this is bbc news. the headlines... the prime minister warns a third wave of covid could hit the uk as the eu vaccine row intensifies. people in this country should be under no illusions that previous experience has taught is that when a wave hits our friends experience has taught is that when a wave hits ourfriends in italy, i'm afraid it washes up on our shores as well —— ourfriends. an independent inquiry says scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon did not break the ministerial code in her response to allegations against alex salmond. i believe i acted appropriately in a difficult situation and i'm pleased that i have the independent verification. the home secretary condemns violent clashes during a demonstration against new police powers in bristol last night — calling it utterly shameful.

drones, robots and cyber warfare — the size of the army is to be reduced by thousands of soldiers, as it reshapes for the future. and 30 years after michael schumacher made his debut in formula one, his son mick is about to begin his own racing career. good evening. the prime minister has warned that the uk must prepare for a third wave of coronavirus infections as the number of new cases grows across continental europe. borisjohnson said the rise in cases seen in countries like france, italy and poland could "wash up on our shores as well". it comes as eu leaders prepare

to hold talks on thursday about vaccine supplies and a possible export ban to the uk. just 10% of the eu population has been vaccinated so far, compared to more than 50% of the uk's adults who have had theirfirstjab. here's our political editor laura kuenssberg. on one side of the channel, the number of cases of the virus higher and higher. availability and take up of the vaccine stubbornly low. france tonight, paris back in lockdown, the disease double where it was last week, but on this side of the channel it's the opposite. the disease falling back and vaccines rising. you can see, sadly, there is a third wave under way. when a wave hits our friends, i am afraid it washes up on our shores as well, and i expect that we will feel those effects in due course. that is why we are getting on with our vaccination programme as fast as we can. much quicker here than on the continent, where countries

are closing their doors again... ..but there have been public doubts from politicians about the safety of the jabs and significant shortfalls in the astrazeneca vaccines the eu ordered. in the last few days, brussels has dangled the prospect of blocking exports. nothing is off the table. it is entirely legitimate for the european union to be looking at the different tools that it has at its disposal or could have at its disposal. getting the vaccine here isn't always smooth or straightforward. but a big majority of the 100 million astrazeneca jabs on order are being made in the uk. a small amount is due from a factory in the netherlands, and there are suggestions it could be shared with the eu. ten million doses are expected from india — five already here and five held up. but there are a0 million of the pfizerjab on order. it is mainly made in belgium, but relies on a component made here.

first off, there is no immediate threat to the vaccination programme here. the government's adamant contracts signed months ago will be honoured, and although borisjohnson has talked on the phone to eu leaders, there is no desire in downing street to get sucked into a diplomatic screaming match. but the eu is so far behind, they are likely to keep pushing hard for a way to catch up. but many of its members might resist something as blunt or dramatic as stopping vaccines crossing the channel. i think it would be a very retrograde step. it would be counter productive. i understand the issues with astrazeneca, there is huge tension between astrazeneca and the european union, they have not fulfilled their contracts, but there is no point in undermining the other companies. while vaccinations break records here a brand—new centre in middlesbrough can give 1,000 injections a day, travel to our neighbours could be limited further. in this pandemic vaccines have a high practical and political price.

laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. 0ur political correspondent chris mason is in westminster. let's mason is in westminster. start with the vaccine ro\ the let's start with the vaccine row. the predicted shortage, not slump, but shortage next month. the government pretty confident they are going to have all those top priority groups jabbed by the middle of april. they are absolutely confident that the timeframe set out, the various deadlines they've set out for reaching different chunks of the population can still be met. there was a flurry of headlines about a week or ten days ago, where there is some briefing going on that suggest the government might smash some of those deadlines that it had set itself, but would achieve their much earlier than set out in s much earlier than set out in 5 document of a couple of months ago. we have definitely reigned back from that, rode back from that, the

government have consistently said publicly and on the record i was merely about meeting those deadlines rather than smashing them. rather excitable. now there is much less than that, an acceptance that they can be met but perhaps not punched through with weeks and weeks to spare. they say that, yes, there was always likely to be lumpy supply of the vaccine, and now there is this row, if you like, going on within the eu, and then to an extent between the uk and the eu, but the real hope in the uk side, and indeed from the eu side for some, whilst there has been pretty spiky rhetoric from the european commission in brussels, starting to impose limitations, blockades, on what can be imported and exported, is something of a zero—sum game. we saw a clip of the tea shop, in the same interview with archie e, talking about the pfizer vaccine, saying there are 280 materials that go into

there are 280 materials that go into the visor material, those are supplied from 19 countries around the world, in other words, the minute you start imposing limitations on working across borders, it is notjust about getting the finished product from factory a2 country b, you come up the whole process of creating the vaccines in the process, so the hope here is that it doesn't come to that, because the consequences would be felt more widely, and therefore the hope is that they would not be in the eu's interest to do that either. �* ., , ., , either. and on summer holidays abroad for— either. and on summer holidays abroad for brits, _ either. and on summer holidays abroad for brits, that _ either. and on summer holidays abroad for brits, that boat - either. and on summer holidays. abroad for brits, that boat seems either. and on summer holidays - abroad for brits, that boat seems to be sailing away a bet at the moment. as the cabinet united on that issue? sailing away with a one on it, isn't it? there is a range of views amongst cabinet ministers, this has been the case all the way through, aspire striking the balance between the economic impact of restrictions, and the impacts on our liberties as well, versus the epidemiological

