president biden�*s secretary of state, antony blinken, arrives in london, as britain seeks to develop its relationship with the new us administration. the talks will be the first to take place face—to—face after the devastating global pandemic and its impact. as the government considers whether to lift the ban on foreign holidays, a group of mps calls for restrictions to be maintained. warnings of a sharp rise in hate crimes against people of an asian background since the start of the pandemic. "completely unacceptable" — police condemn yesterday's protests at manchester united. gyms and swimming pools reopen and friends hug, as covid rules relax in wales.

good afternoon. the foreign secretary, dominic raab, will hold talks later with the new us secretary of state, anthony blinken, who's on his first visit to london sincejoe biden became president. the discussions take place before britain hosts foreign ministers from the g7 group of industrialised nations in what will be their first face—to—face meeting for more than two years. our diplomatic correspondent james landale reports. america's top diplomat arriving in london for the first time since team trump was swept away by team biden, and while the politics and style may have changed, when it comes to world affairs, the message remains the same. what we have witnessed over the last

several years is china acting more repressively at home and more aggressively abroad. it is the one country in the world that has the military, economic, diplomatic capacity to undermine or challenge the rules—based order that we care so much about. and it is defending that international order that will be top of the agenda as g7 foreign ministers meet face—to—face for the first time in two years. above all, how to protect open societies from authoritarian ones, including mechanisms to respond rapidly to misinformation and cyber attacks from russia and elsewhere. the pandemic of course will overshadow this meeting, with delegates talking through masks and screens after daily on—site tests. their focus not only india but also new ways of getting vaccines to poor countries. they will also agree measures

to tackle famine and encourage millions more girls into school, something that will prompt accusations of hypocrisy against the government, just as it cuts foreign aid for both. the economic circumstances that we find ourselves in as a direct result of coronavirus has meant that we have had to make some difficult decisions with regard to our aid budget but nevertheless, in both percentage terms and in absolute terms, the uk remains one of the most generous aid donors in the world. so for the host of this meeting, the foreign secretary dominic raab, a tricky path to walk. how to show global leadership whilst also saving money. and james joins me now. how important are the talks? they are important for basic diplomacy which has been locked into a virtual world for the last year or so. this is the first time on tv as the ministers have met face—to—face so i think that will be quite a new and unusual dynamic for them.

obviously, you know, we are in the midst of covid so they will spend a lot of time talking about that, not just the situation in india but also how they can do more to ensure that there are vaccines to getting to poorer countries. it is also important because it is the precursor to the next g7 meeting which is the heads of government, president biden coming here injune, big discussions particularly about climate change ahead of the big summit in glasgow, the cop summit later this year, lots of summits going on a broader discussions about the usual things, russia, going on a broader discussions about the usualthings, russia, china, iran, all those issues but it is also important for the uk. it is quite a big test of the global britain foreign policy. today and in the next few days from the first real test of can britain show leadership and as we are already seeing, there is some noises off and criticism against the government, saying you can't show leadership talking about famine and education for girls when you are cutting money for girls when you are cutting money for that is part of your cuts to the aid budget. for that is part of your cuts to the aid budget-— there's conflicting advice this lunchtime on whether we should be

able to take foreign holidays this summer. the european union is urging tourism to be allowed for people who are fully vaccinated or coming from countries with low infection rates. but here, a cross—party group of mps is saying all international leisure travel should be "discouraged" because of concerns that new variants of coronavirus could be bought back to the uk. let's speak to our political correspondentjonathan blake, who's at westminster. jonathan. should we be booking holidays or not? �* . should we be booking holidays or not? ., , .,, should we be booking holidays or not? joanna, some people may well be deserate not? joanna, some people may well be desnerate to — not? joanna, some people may well be desnerate to do — not? joanna, some people may well be desperate to do that _ not? joanna, some people may well be desperate to do that at _ not? joanna, some people may well be desperate to do that at the _ not? joanna, some people may well be desperate to do that at the moment. desperate to do that at the moment but others are urging caution. mps on the all—party parliamentary group for coronavirus, an informal cross group on, say it is staggering that ministers are even considering encouraging people to go on holiday anywhere this summer. they say it will inevitably lead to further lockdowns and further loss of life. specifically, they are concerns are around airport arrivals halls and travellers from different destinations mixing there, warning that could become a breeding ground for infection. also, the test and

