this is bbc news. the headlines at six. lockdown eases in wales — the first uk nation to lift travel restrictions within its borders. borisjohnson says england's road map out of lockdown remains on track — as it's revealed covid booster jabs may be available as early as september. the mp kenny macaskill announces he is quitting the snp, to stand for alex salmond's new party at the holyrood election. it's a party for those who support the cause of independence, and who want to make sure that we grasp that nettle, which is badly required because of the risks and challenges that we face. because of the risks and challenges that we face. the un says its received �*shocking' reports of violence in myanmar —

around 90 pro—democracy protestors are reported to have been killed by security forces work continues to refloat the giant container ship blocking egypt's suez canal, 1a tug boats are now involved in the operation. and at 6.30 — join us for a round up of today's developments in sportsday. good afternoon. wales has become to the first nation in the uk to relax the lockdown measures which have been in place since december. the "stay local" rule has been scrapped in favour of unlimited travel within wales and groups of six people from two households can meet up outdoors in private gardens. next week will see some rules change in england and scotland too. our wales correspondent

tomas morgan has this report. things are beginning to look a little brighter in wales today. as beaches across the nation are open once again. travel is allowed, much to the delight of these visitors to barry island. breath of fresh air. the kids love being out here, ice—cream and chips. it feels amazing. really hot. being out with our family. tourism has also partially re—opened. a welcome relief for the mcleer family, who have travelled to saundersfoot after being in lockdown in merthyr tydfil since 19th december. we started off this morning at 8:15, the traffic was very good, weather was very good. we got down here at about quarter to ten. we were saying, you know, "we've escaped, we've escaped." there is that feeling. although travel within wales is permitted, crossing the border

either way is still not allowed, other than for work, childcare or emergencies. some holiday premises rely heavy on the english coming here. however the prospect of any tourists coming back is good news for those in the industry. getting the owners back today will really help bring the park back to life. we only have a handful of local owners, people within the county, but that is a start to the season where we can start looking forward to getting back to some sort of normality. last year when restrictions began to lift, beauty spots across wales were flooded. today people were more cautious, planning their visits carefully. i was here five in the morning and i think there was only two other cars here. but i think it is more of a shock, knowing everyone's still in this phase of kind of going, "is it real? "are we allowed out now? "is it ok to go out?"

national parks and natural resources wales have asked people to be sensible. along with travel six people from two households are also able to meet outside from this weekend and organised outdoor activities the and sports activities and sports for under 18s can resume. any travel further afield will be discussed at the welsh government's next three weekly review on thursday. but for now, an ice—cream on the sand will do in this glorious welsh sunshine. people over 70 could be given what have been called boosterjabs in september in order to protect them from new variants of coronavirus, the government has indicated. nhs workers and care home staff would also be eligible. the vaccines minister said eight different vaccines are expected to be available in the uk by the autumn. here's our health correspondent katherine da costa. nearly 30 million people in the uk

have at least one dose of the covid vaccine. scientists are looking at whether booster shots may be needed. they could be rolled out to the over 70s, health and care workers and people vulnerable from september. the immune system tends to become forgetful as people become older. so this new plan to give boosters has a lot of merit. viruses mutate to survive. some mutations caused concern if they make the virus more harmful. 0ne mutation called e484k has been found in the south britain and brazilian viruses. it helps the virus escape immunity from past infections. current vaccines provide some protection. france, germany and poland are seeing in a surge in infections. there is concern lifting travel restrictions with europe

could increase the risk of bringing new variants into the uk. there is interconnecdness in the worlds we live and people move from one place to another and viruses move and there is connectedness in vaccine production. it is a complicated task enough now and it is not going to get easier as we look towards what to do next. scientists are working on adapting vaccines, but keeping cases low while ramping up vaccinations the best way to give us faith we will see an end to this pandemic. the latest government figures show

