tonight at six: scotland's former first minister, alex salmond, launches a blistering attack on scotland's leaders, including nicola sturgeon. giving his long awaited evidence at a scottish parliamentary inquiry, he accused the government of acting illegally during an investigation into claims against him of sexual harassment. scotland hasn't failed, its leadership has failed. so the importance of this inquiry is for each and every one of us to help put this right. alex salmond said he believes nicola sturgeon has misled parliament and broken the ministerial code, which he thinks means she should resign. we'll be asking how much damage this bitterfeud is having on scotland's leadership.

also tonight... age and not occupation will continue to lead the vaccination programme, with the over 40s next in line for the covid jab. the supreme court rules that shamima begum, who left london as a teenager to join the islamic state group, cannot return to the uk to challenge its decision to remove her british citizenship. a group of gymnasts is starting legal action against the governing body, british gymnastics, over alleged physical and psychological abuse. it's the first time i've been on an open tour bus. is it really?! yeah. no! i'm not really allowed to. a new american life but still one of service — prince harry explains why he felt compelled to move across the atlantic. and coming up on bbc news: wales get ready to take on england in rugby union's six nations championship, hoping to win the triple crown in cardiff tomorrow.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the former first minister of scotland alex salmond says scotland's current leaders and its prosecution service have failed. mr salmond has been giving evidence all afternoon to a parliamentary inquiry, investigating the scottish government's mishandling of sexual harassment claims against him. alex salmond — who led the snp for 20 years — was cleared of all charges in a trial last year. he has previously accused people close to his successor, nicola sturgeon, of plotting against him. she has denied his claims. our scotland editor sarah smith has the story. alex salmond arriving at the very parliament he once dominated as the most powerful man in scotland, with a story to tell about government failings and a conspiracy to destroy him.

he is speaking under oath. i swear by almighty god that i will tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. but angry. he's been told there are things he cannot discuss for legal reasons. i received a letter of what i was and wasn't allowed to talk about and, according to that letter, i'm not allowed to talk about areas of my written evidence that were submitted in good faith to this committee, which are easily available online in reputable journals for anybody to see. he said he didn't think scotland's democracy was failing, he blames the people, and that includes nicola sturgeon at the top of the system. the scottish civil servant hasn't failed, its leadership has failed. the crown office hasn't failed, its leadership has failed. scotland hasn't failed, its leadership has failed. one majorfail was in 2019,

when alex salmond won a legal battle with the scottish government over how it handled complaints of sexual harassment against him. it was ruled unlawful, that's what the inquiry�*s investigating, and don't forget, mr salmond was paid over £500,000 of public money for his legal costs. in terms of the people watching this, the people who paid the £630,000 that the government wasted, many people watching this will find it surprising that anyone is seriously arguing that the judicial review in the full public court was worth the public expenditure that the government wasted upon it. during the criminal trial last year, in which mr salmond was acquitted of all sexual assault charges, he did admit to inappropriate behaviour towards women he worked with. of the behaviours you have admitted to, some of which are appalling, are you sorry? over the last three years, there have been two court cases,

two judges and a jury and i'm resting on the proceedings of these cases. nicola sturgeon originally told parliament that the version you have complaints against alex salmond was on the 2nd of april, when he told her about it at a meeting at her home. she later had to admit she had forgotten about a meeting on the 29th of march with sam and's chief of staff in which he says the complaints were discussed. mr salmond says she is lying and he thinks he knows why. if salmond says she is lying and he thinks he knows why.— salmond says she is lying and he thinks he knows why. if the meeting ofthe thinks he knows why. if the meeting of the 29th of _ thinks he knows why. if the meeting of the 29th of march _ thinks he knows why. if the meeting of the 29th of march is _ thinks he knows why. if the meeting of the 29th of march is admitted - thinks he knows why. if the meeting j of the 29th of march is admitted and indeed the subject matter is admitted, then it makes it very difficult to argue that the meeting of the 2nd of april was party business as opposed to government business. if that was the case, then under the ministerial code the correct thing to do would have been to correct the record as strongly as possible. to correct the record as strongly as ossible. ., ., , u, possible. there are now significant auestions possible. there are now significant questions for _ possible. there are now significant questions for nicola _ possible. there are now significant questions for nicola sturgeon - possible. there are now significant questions for nicola sturgeon to i questions for nicola sturgeon to answer. why was there no official

