this is bbc news. i'm jane hill. the headlines: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. earlier, jersey politicans held talks with the french fishermen — initial reports suggest they weren't productive. jersey needs to stand firm. we need to manage our stocks, no question about that. we need to manage resources out there. we've been fishing there for thousands of years maybe, so it's not normal to put us out of this fishing area. in other news: the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two as lockdown restrictions are lifted.

the world of work, post—pandemic — many of the uk's biggest employers tell us there won't be a full—time return to the office. unseasonal weather as people go to the polls in england, scotland and wales — the biggest test of voter opinion since the last general election. and we meet the former royal marine commando who lost both legs in afghanistan — in training for a charity swim across plymouth sound. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. a fleet of french fishing boats which had been protesting off

the coast ofjersey, in a row over post—brexit fishing rights, has now left the area. two royal navy vessels had been sent tojersey as tensions rose. the french claim their rights to fish off the island are being unfairly restricted by a new system of licences, as robert hall reports from st helier. they slipped their moorings long before dawn, any fishing towns and villages of normandy, local fleets put to sea not to fish but to take their arguments to the channel islands neighbours. we are very close to jersey, they cannot live without france. jersey are selling 80% of theirfish in france. so what do they want? they want to sell their fish in france, but they don't want us to continue to catch fish in their waters.

offjersey, as the clouds darkened and the rain came down, the fishermen gathered, shouting greetings to each other and making clear that they felt they had no option but to register the strongest protest atjersey�*s decision to impose licensing conditions within its territorial waters. guillaume, 26, told me he had been fishing forjust three years. the licensing conditions, he claimed, were unworkable and could put 80% of small fishing vessels out of business. a mile away, the patrol vessel hms taymar, one of two ships sent to offer reassurance tojersey, but keeping her distance as the french fleet moved closer to st helier�*s harbour. a few bouts did effectively block the harbour, as they demanded talks with jersey ministers. it's really important that we are able to work with those fishermen

to help them provide the necessary evidence so that, if required, their licences can be amended. as i've said, it's important we respond to threats, but the answer to this solution is to continue to talk and diplomacy. jersey fishermen are divided on the french demands. they have already been prevented from landing their catches in french ports. some believe there are weaknesses in the licensing scheme, but others are calling onjersey to stand firm. right across the public ofjersey, certainly the fishing fleet and most of the political community, agree that jersey needs to stand firm, we need to manage our fish stocks, no question about that, we need to manage the resource out there, and jersey has done nothing wrong. talks did get underway late this morning, and that seemed to satisfy most fishermen, who moved clear to allow a freight vessel to leave harbour. those with experience of past french disputes recognise the tactics used this morning.

i think this is an absolutely typical french way of making a protest. if they wanted to grab the attention of the french government, they block the champs—elysees. they want really to grab the attention of the british government and the jersey authorities, so they are blocking st helier port. you say fierce things, big gestures, but in the end it is a cry for attention, and it sounds to me, at the heart of this, is a failure of communication. the french boats are now steaming back to their home ports, content that their show of strength has made a point. but their objections to a jersey and the uk claim is a fair way to protect island fishing grounds are very much alive, and if agreement cannot be found, they have warned that more protests are very much on the cards. the latest in terms of the fishermen who had gone out to make their point. our correspondentjean mackenzie

is at carteret, a port in normandy, northern france. she explained the background to the dispute. we were with the fishermen as they left in the middle of the night, and yes, they are angry, but really we got the sense that they are more shocked than anything else. these fishermen rely on being able to fish in jersey waters, many have done so for decades. some of the ones we spoke to get more than 50% of their fish from these waters. they see themselves as one fishing community, and they really hadn't been expecting anything to change. yes, since may, they have needed licences to operate injersey�*s waters, but the problems emerged when these licenses came through with this list of restrictions that the fishermen say they hadn't agreed to. so some of them had been given only permission to usejersey waters for a handful of days a year. they have told us they are going to stay out of the positives and st helierfor as long as it takes for the jersey government

to engage with them in a meaningful way. we know the french have now sent two patrol ships, although they say it is clear they are not on a military mission, this is a safeguarding mission only. so the french vessels are only there to help fishermen if they get into trouble. they are refusing to be drawn on the threat to withdraw electricity to jersey, urging people to keep their heads straight and focus on the issue at hand here, which is resolving these licences. there is certainly a surprise, i think, on both sides of the channel as to how quickly this issue has escalated. there are initial reports from writers especially that say a representative for the fishermen from normandy said that initial feedback following talks with officials from the british channel islandof

jersey had not been very positive. the french side are saying that the talks had been particularly positive and they have now left the area. we will keep an eye on that and there might be more to come in all of that. the bank of england has upgraded its forecasts for economic growth in the uk this year, amid signs that the economy has picked up speed as lockdown restrictions have gradually been relaxed. if the forecast proves true, it will be the fastest economic growth in more than 70 years. nevertheless, the monetary policy committee is keeping its official interest rate on hold at a record low of 0.1%, as economists expected. our economics correspondent, andy verity, explains. what's changed today is how quickly the bank of england expects the economy to recover. after a calamitous drop in economic activity last year — nearly 10% — the forecast before today

was that it would roar back by 5% this year and 7.25% next year, before dropping back the year after. now, the forecast is growth of 7.25% this year, 5.75% next year and 1.25% in 2023. now, in february, the bank was predicting unemployment would peak at 7.75%. now they are predicting it won't get above 5.5%. now, normally with that sort of growth in prospect, the bank of england would be getting worried about inflation taking off and thinking of raising interest rates. at the start of this chart, you can see what used to be normal interest rates once of about 5%. now, they were slashed to help the economy recover from the financial crisis, but before they could get back to normal, we had this even bigger crisis and the bank's official rate dropped to a new record low, just 0.01%. so if you've been forced into borrowing your way through the pandemic as many smaller companies and poorer households

have, should you be kept awake at night like rishi sunak is by the risk of a rise in interest rates? the answer is, not if you think the city's predictions are right. traders who spend their lives watching these things don't expect rates to rise until september next year and then byjust 0.15%. millions of people are casting their ballots in england, scotland and wales today in the biggest test of voter opinion since the general election in 2019. in scotland and wales, voters will decide on their national governments, and there's a by—election in hartlepool. votes will also be cast for police and crime commissioners in england and wales, a number of mayors, and thousands of english council seats. coronavirus precautions are in place and people are being urged to take their own pencils to polling stations. ben wright reports. it felt like spring in brighton as polling stations opened this

morning, while winter reappeared near the scottish town of aviemore. across britain, halls, leisure centres, churches, even a car are being used for voters to cast their ballots. about 48 million people in england, wales and scotland are eligible to vote, and polls will stay open until ten o'clock this evening. in scotland, voters are electing the 129 members of the scottish parliament. in wales, all 60 senedd seats are up for election. in england, voters are choosing 4,650 councillors, 13 mayors and 25 members of the london assembly. there are also elections for 39 police and crime commissioners across england and wales, and there is a by—election to pick the new mp for hartlepool. polling stations have been scrubbed and readied for socially distanced voting. this is a particularly big crop of elections, because last year's contests

were postponed due to the pandemic. as well as plastic screens and hand sanitisers at polling stations, voters are being asked to bring along their own pen or pencil if they can. covid has changed the way this year's elections are being run, and they wait for results will take longer than usual, too. some contests will declare overnight, including the by—election in hartlepool. the outcome of the welsh parliament elections should be completed by the end of friday. results for the scottish parliament, english councils and london could come on saturday, while declarations for police and crime commissioners may not happen until monday. covid has not affected one recent election day tradition, and expect social media to be full of canine companions as people head to the polls. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. and we will have full coverage of all those election results over next few days as they come in here on bbc news, starting with the hartlepool by—election result expected in the early hours of tomorrow.

and then we'll have in—depth analysis of all the results on a special programme with huw edwards and kirsty wark. that's from nine o'clock tomorrow morning on bbc two and the bbc news channel. more on that story that has been dominating here today, the french fishermen who have been off the coast ofjersey, protesting about fishing rights or otherwise. they have now left the area but we know there have been some discussions. let's find out what we can from our correspondent in brussels. if you read the mood music on the french side, neck, it doesn't sound positive. how much more do we know?

as we get the report that french boats are heading home after an early start this morning, possibly they feel they have made their voices heard and people have been listening and seeing why they are angry butjust hearing from some of the boats involved, some of the skippers and fishing communities there, they've had these dialogues with the authorities injersey but from the french perspective there is a sense it hasn't gone particularly well. although the boats are leaving, i don't think the dispute has gone away and in brussels they have been echoing the concerns of the french fleets, saying what has happened here is thatjersey has applied the new brexit trade deal in the wrong way and is basically in breach of the agreement that was reached on christmas eve last year. everyone in this is dealing with varying new rules by definition. is that part of the problem or are we just going to keep seeing more

protests of this nature? this just going to keep seeing more protests of this nature?- just going to keep seeing more protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute _ protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute in _ protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute in what _ protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute in what the - protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute in what the bigger . latest dispute in what the bigger context is of the pretty stormy relationship between the uk and the eu over the past four months. since the trade deal came into operation. talking to people here, there is a sense that they want to de—escalate this as soon as possible. in the past we've seen high tensions on the high seas. in the �*50s and 60s and 70s, the so—called cod wars between british boats and fleets from other european countries over the allocation of fish. all of that went away to a great extent, i'd suggest, because the uk was part of the eu fisheries policy. since brexit, that is no longer the case and there was a specific deal signed in 2000 which included the channel islands. that now, post—brexit, doesn'tapply included the channel islands. that now, post—brexit, doesn't apply any more. in lots of ways, on the issue

of fishing, like so much else post—brexit, we are in uncharted water. post-brexit, we are in uncharted water. w' post-brexit, we are in uncharted water. . ~ post-brexit, we are in uncharted water. ., ~ , ., post-brexit, we are in uncharted water. . ~' , ., , post-brexit, we are in uncharted water. ., ~ , . the headlines on bbc news: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two as lockdown restrictions are lifted. the world of work, post—pandemic — many of the uk's biggest employers tell us there won't be a full time return to the office. the jury in the trial of two police officers accused of the murder and assault of the former aston villa footballer dalian atkinson have been hearing more details about the circumstances leading up to his death.

they included a statement by dalian�*s father who said his son was "not in his right mind" on the night he was tasered outside his family home. let's get more from our correspondent phil mackie, who is outside birmingham crown court(0s what more has the court been hearing? we've been hearing from a few of the witnesses from the cul—de—sac where dalian atkinson's father lived but we began by hearing a summary of the statement that ernest atkinson gave in august 2016 to west mercia police. he could be here in person —— he could not be here in person because he has died since. he said his son was not behaving in the usual way, his son was not behaving in the usualway, pounding his son was not behaving in the usual way, pounding on the door before going in. he told police that

dalian atkinson had grabbed him by the throat and threatened to kill him as well as his siblings and even told his father he had already killed two of his brothers, which wasn't true. then ernest atkinson also said he remembered going back into the house as dalian atkinson went out and confronted the two police officers who were on trial here at birmingham crown court. pc benjamin monk, accused of murder, and his colleague, pc maryellen titley smith who is accused of assault. the evidence we have heard is that dalian atkinson's behaviour was bizarre and erratic. he had been shouting he was the messiah and we heard that repeated in ernest atkinson's statement. 0ther atkinson's statement. other witnesses described a similar scene, they were woken up by the commotion. some of them recognise dalian atkinson and others did know who he was until subsequently but they all

seemed to say the same version of events that two police officers had turned up and we know that dalian atkinson was eventually filed by the third firing of a taser by pc benjamin monk. the crown's case against them is that benjamin monk kicked dalian atkinson repeatedly in the head when he was on the ground which was unlawful and that mary—ellen bettley—smith beat him with her batten while she was —— while he was on the ground. we are hearing from more witnesses who were there that night and will continue giving evidence evidence. the trial is expected to last between six and eight weeks. the high court has ruled that relatives of a woman caught up in the windrush scandal can apply for permission to live in britain without paying thousands of pounds in fees. the court decided that charging the family application fees of more than £20,000 would be "colossal interference" in her human rights. our home affairs correspondent

tom symonds gave us this update. this is linda who has been able to legally live in the uk since the 19705 legally live in the uk since the 1970s but like so many of the people caught up in the windrush scandal, was not able to come here because the home office had not properly registered her legal immigration status. she went through the windrush process and was able to settle in the uk, but she has a family, her husband, winston, and five children who live in trinidad who clearly she would have liked to have come over to join who clearly she would have liked to have come over tojoin her. they needed to apply for the immigration process but that would have cost about £22,000. an e—mail to the home office, she said raising that sort 0ffice, she said raising that sort of money for her family would be a daunting task. she said, we have never been separated from each other before. i would like for them to come over and join me so that we can continue to make a positive impact

on lives that we come into contact with. so she went to court, backed by solicitors, and has won her case at the high court. thejudge decided that forcing herfamily at the high court. thejudge decided that forcing her family to pay actually infringed her own human right to a family life because her family could not come and join her. it was also discriminatory against her family. it was also discriminatory against herfamily. so it was also discriminatory against her family. so that may mean that that problem of having to pay fees to apply is removed for many people in the same situation. the probation officer for the fishmongers' hall attacker usman khan has said he had no idea that m15 had opened an upgraded investigation into khan. ken skelton told the inquest into the death of jack merritt and saskia jones, who were killed by khan, that knowing

about the investigation would have had a "huge impact" on the decisions he made. let's get more on this from our correspondent zoe conway who's following the inquest in central london. explain more about what ken skelton has been saying. ken skelton was usman khan's probation officer, responsible for managing him in the community and one of the important parts of his job was assessing the risk that was men can pose to the public —— usman khan posed. before the attack, he wrote an official risk assessment which said, i would assess usman khan's likelihood of reoffending and risk of extremist offending is low. the lawyer forjack merritt�*s family put to him that the report was just hopeless and inaccurate. ken skelton replied, i had done what i was asked to do and put every effort into writing it. he was asked whether when he wrote that report, whether he knew that m15 had opened a priority investigation into usman

khan. he said he did not. he was asked whether he knew if m15 continued to see usman khan as a national security threat and he said he did not know and that if he had known it would have had a huge impact on his decision—making. he was also asked whether he knew if mis was also asked whether he knew if m15 was concerned that usman khan could be planning an attack and he said he did not know. ken skelton regularly attended meetings to talk about the risk that usman khan posed to the public. there might be the west midlands police and staffordshire police at the meeting along with other probation officers. he was asked by the lawyer forjack merritt�*s family whether he had known that m15 was also sometimes in those meetings. again, he said he didn't know. zoe, thank you, following the inquest into the death of jack merritt and saskia jones.

last year, more than a third of us worked from home at least some of the time because the pandemic closed so many workplaces. now, with lockdown easing, many businesses are planning for their employees to return — but will it be the same? 43 out of 50 firms questioned by the bbc, including some of the uk's biggest employers, said they don't plan to bring staff back to the office full time, that there will be a mixture of home and office working. ben thompson has been looking at how the world of work could change. back in the office after 1a months at home. i took on my role in march 2020. it was kind of a baptism by pandemic. for monica, who started her newjob just as the crisis began, getting back to the office is a chance to change how she and her team can work. when you come into the office, there are going to be open spaces, collaboration spaces.

before, very much, we came into the office, we sat at our desks. sometimes we had meetings, but often, we were sitting at our desk. now we are reconfiguring to make sure we have spaces that facilitate that collaboration. that's something that we really missed. it means employers have to make some big decisions about how and where their staff will work, making the most of the new flexibility without stifling teamwork and collaboration. we're never going to go back to working the way we used to work. i worry about the long—term impact on the enterprise, on our culture, on collaboration, on how we train and develop people. advertising and creative industries are something you learn from your colleagues, and you can only really do that if you're around them in an office. working from home isn't for everyone, especially those without access to the right technology or reliable internet, or even a quiet place to work. but does it also depend

on where in the country you live? is london, the capital, with its long commutes and high house prices, different to elsewhere, where less time and money is spent on commuting and property is more affordable? here in newcastle, accountancy firm sage is preparing to move into its brand—new office, designed to house 1,800 staff. but it's now keen to adopt a new hybrid way of working — some days at home, some in the office. for workers, it is a welcome change. i've enjoyed being able to spend time with my fiancee and eat lunch with her and spend time walking my dog and that kind of thing, and not having to commute has been pretty good. but i think there are definitely some drawbacks in that you don't get, or you get less of the squad mentality, you get less of the casual conversation that can lead into more things. you have to be a lot more structured with how you approach the day. but if many of us stay at home, what about the businesses

that rely on commuters? we rely really heavily on the office trade. there are locations that have 5,000 people and only 140 people came to the building. so most people are working from home or maybe just once a week coming. and that makes it really difficult. working from home may be just one of the enduring changes brought about by this pandemic. its true impact is onlyjust being felt. as businesses and their staff adjust to the new normal, our towns and cities could look very different. ben thompson, bbc news. we'll talk more about that story in the next half an hour. i'll be talking to a woman who runs a company with offices in lots of different places and we will be asking about her lockdown experience and what the world of work looks like for her employees over the coming months. that's coming up after half past. now it's time for a look at the weather with chris fawkes.