argument around the practicality or otherwise of travel. 0n argument around the practicality or otherwise of travel. on that particular point, i thought it was very striking today, a junior minister in the department of health, he sits in the house of lords, he suggested in the chamber this afternoon that it wasn't impossible that you might have to put put it, all of our european neighbours on these so—called red list of countries. that is the list of countries via which if you are on it nobody from those countries can travel here, and if you are a uk resident travelling back year from one of those countries, you've got to do that ten day mandatory extent any hotel near the airport, at your own expense. he said it was above his pay grade to make that decision, but the fact minister saying that out loud gives you some sense of the kind of direction of travel, and as we heard over the weekend, there are scientists who make the argument

that if you are going to ease restrictions domestically, the trade—off of that may well be, particularly of case rates and variants remain prominent in our near neighbours, that you have to keep pretty tight restrictions as far as foreign travel is concerned. so you turning south america and south africa?— the latest government figures show there were 5,342 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. on average, 5,485 new cases were reported per day in the last week. the latest figures show 6,162 people were in hospital across the uk. 17 deaths were reported in the latest 2a hour period, that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—i9 test — the lowest daily figure for almost 6 months. on average in the past week, 85 deaths were announced every day.

the total number is now 126,172. as for vaccinations, more than 367,000 people have had their first dose of a covid vaccine in the latest 24—hour period. bringing the total to almost 28 million, more than half of the adult population. just over 2.2 million people have had both doses of the vaccine. an independent inquiry has found that nicola sturgeon did not break the ministerial code over her handling of harassment complaints against her predecessor, alex salmond. the report looked at whether scotland's first minister misled the holyrood parliament over what she knew and when. nicola sturgeon has welcomed the conclusion and says she acted with integrity at all times. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith has the latest. just imagine her relief at being told she had not broken any rules. nicola sturgeon knew herjob

could depend on this report. she herself had asked james hamilton qc to investigate her actions. his verdict — she did not breach the ministerial code. i have been very clear in my own mind that i acted appropriately and did not breach the ministerial code, but that, while that might be necessary, is not sufficient, it is important to the scottish people they have independent verification and adjudication of that and that is what they now have. the first big question? what did she know and when? 0n the 2nd april he informed me about the complaints against him. nicola sturgeon originally told parliament the first she knew of complaints against alex salmond was on the 2nd april when he told her about it in a meeting at her home. she later had to admit she had forgotten about a meeting on 29th march with alex salmond's former chief of staff, in which he says the complaints were discussed. james hamilton said: "this resulted in an incomplete narrative of events." but he accepted this omission was the result of a genuine failure of recollection and was not deliberate.

alex salmond asked nicola sturgeon to intervene in the sexual harassment investigation as he believed the government was acting unlawfully and it was her duty as first minister to stop a botched process. she refused to intervene. james hamilton concludes: "i do not accept that the first minister's decision to follow the terms of the procedure amounted to a breach of the ministerial code." when alex salmond successfully challenged in court the way the scottish government investigated the complaints against him, he was awarded over £500,000. he insists nicola sturgeon�*s government should have conceded the case earlier to save public money. james hamilton concludes: "there's no evidence whatsoever that the first minister acted improperly or in breach of the ministerial code with respect to mr alex salmond's petition." for months nicola sturgeon has faced accusations of lying and calls for her resignation. she has always maintained she was telling the truth. today's verdict, that she did not break any ministerial rules, will allow her to say

she has been vindicated. sarah smith, bbc news, edinburgh. this all comes just days before the holyrood election campaign begins. so what impact — if any — might this all have on the elections on 6th may? professor sirjohn curtice is professor of politics at strathclyde university. good evening. nice to have you on. she has been cleared, but what damage has been done. what she has been cleared, but what damage has been done. what damage has been done. _ damage has been done. what damage has been done, to _ damage has been done. what damage has been done, to the _ damage has been done. what damage has been done, to the snp, _ damage has been done. what damage has been done, to the snp, who - damage has been done. what damage has been done, to the snp, who in . has been done, to the snp, who in the last few months have been so far ahead in the polls?— ahead in the polls? there is no doubt that _ ahead in the polls? there is no doubt that support _ ahead in the polls? there is no doubt that support for - ahead in the polls? there is no doubt that support for the - ahead in the polls? there is no doubt that support for the snpj ahead in the polls? there is no - doubt that support for the snp and for independence is lower now than it was at the beginning of this year. that said, however, much of that decline, particularly the decline in support for independence, seems to have predated the period, basically the month of february, when the enquiry came to dominate the media news north of the border. 0n the other hand, probably snp

support shaped by our entry points are so during that period, so the enquiry has probably done some damage to the snp and support for independence, but probably much of the decline was in evidence before the decline was in evidence before the enquiry, and therefore we shouldn't necessarily assume that the fact nicola sturgeon, at least in this report has been vindicated, although she will be criticised by the parliamentary enquiry, it doesn't necessarily resort in a dramatic reversal of the snp fortunes, and that said, three points could be crucial. given where the polls are at the moment with the snp on average at about 40% on the constituency bow and 42% on the list of all, scotland is happy to vote pr system, given those numbers, the snp are on the cusp of perhaps getting an overall majority on their own or perhaps not. that is now being widely regarded as a crucial target in the election. if the snp can repeat their success of 2011, when

