ quickly? exactly. the uk has this vaccination programme - quickly? exactly. the uk has this vaccination programme that - quickly? exactly. the uk has this vaccination programme that is i vaccination programme that is rolling out as one of the fastest roll—outs in the world. which is leading to this question about, well, how quickly can you then lift restrictions? that is where this group of backbench mps have written and supported this call to say that it should mean that by april everything should pretty much be

open. but, conversely, the uk, through this pandemic, also has one of the highest cumulative death totals in the world. under the government has been criticised by the opposition in the past for being too slow to act in imposing restrictions. what it doesn't want to be now is too hasty in lifting them. what it is saying is that it has to evaluate how this vaccination programme is going. it should be able to do that in the coming days, to give a better idea of a timetable. this is what dominic raab has been saying. we want to give us much certainty as we responsibly can. but that it has to be _ we responsibly can. but that it has to be based on evidence. we set as well as_ to be based on evidence. we set as well as opening schools on the 8th of march, — well as opening schools on the 8th of march, ouraim, the well as opening schools on the 8th of march, our aim, the thing we are working— of march, our aim, the thing we are working towards, is to get nonessential retail open. and then after that, — nonessential retail open. and then afterthat, in nonessential retail open. and then after that, in due course, again, driven_ after that, in due course, again, driven by— after that, in due course, again, driven by the evidence of how the vaccine _ driven by the evidence of how the vaccine is — driven by the evidence of how the vaccine is working, we can think about_ vaccine is working, we can think about things like hospitality. but i think_ about things like hospitality. but i think you — about things like hospitality. but i think you are not going to be able to give _ think you are not going to be able to give certainty unless we are basing — to give certainty unless we are basing it — to give certainty unless we are basing it on the evidence that we have _ basing it on the evidence that we have got— basing it on the evidence that we have got that the vaccine is doing

its have got that the vaccine is doing iisiob~ _ have got that the vaccine is doing its “ob. ., have got that the vaccine is doing its “ob. . . , its job. that evidence, he is talkinu its job. that evidence, he is talking about _ its job. that evidence, he is talking about the _ its job. that evidence, he is talking about the things - its job. that evidence, he isi talking about the things like figures for hospitalisations and the death rates, because that is where we have seen the enormous pressure on hospitals here. interestingly, in this case, what we see as the opposition, the labour party, saying they actually support caution. they want this to be the last of the lockdowns. they don't want a repeat, and therefore, they say restrictions should only be lifted when it is clear that it is safe to do so. this is the opposition labour party's health secretary, jonathan ashworth. this lockdown has to be the final lockdown, by the way. the strategic aim is to do everything we can now so we don't have to go back into a lockdown. we know the virus is a moving target now. it mutates when it is given opportunities to mutate. and we don't want to grow a new mutation which can evade the vaccine response and set us back to square one, so we have to be cautious at every step.

what the government back you are saying is that it expects to be able to announce that schools can start to announce that schools can start to go back in the beginning of march. after that, restrictions lifted again for things like outdoor exercise. and then shops and restaurants. remember, we have these very tight restrictions on the uk as well at the minute. this is the third of all of the lockdowns. you can't leave your home, you're meant to work from home, you can only go to work from home, you can only go to work from home, you can only go to work if it is essential, you can only go out to exercise and meet one of the person. there are still strict restrictions. that is where the backbench conservative mps say this is having a huge impact on not justjobs, but mental well—being and that this needs to be lifted as soon as possible. but we can see at the minute there was caution from the government. i minute there was caution from the government-— minute there was caution from the government. . , , , ., ~ ., government. i have been speaking to mark harper. — government. i have been speaking to mark harper. the _ government. i have been speaking to mark harper, the leader _ government. i have been speaking to mark harper, the leader of _ government. i have been speaking to mark harper, the leader of that - mark harper, the leader of that group of tory mps, and we will be showing that interview a little

later in this bulletin. people in england aged between 65 and 69 will start being vaccinated against coronarvirus from tomorrow. those classed as clinically vulnerable because of conditions such as chronic heart or lung disease, some cancers and diabetes will also be able to book a jab. donald trump has hinted he could return to politics, after being acquitted in his second impeachment trial in the us senate. the former president said he planned to put forward a vision for a bright, radiant and limitless american future. the senate voted by 57 to 43 to convict mr trump — well short of the the two—thirds majority needed to find him guilty of incitement to insurrection over the attack by his supporters on congress, last month. nomia iqbal reports from washington. donald john trump, former president of the united states, is not guilty as charged in the article of impeachment. this wasn't a typical trial, but it had an ending we all saw coming.