there were 4,715 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. 58 deaths were reported in the latest 2a hour period, that's of people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test, taking the total number to 126,573. more than 400,000 people have had theirfirst dose of a covid vaccine, in the latest 24—hour period, bringing the total to more than 29.7 million. almost 3.3 million people, have now had both doses of the vaccine. coronavirus restrictions are being stepped up in parts of europe as a third wave of infections continues to sweep the continent. eu states have seen some of the deadliest outbreaks of the pandemic — and are racing to vaccinate people. the prime minister of poland has warned that the country's hospitals may not be able to cope with soaring

covid cases. the uk kent variant of the virus is now responsible for 80% of all infections there. its government has brought in tighter restrictions affecting shops, supermarkets and churches. tougher measures have also been brought in paris and several other parts of france. residents face more stringent police checks, with people in high—risk areas not allowed to travel more than ten kilometres from home, except in emergencies. with the latest from across europe here's tanya dendrinos. speeding around the national velodrome, the french cycling team is training hard for the olympics, but if you look closely, you will notice the hive of activity in the heart of the stadium and it has nothing to do with cycling.

this track doubles as a vaccination centre. translation: well, we're happy to be vaccinated. - i will continue doing the same things because in any case, we were in lockdown so we know the safety measures while in lockdown and eagerly await the second dose. 400,000 people were vaccinated in frnce on friday as the country continues to battle an increase in cases. 19 areas have been placed in lockdown while close to 5,000 patients are being treated in intensive care. in germany, public health experts have warned case numbers could rise to 100,000 per day. translation: at the moment, i the numbers are rising too fast, and the variants make the situation particularly dangerous. if this continues unchecked, we run the risk that our healthcare system will reach breaking point through the course of april. it's prompted a clampdown on borders. negative tests will be required for airport arrivals from tuesday and from sunday,

along with a negative test, travellers from france go into ten day quarantine, with the entire country declared high risk. in poland, restrictions are tightening as well. cases are up by 35% from the number reported a week ago. there were more than 35,000 new cases on friday, the third record—breaking day in a row. it's been a year since the pandemic began. but with a number of countries adamant new variants are behind the current surge, this the third wave could be the worst yet. tanya dendrinos, bbc news. our news correspondent damien mcguinness is in berlin. we heard in that report, damien from the german health minister, what else has he been saying, as cases

predicted to rise to 100,000 a day? yes, at the moment cases are around 20,000 a day, but that is a steep rise from what they were a month or two o, the beginning of this year, after the christmas lockdown, there had been hopes that by easter, germany would start opening up, a plan had been set up in order to get the economy going, those hopes have been dashed and that is because of these new variant, what we see when you look at the sorts of infections that are happening, the majority of those are the uk kent variant and angela merkel herself has said this variant is more infectious, potentially more deadly, and it is also causing this high rise in cases, that is what has got officials worried and that is why the german health ministerjust this afternoon has expanded now on his thoughts and he said he believes that a computer lockdown immediately, is what he wants, should be implemented for the next up should be implemented for the next up to two weeks wally. now in being

germany, a federal complicated system, you can'tjust the health minister can't decide unilaterally to impose that, so now he will presumably want to start talking to other political actors from regional leaders through to government members, and will probably try to start pushing for a more severe lockdown than the one we got already. that is what with reseeing in society as a whole, society is really divided on the one hand you have a lot of people who have had enough of restrictions, on the other hand you have a lot of people, a good third or 40% of the population demanding tougher restrictions because everyone is seeing the case go because everyone is seeing the case 9° up because everyone is seeing the case go up and at the moment, the restrictions are not holding that back, and the vaccination programme is still slow, big numbers of vaccines are due in april, they are not here yet though, so until then it seems to be the case that a more severe lockdown mightjust been necessary, that is what many government ministers are calling