they also got an overall majority, they also got an overall majority, they will then be able to point to they will then be able to point to the fact that david cameron accepted such a resort that there should be another independence referendum, so the snp can repeat that feat this time, borisjohnson will find it more difficult to say no. i think adding another three points of the current snp tally, if that where what happened, would make it much more likely that the snp would end “p more likely that the snp would end up with an overall majority. boris up with an overall ma'ority. boris johnson is — up with an overall ma'ority. boris johnson taiusth up with an overall majority. boris johnson is just batting _ up with an overall majority. boris johnson isjust batting it - up with an overall majority. boris johnson isjust batting it all - up with an overall majority. boris johnson isjust batting it all away. johnson is just batting it all away. this is a once—in—a—lifetime referendum. in terms of the nda referendum. in terms of the nda referendum legislation expected this time around, without getting atomic if you can unpack it —— independence referendum. a section 30 order, is that a different way of going about getting a referendum, albeit within a lifetime? ~ ., getting a referendum, albeit within a lifetime? ~ . ., , a lifetime? what the scottish government _ a lifetime? what the scottish government has _ a lifetime? what the scottish government has done - a lifetime? what the scottish government has done which l a lifetime? what the scottish - government has done which would otherwise be major headlines today,

to publish a draft bill to hold the second independence referendum that they will want to hold after the election. the proposal is basically to rerun the referendum in 2014 with the same question, should scotland be an independent countryi suspect it is the case that at the uk government does indeed say no to holding another referendum, ie denies the scottish parliament a section 30 order, that the scottish government will not want to persist without wording, because in truth, without wording, because in truth, without wording, because in truth, without wording, it is pretty likely that the supreme court was seen, no, this is beyond the scottish parliament was my competence. a different question, a long starting argument about the garda, should the scottish government enter into talks with the uk government? —— above the border. public lawyers disagree as to whether or not such a referendum would necessarily be illegal. if borisjohnson would necessarily be illegal. if boris johnson says

would necessarily be illegal. if borisjohnson says no, we shouldn't assume that the question on the bill that has been published today would necessarily be the question that the scottish government, if it is indeed still the snp in perak, would want to pursue in the wake of those circumstances arising.- to pursue in the wake of those circumstances arising. thank you. thank ou circumstances arising. thank you. thank you for— circumstances arising. thank you. thank you for making _ circumstances arising. thank you. thank you for making it _ circumstances arising. thank you. thank you for making it much - thank you for making it much clearer. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's tolsen. good evening. we're starting with the fallout from england's six nations campaign — and the pressure now on head coach eddiejones. the rfu, the sport's governing body in england is reviewing what happened, after the side finished second from bottom in the table. jones says he's100% confident he's still the right man for the job. joe lynskey has more. english rugby reflects, looking closely at how eddiejones team could finish fifth in the six nations and what could now change. this was england's year of unwanted records.

they lost to scotland, wales and ireland. beaten by all three for the first time since the �*70s. spectacular stuff from ireland! in sport, the head coach takes the blame, butjones has built—up credit. taking them to world cup final, and says they can fix this. it has been a tough one. we have not been at our best but we are in the process of changing the team and we need to reset the team and will continue with that process. but the eddiejones process can be unpredictable. his critics say he is boom or bust. he has won the six nations three times with england including just last year, but he has now come fifth twice. the last time that happened was in 2018, in 18 months later, england beat new zealand at the world cup. now they are back at

the crossroads but sacking jones the crossroads but sacking jones comes with risk. he signed a new contract just as sport was hit with a bigger crisis, but the figures on the pitch do not look good either. england conceded 121 points, their worst tally of the six nations. and gave away the most penalties. now those at the top work out how much trust they still have in the process. scotland have named their squad for friday's delayed six nations match against france in paris. sean maitland misses out as the sru were limited to selecting five english—based players because of an agreement with the premiership teams. maitland scored two tries against the french in last years six nations. this is the final game of the tournament, which was supposed to be played last month, but there was a covid outbreak in the french camp. the scots can finish second with a win while france need to win

by at least 21 points and score 4 tries to take the title. the bbc and sky have signed a multi—million pound deal to show the women's super league games for the next 3 years. at least 18 games per season will be shown live on bbc one or bbc two. the agreement, starting in september, is believed to be worth around 8 million pounds a year with 25 percent of that invested in the women's championship, which is the second tier. it's just over seven years since the formula one legend michael schmacher had a skiing accident that left him with a devastating brain injury. he's not been seen in public since. but this weekend his 22—year—old son mick will return the schumacher name to formula one when he makes his debut in bahrain. 0bviously obviously it will be an amazing weekend. it will be an emotional weekend. it will be an emotional weekend. as i said, just 30 years since my dad has driven his first

race, and we have been exactly the same age, so, yeah, it has been funnier and even more emotional, and it is great, also seeing how he progressed through the ranks and made his way into formula 1, and now seeing how i made my way into formula 1, it is amazing. now to cycling where chris froome finished more than eight minutes behind the peloton on the first stage of the volta a catalunya. it's the 100th running of this race and was won by someone making his debut in a world tour stage — 22—year—old danish rider andreas kron of lotto—soudal winning in a sprint finish to claim the race leaders jersey... ronnie 0'sullivan is seven frames to five up. ronnie o'sullivan is seven frames to five u -. �* ., ., ronnie o'sullivan is seven frames to fiveu. �* ., ., .,. five up. i'm going to watch it right now.