nearly half of the jurors, the republican senators, had voted unsuccessfully to stop the trial from happening. there was a plot twist when it looked like witnesses may have been called, but soon the drama concluded, making it the fastest impeachment trial in history. "did the then president, donald trump, incite of violent mob to overturn the election results on january the 6th?" mr mcconnell, not guilty. mr romney, guilty. only seven republicans said yes, along with 50 democrats. that was more republicans than expected. in this security footage video... democrats had spent three days presenting new, harrowing footage and audio showing how mr trump not only encouraged rioters but backed them when the violence was happening. all the senators had been inside the capitol that day, including vice president mike pence and top democrat nancy pelosi.

they were targeted by the mob and had to flee. what we saw in that senate today was a cowardly group of republicans who apparently have no options because they were afraid to defend theirjob. a lot of her anger was directed at this man, top republican mitch mcconnell. there's no question, none, that president trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day. no question about it. the people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their president. tough words, but he voted to acquit mr trump on a technicality, saying it was unconstitutional to remove a president who had already left office. in a lengthy statement, donald trump said the trial was a witch hunt and that his

make america great again movement had only just begun. the capitol was the crime scene and the scene of acquittal. the stakes were high. the republican party can't let go of donald trump, even though he's no longer in the white house. and as for the country, it means in four years' time, he could run to be the us president once again. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. robert mackey, is a senior writer at the intercept. thank you very much for being with us. what is your view of all of this? where does this leave donald trump? he is kind of suggesting, hinting, that he could be back for another run at the white house? yes. another run at the white house? yes, basically he — another run at the white house? yes, basically he had _ another run at the white house? yes, basically he had no _ another run at the white house? is: basically he had no interest in being president but he loved being are running for president. during his entire term, he was campaigning

constantly. that is what he thrives on and craves, the adulation of crowds. so, it is difficult to see why he wouldn't run for president again. except for the fact that he does have some dissent within the republican party that he will have to deal with. republican party that he will have to deal with-— to deal with. how divided is the republican _ to deal with. how divided is the republican party _ to deal with. how divided is the republican party now? - to deal with. how divided is the republican party now? you - to deal with. how divided is the | republican party now? you have to deal with. how divided is the - republican party now? you have the trump wing, which is in the ascendancy, isuppose trump wing, which is in the ascendancy, i suppose it is fair to say, then the traditional republicans, who probably may hate him, but think that they need him to be electorally successful? yes. be electorally successful? yes, absolutelv- _ be electorally successful? yes, absolutely. i— be electorally successful? yes, absolutely. i think _ be electorally successful? yes, absolutely. i think the - be electorally successful? yes, absolutely. i think the actual. be electorally successful? 12: absolutely. i think the actual wing of the party that believes the conspiracy theories and lies that he spreads is not that large. but there is a lot of fear of his voters. obviously it was an overwhelming turnout that he drove in the last election, but helped many of these people win their seats again. so, they are afraid of alienating those very voters that they would need.

but when you look at the 2024 potential race, the other senators that want to run like ted cruz, josh hawley, who supported trump in contesting the election results, they will eventually have to deal with finding some way to criticise trump or run against him. that is going to be a fascinating dynamic to see. ~ :, going to be a fascinating dynamic to see. : . , . ., ., ., going to be a fascinating dynamic to see. . , . ., , see. what difference to all of this does the impeachment _ see. what difference to all of this does the impeachment trial - see. what difference to all of this does the impeachment trial of. see. what difference to all of this | does the impeachment trial of the senate make? obviously a failure to get a two thirds of votes to actually convict him. does that mean donald trump is strengthened or weakened by the whole process of that trial? ~ ., , , that trial? well, i think it depends on what part _ that trial? well, i think it depends on what part of— that trial? well, i think it depends on what part of the _ that trial? well, i think it depends on what part of the country - that trial? well, i think it depends on what part of the country you i that trial? well, i think it depends| on what part of the country you are talking to. the country is extremely divided along the lines of conspiracy theories and lies, and facts. when you look at the house impeachment manager's case, and they laid out in clinical detail what happened during the riot, how the attack progressed. we saw cctv footage that gave a new insight into