hello there. this morning, we started off with some snowfall in parts of scotland. we don't get snow every may, but it does happen from time to time. we had some nine years ago, for example. that has all turned back to rain now, and that rain is spreading from scotland into the northwest of england. plenty of showers around elsewhere. they will be pretty frequent across east anglia and southern england. and it is going to be a chilly kind of day. temperatures are doing well to reach double figures. across the high ground in scotland, probably only about four degrees or so. 0vernight tonight, showers will continue across north—western areas, particularly near to coastal areas, but inland, where the winds fall lighter, it's going to be a cold night with another frost in places. a cold start, then, to friday morning, but there will be plenty of sunshine initially. it is a day, though, where we will see shower clouds are built through the morning, and then in the afternoon, there showers become widespread, heavy, some hungry across eastern areas of scotland, eastern areas of england. that is where you are most likely to get a soaking. but across northern ireland, wales and southwest england, showers should attempt to shrivel away and become dry with hazy spells of sunshine.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war ii, as lockdown restrictions are lifted. some of the uk's biggest employers say they don't plan to bring staff back to the office full time — instead opting for a mix of home and office working. millions of people are voting today in a series of elections in england, scotland and wales, in the biggest test of voter opinion since the 2019 general election. sport now, and for a full round up

from the bbc sport centre, here's jane dougall. good afternoon. warren gatland has announced his squad for the british and irish lions tour and it's a 37—man squad — not 36, as was anticipated. a few surprise inclusions and a few omissions. if we take a look at the backs first, no place forjohnny sexton and henry slade left out. but ireland's bundee aki included. despite england coming fifth in the six nations, they have 11 players involved, wales have ten, scotland and ireland both have eight. the three—test series starts injuly. for the forwards, no billy vunipola or kyle sinkler, but exeter number eight sam simmonds the surprise addition, which bolstered the squad from 36 to 37. and alun wynjones as captain — not really a surprise. but when head coach warren gatland called to telljones the good news at the weekend,

he didn't pick up. i did panic for a few hours before he rang me back and said he would get back to me. it was a great conversation. a little bit of apprehension, realising the responsibility, the privilege to be able to do that. i think he has done a greatjob in the last four years for wales. the conversation was about it and he fully respected it. and yourform has to be good enough to be selected in the test side. it is a great honour to be tour captain. but you have to play well as well. tonight, manchester united and arsenal are in semi—finals action in the europa league. arsenal need to overturn a 2—1 defict. they're at home to villarreal. meanwhile, united are scheduled to play four matches in just eight days. that's because last sunday's postponed league match against liverpool has been re—arranged for next thursday.

united take a 6—2 advantage over roma to italy tonight, so 0le gunnar solkjaer may be tempted to rest some players, but he doesn't think the tie is already over. we are going to play to win that game and that is the only way, to develop, test ourselves, challenge ourselves. there might be one or two changes in the selection, because of the games coming up as well, but we have to get into the final. it could be a lot nervier for arsenal at the emirates stadium. they need to overturn a 2—1 deficit against villarreal, who are managed by former gunners manager unai emery. here's the current arsenal manager mikel arteta. it is a massive game for everybody, but in particular for the club, because we are here presenting a football club and our fans, and what we want to do is do it the best way, winning trophies.

and if we win tomorrow, we will be much closer to getting another trophy. this is the only aim and purpose of why we are here for us. ipswich town have annouced that singer ed sheeran will sponsor their new kit. the suffolk local is a tractor boys fan and often spotted at portman road cheering the side on. he's signed a one—year deal to sponsor the shirts of both the men's and women's first—teams. there are just 78 days to go until the start of the tokyo 0lympics, but there remains a degree of anxiety in japan. the majority of japanese people don't want the games to go ahead and, this morning, the president of world atheltics, seb coe, said there are tough days ahead. this morning teamgb — including gymnast max whitlock and cyclist laura kenny — collected their 0lympic kit at somerset house in central london. whitlock said athletes were aware that the responsibility of keeping covid safe was down to each member of team gb. we are positive in terms of going ahead.

we're positive in terms of team gb putting on everything they possibly can to make it as safe as possible. we have a whole block to ourself in the village to make sure we are as separated as we can be. it is down to the individuals, and i think everybody will agree that it is about being as safe as you can be in that environment. everything will be put in place on protocols and things like that to make sure we are. that is going to be key thing. that's all the sport for now. more sport a little later in the afternoon. now for some of our other main stories today. now for some of our other main stories today. the dog owned by the police community officer who was murdered in kent has been tested for dna in the hope it provides vital evidence. julia james, who was 53, had taken herjack russell for a walk last tuesday, before her body was found in woodland near her home. simonjones reports. julia james walking her dog, toby. she was wearing these clothes, apart from the gloves,

when she was murdered. her body found close to her house, her dog unharmed by her side. police are desperate to hear from anyone who saw julia, or her attacker. we've got a very considerable forensic strategy, as you would expect. it does include the dog. that is being staged through the laboratories. i'm not in a position — it wouldn't be appropriate for me to give a running commentary on the many exhibits and the forensic strategy that we have under way. but of course, we've considered all opportunities around toby. the outpouring of grief in the community continues. the question people are still asking is, why? until things are a little bit more known, i feel a bit vulnerable, if i'm honest with you. whether it's connected, whether because she was a policewoman, i don't know. you know, because there was, you know, something — somebody had a grudge against her or something, or whether it was just purely, you know, random, who knows? the murder investigation is being led from here at folkestone police station. officers say it is their number one priority, and they're currently sifting through hundreds of pieces of information that have been

provided by the public. police have released this map. they're keen to hear from anyone who was in this area on tuesday last week. officers are continuing to advise local people to be vigilant and let someone know when they go out. this community, like the police, are desperate for a breakthrough. simonjones, bbc news, folkestone. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder, after a 34—year—old man was stabbed near basildon. 0fficers believe james gibbons was trying to help another man when he was stabbed on sunday night. 0ur correspondent alex dunlop sent this report from the scene. james gibbons, who was a father of four, had been celebrating his twin daughters�* second birthday here at their home in in iris mewes on sunday night. it is believed that around 9:30, he then went to the aid of a man in the street. he was then stabbed after

an argument with a group of youths. essex police say they have subsequently arrested five teenagers, schoolchildren, aged between 13 and 16, two boys and three girls, on suspicion of murder. they have since released three of them but are still questioning two others. i think you can see behind me the floral tributes to james gibbons are building up. he was a very popular man, by all accounts. he ran his own bathroom fitting company. in a statement, his partner and his family say that they are absolutely broken beyond belief at this pointless loss, which they say "has devastated us all". james was the kind of person, they add, who would always be prepared to help anyone less fortunate than himself, which is what he was doing on sunday night. they are of course also appealing to anyone who has any footage, any information to help essex police in their investigation. alex dunlop, bbc look east, in essex.

as we're reporting, some of the uk's biggest employers have told the bbc they don't plan to bring staff back to the office full time. 43 out of 50 firms told us they would embrace a mix of home and office working, with staff encouraged to work from home two to three days a week. another four said they're keeping the idea of �*hybrid working' under review. joining me now is flavilla fongang, founder of the branding and marketing agency 3 colours rule. very good afternoon. good afternoon tea too. brilliant _ very good afternoon. good afternoon tea too. brilliant thing _ very good afternoon. good afternoon tea too. brilliant thing about - very good afternoon. good afternoon tea too. brilliant thing about your - tea too. brilliant thing about your backdro tea too. brilliant thing about your backdmp is _ tea too. brilliant thing about your backdmp is i _ tea too. brilliant thing about your backdrop is i cannot _ tea too. brilliant thing about your backdrop is i cannot tell - tea too. brilliant thing about your backdrop is i cannot tell if - tea too. brilliant thing about your backdrop is i cannot tell if you - tea too. brilliant thing about your| backdrop is i cannot tell if you are at an office or at home. i backdrop is i cannot tell if you are at an office or at home.— backdrop is i cannot tell if you are at an office or at home. i am at my office and — at an office or at home. i am at my office and there _ at an office or at home. i am at my office and there is _ at an office or at home. i am at my office and there is nobody - at an office or at home. i am at my office and there is nobody with - at an office or at home. i am at my| office and there is nobody with me! so in the office alone. give us a starting point as to how many people you employ, what things were like

for you before the pandemic and what you are thinking now. how big is yourfirm? you are thinking now. how big is your firm?— your firm? that is very good question- — your firm? that is very good question. the _ your firm? that is very good question. the pandemic - your firm? that is very good question. the pandemic we | your firm? that is very good - question. the pandemic we were at just eight people, and you can see actually we have many desks right now. so i'm always giving my team the best way to work and to choose when they come to the office, so that was something that when we had to isolate it was not an issue adult. so after the pandemic, there are still many people i haven't physically seen. and even clients, i haven't seen. but it has worked. there are people who are still in germany, spain, people who before the pandemic had already moved to thailand. so it has not stopped us and it has been good. i'm staying positive. it and it has been good. i'm staying ositive. , . ., , , positive. it is nice to see somebody smilin: positive. it is nice to see somebody smiling about _ positive. it is nice to see somebody smiling about or— positive. it is nice to see somebody smiling about or less! _

positive. it is nice to see somebody smiling about or less! because - positive. it is nice to see somebody smiling about or less! because you| smiling about or less! because you are saying before coronavirus, you are saying before coronavirus, you are actually working in exactly the way that lots of are now telling us they are thinking of adopting. they think they are in this brave new world, you are ahead of the curve. let's be really honest, are there any downsides, though, to the fact that sometimes you are just not physically with someone that you might want to brainstorm some ideas with, for example? yes. might want to brainstorm some ideas with, for example?— with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be — with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be around _ with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be around each _ with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be around each other- with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be around each other in - with, for example? yes, i agree. we have to be around each other in a - have to be around each other in a creative agency and we have to think differently and i think that was one of the challenges for creative thinking. i do miss a good hug and having people in the office. but we have everything there with the technology to communicate effectively. and you can always pick up effectively. and you can always pick up the phone or get on video call to talk about what needs to be done. so

i think what has been my approach to work has always been to not focus on the input, but the output, so people can collaborate and how to get there. so people hold themselves accountable for theirjob and i do not need to be behind them to make sure they are doing that.— sure they are doing that. seven awful lot hinges _ sure they are doing that. seven awful lot hinges on _ sure they are doing that. seven awful lot hinges on technology, sure they are doing that. seven i awful lot hinges on technology, on real basics like your staff having good broadband that does not go down. but i am also interested, there are some people who are going to be better set up for that than others. if you are older, perhaps lucky enough to own your own place, you have a space you can use as a study and work from home, if you are in your 20s study and work from home, if you are in your20s and study and work from home, if you are in your 20s and in a house share and there are three or four or five of you and your working out of your

bedroom, that is miserable and cannot be created. does suggesting that people work from home unfairly penalised those who are younger who might be in a home share? band penalised those who are younger who might be in a home share?— might be in a home share? and also arents! might be in a home share? and also parents! they _ might be in a home share? and also parents! they might _ might be in a home share? and also parents! they might want _ might be in a home share? and also parents! they might want a - might be in a home share? and also parents! they might want a break. parents! they might want a break from the kids. for everybody, even though it is empty right now at the office, we are still in this bubble where things have not properly gone back and we're still the implementation. everybody at some point will remember why they used to like the office. it should be about flexibility in giving people the ability to choose, but also having a good company culture to help people not feel isolated. and things like the internet, i have that as well,

and that is maybe why i am in the office. we need to adapt to what our clients want and springboard and make sure they feel happy. it is really interesting. _ make sure they feel happy. it is really interesting. you are giving your staff the choice, but is it fair to say that the office will never completely die? there will always be a need for it even if it is not five days a week? exactly, but the office _ is not five days a week? exactly, but the office will _ is not five days a week? exactly, but the office will never - is not five days a week? exactly, but the office will never die. - is not five days a week? exactly, but the office will never die. it i is not five days a week? exactly, but the office will never die. it isj but the office will never die. it is about how to use the office space. it could be space just for the creativity, but we need to work at home and at the office and it is about how that space is used. every day, we can think about how to use the office and we really needed. lovely to talk to somebody upbeat about these things. thank you for

now. that was the founder of the branding agency m3 mac. —— three colours rule. it is exactly 2:45pm. the headlines on bbc news: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating about their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the between jersey and french fishermen. french fishe not the french fishermen say they are not happy with how the talks have gone. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest some of the uk's biggest employers say they don't plan to bring staff back to the office full time — instead opting for a mix of home and office working. facebook says it will continue to stop donald trump from directly

using its platforms. the social media giant's new oversight board ruled the former us president had broken its standards and rules by appearing to sympathise with january's attack on the us capitol. but the oversight board told facebook to re—consider whether the ban should be indefinite. our us technology correspondent james clayton has more. trump's use of social media is almost impossible to disentangle with trumpism itself. it was his way of communicating directly with americans, bypassing the mainstream media that he so loathed. but did he also use that platform to radicalise? were his posts in part responsible for these deadly riots? facebook boss mark zuckerberg thought trump's posts could lead to further violence, and suspended donald trump indefinitely the day after the riots. twitter went one step further and banned mr trump forever. he'll never be allowed back onto that platform.

however, facebook asked its decision to be reviewed by its newly formed oversight board, which it claims is independent. it's designed to make difficult moderation decisions, and their decision today was complex. it said that the oversight board has upheld facebook�*s decision to suspend mr trump's access to post content on facebook and instagram. however, it's also said that facebook couldn't ban trump indefinitely. the company must reassess this penalty, it said, within six months of this decision. the judgment does leave a way back for trump on facebook, but for now, the door is closed, and that is a huge problem for donald trump and his hopes of a political return. in a statement, the former president lashed out, saying facebook was "an embarrassment to our country", and they and other social media companies "must pay a political price." facebook has been essential to mr trump. his campaign used it to raise money and micro—target voters. he spent more than $200 million

in 2020 on facebook advertising. so it's notjust an opinion that facebook was an essential part of his political power, it was actually one of the few places where he was putting his money where his mouth was. mr trump yesterday released his own communications platform. but it's really no replacement for being on twitter or facebook. at the click of a button, mr trump could beam himself onto the computers and phones of tens of millions of americans. that button has now gone, perhaps forever. the united states has backed a temporary suspension of intellectual property rights for covid—19 vaccines. president putin has also given russia's backing to temporarily waive patent protections for its sputnik vaccines. and now the european union has said it will consider it, too, with ursula von der leyen suggesting she might look on the

proposal favourably. we are ready to discuss how the us proposal for a waiver on intellectual property protection for covid vaccines could help achieve that objective. in the short run, however, we call upon all vaccine—producing countries to allow exports and to avoid measures that disrupt supply chains. we have some more statistics through about the vaccine programme in this country, although i understand we only have figures for england. the number of people with both vaccine, the figure for that has just come

in. an estimated 90% of people in this age group had received both jabs as of may two, meaning they are fully vaccinated against coronavirus. nine in ten people in england aged 70 and over have had both doses of covid—19 vaccine, nhs england figures suggest. 50% of those between 50 and 69 are estimated to have had the vaccine. new data about the number of people who have now had both doses of covid vaccine. so 90% is the figure for people who are 70 and over. so 90% is the figure for people who are 70 and over. a court in hong kong has given the pro—democracy activist, joshua wong, an additional ten months�* in prison. he was previouslyjailed for breaching security laws. he's now been sentenced for taking part in a protest lastjune to commemorate the victims of the tiananmen square massacre. the us secretary of state, anthony blinken, has said a trade agreement between the uk

and the united states could �*take some time'. speaking to the bbc whilst in london for the g7 summit this week, mr blinken said president biden�*s team are reviewing every decision made up to now in trade talks between the two countries. here's our dipolmatic correspondent james landale. anthony blinken, america's new top diplomat, at the g7 meetings in london — re—engaging with the world, reassuring allies. the us and uk, he said, were profoundly in sync — there was no closer relationship. but for all the warm words, he was cautious about a us—uk trade deal. as to a trade agreement, what we're doing now is, our trade negotiatorjust got on the job, so she's taking the time to go back and review everything that was discussed, and that's taking some time. and there was a gentle warning that britain's relations with the eu, disagreements over trade rules in the irish sea, should not threaten peace in northern ireland.