isolate system not being strong or robust enough and then the issue of fake covid test certificates, allowing people to possibly travel without a genuine negative results. despite all of those concerns, the indications are that the government is going to, later this week, confirm some international travel will be allowed again from the 17th of may. the prime minister, though, said today it is important still to be cautious and as ministers and officials way up exactly what quarantine and testing restrictions will be required for each country when international travel restarts, there is a signal from when international travel restarts, there is a signalfrom european countries today that restrictions there could be about to be relaxed with the european commission recommending its members relax restrictions and allow people in from countries with a good epidemiological situation and those who are fully vaccinated.— who are fully vaccinated. thank you for “oininu who are fully vaccinated. thank you forjoining us- _ further lockdown restrictions have been eased in wales today with the re—opening of gyms and swimming pools. two households are now also allowed to form a bubble and meet indoors

for the first time this year. tomos morgan joined those working out this morning at a gym in cardiff. after lying idle for the last four and half months, it is weightlifting on the menu today at dragon athletic as the barbells are back in action once again, as gyms have reopened in wales. it is so nice to be back and just being back with everyone as well. training with everyone is a bit different to working out at home, so, yeah, it's really good to be back. i really missed the social aspects of it and i missed, yeah, just seeing my friends, really, and getting involved in classes. mentally, it has been a big one for me because, you know, i train at home but it is not the same as the social aspect with, you know, your friends and colleagues, so yeah, i've missed that. the last nation to reopen gyms and pools, wales is the first to restart indoor group exercise of up to 15 people. from a business perspective, it has been very challenging, seeing england open up before us but very, very happy

that we are allowed to now do our classes from today, two weeks earlier, right, so there is a little bit of moving about but i think, as you can see, with the smiles on people's faces, it is what has been needed. along with fitness with friends, indoor mixing of a fixed two households is also being reintroduced today. as are indoor children's activities like scouts. today's easings will be the last ones now until at least the 17th of may, and at that point, we may see the reopening of indoor hospitality in wales. but before then of course, on thursday, we have the small matter of the welsh parliament elections, and what implications will the result of that vote have on the future road map of unlocking restrictions in wales? tomos morgan, bbc news, cardiff. the restriction on the number of mourners who can attend funerals is being lifted in england from may the 17th. from then, attendances will be determined by how many mourners can

be safely accommodated while maintaining social distancing both indoors and outside. the move has been welcomed by the national association of funeral directors. in two weeks, eating out will become eating in, as the vast majority of pubs and restaurants in england open their doors to serve us food inside. but aside from getting covid—safe, they've got another major worry on their plates — staffing. after thousands of workers left the sector during lockdown, the industry says it's in crisis. some hospitality businesses are warning they might not be able to open this month if they can't get the people they need. our consumer affairs correspondent colletta smith reports. high pressure. long hours. late into the night. delivering perfection but no longer on a plate. i'm back on the stoves and i'm cooking. when you become a chef, that is what you want to do,

you want to cook food and you want people to enjoy your food. jamie has quit hisjob as head chef at a fancy hotel chain and started his own takeaway business. and he is not going back. a year ago was kind of a bit of a moment for you to reassess life and work out what you wanted to do. it was, yeah. i think it's been a push for some people who were stuck in the industry, who didn't know what else they could do. i had chefs working for me who've taken on driving opportunities and now they are happy because they can spend a little bit more time with the family. we are a relief chef agency so we send in temporary chefs where there might be a gap in the kitchen. loads of restaurants has been in touch with katie to get ready for full reopening. but lots of candidates on her books just aren't coming back. over 50% of them have found alternative employment over the past 12 months and they've actually decided not to come back into hospitality. so they have been working in warehouses or delivery driving or gone to work in supermarkets and they've actually decided

they are going to continue doing that and not come back to being a chef. do you think this is about pay, then, or is it more than that? i think it's much more thanjust pay. it is hard to argue with having more time with your family and your children or whoever you want to spend time with. everyone has had a taste of that over the past few months, the past year. and going back into those anti—social and long hours is going to be really difficult for some people and actually, a lot of people just aren't prepared to compromise. that is the problem they are facing at the gusto restaurant chain. are you confident you will have the amount of team you need to open the business on the 17th of may? yes. matt says he is so short—staffed, some of his premises... we've got quite a few - applicants at the moment. ..may not be able to reopen on time. we have 12 restaurants. we are always recruiting somebody. we are never recruiting 100 people at the same time for every single restaurant that all need to be trained in a restaurant business that is effectively closed, and that is the issue we are experiencing right now.

