the prime minister says women must feel safe on the streets — and described the country as �*united in shock and grief�* at the death of sarah everard amid strong criticism of the met police's handling of a vigil in london, borisjohnson said officers had a difficultjob — but he recognised that feelings were running high i think ithinka i think a lot of people were concerned about that. but the reali is concerned about that. but the reality is the _ concerned about that. but the reality is the country - concerned about that. but the reality is the country is - concerned about that. but the reality is the country is united i reality is the country is united still in shock and grief about what happened to sarah everard. we'll be asking about the pressure on the metropolitan police and the government arising from this tragic case. also this lunchtime. the netherlands becomes the latest european country to pause use of the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine — despite regulators saying it's safe

as italy faces a third covid wave — we ask why europe is struggling with vaccinations. cheaper and more frequent — the government unveils a £3 billion plan to improve bus services in england. the grammy goes to beyonce! and beyonce makes grammys history — breaking the record for the most awards ever won by a woman, and there's british success for harry styles and dua lipa. and coming up on bbc news, disappointment for one of the favourites — altior — twice winner of the queen mother champion chase at cheltenham is ruled out of the festival which starts tomorrow.

good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. the prime minister has said the country is united in shock and grief at the killing of sarah everard. borisjohnson said her death had unleashed a wave of feeling about the safety of women in britain, and insisted the government would work to ensure that women had confidence in the justice system. following strong criticism of the police's handling of saturday's vigil in london, mrjohnson said he continued to back the metropolitan police chief, cressida dick, and said there would be an investigation into what happened. here's our correspondent, richard galpin. the kidnap and murder of sarah everard has triggered both anger and fear. but also a determination amongst many women to speak out and take action. this video at the weekend going ahead despite being banned for covid reasons. and later on, the police moved in, prompting

criticism they had been heavy—handed in their approach to those taking part. figs in their approach to those taking art. �* , ., in their approach to those taking -art. a ., ., ~ part. as it got darker, we were standin: part. as it got darker, we were standing further _ part. as it got darker, we were standing further back- part. as it got darker, we were standing further back to - part. as it got darker, we were standing further back to find i part. as it got darker, we were standing further back to find a | standing further back to find a place to light my candle and i could see groups of police officers, groups of fluorescent yellow dotted around and as it got darker, that's when they formed lines and made their move in. and there was no other change in atmosphere, it was purely from them. it was purely that they provoked it.— they provoked it. there have been calls for the _ they provoked it. there have been calls for the metropolitan - they provoked it. there have been calls for the metropolitan police . calls for the metropolitan police commissioner dame cressida dick to resign in the wake of what's happened. but she has rejected this. and has defended the way police have handled the situation. an independent inquiry has been set up. we have to see the context of the difficult situation police find themselves in. we need to know more about saturday night and obviously, this independent review will look into that. but you know, cressida dick is an officer of superlative achievement in her life and she's been close to some incredibly

successful investigations and i know she is very dedicated and committed to this issue of dealing with violence against women and girls in an assertive way as we possibly can. the crime and justice task force will meet this afternoon, the meeting will look into what further action can be taken to ensure women are safe on the streets of this country. are safe on the streets of this count . ~ �* ., ., are safe on the streets of this count .~ �* ., ., , ., country. we've got to recognise that the tragedy. — country. we've got to recognise that the tragedy. the _ country. we've got to recognise that the tragedy, the horrific— country. we've got to recognise that the tragedy, the horrific crime - country. we've got to recognise that the tragedy, the horrific crime that i the tragedy, the horrific crime that we've seen in the case of sarah everard has triggered, unleashed a wave of feeling from people, from women above all, who worry about their safety at night. in women above all, who worry about their safety at night.— their safety at night. in parliament toda , their safety at night. in parliament today. mps — their safety at night. in parliament today. mps will— their safety at night. in parliament today, mps will discuss _ their safety at night. in parliament today, mps will discuss the - their safety at night. in parliament today, mps will discuss the police | today, mps will discuss the police crime and sentencing and courts bill which critics say could lead to further restrictions on people's right to protest. but there is nothing about the safety of women, despite what has happened. we nothing about the safety of women, despite what has happened.- despite what has happened. we are votin: despite what has happened. we are voting against _ despite what has happened. we are voting against it, _ despite what has happened. we are voting against it, the _ despite what has happened. we are voting against it, the step - despite what has happened. we are voting against it, the step in - voting against it, the step in reading, which is the stage at the

