tonight at ten, the polls have closed in england, wales and scotland in local, regional and parliamentary elections. in scotland, the results for the scottish parliament could have an impact on the future of the uk. in wales, labour are hoping to extend their 22 years in power, since power was devolved to cardiff bay. in england's local elections, the biggest for decades, the conservatives face a struggle in london, but they're hopeful of gains elsewhere. we'll be looking at what's at stake in his very big test of public opinion. also tonight... more tensions off the coast ofjersey as french fishermen protest against the new rules brought in after brexit. translation: if the arrangement doesnt translation: if the arrangement doesn't no translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back — translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back to _ translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back to normal - translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back to normal we - translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back to normal we arel translation: if the arrangement i doesn't go back to normal we are not going to be able to survive.

reporting undercover, as we reveal the full scale of the covid crisis overwhelming india's hospitals. and in tonight's football — manchester united and arsenal look to make it through to the europa league final. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel, alun wynjones will captain the british and irish lions in theirsummertour of south africa, as their 37 man squad is announced. good evening from the bbc election studio. polling stations have just closed after a day of voting in england, scotland and wales, in the biggest test of opinion since the general election of 2019. some of today's contests should have taken place last year but were delayed because of the pandemic. the results will be closely watched not only for the state of the parties and their leaders, but also for their potential impact

on the future of the united kingdom. in scotland, voters have been electing a new scottish parliament, with 129 members, and in wales they're electing a new senedd or welsh parliament, with 60 members. in england, votes have been cast for 13 city and regional mayors, thousands of seats on 143 councils, and for 25 members of the london assembly. there are 39 police and crime commissioners are being elected in england and wales. and in addition to all that there's also been a parliamentary by—election in hartlepool, where labour is fighting to hold on to the seat. the only part of the uk without any elections is northern ireland. we'll be asking what's at stake in all these contests, but first, this report by our political correspondent ben wright. for all party leaders, these elections are a test. for borisjohnson, who voted in london this morning, they're one measure of how voters rate his handling of covid, which halted last year's poll

and still shapes this. for labour's leader, sir keir starmer, these elections are a chance to prove he's taken the party forward since its general election drubbing. and for scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, the parliamentary elections there are the snp�*s big chance to push for another independence referendum. voters heading to the polls in the scottish highlands had to contend with the reappearance of winter. while in brighton, it felt like spring. england has had a bumper crop of elections today after several were postponed because of the pandemic. more than a500 council seats have been contested. in london, labour's sadiq khan is seeking a second term as mayor, one of 13 city and regional mayoralties up for grabs. they will tell us a lot about the political drift of england, with the tories hoping to hold onto the west midlands, labour eyeing up west yorkshire. there are important in national elections in wales, where voters are electing all 60 members of the senedd, with labour chasing another four years in power.

and then there's hartlepool in the north—east of england, a parliamentary by—election in a seat held by labour since it was created in 197a. once the party's heartlands, the result will test the pulse of labour's vote in an area that saw a surge in conservative support at the 2019 general election. the result in hartlepool certainly has the potential to reverberate at westminster. holding the seat would be a relief for labour. winning it would be a triumph for the tories. but in the end, it's only a by—election. whereas if the snp wins a majority in the scottish parliament, then nicola sturgeon will push for another referendum on scottish independence, a referendum borisjohnson has said he will resist. it's been an election day unlike any other, with covid—secure polling stations, and voters advised to bring their own pencils. the pandemic has shown how power is dispersed around the uk,

and the result of these elections could put a new? new question mark over the union's political future. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. to pick up on ben's last point. for many observers, the elections to the scottish parliament are possibly the most significant, because of their potential to affect the future of the united kingdom. the scottish national party is hoping to gain an overall majority of the 129 seats being contested, raising the prospect that the party leader nicola sturgeon would declare she had a mandate for demanding a referendum on independence. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith has more details. your first vote is a rite of passage that arrives aged 16 in scotland. in edinburgh, lulu cast her ballot on the way to school. the scottish tory leader, douglas ross mp, hopes his vote will get him anotherjob as a member of the scottish parliament along with his seat in westminster. labour leader anas sarwar