we will get through it but it is another issue on top of, you know, a hundred other issues that we have had to wade through over the last 13 months. our korean fries, which are vegan, ok? they smell incredible! although it is scary, jamie has not got any regrets. i've not gone a million miles away from what i'm doing. it is, because i'm doing it for me and for my family, and you know, to get a better lifestyle eventually. colletta smith... dig in. ..bbc news. this weekend, football clubs and their players have been boycotting social media in protest over online abuse and racism. the stand comes as police in london alone say the number of hate crimes against people of an asian background have tripled since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. but campaigners and authorities agree many go unreported. the bbc�*s special correspondent fergal keane has been meeting victims of the attacks. one old white lady, she uses herfinger,

points out to me and screams at me, saying, "yol- chinese, - you have the chinese virus, just go back to your country." translation: when the train - was approaching camden road station, the tall, young white man who was sat next to me started making a noise, trying to get phlegm up from his throat. and when the train stopped at the station, he spat at me. i was on my way home and this kid shouted "coronavirus" at me. there was no one else in the street and it was directed at me, and this happened at the start of the pandemic. anti—asian racism didn't begin with the pandemic but victims say it has escalated dramatically. this has exploded since the beginning of the virus. this really affects both the emotions and mental health and the whole atmosphere in the community. dr pong wang wasjogging his home

in southampton when racist comments were shouted from a car. they punched me on my face and my nose was badly hit. the physical injury can be healed very easily, but most importantly, it is the inner side. how do you restore yourfaith in humans? ..not just your nose but your mouth, your eyes, your hair, yourvoice... the fear around coronavirus has helped inflame xenophobic attitudes around the world. conspiracy theories have spread online. and victims told us the rhetoric of some leaders caused enduring harm. donald trump: the chinese virus. ..kung flu. . .the nation | which unleashed this plague onto the world, china. the issues in america transfer themselves over to the uk quite regularly, and obviously, that is in the media regularly as well.

so it gives a voice to people and somebody as powerful as trump, with his views, emboldened the racists. it is an atmosphere in which old prejudices have revived. dan soh's supermarket symbolises a korean family that is fully integrated into british society. but recently, his wife and baby daughter were racially abused in an affluent west london suburb. i remember very clearly feeling how sad i was. it was my first reaction. because this is a country that i was born in and i grew up in, and i love... ..everything about this country. communities long established in britain, part of the country's culturalfabric, are being targeted. the sense of belonging, reflected in london's chinese new year celebrations, is challenged by racism. now, an opposition mp of chinese descent wants tougher

policing of hate crime. we've got to get really tough with social media sites that allow and spread hatred online, and as well as that dehumanising kind of rhetoric and racism, there is on the other hand as well this racism that is a conspiracy theory, that we are trying to take over the world. in these and many other lives, the politics of the pandemic and superpower rivalries have unleashed fear. but also, a determination to confront prejudice. translation: i am not a virus. why did he spit at me and discriminate against me? just because i look asian, it doesn't mean i'm a virus. fergal keane, bbc news. sirjeffrey donaldson has confirmed he is standing for the leadership of the democratic unionist party. the leader of the party's mps at westminster faces competition from stormont�*s agriculture minister, edwin poots.

the current dup leader arlene foster resigned last week and stands down at the end of may. she'll continue as northern ireland's first minister until the end ofjune. the queen has credited the people of northern ireland with maintaining peace, in a message to mark 100 years since a parliament was set up in belfast, dividing the island of ireland. she recalled her visits with prince philip to ireland, saying the centenary served as a reminder of the country's "complex history", but was an opportunity to reflect on "togetherness" and "diversity". her majesty said it's clear in the light of recent events that reconciliation and mutual understanding cannot be taken for granted. police in manchester have condemned the protests that led to the postponement of manchester united's premier league match against liverpool yesterday, calling them "completely unacceptable". two officers were injured when fans stormed the pitch. our sports correspondent joe wilson is at old trafford.

