tonight at ten: we're live in downing street after a day in which borisjohnson faced a wave of calls for his resignation. is it all over, prime minister?! knowing that more conservative mps want him to step down, mrjohnson apologised again for his handling of matters during lockdown. i take full responsibility for everything done in this government, and throughout the pandemic. doesn't the country - deserve so much better than this out of touch, - out of control, out of ideas and soon to be out of office prime minister? — adding to mrjohnson's problems, a conservative mp switched sides to labour as the calls for resignation from his own side grew louder. you have sat there too long, for all the good you have done.

in the name of god, go. cheering we'll have more on the day's events at westminster, and we'll be asking where they leave borisjohnson. also tonight... in england, working from home ends today and face coverings are no longer required from the end of next week. a sharp rise in the cost of living — inflation soars to its highest level in almost 30 years. the uk sends anti—tank missiles to ukraine, as moscow is urged to reflect on the risk of conflict —— as america warned russia it faces disaster if it invades. and a visit to bury in the north—west of england to ask people what they think of their newly—converted labour mp. and coming up in the sport, on the bbc news channel — we'll have all the latest football news, including action from tonight's premier league games.

good evening. we're live in downing street, where the prime minister borisjohnson is no doubt reflecting on a turbulent day. he's faced public calls from his own side for his resignation, and a defection from the conservative benches to labour. the former brexit secretary, david davis, said mrjohnson had failed to take responsibility for his actions over parties during lockdown in downing street. but the prime minister batted away repeated calls to resign, and in a statement which pleased many conservative mps and business owners, he went on to announce an end to the main covid restrictions in england. our political editor laura kuenssberg has the latest. the atmosphere in the prime minister's neighbourhood is full of risk. danger dangles all around for borisjohnson, uncertainty hanging in the air.

downing street confronting the truth that some of his own mps want him gone. as ministers gathered to agree to ditch some covid rules this morning, some of his own side waiting and watching, thinking about ditching him. is it under control, chief whip? yeah. all is calm. all is calm 7 do you think you might be in denial about that if you think this is calm? i think we need to focus on propping up the country and dealing with covid and making sure we've got that right. but can it really go on like this? some of your mps are putting letters in. is it all over for the prime minister, do you think? don't be ridiculous. it is not, perhaps, ridiculous, despite his allies' claim to suggest their boss could be gone before too long. is it time to resign?! it was no ordinary wednesday. pressure on borisjohnson after weeks of claims about what went on in number ten during lockdown. 20 mps who discussed sending letters of no confidence in their leader,

then a shock. political chat interrupted. hearing christian wakeford, the bury mp, is defecting to the labour party. a huge surprise for his colleagues, and the rest. that is quite incredible. the first tory mp since 2007, christian wakeford, cheered to the rafters in the commons as he defected and took a seat for labour instead. can i start by warmly welcoming the honourable member for bury south to his new place? cheering. and to the parliamentary labour party. mr speaker, like so many people up and down the country, he has concluded that the prime minister, the conservative party have shown themselves incapable of offering the leadership and government this country deserves. a sting from keir starmer at a vulnerable moment for borisjohnson. and as for bury south, mr speaker, as far as for bury south, let me say it... in a unionjack mask, the new labour

mp opposite, not behind, the prime minister this time. we will win again in bury south at the next election. there was more energy from the prime minister today in a chaotic prime minister's questions as he sought to stand and fight, mocked by the labour leader. doesn't the country deserve so much better than this out of touch, out of control, out of ideas and soon to be out of office prime minister? mr speaker, when the history of this pandemic comes to be written and the history of the labour party comes to be written — and, believe me, they are history and will remain history, mr speaker — it will show... it will show... it will show that we delivered while they dithered and we we vaccinated while they vacillated, mr speaker. then, just when he thought he might have got through without a new wound, a brutal blast from his own side. a prominent tory quoting cromwell to try to oust the leader of the tories'

21st century revolution. i expect my leaders to shoulder the responsibility for the actions they take. yesterday, he did the opposite of that, so i'll remind him of a quotation. "you have sat there too long for all the good you have done. "in the name of god, go." david davis and borisjohnson used to be allies of a sort. "what a day," you hear the speaker, aghast. what a day. what else to say? hi. it's good to see you again. so a senior tory, the latest to call for the prime minister's exit, the smiling labour leader welcoming a conservative to his fold. yet there have been more public efforts from conservatives to get out and defend. well, he is the bounce back king. i've always supported boris and i wouldn't be an mp here if it wasn't for him.