record kept of the meeting with alex salmond, which they must if it was government business? he says he has no doubts she broke the ministerial code. she will set out her version of events to the inquiry next week. by by far the most serious allegation from alex salmond is nicola sturgeon is lying about the nature of the meeting that took place in her house with him. he says that would be a resignation matter. she of course denies that and those close to the first minister say alex salmond has failed to produce the evidence he promised to back up his claims. sarah smith, thank you. age will remain the main factor when deciding who gets priority for covid vaccinations. the committee advising the government on vaccines has rejected the option idea of prioritising certain occupations and says the current programme remains the fastest way of reducing deaths. people in their 40s will be next in line to receive the jab, followed by those aged 30 to 39.

tonight, the health secretary said the vaccination programme is breaking the link between cases and deaths but he warned that the pandemic isn't over yet. 0ur health editor hugh pym has the details. moving through the population and priority groups but where next for the vaccination programme once these are complete? there have been calls for key workers, including teachers and police officers, to be top of the new list for jabs and police officers, to be top of the new list forjabs but experts advising ministers say age and underlying health conditions are the biggest health factor so the next phase will move through younger groups, not occupations. we phase will move through younger groups, not occupations. we know the ace -based groups, not occupations. we know the age -based system — groups, not occupations. we know the age -based system is _ groups, not occupations. we know the age -based system is simple - groups, not occupations. we know the age -based system is simple and - age —based system is simple and works very well and therefore it seemed sensible to continue with that, keeping an eye on speed. couldn't you do both, with age and also some key worker groups? actually subdividing priorities within any age band may only gain one week. we within any age band may only gain

one week. ~ ., ., ., one week. we would want a 50-year-old _ one week. we would want a 50-year-old policeman - one week. we would want a 50-year-old policeman to l one week. we would want a - 50-year-old policeman to come 50—year—old policeman to come forward — 50—year—old policeman to come forward but for a 20—year—old policeman _ forward but for a 20—year—old policeman so doing it this way makes that prioritisation much simpler as welt _ that prioritisation much simpler as well. �* ,., . that prioritisation much simpler as well. �* . ., ., ~ , well. but police and some other key worker representatives _ well. but police and some other key worker representatives are - well. but police and some other key worker representatives are not - worker representatives are not happy. they argue their members are vulnerable and deserve to be next in line for the jabs. we vulnerable and deserve to be next in line for the jabs.— line for the 'abs. we have to be in --eole's line for the jabs. we have to be in peeple's faces _ line for the jabs. we have to be in people's faces at _ line for the jabs. we have to be in people's faces at times _ line for the jabs. we have to be in people's faces at times and - line for the jabs. we have to be in people's faces at times and my i people's faces at times and my colleagues are genuinely scared not getting the vaccination. the colleagues are genuinely scared not getting the vaccination.— getting the vaccination. the jc vi sa a . e is getting the vaccination. the jc vi say age is the — getting the vaccination. the jc vi say age is the biggest _ getting the vaccination. the jc vi say age is the biggest risk - getting the vaccination. the jc vi | say age is the biggest risk factor, not occupation, what is your response to that? we totally understand _ response to that? we totally understand what _ response to that? we totally understand what they - response to that? we totally understand what they are . response to that? we totally - understand what they are saying but they are _ understand what they are saying but they are treating teaching as any occupation and of course distinctively what happens with teachers as they are working with large _ teachers as they are working with large groups of young people. if a teacher— large groups of young people. if a teacher therefore is ill in a large group _ teacher therefore is ill in a large group of— teacher therefore is ill in a large group of young people, the standard of education declines. the group of young people, the standard of education declines.— of education declines. the first vaccination _ of education declines. the first vaccination priority _ of education declines. the first vaccination priority groups - of education declines. the first | vaccination priority groups were headed by elder care home residents and staff and then down through age bands to take in all those aged 70