how are fans reacting today? i think there are all — how are fans reacting today? i think there are all sorts _ how are fans reacting today? i think there are all sorts of— how are fans reacting today? i think there are all sorts of emotions - how are fans reacting today? i think there are all sorts of emotions and i there are all sorts of emotions and indeed resentment simmering in the manchester drizzle today. the reaction from the police is completely understandable after two officers were injured, quite seriously, during the clashes yesterday. one thing i was very aware of yesterday and one thing i tried to convey was that there were a great many supporters here who had come to demonstrate peacefully and did not want to be associated in any way with those who ended up getting onto the pitch. there has been an open letter written today by the manchester united supporters trust to joel manchester united supporters trust tojoel glazer, manchester united supporters trust to joel glazer, the manchester united supporters trust tojoel glazer, the owner of manchester united, urging the owners to engage in fan consultation. the letter also says that there is no intention to be a repeat of what happened yesterday. they don't want fans getting onto the pitch to be a regular occurrence. now for those who did make their way onto the pitch, they say that is the only way to get a reaction but there has to be a general acceptance of the

situation where football matches are simply not played is untenable. thank you forjoining us. it's a ratings record for line of duty on bbc one last night. almost 13 million people tuned in to watch the finale of the sixth series. it's the biggest tv drama audience — not including soaps — for more than 20 years. viewers had tuned in to see the identity of the mysterious "h" revealed in the police corruption drama, created byjed mecurio. that's all from the bbc news at one, so it's goodbye from me, and on bbc one, we nowjoin the bbc�*s news teams where you are.

hello, this is bbc news. police in germany say they've shut down one of the world's largest online child pornography platforms, following an international investigation. they've arrested four men accused of running the network, called boystown, which was accessed on the darknet by hundreds of thousands of users. the investigation involved police in the netherlands, sweden, australia, the us and canada. our correspondent in berlin damien mcguiness has more. police are describing this as a major step forward in the fight against child pornography. now, this was a huge international

collaboration between officials from, as you say, all over the world and it is shocking what police have uncovered, because you are talking about 400,000 users worldwide exchanging, looking at images, videos of, at times, very young children, including toddlers. officials say that this shows the extent of the problem. four men between the ages of a0 and 64 have now been tracked down. three of them, they are all german citizens, three of them are in germany, the other is in paraguay, their homes have been searched. last month, a couple of weeks ago, they were detained, and the hope is that now that this is shut down and now that users as well are being tracked down, it shows, officials say, that people who use this sort of, or look at this sort of pornography, or share it, are not safe from investigation and prosecution, and that is really the signal that is being sent out here. it is the only positive thing coming out of this story, the fact that these perpetrators

have been tracked down. three of the men are accused of running the site and a fourth man in hamburg, the 64—year—old, is accused of being one of its most active users, having exchanged and looked at more than 3,500 images or postings. so it is a chilling story, but at least the one positive thing is that this site has been shut down and it shows that the collaboration between officials from all over the world can be effective in fighting against child pornography. today marks a very significant date in the history of the island of ireland. 100 years ago, a law came into force which set up a parliament in belfast, created a border and established northern ireland. in a message to its people today, the queen said the anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on our togetherness and our diversity." and borisjohnson has said the uk government would continue to showcase "all the brilliant things" that northern ireland contributes to the rest of the uk. chris page reports. these are the pictures northern ireland wants to be best known for —

a place of friendly cities and stunning seaside scenery. but it has a history which hurts. it's still recovering from a conflict which lasted for 30 years, until the late 1990s. there was violence, too, at the time of northern ireland's birth, sectarian murder across the island of ireland. the southern 26 counties went to war with britain to achieve independence, but a majority in the north—eastern six counties wanted to stay in the uk. and that's what happened. today is one of a series of anniversaries. it's notjust the start of northern ireland as we know it. it's the start of the united kingdom as we know it. and the united kingdom is stronger and better because of all the constituent parts, and northern ireland plays a huge part in that. unionists view this is the centenary of the state they strongly value. but for people who identify as irish, it's the anniversary of the partition of ireland, a source of great injustice. the creation of a brexit trade border with the rest of the uk has again sharpened political divisions.

i think it is possible for us to deal with the past. yeah. there would be a little, some pain, but generously, ethically, i think it is possible for us to deal with the present, given even our present difficulties. i think they should be ironed out. they can be. events to mark the centenary have been restricted so far due to the pandemic, but that doesn't make 2021 any less significant here. chris page, bbc news, belfast. we're just a few days away from the local elections, with different polls opening depending on where you live. our correspondent lewis goodall has been taking a look at what's happening where. there is a bumper crop of elections coming up on 6 may in england, scotland and wales. in fact, they are the biggest set of elections, the biggest democratic test for the three major parties this side of the next general election. let's have a look at some of the contests taking place across the country.