is standing against nicola sturgeon in glasgow southside. he's not expecting to beat her in that constituency, or to overtake the snp is the largest party in holyrood. make sure you vote covid safe, and make both votes labour. both votes, because there's two ballot papers. one to elect a constituency msp, and one for the regional list vote, which is used to elect members on a proportional basis. snow in may across much of scotland doesn't appear to have deterred too many voters. and of course there are dogs at polling stations. on twitter. and in real life. which can pose a hazard for some. i'm a bit scared of dogs. 0pinion polls suggest nicola sturgeon should be pretty confident she will continue as first minister. the big question is whether the snp can secure an overall majority and claim a mandate for a referendum on scottish independence. former first minister alex salmond is attempting a comeback with his new party alba. will they win any seats at all?

0n golf courses as well as in schools and community halls, the decisions voters have made today could take scotland one step closer to a vote on leaving the united kingdom. now, we hope to get the results of most if not all of the 73 constituency seats at some point tomorrow. we probably won't get the results of the 56 regional list seats until sometime on saturday, if indeed might going to sunday, so by this time tomorrow night we might well know how the snp are performing, because they tend to do best in those constituency seats. so it could be that this time tomorrow we will be able to tell you whether or not they look as though they are on course to reach that magic number of 65 seats. sarah, we'll talk again tomorrow. thanks, sara smith, our scotland editor there. in wales, where labour has been in power since the advent

of devolved government in 1999, the first minister mark drakeford is fighting off challenges from the conservatives in labour's old traditional heartlands in the north—east, while plaid cymru is hoping to secure enough seats in the senedd, or welsh parliament, to make them the main opposition. the handling of the pandemic has shed more light than ever on the different powers and policies enabled by devolution. let'sjoin our wales let's join our wales correspondent, hywel griffith, in cardiff. what is at stake? arguably the cuestion what is at stake? arguably the question any — what is at stake? arguably the question any welsh _ what is at stake? arguably the question any welsh election i what is at stake? arguably the l question any welsh election isn't what is at stake? arguably the - question any welsh election isn't if labour can hold onto power but how will they go about it this time? 22 years in power but never an overall majority of the 60 seats. behind me, last time around, they took 29 seats. i think the expectation within the party is that numbers will go down a few but hopefully, they say, they've managed to avoid going down to the low 20s. 0f they say, they've managed to avoid going down to the low 20s. of course it means they'll have to strike a deal of some sort with the other

parties. what about those other parties? in the race for second place the welsh conservatives feeling pretty boys and confident about some of the labour held seats in north—east wales. for plaid cymru arguably harderfor them in north—east wales. for plaid cymru arguably harder for them to in north—east wales. for plaid cymru arguably harderfor them to break through during the pandemic because a lot of their arguments have been pretty similar to labour. however, the leader adam price might be in a position of power. he has ruled out being a junior partner in coalition with labour but he has not ruled out doing some kind of deal so potentially he and mark drakeford could be on the phone to each other over the next couple of days. the counting doesn't start until tomorrow. we will have a result hopefully by this time tomorrow night. hopefully by this time tomorrow ni . ht. , hopefully by this time tomorrow niuht. , , ' . ~ hopefully by this time tomorrow niuht. , , , ., night. hywel griffith, thank you, with thoughts _ night. hywel griffith, thank you, with thoughts on _ night. hywel griffith, thank you, with thoughts on the _ night. hywel griffith, thank you, with thoughts on the welsh - night. hywel griffith, thank you, - with thoughts on the welsh situation in cardiff. today's parliamentary by—election in hartlepool in county durham is being seen as an important test for labour and its leader sir keir starmer, to see if the party has made any progress in regaining ground in its former strongholds in the north—east of england. hartlepool was held by labour in 2019, while the conservatives gained several seats in the region.

