tonight at ten: on the eve of the budget, confirmation that the furlough scheme is to be extended to the end of september. this is the budget document for tomorrow... the chancellor is set to pledge more support forjobs and businesses, as the covid restrictions are gradually lifted across the uk. the furlough scheme will be continued until the crisis is over, with workers receiving 80% of their current salary. it was manageable, and, like i say, without it people wouldn't be... i definitely wouldn't have been able to pay my bills. and then there's potential for losing your house and getting in a lot of trouble. and the total cost to the taxpayer for all the support schemes

is likely to be more than £100 billion. also tonight... nicola sturgeon under increasing pressure as first minister over the way she handled of allegations of harrassment against her predecessor alex salmond. the mass vaccination programme is one reason why the number of covid deaths in england and wales has fallen by a more than a quarter in a week. we report on china's policy of moving hundreds of thousands of uighurs to factories often farfrom home. it's a goal! and the anfield legend ian stjohn, a majorforce in the rebuilding of liverpool football club, has died at the age of 82. and coming up in sport on bbc news, manchester city are at home to wolves in the premier league as they seek a 21st consecutive victory in all competitions. good evening.

the chancellor rishi sunak will use tomorrow's budget to pledge more support forjobs and businesses, as the covid restrictions are gradually lifted across the uk. but he'll also warn that the policy of "doing whatever it takes" will have to come to an end once the crisis is over, because action will be needed to repair the public finances. tomorrow he'll announce a continuation of the furlough scheme until the end of september, with workers receiving 80% of their current salary. more than 600,000 people are set to be added to the self—employment income support scheme. and the overall support schemes are likely now to cost the taxpayer more than £100 billion. 0ur economics editor faisal islam looks at the furlough extension, and other parts of tomorrow's budget.

it is incredible to think last year's budget didn't even contain the word furlough. 0fficial confirmation of a pandemic coming hours afterwards rendering most of the numbers obsolete. and yet even before tomorrow's budget, another lengthy extension confirmed. hi, everybody. i'm david, the head chef at the poterhouse in annesley. david in nottinghamshire has one of 11 million jobs that have been supported so far. head chef at a restaurant, he has used his time to try to help teach cooking cheaply for families. an extension essential, he says. it's been tough. like i say, without it, i definitely wouldn't have been able to pay my bills. and then there's potential for losing your house, and getting in a lot of trouble. and mentally as well, it would be really, really tough. so far in this crisis, unemployment has gone up only modestly. but add in those on the furlough scheme, and the separate support scheme for the self—employed, and it changes the picture dramatically, showing how the rescue has prevented mass unemployment.

the extension now is aimed to prevent a rapid rise in unemployment at the end of the scheme. the bbc understands that forecasts for peakjoblessness will be revised down tomorrow. so this is the budget document for tomorrow... the chancellor rishi sunak today was putting the final touches to his budget speech, meeting young workers on a video call. he promised to deploy the full fiscal firepower of the treasury to protect livelihoods, the theme of the budget red book, which will also stretch to a similar extension of the £20 a week universal credit increase, and include hundreds of thousands of previously excluded self—employed workers in the support packages. this is another huge intervention, worth £10 billion or £15 billion, worthy of a budget in and of itself.

the point is to take some of those millions of jobs in affective hibernation and help employers bring them straight back into the workforce, while the vaccine helps reopen the economy. after the jabs, the jobs — that, at least, is the hope. that can't be guaranteed, though. the real test of these schemes will be in just how many such jobs, for example at this essex events company, are switched back on when something like normality returns. they could have done with the certainty earlier, they say. the possibility of going back to work is what people want. i think it maybe is a little bit too late now to be introducing support. it would be lovely, but it would have been lovely for it to happen six months, a year ago. the opposition says the moves should have come months ago. the government has found another kitchen sink to throw at preventing a post—pandemic jobs crisis. faisal islam, bbc news. let's go live to westminster, on the eve of the budget come and talk to a deputy political editor, vicki young. faisaltook deputy political editor, vicki young. faisal took us through some of those figures, including that

