this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 8pm — the self—isolation rules for anyone with covid could be scrapped completely in england by the end of this month. provided the current encouraging trends in the data continue, it is my expectation that we will be able to end the last domestic restrictions, including the legal requirement to self—isolate if you test positive, a full month early. the metropolitan police say they will begin questioning more then 50 people by the end of this week as part of their investigation into alleged breaches of covid rules at downing street. the rspca removes two cats from the home of west ham's kurt zouma afterfootage emerged of him kicking one of them.

ian stewart, who'd already been convicted of mudrering his fiancee, is now also found guilty of murdering his wife six years earlier. two, one, zero... and getting a reaction — british scientists break the record for creating energy from nuclearfusion. good evening, and welcome to bbc news. the rules on self—isolating for anyone testing positive for covid—19 in england could be dropped completely by the end of this month. the prime minister says as long as the data continues to be encouraging, the current law, meaning you have to quarantine for at least five full

days, will be scrapped. the change would end two years of covid restrictions. the latest figures from the office for national statistics suggest infection levels in the uk have risen since last week, with more than 3.3 million people with covid—19. but the number of deaths are well below the levels seen in previous waves, and the number of people in hospital continues to fall. labour has accused the prime minister of using the announcement to "dig himself out of a political hole" rather than "dealing with the serious challenge facing the country". here's our health editor hugh pym. it's looking like a move backwards to life before the pandemic, reversing restrictions in england perhaps as soon as february the 21st, with the ending of the legal requirement to isolate after a positive test. the prime minister headed to the commons to make the announcement, with an eye

perhaps to cheering up his backbench mps, pulling forward the end of restrictions which had been planned for late march. provided the current encouraging trends in the data continue, it is my expectation that we will be able to end the last domestic restrictions, including the legal requirement to isolate if you test positive, a full month early. later labour gave their reaction. the fact we had no notice that this was coming, no sense it was coming suggests some throwaway remarks at the start of prime minister's questions were more about digging the prime minister out of a political hole than dealing with the serious challenge facing the country. so, what do the public think about the end of restrictions? if you're going to get it, you're going to get it, it's that simple.

everybody is at a stage where we know the risk and we have to get on with the rest of our lives. i love that we have lots of our freedom back and i want to enjoy it, but i think it is still important to be cautious. the office for national statistics survey suggest that 3.3 million people in the uk had the virus last week, up a bit on the previous week. case rates varied around the uk. wales was the only nation to see a decrease. but hospital admissions have been falling, with the omicron variant proving less severe than first anticipated and the continued take—up of booster jabs. i don't think this is a scientific decision, though. i think it's clear the rates are still very, very high, especially in some sectors of the community, particularly children and people who look after children, parents and teachers. rachel is not happy about the news. she says she's much more likely to stay indoors. she had a kidney transplant, and her immune system is compromised. she's worried about picking up the virus from her family. i know that they will carry

on to protect themselves and they'll do tests if they can get them, but you don't know who they're mixing with and stood next to in supermarkets. the paranoia i had is starting to come again, because who can i trust? while england heads towards life without restrictions, scotland, wales and northern ireland are moving at different speeds. they'll publish their own plans in due course on life after covid. hugh pym, bbc news. paul hunter is professor in medicine at the university of east anglia. hejoins us now. good evening to you. first off, what were your thoughts or rather reaction to the announcement today?— thoughts or rather reaction to the announcement today? came out of the blue. it announcement today? came out of the blue- it was — announcement today? came out of the blue- it was a — announcement today? came out of the blue. it was a big _ announcement today? came out of the blue. it was a big surprise _ announcement today? came out of the blue. it was a big surprise i _ blue. it was a big surprise i don't think anybody was expecting this today. and certainly we are heading towards the point that we will lift these restrictions, but i think there was some surprise that we might be doing that this month. what

might be doing that this month. what do ou think might be doing that this month. what do you think is _ might be doing that this month. what do you think is the _ might be doing that this month. what do you think is the basis for this decision? when you look at the data, yes, the figures are up by the number of deaths is dropping in the number of deaths is dropping in the number of deaths is dropping in the number of hospitalisations are dropping. is that going in the right direction? , , ., �* ., dropping. is that going in the right direction? , �* ., ., , direction? yes, you've got to be careful not _ direction? yes, you've got to be careful not make _ direction? yes, you've got to be careful not make the _ direction? yes, you've got to be careful not make the ons - direction? yes, you've got to be| careful not make the ons survey direction? yes, you've got to be i careful not make the ons survey is what is called a prevalence survey so that just what is called a prevalence survey so thatjust means a number of people who are positive on any one day, and that tends to lag behind by about a week when case numbers of new infections. but we have seen in the dashboard data is that new infections have actually started falling again quite rapidly, particularly rapidly in children, where children in the cases reported in children in the 5—9 —year—old group is halved in about a week. so i think cases are going down, going down rapidly for the moment, which we will probably see that next week in the ons data, but against that,