moment and we want to try and improve it in committee and there are some things in their we've been campaigning forfor a long time are some things in their we've been campaigning for for a long time and there are some things in there we like the look of but we think we can improve but no mention of women in a bill of this kind after what's happened is unacceptable. find bill of this kind after what's happened is unacceptable. and that means the pressure _ happened is unacceptable. and that means the pressure on _ happened is unacceptable. and that means the pressure on the - happened is unacceptable. and that means the pressure on the police i happened is unacceptable. and that i means the pressure on the police and the government to act decisively after what has happened is only likely to increase. richard galpin, bbc news. let's speak to our political correspondent, damian grammaticas, in westminster. the prime minister and home secretary have expressed concern, but are they under some pressure too? and they are backing the metropolitan police chief? absolutely, they save what they saw, the images from the policing of it, those images of women being arrested, women being held to the ground and the prime minister today said he understood people were

concerned but the message we have also heard from them is to say that the police, they believe are doing a very difficultjob and that is partly because the police are enforcing regulations brought in by the government during this pandemic period. so what borisjohnson said very directly when he was asked today if the metropolitan police commissioner had his full confidence, he said, yes she did but at the same time, it was important there was an inquiry because he said it was important that women had confidence and they knew if they made a serious complaint it would be addressed. the labour leader sir keir starmer, he too declined to call for dame cressida to go, he went a little further and said the scenes on saturday were deeply disturbing, the police response was wrong but he was also critical of the government for this bill that is being debated today in parliament. the police and crime bill, in which he said, because he said in that, it talks a lot about starches, almost

nothing about dealing with violence against women and girls. and that is because it increases effectively the penalties if you deface or do something to a statue, a war memorial and the like. the prime minister said there will be measures to strengthen sentences for rate this and measures against domestic violence as well. that is likely to be a pretty heated debate that will be a pretty heated debate that will be around that bill as it comes to parliament. be around that bill as it comes to parliament-— we can speak now to our correspondent, dominic casciani. lots of anger over the scenes at the weekend, but where does the law stand on this? just picking up from what damien said, this point where ministers are saying they recognise the police are in a difficult place, martin hewitt, the president of the national police chiefs council, has called for clarity around a lot and the reason why he made that call is quite simply police chiefs feel they haven't had it for the past year. the big issue with coronavirus

regulations since last march is in various forms, they have banned gatherings in a public place but there is a separate, an overarching right to the freedom of protest, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and it's the balancing act between those that officers have found very difficult. last summer during black lives matter they took a softly softly approach, they were criticised for that, since then, ministers have put them under enormous pressure to deal with covid breaking parties, they feel the pressure to break up gatherings which could become super spreaders, there was a degree of inevitability on friday night into saturday that something could potentially go wrong at clapham common because clearly people wanted to turn up and make their voices heard, for sarah everard �*s death, and the police knew they had to stop it because as far as they were concerned it was potentially dangerous from a health perspective. very difficult situation and lots of critics say these new proposals coming before parliament could make the situation even worse. dominic, thank you. in a separate development — campaigners who mounted

a legal challenge against the crown prosecution service over its handling of serious sexual offences have lost their case in the court of appeal. they had claimed that a change of policy had meant rape victims were being let down, and that the number of prosecutions had �*collapsed.’ but the cps said there'd been no recent change in their approach. the netherlands is the latest country to suspend the use of the oxford—astrazeneca coronavirus vaccine, over concerns about possible side—effects. some people have developed blood clots after having the jabs, but european regulators and the world health organization say there's no evidence they're linked to the vaccine. about 17 million people in europe and the uk have received the astrazeneca vaccine, and the company says fewer than a0 have had clots. anna collinson reports. vaccines are seen as the single most effective way to reduce coronavirus deaths and severe illness, but a growing number of mostly