for. it government ministers are calling for. , ., , for. it might be deemed to be necessary _ for. it might be deemed to be necessary but _ for. it might be deemed to be necessary but how— for. it might be deemed to be necessary but how likely - for. it might be deemed to be necessary but how likely is . for. it might be deemed to be necessary but how likely is it, | necessary but how likely is it, given we know that angela merkel tried to toughen up restriction, didn't she and was resisted by regional governments?- didn't she and was resisted by regional governments? yes, i think that is the problem _ regional governments? yes, i think that is the problem that _ regional governments? yes, i think that is the problem that angela - that is the problem that angela merkel herself is having. what we are seeing many germany, each region seeing difference levels of infection rates, less populated regions have low infection rate, urban regions or industrial regions have very high infection rates. each region is aware of these federal elections we have coming up in september, so that is adding to the political fervour here and political leaders feel under pressure baize pole numbers are going down. everyone is fighting the corner which is make things more complicated for angela merkel, that particular mess we saw last week was really over a particular mesh she tried to implement in, it was a random idea she came up in this all

night negotiation, the next day she realised it wasn't a goer, feasibly, wasn't possible and legally it wasn't possible and legally it wasn't possible. a more complete lockdown would be possible, and it just needs getting everyone on side for that. at the moment it is a confused situation in germany because we have various different regions acting unilaterally. we have had severe measure, less ceviche measures and now even is confused. that is what the government has realised they need consistency and it is looking like very soon tougher lockdown measures.— the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon, has said there are "significant questions" over the appropriateness of her predecessor, alex salmond's plans to return to public office. mr salmond launched a new party yesterday called alba which will contest the scottish

parliamentary elections in may. it's emerged that mp kenny macaskill has left the snp to join the alba party. 0ur scotland correspondentjamie mciver has the details. nicola sturgeon wanted to focus on the snp�*s own election campaign today, but instead she's been facing questions about another party's campaign. the new party led by her former friend and mentor, alex salmond. ms sturgeon questions both his motivation and suitability to return to public life. it's not an opportunity to gamble with the future of the country. i know from knowing him well in years gone by, alex salmond is a gambler, it is what he enjoys doing, but this is not the time to gamble with the future of the country. this is the time the make a serious choice. strong experienced leadership, a policy programme for recovery and a chance to choose independence. the alba party. mr salmond unveiled the new party yesterday. he says he wants to create a so—called super majority at holyrood for independence. he got a boost today when a prominent member of the snp defected.

kenny macaskill was the scottishjustice secretary and is now a westminster mp. this isn't just the alex salmond party or even the alex salmondj and kenny macaskill party, - it's a party for those who support the cause of independencel and who want to make sure that we grasp that nettle, which is badly required, . because of the risks and challenges that we face — the scottish election is still six weeks away and it's hard to predict how much support mr salmond's new party may attract, but the battle between the snp and his party may well become the defining theme of this campaign. the headlines on bbc news. lockdown eases in wales — the first uk nation to lift travel restrictions within its borders. borisjohnson says england's road map out of lockdown remains on track — as it's revealed covid booster jabs may be available as early as september. the mp kenny macaskill announces

he is quitting the snp, to stand for alex salmond's new party at the holyrood election. reports suggest that at least 90 people have been shot dead in myanmar, on its bloodiest day since last month's military coup. the foreign secretary, dominic raab, said the killings marked a "new low". security forces in myanmar have cracked down on new protests as the leaders of its coup marked armed forces day. protesters took to the streets of yangon and other cities. laura bicker reports. defiant, determined and undaunted, even when faced with bullets. they scream in protest, armed with sticks and slingshots. street battles sprung up in over a0 towns and cities across the country.

protesters sheltered behind makeshift barriers in their neighbourhoods, but the gunfire at times appeared relentless. one by one, they carried — and counted — their injured and dead. this is the deadliest day since the military staged its coup on february the 1st. state tv had issued this chilling warning. to the youth who own the future, you should learn from the tragedy of earlier ugly deaths that you can be in danger of getting shot to the head and back. convince and prevent your friends, before doing something wrong. earlier, the generals had gathered in celebration of armed forces day. and in his address, myanmar�*s military leader, general min aung hlaing, promised the country would hold elections. translation: violent acts that affect stability - and security, in order to make demands, are inappropriate. but the people of myanmar want their elected government back, and appear ready to continue their protest, even if it means