we want to make sure that whether it's with the united kingdom and the european union, whether it's anything that we're doing, that we make sure to the best of our ability that the tremendous gains from the good friday agreement are sustained, and that the economic as well as political wellbeing of northern ireland is taken fully into account. his message was that america was back on the diplomatic stage. the us, he said, wanted a more stable relationship with russia but would respond to aggression. it didn't want to contain china, but could not accept further breaches of international rules. and on iran, he said the us didn't know if the country was serious about returning to the deal that curbed its nuclear programme. there's a greater premium than at any time since i've been involved in these issues on cooperation, on collaboration, on working together. that's a driving part

of the president's foreign policy, which is why we've re—engaged immediately with our allies and partners, we've been working to reinvigorate those relationships, and, as well, in the multilateral system, the united nations, all these different organisations. that's what's driving us, because we are trying, when we're thinking about our foreign policy, first and foremost, we're thinking about our citizens and making sure we're having a direct impact on improving their lives. and that requires collaboration and cooperation. so after four years of donald trump, the us is back — talking to allies, repairing relationships. but as mr blinken made clear, it's still putting america first. james landale, bbc news. mark 0rmrod is a former royal marine commando who lost both legs and an arm in afghanistan. footage of him went viral when he fell over while training for a five kilometer run for charity — after that, he smashed his fundraising target.

now mark has set himself another gruelling challenge — swimming across plymouth sound. john maguire has been to see him training. eyes on the prize. the objective of mark 0rmrod's latest challenge is drake's island, and to swim a thousand metres off the coast of plymouth. his mental strength is his greatest asset, self—evident when he insisted on parading with colleagues from 40 commando, after he'd been blown up in afghanistan less than five months earlier in 2007, leaving him a triple amputee. mark's most recent endeavour was running five kilometres to raise money for reorg. running seems impossible, but swimming requires a whole new level of determination. you swam at the invictus games, so how is your swimming?

terrible. and you know what's frightening is, i remember how tired i was after 50 metres in an olympic sized swimming pool. now, this is a lot farther, with tides and currents, and creepy crawlies underneath, and everything else that comes with sea swimming. so, this is a new world to me. this is his first training swim. by his side is another former royal marine, his trainer, ben wadham. how i'm going to get him through this is, i'm going to rely on mark's absolute mental capacity to dig out on things that most normal human beings couldn't. getting in the sea is hard for someone with all limbs. and it's a daunting challengejust to get into the sea and swim 100 metres out and back. sea swimming is hard enough, but mark has only one arm to drag himself through the oppressively cold water. gyms and pools can't fully prepare you for the sea, with its tides and currents. with mark struggling, and fatigue exacerbated by the cold setting in,

the decision�*s made to return to shore. the current�*s particularly strong out there, so it was dragging us that way. at that point we were just churning up, because we couldn't get enough power to get him moving through the current. he's obviously physically and mentally robust, but today has proved invaluable, as the team learned about what kit and which techniques would enable mark to complete the one kilometre swim. it's cold. yeah. harder than you thought? oh, yeah. i've not really swum with a current before, and the cold affected my forearm, which meant that my fingers couldn't close properly to swim. so... ah! but a good first day, though. another monster effort. it will be. the end result will be. as a former royal marine, the corps' motto is per mare, per terram.

mark has conquered the land. now he's taking on the sea. john maguire, bbc news, plymouth. remarkable. what stamina. what stamina. now it's time for a look at the weather with chris fawkes. hello there. for many of us, it has been a wet start to the month, and a real turnaround in fortunes when you remember how dry last month was. in the whole of april, in leuchars in east scotland, we only recorded three millimetres of rain. but already over recent days, we have seen over ten times that amount of rainfall, and for many of us it has been a wet start to the month. now, this morning we had some snowfall in parts of scotland. we don't get snow every may, but it does happen from time to time. it happened nine years ago, for example. that snow has all turned back to rain now. that rain is moving from scotland into north west england, where it is going to be really quite

a wet afternoon for many of you. elsewhere, we have got a mixture of sunshine and showers. the showers will be extensive across parts of east anglia and southern england for a time, and wherever you are, it is a chilly start, with temperatures doing well to reached double figures. ten to 12 degrees quite widely. there will be part of the scottish highlands that only see temperatures of around 4 degrees or so, so it will stay cold. 0vernight tonight, showers continue around near coastal areas, but where the winds fall light, there will be some patches are frost developing, so it is going to be another cold start to take us into friday. but for friday, for most of us, it is a sunny start to the day, with blue skies, cloud then building through the morning, and again, it is a day where we will see showers develop. the showers will be most frequent and heaviest across eastern areas of scotland and eastern areas of england as well through the afternoon. whereas across wales, south—west england and also northern ireland, not many showers through the afternoon. there will be dry weather with some hazy spells of sunshine. now, the weekend weather prospects dominated by this slow—moving area of low pressure. it's going to be bringing wet and windy weather our way on saturday. but it will be dredging up some

milder air as it moves its way in, but nevertheless, not the nicest start to the weekend. with extensive rain coming into northern ireland, across england and wales, there will be gale force gusts of wind around as well. eventually, if the rain does clear out of the way across the south—east, it could become quite a bit warmer here for a time through the afternoon, with temperatures about a 16 degrees. but notice it stays cold in scotland, and, after a bright morning here, we will see the rain eventually working in through the afternoon. more rain around on sunday. our main weather front is moving its way eastwards across england. across eastern england, it could become quite warm, with temperatures potentially reaching the low 20s, but still fairly windy. further northwards and westwards, we have got frequent showers. temperatures more typically around 15 to 17. that is your weather.

this is bbc news. i'm jane hill. the headlines at 3: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. jersey's politicans held talks with the french fishermen — with conflicting takes on how they went. jersey needs to stand firm. we need to manage fish stocks, no question. we need to manage the resources out there. we have been fishing there for thousands of years, maybe, so it's not normal — thousands of years, maybe, so it's not normal to put us out of this fishing — not normal to put us out of this fishing area. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two as lockdown

restrictions are lifted. the world of work, post—pandemic — many of the uk's biggest employers tell us there won't be a full time return to the office. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father of four was stabbed to death. unseasonal weather as people go to the polls in england, scotland and wales — the biggest test of voter opinion since the last general election. and we meet the former royal marine commando who lost both legs in afghanistan — in training for a charity swim across plymouth sound

good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. french fishermen have been involved in a protest off the coast ofjersey in a row about post—brexit fishing rights. but they have now left the area. two royal navy ships remain nearjersey, after tensions rose in recent days. the french claim their rights to fish off the island are being unfairly restricted by a new system of licences. jersey's politicians say they held "positive talks" with the protestors earlier today. however, some of the fishermen say the discussions weren't productive. robert hall reports from st helier. they slipped their moorings long before dawn. in the fishing towns and villages of normandy, local fleets put to sea not to fish but to take their arguments to their channel island neighbours. we are very close to jersey, they cannot live without france. jersey are selling 80%

of theirfish in france. so what do they want? they want to sell their fish in france, but they don't want us to continue to catch fish in their waters. 0ffjersey, as the clouds darkened and the rain came down, the fishermen gathered, shouting greetings to each other and making clear that they felt they had no option but to register the strongest protest atjersey�*s decision to impose licensing conditions within its territorial waters. guillaume, who's 26, told me he had been fishing for just three years. the licensing conditions, he claimed, were unworkable and could put 80% of small fishing vessels out of business. a mile away, the patrol vessel hms

tamar, one of two ships sent to offer reassurance tojersey, but keeping her distance as the french fleet moved closer to st helier�*s harbour. a few boats did effectively block the harbour, as they demanded talks with jersey ministers. it's really important that we are able to work with those fishermen to help them provide the necessary evidence so that, if required, their licences can be amended. as i've said, it's important that we respond to threats, but the answer to this solution is to continue to talk and diplomacy. jersey fishermen are divided on the french demands. they have already been prevented from landing their catches in french ports. some believe there are weaknesses in the licensing scheme, but others are calling onjersey to stand firm. right across the public ofjersey, certainly the fishing fleet and most of the political community, agree thatjersey needs to stand firm, we need to manage our fish stocks, no question about that, we need

to manage the resource out there, and jersey has done nothing wrong. talks did get under way late this morning, and that seemed to satisfy most fishermen, who moved clear to allow a freight vessel to leave harbour. those with experience of past french disputes recognise the tactics used this morning. i think this is an absolutely typical french way of making a protest. if they wanted to grab the attention of the french government, they'd block the champs—elysees. they want, really, to grab the attention of the british government and the jersey authorities, so they're blocking st helier port. you say fierce things, you make big gestures, but in the end it's a cry for attention, and it sounds to me at the heart of this is a failure of communication. the french boats are now steaming back to their home ports, content that their show of strength has made a point. but their objections to whatjersey and the uk claim is a fair way to protect island fishing grounds

are still very much alive, and if agreement cannot be found, they have warned that more protests are very much on the cards. let's speak to our correspondent in st helier, freddie miller. conflicting lines from how the talks have gone. it the talks have gone. doesn't bring confidence. inde it doesn't bring confidence. indeed. i think this was _ it doesn't bring confidence. indeed. i think this was always _ it doesn't bring confidence. indeed. i think this was always going - it doesn't bring confidence. indeed. i think this was always going to - it doesn't bring confidence. indeed. i think this was always going to be i i think this was always going to be a very interesting situation because we had a position wherebyjersey politicians went out and spoke face—to—face with french fishermen and this is something that hasn't really happened before. throughout this escalation of tensions over the past few weeks, we've heard a lot about howjersey has to speak to london. london then speak to paris or to brussels, then brussels speaks to paris, paris a speech to normandy and normandy speaks to french fishermen so there are a lot of people in between the two sides who are really having the discussions

here. what we saw today was direct face—to—face contact between the two sides. jersey's government has seen that has a positive step because all along they have been saying they think there is miscommunication and misunderstanding here. of course, they can no longer claim that now they can no longer claim that now they have directly heard the concerns. 0n the other hand, we understand french fishermen have been very unhappy about this new licensing system that came into effect last week but also they were previous concerns about the previous agreement under which fishing rights and fishing access were dictated, so evenif and fishing access were dictated, so even if as has been the case and jersey's government gets back to a position whereby the previous agreement is more or less the same as what we have now, we understand still some people will not have been happy with what we used to have so whether we end up with satisfaction on all sides remains very unclear and uncertain at the moment. what about the royal navy ships? the two royal navy vessels remain

offjersey�*s south coast, hms saskia —— tamar and severn. they will remain there as a precautionary measure and there is no timetable for them to be leaving. 0n the other hand, there were two french vessels sent by the french government that entered the area. i don't believe they entered jersey's territorial waters but they were there watching proceedings just in case. those vessels have left the area, as indeed have the french fishermen. everything you have described, its overall an extraordinary situation. 0n the face of it it might seem to be about the rules that came in last week but you're making the point that this goes back some time. indeed and this is always going to be a difficult thing. if you consider the context ofjersey being so close to france geographically,

some people believe that this is jersey's water and thatjersey ought to be the only place it has access and has a right to it. some people believe it is french water and the french should be the only people who have access and a right to it. the reality is we have all tried to coexist within this area for years and years and years and while i say the previous agreement was far from perfect, as far as many people are concerned, it did exist and there was that agreement. it all goes back to history, about having a shared history within these waters. ultimately in the past we have seen agreements struck and i'm certain that on both sides of this argument there is hope that we can again see that kind of resolution in the not—too—distant future. let’s the not-too-distant future. let's see how it _ the not-too-distant future. let's see how it pans _ the not-too-distant future. let's see how it pans out _ the not-too-distant future. let's see how it pans out and - the not-too-distant future. let's see how it pans out and we - the not—too—distant future. let's see how it pans out and we may well be talking a few more times. thanks very much for now, freddie miller,

our correspondent in st helier. at the end there, we were just looking at these live images coming through to us from normandy. not terribly illuminating at the moment. we were keeping an eye because we are told that this is where some of those french fishing vessels are just coming back into port in normandy. at the end of that protest for today, let's see what the future holds. some of them just coming back into port, we are told. 0ur correspondent in brussels nick beake gave this update as the french fishermen started returning to normandy. as we get those reports that the french boats are heading home after an early start this morning, possibly they feel they have

been listening and certainly seeing why they are angry, butjust hearing from some of the boats involved, some of the skippers and fishing communities there, they've had these dialogues with the authorities injersey, but from the french perspective there is a sense it hasn't gone particularly well. although the boats may be leaving, i don't think the dispute has gone away and in brussels they have been echoing the concerns some of the french fleets have, saying what has happened here is thatjersey has applied the new brexit trade deal in the wrong way and is basically in breach of the agreement that was reached on christmas eve last year. everyone in this is dealing with very new rules by definition. is that part of the problem or are we just going to keep seeing more protests of this nature? this is the latest dispute in what the bigger context is of the pretty stormy relationship between the uk and the eu over the past four months. since the trade deal came into operation.

talking to people here, there is a sense that they want to de—escalate this as soon as possible. in the past we've seen high tensions on the high seas. in the �*50s and �*60s and �*70s, the so—called cod wars when there were skirmishes and clashes between british boats and fleets from other european countries over the allocation of fish. all of that went away to a great extent, i'd suggest, because the uk was part of the eu common fisheries policy. since brexit, that is no longer the case and there was a specific deal signed in 2000 which included the channel islands. that now, post—brexit, doesn't apply any more. in lots of ways, on the issue of fishing, like so much else post—brexit, we're in uncharted water. talk more about that story later in

the hour. the bank of england has upgraded its forecasts for economic growth in the uk this year, amid signs that the economy has picked up speed as lockdown restrictions have gradually been relaxed. if the forecast proves true, it will be the fastest economic growth in more than 70 years. nevertheless the monetary policy committee is keeping its official interest rate on hold at a record low of 0.1%, as economists expected. 0ur economics correspondent, andy verity, explains. what's changed today is how quickly the bank of england expects the economy to recover. after a calamitous drop in economic activity last year — nearly 10% — the forecast before today was that it would roar back by 5% this year and 7.25% next year, before dropping back the year after. now, the forecast is growth of 7.25% this year, 5.75% next year and 1.25% in 2023. now, in february, the bank was predicting unemployment would peak at 7.75%.

now they are predicting it won't get above 5.5%. now, normally with that sort of growth in prospect, the bank of england would be getting worried about inflation taking off and thinking of raising interest rates. at the start of this chart, you can see what used to be normal interest rates once of about 5%. now, they were slashed to help the economy recover from the financial crisis, but before they could get back to normal, we had this even bigger crisis and the bank's official rate dropped to a new record low, just 0.01%. so if you've been forced into borrowing your way through the pandemic as many smaller companies and poorer households have, should you be kept awake at night like rishi sunak is by the risk of a rise in interest rates? the answer is, not if you think the city's predictions are right. traders who spend their lives watching these things don't expect rates to rise until september next year and then byjust 0.15%.