what happened. and it seemed overwhelming and convincing. but then when you have the president's lawyers give their account of things, they basically avoided all of those facts and just repeated sort of things you hear inside this right—wing media bubble in the states. if you watch fox news, if you watch french programmes like newsmax or oan, you're used to hearing that the democrats are really responsible for horrible violence and actually left—wing infiltrators carried out the attacks on the capitol. there is no evidence for that, on the capitol. there is no evidence forthat, but on the capitol. there is no evidence for that, but his lawyers repeated are just as he for that, but his lawyers repeated arejust as he has. and millions of americans are convinced of those lies. so the struggle in the republican party is a struggle between verifiable reality on these fantasies that trump has managed to spin out and convince millions of americans to believe. but

spin out and convince millions of americans to believe.— spin out and convince millions of americans to believe. but was this whole trial a _ americans to believe. but was this whole trial a waste _ americans to believe. but was this whole trial a waste of _ americans to believe. but was this whole trial a waste of time? - americans to believe. but was this whole trial a waste of time? we i whole trial a waste of time? we always knew there were not going to be enough republican senators to convict him. i be enough republican senators to convict him-— convict him. i think that the democrats... _ convict him. i think that the democrats... to _ convict him. i think that the democrats... to some - convict him. i think that the i democrats... to some extent, convict him. i think that the - democrats... to some extent, they felt there might be political risk in doing it. but it was necessary to help create a record. and it is certainly true, even though all the questions were not answered in the trial easily could have gone on much longer, to get a lot more evidence, a lot more is now known about the sequence of events. a lot more is known, for instance, about what trump's reaction during it was. we know that he phoned a senator, he was trying to find senator lee, he tried to get him to play out further this objection, to object to more states, the counting of their electoral votes on fraud in more states, as the attack was going on. we know from testimony that came in

at the last moment at kevin mccarthy, the senior house republican, frantically phoned trump and tried to get him to make a statement, to go on television to call off his supporters. and trump first told him, they are not my supporters, they are antifascist leftists. when mccarthy assured him they were his supporters, because they were his supporters, because they were his supporters, because they were breaking into his office, trump just expressed no they were breaking into his office, trumpjust expressed no interest they were breaking into his office, trump just expressed no interest in calling it off, and said, well, it seems those people are more upset about the election than you are, kevin. underthis about the election than you are, kevin. under this sort of complete disregard for protecting the government of the united states from the president was shocking. but it was put on full display. it is possible it will have some impact on his standing inside the republican party. several republicans voting against him is an unprecedentedly large number. until today, against him is an unprecedentedly large number. untiltoday, until yesterday, only one member of a party had ever voted to have a

president of his or her own party removed from office. that was mitt romneyjust removed from office. that was mitt romney just last year against trump. now he has beenjoined by six more republicans. so there is a lot of disquiet inside his party over the clear display of the dereliction of duty. as mitch mcconnell, the senior republican, described it, after voting to let trump off the hook on a technicality that he was already out of office. a technicality that he was already out of office-— a technicality that he was already out of office. good to talk to you. senior writer _ out of office. good to talk to you. senior writer at _ out of office. good to talk to you. senior writer at the _ out of office. good to talk to you. senior writer at the intercept. - new zealand prime ministerjacinda ardern has announced a three—day lockdown in the country's biggest city auckland, after three new covid cases were reported. the level 3 restrictions will require everyone to stay home except for essential shopping and work. new zealand hadn't had any local cases for months and has been one of the most successful countries in containing the spread of the virus. mrs ardern said the authorities would work quickly to assess the extent of the new infections.