european countries have suspended using the oxford—astrazeneca jab after concerns around cases of blood clots. it's seen by many as a surprising move during a pandemic based on no clear evidence. i think we're right in this country to press on. we will keep monitoring this and if there is any safety signals we are concerned about we would let the public know straight away. but at the moment the message is absolutely clear, go and get your vaccine if offered. the netherlands is the latest country to announce a suspension, calling it precautionary after last week's reports of possible side—effects emerged from norway and denmark. but astrazeneca has pushed back, saying more than 17 million people in the european union and the uk have received its jab, and fewer than a0 cases of blood clots been reported. this number may be higher, as not all cases are recorded and there will be thousands of patients who will have had clots after their jab just by chance.

but the uk and the european medical regulators insist there is no evidence suggesting the vaccine poses an increased risk and are reviewing the data. it's absolutely critical that we don't have a problem of not vaccinating people and have the balance of a huge risk, known risk of covid, against what appears so far from the data that we've got from the regulators, no signal of a problem. after a brief pause, thailand has confirmed it will once again start using the astrazeneca vaccine from tomorrow, with its prime ministerfirst in line. while the dutch government says it can't allow any doubt, scientists have called the suspensions super cautious and questioned whether it is a disproportionate response. anna collinson, bbc news. well, our medical editor fergus walsh is here — what are we to make of this? the safety of vaccines has to be

absolutely paramount but there is no evidence that the astrazeneca vaccine is causing blood clots, indeed astrazeneca has done an analysis of over 10 million jabs and it's found that you are more likely to have a clot in the general population than if you had the jab because clots are quite common, they can be very dangerous if they go to the lungs and cause a clot there, a pulmonary embolism, and they can also be serious if you get one in your leg, a deep vein thrombosis. this all links into a rather chequered history of the astrazeneca oxford vaccine in europe, they were slow to adopt the vaccine, several countries restricted it initially, only for younger people, president macro and even called it quasi ineffective in other people and now, reversed that decision, indeed france and germany are two of the big countries which are carrying on an out with the astrazeneca vaccine. i have had my vaccine yesterday, it

was the astrazeneca and when i was down there, people were happily rolling up their sleeves and having the jab. and maintaining public confidence in the whole vaccination programme is absolutely vital. fergus, thank you. businesses, shops and schools are closing across much of italy — as the country battles a third wave of coronavirus. it's one of several european countries suffering a new rise in infections, amid delays to their vaccination programme. restrictions will extend across the whole country over easter, as mark lowen reports. the beautiful blue skies of milan belie the dark clouds of covid gathering yet again, because, just over a year since italy became the first country in the world to impose a national lockdown, it is shutting its doors once again. this region, lombardy, the original epicentre of the first wave, is now one of 11 regions in italy, over half the country, in which schools, shops,

restaurants are closing as part of a red zone, and for three days across the easter holiday, the whole of italy will become a red zone, so there will be closures right across the country. italy is now in a third wave of the virus, with infections likely to peak in six or seven days, and while some here support the tightening of the measures, for many, well, they feel at the end of their tether. we know that it is necessary but we are very tired, so i hope that this is the last one. we feel pretty dreadful. it is like back to square one after a year. it is incredible that the schools haven't had a chance to think about an alternative. we look at israel, we look at the us, and we look at the uk thinking, well, things are working there, yeah. and here? not really. italy's vaccinations have indeed been sluggish, partly due to supply problems,

