tonight at ten — borisjohnson and the president of the united states hold their first face to face talks ahead of the g7 summit in cornwall. the prime minister described the discussions as "great" and said they "went on for a long time" and "covered a huge range of subjects". there's so much they want to do together with us, from security, nato, to climate change. and it's fantastic, a breath of fresh air. a first encounter of a seemingly successful kind. borisjohnson a first encounter of a seemingly successful kind. boris johnson and joe biden— successful kind. boris johnson and joe biden head—to—head at the start of a momentous week. with the eyes of the world now on cornwall, president biden announces the us will donate half a billion doses of the pfizerjab to help poorer countries

get their populations vaccinated. america will be the arsenal of vaccine clinic in our fight against covid—19. just as america was the arsenal of democracy during world war ii. will of democracy during world war ii. have all the late cornwall. also on the programme tonight... the health secretary matt hancock defends his handling of the covid pandemic amid questions over the timing of the first lockdown. you are pressured to accept the sexual harassment we deal with. nine out of ten school girls in england experience some form of sexual harassment, according to the schools watchdog, with most of it unreported. a woman who lost herjob after claiming people can't change their biological sex wins her appeal against an employment tribunal ruling. and last—minute training for the euros — scotland prepare for their first major tournament in more than 20 years. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel, england are still in it

but they struggled against new zealand's swing bowling on the opening day of the second test at edgbaston. good evening. borisjohnson has held his first face to face meeting with president biden ahead of the g7 summit in cornwall and committed to working together on a number of global challenges. the prime minister described their meeting this afternoon as a "breath of fresh air". joe biden said they'd reaffirmed the special relationship. the two leaders also discussed post—brexit trade problems in northern ireland, after mr biden warned that the uk's dispute with the eu over border controls must not put the peace process at risk. our political editor laura kuenssberg is in cornwall for us tonight. whenever and however it happens, the

first meeting between a tish prime minister and first meeting between a tish prime ministerand an first meeting between a tish prime minister and an american president is a big moment to note —— between a british prime minister. but forjoe biden and borisjohnson it seemed personal as well as political. both men with big goals in mind, wanting a reset for the well�*s biggest democracies to recover from the pandemic, the stresses and strains of the last year, but also a refresh, turning the page for a new chapter in the relationships between the two countries across the atlantic. quite the hello stop the american president, the new mrsjohnson. the prime minister hosting this new quartet. no handshakes, the doesn't allow. but a historic bump, the first lady's description. after a stroll on this exclusive cornish beach, the preamble before the

politics. are you pleased to be here, mr president? i’m politics. are you pleased to be here, mr president?— politics. are you pleased to be here, mr president? i'm very pleased to be here- — here, mr president? i'm very pleased to be here- they _ here, mr president? i'm very pleased to be here. they have _ here, mr president? i'm very pleased to be here. they have may _ here, mr president? i'm very pleased to be here. they have may roles - to be here. they have may roles scri ted to be here. they have may roles scripted by _ to be here. they have may roles scripted by their _ to be here. they have may roles scripted by their countries - to be here. they have may rolesl scripted by their countries shared histories but these hair seem determined to be friends. it’s histories but these hair seem determined to be friends. it's a ureat determined to be friends. it's a great pleasure _ determined to be friends. it's a great pleasure to _ determined to be friends. it's a great pleasure to welcome - determined to be friends. it's a great pleasure to welcome you | determined to be friends. it�*s —. great pleasure to welcome you to cornwall. brute great pleasure to welcome you to cornwall. ~ , ., ., ., , great pleasure to welcome you to cornwall. ~ ,., ., ._ ., ,., cornwall. we both married way above our station- — cornwall. we both married way above our station. i'm _ cornwall. we both married way above our station. i'm not _ cornwall. we both married way above our station. i'm not going _ cornwall. we both married way above our station. i'm not going to - our station. i'm not going to dissent from _ our station. i'm not going to dissent from that _ our station. i'm not going to dissent from that one, - our station. i'm not going to dissent from that one, i'm l our station. i'm not going to l dissent from that one, i'm not our station. i'm not going to - dissent from that one, i'm not going to disagree on that or anything else. , ., , ., , , to disagree on that or anything else. , ., ,., ,, ., to disagree on that or anything else. , ., else. they want progress on policy, on covid, else. they want progress on policy, on covid. on _ else. they want progress on policy, on covid, on climate, _ else. they want progress on policy, on covid, on climate, but _ else. they want progress on policy, on covid, on climate, but more - else. they want progress on policy, | on covid, on climate, but more than anything to prove coming together counts, but there is glamour, american alarm over how brexit is affecting northern ireland, so what was the verdict after the first encounter? clearly you had high hopes for this relationship, power the talks? ~ , ., ., the talks? when they were great and it's an incredibly _ the talks? when they were great and it's an incredibly important _ it's an incredibly important strategic relationship and the talks were very good and there's no question that under president biden there is a massive amount that the