we have got the new variant which may well be increasing. so it's not totally clear that things are all heading in the right direction and that they will maintain that over the coming weeks. i that they will maintain that over the coming weeks.— that they will maintain that over the coming weeks. i don't know if ou the coming weeks. i don't know if you caught _ the coming weeks. i don't know if you caught that — the coming weeks. i don't know if you caught that report, _ the coming weeks. i don't know if you caught that report, but - the coming weeks. i don't know if you caught that report, but there| you caught that report, but there was a variety of news there is a people just saying we are going to get it, we are going to get it, just get on with it so is there going to be a point we have to learn to live with it as we have heard over and over again, with it as we have heard over and overagain, living with it as we have heard over and over again, living with lou? at what point is it safe to do that? look at the figures and onto the projections, where alum at lodge of the cut off period be? i projections, where alum at lodge of the cut off period be?— the cut off period be? i think there are two issues _ the cut off period be? i think there are two issues here. _ the cut off period be? i think there are two issues here. the _ the cut off period be? i think there are two issues here. the first is i the cut off period be? i think there are two issues here. the first is a l are two issues here. the first is a population as a whole, which i think we are getting very much to that point. the remaining issue is the more vulnerable people, those who have had kidney transplants and who are on long—term immunosuppression and who will not have mounted much

of a good response to vaccine. and how we protect them is going to be the crucial thing about moving forward from now on. we have got to be able to ensure that when people are exposed to infection, when they seem to be developing infection, we get anti—virals of them really quickly so that we can stop this infection developing into something severe that needs hospitalisation. and i think how we manage that group going forward is how we protect that group is going to be in many ways how we willjudge the success of this in the years of time or so. ok. this in the years of time or so. 0k, professor. — this in the years of time or so. ok, professor, thank you very much, thank you. detectives investigating alleged breaches of covid—i9 regulations in downing street and whitehall will begin contacting more than 50 people believed to have taken part in the events by the end of the week to get their accounts, the metropolitan police said.

our political correspondent damian grammaticas is at westminster. what can you tell us about this latest piece of news that's reaching us about the 50 people? so latest piece of news that's reaching us about the 50 people?— us about the 50 people? so this is an announcement _ us about the 50 people? so this is an announcement put up - us about the 50 people? so this is an announcement put up with - us about the 50 people? so this is an announcement put up with the | an announcement put up with the metropolitan police just a little bit earlier this evening in which they have said more than 50 people, they have said more than 50 people, they say, will be contacted or they will start contacting usually by e—mail at the end of the week. and these are all people who have been identified as part of that investigation into dentistry and whitehall parties what the metropolitan police says is it is sending everyone of those people a form to fill out, a questionnaire in which they will be asked to respond to questions and basically it has a formal legal status they say were response is required in seven days and asks for an account and an

explanation of the recipient's is a patient in an event and then it goes on to say that it should be noted that the person being contacted does not mean they will end up getting a fixed penalty notice if they are found to have breached coronavirus regulations, but it says that officers believe it's appropriate because regulations are being breached without a reasonable excuse, a fixed penalty notice will normally be issued. so if they we can see from that is that those people, the location is, are all the ones they are looking about and are considering about whether they have breached the regulations or whether they have any reasonable excuse and they have any reasonable excuse and the statement also says that actually might be more notices going out, too. so i think the significant development and one that shows the investigations are moving quite fast. he will take a week to get responses, but this is a process

thatis responses, but this is a process that is just shifting along. responses, but this is a process that isjust shifting along. another -icture that isjust shifting along. another picture elite _ that isjust shifting along. another picture elite today _ that isjust shifting along. another picture elite today and _ that isjust shifting along. another picture elite today and i think- that isjust shifting along. another picture elite today and i think we | picture elite today and i think we heard the first of it in pm cues earlier today and walking is also about that? 50 earlier today and walking is also about that?— earlier today and walking is also about that? so this is one of the arties, about that? so this is one of the parties. one _ about that? so this is one of the parties. one of— about that? so this is one of the parties, one of the _ about that? so this is one of the parties, one of the gatherings i about that? so this is one of the | parties, one of the gatherings as downing street calls them, that had already been a picture from this event, 15 to december 2020 and were saying it is not one of the events of the police have been looking into because the initial estimation was at this did not reach that threshold. the picture that we have seen today published by the daily mirror was published just as maurice johnson was on his feet in the house of commons and he had just given that statement about looking to relax coronavirus regulations. of course in that time of the prime minister talks was mp saying he wants to be the agenda back away from all of the scandal around parties and to move on from that and what we see with this and with the police announcement is that that

simply is not proving possible. these things, these pictures and allegations keep coming up and in this picture the prime minister and three other staff and one has to cancel on a one has a hat on there is a bottle of open sparkling wine on the table and with the police said at the end of the day was that they are not considering whether this event should be added to those being investigated. dentistry is always said the prime ministerjust drop by and happened to drop in on a zoom quiz here, but again this is dragging the attention back onto theseissues dragging the attention back onto these issues and not with the prime minister was trying to turn the focus to at prime minister's questions. focus to at prime minister's questions-— focus to at prime minister's questions. ., ,, , ., , . questions. 0k, thank you very much for that update. _ the rspca has seized two cats belonging to the west ham footballer kurt zouma after footage was posted on social media yesterday of him kicking and slapping one of them.

the player has been fined two weeks' wages by his club and has been dropped by adidas. one of west ham's backers have now suspended their sponsorship of the club. our sports correspondent natalie pirks reports. it baffles me, the decision to play him. this is such a serious case of animal cruelty. it was a man kicking and slapping a defenceless, fragile animal. - the chorus of condemnation grows ever louder. fans in the london stadium made their feelings known from the moment kurt zouma touched the ball last night. booing. but with the defender playing, west ham won the match and kept a clean sheet. i'm a human being and i'm also a great animal lover, so i understand how people feel. but again, as i said, i'm the football manager here, and i have to find a way of getting the results here. and kurt zouma's one of the key players to us. the video, which we've decided not to fully show, is upsetting. zouma can be seen kicking his cat across the kitchen while his brotherfilms, laughing. zouma also slaps the cat in the face in front of one of his children.