mps and ministers who want borisjohnson to stay have been falling over themselves to call for cool heads all round. one loyal cabinet minister even claimed the threat to borisjohnson wasn't real. it is true to say no one can be sure in a secret process how many conservative mps are really willing to try to oust him. yet today's chaos demonstrates clearly there are members of different tory tribes who want to see him gone. mr cummings, are you going to provide sue gray with evidence that boris johnson lied? the prime minister has always had political detractors and has gathered enemies along the way. he may not want to rest until this is over. and tory tradition shows when the party concludes the leader is out of line, they are removed. but only two years after a huge election victory, borisjohnson will resist attempts for a changing of the guard.

we are live in downing street and laura is with me. take us through today's events, picking out those you think are most significant in terms of the prime minister himself? no question, things feel very unstable. we heard that very emotive, strong, clear plea from the backbenches, from prominent conservative david davis, the former brexit minister, calling in no uncertain terms time on boris johnson, time for him to go. david davis will not necessarily have a huge gun at his back that will certainlyjoin him in going over—the—top but it was a very strong message that will be heard notjust by strong message that will be heard not just by conservatives strong message that will be heard notjust by conservatives at westminster but around the country, no doubt, and also for people hearing and watching as a sign of

instability and unhappiness. in terms of that defection, defections like that are highly unusual, nothing like that has happened since 2007 and it is another side of how rocky things have been behind—the—scenes. there is a sense. conservative mps that a personal betrayal, as they see it, by a conservative, politically and literally crossing the floor to the labour party, has given some people a pause for thought, questions about whether this instabilityjust benefits that main opponents the labour party rather than their rivals inside the conservative movement. there is no question that today's drama does not change the fundamentals, behind the black door behind us tonight, things are very shaky as far as the conservative party is concerned and the danger has not passed, those fundamentals have not changed. let’s has not passed, those fundamentals have not changed.— have not changed. let's hold onto that thought. _ have not changed. let's hold onto that thought. i — have not changed. let's hold onto that thought, i will _ have not changed. let's hold onto that thought, i will come - have not changed. let's hold onto that thought, i will come back- have not changed. let's hold onto that thought, i will come back to l that thought, i will come back to you later, laura. thank very much.

as we heard, borisjohnson announced that england's plan b measures are to be abandoned. from today the government is no longer asking people in england to work from home. from tomorrow, secondary school pupils in england will no longer have to wear face coverings in the classroom. and for everyone else, from next thursday, face coverings will no longer by required by law, though people are still be advised to wear one in enclosed and crowded spaces. also from next thursday, a covid pass will no longer be required to go to nightclubs and large events. but the self—isolation regulations remain in place for now for those who test positive, though they could be phased out by the end of march. this afternoon the health secretary sajid javid said the latest data showed the 0micron variant was in retreat, as our health editor hugh pym reports. masks on and off, the rules have changed at various times over the last two years but in england the government has said they will no longer be compulsory in shops and on public transport. the prime minister said masks would still be advisable in some

settings but it was now down to personal choice. we will trust the judgment of the british people... members call out "hear, hear" ..and no longer criminalise anyone who chooses not to wear one. labour said they supported the easing of plan b, as long as it was backed up by the science. in bristol, people gave us their reaction. i reckon it's a good thing that we are now learning to live with the 0micron variant and that we have got to have the restrictions removed little by little. for me and for my family, i have elderly parents, ijust would rather if we could keep the mask wearing, really. at this restaurant they welcomed the scrapping of work from home guidance. so for us it's been great. the office being back is amazing. hopefully we are going to be back trading on a weekly basis - as this has been very, very quiet for us. - so what is the trend now for covid cases? one of the most authoritative sources is the community infection survey by the office

for national statistics which picks up those without symptoms. according to the 0ns, covid infections in the uk fell last week for the first time since late november. it's estimated 3.4 million people have the virus. infections came down in much of the uk, including in england where one in 20 people at the virus and in wales with one in 25 and scotland won in 20. —— in england, where one in 20 people had to the virus, and in wales, with one in 25 and scotland, one in 20. but in northern ireland also with one in 20, the trend was said to be uncertain. and the head of the 0ns thinks this is a significant moment. we are certainly seeing a major turning point, and we are certainly seeing a real reduction. the question i ask is that we are not sure yet whether that's going to continue to go down. ministers want to end self—isolation rules in march, or even before if possible, and say they will be reviewed. it is reasonable to think, just as we are living with flu, for example, we don't require people