and older. the clinically extremely vulnerable and health and care staff. the focus now is on those aged 50 and over and younger people with underlying conditions. the aim is to get through them by the middle of april. the next step will be first doses for younger adults finishing by latejuly, with the expert committee saying the risk of severe illness and death clearly increases with age. at the downing street briefing, the health secretary said in some areas cases where rising and people must stick to the rules. where rising and people must stick to the rules-— to the rules. this stark picture shows that — to the rules. this stark picture shows that this _ to the rules. this stark picture shows that this isn't _ to the rules. this stark picture shows that this isn't over - to the rules. this stark picture shows that this isn't over yet. | shows that this isn't over yet. these stay at home rules are still in place for a reason. every action that you take, every time you put your mask on, every time you stay at home, you are playing your part. find home, you are playing your part. and with some enjoying fine weather today, health officials warned that people should not drop their guard. hugh pym, bbc news.

there's further evidence that covid vaccines may help prevent the spread of coronavirus as well as protecting against getting ill. a study of health care workers in cambridge has found that a single dose of the pfizer biontech vaccine dramatically cuts the risk of getting the virus without symptoms. our medical editor fergus walsh reports. like thousands of health care workers in cambridge, daniela does a weekly swab test for coronavirus before she goes to work at addenbrooke's hospital. it'll show whether she could be carrying the virus without displaying symptoms. that swab is analysed at these university labs, where they compared the results from staff like daniela, who'd received the pfizer vaccine, with those yet to be immunised. in early data, they found that two weeks after the first dose, the risk of asymptomatic infection, carrying the virus without knowing it, was reduced by 75%. an england—wide study of health workers found

a similar protective effect. this is a genuine good news story. people should be really pleased that the vaccine will protect them and they should have the vaccine in order to prevent themselves and others from getting infected. but i think it will help us get out of lockdown, it will help other countries get out of lockdown and it will allow us, eventually, to get back to normal. hi, laura. hi~ - can i check your blood pressure? sure _ daniela is a nursing apprentice at addenbrooke's. nearly nine in ten staff here have had their first dose of vaccine — important, as it reduces the chance of getting infected and may protect patients. it makes me feel very happy. knowing that i will not pass the virus to anyone around me is very reassuring. very reassuring. it was one of the big unknowns — can vaccines help slow transmission of coronavirus? the study here adds to growing evidence that they do.

that has huge implications. it suggests vaccination benefits notjust the individual but the wider community. it's vital people have both doses of vaccine but while highly effective, they don't offer 100% protection from catching coronavirus or passing it on, so while infection rates remain high, social distancing will continue to be important. fergus walsh, bbc news. the latest official figures show further falls. there were 8,523 new infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. it means an average of 9,688 new cases were recorded per day in the last week — the first time the weekly average has fallen below 10,000 since the 1st of october. 15,485 people were in hospital with coronavirus across the uk — again those numbers haven't been that low

since the start of november. in the last 2a hours, 3a5 deaths have been recorded, that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid test. on average, 357 deaths were announced every day in the past week. the total number of people who've died is 122,415. meanwhile, almost 486,000 people had theirfirst dose of a vaccine in the latest 2a hour period. almost 19.2 million people have now had theirfirstjab. 0ur health editor hugh pym is here. so the figures are very positive, they seem to be going down and big falls by the government is really urging caution, don't wreck it now was the message tonight? yes. urging caution, don't wreck it now was the message tonight? yes, the office for national _ was the message tonight? yes, the office for national statistics - office for national statistics survey weekly of infections in the community, picking up people who don't know they have got the virus,

does show case rates continuing to fall but health officials and the health secretary at the briefing noted that the rate of decline was slowing up a bit and although the overall daily reported case numbers are coming down, it was pointed out to us that in some areas they were flattening and one in five local authority areas, they were going up. professorjonathan van tam, professor jonathan van tam, england's professorjonathan van tam, england's deputy chief medical officer, made the point that of 0fficer, made the point that of course cases still remain high overall. he went on to say, do not wreck this now and this is not a battle we have won yet. i think the message to the public, particularly over the weekend, is you may have had your first dose or both doses of the vaccine but don't think you can cut corners with the rules. hugh . m, cut corners with the rules. hugh pym. thank _ cut corners with the rules. hugh pym. thank you- _ the supreme court has ruled that shamima begum, the woman who left britain as a teenager tojoin the islamic state group in syria, should not be allowed to return here to challenge the removal of her british citizenship. the court ruled unanimously that her rights were not breached when she was refused