that's all the sport for now. the prime minister and the home secretary have condemned the violent clashes between police and protestors in bristol last night during a demonstration against new powers for the policing of protests in england and wales. a police station was attacked, 20 officers were injured and vehicles set alight. eight people have been arrested and police say more arrests are imminent. sian lloyd sent this report from bristol. it was a night of violence and disorder on the streets of bristol. police vehicles targeted and missiles hurled... ..when hundreds of protesters converged on a police station in the city centre. it had begun earlier in the day when people gathered peacefully, around a thousand protesting against the police and crime bill that could restrict demonstrations in the future.

it ended with 20 police officers injured, 20 of them seriously. 21 overall, 2 seriously. ——21 overall, 2 seriously. i'm incredibly saddened. i'm saddened that so many of my brave police officers, our officers have been injured doing theirjob. but we will catch these people, and we'll do everything we can to learn from the events and make sure that this doesn't happen again. there were marches in other cities too — against the government proposals for england and wales which could see police impose start and finish times on demonstrations, set noise limits, and at its extreme fine individual protesters up to £2500. in bristol, things escalated. and this is sort of everyone milling around... max was one of those who wanted to make a stand but believes the cause was hijacked. i hope that people are able to view them as two separate events and to understand that what was thousands of people

peacefully protesting against the bill is much more important than a very small minority who decided to get violent against the police. i don't think they quite realised the damage that they could have done by undermining these protests. what happened has been widely condemned, including by the home secretary. the scenes, mr speaker, in bristol yesterday, were utterly shameful. we saw criminal thuggery and disorder caused by a minority who put lives at risk. today, the streets have been cleaned and the graffiti scrubbed away, but these clashes come at a time of heightened scrutiny of policing following the vigil of sarah everard. tonight, both enforcement and demonstration are again in the spotlight. there are big changes are ahead for the armed forces — with fewer soldiers and tanks and a reduction in the number of older aircraft.

the cuts are being made to help fund new equipment and technologies. the defence secretary, ben wallace, told the commons the changes marked a shift from "mass mobilisation to information age—speed, readiness and relevance for confronting the threats of the future." by 2025 the number of regular troops will be reduced from a target of 82,000 to 72,5000. the number of new f—35 aircraft will be increased from 48, while the number of typhoon fighters will fall by a fifth. for the navy, there will be fewer frigates and destroyers — down from 19 to 17 by the end of the decade. before a new generation is brought in. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale, has this report. the army of the future will have fewer tanks and fewer soldiers. the raf will retire some

of its olderjets and aircraft. and the navy will see a cut in its surface fleet before new warships come into service. all this at a time when the government says that threats are rising. but it is promising a hi—tech armed forces and to invest in new technologies from fast jets to drones and robots to fight the wars of the future. we will ensure defence is threat—focused, modernised and financially sustainable, ready to confront future challenges, seize new opportunities for global britain, and lay the foundations of a more secure and prosperous united kingdom. the threats to britain are increasing, our forces will be deployed further from home, yet this is a plan for fewer troops, fewer ships, fewer planes over the next few years. the armed forces of tomorrow will be able to fight in the new domains of space and cyber.

royal marines and troops will be better equipped. but the regular army is set to lose around 10,000 soldiers. the question — can a smaller force really deliver a more potent punch? a small 12—man team having the same effect as what a company had at the time i was out in afghan, so you're looking at a 12—man team compared to 60 plus having a greater effect. do you think the future of the army is exciting? yeah, absolutely, ithink it's evolving each day, each day that goes on, and i think this, you know, review, it's only actually highlighting new prospects that we have to look forward to in the future. to match the government's ambition of a global britain, later this year, the navy's new aircraft carrier will sail to the pacific. but can the uk's military really do more with less? i've always had tremendous respect

for the british military, and so, you know, if i had my way, i'd probably maintain the force level in britain, only because they're great fighters. it's not all out with the old. after years of arms reduction, the government says it will increase the sealing of its stockpile of nuclear warheads — 0ne legacy from the cold war era that it doesn't want to give up. jonathan beale, bbc news. clive myrie — a familiar face here on bbc news — has been named as the new host of mastermind. he will replacejohn humphreys who is stepping down after 18 years in the role. clive will be the 5th host of the show which has been running since 1972. the bbc described him as witty, wise — with a wicked sense of humour — and said he would be a superb host.

well done. now it's time for a look at the weather with louise lear. hello there. with the spring equinox just past mother nature is showing, it's a beauty today. lots of blue sky, lots of sunshine and with they came some warmth as well. temperatures peaked at highs of 15 degrees. now, tomorrow will be a different story in terms of sunshine. it stays quite quiet but there will be quite a lot of cloud around and the further west you go there is likely to be a scattering of showers. more persistent rain arrives into western scotland western fringes of northern ireland by the end of the day. the wind strengthening here as well. highest values perhaps of 12 degrees quite likely. as we move out of tuesday into wednesday that weather front will continue to slip its way steadily south. it's not going to produce that much in the way of rain as it reaches the southeast corner but it will leave a nuisance area of cloud. the odd spot or two of light drizzle to go with it. behind it some sunny spells coming through but the winds continue to strengthen in the northwest

of scotland and temperatures are likely to peak at 8 to 13 degrees. hello, this is bbc news with tim willcox. the headlines... just coming up at 8.30. the prime minister warns a third wave of covid could hit the uk as the eu vaccine row intensifies. people in this country should be under no illusions that previous experience has taught us that's when a wave hits, i'm afraid it washes up on our shores as well. an independent inquiry says scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon did not break the ministerial code in her response to allegations against alex salmond. i believe i acted appropriately in a difficult situation and i'm pleased that i have the independent verification. the home secretary condemns violent clashes during a demonstration against new police powers in bristol last night,