to legally self—isolate but to remain cautious, to be sensible if they are infected, we will eventually have to find a way to live with covid in a similar fashion. at this hospital in walsall, the number of covid patients in intensive care has come down a bit since last week. but doctors are urging the public to remain cautious as restrictions are eased. we are not in a bad place currently but dropping our guard at this point is probably not the right choice or the right answer. we probably will need to be vigilant and make sure that we follow the precautions that have been put in place by the government. in scotland mandatory mask wearing will continue in most indoor public spaces, though most of the restrictions will be lifted from monday. in wales, nightclubs can reopen

at the end of next week, though they'll remain closed for now in northern ireland. the devolved nations are moving at differing speeds, charting their own courses through this stage of the pandemic. hugh pym, bbc news. let's talk more about some of the changes announced today. our business editor simonjackjoins us. talk us through the changes and tell us what reaction you have picked up? pretty warm welcome from business groups if it means the end of lurching in and out of various types of restrictions, it could be very significant. it has been economically damaging, it has sapped consumer confidence and groups like the cbi say that working from home, which has been abandoned in england, could be big because it has harmed city centre trade, the uk hospitality industry, things like mandated covid certificates has

harmed trading nightclub so pretty good all round. some caution from employee groups, unions say there might be pressure on workers to go back to work places which might not be ready and in their own personal lives they might have to reject things health care. although the guidance has changed, the reality of peoples lives might not. i spoke to somebody last week and said, if an employer wants me to work for three days a week at the office, the answer was no. the relationship, the conversation, the balance of power between employer and employee might have changed forever. thank between employer and employee might have changed forever.— have changed forever. thank you, simon jack- _ let's stay with the pandemic and take a look at the figures. latest figures show there's been a slight increase in the number of people testing positive for coronavirus. there were 108,069 new infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. on average just over 93,000 new cases were reported per day in the last week.

the number of people in hospital has fallen slightly, with just under 19,000 yesterday, and the number of people seriously ill on ventilators has also fallen slightly. there were 359 deaths reported in the latest 24—hour period of people who died within 28 days of a positive test, though there will be some among that number who won't have died from covid. on average, in the past week, 266 deaths were announced every day. 0n vaccinations, over 36.5 million people have now had a boosterjab, which means nearly 64% of people aged 12 and over have now had three vaccine doses. here in downing street, for the prime minister and indeed the chancellor at number 11, there's an added difficulty to deal with — which is the sharply rising cost of living.

prices have risen at their fastest rate in almost 30 years. inflation climbed to 5.4% in december. it has been driven up by the soaring cost of food and energy, among other things. the figure is more than double the bank of england's official target for inflation. the last time inflation was higher was in march 1992, when it was 7.1%. and with gas and electricity prices expected to rise sharply in the coming months, experts are warning there is much worse to come. 0ur economics editor faisal islam has more details. up go the prices. this independent food retailer in ashford in kent has to move rapidly to keep up. every week when i get my invoice, i check it against my price list. "0h, need to put that up" because, you know, the cost has gone up. and some of them go up in between the catalogue being published every other month to the invoice coming through. as a supplier of locally produced food, but also as a consumer and parent, today's figure reflects the very real experience for the likes of kate. the price of everything's gone up.

you have to make decisions as to what luxuries you then want. it's not... you know, we haven't been on holiday, notjust because of a global pandemic, but maybe because we can't afford it either. but maybe because we you know, there's various different reasons why. and i think it's all coming to a head all at once. a0 miles to the north is the isle of grain, where goods, electricity and gas enter the country from around the world and where the uk is importing energy at record high prices. it's been these energy costs that have pushed inflation so high, but in december that spread to food prices, pushing the main measure up to 5.4%, the highest level for three decades, well over the 2% target for inflation set for the bank of england. and forecasters fear that overall inflation could go as high as 7% in the spring. that can be seen in this increasingly common sight, a tanker of frozen liquid american gas unloading a third of daily british demand in kent. tankers such as this that have come from texas are only here in record numbers