permission to return. the 21—year—old is currently in a camp in northern syria. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford reports. injeans and a sun hat, shamima begum, last summer in the al—roj camp in northern syria, where she remains to this day. the home secretary has stripped her of her british citizenship for running away to become an islamic state fighter�*s bride aged just 15. at the supreme court her lawyers argued that she must be allowed to come back to the uk to fight that decision in a fair court hearing. but today, the court unanimously ruled against her, saying her case should simply be postponed, national security comes first. the right to a fair hearing does not trump all other considerations. such as the safety of the public. the supreme courtjustices said parliament had given the home secretary the difficult task of making decisions around national security

in cases like this. 0verturning the court of appeal, they said that that court had not given the home secretary's assessment the respect it deserved. shamima begum and two school friends, both now believed to be dead, left london aged just 15 to join the islamic state group in syria. there, she married a foreign fighter and had three children, all of whom have now died. when is' rule collapsed two years ago, she reappeared asking to be allowed home to britain. i just want forgiveness really, from the uk. like, everything i've been through, i didn't expect i would go through that. richard walton, who was head of scotland yard's counterterrorism command had tried to stop shamima begum and herfriends getting to syria, told me this afternoon the court had made the right decision. if she'd been allowed to return to the uk by the supreme court, she would probably have been arrested by the counterterrorism command and probably charged with terrorist offences. but the evidence against her would

likely have been weak owing to the difficulties of securing evidence in war zones. and when released she would have presented an ongoing threat and would have needed to be subject to the most rigorous monitoring whilst in the country, hundreds of thousands of pounds over months and years. but civil liberties group says the decision hollows out a cornerstone of british justice and means we may never hear from shamima of british justice and means we may never hearfrom shamima begum, her explanation of what happened. mina; explanation of what happened. why was a explanation of what happened. brig was a 15—year—old girl explanation of what happened. my was a 15—year—old girl able explanation of what happened. m was a 15—year—old girl able to travel to syria? was she trafficked? was she green? those are questions we still can't have answers to and we still can't have answers to and we will never get answers too unless you can participate properly in her appeal and give her side of the story. appeal and give her side of the sto . , , ., appeal and give her side of the sto. , , story. there seems no prospect of that for now _ story. there seems no prospect of that for now and _ story. there seems no prospect of that for now and shamima - story. there seems no prospect of that for now and shamima begum | story. there seems no prospect of. that for now and shamima begum will in al—roj camp in legal limbo. a special raconteur said britain was on the list of shame of countries that strip people of their

citizenship. our top story this evening: alex salmond has launched a blistering attack on scotland's leaders, including nicola sturgeon, during his evidence to a holyrood inquiry. coming up — prince harry in la talks about his reasons for leaving the uk. coming up on sports day and bbc news. three generations of sporting excellence for the both family but who did they support when james plays against england who did they support whenjames plays against england for wales? tens of thousands of laptops and tablets have been donated during the pandemic to help children with homeschooling. the bbc launched its give a laptop appeal last year to help up to million children who didn't have access to a computer at home. businesses and members of the public all came forward with offers of help. 0ur correspondent fiona lamdin looks at the impact the scheme has had.

over the last six months, 86,000 devices have been donated following the bbc�*s campaign. thank you! helping children like the adams twins learn at home. it's a life—changer- and it's also a life—saver. and the holgates, who were home—schooling six children on one device... ..until a viewer donated a tablet. thank you so much, we really appreciate it! six months ago, we met 15—year—old charlie. he was struggling, home—schooling on his phone. so, what, have you got to post this to your teacher? _ yeah, i'm going to e—mail it. but his foster dad couldn't afford to buy him another device, and then a viewer donated this laptop. it was terrible, i was not engaging in lessons, i was doing no work. my exam grades... they were straightaway fails. you know, he's gone from being i a student that's a fail to a student that's got possibilities and hopes.