the headlines on bbc news: french fishing vessels leave jersey after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two as lockdown restrictions are lifted. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father of four was stabbed to death. the jury in the trial of two police officers accused of the murder and assault of the former aston villa footballer dalian atkinson have been hearing more details about the circumstances leading up to his death. the 48—year—old died after he was tasered

outside his father's house in telford in august 2016. a statement from dalian�*s father, ernest, was read to the court as phil mackie explained. we've been hearing from a few of the witnesses from the cul—de—sac where dalian atkinson's father lived, but we began by hearing a summary of the statement that ernest atkinson gave in august 2016 to west mercia police. he could not be here in person because he has subsequently died. he said his son was not behaving in his usual way, arriving in the early hours of the morning and pounding on the door before going in. he told police that dalian atkinson had grabbed him by the throat

and threatened to kill him as well as his siblings and even told his father he had already killed two of his brothers, which wasn't true. then ernest atkinson also said he remembered going back into the house as dalian atkinson went out and confronted the two police officers who are on trial here at birmingham crown court. pc benjamin monk, accused of murder, and his colleague, pc mary—ellen ketley—smith, who is accused of assault. the evidence we have heard is that dalian atkinson's behaviour was bizarre and erratic. he had been shouting that he was the messiah and we heard that repeated in ernest atkinson's statement. other witnesses have described similar scenes. they were woken up by the commotion outside the house in telford in the early hours. some of them recognise dalian atkinson and others did know who he was until subsequently, but they all seemed to say the same version of events — that two police officers had turned

up and we know that dalian atkinson was eventually felled by the third firing of a taser by pc benjamin monk. the crown's case against them is that benjamin monk kicked dalian atkinson repeatedly in the head when he was which was unlawful, and that pc bettley—smith beat him with her baton while while he was on the ground. we are hearing from more witnesses who were there that night and will continue giving evidence. the trial is expected to last between six and eight weeks. more now on our top story — that the french fishing boats who have been staging a protest off the coast ofjersey over post—brexit fishing rights have now left the area. we have been keeping an eye on the camera in normandy because the boats have now ended the protests, for today anyway. some of them are just coming back into short at the moment

—— into shot. let's try to unravel the background to this. 0ur reality check correspondent chris morris is with me. pa rt part of the background in all of this is brexit.— this is brexit. yes, we are in a post-brexit — this is brexit. yes, we are in a post-brexit period _ this is brexit. yes, we are in a post-brexit period of - this is brexit. yes, we are in a . post-brexit period of uncertainty. post—brexit period of uncertainty. we saw it with northern ireland and we are seeing it again today with fishing. areas where for many years we had this complex series of agreements and compromises that not everyone was delighted with, but somehow worked on the rug has been rather abruptly pulled from under a lot of people's feet stop it's not surprising that when you look at fishing, there are going to be some troubles as we to adjust to the new area. it's only 14 miles off the

french coast, we know that fishing becomes an emotional issue notjust for british fishermen but french fishermen as well so it's hardly surprising this was going to be one of the flashpoints. towards the end of the flashpoints. towards the end of last year, you remember how often we talked about fishing is such a difficult issue in the final throes of those negotiations on a new eu, uk trade deal. this is part of the consequence of that, put together fairly hastily but local agreements are still having to be stitched together. are still having to be stitched touether. ., ., ~' are still having to be stitched touether. ., ., ., , , together. looking at the geography, that reminds — together. looking at the geography, that reminds us _ together. looking at the geography, that reminds us a _ together. looking at the geography, that reminds us a lot, _ together. looking at the geography, that reminds us a lot, and _ together. looking at the geography, that reminds us a lot, and its - that reminds us a lot, and its constitutional status is a complicating issue as well. it is because it's — complicating issue as well. it is because it's not _ complicating issue as well. it is because it's not part _ complicating issue as well. it 3 because it's not part of the united kingdom and was therefore never part of the eu, wasn't part of the common fisheries policy. but becausejersey essentially runs its own affairs but the uk is broadly responsible for its international relations, the status of fishing waters around

jersey and guernsey and the channel islands was part of the trade agreement between the eu and the uk that was agreed last year so there's quite a specific mention of how access to jersey's fishing waters should be approached. now we have the two sides are saying we are living up to our part of the bargain in what the agreement says in the other part says no, you are not. part of the problem is that one of the things the trade agreement did was set up a series of committees, tribunals and panels to assess how this complicated agreement is supposed to work in practice. those committees are onlyjust being set “p committees are onlyjust being set up now and they are for issues like this. it's one thing if the government ofjersey and french fishermen can come to an understanding on their own but if it needs to refer back to the trade agreement, then the two parties to that of the uk and eu and becomes more complicated.—

that of the uk and eu and becomes more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about — more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about it _ more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about it so _ more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about it so much _ more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about it so much last - more complicated. fishing, we used to talk about it so much last year, . to talk about it so much last year, and yet it's a small percentage in terms of the overall brexit deal that we discussed. why does it so often seem to come back to this? {lin often seem to come back to this? on both sides of the channel, it's a very small part of the economy but it is rooted in identity in coastal regions and therefore it is an emotional issue and very important. it was a big part of the leave campaign and yetjersey is not the only place where we have seen fishing disputes recently. towards the end of last month, french fishermen blockaded the port on the eastern end of the channel, trying to prevent fish being exported from the uk into europe, from being unloaded and distributed further in europe. they are beef as they are not be giving the access they wanted to coastal waters they wanted —— their beef. we have also seen an

issue between the uk and norway related to this post—brexit issue, they failed to come to an agreement which means british boats can no longer go into arctic waters off norway for cod. it is inevitable given how complicated these issues are that it's going to take some time. so you'll be hearing more of it! ., , , . time. so you'll be hearing more of it! ., , . .,~ it! you 'ust stay here! will talk aaain. it! you just stay here! will talk again- chris — it! you just stay here! will talk again. chris morris _ it! you just stay here! will talk again. chris morris explaining | it! you just stay here! will talk. again. chris morris explaining so much of that. the french boats are now returning to normandy. we've been watching those pictures over the last half hour or so. let's see what the future holds. let's see whether there will be further protests. but for today, they are returning to port. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder, after a 34—year—old man was stabbed near basildon. 0fficers believe james gibbons was trying to help another man when he was stabbed on sunday night.

0ur correspondent alex dunlop sent this report from the scene. james gibbons, who is a father of four, had been celebrating his twin daughters�* second birthday here in irish news on sunday night. it�*s believed that has around 9:30pm he then went to the aid of a man in the street and was then stabbed after an argument with a group of youths. essex police say they have subsequently arrested five teenagers, schoolchildren aged between 13 and 16, two boys and three girls, on suspicion of murder. they have since released three of them but are still questioning two others. you can see the floral tributes to james gibbons are building. he was a popular man by all accounts. building. he was a popular man by allaccounts. he building. he was a popular man by all accounts. he ran his own bathroom fitting company. in a statement, his partner and family say that they are absolutely broken beyond belief at this pointless loss, which they say has devastated us all. james was the kind of

person, they add, who would always be prepared to help anyone less fortunate than himself, which is what he was doing on sunday night. they are also appealing to anyone who has footage, information to help essex police with their investigation. last year, more than a third of us worked from home, at least some of the time, because the pandemic closed so many workplaces. now, with lockdown easing, many businesses are planning for their employees to return — but will it be the same? 43 out of 50 firms questioned by the bbc — including some of the uk�*s biggest employers — said they don�*t plan to bring staff back to the office full time, that there will be a mixture of home and office working. ben thompson has been looking at how the world of work could change. back in the office after 14 months at home. i took on my role in march 2020. it was kind of a

baptism by pandemic. for monica, who started her newjob just as the crisis began, getting back to the office is a chance to change how she and her team can work. when you come into the office, there are going to be open spaces, collaboration spaces. before, very much, we came into the office, we sat at our desks. sometimes we had meetings, but often, we were sitting at our desk. now we are reconfiguring to make sure we have spaces that facilitate that collaboration. that�*s something that we really missed. it means employers have to make some big decisions about how and where their staff will work, making the most of the new flexibility without stifling teamwork and collaboration. we're never going to go back to working the way we used to work. i worry about the long—term impact on the enterprise, on our culture, on collaboration, on how we train and develop people. advertising and creative industries are something you learn from your colleagues, and you can only really do that if you're around them in an office.

working from home isn�*t for everyone, especially those without access to the right technology or reliable internet, or even a quiet place to work. but does it also depend on where in the country you live? is london, the capital — with its long commutes and high house prices — different to elsewhere, where less time and money is spent on commuting and property is more affordable? here in newcastle, accountancy firm sage is preparing to move into its brand—new office, designed to house 1,800 staff. but it�*s now keen to adopt a new hybrid way of working — some days at home, some in the office. for workers, it is a welcome change. i�*ve enjoyed being able to spend time with my fiancee and eat lunch with her and spend time walking my dog and that kind of thing, and not having to commute has been pretty good. but i think there are definitely some drawbacks in that you don�*t

get, or you get less of the squad mentality, you get less of the casual conversation that can lead into more things. you have to be a lot more structured with how you approach the day. but if many of us stay at home, what about the businesses that rely on commuters? we rely really heavily on the office trade. there are locations that have 5,000 people and only 140 people came to the building. so most people are working from home or maybe just once a week coming. and that makes it really difficult. working from home may be just one of the enduring changes brought about by this pandemic. its true impact is onlyjust being felt. as businesses and their staff adjust to the new normal, our towns and cities could look very different. ben thompson, bbc news. now it�*s time for a look at the weather with chris fawkes. hello there. this morning, we started off with some snowfall in parts of scotland.

we don�*t get snow every may, but it does happen from time to time. we had some nine years ago, for example. that has all turned back to rain now, and that rain is spreading from scotland into the northwest of england. plenty of showers around elsewhere. they will be pretty frequent across east anglia and southern england. and it is going to be a chilly kind of day. temperatures are doing well to reach double figures. across the high ground in scotland, probably only about four degrees or so. 0vernight tonight, showers will continue across north—western areas, particularly near to coastal areas, but inland, where the winds fall lighter, it�*s going to be a cold night with another frost in places. a cold start, then, to friday morning, but there will be plenty of sunshine initially. it is a day, though, where we will see shower clouds build through the morning, and then in the afternoon, these showers become widespread, heavy, some wintry across eastern areas of scotland, eastern areas of england. that is where you are most likely to get a soaking. but across northern ireland, wales and southwest england, showers should attempt to shrivel away and become dry with hazy spells of sunshine.

hello, this is bbc news with jane hill. the headlines:

french fishing vessels have left jersey and returned to port after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks have been held between the two sides, there�*s disagreement about how well those talks went. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war ii, as lockdown restrictions are lifted. some of the uk�*s biggest employers say they don�*t plan to bring staff back to the office full time — instead opting for a mix of home and office working. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father of four was stabbed to death, having spent the day celebrating his two—year—old twin daughters�* birthday. millions of people are voting today in a series of elections in england, scotland and wales in the biggest test of voter opinion since the 2019 general election. more to come on all of those

stories. right now, time for the latest sports news with jane. good afternoon. some surprise omissions and inclusions from head coach warren gatland in his squad for the british and irish lions tour to south africa, announced just a short time ago. starting with the fact it was a 37—man squad — not 36 as was anticipated. if we take a look at the backs first, no place forjohnny sexton and henry slade was also left out. but ireland�*s bundee aki included. and wales�*s louis rees—zammit becomes the youngest lion since 1959 at age 20. despite england coming fifth in the six nations, they have 11 players involved, wales have ten, scotland and ireland both have eight. the three—test series starts injuly. for the forwards, no billy vunipola or kyle sinkler, but exeter number eight sam simmonds is the surprise addition, which bolstered the squad from 36 to 37.

and alun wynjones as captain, on his fourth lions tour. head coach gatland said it was the most challenging selection he had ever been involved in, but that he had picked a squad capable of winning a test series. there are a lot of factors to take into consideration. you are looking at form in the six nations and players that have performed for you in the past, players that have performed at club level, one trophies and championships and then you are looking at players and younger players you feel you can develop on a tour as well. lots of things to consider, trying to get the balance right between creating a squad that is going to be incredibly competitive and also play some good rugby and look to improve as the tour goes on as well. tonight, manchester united and arsenal are in semi—finals action in the europa league. united take a 6—2 advantage over roma to italy tonight, in the first of four games in just

eight days, with last sunday�*s postponed league match against liverpool re—arranged for next thursday. it could be a bit tighter for arsenal at the emirates stadium. they need to overturn a 2—1 deficit against spanish club villarreal, who are managed by former gunners manager unai emery. current arsenal manager mikel arteta says silverware is his aim. it is a massive game for everybody, but in particular for the club, because we are here representing our football club and our fans, and what we want to do is do it the best way, winning trophies. and if we win tomorrow, we will be much closer to getting another trophy. this is the only aim and the purpose of why we are here for us. ipswich town have annouced that singer ed sheeran will sponsor their new kit. the suffolk local is a tractor boys fan and is often spotted at portman road cheering the side on. he�*s signed an intial one—year deal to sponsor the shirts of both the men�*s and women�*s first—teams.

sheeran said, "the club is a big part of the community and this is my way of showing my support." there are just 78 days to go until the start of the tokyo 0lympics, but there remains a degree of anxiety in japan. the majority of japanese people don�*t want the games to go ahead and, this morning, the president of world atheltics, seb coe, said there are tough days ahead. this morning team gb, including gymnast max whitlock and cyclist laura kenny, collected their 0lympic kit at somerset house in central london. whitlock said athletes were aware that the responsibility of keeping covid—safe was down to each member. we are positive in terms of going ahead. we�*re positive in terms of team gb putting on everything they possibly can to make it as safe as possible. we have a whole block to ourself in the village to make sure we are as separated as we can be. it is down to the individuals, and i think everybody will agree that it is about being as safe

as you can be in that environment. everything will be put in place on protocols and things like that to make sure we are. that is going to be key thing. that�*s all the sport for now. i�*ll have more for you in the next hour. millions of people are casting their ballots in england, scotland and wales in the biggest test of voter opinion since the general election in 2019. in scotland and wales, voters will decide on their national governments, and there�*s a by—election in hartlepool. votes will also be cast for police and crime commissioners in england and wales, a number of mayors, and thousands of english council seats. coronavirus precautions are in place and people are being urged to take their own pencils to polling stations. ben wright reports. it felt like spring in brighton as polling stations opened this morning, while winter reappeared near the scottish town of aviemore.

across britain, halls, leisure centres, churches, even a car are being used for voters to cast their ballots. about 48 million people in england, wales and scotland are eligible to vote, and polls will stay open until ten o�*clock this evening. in scotland, voters are electing the 129 members of the scottish parliament. in wales, all 60 senedd seats are up for election. in england, voters are choosing 4,650 councillors, 13 mayors and 25 members of the london assembly. there are also elections for 39 police and crime commissioners across england and wales, and there is a by—election to pick the new mp for hartlepool. polling stations have been scrubbed and readied for socially distanced voting. this is a particularly big crop of elections, because last year�*s contests were postponed due to the pandemic. as well as plastic screens and hand sanitisers at polling stations, voters are also being asked to bring

along their own pen or pencil if they can. covid has changed the way that this year�*s elections are being run, and the wait for results will take longer than usual too. some contests will declare overnight, including the by—election in hartlepool. the outcome of the welsh parliament elections should be completed by the end of friday. results for the scottish parliament, english councils and london could come on saturday, while declarations for police and crime commissioners may not happen until monday. covid has not affected one recent election day tradition, and expect social media to be full of canine companions as people head to the polls. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. and we will have full coverage of all those election results over next few days as they come in here on bbc news, starting with the hartlepool by—election result expected in the early hours of tomorrow. and then we�*ll have in—depth analysis of all the results

on a special programme with huw edwards and kirsty wark. that�*s from nine o�*clock tomorrow morning on bbc two and the bbc news channel. the dog owned by the police community officer who was murdered in kent has been tested for dna in the hope it provides vital evidence. julia james, who was 53, had taken herjack russell for a walk last tuesday before her body was found in woodland near her home. simonjones reports. julia james walking her dog, toby. she was wearing these clothes, apart from the gloves, when she was murdered. her body found close to her house, her dog unharmed by her side. police are desperate to hear from anyone who saw julia, or her attacker. we�*ve got a very considerable forensic strategy, as you would expect. it does include the dog. that is being staged through the laboratories. i�*m not in a position — it wouldn�*t be appropriate for me to give a running commentary

on the many exhibits and the forensic strategy that we have under way. but of course, we�*ve considered all opportunities around toby. the outpouring of grief in the community continues. the question people are still asking is, why? until things are a little bit more known, i feel a bit vulnerable, if i'm honest with you. whether it�*s connected, whether because she was a policewoman, i don�*t know. you know, because there was, you know, something — somebody had a grudge against her or something, or whether it was just purely, you know, random, who knows? the murder investigation is being led from here at folkestone police station. officers say it is their number one priority, and they�*re currently sifting through hundreds of pieces of information that have been provided by the public. police have released this map. they�*re keen to hear from anyone who was in this area on tuesday last week. officers are continuing to advise local people to be vigilant and let someone know when they go out. this community, like the police, are desperate for a breakthrough. simonjones, bbc news, folkestone.