but from today they have pledged to almost double daily shots in a mass national mobilisation, a gradual relief to a nation that has suffered so much. i was worried about her, yes, because a lot of people died, especially in lombardy so now i am happy to receive the vaccine. this hospital alone has gone from administering 200 vaccines a day injanuary, to 1300 a day now. but with a slow start and with cases still rising here, italy is racing to get to the point at which daily vaccines outweigh new infections. it has got some catching up to do. the situation, one vaccine centre in milan but the government has pledged to ramp up the vaccination programme, given 170,000 doses at the moment come up to 300,000 from today and up to 500,000 every day from mid april. but there is growing frustration here at the slowness of

the vaccine roll—out programme. it is partly of course down to the supply problems, the italian government says it was expecting 16 million doses to be received by the end of march, its only had 8 million. that problem with supply and of course rise in cases as well is mirrored in much of the rest of the european union as well. in poland, cases there have gone up by 75% on last week, in germany intensive care doctors have called for an immediate national lockdown saying the country is in the grip of a third wave and in france, intensive care occupancy is at its highest for the last three months with patients being flung right across the country to find beds. here in italy they are hoping the peak of this third wave will be felt within a week and they are saying 80% of the population will be vaccinated by the middle of september. this exhausted country is asked once again to follow the rules, hoping that this mightjust be the last national sacrifice that they are being told to make. mark

lowen reporting. our top story this lunchtime. the prime minister has said the country is united in shock and grief at the killing of sarah everard, and insisted the government would work to ensure that women had confidence in the justice system. still to come. a year after thousands packed the cheltenham festival, defying warnings over coronavirus, we speak to some of the people who were there. coming up on bbc news: former cyclist bradley wiggins calls for a fresh investigation into the dr freeman affair but does not believe the testosterone the doctor ordered was to dope a rider. a new £3 billion bus strategy has been announced for england, aimed at making them cheaper, and more frequent. there are plans for hundreds of miles of bus lanes, contactless payments and fare caps.

the prime minister says he wants buses to be people's first choice of transport, but labour has warned his strategy doesn't go far enough. theo leggett reports. for many people without cars, especially in rural areas, buses are vital but campaigners have been saying for years that services simply aren't good enough. now the government is promising what it is calling the most ambitious shake—up of the bus sector in a generation. on a visit to this depot in coventry, the prime minister explained his thinking. i coventry, the prime minister explained his thinking. i think bosses are — explained his thinking. i think bosses are great _ explained his thinking. i think bosses are great for - explained his thinking. i think bosses are great for people's| explained his thinking. i think- bosses are great for people's lives, a good bus route can be really trans yourjob prospects. but the buses themselves are going to be made in this country, and notjust the buses, but the hydrogen and the battery technology as well in due time will be made in this country. there are plans for simpler fares, more services, is your contactless payments and more bus lanes. 4000 electric or hydrogen powered buses

will be brought into service and £3 billion of public money will be available to make it happen. the government wants bus companies and local authorities to work together to ensure that bus services in future will be so frequent you won't even need a timetable. but the reality is we are a long way from that at the moment in many areas. at this bus stop, for example, the next service isn't due for another hour. according to the campaign for better transport, more than 3000 local bus routes have been lost or cut back since 2009. but today the group gave the government's plan a cautious welcome. ., , . , welcome. the ob'ective is the government— welcome. the ob'ective is the government set — welcome. the objective is the government set out _ welcome. the objective is the government set out are - welcome. the objective is the | government set out are hugely welcome but we want to see how they are actually going to pay for these and how they will make sure the services they have promised will actually happen on the ground. but i don't want to be churlish in any way, this is a very good document. the labour party insists the new strategy will do nothing to reverse previous cuts. bus strategy will do nothing to reverse previous cuts-—

previous cuts. bus is one of the chea est previous cuts. bus is one of the cheapest and — previous cuts. bus is one of the cheapest and greenest - previous cuts. bus is one of the cheapest and greenest forms i previous cuts. bus is one of the j cheapest and greenest forms of travel and we want to see people getting back on buses as soon as it is safe to do so after the pandemic. this strategy really feels like a sticking plaster rather than the radical transformative policy that would shape public transport in our country for decades to come. the liberal democrats said local authority should be given the power to run their own bus services rather than being shackled too often unpopular private companies. the green party welcomed what it called a turnaround by the government but said the plan wouldn't work unless the freeze on fuel duty which cut the freeze on fuel duty which cut the cost of driving buddle to be dropped. buses may not be glamorous but for many people they are a lifeline and the government has made it clear it wants many more of us to get on board. —— cost of driving also to be dropped. theo leggett, bbc news. hairdressers and barbers in wales have re—opened this morning — making it the only place in the uk where you can get a trim.