figure of more than £100 billion for all of the support schemes. what political calculation is will the chancellor be making tomorrow? incredible, isn't it? almost a year on and the economy is still needing so much emergency support. that crisis part of this, if you like, still an important part of tomorrow. the chancellor is also laying out a longer term vision for the economy and how it might operate. then there is the politically probably much more tricky part because rishi sunak has said he will be honest about difficult decisions ahead. the question is beyond the language telling us these bills do need to be paid at some point, but how much detail will there actually be? what he is trying to do is do enough to reassure those conservatives who thinks he does have to start getting in control of borrowing as soon as possible and start doing that right now, then he has of course lots of his own mps who would quite like the extra spending and support for their communities and they want it to go on beyond the autumn. that is the balance he is trying to strike. i think there will be a small step

tomorrow towards tax rises but actually how extensive they are going to be, who ultimately will pay them, that will be part of the political debate here for many years, notjust tomorrow. years, not “ust tomorrow. vicki, man years, notjust tomorrow. vicki, many thanks. — years, notjust tomorrow. vicki, many thanks, vicki _ years, notjust tomorrow. vicki, many thanks, vicki young - years, notjust tomorrow. vicki, many thanks, vicki young with i years, notjust tomorrow. vicki, i many thanks, vicki young with the latest thoughts on tomorrow's budget. now, the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon, is under mounting pressure tonight following the latest revelations about the scottish government's handling of allegations of harrassment made against alex salmond, the former first minister. as part of an official inquiry, the government has published emails showing that it carried on with a legal battle against mr salmond, despite the government's lawyers advising it was likely to lose. further evidence from two other witnesses has also called into question nicola sturgeon�*s version of events. she is due to face the parliamentary inquiry tomorrow. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith is in glasgow with the latest. yeah, tonight you can really feel the political pressure intensifying

on nicola sturgeon. she is now facing direct calls for her resignation from the opposition and facing a vote of no confidence in the parliament and tomorrow she will be facing intense questioning in front of the salmond inquiry, about the legal advice the government has released tonight, but also about the numerous other ways alex salmond alleges she has breached the ministerial code. these former friends have worked their entire careers for one purpose, scottish independence. now their bitter feud could threaten that goal, as nicola sturgeon�*s position as first minister is now on the line. scottish conservatives plan to submit a vote of no confidence in her. without an snp majority in parliament, she cannot be certain to survive that vote. whilst fighting a court battle with alex salmond in 2018, the scottish government received legal advice thatis government received legal advice that is being published tonight. it shows their lawyers were worried. in september, they said, "we think there is a real risk the court may be persuaded by the petitioner's

case based on procedural unfairness. i. case based on procedural unfairness. |n case based on procedural unfairness. " in october... and in december they say... although the lord advocate advised the government to continue the case. and the lawyers are clearly furious when they say they each experienced extreme professional embarrassment as a result of assurances they had been given which turned out to be false as a result of the revelation of further documents. the scottish government conceded they had acted unlawfully on the 8th of january, they had acted unlawfully on the 8th ofjanuary, and they had acted unlawfully on the 8th of january, and alex salmond was paid more than £500,000 in legal costs. the government should have conceded the case months earlier, yet they kept dragging it out against senior counsel's advice. that is just unthinkable because the first minister should not behave unlawfully in pursuing a case she knows is lost.— knows is lost. this legal advice could be a _

knows is lost. this legal advice could be a very _ knows is lost. this legal advice could be a very serious - knows is lost. this legal advice | could be a very serious problem knows is lost. this legal advice - could be a very serious problem for nicola sturgeon. it is farfrom her only problem. she is also being accused of misleading the parliament over what she knew and when about the allegations against alex salmond. nicola sturgeon originally told parliament the first she knew of harassment complaint against alex salmond was on the 2nd of april 2018 when he told her at a meeting in her home. she later had to admit she had forgotten about another meeting on the 29th of march with salmond's former chief of staff in which he says the complaints were discussed. nicola sturgeon has also been asked if the name of one of the women making a complaint was shared at that meeting. to making a complaint was shared at that meeting-— making a complaint was shared at that meetinu. ., , , , ., , that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge. — that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge. i— that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge. i do _ that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge, i do not— that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge, i do not think _ that meeting. to the very best of my knowledge, i do not think that - knowledge, i do not think that happened. knowledge, i do not think that happened-— knowledge, i do not think that happened. knowledge, i do not think that ha ened. u, .,, ., happened. the committee has tonight ublished happened. the committee has tonight published letters _ happened. the committee has tonight published letters from _ happened. the committee has tonight published letters from two _ happened. the committee has tonight published letters from two people - published letters from two people who say they were told by the name of salmond's firmer aide to the name of salmond's firmer aide to the name of the complainant was shared at that meeting. of the complainant was shared at that meeting-— that meeting. that is naked opportunism _ that meeting. that is naked opportunism from - that meeting. that is naked opportunism from the - that meeting. that is naked i opportunism from the scottish tories — opportunism from the scottish tories. they haven't heard the first minister_ tories. they haven't heard the first minister because my evidence and have decided she has misled