the player has since apologised. last night is far from the first time that football's moral compass has been tested. west ham today says that kurt zouma has been fined the maximum amount they can, that's two weeks' wages, and the money's been given to animal charities. they also say that he is fully cooperating with the rspca, who now have his two cats. but that's not enough for some. zouma has been dropped by his personal boot sponsor, adidas, and the health insurance firm vitality says it's hugely disappointed by the judgment shown by west ham and it suspended sponsorship of the club with immediate effect. footballers are commodities that can be bought and sold, so therefore that has to be taken into consideration. ultimately, this is a non—football matter, and if kurt zouma was a lorry driver or a carpet fitter or an architect, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

the french international learned swiftly that this is a nation of animal lovers. former footballer ian wright called zouma "a coward". gary lineker called west ham's decision to play him "tone deaf". and wildlife presenter chris packham said, "animal abuse must never be sidelined at the expense of entertainment." it seems west ham fans agree. everyone expected him not to be in the team, in the squad, - in the stadium for| last night's game. and when the starting xi - was announced an hour before the game and he was there, there was a lot of shock. - and, you know, it brings the club into more disrepute. _ essex police says it's investigating and working with the rspca. zouma's cats have been taken to the vets and will remain in rspca care while the investigation continues. natalie pirks, bbc news. i'm joined byjim salveson, podcaster at the football social daily and west ham fan. let's go back to that game. we

surprised that he started? i let's go back to that game. we surprised that he started? i was surrised surprised that he started? i was surprised that _ surprised that he started? i was surprised that he _ surprised that he started? i was surprised that he started, - surprised that he started? i was surprised that he started, yes i surprised that he started? i —" surprised that he started, yes also i don't think many figured he would start personally from a management point of view as much as anything else because you would not blame a manager like david moyes for almost shielding his player and not putting them out in front of the fans that were no doubt going to boo him last night. that's interesting take on this for a lot of people is the expectation that he should be dropped as some kind of punishment last night in that game when in fact we do delete the worst night for him was to go out there and face 50,000 angry football fans and animal lovers. so i'm not sure necessarily what happened last night is a good barometer of what should or is going to happen to zouma in the future. i think with a club do next and what happens next is are we more important that him on the pitch for the wofford game. what important that him on the pitch for the wofford game.— important that him on the pitch for the wofford game. what you think of him being drunk— the wofford game. what you think of him being drunk a _ the wofford game. what you think of him being drunk a bully _ the wofford game. what you think of him being drunk a bully from - the wofford game. what you think of him being drunk a bully from west i him being drunk a bully from west ham? is a possibility was met with

the fans support that? what are your thoughts on that?— thoughts on that? those are two different questions. _ thoughts on that? those are two different questions. what - thoughts on that? those are two different questions. what i - thoughts on that? those are two different questions. what i think| different questions. what i think about him on the squad, there is no defence to his actions and what he did from anybody possible to view was disgusting in the video if you said in the package was disturbing to watch as well. do i expect him to be dropped or banned from west ham? no, i have no expectation. you mentioned the phrase moral compass in your opening package and i think that's a really interesting phrase to use because if you look for football to be a moral compass, we have moved on from that. that has flown a long time ago. some incredible misjudged moral steps for the last two decades so do expect west ham or football to do the right thing in this is will not happen. honestly we are seeing some of the

sponsors are making moves. do you think ultimately it will be financial pressures that will decide what west ham do next? i financial pressures that will decide what west ham do next?— financial pressures that will decide what west ham do next? i mean, yeah. if there is what west ham do next? i mean, yeah. if there is a _ what west ham do next? i mean, yeah. if there is a financial pressure _ what west ham do next? i mean, yeah. if there is a financial pressure on - if there is a financial pressure on the club, if the sponsors up and leave work cancel contracts, then that will no doubt force their hand at making a move but i think what's interesting is to see what the sponsors do. then when we have that affect the club in the moment is the one from vitality and they have suspended the relationship with west ham rather than cancelling a contract, and i think from a sponsor point of view, there is potentially a tendency to maybe almost virtue signal in a way that they want to be seen to be take action without actually taking action but if those contracts, big lucrative contracts with the likes of bette wade he was out the window and within no doubt west ham will take further action but that has to be balanced with what kurt zouma brings to the team notjust in terms of on the pitch but what he is as an asset to the football club as well and is value

there. i football club as well and is value there. ., ., ,~' football club as well and is value there. ., ., ,., there. i would ask you if you thou~ht there. i would ask you if you thought he was _ there. i would ask you if you thought he was worth - there. i would ask you if you thought he was worth it - there. i would ask you if you thought he was worth it but| there. i would ask you if you | thought he was worth it but i there. i would ask you if you - thought he was worth it but i think you answer that. thank you very much. sport, and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre, here's chetan. good evening. chelsea are through to football's club world cup final after romelu lukaku's first half goal saw them beat saudi side al—hillal. they did it without their manager, too, ben croucher reports. chelsea's trophy cabinet has been filling fast in the last couple of decades, with one exception. the club world cup is the only major trophy they've never won. playing in yellow against the asian champions, surely this was an opportunity chelsea couldn't miss.