the us secretary of state, anthony blinken, has said a trade agreement between the uk and the united states could take some time. speaking to the bbc whilst in london for the g7 summit this week, mr blinken said president biden�*s team are reviewing every decision made up to now in trade talks between the two countries. here�*s our dipolmatic correspondent james landale. anthony blinken, america�*s new top diplomat, at the g7 meetings in london — re—engaging with the world, reassuring allies. the us and uk, he said, were profoundly in sync — there was no closer relationship. but for all the warm words, he was cautious about a us—uk trade deal. as to a trade agreement, what we�*re doing now is, our trade negotiatorjust got on the job, so she�*s taking the time to go back and review everything that was discussed, and that�*s taking some time. and there was a gentle warning that britain�*s relations with the eu,

disagreements over trade rules in the irish sea, should not threaten peace in northern ireland. we want to make sure that, whether it�*s with the united kingdom and the european union, whether it�*s anything that we�*re doing, that we make sure to the best of our ability that the tremendous gains from the good friday agreement are sustained, and that the economic as well as political wellbeing of northern ireland is taken fully into account. his message was that america was back on the diplomatic stage. the us, he said, wanted a more stable relationship with russia but would respond to aggression. it didn�*t want to contain china, but could not accept further breaches of international rules. and on iran, he said the us didn�*t know if the country was serious about returning to the deal that curbed its nuclear programme.

there�*s a greater premium than at any time since i�*ve been involved in these issues on cooperation, on collaboration, on working together. that�*s a driving part of the president�*s foreign policy, which is why we�*ve re—engaged immediately with our allies and partners, we�*ve been working to reinvigorate those relationships, and, as well, in the multilateral system, the united nations, all these different organisations. that�*s what�*s driving us, because we are trying, when we�*re thinking about our foreign policy, first and foremost, we�*re thinking about our citizens and making sure we�*re having a direct impact on improving their lives. and that requires collaboration and cooperation. so, afterfour years of donald trump, the us is back, talking to allies, repairing relationships. but as mr blinken made clear, it�*s still putting america first. james landale, bbc news. the united states has backed a temporary suspension of intellectual property rights for covid—19 vaccines. president putin has also given russia�*s backing to temporarily waive patent protections

for its sputnik vaccines. and now the european union has said it will consider it, too, with ursula von der leyen suggesting she might look on the proposal favourably. we are ready to discuss how the us proposal for a waiver on intellectual property protection for covid vaccines could help achieve that objective. in the short run, however, we call upon all vaccine—producing countries to allow exports and to avoid measures that disrupt supply chains. the probation officer for the fishmongers hall attacker usman khan has said he had no idea that m15 had opened an upgraded investigation into khan. ken skelton told the inquest into the death of jack merritt and saskia jones, who were killed

by khan, that knowing about the investigation would have had a "huge impact" on the decisions he made. 0ur correspondent zoe conway has the latest. ken skelton was usman khan�*s probation officer. he was responsible for managing him in the community, and one of the really important parts of his job was assessing the risk that usman khan posed to the public. and just a few days before the attack, he wrote an official risk assessment and in that report, he wrote, "i would assess "mr khan�*s likelihood of reoffending and risk of extremist "offending is low." the lawyer forjack merritt�*s family put to him that the report was just "hopeless and inaccurate." ken skelton replied, "i had done what i was asked to do "and put every effort into writing it." he was asked whether, when he wrote that report, he knew that m15 had opened a priority investigation into usman khan. he said he did not.

he was asked whether he knew that m15 continued to see usman khan as a national security threat and he said he did not know, and that if he had known, it would have had a huge impact on his decision—making. he was also asked whether he knew that m15 was concerned that khan could be planning an attack. again, he said he did not know. ken skelton regularly attended meetings to talk about the risk that usman khan posed to the public. there might be the west midlands police there at the meeting too, and staffordshire police, along with other probation officers. and he was asked by the lawyer forjack merritt�*s family whether he had known that m15 was also sometimes in those meetings, and again, he said he didn�*t know. the high court has ruled that relatives of a woman caught up in the windrush scandal can apply

for permission to live in the uk without paying thousands of pounds in fees. the court decided that charging the family application fees of more than £20,000 would be "colossal interference" in her human rights. our home affairs correspondent tom symonds gave us this update. this is linda, who has been able to legally live in the uk since the 1970s, but like so many of the people caught up in the windrush scandal, was not able to come here because the home office had not properly registered her legal immigration status. she went through the windrush process and was able to settle in the uk, but she has a family. a husband, winston, and five children who live in trinidad who clearly she would have liked to have come over tojoin her. they needed to apply through the immigration process but that would have cost about £22,000.

in e—mails to the home office, she said raising that sort of money for her family would be a daunting task. she said, "we have never been separated from each other before. "i would like for them to come over and join me so that we can continue "to make a positive impact on lives that we come into contact with." so she went to court, backed by solicitors, and has won her case at the high court. thejudge decided that forcing her family to pay actually infringed her own human right to a family life because her family could not come and join her. it was also discriminatory against her family. so that may mean that that problem of having to pay fees to apply is removed for many people in the same situation. we will talk much more about the story after 4pm. we will talk much more about the story after 4pm. the headlines on bbc news: french fishing vessels have left jersey and returned to port

after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks have been held between the two sides but there�*s disagreement about how well those discussions went. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war ii, as lockdown restrictions are lifted. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murdering a father of four. 0fficers believe james gibbons was trying to help another man when he was stabbed on sunday night. wild rhino poaching in south africa is on the rise again, despite falling to its lowest level in nearly a decade last year. but as lockdown restrictions in the country ease, the rate is creeping up and conservationists are being forced to take a more radical approach. they�*re removing the animals�* horns to make them less valuable to poachers, with a procedure that�*s no more painful than

trimming your fingernails. tim allman reports. by air... ..and by land. the battle against the poachers rages on. here at balule nature reserve, they hunt down and sedate a giant rhino. what they do next may strike you as rather gruesome. we have decided to dehorn our entire population. because of our high level of threat, we dehorn every rhino, even rhinos with calves. dehorning can be controversial. critics say it leaves the animals defenceless. it�*s designed to deter poachers. why hunt a rhino for its horn when it�*s already been removed?

rhino numbers in this area fell by two thirds between 2008 and 2019. lockdown slowed that decline, but then the lockdown was eased. since november/december last year and into 2021, this landscape, and particularly kruger national park, has been experiencing serious numbers of rhino poaching incidents. this may seem like a cruel solution, but the poachers would simply let these rhinos die. mark 0rmrod is a former royal marine commando who lost both legs and an arm in afghanistan. footage of him went viral when he fell over while training for a five kilometer run for charity. after that, he smashed his fundraising target. well, now mark has set himself another gruelling challenge —

swimming across plymouth sound. john maguire has been to see him training. eyes on the prize. the objective of mark 0rmrod�*s latest challenge is drake�*s island, and to swim a thousand metres off the coast of plymouth. his mental strength is his greatest asset, self—evident when he insisted on parading with colleagues from 40 commando, after he�*d been blown up in afghanistan less than five months earlier, in 2007, leaving him a triple amputee. mark�*s most recent endeavour was running five kilometres to raise money for reorg. his current total stands above £260,000, his target is now £400,000. his drive was

extraordinary, proved as a fall in training was posted online and went viral. training was posted online and went viral. running seems impossible, but swimming requires a whole new level of determination. just going to get in and see what happens — just going to get in and see what happens. we have got safety in numbers — happens. we have got safety in numbers. what i'm hoping is if we can get— numbers. what i'm hoping is if we can get out— numbers. what i'm hoping is if we can get out of there and back, we are looking — can get out of there and back, we are looking at maybe 300 metres as the tide _ are looking at maybe 300 metres as the tide comes in. that would be a step in_ the tide comes in. that would be a step in the — the tide comes in. that would be a step in the right direction towards a kilometre. you swam at the invictus games, so how is your swimming? terrible. and you know what's frightening is, i remember how tired i was after 50 metres in an olympic sized swimming pool. now, this is a lot farther, with tides and currents, and creepy crawlies underneath, and everything else that comes with sea swimming. so, this is a new world to me. but it's for a good cause. so we're going to do it regardless. this is his first training swim. by his side is another former royal marine, his trainer, ben wadham.

how i�*m going to get him through this is, i�*m going to rely on mark�*s absolute mental capacity to dig out on things that most normal human beings couldn�*t. getting in the sea is hard for someone with all limbs. and it�*s a daunting challengejust to get into the sea and swim 100 metres out and back. conditions are not in our favour but we have the luxury of buoyancy with the saltwater. sea swimming is hard enough, but mark has only one arm to drag himself through the oppressively cold water. he set off at an impressive pace, clearly ben�*s punishing training regime has been effective. but gyms and pools can�*t fully prepare you for the sea, with its tides and currents. with mark struggling, and fatigue exacerbated by the cold setting in, the decision�*s made to return to shore. the current�*s particularly strong out there, so it was dragging us that way.

at that point we were just churning up, because we couldn�*t get enough power to get him moving through the current. the current was dragging us of an then wejust the current was dragging us of an then we just worked to get back in. challenging, and that is the nature of the beast with the sea, i�*m afraid. and the temperature! and the temperature! he�*s obviously physically and mentally robust, but today has proved invaluable, as the team learned about what kit and which techniques would enable mark to complete the one kilometre swim. it's cold. yeah. harder than you thought? oh, yeah. i've not really swum with a current before, and the cold affected my forearm, which meant that my fingers couldn't close properly to swim. so... ah! but a good first day, though. the first bit was fine, i wanted to id the first bit was fine, i wanted to go straight — the first bit was fine, i wanted to go straight from the after keep

warm — go straight from the after keep warm it — go straight from the after keep warm. it fell like we were flying and then— warm. it fell like we were flying and then all of a sudden we hit the current— and then all of a sudden we hit the current and — and then all of a sudden we hit the current and stopped and the current and my— current and stopped and the current and my whole forearm ground up. i honestly _ and my whole forearm ground up. i honestly relied on it a lot in that first party — honestly relied on it a lot in that first party. i think i know what i need _ first party. i think i know what i need to— first party. i think i know what i need to work on. even from that first day — even from that first day. another monster effort. it will be. the end result will be. as a former royal marine, the corps�* motto is per mare, per terram. mark has conquered the land. now he�*s taking on the sea. john maguire, bbc news, plymouth. that takes us to look at the weather prospects. hello there. for many of us, it has been a wet start to the month, and a real turnaround in fortunes if you remember how dry last month was. in the whole of april, in leuchars in east scotland, we only recorded three millimetres of rain. but already over recent days,

we have seen over ten times that amount of rainfall, and for many of us, it has been a wet start to the month. now, this morning we had some snowfall in parts of scotland. we don�*t get snow every may, but it does happen from time to time. it happened nine years ago, for example. that snow has all turned back to rain now. that rain is moving from scotland into north west england, where it is going to be really quite a wet afternoon for many of you. elsewhere, we have got a mixture of sunshine and showers. the showers will be extensive across parts of east anglia and southern england for a time, and wherever you are, it is a chilly day, with temperatures doing well to reached double figures. ten to 12 degrees quite widely. there will be part of the scottish highlands that only see temperatures of around 4 degrees or so, so it will stay cold. 0vernight tonight, showers continue around near coastal areas, but where the winds fall light, there will be some patches of frost developing, so it is going to be another cold start to take us into friday. but for friday, for most of us, it is a sunny start to the day, with blue skies, cloud will then build through the morning,

and again, it is a day where we will see showers develop. the showers will be most frequent and heaviest across eastern areas of scotland and eastern areas of england as well through the afternoon. whereas across wales, south—west england and also northern ireland, not many showers through the afternoon. there will be dry weather with some hazy spells of sunshine. now, the weekend weather prospects dominated by this slow—moving area of low pressure. it�*s going to be bringing wet and windy weather our way on saturday. but it will be dredging up some milder air as it moves its way in, but nevertheless, not the nicest start to the weekend. with extensive rain coming into northern ireland, across england and wales, there will be gale force gusts of wind around as well. eventually, if the rain does clear out of the way across the south—east, it could become quite a bit warmer here for a time through the afternoon, with temperatures about 16 degrees. but notice it stays cold in scotland, and, after a bright morning here, we will see the rain eventually working in through the afternoon. more rain around on sunday. our main weather front is moving its way eastwards across england. across eastern england, it could become quite warm, with temperatures potentially reaching the low 20s, but still fairly windy. further northwards and westwards, we have got frequent showers.

temperatures more typically around 15 to 17. that is your weather.

this is bbc news. i�*m jane hill. the headlines at 4.00 — french fishing vessels leave jersey and return to port after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. earlier, jersey politicans held talks with the french fishermen, with conflicting views on how the discussions went. jersey needs to stand firm. we need to manage fish stocks, no question. we need to manage the resources out there. we have been fishing there for thousands of years, maybe, so it's not normal to put us out of this fishing area. the governor of the bank of england says the growth forecast of 7.25% this year for the uk economy didn�*t represent a boom,

but more of a "bounce back" after coronavirus restricions ease. the world of work, post pandemic — many of the uk�*s biggest employers tell us there won�*t be a full—time return to the office. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father—of—four was stabbed to death. unseasonal weather as people go to the polls in england, scotland and wales, the biggest test of voter opinion since the last general election. and we meet the former royal marine commando who lost both legs in afghanistan in training for a charity swim across plymouth sound. skews

good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. french vessels, involved in a protest off the coast ofjersey, in a row about post—brexit fishing rights, have now left the area. two royal navy ships remain nearjersey, after tensions rose in recent days. the french claim their rights to fish off the island are being unfairly restricted by a new system of licences. jersey politicians say they held "positive talks" with the protestors earlier today. however, some of the fishermen say the discussions weren�*t productive. robert hall reports from st helier. they slipped their moorings long before dawn. in the fishing towns and villages of normandy, local fleets put to sea not to fish, but to take their arguments to their channel island neighbours. we are very close to jersey. they cannot live without france.

jersey are selling 80% of theirfish in france. so what do they want? they want to sell their fish in france, but they don�*t want us to continue to catch fish in their waters? 0ffjersey, as the clouds darkened and the rain came down, the fishermen gathered, shouting greetings to each other and making it clear that they felt they had no option but to register the strongest protest atjersey�*s decision to impose licensing conditions within its territorial waters. guillaume, who�*s 26, told me he�*d been fishing for just three years. the licensing conditions, he claimed, were unworkable and could put 80% of small vessels out of business. a mile away, the patrol vessel hms tamar, one of two ships sent to offer reassurance tojersey,

but keeping her distance as the french fleet moved closer to st helier�*s harbour. a few boats did effectively block the harbour, as they demanded talks with jersey ministers. it�*s really important that we are able to work with those fishermen to help them provide the necessary evidence so that if required, their licences can be amended. as i�*ve said, it�*s important that we respond to threats, but the answer to this solution is to continue to talk and diplomacy. jersey fishermen are divided on the french demands. they have already been prevented from landing their catches in french ports. some believe there are weaknesses in the licensing scheme, but others are calling onjersey to stand firm. right across the public ofjersey, certainly the fishing fleet and most of the political community, agree thatjersey needs to stand firm. we need to manage our fish stocks, there's no question about that.