in europe and the uk, because of the record prices your energy companies and power companies have paid for that gas that normally goes to the far east. it means that there's an inevitable, inescapable impact on consumer bills, and potentially for the taxpayer. the only question is when this is paid for and whether this will lead to a further round of price rises and higher inflation. the inflation rate shooting up means that some bills pegged to these figures, such as mobile phone, broadband and some railfares, will automatically go up, too. all of that is putting pressure on company bosses like here at this high—end radiatorfactory in birmingham to raise wages for his workers. we've paid them a winter fuel. allowance off our own backs cos we recognise we don't want them | to be worrying about how they're| going to keep the heating on, particularly for a business - like ours which is about heating. so we've done that with them. i but i can see that they are goingi

to have to start coming back to us and looking for more money, of course they are. _ the cost of living's going up. you can see the spiral coming? absolutely. _ here comes the spiral. those discussions - are taking place now. but that's going to increase prices again? of course it is. _ we've had three price increases. we've been forced to put our prices up three times. - the bank of england governor, andrew bailey, expressed very great concern today about the crisis in ukraine prolonging the energy shock. more inflation is already in the pipe, and not now just in our radiators. faisal islam, bbc news. and you can find out more about price rises, how inflation works, and what it means for households on the bbc news website. in the past hour us presidentjoe biden has warned that it would be a "disaster" for russia if it invades ukraine,

and said it would suffer "heavy human losses" if that happened. russia has around 100,000 troops deployed at the border — but denies it's planning military action. earlier today the us secretary of state anthony blinken arrived in ukraine and urged president putin to choose diplomacy. 0ur diplomatic correspondent paul adams has more. british military equipment arriving in ukraine. short—range anti—tank missiles, with a small team of trainers to follow. the latest western gesture of support for a country facing a mounting threat from russia. diplomatic support, too. the us secretary of state antony blinken flew to kyiv, promising relentless american efforts to prevent russia from invading. washington's message to ukraine's president, volodymyr zelensky, there will be no talks about you without your involvement. and tonight, another expression of support direct from washington. if they actually do what they are capable of doing with the force they have massed on the border, it is going to be a disaster for russia

if they further invade ukraine, and that our allies and partners are ready to impose severe cost and significant harm on russia and the russian economy. and all the while, russian troops maintain their menacing presence on ukraine's northern and eastern borders. now, in neighbouring belarus, too, preparing for what are called joint military drills. american officials say these could be used as a cover for an invasion of ukraine. kyiv says it has what it takes to withstand an attack. we have 261,000 in our ukrainian army. we have the options to have territorial defending forces, 130,000. we have 400,000 veterans of ukrainian—russian war, so i'm sure that we have a capacity to deter this activity from moscow. last week, we saw a diplomatic trail

that crisscrossed europe, from geneva to brussels and vienna. at the end of it, the russian foreign minister, sergei lavrov, appeared to throw in the towel. "0ur patience," he said, "is at an end." but here we are, four days on, and the process is actually shifting up a gear. mr lavrov and antony blinken are due to meet on friday, once again in geneva. the talking, it seems, is not quite over. but the tremors of this crisis are being felt right across europe. 0n the baltic island of gotland, sweden is beefing up its presence, concerned about nearby russian activity and what it calls russia's direct threat to europe's security. paul adams, bbc news. president biden having some rather strong words in that news conference earlier. 0ur north america correspondent gary 0'donoghue is at the white house for us this evening. what did you make of the language

used and the substance behind the words, gary? fix, used and the substance behind the words. gary?— words, gary? a real significant increase in _ words, gary? a real significant increase in the _ words, gary? a real significant increase in the rhetoric- words, gary? a real significant increase in the rhetoric from i words, gary? a real significant. increase in the rhetoric from joe biden today vis—a—vis russia, a real upping of the language and the intensity, talking about russia facing consequential, real, heavy loss of life if they work to move into ukraine and a reflection i think of that $600 million thatjoe biden hasjust agreed in lethal support, lethal military support, to ukraine, warning russia of those serious consequences, and also saying that he believed russia would test the west, as he put it. they may well move in on ukraine. he also said if that were to happen that there would be significant increases in nato troops and us troops specifically in poland and romania, so a real threat there to russia. he also said that he thought was perhaps vladimir putin hadn't quite made up his mind yet, that he was

