palestinian between israel and palestinian militants began. queen elizabeth told the royal navy flagship hms elizabeth, before it set sail for flagship hms elizabeth, before it set sailfor asia. and for only the second time in their history, stjohnstone when the scottish cup final. good morning. the first study of its kind suggest the main covid vaccines do protect against the indian variant of coronavirus. but research from public health england indicates a second doses needed to provide a much stronger level of protection. in total, more than 3&00 cases of the indian variant have been detected across the uk. the numbers have

doubled in the week. jim reed reports. in places like rochdale and greater manchester, vaccinations are now being offered to younger age groups, all those over 18 can get a job today with no appointment needed. quite eager to come and _ appointment needed. quite eager to come and get _ appointment needed. quite eager to come and get it _ appointment needed. quite eager to come and get it done _ appointment needed. quite eager to come and get it done because. to come and get it done because once the first one is done, it is out of the way and it is easier to get it done when it is offered than are waiting for an appointment.— is offered than are waiting for an appointment. keep yourself safe, an appointment. keep yourself safe. also _ an appointment. keep yourself safe, also helping _ an appointment. keep yourself safe, also helping other - an appointment. keep yourself| safe, also helping other people stay safe — safe, also helping other people stay safe as well. it is important for everyone to do it. , , ~ it. scientists think the so-called _ it. scientists think the so-called indian - it. scientists think the l so-called indian variant it. scientists think the - so-called indian variant of the so—called indian variant of the virus can spread more quickly, so areas like this for cases are growing are being offered extra search vaccinations and the first real world data shows how important that could be. an early study has found one dose of either the pfizer or astrazeneca jab was 33% effective at stopping infection from the indian variant. it worked better against the older

kent strain. but a second dose boosted that protection, narrowing the gap almost completely and bringing it in line with its effect against a widespread kent variant. the second dose _ widespread kent variant. the second dose to _ widespread kent variant. tue: second dose to boost widespread kent variant. tte: second dose to boost your immune makes it more effective than a wider range of variants virus that are circulating and thatis virus that are circulating and that is why we are asking people to come forward for the second dose at eight weeks. but lower figure that the astrazeneca jab in the study may be revised up later. scientists say that vaccine takes longer to build a protection. right now the research can only tell us about covid infections. it is to both jabs should offer stronger protection against any severe disease and death caused by the indian variant. we disease and death caused by the indian variant.— indian variant. we all know that the way _ indian variant. we all know that the way out _ indian variant. we all know that the way out of - indian variant. we all know that the way out of this - that the way out of this pandemic is the vaccine and this data show that has not changed, it is the right strategy, but it makes it even

more important for everybody to get the second jab.— get the second 'ab. overall, this study _ get the second jab. overall, this study makes _ get the second jab. overall, this study makes for - get the second jab. overall, . this study makes for reassuring reading. it's the strongest evidence yet that vaccines can beat new variants of the virus, but it suggests that second dose could be key. jim reed, bbc news. the latest government figures on covid—19 show 2694 new infections in the latest 24—hour period. it means an average ofjust under 2500 cases per day in the last week. six deaths were recorded in the last 24 hours, of people who had a positive covid test within the previous 28 days. the average number of deaths per day in the past week is six. the total number of people who have died in the uk is now 127,716. just over 208,000 people have received a first

dose of a vaccine in the latest 24—hour period and in total, almost 38 million people have now had their firstjab. that is 71.6% of the adult population. the number of people who have had their second dose in the past 24 hours is just over 411,000, which takes the overall number who have had their second jab to more than 22 million. that means nearly 40% of the adult population is fully vaccinated. the bbc�*s former director—general, lord hall, has resigned as chairman of the national gallery following criticism over panorama's interview with princess diana interview with princess diana in 1995. tony hall was the head of news at the time when martin bashir you did raqqa used deception to get the interview. lord hall led an internal investigation into initial complaints a year after it was