parliament to stop they haven't waited — parliament to stop they haven't waited for the investigation into the ministerial code and have decided — the ministerial code and have decided already that she has breached it, so they are not interested in listening to the facts — interested in listening to the facts. ., ., ., ., ,, ., interested in listening to the facts. ., ., ., w., ,, ., facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will send facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will spend hours — facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will spend hours refuting _ facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will spend hours refuting all— facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will spend hours refuting all of— facts. tomorrow nicola sturgeon will spend hours refuting all of these - spend hours refuting all of these allegations under oath in front of the salmond inquiry. knowing she is now fighting for her political life. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. the number of coronavirus deaths in england and wales has fallen by a more than a quarter in a week, according the the 0ffce for national startistics. the health secretary, matt hancock, says the reduction is as a result of the mass vaccinations and lockdown. he also revealed that the search for an unidentified person who tested positive for the brazilian strain of the virus has been narrowed down to a few hundred houses in the south—east of england. 0ur health editor hugh pym reports. the streets may still look quiet, but we're on the road to recovery. that's the message from ministers in england today, with positive news about the impact of vaccines on preventing serious illness and deaths.

and the hunt for a missing person infected with the brazilian variant of coronavirus has been narrowed down to 379 households in the south—east of england. mr speaker... the health secretary, while warning of the need for caution, gave mps an upbeat assessment. the vaccine is working, reducing the number of deaths among those who were vaccinated first, and preventing hospital admissions. this is real world evidence that the vaccine is protecting the nhs and saving lives. 0ne measure of the covid impact is the total number of excess deaths in the uk. this line shows the five—year weekly average for total reported deaths, and here's what's been happening since the start of 2020, where there was a sharp spike last april — largely because of covid. then the numbers fell back again before another steep increase at the end of last year and into january. since then, the number has been falling back. this map shows cases per 100,000 people last week

in different parts of the uk. light blue shows the lowest numbers. 0verall totals have been falling but there are still some hotspots, including in eastern and central england, shown here in red. the numbers are moving in the right direction but there's still intense strain on the front line of the nhs, with no sign of respite for hospital staff. as the cases come down, they are coming down from a really high level, and across our whole membership we are hearing from nhs leaders that covid—19 remains a major pressure. russell is normally fit and active, but is recovering from covid at home after leaving hospital last week. it's like drowning. it's horrible. he'd been in a ward where others did not pull through. his message is, "don't think

covid has gone away." it is so serious. i have seen people pass by. it's not very nice. people might think they are immune from it or they are scared of a vaccine. oh, i wish i got the vaccine in may. it's a reminder that the vaccination programme has a way to go and that people are still getting very sick with covid. but the overall picture is looking brighter than it was. hugh pym, bbc news. let's have a look then at the official figures let's have a look then at the officialfigures in let's have a look then at the official figures in this let's have a look then at the officialfigures in this pandemic. they show there were 6,391 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. it means an average of 7,680 new cases were recorded per day in the last week. across the uk, 12,748 people are in hospital with coronavirus. in the last 2a hours, 3113 deaths have been recorded — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid test. on average, 284 deaths were announced every day in the past week, bringing the total number of people who've died to 123,296. 0n vaccinations, 203,168 people

had their first dose of a vaccine in the latest 24—hour period. in total, nearly 20.5 million people have now had their firstjab. a five—step plan for easing northern ireland out of lockdown has been agreed by the executive at stormont. it says the plan is "careful, cautious and hopeful", but it doesn't specify any timetable. 0ur ireland correspondent emma vardy reports. fancy a cocktail? no night out, though. takeaways at this once lively pub in east belfast have been keeping a bit of business ticking over during the doldrums of lockdown. pubs that only serve drinks will reopen in stage four of the executive's plan, but when that will