0ur political correspondent alex forsyth is in hartlepool. the latest thoughts there tonight, alex? , , ., , alex? this is where the votes will be counted _ alex? this is where the votes will be counted and _ alex? this is where the votes will be counted and if— alex? this is where the votes will be counted and if the _ alex? this is where the votes will be counted and if the sheer- alex? this is where the votes will l be counted and if the sheer number of politicians and journalists that have descended on the town in the last few days and weeks are anything to go by, it's a sign of what's at stake. there are nerves about the outcome tonight because, of course, this is a test for the conservatives of whether they can, the support they won in 2019 at the general election was a one off, driven by brexit, or if it's something they can sustain. for labour, if they lose here, a seat they have held for decades, that would be very significant. difficult questions for sir keir starmer, a man who has promised to revive the party's fortunes, but also deeper questions about the party's general direction and for the people of hartlepool is about whether the jobs, and

investment and opportunities comes to fruition. across the country the expects are expected to trickle in own the next few days but here the ballot boxes will be counted tonight and the result in the morning and an early indication of the mood of the public and an indication of whether those traditional party ties are still holding, or whether they are continuing to fray.— continuing to fray. alex, thanks very much. _ continuing to fray. alex, thanks very much, more _ continuing to fray. alex, thanks very much, more from - continuing to fray. alex, thanks very much, more from you - continuing to fray. alex, thanks - very much, more from you tomorrow as well, alex forsyth in hartlepool, where the by—election is taking place. so it's a bumper crop of results due tomorrow and over the weekend we'll look at the results. let's have a guide, reeta? there are seven sets of elections taking place across britain. particularly significant are the ones in scotland and in wales. but some of the first results we are likely to get in are from the local elections in england. these are some of the councils that will be exciting contests. these were meant to be held last year, but were postponed because of covid. they were last fought in 2016.

that's important, and i want to show you why. this graph shows how the main parties would have performed in the last ten years if there'd been a national vote — it's based on local election results. you can see it's blue for the conservatives, red for labour, orange for the lib dems, and grey for other parties. i want to focus on two years in particular. you can see that in 2016, when those councils we looked at were last up, the conservatives and labour were virtually neck and neck — so given that the opinion polls now suggest a comfortable tory lead, we would expect them to pick up votes in those councils. but in 2017, look at that big gap between the blue and the red. the tory lead then was higher than opinion polls suggest it is now, meaning in these

councils, we would expect to see the conservatives faring less well. as well as the councils starting to come in, there are contests for mayor that are going on across england. there are 13 contests. these are just eight of them. some were labour, some tory, west yorkshire is a new post. and we also expect results from the one westminster by—election, hartlepool, in the morning. this was the result last time round. it's been a labour seat since the 1950s, but the tories think they're in with a real chance. -- it —— it has been a labour seat since the 1960s. much more to come tomorrow, reeta chakrabarti there. 0ur political editor

laura kuenssberg is here. we are always talking about stakes being high. what are the stakes for labour and the conservatives tomorrow? lils labour and the conservatives tomorrow?— labour and the conservatives tomorrow? , . ., , tomorrow? us reeta was saying, the national polling _ tomorrow? us reeta was saying, the national polling puts _ tomorrow? us reeta was saying, the national polling puts the _ national polling puts the conservatives comfortably ahead most of the time but we can't say enough that conservatives comfortably ahead most of the time but we can't say enough that this is a really big range of contests, local and national, and they could be all sorts of interesting things lurking in the undergrowth. it's worth remembering the parties themselves are flying blind this time. the practicalities of the pandemic mean they haven't been able to be on the doorstep campaigning in the way they normally would so they know less about what's really been going on but whether or not it's the hartlepool by—election on what happens in wakefield council, the tories really hope that they can show they are continuing to dig further and further into territory where they would have been alien a decade ago, and labour is under real pressure to show that under real pressure to show that under keir starmer, not so new but first time he's been tested like this nationally, that he has been able to stop some of the rot. big,