three days should give us enough time to gather further information, undertake large—scale testing, and establish if there has been wider community transmission. that is what we believe the cautious approach requires and is the right thing to do. a ban on evictions in england is being extended until the end of march — a move which ministers say will ensure tenants who fall behind on their rent are not forced out of their homes in all but the most serious cases. but housing charities argue the measures doesn't go far enough — and are calling for loans and grants for renters and landlords in difficulty. the headlines on bbc news... british prime minister borisjohnson comes under pressure from some of his own mps to end covid restrictions by the end of april. president trump suggests he could make a political comeback after he's cleared of inciting insurrection in his impeachment trial. thousands of people in myanmar return to the streets for a ninth day of protests against

the military coup. as we've been hearing, borisjohnson is under to remove all coronavirus restrictions in england by the end of april. earlier i spoke to the chair of that group of mps, mark harper. i agree with the foreign secretary that we shouldn't choose arbitrary dates. but we haven't in our letter. we very much timed our requests for the relaxation of restrictions to the roll—out of the vaccination programme. so, we've suggested starting lifting restrictions on march the 8th, when the top four groups who are most vulnerable have been vaccinated and that first dose of vaccination becomes effective from march the 8th. and then we suggested all of those restrictions going once the government has vaccinated the top nine groups. and we have tied the timetable very much to the government's commitment

about the vaccination roll—out. so it's not arbitrary at all, it is completely tied to the roll—out of the vaccination programme and the fact that you are then protecting the most vulnerable people from death and serious disease from covid, from the fantastically successful vaccination programme the nhs has undertaken. but the government is still considering the data from the vaccination programme, especially how it affects transmissibility. at the moment we don't know 100% how the vaccine programme is affecting the transmissibility of the virus? the government has made it quite clear, the health secretary made it quite clear in the house of commons just this week, that the government is looking at the reduction in death rates and the reduction in hospitalisation to remove pressure on the nhs. the government itself has said that infection rates are not one of the factors it is going to look at. because the vaccination breaks the link between the number of infections and hospitalisation and death, because you are protecting people from vaccinations.

so the government is looking at deaths, hospitalisations, the roll—out of the vaccination and obviously keeping an eye on the progress of any new variants. but the government has confirmed that all of the new variants are dealt with effectively by the vaccinations that we have at the moment. the british foreign secretary dominic raab has said he shares concerns raised by the united states about the level of access given to a world health organisation fact—finding mission to china which was investigating the source of the coronavirus pandemic. mr raab said britain will be pushing for full access for the who. a member of the who team that visited wuhan british epidemiologistjohn watson told the andrew marr show that the wuhan mission was only

the beginning of a long process. we have seen a great deal of information about those early cases, there is more that we would like to see, both in the way of analyses and data, and we've been talking with our chinese counterparts about that. we hadn't ever anticipated that this was an event that would be a one—off, we'd come back with a clear—cut answer on the basis of this one trip. we see it as the start of a process that is going to take really quite a while. and we are recommending a range of further work to be done, further analyses and further discussions to take place, as part of trying to unearth what's going on. in myanmar military leaders have named seven opposition campaigners they want arrested, under the rare charge of "disturbing tranquility". the army is staging night—time raids, following mass protests at the military coup. tim neilson has more. an eighth successive

day of demonstrations. this was yangon city on saturday afternoon. hundreds of thousands still marching, and still ignoring the military crackdown on the protests. the latest tactic by the coup leaders, suspending laws stopping security services from detaining suspects, or searching private property without court approval. they have also released the names of seven opposition activists they accuse of disturbing tranquillity — a rarely used charge. human rights watch says over 300 people have now been detained, many during night—time raids. we have neighbourhoods who are trying to organise. they are using pot banging when it looks like the police, or military, are coming into the local area, to the area, to possibly arrest someone, to warn people. it really has become a situation where the crackdown is now going after anybody that the military identifies as leaders of these protests.

meanwhile, football is also playing its part in the protests. outside the country's national stadium, many of the country's top footballers have also been making their voices heard. translation: we will only play football on the street _ until we get democracy. we won't play for the national team under the military dictatorship. we are protesting to send that message. translation: we are football players i but we're also citizens of myanmar. i we know people have relied on each other in this moment, so people from sport are participating in this revolution, too. the us is the only country to impose sanctions on myanmar�*s military so far. with the rest of the world still wondering whether to follow suit, the protests and the arrests go on. in india, tens of thousands of farmers have been protesting

on the borders of the capital delhi, after changes to farming laws. the reforms loosen rules around the pricing and storage of farm produce which have given farmers in india financial protection for many decades. the government says the reforms, which will allow farmers to sell direct to big businesses, will leave them better off. monika plaha has the story. standing shoulder to shoulder, shining light in a time of darkness, to remember the farmers who have been fighting for their future. since november, they have been protesting against new agriculture laws in india, and thousands of miles away in yorkshire, this woman is worried for her uncle and cousins who are amongst the crowds. i am the daughter of a farmer, i am the granddaughter of a farmer. how did my dad come to this country? he farmed on the land himself in order to be able to even simply buy the ticket to come over to this country. so anything that i have to this