new us administration wants to do together with the uk on everything from security, working together on all the issues of projecting our values around the world together, but also on climate change, so it's a big breath of fresh air. fine but also on climate change, so it's a big breath of fresh air.— a big breath of fresh air. one of the things _ a big breath of fresh air. one of the things the _ a big breath of fresh air. one of the things the us _ a big breath of fresh air. one of the things the us clearly - a big breath of fresh air. one of the things the us clearly wants| a big breath of fresh air. one of. the things the us clearly wants you to do is sort out the problem with the northern ireland protocol. did president biden urge you to crack on with that? ., �* , ., with that? no, he didn't, but what i can sa is with that? no, he didn't, but what i can say is that _ with that? no, he didn't, but what i can say is that america, _ with that? no, he didn't, but what i can say is that america, the - with that? no, he didn't, but what i can say is that america, the united | can say is that america, the united states, washington, the uk, plus the european union, have one thing we absolutely all want to do and that is to uphold the good friday, the belfast good friday agreement. there will be tricky conversations _ belfast good friday agreement. there will be tricky conversations to come though, yet there is no question this summit by the sands marks a shift, the two leaders' partners barefoot on the beach, the start of something after the horror of the pandemic that washed over the world,

and you american leader more interested in partnership than provocation, willing to lavish praise on the past to lay hope to what lies ahead. this is a crucial diplomatic outing for the guest as well as the host.— well as the host. prime minister winston churchill _ well as the host. prime minister winston churchill and _ well as the host. prime minister winston churchill and resident l winston churchill and resident frankiin— winston churchill and resident franklin recent belt signed an agreement known as the atlantic charteh — agreement known as the atlantic charteh it— agreement known as the atlantic charter. it was a statement of first principles, — charter. it was a statement of first principles, a — charter. it was a statement of first principles, a promise that the united — principles, a promise that the united kingdom and the united states would meet the challenges of their a-e would meet the challenges of their age and _ would meet the challenges of their age and they would meet it together. today. _ age and they would meet it together. today. we _ age and they would meet it together. today, we build on that commitment. we discharged and discussed a broad range _ we discharged and discussed a broad range of— we discharged and discussed a broad range of issues on which the united kingdom _ range of issues on which the united kingdom and the united states are working _ kingdom and the united states are working in— kingdom and the united states are working in very close cooperation. we affirmed the special relationship, it's not said lightly, the special relationship between our people _ the special relationship between our people. the the special relationship between our --eole. ~ , ., . people. the prime minister even once a new and improved _ people. the prime minister even once a new and improved phrase _ people. the prime minister even once a new and improved phrase to - a new and improved phrase to describe that friendship, but today's diplomatic outing gives a firm foundation for an important

week. any first meeting between a british prime minister and an american president would fill a page on our history and these two men have talked with conviction about the values that they share but that's not the same as what their partnership might actually achieve, nor does it mask any areas where they might disagree. and even the warmest of warm ups is just a start. other leaders are touching down tonight. they can be friction between friends but meaningful agreement needs more than ambition to get everything in line. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, cornwall. our north america edit thejon sopel is in cornwall. what more have you learned? �* , , , ., ~ in cornwall. what more have you learned? �* , , , ., ,, ., learned? i've been speaking to someone present _ learned? i've been speaking to someone present at _ learned? i've been speaking to someone present at the - learned? i've been speaking to l someone present at the meeting between the two off them and the northern ireland subject is interesting because it seems the white house doesn't distinguish between the good friday agreement that was signed in 1998 and the northern ireland protocol. that