turns out romelu lukaku just needed on site. his first goal for a month, and he was providing, too, as this effort wasn't out of the goalkeeper�*s reach. and the saudi side were into the game. arrizabalaga was called into action, and all of a sudden, chelsea were being stretched. this wasn't about the score line, though, maybe just as well. it was just about reaching that final on saturday. pal mayoress of brazil stand between chelsea and that elusive piece of silverware. ben croucher, bbc news. there are four matches in the premier league this evening. manchester city can stretch their lead at the top of the table to 12 points with a win at home to brentford. that one kicked off at 7:45pm, and we have seen no goals so far. elsewhere tonight, norwich will leapfrog newcastle and move out of the relegation zone if they can beat crystal palace. teemu pukki after a minute. tottenham, with games in hand, are still very much still

on the hunt for the top four. you see it is 1—1 there. and leave scores at villa park with the goal from danieljames. and there's a full round of matches in the scottish premiership tonight. celtic went into this evening with a slender one—point lead over their old firm rivals rangers. celtic are at seventh—placed aberdeen. they lead 2—0. a rally with the second. while rangers are host hibernian at ibrox. they are in front as well with the james tavernier penalty for them. the british formula 1 driver lando norris has signed a new deal that will see him stay at mclaren until the end of 2025. the 22—year—old finished sixth in last season's standings with four podium finishes, and he also claimed his first pole position as the team finished fourth in the constructors championship. meanwhile, red bull have revealed the new car they hope will help max verstappen to retain

the world title. the team launched the car, the rb18, on social media. they also announced a new title sponsorship with the us technology giant oracle. it's said to be among the most lucrative in f1 history at an estimated £74 million a year for the next five seasons. that's all the sport for now. football round up later tonight but for now back to you. a man who's already serving a life sentence for murdering his fiancee in 2016 will now never leave prison after being found guilty of murdering his first wife six years earlier. when 61—year—old ian stewart was sentenced for killing his fiancee, the children's author helen bailey, police began investigating the death of his first wife, diane stewart. she was thought to have died from an epileptic fit in 2010, but new evidence has proved otherwise, asjo black reports.

i'm arresting you on suspicion of the murder of your late wife, diane stewart. you're joking?! this is the moment serving prisoner ian stewart is arrested for murdering his wife, diane. have you got nothing better to do than make things up? we can discuss this at thorpe wood police station. she died back in 2010, and stewart was able to to fool medical professionals by suggesting she died during the course of an epileptic fit. because he went undetected, he then went on to murder another woman in 2016. the body of his fiancee, the author helen bailey, was discovered in a cesspit. it was this crime that made detectives re—examine diane stewart's death here in bassingbourne. ian stewart said that he went to the supermarket and when he returned to the family home here, he said he found his wife had collapsed in the garden. tell me exactly what's happened. my wife's had a fit. ithink... she's in the garden. in this 999 call, he describes finding his wife not

breathing and unresponsive. he's told to try and resuscitate her. one, two... is that fast enough? diane stewart took regular medication for epilepsy and hadn't had a fit for nearly 20 years. her body was cremated, but she donated her brain to medical research. years later, that brain tissue would become crucial evidence in this trial, with some scientists suggesting her death was caused by prolonged restriction of her breathing from an outside source. without that, we wouldn't have been able to secure a conviction, and, yes, i was very pleased that we were able to take that away and do further examination. in police interviews, ian stewart refused to answer any questions about his wife's death. the court heard he inherited £96,000 from diane stewart's estate, and two years later, he met author helen bailey on a bereavement website. they planned to get married, but in 2016, he secretly drugged her,

suffocated her, dumped her body in a pit below their garage in a plot to inherit her fortune. ian stewart has been described as manipulating, controlling and a narcissist, a man who we now know was a danger to the women he formed relationships with. jo black, bbc news. the search for a safe and sustainable energy supply for the world is a big step closer thanks to scientists in a british laboratory who have smashed the record for generating energy from a nuclearfusion reaction. fusion energy is what powers the sun and the stars, but it's incredibly difficult to recreate on earth. now researchers at a lab in oxfordshire have had a major breakthrough, producing fusion energy at a scale and for a duration not seen before. it could eventually lead to a cleaner source of energy that would help protect the planet for future generations. our climate editor justin rowlatt reports.

two, one, zero. this is the record—breaking reaction. it is more than 150 million degrees celsius. ten times hotter than the heart of the sun. and it happened here, the world's most powerful fusion plant, jet fusion in oxfordshire. it is, says the team here, a landmark for this technology. these results are really significant cos what we've managed to demonstrate insidejet is we can create a mini—sun, the right kind of mini—sun, hold it there for a sustained period and get really good performance levels, which is a major step forward in terms of our quest to get to fusion power plants. most nuclear reactors use fission. that's when big, unstable atoms like uranium are split in two. the reaction releases lots of energy and radiation. fusion is different. it involves forcing two atoms of hydrogen together, fusing them to create one

atom of helium. once again, you get lots of energy, and this time just a tiny bit of short—lived radiation. creating mini—stars inside reactors like this is one of the greatest technological challenges humanity has ever faced. get it right, and it holds out the potential for producing almost unlimited supplies of energy pretty much forever. that's because the hydrogen fuel fusion uses is so readily available. now, the key part of this reaction only lasts for five seconds and only generated enough powerfor 60 kettles, but it is an important proof that scientists are on the right track. there is still lots of work to do, and athina kappatou is one of a new generation of physicists who plan to do it at a scaled—up version version of the uk reactor being built here in the south of france. do you think you'll see commercial

fusion in your lifetime? yes, i am confident. i want to believe in it. so, answer me this, why is it taking so long? it is hard, it is really hard. it is very complex, but it's worth it and we just have to do it for the future. fusion energy is carbon—free, but it is not going to be ready in time to get us out of the climate crisis. that shouldn't stop this research, say supporters. the enormous promise fusion holds means we have got to keep working on it. justin rowlatt, bbc news, oxfordshire. i'm joined by dr michael bluck, directorfor the centre of nuclear engineering at imperial college london. thank you forjoining us. it's all very exciting. i don't know if you heard that report byjustin that he said get it right. it is his energy produced on the sun and the stars, is it not a bit dangerous? laughter.