broadcast. that was described as woefully ineffective this week by an independent enquiry. former bbc director—general, tony hall, has not appeared publicly to answer questions about his role in the scandal, specifically about what the dyson report called his woefully inadequate investigation into martin bashir�*s conducted in 1996. in a statement he said high and followers had a strong sense of public service and it is clear that my continuing in the role will be a distraction into an institution i care deeply about. as i said two days ago i feel sorry for the events of 25 years ago and i believe leadership means taking responsibility. tony hall was director of bbc news and current affairs and describe martin bashir as an honest and honourable man, even though he knew the reporter had fake documents and lied on a number

of occasions. tony hall was director of bbc news and current affairs at the time of the panorama interview, and described martin bashir as "an honest and honourable man", even though he knew the reporter had faked documents and lied on a number of occasions. he was director—general and editor—in—chief at the bbc in 2016, when mr bashir was rehired by the corporation as religious affairs correspondent, and lord hall then promoted him to religion editor in 2017 — decisions to be investigated by mps. i have to say, there are lots of questions, "why is it he was even promoted while back at the bbc?" princess diana's brother earl spencer has revealed that he has written to the commissioner of the metropolitan police, asking the force to look again at the circumstances surrounding her bbc panorama interview. his letter to dame cressida dick claims his sister was the victim of blackmail and fraud. scotland yard has already said it is looking at the dyson investigation to see if there is any significant new evidence to support

a criminal investigation. there is already a government review into public broadcasting in britain, but ministers are suggesting the bashir scandal may require specific reform of bbc governance. what really matters for the bbc is that they put in place what is needed to ensure that this sort of thing can never happen again. the current bbc director—general, tim davie, has written to staff saying the scandal leaves the corporation with much to reflect on, although there are now significantly stronger processes and governance in place, he said, the bbc must also learn lessons and keep improving. mark easton, bbc news. tonight there've been more developments — damian grammaticas is here — and the man who did the interview with diana martin bashir has has given a message to a sunday paper? has given a message to a sunday -a er? . has given a message to a sunday .a er? , ., has given a message to a sunday --aer? , . , has given a message to a sunday n-aer? , . .,~ . . paper? yes, a message to william and har , he paper? yes, a message to william and harry. he says — paper? yes, a message to william and harry. he says he _ paper? yes, a message to william and harry. he says he is — paper? yes, a message to william and harry, he says he is deeply _ paper? yes, a message to william and harry, he says he is deeply sorry, - harry, he says he is deeply sorry, he never wanted to hurt diana and he

believes he did not. he said everything to do with the broadcasting and the timing of it was what she wanted. he said he knows that forging the documents was wrong and he regrets it, but he says he doesn't think it had any bearing on anything. well they match rejects the duke of cambridge's assertion that he fed his mother's paranoia and her decisions to reject her own security. he said that those were complex decisions. he rejects her brother's statement that you could draw a line from the interview to her death, and for that he says that the suggestion opened what i am singularly responsible is i think unreasonable and unfair", but remember the inquiry by lord dyson found he was devious, dishonest and had lied, so people can draw their own conclusions about what he has said. . ~ i. own conclusions about what he has said. . ~' ,, , own conclusions about what he has said. . ~ i. , . the first convoys of humanitarian aid have arrived in gaza, a day after a ceasefire between israel and palestinian

militants came into effect. the focus has turned to rebuilding the devastated territory. more than 250 people were killed in the 11—day conflict, most of them in gaza. 0ur correspondent tom bateman met one family as they returned to their bombed out home. gaza's homeless wonder if it's even worth rebuilding. this man loses count of the rounds of conflict he has seen here. this time, the israelis got his home. i go to meet him at the tent he's put up on the wreckage. before the missiles struck, his neighbour had a warning call. he ran with his family, and then filmed their house being bombed. explosion israel says it targeted the homes of militants. he says his son just works for the police in the enclave,