and you put that down to the laptop? now he's been given this, _ he's come along in leaps and bounds, he's passed his exams. it's incredible. yeah. but in a few weeks' time, some of these children will have to hand the devices back to the school, who own them. we've got very few devices at school. it's going to be absolutely heartbreaking bringing them back in and asking those children that have worked so hard over this period to give their devices back to us. oh, my goodness! we filmed with edwina last month, when she and her children received a laptop. thank you very much, thank you, thank you! giving it back will be hard. even though i know it was loaned to us by the school, handing it back, you know, is really going to affect my children negatively because they are kind of used to it now. and even though schools are going back, many more devices are still needed... bye! ..so students can learn in the classroom and at home. fiona lamdin, bbc news.

a coroner in manchester has found that a man,who was held down by public transport workers after an altercation close to a train station in the city, was unlawfully killed. 29—year—old jack barnes, died in hospital in december 2016 several weeks after the incident at manchester's victoria station. the coroner said the force used was �*unnecessarily prolonged, grossly excessive and unreasonable. 0ur social affairs correspondent michael buchanan reports. forfour years, tricia and sam have sought answers to one simple question, why did their son and brother, jack barnes, die? he lost his life because of a daft argument at victoria station. it just beggars belief. late one night in october 2016, jack had an altercation with four men working for the metro — some shouting and swearing. jack threw a bag at them before he ran off with a friend.

they hunted him down like an animal. the men chased them, two of the staff went on foot, two in a taxi. for nearly a mile over nine minutes, they pursued them through central manchester. jack barnes and his friend came running up deansgate and were caught here. jack was pinned to the pavement face down. almost immediately he started saying that he was struggling to breathe. a body worn camera on one of the men recorded jack saying, "i'm not resisting but i can't breathe, can you just release my neck?" in fact, over the course of 90 seconds, he said he was struggling to breathe on eight separate occasions. the men ignored jack. one of them said, "we're going to put you out now, pal. "it won't kill you but you will go to sleep for a while." while being restrained, jack barnes had a cardiac arrest, fell into a coma and died seven weeks later. how can they not be charged?

jack died and nobody�*s been held accountable for it. what would you say has been the impact of jack's death on you? 0n me? even if i get my wish and they do get prosecuted, jack's still not here. thouthack had taken some spice on the night, the inquest concluded his death amounted to unlawful killing. coroner, nigel meadows, said, "the use of force was unnecessarily prolonged, grossly excessive and unreasonable. these acts were unlawful and amounted to an assault." craig nevitt was restrained by the men alongsidejack barnes. i couldn't move at all. i was saying to them, i couldn't move and they were saying, shut up, i don't care, i don't care. when you saw the conditionjack was in, you immediately shouted, "you killed him" didn't you?

yeah, obviously the way he was, it looked real bad. jack barnes used to run whenever trouble started. that trait, unfortunately, was not enough to save his life. michael buchanan, bbc news, manchester. gunmen in nigeria have kidnapped hundreds of girls from a boarding school in the north—western state of za mfara. police say more than 300 girls had been taken from their dormitories in the early hours of the morning. it's not clear who carried out the attack — schools in northern nigeria have frequently been targeted by kidnappers. three 0lympians are among a group of 17 former british gymnasts who are starting legal action against the governing body british gymnastics over allegations of physical and psychological abuse. the allegations made here in uk surfaced last year after the former team doctor for us gymnastics, larry nasser, was jailed for abusing more than 250 women. last night a former us team coach who'd worked alongside him was found dead shortly after being charged with human trafficking

and sexual abuse. natalie pirks reports. john geddert worked closely with larry nasser. he always claimed he never knew of his crimes, but mere hours after 2a charges were made against him, police said the former us team coach killed himself. this is the latest twist in a tragic tale that has torn usa gymnastics apart and sparked a global conversation. the situation in america has given us confidence to speak out and understand what's really going on, which is a much bigger problem than any individuals, but a global, cultural problem. british 0lympian, jennifer pinches, started a social media movement last year when gymnasts shared their stories of alleged abuse. she is now one of 17 women claiming british gymnastics win at all costs