arrive isn't clear. we're still in the dark. we've been closed for seven months last year, now closed for three months at least this year. what were you hoping for? i wanted to be open on the 1st of april, or the 12th of april or by the 29th, but we wanted some clear indication on a date. how quickly northern ireland moves through the five stages of its plan, how quickly places like this can open again, we'll all be dictated by key health figures such as the r number, hospitalisations and the number of people who have had the vaccine. by not including dates, ministers have left themselves room to go more cautiously if cases were to rise again. but, for many, that is the biggest source of frustration. we will not be driven by hard dates. we recognise everyone will be looking for certainty, but we do not want to set potentially unachievable dates that will only disappoint. places that don't sell alcohol, like this bakery and cafe on the north coast, will get to open earlier, in stage two. we've really felt a social

responsibility here, especially in a small town. we don't want to open unless it's totally safe to do so. while school pupils in england can return on monday, in northern ireland, it's only some in primary and those taking exams, with most staying home until after easter. i think we have traditionally been more cautious. we have also had probably more time to think and learn from the mistakes that have perhaps been made in otherjurisdictions. the effect of lifting restrictions will be measured constantly and will be reviewed every four weeks. we will begin to taste freedom, but it will only come gradually. so don't put the big night out in your diaryjust yet. emma vardy, bbc news, belfast. a bbc investigation has found evidence that china's policy of transferring hundreds of thousands of uighurs and other ethnic minorities from north—west xinjiang to factory jobs often far from home is being used as a method of uprooting

and assimilating the population. it's also uncovered possible connections between these workers and major international brands. china says transferring workers away from the region is a way of tackling rural poverty and unemployment. 0ur china correspondent john sudworth has this report. at this factory, the uighur workers are clearly visible. more than 2000 miles from home, brought all the way to central china by a massive relocation scheme. now the bbc has found compelling evidence of how it works. in this xinjiang village, the authorities need 100 people to send to jobs on the other side of the country. they set up a stall, but this 2017 state media report shows no one's interested. so they go house to house.

"if you stay here," this official says, "you will be married soon and never able to leave." "will you go?", he asks. "no," she says. but with a mixture of propaganda... ..and heavy persuasion, the young woman eventually agrees. "i'll go if others go," she says. the bbc has new evidence that this separation from family and culture is, in part at least, precisely the point. a chinese study produced for senior officials says, "labour transfers help assimilate uighur minorities, transform their thinking and reduce uighur population density." the study was posted online in error. some of xinjiang's mainly muslim minorities are sent first to the giant re—education camps where china says its fighting

extremism, then to the factories. very few have managed to leave china after their release. translation: there were 200 workers in the factory. - we sold children's clothes and we were obliged to sing the chinese national anthem. they said, "the faster you work, the faster we let you go." but most of those transferred to work have not been in the camps and are sent direct from poor villages. the study also outlines how they are transported in groups, accompanied by security guards and put through political indoctrination. this is just an unprecedented authoritative source, written by really leading academics and former government officials, with unprecedented high level access in xinjiang itself. that drives home the implications of what is going on here. there are higher goals

of manipulating population density and demographics that, in my opinion, are very concerning, and they really point us towards crimes against humanity. we found products that may contain yarn from this company on sale in amazon in the uk. the factory says it no longer employs uighurs, and amazon told us it doesn't tolerate forced labour. and this factory makes plastic mouldings for some major international brands. so we've spoken to one worker here, who has confirmed that as many as a few hundred uighurs are employed in this factory. but, unlike the chinese staff, they are unable to leave the factory premises. in a statement, the chinese government said the study seen by the bbc reflects only the author's personal view, and much of its contents are not in line with the facts. but in large part it echoes government thinking. "some uighurs," it concludes,

"are unwilling to leave their homes," "a problem that should be tackled with strong guidance and persistent measures. " john sudworth, bbc news, beijing. last night we brought you the story of nine—year—old ahmed in the southern city of taiz, in yemen, who attend school close to the front—line of fighting in the civil war. millions of children are also set to suffer acute malnutrition. the uk government is planning to reduce its aid spending, cutting its donation to yemen by half. 0ur international correspondent 0rla guerin has the story. imagine if this was the school your child was going back to. the building and its pupils, hanging by a thread. it's a snapshot of

childhood in yemen. a country that will now get much less aid from the uk. this is ahmed, who touched many hearts in our story last night. he stands in when his teacher is absent. he's nine and was born blind. he's a beacon of hope and resilience. here in one of the world's poorest countries, the united nations says cuts in aid would be a death sentence. the spectre of famine