fundamental questions for both sides. �* , fundamental questions for both sides. �*, , , sides. let's consider higher stakes, let's look at — sides. let's consider higher stakes, let's look at scotland _ sides. let's consider higher stakes, let's look at scotland where - sides. let's consider higher stakes, let's look at scotland where lots - sides. let's consider higher stakes, let's look at scotland where lots of| let's look at scotland where lots of people think that result could shape the future of these islands. how do you read that as yet i think that's absolutely the case. whether or not nicola sturgeon can reach that overall majority, that magic number of 65 seats, really will shape a very, very important discussion that really could have a seismic impact on what happens to the united kingdom. we on what happens to the united kinudom. ~ ~' ., . on what happens to the united kinadom. ~ ~' ., . . , , kingdom. we know that westminster government. — kingdom. we know that westminster government, boris _ kingdom. we know that westminster government, boris johnson, - kingdom. we know that westminster government, boris johnson, said - kingdom. we know that westminster| government, boris johnson, said time government, borisjohnson, said time and time again, he would refuse a request even if she gets that kind of majority but if the snp feel that they are able to push ahead with another referendum than the united kingdom could be in for another very fraught, very exciting, if that's what you want, very unnerving, if that's what you don't want, but we could well is a country be in for another couple of years of very fraught, very tense constitutional debate and it could very quickly

become boris johnson's debate and it could very quickly become borisjohnson's biggest become boris johnson's biggest headache. become boris johnson's biggest headache. ., ., become boris johnson's biggest headache. . . , , , become boris johnson's biggest headache. ., ., , , , ., headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks ve much headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks very much once _ headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks very much once again _ headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks very much once again and _ headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks very much once again and we'll - headache. laura kuenssberg, thanks very much once again and we'll talk. very much once again and we'll talk tomorrow again, with thoughts before the counting starts in lots of places. those we saw earlier in hartlepool and in a few other places, the counting isjust hartlepool and in a few other places, the counting is just about getting under way. and we'll have full coverage of all those election results over the next few days here on bbc news, starting with the hartlepool by—election result expected in the early hours of tomorrow morning. and then we'll have in—depth analysis of all the results on a special programme with me here in the election studio, and kirsty wark in edinburgh. that's from nine o'clock tomorrow morning on bbc two and the bbc news channel. now let's turn to some of the day's other news. around 60 french fishing boats have taken part in a protest outside jersey's largest port in a dispute over access to the island's waters. two royal navy vessels were sent to deal with a possible blockade of st helier,

and france responded by dispatching two patrol vessels of its own. under the brexit trade agreement, only french crews with a history of fishing in the area qualify for a licence. so far, 41 permits have been granted. but the french say these licences include restrictions and conditions that have not been mutually agreed. 0ur correspondent robert hall reports from st helier. they had left their home ports before dawn, not to fish but to carry a message to their island neighbours. many of these vessels have fished here for generations, but brexit ended the old agreements. they've been replaced with a new licensing system. the french claim the scheme, which came into effect last weekend, was rushed and over restrictive, putting their livelihoods at risk. this fisherman told me they had no alternative but to rejectjersey�*s move. translation: if the arrangement doesn't go back to normal, -

we're not going to be able to survive. 50%, even more, 80% of french boats will disappear. the french have said they needed to do something. they made that resolution at the weekend. here they are. there are boats around me here from fishing villages and towns all around normandy and further afield as well. they have said they are going to sit out there in the channel leading to st helier and await discussions. beyond the fleet, shrouded in low cloud, visible reassurance from the uk. one of two royal navy patrol ships underlining support forjersey�*s stance. and hidden from view on the edge ofjersey's waters, a french vessel monitored the stand—off. five hours after they arrived, leaders of the french delegation did get the meeting they'd asked for. jersey's ministers had been negotiating via westminster and brussels. now, they were able to hear grievances face—to—face.