calling it utterly shameful. drones, robots and cyber warfare. the size of the army is to be reduced by thousands of soldiers, as it reshapes for the future. and 30 years after michael schumacher made his debut in formula one, his son mick is about to begin his own racing career. the diplomatic row over whether the eu bans astrazeneca vaccine exports to the uk comes amid further evidence that the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine is both safe and highly effective. a us trial of more than 32,000 volunteers said it was 79% effective at stopping symptomatic covid disease and 100% effective at preventing people from falling seriously ill and there were no safety issues regarding blood clots. 0ur health correspondent dominic hughes reports. with the vaccination programme now well under way in the united states, a new trial has cleared the way

for the astrazeneca jab to be added to the armoury. it confirms it's safe and effective, especially for older people. that adds to the growing body of evidence from the use of the jab in millions of patients in the uk. we do, of course, have a lot of data now coming through from the uk on the use of the vaccine in older people, in people over 70 and people over 80, and showing that, in real—world use of the vaccine, there is very high effectiveness of the vaccine, it is keeping people out of hospital, it is stopping them getting infected, even in these older age groups. but these empty chairs at a german vaccination centre back up a new survey, suggesting many in europe have lost confidence in the astrazeneca jab, following a scare over blood clots, even though the vaccine has now been given the all—clear by the eu medicines regulator. it shows just how easily faith in vaccines can be undermined. and a rising wave of infections across the continent throws into doubt the hopes of so many

people of filling up these empty beaches this summer. if those breaks can go ahead, vaccination and testing will be crucial. vaccination non—stop, this is where the efforts of the spanish government are at the moment, and i am sure that with this, the summer will look brighter, and of course, we will be more than glad to receive our tourists from the uk, as we always have. but the prospect of holidaymakers returning from countries currently in the middle of a fresh outbreak is causing concern. when there is high prevalence| of the virus, there is more risk of mutations, and the big fear| here is that a resistance virus, one of the new variants, if you like, will be - brought back into the uk. keeping track of those new variants will be one of the biggest challenges for the coming months. a new process of genetic screening, that could halve the time it takes to detect known variants, is now undergoing trials.

it's another weapon in what will be a long fight against coronavirus. dominic hughes, bbc news. a year ago, the world was shutting down. in that time, some two and a half million people globally have died from coronavirus, but if governments had been "better prepared", things could have been very different. that's the view of one of the world's leading experts in infectious diseases, professor dale fisher, who was part of a team sent by the world health organisation to the epicentre of the outbreak in china. in an exclusive interview with the bbc�*s panorama programme, professor fisher says that it was countries in the far east, where they'd had two outbreaks of similar viruses in the past 20 years, that were best prepared. jane corbin reports. across the world, coronavirus has given governments the same challenges, but they have responded in very different ways. in south korea, the prime minister introduced strict

rules even before there was a confirmed case. good afternoon, prime minister. translation: from the very start, we put in place - prevention measures to stop the same thing happening again, to stop history repeating itself. so the government acted in a much stronger way compared to the past. track and trace teams used cctv, mobile phone and credit card data to keep tabs on all confirmed cases and anyone they might have come into contact with. seen from outside, these methods may appear too intrusive, but they haven't had to lock down in south korea, like many other countries have. dale fisher, a specialist in infectious diseases based in singapore, says governments in the far east were by far the best prepared.

if china has been brought to its knees injanuary, a country of 1.4 billion, you had to treat this virus with incredible respect. it was like every country had to experience the problem before they would believe how how big the problem was. in sweden, where the law guarantees people's freedom of movement, there were no strict rules, just advice. free from harsh restrictions, the virus spread, and it was the elderly living in care homes who were the most vulnerable. last april, thomas aanderson, whose father, jan, was living in a care home, had a call telling him he had covid. i get into his room to say goodbye to him. they have drugged him with morphine in such a high level that he was not... i couldn't have any contact with him at all. he did... he didn't know i was there.

thomas' father was being given end—of—life care rather than any treatment. it was only after he alerted the media that his father was put on a drip and started to get better. now he's doing well. he would be, uh... he would be dead if it didn't... ..if we didn't turn up. almost half of sweden's covid deaths have been in care homes. an investigation found that by allowing the virus to spread and denying some old people hospital care, the state had failed to protect the elderly. one of the worst things we can do is when this is over, - we just go back to normal. if you don't learn i from it, then history will repeat itself. jane corbin, bbc news. a report has found there were signifcant failings over infection prevention and control at the queen elizabeth university hospital campus in glasgow. the review looked into the cases

of 84 children who developed infections while having treatment at the royal hospital for children. it found a third of these were "most likely" to have been linked to the hospital environment and that two deaths were, at least in part, the result of their infection. nhs greater glasgow and clyde's chief executive has apologised. the mail on sunday has been given more time to challenge a court ruling that it must publish a front—page statement about the duchess of sussex winning her claim against the newspaper. earlier this month, associated newspapers was found to have "infringed" meghan's copyright by publishing parts of a letter to her estranged father. 42 former subpostmasters who were found guilty of financial crimes have begun an attempt at the court of appeal to clear their names. it follows a civil case where a high courtjudge found the it system installed by the post office contained