day is due to the fact that our family comes from farms. farmers say the new laws will benefit the private sector and destroy livelihoods. as the crowds have grown, so has the police presence and violence. internet was suspended at protest sites and some social media sites have been blocked. not only is that your community, there have been videos and images of people who have been literally beaten down to the ground. it's not only a farming issue now, it's also a human rights issue. this is an issue which has received global attention on social media, and is also being supported by a british farmers union. i see farmers in india as standing up for rights and security that in the uk we have already lost. i find their attempts to resist these changes really inspiring for my work and the work of the land workers alliance around me, in returning that food security to local communities. it's been reported that a number

of protesters are missing and some journalists and activists have been detained. tensions for loved ones are running high. this woman holds virtual workshops to support elderly british indians who fear for their family's safety. lots of them are from farming backgrounds and they do havej families and relatives . at the protests, and it's just constant worry. if the laws are implemented, it will cripple them. - the indian government say for farming to have a future, the industry needs to be reformed. many have families whose livelihoods depend on it and say they will continue to stand defiant until change is made. monika plaha, bbc news. freezing temperatures in the netherlands have caused canals to ice over, meaning some people are hoping the world's biggest skating competition on natural ice might go ahead. ice skating is a national passion in the country — and with conditions ideal, fans are still campaigning for the race in the northern province of friesland to go ahead.

but coronavirus restrictions mean it's a politically charged issue. the dutch prime minister mark rutte says social distancing won't allow the race to take place. now it's time for a look at the weather with sarah keith lucas. hello. it was a cold start to the day but i think today will be the last day of those cold, chilly, icy starts. through this week things are changing in terms of weather type. much milder, largely frost—free overnight, but quite unsettled, with rain at times and often windy this week. today we are seeing those strong winds — whenever you are it is a cloudy and windy today. outbreaks of rain moving west to east, fairly patchy rain. some of that rain may fall as freezing rain, falling into sub—zero air and onto freezing surfaces which can create some really treacherous, icy conditions for parts of scotland

and northern england. east anglia and the south—east remaining dry for a good part of the day, outbreaks of rain elsewhere, strong, gusty winds of 60—70 mph through the irish sea, big waves for antrim and down, the western isles. mild in the west, colder in the east. into the evening, cloud and patchy rain sweeps across much of england and wales, followed by clearer skies moving in for scotland and northern ireland and later on for northern england, but there could be scattered heavy downpours for the far north—west. overnight temperatures 5—9 celsius. significantly warmer than even during the daytime this past week. into monday, here is that front lingering initial in the east, that should slowly clear and we are left with the winds from a south or a south—westerly direction. the cold air mass is clearing toward the east and these much

milder yellow colours coming in from the south or south—west. monday, rain initially for southern and eastern england and that should move towards the east. further scattered showers for northern ireland, scotland and northern england. they should ease later and some sunshine breaking through. in the sunnier spells in the south—east, perhaps london reaching 14 celsius on monday — much warmer than recently. even 8—10 celsius for parts of scotland. through the week ahead — fairly unsettled, rain at times, some sunshine in between, but not as cold as it has been lately. bye for now.

hello, this is bbc news with ben brown. the headlines...

british prime minister borisjohnson comes under pressure from some of his own mps to end covid restrictions by the end of april. government ministers, however, urge caution. we are not going to be able to give certainty unless we are basing it on the evidence we have got that the vaccine is doing its job. so far the prognosis is pretty good but we have to keep monitoring it as the roll—out proceeds. rolling out to the under—70s in the uk. more than a million people aged between 65 and 69 are to be offered a coronavirus vaccination. president trump suggests he could make a political comeback after he's cleared of inciting insurrection in his impeachment trial. democrats are furious with the verdict. despite the results of the vote on donald trump's conviction in the court of impeachment, he deserves to be convicted. i believe he will be convicted in the court of public opinion.

thousands of protestors in myanmar return to the streets for a ninth day of demonstrations against the military coup.