we need to manage the resource out there, and jersey has done nothing wrong. talks did get under way late this morning, and that seemed to satisfy most fishermen, who moved clear to allow a freight vessel to leave harbour. those with experience of past french disputes recognise the tactics used this morning. i think this is an absolutely typical french way of making a protest. if they wanted to grab the attention of the french government, they�*d block the champs—elysees. they want really to grab the attention of the british government, the jersey authorities, so they�*re targeting st helier port. you say fierce things, you make big gestures, but in the end it�*s a cry for attention, and it sounds to me, at the heart of this is a failure of communication. the french boats are now steaming back to their home ports, content that their show of strength has made a point. but their objections to whatjersey and the uk claim is a fair way to protect island fishing grounds are still very much alive, and if agreement can�*t be found,

they�*ve warned that more protests are very much on the cards. robert hall, bbc news, jersey. 0ur correspondent freddie miller gave this update from st helier. i think this was always going to be a very interesting situation, because we had here a position wherebyjozi politicians went out and spoke face—to—face with french fishermen —— jersey politicians, this is something that is not to be happened before stop throughout this escalation of tensions over the past few weeks, we have heard a lot about howjersey has to speak to london, london n speaks to paris, or rather to brussels, brussels speak to barras dunn palace, normally speaks to french fishermen. so a lot of people in between the two sites you are really having the discussion here. and what we saw today was direct face—to—face contact between the two sides. so jersey�*s government has a scene that is a very positive step because all

along they have said they think that is miscommunication and misunderstanding is here. they can no longer claim that now they have directly had these concerns. 0n the other hand, we do understand that french fishermen have been very unhappy about this new licensing system that came into effect last week, but also that there were previous concerns about the previous agreement under which fishing rates and fishing access were dictated. so even if, as has been the case all along, jersey�*s government gets back to a position that they want whereby the previous agreement is more or less the same as what we have now we understand that still some people were not happy with what we used to have. so whether or not we end up in satisfaction on all sides and suddenly remains very unclear and uncertain at the moment. and what of the royal navy vessels as well that are there? the two royal navy vessels remain offjersey�*s south coast, hms tamar and vessels remain offjersey�*s south coast, hms tamarand hms vessels remain offjersey�*s south

coast, hms tamar and hms seven. they will stay there for the time being, which follows a conversation this morning between borisjohnson and jersey�*s most senior politicians. mr johnson said they will remain there is a cautionary measure, no timetable at the moment for them to leave. 0n the other hand, two french vessels sent by the french government entered the area. i do not believe the entered jersey�*s territorial waters, not believe the entered jersey�*s territorialwaters, but not believe the entered jersey�*s territorial waters, but they were there watching proceedings just in case. they have now left the area, as indeed have the french fishermen. everything you have described, it is overall an extraordinary situation. 0n the face of it, it might seem to be about the rules that came in last week, but you�*re actually making the point of this goes some time. indeed, this was all was good to be a difficult thing, i think. if you consider the context ofjersey being so close to france geographically, some people believe that this is jersey�*s water and jersey ought to be the only place that has access and has a right to it, some people

believe it is french water and the french should be the only place that has access and a right to it. the reality is we have all tried to coexist within this area for years and years, and while as i say the previous agreement was far from perfect, as far as many people were concerned, it did exist, and there was that agreement in place. i think this change that came into effect last friday has now kind of point at which previous concerns with the whole system have been brought up, in addition to the concerns with the new system as well. and i suppose it all goes back to his study, it all goes back to having a shared history within these waters. ultimately in the past we have seen agreements struck, and i�*m certain that on both sides of this argument, there is hope that we can again see this kind of resolution in the not too distant future. freddie miller there in jersey. 0ur correspondent in brussels nick beake gave this update as the french fishermen started returning to normandy. as we get those reports that the french boats are heading home after an early start this

morning, possibly they feel they have made their voices heard and people have been listening and certainly seeing why they are angry, butjust hearing from some of the boats involved, some of the skippers and fishing communities there, they�*ve had these dialogues with the authorities injersey, but from the french perspective there is a sense it hasn�*t gone particularly well. although the boats may be leaving, i don�*t think the dispute has gone away and in brussels they have been echoing the concerns some of the french fleets have, saying what has happened here is thatjersey has applied the new brexit trade deal in the wrong way and is basically in breach of the agreement that was reached on christmas eve last year. everyone in this is dealing with very new rules by definition. is that part of the problem or are we just going to keep seeing more protests of this nature?

this is the latest dispute in what the bigger context is of the pretty stormy relationship between the uk and the eu over the past four months. since the trade deal came into operation. talking to people here, there is a sense that they want to de—escalate this as soon as possible. in the past we�*ve seen high tensions on the high seas. in the �*50s and �*60s and �*70s, the so—called cod wars when there were skirmishes and clashes between british boats and fleets from other european countries over the allocation of fish. all of that went away to a great extent, i�*d suggest, because the uk was part of the eu common fisheries policy. since brexit, that is no longer the case and there was a specific deal signed in 2000 which included the channel islands. that now, post—brexit, doesn�*t apply any more. in lots of ways, on the issue of fishing, like so much else post—brexit, we�*re

in uncharted water. i was hoping to bring you... we are going to talk about the uk economy, so don�*t go away. interesting comments on the economy today. we are just to bring you the latest covid figures which have come through in the last few minutes as well. in terms of cases, the uk recording 2613 cases in the last 24 hours, and also recording 13 deaths in the last 24 hour period. that is a fall from 27 deaths in the previous period before that. 13 deaths in the latest 24 hour period. a bit of an update on the vaccine programme as well, we brought you figures that were just england earlier, just to tell you that

across the uk, more than a 34.9 million people have now had their first dose, so very nearly 35 million people have now had their first dose of a covid—19 vaccine. the governor of the bank of england, andrew bailey, said that the central bank�*s growth forecast of 7.25% this year didn�*t represent a boom but more a bounce back. but he insisted this was still good news. he�*s been speaking to the bbc�*s economics editor, faisal islam — let�*s listen to what he said. it is more of a bounce back, but it is good news, let�*s be clear. it is a strong recovery. we are already seeing that as the restrictions starts to be lifted, and our view is we will see a continued strong recovery this year. but let�*s put that into perspective. 0n the basis of the forecast we have issued today, by the end of this year, the economy will be back to where it was

at the end of 2019, in other words where it was just before covid. that is good news given everything we have been through, but we should always remember that as two years passed with no growth in the economy. passed with no growth in the economy-— passed with no growth in the econom . ~' , , ., economy. the key thing here, if you look at this— economy. the key thing here, if you look at this in _ economy. the key thing here, if you look at this in terms _ economy. the key thing here, if you look at this in terms of _ economy. the key thing here, if you look at this in terms ofjobs, - economy. the key thing here, if you look at this in terms ofjobs, you - look at this in terms ofjobs, you are projecting, and i think everyone was projecting, quite a long run hit to thejobs market, a was projecting, quite a long run hit to the jobs market, a scarring effect, but it seems like you are now thinking that bridge from the furlough scheme to some of the stuff that you did, that seems to have worked, and unemployment will barely go worked, and unemployment will barely 9° up worked, and unemployment will barely go up at all. worked, and unemployment will barely no u- at all. , worked, and unemployment will barely r-ouatall. ,. go up at all. fingers crossed, i think this _ go up at all. fingers crossed, i think this is — go up at all. fingers crossed, i think this is good _ go up at all. fingers crossed, i think this is good news. - go up at all. fingers crossed, i think this is good news. the i go up at all. fingers crossed, i - think this is good news. the policy in the broadest sense is working, we think there is a bridge there, as you put it, so the policy support will last until the economy recovery is under way, which means that fewer people will pass through unemployment before they can get

jobs again, you�*re right, that has a longer term benefit, because longer term unemployment is one of the most difficult things to deal with, and we think that will be substantially reduced, so the so—called scarring effect will be less. let reduced, so the so-called scarring effect will be less.— effect will be less. let me put this on its head — effect will be less. let me put this on its head and _ effect will be less. let me put this on its head and say, _ effect will be less. let me put this on its head and say, we _ effect will be less. let me put this on its head and say, we have - effect will be less. let me put this on its head and say, we have had l effect will be less. let me put this| on its head and say, we have had a 300 year recession last year, we have seen all the pain that we know about, and yet house prices are going up at a record rate, mortgage lending is at a record level, how do you marry those two dissonant facts together? how have we gone through what we have gone through, the housing market... is it going too far? it is certainly booming. it is very strong- _ far? it is certainly booming. it is very strong. there _ far? it is certainly booming. it 3 very strong. there have been measures to support that, such as stamp duty and so on. we have had a substantial build—up of unanticipated sitting on the economy, people have found they have saved more than they would have

expected unanticipated to do. not least of course because people have not been able to spend the money in the way they would have liked to. some of that is passing into the housing market, people with more money to spend on deposits on houses. so we are seeing this effect coming through, and that is one of the reasons we have taken another look at how much of this money that is being saved and that was not expected to be saved will be used in the economy going forwards. andrew bailey, governor of the bank of england. the jury in the trial of two police officers accused of the murder and assault of the former aston villa footballer dalian atkinson have been hearing more details about the circumstances leading up to his death. the 48—year—old died after he was tasered outside his father�*s house in telford in august 2016. a statement from dalian�*s father, ernest, was read to the court as phil mackie explained. a lot more detail been heard again

today, phil. a lot more detail been heard again today. phil-— a lot more detail been heard again toda , phil. , ., ., ., today, phil. yes, we have had from some of the — today, phil. yes, we have had from some of the witnesses _ today, phil. yes, we have had from some of the witnesses who - today, phil. yes, we have had from some of the witnesses who saw - today, phil. yes, we have had from i some of the witnesses who saw what happened on that night, early hours of the morning, really, in august 2016 outside first mark atkinson�*s father�*s house in telford. —— dalian atkinson. both police officers denied the charges. the prosecution outlined that after teasing us atkinson who was behaving bizarrely outside his father�*s house, had then kicked him repeatedly in the head, and so also they said that one of the officers had extended her bat on and beaten him about the body. we have had from a neighbour who lived directly opposite hour and who said she saw the late—night incident

command although her view was obscured, she said she could see both police officers from the week up. —— from the waist up. she says that she saw one of the officers and stamping on dalian atkinson�*s head. she also said he had been acting violently and had a useful force against mr atkinson, who was on the ground at the time. she also described seeing the other officer apparently striking the footballer with an extended bat on. also we had from the lady who lived next door and has done so for 50 years, she said again, she had a clear view, she said that she saw one of the officers stamping on his head, she turned to her husband and said my god, he is dead, he is not moving.

there will be more witnesses who will give evidence of the next couple of days, more eyewitnesses on the net, lots of neighbours woken up by this confrontation in the early hours of the morning. dalian atkinson, the former professional footballer, was in very poor health at the time, and as i said at the outset, he had been behaving in a bizarre and erratic way on that night, saying he was the messiah. earlier today, we had a brief written statement from his late father and atkinson who suddenly died in the intervening five years, in which he told police officers that his son had arrived outside his house in the early hours, had got into the house and held him by the throat, threatening to kill him. both of those police officers denied the charges in the trial is expected to last between six and eight weeks. the headlines on bbc news — french fishing vessels leave jersey and return to port after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier

between jersey and french fishermen, but it appears no obvious progress was made. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war ii as lockdown restrictions are lifted. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father—of—four was stabbed to death, having spent the day celebrating his two—year—old twin daughters�* birthday. the high court has ruled that relatives of a woman caught up in the windrush scandal can apply for permission to live in britain without paying thousands of pounds in fees. the court decided that charging the family application fees of more than £20,000 would be the family application fees of more in her human rights. and lynda mahabirjoins us now.

thank you so much for talking to us, lynda. thank you so much for talking to us, l nda. ., �* , thank you so much for talking to us, l nda. ., h ., thank you so much for talking to us, lnda. ., thank you so much for talking to us, lynda-— that i lynda. hello, it's a pleasure. that is a very big _ lynda. hello, it's a pleasure. that is a very big smile, _ lynda. hello, it's a pleasure. that is a very big smile, i _ lynda. hello, it's a pleasure. that is a very big smile, i am _ lynda. hello, it's a pleasure. that is a very big smile, i am not - is a very big smile, i am not surprised. i try never to start with the face, how are you feeling, but i think in this instance, everybody watching would like to know that. i am just so happy, i am really happy. —— of the phrase. the fact you have even brought this case, you have fought and got this far, that says to me you must be a very strong person. 0ut to me you must be a very strong person. out of the last couple of years been for you? i person. out of the last couple of years been for you?— person. out of the last couple of years been for you? i have been told that iuite years been for you? i have been told that quite a — years been for you? i have been told that quite a lot. _ years been for you? i have been told that quite a lot. even _ years been for you? i have been told that quite a lot. even at _ years been for you? i have been told that quite a lot. even at the - that quite a lot. even at the beginning of thejourney, people would ask and say, that�*s really a tough thing to be going through, and

it has been quite hard for the last three years, almost three years, it has been a tough journey. for three years, almost three years, it has been a tough journey. has been a tough “ourney. for those who do not _ has been a tough “ourney. for those who do not know — has been a tough journey. for those who do not know all _ has been a tough journey. for those who do not know all the _ has been a tough journey. for those who do not know all the details, - has been a tough journey. for those j who do not know all the details, you have been in the uk since 2018, but your husband and your five children were not with you because even to apply for them to be with you, that would cost so much money.- apply for them to be with you, that would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult _ would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult for _ would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult for me _ would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult for me to - would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult for me to get - would cost so much money. yeah, it was even difficult for me to get by, l was even difficult for me to get by, trying to raise that sort of money to bring them here. so trying to raise that sort of money to bring them here.— trying to raise that sort of money to bring them here. so at what point did ou sit to bring them here. so at what point did you sit down _ to bring them here. so at what point did you sit down as _ to bring them here. so at what point did you sit down as a _ to bring them here. so at what point did you sit down as a family - to bring them here. so at what point did you sit down as a family and - did you sit down as a family and say, this isn�*t right, we are going to fight this, we are going to try and do something about it? filth. to fight this, we are going to try and do something about it? oh, from the very beginning. — and do something about it? oh, from the very beginning, just _ and do something about it? oh, from the very beginning, just about - and do something about it? oh, from the very beginning, just about a - the very beginning, just about a month and a here in the uk —— a month and a here in the uk —— a month into arriving here. i

contacted the lawyer and that is a journey we have been taking since then. . , ., , journey we have been taking since then. ., i. , ., ., ., then. have you been apart for that entire time. _ then. have you been apart for that entire time, then, _ then. have you been apart for that entire time, then, just _ then. have you been apart for that entire time, then, just explain - then. have you been apart for that entire time, then, just explain for| entire time, then, just explain for us, because you came to this country as a child, but you were given incorrect immigration status, so you then ended up returning to trinidad, which is where you met your husband, is that an accurate description of a very long, difficult process, i appreciate?— very long, difficult process, i a- reciate? , ., ., appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowin: appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowing my — appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowing my status _ appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowing my status with _ appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowing my status with respect - appreciate? yes, i met him that not knowing my status with respect to l knowing my status with respect to the uk, and had a family and everything, and then realised that my status was supposed to actually be in the uk, and now that i am here, they are not recognising that, you know, my family should also be here with me, and that was the battle, it was a battle from then

on. �* , battle, it was a battle from then on. �* y ., on. but everything went wrong in our on. but everything went wrong in your situation, _ on. but everything went wrong in your situation, you _ on. but everything went wrong in your situation, you are _ on. but everything went wrong in your situation, you are not - on. but everything went wrong in your situation, you are not dealt| your situation, you are not dealt with fairly common mistakes were made, and yet you are still here and living here. iwonder made, and yet you are still here and living here. i wonder how you feel about the way you were treated. people might be watching you, thinking, why does she still want to live here after her case was handled so badly? live here after her case was handled so badl ? ., ~ ., ., , live here after her case was handled sobadl? ., «a, ., , ,, so badly? you know, not 'ust because --eole so badly? you know, not 'ust because people treat — so badly? you know, not 'ust because people treat you h so badly? you know, not 'ust because people treat you badly, _ so badly? you know, notjust because people treat you badly, means - so badly? you know, notjust because people treat you badly, means that i people treat you badly, means that you give up, you don�*t give up, there are things worth fighting for, and this is one of them. the uk is not really a bad place. it has lots of opportunities, not only for me but for my family also, and in my mind, it was worth fighting for. ibmd mind, it was worth fighting for. and what happens now, in terms of seeing your husband and your children, what happens from here on in? we your husband and your children, what happens from here on in?— happens from here on in? we go throu:h

happens from here on in? we go through the _ happens from here on in? we go through the process _ happens from here on in? we go through the process of _ happens from here on in? we go through the process of getting i happens from here on in? we go . through the process of getting them here. the fees, hopefully, will be waived, they will recognise that, we made the application, and it will be honoured. forthem made the application, and it will be honoured. for them to be here. ibmd honoured. for them to be here. and we know your _ honoured. for them to be here. and we know your solicitor have said there are an awful lot of people who might benefit from what you have done, a lot of people who have been treated in a similar way to you, it will have similar claims, do you feel like a trailblazer? filth. will have similar claims, do you feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is _ feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is the _ feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is the story _ feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is the story of _ feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is the story of my - feel like a trailblazer? oh, yeah! i think that is the story of my life. i think that is the story of my life. always setting the for others. lynda, such a pleasure to talk to you, your we cannot speak for longer, but we are really glad to hearfrom you this longer, but we are really glad to hear from you this afternoon, all the rest of best to you and the rest of your family when they get here.