which is governed by the armed group hamas. translation: i am an innocent civilian. j i have nothing to do with politics. my feeling is more hatred towards israel. if i have a weapon now, i will go and fight, because i am not guilty. i have nothing to do with what happened to me. aid groups say 80,000 people in gaza were displaced in the fighting. some have been leaving schools where they'd sheltered. meanwhile, the first aid convoys have been arriving. this crossing with israel has been partly reopened, as the truce continues to hold. they're cleaning up at the hanadi tower in gaza city. in the final hours of the last major conflict in 2014, it was evacuated, but stayed standing as the war ended. this time, it was struck on the first day of fighting. with the hit on this tower, it's like this conflict picked up where

the last one left off. there is a distressing continuity for people here. life becomes reduced to counting the time between wars. israel's leaders claim to have hit hamas' capabilities in an unprecedented way. but people on both sides feel they are just counting down to the next inevitable conflict. tom bateman, bbc news, gaza. the queen has been meeting the crew of the royal navy's new flagship — hms queen elizabeth — as the carrier prepares for its first major deployment. the £3 billion warship — carrying eight new stealth fighter jets and other aircraft — has tonight left portsmouth for asia. from portsmouth, our defence correspondent jonathan beale reports. britain's longest—serving monarch arrived on britain's largest warship. two queen elizabeths, her majesty bidding farewell to the crew of the aircraft carrier she named and commissioned,

about to sail east halfway around the world. moored alongside, an american destroyer, one of six warships that will accompany her to the pacific. the navy says it's the most powerful uk maritime deployment in a generation, and the embodiment of global britain. so this is a tangible expression of how the country can go out into the world, and so we have a fantastic new capability, and when we deploy, it speaks to our values, our interests, what we stand for. the carrier's already been training with the latest f35s. there are more usjets on board than british ones. the government says that's a sign of strength, not weakness. during the seven—month voyage, they're expected to launch their first combat over iraq. at dusk, the towering 65,000—tonne warship finally set sail on her 26,000 mile voyage, with crowds gathered to wave her off.

as hms queen elizabeth leaves portsmouth on her long voyage to the pacific, the government insists it's not seeking a confrontation with china. this is more about boosting trade and diplomatic ties in the region. but does this deployment signify a big shift in uk foreign policy? a tilt towards asia? i think diplomacy is often about theatre, and this is a great piece of theatre. it's a very impressive piece of british engineering, it's a powerful military asset, but making it there and back to the indo—pacific is not a strategic shift, it's a gesture. this does mark a new era for the navy, a return on the huge investment it's made in its two carriers. but will it really redefine britain's place the world? jonathan beale, bbc news, portsmouth.

the government in the democratic republic of congo has ordered residents to leave the eastern city of goma following the eruption of a large volcano. fountains of high lava burst from the mount nyiragongo into the night sky, forming a thick orange cloud over goma — a city of around two million people. the volcano last erupted in 2002, killing 250 people. football, and stjohnstone have won the scottish cup for only the second time in their history. they beat hibernian in the final, which was played at hampden park in glasgow without fans. 0ur reporter chris mclaughlin was there. green against blue in scottish football's showpiece final, but no celtic or rangers in sight this time. and with covid numbers rising in glasgow, no fans either. small—town stjohnstone were looking for the cup double. shaun rooney's winner secured them the league cup in february,

and he was at it again on the half hour at hampden. the first blow of the scottish cup final. were the club from perth ready to upset the odds yet again? well, they had the perfect chance to put it beyond reach late on. mcginn foul on kane, penalty given. what about this for a double save from matt macey? the saints stood firm at the other end, the oldest trophy in association football back in the hands of the man from perth. well, until2014, stjohnstone had never won a major honour. now today it is a cup double for the club who regularly play in front of crowds of around 4,000. a phenomenal achievement. and it is stjohnstone's cup! it is stjohnstone �*s season!