the information that had been provided somehow had got lost in translation and what they actually did every day was not transmitted into the bureaucratic process and the information provided. we've got to get to the bottom of that and correct those licences if it's appropriate. among the fleet waiting for news at sea, a number ofjersey boats. there are those on the island who have long—standing friendships in normandy. the licensing row has meant that jersey's fishermen can no longer land their catches in france. they too want the issue resolved. but others are clear thatjersey�*s government should not be intimidated by protest or threats. jersey 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. this evening, french fishermen are back in port and the royal navy has been ordered home. the protest had made its point to sympathetic ears but this row

between neighbours is not yet over. robert hall, bbc news, jersey. let's get the perspective from across the channel. 0ur correspondentjean mackenzie is in normandy. tell us what is going on. the fisherman — tell us what is going on. the fisherman arrived _ tell us what is going on. tue: fisherman arrived back here in port earlier this evening, and they arrived back drenched, exhausted, after a 15 hour stand—off, but they were in a surprisingly good mood. the talks with thejersey government, they said, went badly. they said they didn't feel they made any progress at all, but they felt their protest was a success. they got themselves noticed, and really this was the point. the last few days have been all about drama. we have had talks of a blockade, the french threatening to cut off electricity supplies to jersey because there is an awful lot at

stake here for these fishermen. many of them rely on being able to access jersey's waters. some of them we spoke to catch more than 50% of their stock along jersey's shores, so the idea that they would only be able to fish there for a limited number of days or might not get a permit is unthinkable. now the drama has died down, it is really on the eu and on the french government to take theirfight forward eu and on the french government to take their fight forward and resolve this. , ., . ., ., ., , ., this. gene, once again, many thanks. jean mackenzie. _ this. gene, once again, many thanks. jean mackenzie, our— this. gene, once again, many thanks. jean mackenzie, our correspondent i this. gene, once again, many thanks. jean mackenzie, our correspondent in j jean mackenzie, our correspondent in normandy with the latest. the uk is set to record its strongest economic growth since the second world war. that's the latest forecast from the bank of england, which now sees the pent—up demand after covid restrictions are lifted fuelling a boom in activity. the bank has raised its growth forecast to 7.25% this year, up from the 5% predicted in february. and it said the economy is set to return to its pre—pandemic size by the end of the year.

the bank expects unemployment to rise slightly, to almost 5.5% in the third quarter of this year, when the government's furlough scheme comes to an end. with interest rates staying at an all—time low of 0.1%, our economics editor faisal islam looks at how long the recovery could last and what it means forjobs. a year on, some pandemic clouds are lifting and after an historic economic fall, an equally historic rebound is now happening. and it's much stronger than expected. all of which can be seen in the oxford outskirts, in the shops and in the salons. we are growing, so we have got that opportunity of further employment. i have spoken to some clients who have unfortunately been made redundant or lost theirjobs, but again, they're optimistic that they will find something and they're looking for something. that picture seen in the bank of england's latest forecast,

a vaccine—driven much sharper recovery this year with over 700,000 furloughed workers now predicted to return straight to theirjobs rather than lose them. right now the economy is rebounding sharply, and that's the obvious and natural consequence of the vaccine, principally the one invented in this city rolling out and enabling businesses merely to reopen. but it has another consequence, too, which is to instill confidence in consumers to go out and enjoy social activities that have been shut. and that could turn the rebound into a very real recovery. the bank thinks more lockdown savings will now be spent, but the impacts do differ. it's tougher in the centre of oxford, a place dependent on millions of still absent tourists. jake runs a rooftop bar and nightclub. the furlough scheme is really helpful, i must say. we are able to keep on some really key staff, especially managers,

which are critical for our business being able to continue. but what's going to play out after june is negotiations with landlords. it's great we have kept things afloat, if you like, but there will be a reckoning, and that money will have to be repaid one way or another. so, despite the economy lifting off and house prices surging, the governor remains cautious. is it a boom, or is it more of a bounce back? it is more of a bounce back but it is good news, though. let's put that into perspective. 0n the basis of our forecast that we've issued today, by the end of this year, it's predicted the economy will be back to where it was at the end of 2019. the recovery here and around the nation depends on the continued effectiveness of the vaccination programme, greatly helped by this city's scientists. faisal islam, bbc news, in oxford.