for a start, we have 143 different english councils up for election. 5,000 seats up for election. in some places, one third, in some places half the chamber, in some places all the chamber. some places two—thirds of the chamber. some of those seats are holdovers from councils which should have been elected in 2020 but where not because of the pandemic. 129 msps for the scottish parliament in holyrood, up for election. all 60 members of the welsh senedd up for election. we have seen what huge powers those bodies have in scotland and wales during the pandemic. big elections there. in england, as well, police and crime commissioners up for re—election, 39 of them. they control police budgets and strategy in their area. 25 seats for london assembly and the london mayoralty as well as a whole suite of other directly elected mayors. 13 of them. so how were these elections conducted? what do you have to do when you get in those voting booths? it might be a bit more complicated than you think. it depends where you live and what you are voting in. in scotland and wales, then you get two votes. both for your local constituency member, and then another vote

for the regional list. this vote effectively helps parties which don't do so well in the local in the local constituencies, but do still score, do well overall in the election. tops their representation up, gives them extra seats, makes gives them extra seats, makes the overall system more proportionate. but that's different of course if you are living in england and voting in english local councillors, councils. there it is our old friend, it is first—past—the—post. it is one voter, one candidate, one vote, whichever candidate gets one more vote than all the others, they are elected, whichever party controls more than 50% of the seats in the local chamber, they control the local council and if they are not able to get more than 50% of the seats, they have to form a coalition with another party and that's different again if you are voting in the english mayoral elections or the police and crime commissioners. there, there's something called supplementary vote system. voters get two preferences, if no candidate gets over 50% of the vote, then the other candidates are eliminated one by one, and the preferences of those votes are redistributed until you get over 50% of the vote for one candidate and,

hey presto, you've got a mayor, you've got an english local police and crime commissioner, but the one thing that unites all of these elections is the fact they are taking place in very, very different circumstances than we might expect. certainly different from the halcyon days back in the 1950s, here. this is taking place in a global pandemic. very different sets of elections, covid—secure local voting stations, voters even being asked to bring their own pencil, shielders asked to vote by post. we just cannot know what effect all of that is going to have on turnout, could be much lower, could be much higher if lots of people choose to vote by post who wouldn't normally do so, and therefore this is a very unpredictable set of elections and we cannot know what power they are going to have in order to give us wider insight into trends going on in our politics more generally.

italy has revealed plans to build a new floor in rome's famous colosseum, allowing visitors the opportunity to stand at the same level where gladiators fought in the ancient amphitheatre. the new floor will be made of rotating wooden slats to allow light and ventilation into the underground passages below, which were discovered in the 19th century, when the previous floor was removed. time for a look at the weather with darren. rain continuing to spill eastwards across more of the country, setting in late afternoon across east anglia and the south—east, by which time turning showery for northern ireland and western areas, winds continue to strengthen across wales and southern england with very strong wind around the coast. temperatures depressed because of the cloud, wind and rain, unusually chilly for the time of year. low—pressure drives eastwards this evening and the main rain band sweep through but we keep these showers are longer spells of rain going, when trainees over the hills

in scotland. not as cold as last night in scotland and northern england. should generally be frost free because of the wind continuing to blow overnight. when they start to blow overnight. when they start to tuesday, particularly those north sea coasts, gradually ease, longer spells of showers moving down, sunshine around, largely drive through wales, southern england, 13, much colder in scotland.

hello, this is bbc news. i'm joanna gosling. the headlines: a cross—party group of mps urges the government to maintain restrictions on foreign holidays beyond the 17th of may, but the travel industry is confident that foreign travel will be possible this summer. portugal, spain, greece, croatia, those are the markets where we are pretty confident, just looking at the figures that are coming through, that people will be able to travel to. lockdown restrictions ease further in wales today — gyms and swimming pools are reopening and two households can now meet indoors. britain's foreign secretary, dominic raab, will meet the us secretary of state, anthony blinken, on his first visit to london since joe biden became president. the pair will discuss transatlantic relations at an in—person g7 meeting. sporting and politicialfigures have condemned the violence against police during a protest at old trafford yesterday.

when you get fans breaking into stadiums, when you get fans hurting police officers, when you get fans smashing glass