it is stjohnstone's season! chris mclaughlin, bbc news. after being cancelled last year, the eurovision song contest was back tonight in rotterdam. and the result was one to forget for the united kingdom. the uk entrantjames newman came last — with zero points from the public — and zero points from the juries. italy were declared the winners with 524 points. and before we go, just to let you know that the home secretary, priti patel, will be one of andrew marr s guests at 9.00 tomorrow morning, here on bbc one. that's all from me. good morning.

you are watching bbc news. let's look at the latest developments around the pandemic. in argentina, a doctor has told the bbc it was at almost 100% capacity and 39,000 new cases were reported on wednesday. argentina has started a nine—day strict lockdown. india's information technology ministry has written to social media companies asking them to

remove content that refers to the indian variant. it says reports using the term were completely false. the world health organization has classified the variant that identified in india as being of international concern. the pfizer coronavirus vaccine is 88% effective effective against the indian variant after two voices. both the pfizer and astrazeneca jabs have found to be almost as effective again symptomatic disease as they are against the kent variant after the second dose. however, they were only 33% effective after the first dose, so the double jab seems to matter. this is susan hopkins from public health england. the 816172, the new variant _ health england. the 816172, the new variant from - health england. the 816172, the new variant from india i health england. the 816172,| the new variant from india has the new variant from india has the same vaccine effectiveness

as the variant that has been circulating for the last six months in this country. that is very good news and supports the policy position to move the vaccine roll—out to get the second doses after eight weeks to those most vulnerable. mast to those most vulnerable. most --eole to those most vulnerable. most people travelling _ to those most vulnerable. most people travelling from - to those most vulnerable. most people travelling from the - to those most vulnerable. most people travelling from the uk won't be allowed to enter germany from today because of the rise in cases of the indian variant in the uk. german citizens and residents as well as others with an exceptional reason can still enter but will have to quarantine for two weeks. damien mcguinness explains why germany's government has taken this decision. government has taken this decision-— decision. the economy is starting _ decision. the economy is starting to _ decision. the economy is starting to open - decision. the economy is starting to open up - decision. the economy is starting to open up over| decision. the economy is i starting to open up over the weekend and people can sit out on terraces, beer gardens are opening up, cultural and sporting activities. because the rates in germany have come down. the vaccine roll—out has sped up and 14% of the population have had one dose.

but the worry is that the indian variant could come over into germany. now, at the moment, about 2% of new infections are of the indian variant — that's what officials here say, in germany, as it has done in parts of england, then that could really stop the progress of fighting the pandemic in germany, and that's why, overnight, german officials announced that travel from britain or from the uk to germany is effectively banned. the only exemption are residents of germany or german citizens coming back to germany, and they will have to go into two—week isolation period at home. so, a big restriction, and it will cause a lot of problems and make it almost impossible for many people to go from the uk to germany until the indian variant is controlled. i think that's what the german government is really looking for.

a project which examines sewage water is hoping to catch any early outbreaks. early in the pandemic, scientists confirmed waste water could be tested for genetic fragments of sars virus. since then the government have set out to take samples from sewage treatment plants across the country. that has now been ramped up. researchers say 500 locations are being monitored for coronavirus, many samples at least four days a week. it is a sewage based coronavirus tracking project that was developed from scratch over the last year. the health secretary said this week the approach was being used to monitor the indian variants and track its spread. waste water testing has been described as an additional testing system for covid—19, helping health official spot early signals of localised

outbreaks and variants of concern as the country tentatively emerges from restrictions. the system could continue post—covid enabling waste water to tract disease is likely. scientists who helped set up this programme say it could be a public health silver lining of the pandemic. the queen has been meeting the crew of the royal navy's new flagship, hms queen elizabeth as the carrier prepares for its first major deployment. from portsmouth, our defence correspondent, jonathan beale, reports. this morning, the longest—serving monarch arrived on britain's largest warship. hms queen elizabeth, stand at ease. two queen elizabeths — her majesty bidding farewell to the crew of the aircraft carrier she named and commissioned, about to sail east halfway round the world. moored alongside, an american destroyer, one of six warships that'll accompany her