india has recorded yet another record rise in coronavirus infections, officially more than 400,000 new cases, though the actualfigure is likely to be much higher. over the past week or so we have reported on the terrible experience of patients in cities like the capital delhi, but now the impact of the virus is being felt in the countryside. with rural hospitals even less well equipped there are fears of an even bigger crisis to come. 0ur correspondent yogita lamaye has travelled to uttar pradesh in the north of the country and sent this report from varanasi. in less than an hour, we saw 13 funerals here. the government says there were just seven in the whole day. and this is prime minister modi's own constituency. the human cost is being suppressed. this is the reality all over india.

we'll never know how many died of the virus in this country. india's hinterland is where most of its people live. amidst lockdowns in big cities, masses are returning to their homes in small towns and villages. the virus is spreading. rundown hospitals trying to cope with a crisis they've never been equipped for, conditions the government doesn't want people to see — so we filmed secretly. covid patients being treated amidst people with other illnesses, the sick being cared for by their own families for a lack of doctors. this is the intensive care unit. we saw toilets overflowing on its floor. just outside, we met this man.

"if she'd got the right medicines and treatment, she might have survived, but she didn't get it here." his wife was 35. this is the rural health centre she was first taken to, the only one for villages around. here, they didn't discover she had covid until she became severely ill. there were no resources to treat her. i asked each person standing in this queue what they're suffering from. most of them have told me it's fever or a cough, and they are waiting in line at a primary health centre, this is the first place that someone from the village would come to. they're waiting for the doctor who's inside to tell them what is wrong with them. most of these people weren't tested for covid and haven't had the vaccine. we drove miles to reach

the deceased woman's village. even getting to basic health care is out of reach for most here. her husband says their whole family had covid symptoms. she was the mother of two children. people here are angry. "the prime minister makes announcements on televisions, but nothing reaches us," a neighbour says. "there is little we can do," she says. "those who are lucky will survive, whoever has to die will die." yogita limaye, bbc news, uttar pradesh. the latest official figures on coronavirus in the uk show there were 2,613 new infections in the latest 24—hour period, meaning an average of 2,044 new cases per day in the last week. 13 deaths were reported in the latest 24 hour period, that's people who died within 28

days of a positive test. on average in the past week, 12 deaths were announced every day. the total number of uk deaths is now 127,583. and now a look at vaccinations — almost 35 million people have had their first dose of the covid vaccine and now well over 16 million peope are fully vaccinated. a united nations report is calling for swift action to cut emissions of methane — a greenhouse gas that's second only to carbon dioxide in driving global warming. the report says curbing methane emissions could deliver immediate and long—lasting benefits for the climate, because the gas only lingers in the atmosphere for a relatively short time. 0ur chief environment correspondent justin rowlatt reports. you are about to meet methane — the gas that fires your stove, seeps from rotting organic material,

and bubbles from our stomachs and those of cows and sheep. butjust look what happens when you add a little bit of pure oxygen. methane is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. each molecule has 120 times the effect, and the real difference between methane and carbon dioxide is that methane breaks down after about a decade. but carbon dioxide will be with us for thousands of years. methane concentrations in the atmosphere have been steadily increasing, but because it breaks down so quickly in the air, the un says if we can cut emissions, we can rapidly get rid of this powerful warming gas. that means urgently tackling the methane produced by the oil and gas industry, by agriculture, and in our waste.

methane is second only to carbon dioxide when it comes