that their cities have to burn in the process. laura bicker, bbc news, bangkok. efforts have resumed to refloat the giant container ship blocking egypt's suez canal. the suez canal authority says 1a tug boats are involved in the operation to free the ever given, which has been stranded since tuesday. more than 300 vessels are currently waiting for passage through one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. 0ur correspondent sally nabil sent this update from the scene. up up to now no—one knows when the giant ship can be refloated. there is a state of uncertainty here. the authorities say they cannot give an exact time frame, they also say that the ship ran aground due to a number of factors not only bad weather but

there might be human and tech anical errors too and they are going to look further into that, when they start an investigation, the problem here is the congestion, a large number of ships are waiting to continue theirjourney number of ships are waiting to continue their journey and number of ships are waiting to continue theirjourney and no—one knows when navigation can be resumed. in the suez canal. for egyptians the canal is not only a source of national pride but it's a source of national pride but it's a source of national pride but it's a source of much—needed foreign currency. it is one of the most important trade routes round the world. the authorities here are trying to sense a message of reassurance, saying they are doing the best they can, to bring things back to normal. as soon as possible. but the longer the ship is stuck, the more disruption there could be to global trade. borisjohnson has described as "disgraceful" attacks on the police in bristol on friday night. ten people were arrested in the city after officers took action to clear the third mass protest in the city in a week. around a thousand people had

gathered to oppose law changes that would give police more powers to restrict demonstrations. unions are warning that up to 1000 british gas engineers could lose theirjobs on monday in a deadlocked dispute over pay and conditions with parent company centrica. the gmb union which represents some 7000 british gas workers says the company will give formal notice of termination next week for staff who have not accepted the changes to their terms and conditions which they say are unacceptable. centrica says the new terms and conditions are "�*still very competitive' and that the vast majority of staff have now accepted the new terms. borisjohnson has launched the conservatives' campaign for england's local and mayoral elections in may. in a pre—recorded speech at the party's virtual spring forum, the prime minister said the conservative party continues to fulfil its mandate, despite facing the difficulties of a global pandemic.

we're a one—nation conservative government, and we continue — in spite of the pandemic — to deliver on the promises we made in that great election of 2019. we have recruited more than 6,000 of the 20,000 police, we're building the a0 new hospitals, we're recruiting the 50,000 more nurses — 10,600 now in the nhs this year, as opposed to last year. the national crime agency has said phone companies must do more to tackle an "explosion" of impersonation scams since the pandemic started a year ago. it's told the bbc that fraudsters are becoming more sophisticated in how they target victims. dan whitworth is a reporter with bbc radio 4's money box. the technical term is impersonation fraud, but essentially,

what it is is that criminals use technology to copy genuine phone numbers. so they might copy genuine phone numbers from hmrc or other government agencies, the police, your bank, and make it look as though they are calling you, calling the victim, from those agencies, when in fact they are not at all, they are criminals and are trying to steal your money. they do this through either getting information from you or actually tricking people into transferring the money direct to themselves. now, as you said in your introduction, there has been a huge increase in the number and the amount of these spam calls, these spoof calls, that have been happening in the last 12 months. it's still an uncertain summer for festival organisers — some have already postponed events to next year, whilst others are pressing ahead in the hope they can take place when restrictions lift. 0rganisers say a government—backed insurance scheme to protect against the risk of losses, if a festival or concert is forced to cancel due to covid, would help immensely — but currently there's no sign of that happening. 0ur entertainment correspondent colin paterson reports.

this is where the uk's music festival season is set to start. eridge park in kent. it's the oldest deer park in england and it's the most fabulous place ever. home of black deer festival. these two are long—term friends who have now become festival bosses. we're like ant and dec, she always answers that question. after careers in radio and live music, they decided to set up their own event celebrating country and americana music, the black deer festival. the best new festival on the block. we won promoter of the year, music event of the year. we have really made our mark. why so special? wow, the fact it's run by two women. that's not true, there

is loads of people involved. the festival is scheduled to start on 25th ofjune, just four days after the date given by the government at the earliest time that legal limits on social contact can be removed in england. but they believe black deer will go ahead. this is the front of the main stage. this is where robert plant, van morrison will be? yes. a little bit further this way. here. and they are able to put everything in place because many people are asking to only be paid if it does happen. suppliers are all aware of that, so ordinarily we would have lots of deposits everywhere now, securing all of our kit, infrastructure for the festival. we have absolutely done that but everybody understands so everybody is holding payments, holding payments until. the bands?