to the pacific. the navy says it's the most powerful uk maritime deployment in a generation, and the embodiment of global britain. so, this is a tangible expression of how the country can go out into the world, and so we have a fantastic new capability, and when we deploy, it speaks to our values, our interests, what we stand for. the carrier's already been training with the latest f35s. there are more usjets on board than british ones. the government says that a sign of strength, not weakness. during the seven—month voyage, they're expected to launch their first combat missions over iraq. the government sees this as a symbol notjust of global britain, but of military power. but in sailing east, it insists it's not looking for a confrontation with china. it's more about boosting trade and diplomatic ties in the region. but does this deployment signify a big shift in foreign policy?

a tilt towards asia? i think diplomacy is often about theatre, and this is a great piece of theatre. slow it's a very impressive piece of british engineering, it's a powerful military asset, but making there and back to the indo—pacific is not a strategic shift, it's a gesture. tonight, hms queen elizabeth will set sail on her 26,000—mile voyage. it does mark a new era for the navy, but will it redefine britain's place in the world? jonathan beale, bbc news, portsmouth. i want to leave you with some more news on story emerging from the democratic republic of. they say lava erupting from one of the world's most active volcanoes, has now reached the airport. you can see the ferocity of this, the larva is

still spreading and we will keep you up today in the hours to come. thank you for being with us on bbc world news. bit of a lull in the weather at the moment. the skies are clear in the morning's not looking bad at all across most of the uk. don't hold your breath, it's not going to last for very long. because we are expecting rain and gales through the afternoon, particularly across western areas of the uk. and if we have a look at the satellite picture you can see this swirl across the atlantic, another big low pressure and the weather front�*s already approaching ireland. you can see the low pressure, rather autumnal looking and that will be sweeping across us over the next couple of days. it's pushed by a strong jet stream, you can see here at 30,000 feet. the forecast for the early hours shows the rain pushing into ireland but many parts of the uk are clear and calm.

in fact we are expecting a touch of frost in the glens of scotland and even cities further south than birmingham, about three degrees in the morning. the forecast, from the morning onwards that weather front sweeps into western part of the uk, gale force winds develop around western coasts and for a time, an hour or two, the rain really could be quite heavy, particularly around south—western england, wales and also south west of scotland. notice that at this stage, from norwich all the way to aberdeen the weather is dry and the rain may not reach you until a lot later on in the day and probably during the evening hours. then out towards the west, the weather should calm down. here's monday's weather map, a low pressure sitting on top of the uk and typically, when we're in the centre of the low pressure, we get big shower clouds, so it's a day of storm clouds building, perhaps thunder and lightning across some parts of wales and england. perhaps a little bit of sunshine the across the north of england. however, northern and eastern scotland likely to be quite wet on monday as this weather front wraps around into the centre of this low pressure. here's tuesday's weather

forecast — the low pressure is moving towards the east butjust in the wake of it, further showers are expected from scotland and also along the eastern side of the country. out towards the west, the weather should start to improve. all in all, the rest of the weekend and into next week, looking fairly unsettled. but here's the good news — as we head towards the end of the week ahead, there are signs that the weather finally will be settling down. something to look forward to.

this is bbc news — the headlines... the government in the democratic republic of congo has ordered residents to leave the eastern city of goma following the eruption of a large volcano. lava has reportedly reached the airport after a new fracture opened up on mount nyiragongo — enabling lava to flow south towards goma. a picture's been posted on social media that appears to show princess latifa for the first time since the daughter of the ruler of dubai said she was being held hostage by herfather. the photo shows the missing princess apparently sitting with two friends in a mall in dubai. the former bbc journalist who is at the centre of a scandal about an interview with the princess of wales has rejected suggestions his actions were ultimately responsible for her death. in an interview for the sunday times — martin bashir insists it had "no bearing" on subsequent events. now on bbc news — social media, anti—social media, breaking

news, faking news: this is the programme about