"errors and defects". last year, the post office apologised for what it called "historical failings." mps are about to vote on fire safety laws designed to prevent a repeat of the grenfell tower tragedy, with questions over who will foot the bill in protecting homes. labour mps, as well as some conservatives, claim tenants and leaseholders should not be expected to pay for fire safety improvements, including the removal of cladding. an amendment to the fire safety bill would see the government pay the initial costs before recouping it from developers and cladding companies. steph pike owns a flat in a block in bristol, which has been deemed vulnerable to a fire spreading. shejoins me now. it doesn't appear as if this amendment is going to get past, what is it going to mean for someone like you, tens of thousands of people

like you who have bought a flatjust before or around the time of green fell or after? if before or around the time of green fell or after?— fell or after? if the amendment doesnt fell or after? if the amendment doesn't get _ fell or after? if the amendment doesn't get past, _ fell or after? if the amendment doesn't get past, we _ fell or after? if the amendment doesn't get past, we are - fell or after? if the amendment doesn't get past, we are back l fell or after? if the amendment| doesn't get past, we are back in fell or after? if the amendment - doesn't get past, we are back in the position, even worse than what we've been into date. if the amendment doesn't get past, i'm put into law —— it's put into law. just doesn't get past, i'm put into law -- it's put into law.— doesn't get past, i'm put into law -- it's put into law. just remind or tell our viewers _ -- it's put into law. just remind or tell our viewers when _ -- it's put into law. just remind or tell our viewers when you - -- it's put into law. just remind or tell our viewers when you boughtl tell our viewers when you bought your flat, tell our viewers when you bought yourflat, how many tell our viewers when you bought your flat, how many metres high tell our viewers when you bought yourflat, how many metres high it is, because it's got to be below or above 18 metres and who is responsible for the cladding and the fire safety do you think when you bought it. fire safety do you think when you bou:ht it. ~ , ., bought it. when i brought the -- bou:ht bought it. when i brought the -- bought the _ bought it. when i brought the -- bought the property, _ bought it. when i brought the -- bought the property, grenfell- bought it. when i brought the -- | bought the property, grenfell was bought it. when i brought the -- . bought the property, grenfell was in the forefront of everyone's minds,

and i asked about cladding so i thought it was all completely safe. what was the second bit? you bought the flat thinking — what was the second bit? you bought the flat thinking everyone _ what was the second bit? you bought the flat thinking everyone was - what was the second bit? you bought the flat thinking everyone was fine, . the flat thinking everyone was fine, then after grenfell when it came to insurances, building controls, what were you told you are liable for? yeah, so we... it was a massive shock because we thought it was absolutely fine, and we found out about a year ago there was bad cladding on the building and we were told it was a very small amount. it cost about £5,000 to replace. per flatter er cost about £5,000 to replace. per flatter per the whole building? to |

flatter per the whole building? to replace all of the cladding. but it's actually following a load of different reports and inspections. it's coming to light the cladding is a small part of the issue. it's missing barriers, balconies, a lot of this was noncompliant at the time. so basically, the builders put it up as cheaply as possible and kind of thought they would get away with it. at the moment, they are continuing to get away with this, and this is a case for numerous... did the building fail, would it have failed building regulations or was this common practice before grenfell fire? i this common practice before grenfell fire? ~ �* , , this common practice before grenfell fire? ~ �*, , .., ., fire? i think it's been common the whole way — fire? i think it's been common the whole way through. _ fire? i think it's been common the whole way through. i _ fire? i think it's been common the whole way through. i think- fire? i think it's been common the whole way through. i think the - fire? i think it's been common the l whole way through. i think the issue is these building checks are not done properly. i don't know a huge

amount about this, but i understand they're done off plans, not physical checks. so the person signing off doesn't actually see what the materials have been used in the building. bizarrely, there seems to be no legal recourse against the people who signed them off, so every part of the system has failed. the bill coming _ part of the system has failed. the bill coming through, who do you think should be paying? should it be the government? because they've already offered three and a half billion into a fund. leaseholders will absolutely _ billion into a fund. leaseholders will absolutely welcome - billion into a fund. leaseholders will absolutely welcome this - will absolutely welcome this funding. however, we don't think the taxpayer should pay for this either. this is not the taxpayer doing this, or leaseholders. this is the people who have built these properties that are noncompliant. it's the manufacturers, for instance, who

have faked a fire test.— have faked a fire test. we're 'ust talkin: have faked a fire test. we're 'ust talking generally. i have faked a fire test. we're 'ust talking generally. this �* have faked a fire test. we're 'ust talking generally. this is i have faked a fire test. we're just| talking generally. this is basically the suppliers and the builders who have not been following the correct guidelines in the run up. it’s a guidelines in the run up. it's a combination _ guidelines in the run up. it's a combination of— guidelines in the run up. it's a combination of many - guidelines in the run up. it's a combination of many things, i j guidelines in the run up. it�*s —. combination of many things, i think, but i think it's lack of regulation and enforcement, people signing off incorrectly and buildings doing what they want, in compliance with regulations. also the manufacturers. the issue is so complex and there are so many different parties to blame, but the only party that isn't to blame his leaseholders, who are the only ones were being made to pat’- the only ones were being made to pay. i the only ones were being made to -a . the only ones were being made to la . ., the only ones were being made to -a . ., , the only ones were being made to a. ., pay. i might not be able to sell a flat unless _ pay. i might not be able to sell a flat unless these _ pay. i might not be able to sell a flat unless these things... - pay. i might not be able to sell a flat unless these things... it's i flat unless these things... it's very complicated, but we'll both be watching for the result of that amendment in the next few hours. thank you very much indeed. thank ou. garden centres in wales are welcoming customers today for the first time since the current