mentality normalised psychological and physical abuse. i still think that gymnastics is the best sport in the world. and for every gymnast that wants to learn to fly, i want them to be able to do so in a safe and enjoyable way. and for every parent that wants to put their kid in gymnastics, i want them to know that they can put their child in any club in the country and they will be safe. the letter sent by lawyers to british gymnastics alleges abuse of children as young as six and includes... inappropriate use of physical force and physical assault. weight management techniques which caused eating disorders and bullying and intimidating behaviour. it outlines how the former head of the sport's governing body admitted they'd fallen short in an interview with the bbc last year. in our national governing body, we've worked hard on athlete welfare. we just haven't done enough. british gymnastics said in a statement... "it would not be appropriate or fair to comment until the letter had been fully considered". an independent investigation led by anne whyte qc is continuing. whilst the nature of abuse heard in america is very different

the allegations heard here, have been no less devastating. whether it's dealing with work, dealing with stress, dealing with ptsd and anxiety, they are all things that we are dealing with that actually we shouldn't be dealing with at our age. 0ur voices are far stronger together than they are apart, they can't ignore the amount of us that are talking now. they want apologies, but above all, they want change. natalie pirks, bbc news. prince harry says he had to step back from royal duties because his mental health was being destroyed by the british press. in an interview with the chat show hostjames corden on american television, the prince said he did what any husband orfather would do saying his decision to move to america was about "stepping back not stepping down". 0ur royal correspondent daniela relph reports. here we are. this is very nice. yeah _ it's the first time i've been on an open tour bus. is it really?! yeah. no! i'm not really allowed to. in the la sunshine, from the top

deck of a tourist bus, prince harry opened up to his friend james corden about leaving the uk and, ultimately, royal duty. it was never walking away, it was... it was stepping back rather than stepping down. right. you know, it was a really difficult environment, as i think a lot of people saw. we all know what the british press can be like and it was destroying my mental health. really? i was like, this is toxic. yeah. so, i did what any husband and what any father would do, i was like, i need to get my family out of here — there were lighter moments too, including a call to his wife. haz, how's your tour of la going? haz? i didn't know we were calling you "haz" now! no, you're not my wife, so...! james corden offered a sympathetic ear and harry was clearly at ease. he revealed that he had watched the tv series the crown, his son archie's first word was "crocodile" and there'd been a special gift the queen. interesting, my grandmother asked us what archie wanted for christmas and meg said a waffle maker. sorry, you're glossing over the fact

that i cannot for the life of me imagine the queen ordering a waffle maker! for two brits living in california there were some memories of home. there you go, a little slice of home, huh?! next weekend, it will be meghan's turn, with the broadcast of her interview with oprah winfrey. daniela relph, bbc news. and finally to the moon look at that — almost a full moon tonight, the second of this year. this one is called the snow moon named by early native americans who used the moon to keep track of the seasons. it's rising tonight, but the actual full moon will be tomorrow morning just after a quarter past eight. and you should get a great view of it tomorrow as well — because we have lovely weekend ahead don't we, sarah? we do indeed. lots of clear skies.

meteorological spring is just around the corner. it felt like that out there today. in kent, blue skies there today. in kent, blue skies there today. in kent, blue skies there to nairn in the highlands, patchy cloud drifting around as the sun set a little bit earlier on today. sun set a little bit earlier on toda . .,, . , sun set a little bit earlier on toda. . , . . today. under those largely clear skies it is turning _ today. under those largely clear skies it is turning quite - today. under those largely clear skies it is turning quite chilly - skies it is turning quite chilly overnight. 0ver skies it is turning quite chilly overnight. over the next few days it will be dry by david sunny spells, expect some chilly nights and they could be some frost and fog in the forecast. to the rest of this evening and into tonight, we have a weather front moving evening and into tonight, we have a weatherfront moving in evening and into tonight, we have a weather front moving in from the north—west. that will bring more cloud to the parts of northern ireland and western scotland. england and while staying dry wood clear spells and temperatures dipping down a degree or two below freezing first thing. a touch of frost and some mist and fog around first thing tomorrow morning, which are gradually turn to lift and clear away. the areas most likely to see mist and fog are part of the welsh

marches, south wales and down