primary schools are also welcoming back all children — after some year groups returned three weeks ago. hywel griffith reports. time to lose the lockdown locks. after 12 weeks, many of us need more than just a trim. at this salon in cardiff, there's a waiting list of 161 clients. becky is one of the lucky few to get in first. it's so lovely. it's just having a little bit of a pamper, seeing people other than who i live with. it's a bit strange being able to make conversation with other people, new things to talk about. but it's really lovely. other close—contact services like nail bars and beauty salons aren't allowed to reopen. nor are non—essential shops selling things like clothes and books. the owner eleni says she can't fully understand the reasoning. how does someone decide who gets to make a living and who doesn't when we're in the same close—contact services? if the shoe was on the other foot and i

was — the beauticians could open and i couldn't — i would feel disheartened, so i completely understand that, you know, their feelings. and i don't quite understand it but i'm just thankful that i can open. while barbers and hairdressers are in business, a lot of shops along the high street will have to wait another four weeks to reopen on april 12th. that's also when schools will be fully reopen in wales. today it was the turn of students in years 11 and 13, and older primary pupils, to join their gradual return to classroom learning. for abi who's taking her a—levels, the staggered restart does make sense. i think phasing it back in, - i think everything being phased in gradually has been the best| approach because i don't think jumping straight into something and then letting the cases go i back up would have been the best approach. - so yeah, i'm fairly happy with how they have handled it. _ deciding who can trade and who to keep locked down has been a painful process throughout this pandemic, and one which will continue through the months ahead. hywel griffith, bbc news, cardiff. more children have gone back

to school in scotland — in the latest relaxation of coronavirus restrictions. all secondary pupils are returning to class on a part—time basis, and face—to—face teaching has now resumed for all primary school children. in the last hour, the oscar nominations have been announced, with many british actors nominated. riz ahmed, sir anthony hopkins, carey mulligan and olivia colman are among them. let's speak to our entertainment correspondent, colin paterson. run through the list for us. mank leads the way _ run through the list for us. mank leads the way with _ run through the list for us. mank leads the way with ten _ run through the list for us. i�*ii leads the way with ten nominations, it is a black and white film set in 19405 hollywood about the making of citizen kane and it stars gary oldman, british actor, who is nominated for best actor. it has the most nominations. i don't think it will win because it missed out in screenwriting, and in the last 55 years only the sound of music and titanic have managed to win without that nomination. six films have six nominations including nomadland, which i think is now the favourite,

it stars frances mcdormand, she drives around america after losing her husband and herjob. it is directed by a chinese director chloe zhao who is nominated for best director. and for the first time in 93 years of the oscars, two women are nominated for best director, chloe zhao for nomadland and briton's emerald fennell for promising young woman, a film which stars carey mulligan as a woman out for revenge. carey mulligan also nominated for best actress. another british film, the father, has done very well. anthony hopkins playing a man with dementia has become the oldest best actor nominee ever at the age of 83, his co—star olivia coleman also nominated. daniel kaluuya, the british actor, is nominated for supporting actor for judas and the black messiah, about the black panther movement, the first ever film to be nominated for best picture to have all black producers. and sasha baron—cohen has

been nominated twice, both for the trial of the chicago 7, about the democratic convention protests in 1968, and for the second borat movie. other brits to be nominated, vanessa kirby four pieces of a woman, riz ahmed for playing a deaf drummer in sound of metal and the oscars will take place on the 25th of april in a train station. that's what we learned today.- of april in a train station. that's what we learned today. colin, thank ou. female artists have made history at the music industry's biggest event of the year — the grammys. beyonce is now the most successful woman in grammys history, with a 28th award, and taylor swift became the first female artist to secure album of the year three times. there were also wins for the british singers dua lipa and harry styles, as sophie long reports. # came from a chick whose man wanna touch # i said my face bomb #. how do you deliver spectacular grammy moments in the time of covid? here's how. # body—ody—ody—ody #. back—to—back performances on specially designed socially distanced stages inside...