potentially is a big problem for the british government but i'm told that joe biden was in no way didactics. it was very accommodating. there was a feeling that there was progress to be made. joe biden is going to be watching this closely but i think on the british side there was some relief about the way that the meeting went on that subject. joe biden is also here to show global leadership, that america is back and that the democracies are notjust surviving, they are flourishing, and i think we've got to see the announcement of these 500 million pfizer vaccines to go to the poorest countries in the world as part of that, as a rejoinder to china and russia and what they've been doing. this is vaccine diplomacy. it might seem ugly to be competitive over it but that's what's going on. i should also say that just a little while ago i was in a bar sitting on the patio when something happened that doesn't really happen every evening. how's it going, mr president? are you enjoying it here? we're enjoying our walk. you could do with more sunshine?

well, itell you, this is so beautiful you don't even need the sun. have a good evening, sir. jon sopel getting somewhat closer to the president than he expected. well, president biden said today that the us knows first hand the tragedy of covid—19 — almost 600,000 americans have died with it, more than anywhere else in the world. and, today, new analysis showed that the us had the highest number of excess deaths of the g7 nations over the first year of the pandemic, with the uk second. our economics editor faisal islam is here. you have been looking at this data. tell us more about it. shifter you have been looking at this data. tell us more about it.— tell us more about it. after the first wave _ tell us more about it. after the first wave we — tell us more about it. after the first wave we analysed - tell us more about it. after the first wave we analysed the - first wave we analysed the comparative pandemic hits for the g7 nations and the uk did come out worst, but we've got a full year's worth of data now and you can compare more fully exactly what has gone on and we can show you now what

that looks like. there's all the g7 nations that are meeting today and you see the us coming out worst, just over one fifth in terms of excess deaths, that's death is over and above what you would have and above what you would have expected during that year. the uk just behind with just less than a fifth in the increase. italy there, then far fewer in france, fifth in the increase. italy there, then farfewer in france, canada, germany and injapan. in terms of numbers we are talking about one in 500 of the population of the usa and uk and far below one in 1000 at the bottom. ~ . �* , uk and far below one in 1000 at the bottom-_ let's - bottom. what's driven it? let's com are bottom. what's driven it? let's compare the — bottom. what's driven it? let's compare the us _ bottom. what's driven it? let's compare the us and _ bottom. what's driven it? let's compare the us and uk, - bottom. what's driven it? let's compare the us and uk, let's l bottom. what's driven it? let's i compare the us and uk, let's look bottom. what's driven it? let's - compare the us and uk, let's look at the pattern of what happened over the pattern of what happened over the past 12 months. you see the big peak last year, we were hearing about that from matt hancock, but thenit about that from matt hancock, but then it goes down to zero with lockdowns. if you compare it to the us, it's a lower peak but it stays around and that's because perhaps the restrictions were less stringent, different policies in different us states. there were other fascinating patterns. different us states. there were otherfascinating patterns. the worst hit during the pandemic are

now doing the best in the vaccinations so that could change the equation going forward. in terms of economics the us have regained all of their lost output. as they sit around that summit table looking to the future, they can learn some lessons from the immediate past too. faisal islam, thank you. the health secretary matt hancock has been defending his handling of the covid pandemic. speaking in front of a committee of mps, he defended the timing of the first national lockdown in england, insisting that the government had been following expert advice. but he did reveal that he was being warned in january last year that there could be as many as 820,000 deaths. matt hancock also rejected a series of allegations by borisjohnson's former top adviser, dominic cummings. our deputy political editor vicki young reports. what more should the government have done to prepare for an emergency like this? when the covid pandemic hit, crucial decisions had to be taken fast. mps are trying to find out how that could have been done better. matt hancock recalled that, early last year, he'd told officials