thank you. it is 4.25. some of our other studies this afternoon. we will hear a bit more about the full story emerging from essex. —— the awful story. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder, after a 34—year—old man was stabbed near basildon. 0fficers believe james gibbons was trying to help another man when he was stabbed on sunday night. 0ur correspondent alex dunlop sent this report from the scene. james gibbons, who is a father of four, had been celebrating his twin daughters�* second birthday here in iris mews on sunday night. it�*s believed that at around 9.30, he then went to the aid of a man in the street and was then stabbed after an argument with a group of youths. essex police say they have subsequently arrested five teenagers, schoolchildren aged

between 13 and 16, two boys and three girls, on suspicion of murder. they have since released three of them, but are still questioning two others. you can see the floral tributes to james gibbons are building. he was a popular man, by all accounts. he ran his own bathroom fitting company. in a statement, his partner and family say that they are "absolutely broken beyond belief at this pointless loss," which they say "has devastated us all. "james was the kind of person," they add, "who would always be "prepared to help anyone less fortunate than himself, "which is what he was doing on sunday night." they are also appealing to anyone who has footage, any information to help essex police with their investigation. more now on our top story — that the french fishing boats who have been staging a protest off the coast ofjersey over post—brexit fishing rights have now left the area. 0ur reality check correspondent

chris morris is with me. elements of all of this wrapped up brexit, chris.— brexit, chris. yes, brexit again, i'm brexit, chris. yes, brexit again, i'm afraid. _ brexit, chris. yes, brexit again, i'm afraid, because _ brexit, chris. yes, brexit again, i'm afraid, because fishing - brexit, chris. yes, brexit again, i'm afraid, because fishing is . brexit, chris. yes, brexit again,| i'm afraid, because fishing is one i�*m afraid, because fishing is one of many issues which essentially had a whole series of agreements and compromises built up over many years, and the patchwork was suddenly undone. brexit removed some of the things which had been the way people went about their business for a few years, and it will take some time to bring some sort of equanimity back to some of these issues, especially if you think about the status of northern ireland. bordertrade, obviously ireland. border trade, obviously fishing, ireland. bordertrade, obviously fishing, because you cannot do anything about your geography. you can leave the eu, but you�*re still next—door neighbours. and perhaps it is inevitable thatjosie and the channel islands is one of the places where fishing would become a bit of an issue, because all you need to do is look at the map, jazzy is only 14 miles off the coast of france ——

jersey, very very close, and those have traditionally been shared waters. and now of course, the jersey government is trying to select slightly new conditions as it has a right to do. the french side are saying they have not been consulted properly, this is not what it says on the agreements, this is an outrage. and these are technical issues which you probably can resolve and discussion, probably heated discussion, but once you start threatening to cut off electricity, once you send an the naval vessels, electricity, once you send an the navalvessels, it electricity, once you send an the naval vessels, it starts to feel a bit more serious. and i think it is indicative of on both sides are still quite a bruised atmosphere in the wake of brexit and then the trade negotiations. ibmd the wake of brexit and then the trade negotiations.— the wake of brexit and then the trade negotiations. and those two naval ships _ trade negotiations. and those two naval ships are _ trade negotiations. and those two naval ships are still _ trade negotiations. and those two naval ships are still there, - trade negotiations. and those two naval ships are still there, we - naval ships are still there, we know, and doesjersey�*s constitutional position make it more contributed as well? it constitutional position make it more contributed as well?— contributed as well? it does a bit, because jersey's _ contributed as well? it does a bit, because jersey's not _ contributed as well? it does a bit, because jersey's not part - contributed as well? it does a bit, because jersey's not part of - contributed as well? it does a bit, because jersey's not part of the i contributed as well? it does a bit, l because jersey's not part of the uk, becausejersey�*s not part of the uk, and therefore was never in the european union, it is a crown dependency, it has a lot of autonomy, and therefore runs its

fishing waters on a day—to—day basis. but the uk is still an overall broad charge of its international relations, and that includes how it relates to neighbours on things like fishing. so the uk eu trade deal done at the last minute last year, and a it because it ruined my christmas lunch, it does go into some detail about how access to fish in waters around jozi and the other channel islands should be done. now, the jersey government says we are abiding by that, but the french are saying they where you�*re setting up these licenses, small boats do not these licenses, small boats do not the gps technology to track their previous movements and do where you demand, and at the last minute, they say, you have introduced new measures, conservation measures that the jozi measures, conservation measures that thejozi government calls it, or as thejozi government calls it, or as the french argue that they limit the way they have fished and have always faced. —— jersey government. way they have fished and have always faced. ——jersey government. fishing is a difficult issue and needs some difficult behind—the—scenes negotiations. today, in very

traditional french fishermen way, was a way to web some flags and so don�*t forget about us, that sounds like that was received loud and clear in paris.— clear in paris. chris, thank you very much _ clear in paris. chris, thank you very much indeed. _ clear in paris. chris, thank you very much indeed. texas - clear in paris. chris, thank you very much indeed. texas to i clear in paris. chris, thank you i very much indeed. texas to look clear in paris. chris, thank you - very much indeed. texas to look at the weather prospects with chris. started off with snowfall in parts of scotland. we don�*t get snow every may but we had some nine years ago for example. that rain is spreading from scotland into the north—west of england, plenty of shows around elsewhere, pretty frequent across east anglia and southern england and a chilly kind of day. temperatures doing well to reach double figures. across the high ground in scotland probably only 4 degrees or so. 0vernight tonight, showers increase across north—western areas particularly coastal, but inland where the winds for light it will be a cold night with first in places. a cold start to friday morning but plenty of sunshine initially. shower clouds build through the morning and

in the afternoon though showers become widespread, heavy, some thundery across eastern areas of scotland, eastern areas of england. that�*s where you are most likely to get a soaking wet across northern ireland, wales, in south—west england, showers should tend to shrivel away, it will become dry with hazy spells of sunshine. hello. this is bbc news, with jane hill. the headlines — french fishing vessels have leftjersey and returned to port in normandy after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two, as lockdown restrictions are lifted. some of the uk�*s biggest employers say they don�*t plan to bring staff back to the office full time — instead opting for a mix of home and office working. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers

on suspicion of murder, after a father—of—four was stabbed to death — having spent the day celebrating his two—year—old twin daughters�* birthday. millions of people are voting today in a series of elections in england, scotland and wales — in the biggest test of voter opinion since the 2019 general election. sport, and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. british and irish lions head coach warren gatland says his squad selection for their tour of south africa was the most challenging he had ever been involved in. gatland left out some big names including johnny sexton, billy vunipola and kyle sinkler. but there were a few surprise inclusions. let�*s take a look at the backs. no sexton, as we mentioned, and henry slade also left out. but ireland�*s bundee aki included. and wales�*s louis rees—zammit becomes the youngest lion since 1959 at age 20. despite england coming fifth in the six nations, they have 11 players involved, wales have ten, scotland and ireland both have eight.

for the forwards, no vunipola or sinkler, but alun wynjones was named as captain on his fourth lions tour. and exeter number eight, sam simmonds is the surprise addition, which increased the squad number from 36 to 37. gatland said it had been tough but that he had picked a squad capable of winning a test series. there are a lot of factors to take into consideration. you are looking at form in the six nations and players that have performed for you in the past, players that have performed at club level, one trophies and championships and then you are looking at players and younger players you feel you can develop on a tour as well.

lots of things to consider, trying to get the balance right between creating a squad that is going to be incredibly as the tour goes on as well. the captain, alun wynjones — who will lead his fourth lions tour said he was very proud. you become a lion and you enjoy the custodianship of lions rugby. to be added _ custodianship of lions rugby. to be added to— custodianship of lions rugby. to be added to a — custodianship of lions rugby. to be added to a list of captains is synonymous with the tours that have .one synonymous with the tours that have gone before is surreal. tonight, manchester united and arsenal are in semi—finals action in the europa league. united take a 6—2 advantage over roma to italy tonight, in the first of four games injust eight days. it could be a bit tighter for arsenal at the emirates stadium. they need to overturn a 2—1 deficit against spanish club villarreal, who are managed by former gunners manager unai emery. current arsenal manager mikel arteta

says silverware is his aim. it is a massive game for everybody, but in particular for the club, because we are here representing our football club and our fans, and what we want to do is do it the best way, winning trophies. and if we win tomorrow, we will be much closer to getting another trophy. this is the only aim and the purpose of why we are here for us. ipswich town have annouced that singer ed sheeran will sponsor their new kit. the suffolk local is a tractor boys fan and is often spotted at portman road cheering the side on. he�*s signed an intial one—year deal to sponsor the shirts of both the men�*s and women�*s first—teams. sheeran said, "the club is a big part of the community, and this is my way of showing my support".

there are just 78 days to go until the start of the tokyo 0lympics, but there remains a degree of anxiety in japan. the majority of japanese people don�*t want the games to go ahead and this morning, the president of world atheltics, seb coe said there are tough days ahead. this morning teamgb — including gymnast max whitlock and cyclist laura kenny — collected their 0lympic kit at somerset house in central london. whitlock said athletes were aware that the responsibility of keeping covid safe was down to each member of team gb. we are positive, in i terms of going ahead. we're positive in terms of team gb | putting on everything they possiblyj can to make it as safe as possible. we have a whole block to ourself in the village to make sure - we are as separated as we can be. it is down to the individuals, i and i think everybody will agree that it is about being as safe i as you can be in that environment. everything will be put in place i on protocols and things like that to make sure we are. that is going to be key thing. that�*s all the sport for now.

more sport in the next hour. a un report says reducing methane is critical to tackling climate change. methane is dozens of times more potent a global warming gas than carbon dioxide but is relatively short—lived in the atmosphere. that means cutting emissions now could quickly reduce concentrations in the atmosphere. the assessment from the un environment programme comes as new data showed both carbon dioxide and methane levels in the atmosphere reached record highs last year, despite pandemic lockdowns massively reducing economic activity. now i�*m joined by euan nisbet from the un environment programme, and the climate and clean air pprogramme�*s methane advisory panel.

going to talk to you. i am glad we have our going to talk to you. i am glad we have your exoert _ going to talk to you. i am glad we have your expert knowledge i going to talk to you. i am glad we i have your expert knowledge because why have the levels gone up in a year where so much economic activity has been shut down, we have all been living differently. i think we all thought that was good for the planet. ii thought that was good for the olanet. , ., thought that was good for the olanet. ,, .., , planet. if you could tell me why, i would love — planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you — planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to _ planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to tell _ planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to tell me. - planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to tell me. it i planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to tell me. it is i planet. if you could tell me why, i would love you to tell me. it is a i would love you to tell me. it is a real scientific problem. methane is a sort of cinderella gas, everybody forgets about it but it�*s actually got roughly half the warming impact, c02, so really important. and as new united nations report shows, we can do a lot of effective cheap things to do to cut it, but it is very strongly different from c02. a lot of the emissions come from the tropics, the tropics are very involved in this, lots of different sources, gas leaks obviously, coal and oil and so on, also landfills in

their natural sources which may be responding to climate change, but warming wetlands particularly in the tropics, and then of course cowles, and an awful lot of agricultural emissions. so semi different things about methane, nothing to do with the economic factors in co2 and the covid pandemic. it is a very, very different gas. covid pandemic. it is a very, very different gas-— covid pandemic. it is a very, very different gas. right, i understand full sto- different gas. right, i understand full stop so _ different gas. right, i understand full stop so lockdown _ different gas. right, i understand full stop so lockdown can't i different gas. right, i understand full stop so lockdown can't really| full stop so lockdown can�*t really affect methane. irlot full stop so lockdown can't really affect methane.— affect methane. not very much. little bits on _ affect methane. not very much. little bits on the _ affect methane. not very much. little bits on the gas _ affect methane. not very much. little bits on the gas industry i affect methane. not very much. i little bits on the gas industry and american fracking and so on, but the primary interesting things going on in methane are in the tropics. right, and therefore some of the things you have outlined there, the ability to reduce methane, that requires as with so much to do with climate change, big global decisions, joined up thinking, presumably?— decisions, joined up thinking, presumably? joined up thinking but not necessarily _ presumably? joined up thinking but not necessarily high _ presumably? joined up thinking but

not necessarily high cost. _ presumably? joined up thinking but not necessarily high cost. methane| not necessarily high cost. methane had a record rise in 2020, which probably was driven by biological sources in the tropics, but fossil fuel emissions are still a massive part of it, and although that�*s probably not rising, that�*s where we can really very effectively bring it down. we can stop gas leaks, we can stop methane leaks from the oil industry. quite a lot of that, doing it very cheaply, or even with a positive cost benefit. if you stop a gas leak it is cheaper, you save money, and the coal industry. the only thing is landfills, notjust landfills in europe and north america but in these huge new tropical cities, it is a gas where the tropical countries can do an awful lot of good and participate in the paris agreement process, quite different from c02. i the paris agreement process, quite different from c02.— different from c02. i understand that, very _ different from c02. i understand that, very interesting, _ different from c02. i understand that, very interesting, and i different from c02. i understand that, very interesting, and we i different from c02. i understand i that, very interesting, and we are building up to a big port on climate

change conference later this year, in glasgow, the uk hosting it. so is this something, i mean, do we know if it is on the agenda? this is presumably absolutely something that should be part of the discussions. i have no idea. in the methane science community of course, we are just trying to solve the problems. and it is a cinderella gas. there�*s not really much attention to methane, compared to c02, so the economic models and so want to see it as funny c02 but it�*s not, it�*s very different. it�*s got a lifetime of a bit over nine years, so if you reduce the emissions, like cutting gas leaks, then you rarely see —— you really see an atmospheric impact pretty quickly. what this un report shows is you could take a quarter of a degree or so, maybe more, of the warming impact on the next 20, 30

yearsjust by very, warming impact on the next 20, 30 years just by very, very smart, simple cuts in methane emission that are quite accessible. it is simple cuts in methane emission that are quite accessible.— are quite accessible. it is so interesting. _ are quite accessible. it is so interesting, because, i are quite accessible. it is so interesting, because, as i are quite accessible. it is so | interesting, because, as you are quite accessible. it is so i interesting, because, as you say, it is an element of the climate change issue that doesn�*t get talked about that much, and yet you have just described to us various ways in which it can be tackled. so therefore i suppose do you hope that this un report will be something of a wake—up call, that people would say actually, look at this, this is absolutely what we should be talking about? it absolutely what we should be talking about? , , .., . ., about? it is very conference of re oort. about? it is very conference of report- i _ about? it is very conference of report. i should _ about? it is very conference of report. i should have - about? it is very conference of report. i should have also i about? it is very conference of- report. i should have also mentioned the impact on human health. methane is very involved in the formation of ozone in the lower air, i�*m not talking about stratospheric ozone, which protect us, but ozone in the air that we breathe, and if you reduce the amount of methane emission, you also have big impacts on human health, and you could be helping tens or hundreds of thousands of lives, worldwide, if you were to cut the amount of

methane in the atmosphere, particularly in big city areas. some of the big cities in china and india, also places like ethiopian, you can do a lot of good if you cut methane down.— you can do a lot of good if you cut methane down. really interesting. i have learned _ methane down. really interesting. i have learned an _ methane down. really interesting. i have learned an awful— methane down. really interesting. i have learned an awful lot _ methane down. really interesting. i have learned an awful lot from i methane down. really interesting. i have learned an awful lot from you i have learned an awful lot from you in the last few minutes, thanks very much indeed. euan nisbet. millions of people are casting their ballots in england, scotland and wales, in the biggest test of voter opinion since the general election in 2019. in scotland and wales, voters will decide on their national governments, and there�*s a by—election in hartlepool. votes will also be cast for police and crime commissioners in england and wales, a number of mayors, and thousands of english council seats. coronavirus precautions are in place and people are being urged to take their own pencils to polling stations. ben wright reports.

it felt like spring in brighton, as polling stations opened this morning, while winter reappeared near the scottish town of aviemore. across britain, halls, leisure centres, churches, even a car are being used for voters to cast their ballots. about 48 million people in england, wales and scotland are eligible to vote, and polls will stay open until ten o�*clock this evening. in scotland, voters are electing the 129 members of the scottish parliament. in wales, all 60 senedd seats are up for election. in england, voters are choosing 4,650 councillors, 13 mayors and 25 members of the london assembly. there are also elections for 39 police and crime commissioners across england and wales, and there is a by—election to pick the new mp for hartlepool. polling stations have been scrubbed and readied for socially—distanced voting.