lockdown began in december. i can't ican't imagine i can't imagine many are open now. supermarkets and other shops that have remained open, but were required to cordon off non—essential aisles, can now sell those products. all other shops in wales are expected to re—open on the 12th of april. seven year groups of school children in northern ireland have returned to classes today. the changes mean all primary school pupils and most secondary students have now returned to face—to—face teaching. the final cohort of secondary school pupils will return to the classroom on april 12th after the easter holiday. thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes across new south wales in australia as heavy rains continue to batter the east coast of the country, causing severe flooding. torrential downpours have caused rivers and dams to overflow around sydney, and it's forecast that the rains will last for several more days. shaimaa khalil reports.

this is what days of relentless downpour looks like. a deluge not seen here in five decades in new south wales. emergency services have conducted more than 500 rescues so far. this is what they're up against. waters so high and forceful, a three—bedroom cottage was seen floating through. crews have also been called in to get stranded cattle to safety. one team even managed to ferry 20 dogs on inflatable boats. in the town of windsor, north—west of sydney, residents are used to floods this time of year, but nothing like this. very shocking. i haven't seen it like this before. in 1990 was the last time i remember having a really big flood. _ it's hard to tell. this is the newly built windsor bridge. it's barely one year old.

it was meant to withstand heavy flooding. this is how swollen the river got. you can hardly make out the windsor bridge. with more rain forecast over the next few days, things are set to get much worse before they get better. thousands of families have already evacuated, with many more ready to go. for days now, this family has been on high alert. they tell me they hardly slept in the past 24 hours as they watched the waters inch ever closer to their property and submerge the whole of their back garden. this is what their property looked like before the flood. normally it is completely green. it slopes down to the dam. now, it's completely inundated. in the distance we can just see farmland. but now, we just see water. it's not the first natural disaster to hit these areas in the past year. some communities who were battered by the bushfires, now they are battered by the floods. deep drought prior to that.

i don't know any time in our state's history when we have had these events in such quick succession. many have spent the night in evacuation centres. with the rain showing no sign of letting up there is no telling when they will be able to get back to their homes. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, new south wales. this is miami beach in florida, and these are scenes which have caused consternation. thousands of people descended on the city for the annual college spring break holiday, risking a further spread of coronavirus there. florida has had fairly relaxed restrictions up until now, but miami beach is now under a state of emergency for up to three weeks. our north america correspondent peter bowes reports. party time in miami. spring break, when students traditionally descend on florida to let off steam. the bars, beaches and restaurants are packed. but this is no time to party.

the city of miami beach is currently under a state of emergency there is a curfew in effect. these extraordinary scenes have shocked local officials who say they have been overwhelmed by the number of revellers. there's little sign of social distancing and few people wearing masks. fights have broken out and businesses have been forced to close down. at one point, the police shot pepper balls into the crowd, urging people to leave after an 8pm curfew came into effect. i think it is a good idea. even though it's fun out here, we want to be out here and have fun. no—one's doing anything, people are just out here, enjoying the beach and it's a good vibe. but they want to shut it down at 8 o'clock, people will go somewhere else and take — their money somewhere else and it is what it is. people want to live. when it's over, when it's over, get the vaccine, get back to business. am i worried because of covid? i mean, i'm not really worried about that. l you know what i'm saying, like... you just got to be i cautious, that's all, you know what i'm saying?

it's no guarantees with - the covid thing, you can get the covid from your neighbourhood, your block, your building. _ it don't matter. you out somewhere else, like, we chilling. - music plays. florida is one of the few us states now fully open during the pandemic. last month, the republican governor ron desantis declared the state is an oasis of freedom from coronavirus restrictions. an oasis of freedom from coronavirus restrictions. tourists have descended on the area in large numbers over the past few weeks. boston, you got to wear masks everywhere you go. i had the vaccine, so i don't care. i go home, i get tested, for myself, i don't really care but i wouldn't- want to get my parents sick, you know? - officials have blamed adults rather than college students for much of the chaos. the state of emergency and night—time curfew has now been extended for up to three weeks. many people are coming here right now and too many people are coming here with bad intentions. last week, florida recorded more than 4000 new

covid—19 infections a day. this is a crisis that's far from over. peter bowes, bbc news, los angeles. 850 -- 851. it's just over seven years since the formula one legend michael schmacher had a skiing accident that left him with a devastating brain injury. he's not been seen in public since, but this weekend, his 22—year—old son mick will return the schumacher name to formula one when he makes his debut in bahrain. the schumacher name to formula one when he makes his debut in bahrain. our sports editor dan roan has been speaking to him. he's a rookie like no other — mick schumacher has one of the most famous names in motorsport. son of legendary michael, the youngster is preparing to continue a remarkable legacy and, with his first race in formula 1just days away, told me what it meant to be following in his father's footsteps. it's been a lifelong dream to be here. and, you know, just walking into the paddock was an amazing feeling, being with the team, knowing that this is it, my pass is like the proper

red f1 pass, just like, wow, it's amazing. i remember seeing my dad having one, and i always wanted one. i have one now, and it's amazing, and i'm really looking forward to it. under the watchful eye of his father, schumacherjunior began his racing career aged just nine. progressing through the ranks, he went on to win the formula 2 title last season, earning a drive with haas at the top of the sport. how do you handle the inevitable comparisons that are drawn between you and your father? i think it's motivation and pride, really. you know, i'm happy to be here, i'm happy to have brought back the schumacher name into formula 1. we've proven that i'm able to drive a race car, and i don't feel a blink of pressure of it. schumacher senior dominated f1, winning seven world championships. then came the tragic skiing accident in 2013 which left him with severe head injuries. he hasn't been seen since, and his family won't discuss his current condition. but the significance of this weekend is not lost on his son.