to prepare for a reasonable worst case scenario. that was a planning assumption for 820,000 deaths, and i was determined that that would not happen on my watch. so why wait so long before ordering a lockdown? mr hancock pointed out that there were very few confirmed cases, and the advice was that the public wouldn't tolerate restrictions for more than a few weeks. i remember the moment around the cabinet table when i said "we are going to have to tell everybody to stop all social contact." and i remember thinking, "this is the most extraordinary thing that i've ever said." and the prime minister said, "yes, we are. "you'd better go and tell them." matt hancock says the uk responded well in areas where it was already strong, so the nhs massively increased the number of beds. there was existing scientific expertise, but there was no testing capacity. there wasn't enough

protective equipment. and ministers, he said, were making decisions based on incomplete or wrong information. one crucial misunderstanding was that the virus could only be spread by those with symptoms. mr hancock remembers seeing some evidence that this wasn't the case. i bitterly regret that i didn't overrule that scientific advice at the start and say, "we should proceed on the basis that there is asymptomatic transmission until we know that there isn't rather than the other way round." and what about one of the most serious accusations? why did you not heed the warnings about dangers to the care sector? mr hancock admitted there hadn't been enough capacity to test patients leaving hospital and returning to care homes. but... the evidence has shown that the strongest route of the virus into care homes, unfortunately, is community transmission. and so it was staff testing that was the most important thing for keeping people safe.

when dominic cummings, the prime minister's former top adviser, gave his evidence two weeks ago, he accused the health secretary of lying and said he should have been sacked for his handling of the pandemic. did you ever say anything to the prime minister that you knew not to be true? no. thank you. the best thing to say is that government has operated better over the past six months. which just happens to be where mr cummings left downing street. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. one of the most contentious issues in this pandemic has been the care of elderly and vulnerable people. today, the health secretary defended his actions around the early discharge of residents from hospitals into england's carehomes. but, as our social affairs correspondent alison holt explains, there are still unanswered questions about the decisions made at the time. from care home to care home, families and staff want to understand why so many residents died at the start of the pandemic.

today, matt hancock insisted they weren't an afterthought. it felt different at the time. it's been so awful. i mean, it's awful. it's just surreal. staff struggling to get testing and protective equipment. i would appeal to the government, the guidance needs to change if they want us to look after these residents to the end. and the sense of abandonment. it's really not good enough. we need to be heard, and we need to be saved. doctor cathy gardner watched matt hancock's evidence today and believed he sidestepped most issues. she's taking legal action against the government over the death of her father michael gibson. he died of covid soon after a hospital patient transferred to his care home with the virus. there's absolutely an attempt to rewrite history. a lot of what the government has given us more recentlyjust looks like the benefit of hindsight. what matters here is the truth, what matters is the evidence.

who said what and when. not what they're now saying about what they really meant. we're looking for the facts. for instance, families want to know the risk assessment behind the nhs letter sent out on march 17 last year, a week before lockdown. it led to the urgent discharge of medically fit hospital patients. some transferred to care homes. most weren't tested. that only changed on april the 15th. by then, 25,000 hospital patients had been moved to care homes. matt hancock insists few outbreaks were caused by this. he also says the important word in this statement a month later was "try". right from the start, we've tried to throw a protective ring around our care homes. here at pelham house in folkestone, they lost ten people, half their residents, to the virus. the home's owner describes what he's hearing now as demoralising. it makes you feel dejected, and to some degree in despair.

there was such a lack of coordination and focus on what really mattered, and what really mattered was the care of vulnerable people. it wasn'tjust england that struggled to protect residents at the start of the pandemic. scotland, wales and northern ireland also saw significant increases in care home deaths. it means across the uk, there are challenging questions still to be answered. alison holt, bbc news. the latest government figures show that, in the past 2a hours, seven deaths were reported and 7,393 new infections were recorded, almost all of them thought to be of the new delta variant. 6,287 new cases have been recorded on average per day in the last week. nearly 177,000 people received their first vaccine in the latest 24—hour period, meaning nearly 41 million people have now had one jab, that's 78% of uk adults. more than 316,000 have had

their second dose, meaning nearly 29 million have had both jabs, with 55% of uk adults now fully vaccinated. the long—term impact of the pandemic on the nhs was underlined again today, with new figures showing that more than five million people were waiting for hospital treatment in england at the end of april — that's the highest since records began in 2007. our health editor, hugh pym, has been speaking to some of those affected. the pain isjust unbearable. so i'm just eating paracetamol at the moment. peter has had to accept he may have to live with intense pain in his hip for more than a year. that's the time doctors have warned he will have to wait to get an operation for a hip replacement, and he feels that's unfair. you work hard and you pay your taxes, and you pay your national insurance. i feel let down, really that down that we haven't got something in place to cope with this.