this is a particularly big crop of elections, because last year�*s contests were postponed due to the pandemic. as well as plastic screens and hand sanitisers at polling stations, voters are also being asked to bring along their own pen or pencil if they can. covid has changed the way that this year�*s elections are being run, and the wait for results will take longer than usual too. some contests will declare overnight, including the by—election in hartlepool. the outcome of the welsh parliament elections should be completed by the end of friday. results for the scottish parliament, english councils and london could come on saturday, while declarations for police and crime commissioners may not happen until monday. covid has not affected one recent election day tradition, and expect social media to be full of canine companions as people head to the polls. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. and we will have full coverage of all those election results over the next few days, as they come in here on bbc news,

starting with the hartlepool by—election result, expected in the early hours of tomorrow. and then we�*ll have in—depth analysis of all the results on a special programme with huw edwards and kirsty wark. that�*s from 9 o�*clock tomorrow morning on bbc2 and the bbc news channel. police in pakistan are investigating claims that a woman from london who was shot dead earlier this week, was killed after turning down marriage proposals from two men. myra zulfiqar, who was a law graduate, travelled to the country for a wedding two months ago. 0ur pakistan correspondent secunder kermani sent this report from lahore. behind me is the rented house where myra zulfiqar was living with two friends. it was here that her dead body was discovered on monday morning by a body was discovered on monday morning bya maid. now, her uncle has already alleged to the police that she was being threatened by two men, who he says wanted to marry her, but who she had rejected. now,

we discover that less than two weeks before her death, myra zulfiqar went to the police herself and said that she had been abducted at gunpoint by a man who had tried to sexually assault her. in a police report that we�*ve seen, she says that she managed to get away, but her attacker threatened her, saying, you will not be able to escape, i will kill you. now, myra zulfiqarasked the police for protection, and we understand that officers did come here looking for cctv evidence but it is not really clear what happened next. the police haven�*t really responded to any of our questions. activists have accused the authorities here in the past of not taking gender—based violence seriously enough. this is, however, an ongoing investigation. police have once again return to the crime scene today to carry out further searches. as of yet, though, still no formal arrests. searches. as of yet, though, still the headlines on bbc news... french fishing vessels have left jersey and returned to port — after demonstrating over

their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war two as lockdown restrictions are lifted. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father—of—four was stabbed to death — having spent the day celebrating his two—year—old twin daughters�* birthday. some news coming through in the last few moments, concerning the murder ofjulia james, the pcso, who was found dead near her home in kent on tuesday of last week. we are just hearing that a reward is being offered by crimestoppers for any information that can be given that will help track down whoever was responsible for her murder. so, a

£10,000 reward being offered for anonymous information in the hunt for whoever killed the 53—year—old police community support officer. you will remember, i am sure, her body was found on tuesday afternoon last week, so, about nine days ago, in woodland in the snow down in kent. she had been out walking her dog. she was working from home that day and was not in her police uniform. we know, sadly, that she died as a result of head injuries. crimestoppers offering a £10,000 reward for anonymous information that could lead to a conviction. that information can be given online, or can be given on a freephone number. 0h online, or can be given on a freephone number. oh 805 55111. that freephone number. oh 805 55111. that freephone number, you canjust see it there —— 08055

freephone number, you canjust see it there -- 08055 5111. freephone number, you canjust see it there —— 08055 5111. anything that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person behind the murder ofjulia james, and that information, crimestoppers dressing, can be given anonymously and there will be a £10,000 reward. 43 out of 50 firms told us they would embrace a mix some of the uk�*s biggest employers have told the bbc they don�*t plan to bring staff back to the office full time. 43 out of 50 firms told us they would embrace a mix of home and office working, with staff encouraged to work from home two to three days a week. another four said they�*re keeping the idea of �*hybrid working�* under review. our business presenter, sarah corker, has been in manchester speaking to staff at deloitte. some companies are redesigning their workspaces. here in manchester,

instead of a traditional office, deloitte has taken on two floors of this building from we work, the office sharing company. and as you can see, there is a more relaxed approach, home comforts here, and deloitte has actually decided to close four of its offices in gatwick, southampton, liverpooland gatwick, southampton, liverpool and nottingham gatwick, southampton, liverpooland nottingham and move towards some home—working contracts. staff, though, still have access to spaces like this, if and when they need it. and danielle is hot day skiing today. and danielle is hot day skiing toda . ., and danielle is hot day skiing today-- you _ and danielle is hot day skiing today.- you have i and danielle is hot day skiing today.- you have reallyj today. hello. you have really benefited. — today. hello. you have really benefited, haven't _ today. hello. you have really benefited, haven't you, i today. hello. you have really benefited, haven't you, from j today. hello. you have really i benefited, haven't you, from having benefited, haven�*t you, from having a space where you can come and get out of yourflat a space where you can come and get out of your flat and feel like there�*s a break from working your living room? there's a break from working your living room?— there's a break from working your living room? that's right. so i live in an apartment _ living room? that's right. so i live in an apartment in _ living room? that's right. so i live in an apartment in the _ living room? that's right. so i live in an apartment in the city - living room? that's right. so i live in an apartment in the city centre| in an apartment in the city centre with my partner, so like most people we have adapted, we got a big screen and a desk in our spare room, but both of us being on zoom calls, it is challenging and that spared —— shared space will stop so having an access to an office has been

fantastic. access to an office has been fantastic-— access to an office has been fantastic. ~ , , , fantastic. mixing it up, flexibility is the key for _ fantastic. mixing it up, flexibility is the key for many _ fantastic. mixing it up, flexibility is the key for many people. i fantastic. mixing it up, flexibility is the key for many people. no i fantastic. mixing it up, flexibility i is the key for many people. no over here, this is yourfirst is the key for many people. no over here, this is your first time is the key for many people. no over here, this is yourfirst time back in the office for how long? just over 12 months _ in the office for how long? just over 12 months now. _ in the office for how long? just over 12 months now. you i in the office for how long? just over 12 months now. you have| in the office for how long? just i over 12 months now. you have been workin: at over 12 months now. you have been working at home, _ over 12 months now. you have been working at home, juggling - working at home, juggling home—schooling, a young family. have you enjoyed having that opportunity? it really been able to spend time with the — it really been able to spend time with the kids, while struggling work. — with the kids, while struggling work. so — with the kids, while struggling work, so it has actually been really beneficial— work, so it has actually been really beneficial in some ways. do work, so it has actually been really beneficial in some ways.— work, so it has actually been really beneficial in some ways. do you want to come back — beneficial in some ways. do you want to come back to _ beneficial in some ways. do you want to come back to the _ beneficial in some ways. do you want to come back to the office _ beneficial in some ways. do you want to come back to the office then? - to come back to the office then? definitely. it will be nice to see people. — definitely. it will be nice to see people, collaborate in the office but still— people, collaborate in the office but still have the benefits of working _ but still have the benefits of working from home as well. | but still have the benefits of working from home as well. i will let ou working from home as well. i will let you crack _ working from home as well. i will let you crack on, _ working from home as well. i will let you crack on, mo, _ working from home as well. i will let you crack on, mo, with - working from home as well. in" m let you crack on, mo, with doing some work today. flexibility, we have talked about it a lot, and joe ahmed is a partner here at deloitte. obviously deloitte has decided to close some of its offices, that perhaps suggests you see remote working is something that will become more permanent. what does

that mean for people who just don't want to work from home? first that mean for people who 'ust don't want to work from home?_ want to work from home? first of all, with want to work from home? first of all. with the _ want to work from home? first of all, with the office _ want to work from home? first of all, with the office closures - want to work from home? first of all, with the office closures we i all, with the office closures we announced. _ all, with the office closures we announced, we _ all, with the office closures we announced, we are _ all, with the office closures we announced, we are always - all, with the office closures we - announced, we are always reviewing our reel— announced, we are always reviewing our real estate — announced, we are always reviewing our real estate strategy, _ announced, we are always reviewing our real estate strategy, and - announced, we are always reviewing our real estate strategy, and those i our real estate strategy, and those offices _ our real estate strategy, and those offices were — our real estate strategy, and those offices were underutilised - our real estate strategy, and those offices were underutilised before . offices were underutilised before covid, _ offices were underutilised before covid, so — offices were underutilised before covid, so we _ offices were underutilised before covid, so we took _ offices were underutilised before covid, so we took the _ offices were underutilised before covid, so we took the decision i offices were underutilised beforej covid, so we took the decision to close _ covid, so we took the decision to close them, _ covid, so we took the decision to close them, but _ covid, so we took the decision to close them, but all— covid, so we took the decision to close them, but all those - covid, so we took the decision to - close them, but all those employees there are _ close them, but all those employees there are still— close them, but all those employees there are still with _ close them, but all those employees there are still with delight _ close them, but all those employees there are still with delight and - close them, but all those employees there are still with delight and are i there are still with delight and are able to— there are still with delight and are able to come _ there are still with delight and are able to come into _ there are still with delight and are able to come into one _ there are still with delight and are able to come into one of- there are still with delight and are able to come into one of our- there are still with delight and are| able to come into one of our other offices, _ able to come into one of our other offices, because— able to come into one of our other offices, because they _ able to come into one of our other offices, because they can - able to come into one of our other offices, because they can access l able to come into one of our other. offices, because they can access any delight— offices, because they can access any delight office — offices, because they can access any delight office in _ offices, because they can access any delight office in the _ offices, because they can access any delight office in the uk _ offices, because they can access any delight office in the uk or— offices, because they can access any delight office in the uk or choose . delight office in the uk or choose to work— delight office in the uk or choose to work from _ delight office in the uk or choose to work from home _ delight office in the uk or choose to work from home or— delight office in the uk or choose to work from home or both. - delight office in the uk or choose to work from home or both. findl to work from home or both. and ou've to work from home or both. and you've got _ to work from home or both. and you've got around _ to work from home or both. you've got around 800 to work from home or both.- you've got around 800 manchester —based star. how will it work, then, because you knock and fit them all in here? do people have to book ahead for example?— in here? do people have to book ahead for example? believe it or not, the ahead for example? believe it or not. they can _ ahead for example? believe it or not, they can fit _ ahead for example? believe it or not, they can fit 800 _ ahead for example? believe it or not, they can fit 800 people - ahead for example? believe it or not, they can fit 800 people in i ahead for example? believe it or i not, they can fit 800 people in this space _ not, they can fit 800 people in this space it _ not, they can fit 800 people in this space it is — not, they can fit 800 people in this space it is a — not, they can fit 800 people in this space. it is a very— not, they can fit 800 people in this space. it is a very clever— not, they can fit 800 people in this space. it is a very clever use - not, they can fit 800 people in this space. it is a very clever use of- space. it is a very clever use of space. _ space. it is a very clever use of space, and _ space. it is a very clever use of space, and at— space. it is a very clever use of space, and at the _ space. it is a very clever use of space, and at the minute - space. it is a very clever use of space, and at the minute we i space. it is a very clever use of. space, and at the minute we are following — space, and at the minute we are following government _ space, and at the minute we are i following government guidelines, space, and at the minute we are - following government guidelines, so if anyone _ following government guidelines, so if anyone needs _ following government guidelines, so if anyone needs to _ following government guidelines, so if anyone needs to come _ following government guidelines, so if anyone needs to come in - following government guidelines, so if anyone needs to come in for- following government guidelines, so if anyone needs to come in for well. if anyone needs to come in for well being. _ if anyone needs to come in for well being. yes, — if anyone needs to come in for well being. yes. they— if anyone needs to come in for well being, yes, they have _ if anyone needs to come in for well being, yes, they have to— if anyone needs to come in for well being, yes, they have to book- if anyone needs to come in for well being, yes, they have to book a . being, yes, they have to book a desk. _ being, yes, they have to book a desk. but— being, yes, they have to book a desk, but longer— being, yes, they have to book a desk, but longer term - being, yes, they have to book a desk, but longer term it- being, yes, they have to book a desk, but longer term it wouldl being, yes, they have to book a - desk, but longer term it would very much _ desk, but longer term it would very much he _ desk, but longer term it would very much he a — desk, but longer term it would very much he a free—flowing _ desk, but longer term it would very much he a free—flowing system - desk, but longer term it would very much he a free—flowing system and people _ much he a free—flowing system and people will— much he a free—flowing system and people will be — much he a free—flowing system and people will be able _ much he a free—flowing system and people will be able to _ much he a free—flowing system and people will be able to just - much he a free—flowing system and people will be able to just come - much he a free—flowing system and people will be able to just come ini people will be able to just come in and sit _ people will be able to just come in and sit wherever— people will be able to just come in and sit wherever they— people will be able to just come in and sit wherever they choose. - people will be able to just come in and sit wherever they choose. in, i and sit wherever they choose. 10, thank you. _ and sit wherever they choose. thank you, jo ahmed from and sit wherever they choose.“ thank you, jo ahmed from deloitte. and many businesses have told us

that going forward they will be adopting a hybrid approach, so a mix of working from home and also coming into the office. mark ormrod is a former royal marine commando, who lost both legs and an arm in afghanistan. footage of him went viral, when he fell over while training for a 5 kilometer run for charity. after that, he smashed his fundraising target. well, now mark has set himself another gruelling challenge — swimming across plymouth sound. john maguire has been to see him training. eyes on the prize. the objective of mark ormrod's latest challenge is drake's island, and to swim a thousand metres off the coast of plymouth. his mental strength is his greatest asset, self—evident when he insisted on parading with colleagues from a0 commando, after he'd been blown up in afghanistan less than five months earlier in 2007, leaving him a triple amputee.

mark's most recent endeavour was running five kilometres to raise money for reorg. running seems impossible, but swimming requires a whole new level of determination. you swam at the invictus games, so how is your swimming? terrible. and you know what's frightening is, i remember how tired i was after 50 metres in an olympic sized swimming pool. now, this is a lot farther, with tides and currents, and creepy crawlies underneath, and everything else that comes with sea swimming. so, this is a new world to me. this is his first training swim. by his side is another former royal marine, his trainer, ben wadham. how i'm going to get him through this is, i'm going to rely on mark's absolute mental capacity to dig out on things that most normal human beings couldn't. getting in the sea is hard for someone with all limbs.

and it's a daunting challenge just to get into the sea and swim 100 metres out and back. sea swimming is hard enough, but mark has only one arm to drag himself through the oppressively cold water. gyms and pools can't fully prepare you for the sea, with its tides and currents. with mark struggling, and fatigue exacerbated by the cold setting in, the decision's made to return to shore. the current�*s particularly strong out there, so it was dragging us that way. at that point we were just churning up, because we couldn't get enough power to get him moving through the current. he's obviously physically and mentally robust, but today has proved invaluable, as the team learned about what kit and which techniques would enable mark to complete the one kilometre swim. it's cold. yeah. harder than you thought? oh, yeah. i've not really swum with a current before, and the cold affected my forearm,

which meant that my fingers couldn't close properly to swim. so... ah! but a good first day, though. another monster effort. it will be. the end result will be. as a former royal marine, the corps' motto is per mare, per terram. mark has conquered the land. now he's taking on the sea. john maguire, bbc news, plymouth. what a remarkable man. i will if you with a look at the weather prospect with a look at the weather prospect with chris fawkes. started off with snowfall in parts of scotland. we don't get snow every may but we had some nine years ago for example. that rain is spreading from scotland into the north—west of england, plenty of shows around elsewhere, pretty frequent across east anglia

plenty of showers around elsewhere, pretty frequent across east anglia and southern england and a chilly kind of day. temperatures doing well to reach double figures. across the high ground in scotland probably only 4 degrees or so. overnight tonight, showers increase across north—western areas, particularly near coastal areas, but inland where the winds for light it will be a cold night with first in places. a cold start to friday morning but plenty of sunshine initially. it will be a cold night with frost in places. a cold start to friday morning but plenty of sunshine initially. shower clouds build through the morning and in the afternoon though showers become widespread, heavy, some thundery across eastern areas of scotland, eastern areas of england. but across northern ireland, wales, in south—west england, that's where you are most likely to get a soaking but across northern ireland, wales, in south—west england, showers should tend to shrivel away, it will become dry with hazy spells of sunshine.

this is bbc news i'm ben brown. the headlines at five. french fishing vessels leave jersey and return to port — after a protest over their post—brexit rights. earlierjersey politicans held talks with the french fishermen — with conflicting views on how those discussions went. the governor of the bank of england says the economy will bounce back after coronavirus restrictions are lifted with a growth forecast of 7 and a quarter percent this year. as police broaden their search for evidence into the murder of pcso julia james — a £10,000 reward is being offered for anyone with information police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father—of—four