it's 30 years since my dad has driven there his first race, and we've been exactly the same age, so it's going to be an emotional weekend. last year, schumacher gave lewis hamilton one of his father's helmet after he equalled the german's record of 91 career wins. the german's record the two greats are equal on world championships, but hamilton now has the chance to overtake. he's a seven time world champion, i'm sure he's done everything right, and that's great to see. schumacher�*s preparing to defy the weight of expectation — from neck—strengthening exercises in the gym to being measured up for his new car. but few debuts in sport will have been quite so emotive. dan roan, bbc news. now, the prospect of a good spring clean can be daunting enough for any of us, but in space? well, a british company is involved in the latest mission to clear up tonnes of debris that's floating in orbit around the earth. my my goodness, here it is.

a vacuum cleaner won't cut it — they're going to be using huge magnets instead. our science correspondent jonathan amos reports. he's a bit more sophisticated. is this the start of a new era? a russian rocket flies skyward on a mission to showcase how the space industry can finally start to deal with its dirty secret — orbital debris. more than 60 years of space activity have left millions of discarded pieces of metal and other materials littering the skies overhead. everything from old rocket segments to accidentally dropped astronaut tools, even flecks of paint. the space industry is finally realising that unless we start removing some of the biggerjunk items, we run the risk of collisions that will destroy the active satellites that provide our communications and weather forecast. enter the astroscale company with a division in the uk, which launched its clean—up demonstration on monday's rocket. it'll use one satellite

to magnetically grab another, a dummy in this instance, and pull it down to earth. the manoeuvres involved will be complex. the key bit is to capture a tumbling object. so if a satellite fails, it can quite easily start tumbling and that makes it considerably harder to capture it. so that is our key technology. astroscale believes a vibrant market will emerge this decade in which spacecraft owners contract other operators to either service and repair hardware in orbit, or tow it out of harm's way. this should keep orbits free and safe for everyone to continue using. jonathan amos, bbc news. isn't that amazing? now it's time for a look at the weather with louise lear. hello there.

i suspect it's a lulling us into a false sense of security because over the next few days, the story changes. more cloud, increasingly wet and windy and a brief cold spell for all of us during friday. more detail coming up, but let's look at tuesday. settled weather drifting off into the near continent, allowing weather fronts to push and from the atlantic, so more cloud around for tuesday with showers out to the west and by the end of the afternoon, the wind strengthening and some rain pushing into western frictions northern ireland and the west of scotland. in terms of the feel of the weather, looking at around nine to 12 degrees. moving out of tuesday into wednesday, our weather front will bring a spell of heavy rain for a time, but as it sinks its way steadily south and east, quite a clear. temperatures likely to fall away, los single figures. it stays relatively mild or

because of the cloud in the rain. the rain will weaken off as that frontal system sinks its way south and east, so a band of nuisance cloud for lincolnshire down towards the bristol channel and the odd patch of light rain. behind it, sunny spells, wetter and turning increasingly windier by wednesday afternoon. temperatures should peak at around seven to 10 degrees here, highs of 15 and southeast corners. as we move out of wednesday into thursday, isobars on the chart. blustery winds starting to develop, and it's going to be a case of sunny spells and scattered showers. because of the wind direction, likely for showers further west for the... highs of 14 degrees. not expected to last because as we push into friday, this is when the real change arrives. it's cold front will move through under the influence of

this low pressure, and the wind direction change is westerly so that's driving across the country once again. squeezing the yellow tone, the milder air back into the near continent. some of the showers across any elevation will be wintry once again. windy with it, gust in excess of 30 to 40 mph in places. because it's coming from a northwesterly direction, it will feel very warm indeed, temperature is struggling to climb into double digits. the wind direction changes again as we move into the weekend, so the mild air is set to return. still the potential on sunday for somewhat water weather, particularly out to the west, and this is going to be the trend for the orderly half of next week. some of the wind returns, that's going to push milder air back across the uk, but there is an area of large pressure —— low pressure into the north. however, look at this. high pressure likely to build in from the southwest and

quiet and things down. what that generally means is we potentially close out the month of march on a wet and windy note. however, without high pressure building, the beginning of april could be drier and warmer. temperatures may be slightly above the average of time of year. that's it, take care.

i'm laura trevelyan in new york and this is bbc world news america. a big boost for the astrazeneca vaccine. trials here in the us show it's safe — but does america even need a fourth jab? the worst flooding in 60 years in australia's new south wales — with more torrential rain on the way. with more rain forecast over the next few days, things are set to get much worse before they get better. thousands of families have already evacuated, with many more ready to go. and — yet another israeli election — the country goes to the polls on tuesday for the fourth time in two years. will this one break the deadlock? many israelis are asking, how many times can you keep having elections with no real winner?