new research shows the worst orthopaedic waiting lists in april in england were castle point in rochford, with 507 per 100,000 population waiting more than a year, followed by southend, norfolk and waverly and blackpool. the best were in south—west london, withjust 16, and surrey heartlands. the areas that were hit hardest, their health systems had to focus almost exclusively on that acute threat from covid—19 which meant more routine services, like waiting lists, either delayed or were done at a slower pace. hospitals are having to be creative with solutions. at this one in a car park there are operating theatres in pre—manufactured units. construction only started in march. they will start taking patients from monday. in that time, they've created the capacity to do an extra 120 operations per week, one answer to the mounting backlog. here we are in the new operating theatre...

staff are already stretched. they say they are determined to get more patients treated at the new facility. we've seen patients in terrible pain. we've had patients who have been crippled by pain and they've experienced tremendous disability, and we really need surgical centres like this to manage those patients and finally get them treated. even during peak covid pressure, cancer services kept going here. this woman needed surgery for breast cancer. she was nervous about the virus but was relieved it went ahead. you think things are going to be worse than they are. first time i went into care, they were amazing, and i didn't have any problems at all. the hygiene, the temperature checks, social distancing, everything was in place. nhs england said the number waiting more than one year for routine surgery had fallen but the overall waiting list keeps rising. there are similar pressures for the health service in all parts of the uk and a sense it'll take some time to bring

them under control. hugh pym, bbc news. a bbc investigation has revealed that at least 13,006 offences by under 18—year—olds were reported to police in england and wales every year from 2018 to 2020. around 1000 of them took place on school premises. it comes as the school's watchdog ofsted found that nine in ten girls experience some form of sexual harrassment from their peers, with students often not reporting the abuse. our education editor branwen jeffreys reports. every day in every place, girls are facing sexual pressure — being touched, asked to share nude photos, their bodies rated and shared on social media. we are pressured to send nude pictures or we are pressured to just accept this sexual harassment that we deal with. it's become so normalised that we don't...we just disregard it and we don't speak up about it.

at a sixth form today, girls told me about the impact on their lives. every day, women are harassed, if it's on social media, if it's in school, sometimes even on the way back from school. we're just followed by it every day, everywhere, 2a/7. the girls can feel anxious about this. theyjust are feeling depressed because they don't have what other girls can have. most of the time boys just laugh about it and just make jokes - and they don't think it's really serious. l if you think this has always happened in the lives of young people, think again, because technology and social media have created spaces out of the view of parents and teachers where a young girl can be pestered by up to a dozen boys in one evening to take nude photos, images which can then be distributed in seconds to hundreds of others. they said that these things are completely normal, that they don't...often don't even challenge or complain about them

because they think it's justjust something that is part of life. so, in a sense, they're not complaining about adults not understanding, they're just taking it as a matter of course, which is horrible. it's shocking that young girls should be taking...being sent explicit images. each year, at least 13,000 serious allegations reach the police in england and wales. our investigation found 2,000 of these were in children aged ten or younger. this is a challenge for every school and every college. it is not acceptable and we have to start with that point of zero tolerance. and this ultimately comes back down to respect. and that is, again, a key facet of how we tackle this. people have got to understand that the behaviours have got consequences, and they need to think about their actions. while they're raising their eyes to the future, young women fear younger girls face ever increasing pressure.