judging the long—term consequences. so there is a real moment i think arriving here where people behind me in the west wing think the decision point is arriving shortly. garza. point is arriving shortly. gary, many thanks _ point is arriving shortly. gary, many thanks again _ point is arriving shortly. gary, many thanks again for - point is arriving shortly. gary, many thanks again for the - point is arriving shortly. gary, i many thanks again for the latest analysis at the white house. gary 0'donoghue, our north american correspondent. let's take a look at some of today's other news. and a warning there is some flash photography. a 31—year—old man has appeared at tullamore district court charged with the murder of the irish primary school teacher, ashling murphy. jozef puska is accused of killing her last week in county 0ffaly. the body of ms murphy, a talented musician and teacher, was found on the banks of the grand canal in tullamore last wednesday. international aid work has been stepped up in tonga, after the damage caused by the volcanic eruption and the tsunami. new pictures show the islands covered in a layer of volcanic ash, while in coastal areas waves tore down trees and ripped through buildings.

international telephone links have now been restored in many areas and ships carrying aid are expected to arrive by friday. a belgian court has sentenced a vietnamese man to 15 years injail, after ruling he was the ringleader in the trafficking of 39 migrants found dead in a lorry in the uk. the victims, all vietnamese, were discovered on an industrial estate in essex in 2019. vo van hong was found guilty of having led a cross—channel trafficking operation based in belgium. more on our main story, here in downing street the prime minister's reflecting on a turbulent day at westminster, including the defection of one his own conservative mps to the labour benches. christian wakeford is the mps for bury south, he said the conservatives had no leadership and no integrity under boris johnson. our special correspondent ed thomas

has been to bury south to see what voters there make of the day's events. how can they change without a vote? how can they change that without a vote? but it has and it's all change in bury south. why have we voted in radcliffe? what's the point of voting when you could change it at any minute of the time? if you were to see christian wakeford today, what would you say to him? well done. why? because of anger over lockdown parties and borisjohnson. people are dying left, right and centre and he just doesn't... he's a clown. he's apologised. he's said he's deeply sorry. he regrets what's happened. well, do you know, you can say sorry and not mean it, can't you? it had been a two decade wait for bury south to turn from red for bury south to cross from red to blue, only to turn back again within two years. can i say my opinion? he's a daft. _ he stole our votes and he

went to the labour's. - 0ne name, christian wakeford. i would call him a traitor. sorry? traitor. i hope that it is the right thing to have done and that it will enable him to help his constituents more. he says he's done this because he's got no more faith left in boris johnson. borisjohnson got us out of europe and he's set this vaccination off. now, i'm fine with that. but pressure is building on the pm and so too is the frustration of some here who voted for him in 2019. christian wa keford's gone. yeah, i think so. what's your reaction to the fact that he's become a labour mp now? i don't blame him for changing to labour. so if there was a general election today would you change your vote? yes, definitely. what i did see with my own whites of my eyes is the fact _ that our majesty was sat there... her husband... ..alone, yet the pm, apparently, has been having parties. - and that's what's done it for you? that for me, ijust think that's not a good leader, that. _ but others here remain loyal and refuse to waver. your mp's defected. yeah.

he's gone from conservative to labour. what's your reaction to that? well, i voted for him and i leafleted for him and canvassed for him in the 2019 election but i wouldn't be voting for him again. how do you feel today? betrayed. wait for the facts to come out 100%. find out exactly what's gone on and then make the decision. not just left when things don't look good for the conservatives. and away from the political noise, the cost of living rises. just look around you, the place is dead. - and is that a frustration for you, that people are talking about lockdown parties? it is because it's almost _ as if they were wasting their time. it is because it's almost - as if they are wasting their time. there's more serious issuesj they need to be addressing. but right now the focus is elsewhere. ed thomas, bbc news, bury south. some interesting contributions from the voters in bury south, laura, and clearly feelings running high on both sides. you said earlier the

fundamentals here for borisjohnson in your view haven't really changed, even after an eventful day like today. what did you mean by that? there has been a lot of drama today, big interventions of the house of commons, a deflection which is a very unusual event, but those fundamentals are, you know, there has been lots of distress among the public about revelations about what's been happening in there during the pandemic, we know there is a deep well of concern and anger in the conservative parliamentary party too, and remember why that matters so much, is because it is tory mps who have the power to decide what might be next, and we know that some of them, we don't know that some of them, we don't know how many, but some of them have submitted those secret letters to call for a vote of no confidence that could see borisjohnson out of office. but we also know today, and i think we saw real signs of that in the house of commons today, we know that boris johnson the house of commons today, we know that borisjohnson is determined to try to hang on. but for all of those different factors we know what might

happen next