no, no, it's a very sort of small region in which these temperatures and pressures are happening. we are in no danger of igniting the sun, so i would not worry about that at all. safety is very much not an issue inside a fusion reactor.- safety is very much not an issue inside a fusion reactor. well, how lona will inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it _ inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it take _ inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it take then _ inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it take then it _ inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it take then it was - inside a fusion reactor. well, how long will it take then it was my i l long will it take then it was my i think everybody will want to know. when is it going to happen it because it sounds very promising but why the delay? what is involved? qm. why the delay? what is involved? 0k, there are a why the delay? what is involved? oi, there are a number of things why the delay? what is involved? iii, there are a number of things that were touched upon in the piece you played before. ithink were touched upon in the piece you played before. i think firstly is important to realise they are some big technological hurdles. beyond what we have seen and the team at the uk aa have achieve this order of

magnitude increase in the confinement time, done an amazing job and a few orders of magnitude is a transformative process. and it really can give us ultimately within a few generations a viable fusion reactor, but there are major hurdles beyond that. so, first of all, most of the energy is in the form of tiny subatomic particles called neutrons, not electrical energy. so we have to convert somehow the energy of these neutrons into electricity. that's not easy to do. we know how to do it, but doing it is hard. so it's another of these really hard things. secondly, we have to... although justin in your piece pointed out that fuel for the reactors is hydrogen, one of the fuels is called tritium, is a form of hydrogen it

not occur naturally and any viable fusion reactor will have to generate its own tritium. that we know how to do. we can generate it from lithium that we use for batteries, but again it is hard to do. and it will require a lot of work to develop. and finally, these neutrons that carry all the energy are very... they bombard the materials that make up they bombard the materials that make up the reactor and most materials just cannot stand this bombardment. so we need to develop materials that can last long enough and all of those things we need to do economically. so there are big hurdles but what they have done there is quite remarkable and they should be lauded for achieving it. you use the neutrons with multiple know that energy, you will get some sort of waste of the other side of it. is sort of waste of the other side of it. , ., , ., , sort of waste of the other side of it. , . , ., , , sort of waste of the other side of it. is there any waste with this was met if each — it. is there any waste with this was

met if each rate _ it. is there any waste with this was met if each rate something - it. is there any waste with this was met if each rate something calledl met if each rate something called tritium, any waste with this was met if each rate something called tritium, anyways product from that? it tritium. no problem. there is a small amount of radioactive waste because the neutrons also have a tendency to make things mildly radioactive. nothing like you see in a fission reactor. so the waste is mildly radioactive due to the structures becoming slightly radioactive, but it's really a very low and again nothing like you get from a fission reactor. i low and again nothing like you get from a fission reactor.— from a fission reactor. i have learned something _ from a fission reactor. i have learned something today, i from a fission reactor. i have - learned something today, tritium. thank you, doctor.— the mayor of london on the metropolitan police commission. singh she has days and weeks to show him that she can tackle problems and

restore public trust. following a damning report of racism, sexism and misogyny across the police station in london. nine of the 12 officers involved in sending offensive messages remain on the force and our home affairs correspondence sports. accusation after it's been nearly a year. the devastating murder of sarah everard by a serving police officer was a crisis for the met. we have been rocked. then, week after week, with accusation after accusation, a picture emerged of a police force with a culture problem, headed by a commissioner some believe can't fix it. now the mayor of london has ramped up the pressure. my expectation is that the next time i see her i want to see what her response is to the examples

not of one officer, of 11; officers being involved in racist, sexist, misogynistic, homophobic, anti—semitic, islamophobic and the like behaviour, and secondly, what her plans are to win back the trust and confidence that has been knocked and shattered as a consequence. appalling behaviour recently revealed at charing cross police station appears to have pushed the mayor into demanding quicker change. he wants answers, he said ther, the next time he wants answers, he said there, the next time he sees the commissioner. and here they are feeling the pressure. i'm told there was a meeting last week between dame cressida dick and the mayor of london. the met�*s plans for a review were discussed. sadik khan's reaction? "we can't wait for your review. we need urgent, wide—ranging action." but can change happen in weeks? the met�*s review will take all year. perhaps it starts with mid—ranking officers. leroy logan used to be one and says it is about dealing with toxic attitudes openly expressed. they put it on social media, whatsapp groups, and it spread,

that's how it has been picked up. i'm not hearing supervisors coming out and saying, "we caught this person, we dealt with them." the commissioner is the ethical leader of the force, appointed by the home secretary, but if the mayor no longer backed her, she would almost certainly have to go. tom symonds, bbc news, at new scotland yard. 15 people have been arrested in india following protests against a ban on wearing the islamic headscarf in college. the controversy began when hijab wearing students were denied entry to their schools in the state of kar—nata—ka. the state has now shut down all high schools and colleges for three days. the chief minister for the state has called for �*peace and harmony�*. an—barasan eth—irjan reports. an act of defiance amid heckling by a group of young hindu men. the video of this muslim student standing against a crowd