the agents are, but they've been great as well. we are working as a community, it's unbelievable. are either of your houses at risk? they always are. 0ne change is that travel restrictions mean the line—up now is entirely almost made up of acts from the british isles such as ward thomas, the first uk act to have a number one country album. during lockdown, they released a new album, invitation, but had to reschedule their tour three times, so they are thrilled at playing the festival. it means the world to us and i think i can speak for so many other artists, so many other bands, the whole team, the crew, everything who have lost work this year. it means so much to so many people and for us, we just can't wait to be back on stage. as performers, people didn't dare

look forward to a live show because it's been so far in the future, maybe we will be out but to have dates in the diary to actually look forward to is really exciting. however, a note of caution from the boss of the association of independent festivals. he believes the lack of a government backed insurance scheme will mean more cancellations in the next fortnight. it's an enormous risk for any independent festival to proceed with costs and bear in mind costs an average of over £6 million to stage an independent festival. i think probably the later you are, the smaller you are, the more reason you have for optimism. back at the black deer festival, optimism isn't something that debs and jill are lacking. it would mean the world to open the gates, people laughing and smiling and people having the best time, i will cry.

you will? i will be crying, yes. for lots of reasons. three new arrivals at a wiltshire farm have struck up an unlikely friendship after being hand—reared together. taz the emu, alfred the goat and wriggle the gosling have formed an inseperable bond. they're from caenhill countryside centre in wiltshire. all three of them needed special care after they were born earlier this month, and the trio have become the best of friends since. now it's time for a look at the weather with matt taylor.

hello. this morning some parts of uk felt like winter returned. know is on the ground in cumbria but crisp clear airfor many. temperatures ground in cumbria but crisp clear air for many. temperatures this afternoon ten or 11. temperatures this afternoon around ten or 11 degrees. early part of next week, though, it will almost feel as if summer has given us an early taste of. 23 degrees folsom of the south and east. high teens, low 20s quite widely. but before you get carried away, winter will have its little bite back as we head towards easter. and temperatures only part of the story. with the wind is coming in from the south—west over the next few days and a milder air, plenty of rain in western scotland, where there is an increased risk of flooding. and the cloud out to the atlantic is going to be responsible. the first batch is pushing in at the moment, it is that which has seen many western areas cloud over through the day. outbreaks of rain developing as we head into the evening. heaviest and most persistent in western scotland during the first half of the night.

strong winds across the board. most others will see some rain, although to the south and east of england, many will say it dry. and whilst it will stay windy here, the winds will come in from a south—westerly direction, so not as chilly as last night. temperatures to start your sunday morning somewhere between six and nine degrees. fairly cloudy start for many, although there will be some clear skies across scotland with some morning sunshine before the cloud and rain returns to the west later. outbreaks of rain early doors and an on off in northern ireland, easing little bit in northern england, north and west wales. driest towards the south and east of england throughout, with some sunny spells. not the level of sunshine we have seen through today, but even here it will be windy. across—the—board, we will see wind gusts in excess of a0 miles an hour at times. but it is a mild one. coming in from the south—west, temperatures 15, 16 degrees across some parts of eastern england. certainly warmer for all then we have seen over the past three days. there south—westerly winds then continue through sunday into monday, bringing ever milder air, particularly towards the south and east as high pressure builds. but whether fronts continue to pile in the rain across parts of western scotland and also for some in northern ireland. the further south and east you are, though, clearerskies, sunny conditions return and even in eastern scotland,

with some hazy sunshine, we could see temperatures here peak