is hanging over this land. in ad dali province, mothers queue to have their children checked for signs of severe acute malnutrition. labour has accused the government of leaving children to starve. the foreign secretary says britain is doing its bit, and remains one of the top five donors to yemen. baby hamas is the latest to be diagnosed. nurse abdullah al khadri is pained by what he sees. it's already too late for saif hassan. this video was taken the day before he died from hunger. his brother, abu bakr,

was by his side. saif lies buried here. aid agencies warn cuts in funding will be measured in lives lost. 0rla guerin, bbc news, southern yemen. the holiday park operator pontins, which has six major venues in the uk, has entered a legally—binding agreement with the equality and human rights commission to prevent racial discrimination in its booking policies. it follows the revelation that staff were warned not to book accommodation for "undesirable guests", including people with irish surnames. critics said it was a clear attempt to keep gypsy, roma and traveller families from its holiday parks.

our business correspondent emma simpson is here. how did this come to light? this came about after a whistle—blower revealed that pontins had been using a—list of irish surnames as part of a policy to prevent bookings from gypsy and traveller families. prevent bookings from gypsy and travellerfamilies. it published prevent bookings from gypsy and traveller families. it published the list on its intranet, calling them undesirable guests, and telling staff to watch out for these names. the title of your equality and human rights commission also said that the company monitored calls at its contact centre, refusing or cancelling bookings made by people with an irish accent, or surname. they said this was discrimination and breached the 2010 equality act. these are pretty shocking revelations, and for such a big name in the holiday industry. a downing street spokesperson today described these practices as completely

unacceptable. as for pontins, its owner said today in a brief statement that it had agreed with the hrc to further enhance its staff training and procedures to promote equality throughout its business. the ehrc said it must take appropriate action and learn lessons. , ., ., ., the cheltenham festival is just a fortnight away, and the racing world is facing new questions over its treatment of horses. the prominent trainer gordon elliot has been temporarily banned from racing in britain, after an image was posted of him astride a dead horse, and today a second investigation has been launched after a video emerged of a jockey at another irish yard, also straddling a dead horse. 0ur correspondent laura scott looks at the potential impact of the images. gordon elliott has enjoyed life at the top of horse racing. three times he's trained the winner of the grand national, twice with the lion—hearted tiger roll. tiger roll, first to the elbow! now he says his world

is crumbling in front of him, after a distressing image emerged showing him sitting astride the body of a dead horse. an investigation by irish authorities is ongoing, and until that's completed, he is banned from having runners in britain. and today another investigation into a different irish yard. cheltenham winning amateurjockey robjames, filmed straddling a dead horse as others look on and laugh. both men have apologised, but many in the racing community are still reeling from the images. shocking, i think is probably the first emotion that really came to mind. and then just sadness. you know, this isjust not the norm that takes place in racing. certainly in my experience, from where i'm standing today, i've never seen anything like that. deaths on training gallops are an unfortunate but relatively uncommon occurrence. authorities have stressed that respect should be shown to horses during their lives,

but also after. this shows, or appears to show, a lack of respect and dignity for the animals with whom these people actually get a living. racing has sometimes struggled to convince those who think the sport is cruel that safety and welfare are central to its values. the fear is that years of hard work have been undermined. it's one man's foolish mistake. well, two men's foolish mistakes. and it's incredibly damaging, and incredibly hurtful to all the people who work in the sport and do so for the passion of looking after horses. with cheltenham and aintree looming, elliot's owners have already started deserting him. horse racing is in turmoil, facing questions about how its equine stars are treated behind the scenes, at a time when it's about to take centre stage.

laura scott, bbc news, lambourn. the reggae music legend bunny wailer has died in the jamaican capital kingston, at the age of 73. he was last surviving member of the group the wailers, which also included bob marley and peter tosh. the cause of his death is unknown, but he had been in hospital since having a stroke lastjuly. the former liverpool and scotland striker and television presenter ian stjohn has died at the age of 82. he was an iconic figure at liverpool and went on to be part of the hugely successful saint and greavsie, the itv football show, in the 1980s. 0ur correspondent andy swiss looks back at his life and career. amid liverpool's stars of the 1960s, few shone as brightly as ian stjohn.

when hejoined, the club was languishing in the second division.