taunting her, as support on a ban on the hijab has gone viral. translation: india is a unified country so everyone is free - to practice their religion. they are following their culture and i am following mine. they should allow us to follow our culture and not put obstacles. muslim women in parts of karnataka state say they are not being allowed to attend classes because of the hijab. they argue that the headscarves are part of the religious faith. here, hindu students arrive at schools with saffron hats and shawls. this colour is seen as a hindu symbol. they oppose their student colleagues for wearing the headscarf. there are concerns that outside organisations may be instigating the protests. a place of learning has now become a battleground for the two communities. translation: we asked them not| to wear the hijab when they attend. they knew what we had told them, and today they came wearing the hijab.

we are not allowed inside the college now, and that is unfair. the hindu nationalist bjp government insist that all schools should follow the dress code, and that there is no place for religious slogans in schools. and now, the protest in karnataka state are they cannot come as they want to the schools. and now the protests are attracting global attention. the education activist malala yousafzai says. opposition parties allege the policies of the governing hindu nationalist bjp are discriminating against religious minorities. but the government denies the allegations. muslim students say they don't want to be stigmatised because of their religion.

talking about the issue with that, is it safe to call it a fear of it was below the students here are worried because this is only the first step towards a broader agenda by the hindu right wing. thea;r first step towards a broader agenda by the hindu right wing.— by the hindu right wing. they say this oli by the hindu right wing. they say this policy was — by the hindu right wing. they say this policy was brought _ by the hindu right wing. they say this policy was brought forward i by the hindu right wing. they say| this policy was brought forward all the sudden and where the hindu right wing groups are attempting to make inroads and this is coming during the election year coming up. and so, they artie feel they are marginalised because if you look at the number of laws brought in by the government, the anti—religious

conversion law, that puts a lot of obstacles for india's couples. 1.4 billion people and as a population and christians and so people in different communities and religions are not very uncommon. but that has been made more difficult in the field this was directly aimed at the minority communities and they also look at the attacks on christian churches and prayer halls the last few years and the community leaders say the attacks of increased after they came to power. but the government dismisses allegation of the cities are isolated incidents, not a state policy. ind the cities are isolated incidents, not a state policy.— the cities are isolated incidents, not a state policy. and what happens next ron's particular _ not a state policy. and what happens next ron's particular issue? - not a state policy. and what happens next ron's particular issue? this - not a state policy. and what happens next ron's particular issue? this is i next ron's particular issue? this is been attracting _ next ron's particular issue? this is been attracting attention _ next ron's particular issue? this is been attracting attention across i been attracting attention across india, you see the protests happening across other indian cities and those who want to wear the hijab because they believe they should and the court is, why the judges said he

has referred the case to a larger bench because people are talking about the fundamental rights issue and we cannot decide by one judge. it is to be decided by a larger panel and hopefully the court will give a judgment in favour of them. thank you. from friday, fully vaccinated holidaymakers will no longer need to do a covid test when they arrive back in the uk. but britons travelling abroad will still need to follow the rules that apply to wherever they are going. while entry rules for some destinations are starting to ease, some british families are cancelling half term trips to spain because teenagers over 12 have to be double jabbed to get in, and many are not. here's our transport correspondent katy austin. ben and his family have great memories of the canary islands. they were looking forward to making more last year, but restrictions forced them to postpone to this february. now, children over 12 need two jabs to enter spain, so the holiday is off.

unfortunately, the 12—year—old has onlyjust turned 12, so doesn't have his second vaccination yet. so we cancelled — only cancelled a few days ago. we thought we'd hold out till the 1st of feb in case anything changed. but yeah, unfortunately, we had to pull the plug. ben is far from alone. good afternoon... travel agents say lots of people want to go away at the moment, but they're having to keep their customers informed of an ever—changing international patchwork of covid rules. spain, including the canaries, is usually a half term hit. you can get a little bit of heat, wear your shorts, sit outside and eat. the rule barring over 12s with only one or no vaccinations is having a big impact. 50% of our bookings were moved because actually it's all families. they'll move destinations or move dates and plan for easter. it's a headache for tourism businesses in the canaries. they want the spanish government to relax their restrictions

because many brits are heading for places like turkey or mexico instead. in tenerife, we have 2.5 million british citizens every normal year. so when we talk about christmas, when we talk about february, talking about nearly 30% of the business. so that means that this loss could be nearly 1000 million euros if we do not take the tough measures out. from friday, it'll get a lot easier to come into the uk. fully—vaccinated travellers no longer have to take any covid tests to enter this country, but people planning trips overseas still really need to know what the rules are at their destination because every country has its own requirements. and notjust for entry. in france, over 16s need a pass showing proof of vaccination to access certain activities, including getting a ski pass. unvaccinated 12 to 15—year—olds can take daily tests. tour operators still expect

a bumper easter and summer, but many families who hoped for winter sun are having to wait a little longer. katy austin, bbc news. the charity commission is looking into the accounts of the foundation set up by the family of the ww2 veteran captain sir tom moore. accounts published by the captain tom foundation show that in its first year it spent more than 200—thousand pounds on running costs a nd co nsulta nts. it gave out 160—thousand pounds to charities in grants. the commission started looking into the foundation almost a year ago. the foundation says it's working closely with the regulator and welcomes its input. cardiff university has apologised to the family of a student who took her own life hours after being told she had failed an exam. pharmacy student mared foulkes from anglesey — received the results email injuly 2020 — but it didn't take account of her re—sit which she'd already passed.