branwen jeffreys, bbc news. an inquestjury has concluded that the convicted terrorist who stabbed to death two people at fishmongers' hall in london was lawfully killed by police. usman khan was hit by 12 bullets when officers opened fire on london bridge. he was wearing a suicide vest which was later found to be fake. a group of former employees has accused the aberdeenshire craft beer company, brewdog, of having a toxic workplace culture. an open letter — signed by more than 60 of them — alleges there is a "culture of fear" at the beer firm. the company's co—founder has apologised and says lessons will be learned. british airways has put thousands of its staff back on furlough because of delays to the restart of international travel. ba had started to bring employees back ahead of restrictions on foreign holidays being eased on 17th may. but only a small number of countries have been put on the government's approved green list. a woman who lost herjob

with a think tank after claiming people cannot change their biological sex has won her appeal against an employment tribunal ruling. maya forstater had posted a series of messages on social media opposing the government's proposals to reform the gender recognition act. our special correspondent lucy manning reports. maya forstater felt she was fighting for more thanjust herjob — for what she believed. after posting tweets, like, "men cannot change into women", she was accused of offensive language and lost herjob. today a judge said although her views might be profoundly offensive and even distressing to others, they had to be tolerated. for the first time it says that gender critical belief, which is an an absolutely ordinary belief about sex, that your mother and grandmother are women, being female is a thing... ..is...

..is worthy of respect in a democratic society and people who hold that belief shouldn't be discriminated against or harassed for expressing it. the authorjk rowling had posted, "i stand with maya" on social media and today reposted ms forstater�*s "we won" message. ms rowling has gained support and caused offence for similar views. the divide between those who believe transgender women are women and those who think people can't change biological sex has bitterly split some women and generations. the centre for global development, where ms forstater had worked, said it was a step backwards for inclusivity and equality. the tribunal says, possibly in hope, that this judgment doesn't express any views on the merits of either side of the transgendered debate. it points to existing laws on harassment and discrimination,

to say that the misgendering of people won't be allowed without consequences, and says those same laws will mean that employers have to provide a safe working environment for transgender staff. in ordinary circumstances, today's ruling would be nothing. it does very little more to clarify the law. in the light of the incredible pressure that people have been put under, there are people who are literally scared, there are people looking to leave this country and to head to somewhere that is actually less bigoted. hard to reconcile views which are allowed to offend but must be tolerated. lucy manning, bbc news. the earl of wessex has been paying tribute to his father on what would have been the duke of edinburgh's 100th birthday. in his first uk broadcast interview since the funeral, prince edward described prince philip as?an "extraordinary" character. he was speaking to our

royal correspondent daniela relph. we would have loved it if he had been here and been with us. he didn't really want all the fuss and bother, and so we celebrate what might have been and his life, and i think we try to turn it into something that's very positive. you must miss him. yes. yes, and...but it's been a very difficult year, 18 months. the funeral was an extraordinary day. it was very strange, coming from the the outside with all the pageantry, and then coming into into st george's chapel, especially into the nave which was completely empty. it was a very moving, very sombre experience. and a lot of people were moved by seeing your mother as well in the chapel, sitting alone in her mask. it must have been very difficult for you to not be alongside her and able to comfort her that day. yes, exactly that.

but then that's no different to what so many other families have been experiencing up and down the country throughout this past year. we can't escape the fact that it has been a difficult few months for the royal family on a number of levels, but particularly around the situation with the duke and duchess of sussex and how that has played out so publicly. i stay way out of it. that's much the safest place to be. and do you feel any sadness about how it's played out? 0h, course, you know. i mean, there are all sorts of issues and circumstances there. but, you know, we've all been through there. we've all had that same spotlight shone on our lives. we've been subjected to massive intrusion and all the rest of it, and we all deal with it in different ways. a new baby for harry and meghan, the sweet baby lilibet, a name that will be very meaningful for yourfamily. well, wejust wish them all happiness. it's fantastic news, and yeah, absolutely. i hope they're very happy, and...and, yeah. how would you like your father to be remembered? everybody will have their own memories. he was that sort of

larger than life person. once met, never forgotten. in cricket, it's been the first day f england's second and final test against new zealand at edgbaston. a near capacity crowd watched a finely balanced day s action, with england batting first. opener rory burns made 81, but new zealand s bowlers also enjoyed plenty of success, reducing england to 258 for 7 by the close of play. football, and scotland have arrived at their training camp to prepare for the much delayed euro 2020 tournament. it's the first time the men's team will play at a major tournament in 23 years. jane dougall reports from the camp near darlington. this was the last time scotland men were at a major tournament. the 1998 world cup in france. and this was the last man to score. he isjust the player

for it, burley! yes!