..and out. # blind following the blind # thinking about everything that's going on #. _ and then watch as history is made. the grammy goes to beyonce! beyonce became the most decorated female artist in grammy history. as an artist, i believe it's myjob and all of ourjobs to reflect the times, and it's been such a difficult time. an emotional megan thee stallion won for best rap song and for best new artist, the first female rapper to do so for more than 20 years. # don't show up don't show up # don't come out don't come out #. the disco queen of quarantine, british artist dua lipa, won best pop vocal album for future nostalgia. i'm just so grateful and so honoured, because happiness is something that we all deserve and something that we all need in our lives. and i really want to say a massive, massive thank you to all the fans that have... this is all because of you. i can't breathe — her.

song of the year went to herfor i can't breathe, written as the pain flowed out of her during the black lives matter protests last summer. we are the change that we wish to see, and, you know, - that fight that we had in us, the summer of 2020, - keep that same energy. thank you. # watermelon sugar high. # briton harry styles opened the show and went on to win the grammy brit harry styles opened the show and went on to win the grammy for best solo pop performance. there was much—missed high fashion and amazing accessories. no—one was accepting awards in sweat pants here. billie eilish won record of the year for the second time running, bringing to a close a spectacular celebration of music around the world. sophie long, bbc news, los angeles. last year 150,000 people packed into the cheltenham festival, in one of the last major events before the first lockdown. it took place in the week in which the world health organization

declared coronavirus a pandemic, and some think it helped the disease to spread. this year, the lockdown means crowds are absent, as fiona lamdin reports. more than 250,000 people filled cheltenham and its racecourse this time last year. just days later, the country went into national lockdown. it was very busy, absolutely packed, so i suppose everybody spread out so i suppose everybody spread it all through the town, really. it's a family tradition, john and chris with their children go to the festival every year. i remember the day we went to cheltenham, and the next thing, three or four weeks later, i woke up in intensive care with tubes and machines beeping and nurses around, and you know, thinking, "what's going on?" and for the next eight weeks,

john was in hospital fighting for his life. we had a zoom call with one of the doctors so that me and the kids were able to see him because that might be the last time we did see him. so that was an awful day. awful day. and even thouthohn survived, there were many complications. i had gangrene on my thumb and finger and on my toe and that, a bleed on the brain. john and chris believe the whole family caught covid from cheltenham but no one can be entirely sure. the festival was among the last mass gathering to take place in the uk before the nation was overwhelmed by the first wave of the pandemic. a year on, things couldn't look more different. but 12 months ago, this was one of the most popular pubs for racegoers. what race week does in cheltenham is it gives us a second christmas so it was a really positive time for us, — it was probably our second biggest festival period we've had at this pub since it opened. but you were actually uneasy about staying open? yeah, we were as a team at the time.

had the government said, don't worry, we'll underpin your business risk then we would have closed. so where did the green light come from? this was the deputy chief medical officer for england on breakfast on the morning the festival started. people should be going to events, | they should be taking appropriate | hygiene as i've just described, and that's the most _ important thing they can do. and actually, outdoor events, the virus won't survive very. long outside. it will lose its viability- to transmit disease and so many outdoor events, particularly, are relatively safe. _ the british horseracing authority have said british racing acted on the best advice available from the government at the time, taking extra measures to keep people safe. the department of health says the decision was taken by the racecourse within public health guidance at the time. well done! two months later on 22nd may, john finally came home. how lucky do you feel you still have your husband? very lucky, yeah.

really lucky.