the university says it will simplify its exams process to leave "no room for confusion" in future. bethan lewis reports. mared was in a second year at cardiff university, and she was 21. she received an e—mail with results for her course and later that day she took her own life. is that there were lessons for the university. the e—mail mared received indicated she had failed an assessment and couldn't move on to the third year. she had already passed a reset, but under the university's procedures, the recent results wouldn't be ratified until later. cardiff university's vice chancellor says they have listened to the coroners concerns who said the system was complex and confusing. we accept that there was room for confusion, as a coroner said, in the way that exam results were communicated. we have been doing that for a number

of years but we do recognise that there is an issue there and we have already corrected that, it will no longer happen and exam results will be communicated in a way that there will be no room for confusion in the future. the university is also reviewing the language and tone used in result transcripts to make them as clear as possible. have you apologised to the family? i am deeply sorry for this sequence of events. it is a devastating set of circumstances and i absolutely understand the family's need to have answers, and i am happy to speak to mared's parents if that is what they would like. they say...

changes to the results process in cardiff will be in place for students this summer. mared's parents still have unanswered questions and say they hope the university can make improvements because of mared. and if you're affected by any of the issues we've just been discussing — information is available from the bbc action line — that's at bbc.co.uk/actionline the headlines on bbc news. the legal rule to self—isolate us set to end within weeks, a month earlier than expected. the metropolitan police either be questioning more than 50 people at the of their investigation into alleged rules being broken at downing street. filmed kicking his cat and they have terminated the sponsorship of their defender.

mps have criticised the government's performance on delivering brexit, saying the only detectable impact so far has been an extra burden on businesses in terms of increased costs, paperwork and border delays. the cross party public accounts committee says a lot more work needs to be done to prevent further disruption. the government says it is ensuring businesses get the help they need to trade with europe and elsewhere. our global trade correspondent chris morris reports. our cows graze freely on pastures rich in nutrients... in the fields of devon, it all looks beautifully serene. this british cheese—maker used to export without any bureaucracy or delays to other countries in europe, but outside the eu things have become far more difficult. every shipment now needs a vet's certificate, a vet costs money. our shipments tend to be quite small, you know, less than a pallet. and so that's quite a cost.

the paperwork takes a lot of time. the person who's doing the paperwork has got 15 other things to do. and that's why the focus on britain's borders continues. the public accounts committee says trade volumes have fallen, partly because of the impact of covid, but the exit from the eu has clearly had an impact, and new border arrangements have added costs to business. smaller firms with fewer resources have been hit the hardest. between the delays at the border, the extra costs and all the extra paperwork, a lot of businesses are saying that it's been a real struggle for them. so we've said to the government repeatedly, before brexit and again in this report, you need to step up and support the smaller businesses. they've concentrated on the volume businesses, the bigger ones that are doing the most trade with europe, but that's no consolation for those many people whose livelihoods, and sometimes jobs of other people, depend on their being able to do this trade with europe. the committee announced that a brexit support fund worth £20 million was initially created to help small

businesses, but only 6.7 million was ever paid out, because it was so hard to access the money. and the government says it is continuing to help businesses trade with europe, including free advice from its export support service, but the committee wants more transparency and more focus on the practical problems firms are facing. outside dover, long queues of lorries have become the norm, part of a plan to make sure the town itself doesn't clog up. but the committee warns it could get worse. it says there is potential for further disruption, as more people start travelling again, and passenger volumes at key ports like dover return to normal. there's also concern about extra delays later this year, when the eu introduces new passport controls and the uk starts physical checks on the import of food products. the government is taking a longer view. it talks enthusiastically about new trade deals elsewhere in the world,

and says it plans to create the most effective border in the world by 2025. the committee calls that a noteworthy ambition, but optimistic, given where things stand today. chris morris, bbc news. the high court has heard that private whatsapp messages from rebekah vardy to her former press agent were used selectively in a speech yesterday by the barrister for coleen rooney during the latest hearing in so called wagatha christie case. mrs vardy�*s own barrister said some messages had been misinterpreted. our correspondent sanchia berg has been in the high court on day two of the hearing. yes, what happened today was the barristers set that some of those messages were being used in a rather selective way and did not quite mean what they had been said to him. said to refer, the barristers said, she was referring to colleen rooney that

message. you had to see the messages in their entirety to understand the best picture and remind people that this is the latest instalment of a long—running battle between these two women when colleen thought that somebody who had access to a private instagram posts was using it as a sort of stories for the tablet papers. she set up a sting operation she posted fixed stories and gradually reduce the number of people who had access to them and that we identify the person she believed was the culprit. she named the culprit as for back of 40's instagram account something that she absolutely denied and this is let the libel case and that is scheduled for may but it may very well get delayed because the complexity of the hearings we are going through now and currently, there are about disclosure and was quite interesting

was it emerged today that quite a lot of those messages which were read out in court yesterday have been attained through disclosure by the legal team and miss 40s legal team hadn't intended to disclose those at all they try to redact a lot of them, but there's been a problem with the computer software and the entirety of the messages had been sent over and was published and read out in court in the way that it was and both sides are asking for more material to be released, but there is a long way to go, it seems before the trial itself. i there is a long way to go, it seems before the trial itself.— before the trial itself. a new exhibition _ before the trial itself. a new exhibition from _ before the trial itself. a new exhibition from the - before the trial itself. a new - exhibition from the photographer documenting a journey with their mother has opened in birmingham. visiting pakistan to see where her mother grew up in to see what her own life could've been like.

it's titled zaibunnisa, her mum's maiden name before she came to the uk. it connected me with all those stories that i was told as a young girl about lahore and about her birthplace. somewhere maryam wanted to know more about. since i was six, seven years old, and i started to see another world outside birmingham, you know, the family have only been able to see lahore in pictures. i couldn't help but really think about what my alternative life could have looked like when i visited lahore. and so in 2019 maryam made herfirst ever trip to pakistan and took her mum who hadn't been to herfamily home for more than 20 years. to be able to get that close to where they lived and the bed they slept on, the room that they ate in, was an amazing feeling, to go as far as going to pakistan and going to the border of india and pakistan, taking my mum with me, she swore she would never go back to pakistan, was as close as i was ever going to get to really recording my own story. it's not always easy to have a conversation about your past. maryam's parents came to this country.

that can mean escaping conflict and leaving family behind, and that's not always easy to hear or share. but for maryam it was important to find out. we come from a very complex land. for my nan, when i learned that she had migrated from srinagar to amritsar years before partition, that really fascinated me that as a woman she migrated with her mother at a really young age, and she then had to flee the country when the 1947 partition happened. having had a glimpse of life in lahore, back home in the midlands, maryam wanted to share her story, one lots of migrant communities would relate to and one of the gallery felt was important to share. the mac is absolutely driven to make sure that, particularly the fantastic diversity of the communities of birmingham, are seen on the screen, on the stage and on the walls of mac, and maryam was a huge example of that. we make a polaroid picture and look at also how

vague those memories are. it definitely resonated with so many of my friends to have hardly been back to pakistan. i'll never be like people in pakistan. my cousins that are my age. but i'm so proud of my pakistani origins. i have always celebrated my british and pakistani identity but i feel like it's so much more defined now. pria rai, bbc news, birmingham. vinyl record sales in the uk are at the highest point for 30 years — but with only a handful of vinyl manufacturing plants, demand is outstripping supply. a team of entrepreneurs noticed this gap in the market and launched a new site in middlesbrough, which aims to produce fifty—thousand records a month. leejohnson reports. for many music lovers vinyl can become an obsession. but for the team at press on it's also a chance to fill the big gap in the market.

want to put it but delete that compilation out on vinyl in the lead times are really big back then and even we can get it done within five months which means it wouldn't of been done in time for christmas. that got our brains going which how come it's so hard to get records manufactured and delivered to you? making records is a complex process. first a master cut, grooves and all is produced. that's then copied and moulded before it's pressed and set aside to be packaged. there are only a handful of plants like this in the uk. most records are manufactured in europe. but demand is outstripping supply. vinyl is enjoying an incredible revival. last year more than 5 million lps were sold, that's an increase of 8% on the previous year. and one in four album sold last year it was on the format, that's its highest sales for more than 30 years. fitting then that this new teesside

plant is also a nod to the northeast heritage of making records. 40 years ago rca records in washington produced lps by artists including elvis presley and david bowie. but presson managing director there was only one place that they wanted to be based. we all care passionately about the area. it's important that it's here, we got a rich history of manufacturing whether it be industry or chemicals or pottery and now computer game manufacturers as received. manufacturers as we've seen. we are proud to be a part of it. and that's good news for local bands like teesside group comparison whose debut ep was the first of the production line. it's crazy, to be honest. to see it physically happening it sets in stone how lucky we all are to have this opportunity. the vinyl revival shows no signs of slowing. sophie is next with the bbc news at six.

and finally, mountaineers from the indian army have pulled off a difficult rescue after a hiker became trapped in the southern state of kerala. the 23 year old man fell down a cliff, landing in a small crevice. he was stranded for two days without food or water. three different rescue teams failed to reach him. finally on wednesday the army were able to pull him to the top of the hill. despite the ordeal, he's reported to be in good health and high spirits. now, it's time for a look at the weather with susan hello. a rather chilly night to come across the lion's share of the uk as the arctic air continues to advance its way southward. perhaps southernmost counties of england spared a frost where the milder atlantic air is just slower to pull away behind this weather front. some cloud and a little bit of rain around here into the small hours of thursday. elsewhere, certainly chilly, and then we have this area of low pressure which will be approaching scotland running into the cold air. could be some ice around

initially on thursday, and then the low dropping some snow, particularly across the highest ground of scotland, but not exclusively. strong winds gusting up to 50—60 mph. blizzard conditions for a while during the morning rush hour. much quieter by the afternoon as the low heads into the north sea. but breezy across the board, and that wind will contribute to the cold feeling. a lot of sunshine through the day. temperatures on the thermometer 2—7 degrees. add on the effect of the wind, though, and it's going to feel closer to —4 in the likes of aberdeen.

hello, i'm christian fraser. you're watching context on bbc news. glasgow's cop26 summit is still fresh in the memory, together with all the warnings of impending doom should we fail to address the addiction to fossil fuels. so, why has the british government, which still has control of the cop presidency, just given the green light to six new oil and gas fields? the legal enforcement of all covid rules will be dropped in england by the end of this month. two nations separated by a common language and a word quiz. tonight with the context, daily mail and mail on sunday columnist sarah vine, and political sketch writer and columnist for the independent, tom peck.