we are approaching time for a look at the weather. here's stav danaos. here's stav da naos. a lovely spring picture behind me, it's kew gardens this morning, plenty of sunshine overhead. it has been cold with a widespread frost, winds are light but it's all change into the weekend, turning wet and windy as well as milder. for the rest of the afternoon, it will stay dry for most of us, holding on to the sunshine. this is the responsible feature, an area of high pressure bringing cold, dry and sunny weather, this new area will bring wet and windy weather later. this afternoon, most places dry, the odd shower popping up across western

areas ahead of this with a front which arrives later in the clouds thickening in the west with increasing southerly breezes. wet and windy in northern ireland, scotland into western england and wales, snow over the higher ground in scotland but i think the midlands, southern and south—east england is dry, clear spells, another chilly one in the south—east but turning milder elsewhere by the end of the day. milder than last night. saturday is a bright and dry and cool start in the south—east, elsewhere it's wet and windy, rain turning heavier across england and wales during the day, sunshine and showers for scotland and northern ireland. in the east, it's staying dry, but windy wherever you are, gales in the north and west. temperatures recovering as the wind comes from the south—west, reaching highs of nine or 10 degrees. moving through saturday, wet and windy weather arriving across the south—east, we look to the south—west, a new area of low pressure arriving for sunday so

another windy day, outbreaks of rain becoming heavier and widespread across england and wales, especially south wales looking wet throughout the day, could cause disruption. drifting further north the rain gets into scotland but not the very far north, another windy day, gales in the channel, milder there, ten or ii the channel, milder there, ten or 11 degrees. wet and windy weather sweeps into the north sea on monday, slow improvement across northern and eastern areas, cloudy, windy and wet at first, sunshine and showers heading into the afternoon, some of these wintry over higher ground. further south, these wintry over higher ground. furthersouth, it's these wintry over higher ground. further south, it's chilly, these wintry over higher ground. furthersouth, it's chilly, eight these wintry over higher ground. further south, it's chilly, eight or 9 degrees. increasing amounts of sunshine. but it's brief as we move through the week, an active jet bringing deep areas of low pressure across a spring in gales and severe gales, spells of heavy rain, sunshine and showers, at times it's mild, especially across sunshine and showers, at times it's mild, especially across central sunshine and showers, at times it's mild, especially across central and southern parts of the country. thank you so much.

a reminder of our top story... the search is on to find a new commissionerfor the uk's largest police force after the resignation of dame cressida dick. campaigners have welcomed her decision to stand down and say now is the time for change. what we will be looking for, those of us pushing for reform is someone who has a history of speaking truth to power. that's all from the bbc news at one, so it's goodbye from me, and on bbc one we nowjoin the bbc�*s news teams where you are. good afternoon, it's just after 1:30 — and this is the latest from the bbc sport centre. there's continued controvsery at the winter olympics in beijing, surrounding the doping case involving the 15—year—old russian figure skater kamila valieva. the world anti—doping agency has confirmed it it intends to lodge an appeal with the court

of arbitration for sport, after it came to light that she tested positive for a banned substance back in december. the ioc has already appealed against the lifting of her suspension by the russian anti—doping agency, which allowed her to compete at the games. she helped her team win gold on monday — but the medals have not yet been awarded. she's due to skate in the individual competition on tuesday. team gb freestyle skier izzy atkin has pulled out of slopestyle competition, having already withdrawn from the big air. atkin won britain's first—ever olympic skiing medal when she took slopestyle bronze in pyeongchang in 2018. she broke her pelvis in an event in colorado in december, but she had been hopeful of competing in beijing. atkin�*s younger sister, zoe, will make her olympic debut in the halfpipe next week. we're still waiting for news of british success after more disapppointment today. the curling teams are struggling in their bids to reach the semifinals, and britain's 20—year run of skeleton medals is coming to an end. andy swiss is in the mountains outside beijing for us.

britain have won medals at the skeleton in the last five winter olympics, but fair to day they won't be winning here. at the halfway point in the women's events laura deas is in 21st place and her team—mate, brogan crowley, is in 27th place. such disappointment for laura deas, who won a bronze medal in pyeongchang four years ago. she has had a tough season and the speed was just not there. bear in mind britain's competitors in the men's event are also out of the top ten, then safe to say britain will not be winning medals here in beijing. it has also not been a great day for britain's curlers. britain's women lost their group match against south korea. south korea made a comeback to take the match 9—7. that means that the britain women's

team has lost two out of the first nine group matches. there was also a defeat for britain's men earlier on, they lost to the usa. the most emotional scenes today was in the snowboarding men's half pipe. it was won by ayumu hirano ofjapan. but perhaps the biggest cheer was for the great shaun white, competing for the usa in his final event before retiring. for many people, he is the greatest snowboarder there has ever been, he has won three olympic titles. today he finished in fourth place. you can see what competing heremeant to him, the end of what has been quite a glittering careerfor shaun white. well, andy mentioned the gold medallist ayumu hirano there — and he took the title with the last run of the final, landing the ultra—difficult triple cork move. and it's being described as the best halfpipe run in history. success at last for hirano, who took silver at the last two games. joe marchant will start at outside centre for england against italy on sunday, in one of six changes to the starting 15 beaten by scotland.

marchant is the latest player to be tried in that position by eddiejones, who's still seeking a solution to manu tuilagi's absence through injury. he'll partner henry slade in the midfield, after his link up with elliot daly failed to make an impact at murrayfield. england have chosen al wakrah as their preferred base for the world cup in qatar. gareth southgate has selected the beach resort as it's about ten miles from doha, so out of the city centre but close to most of the tournament venues. the hotel and training ground won't be formally confirmed as england's base by fifa until after the conclusion of the play—offs, which start in march. that's all the sport for now. good afternoon. you are watching bbc news. the united states has urged canada to use federal powers to ease this the disruption caused

by truck drivers. the protesters who are angry at covid restrictions are blocking cross border trade at several crossing points. that's in addition to the ongoing demonstration in the capital, ottowa. the ambassador bridge between ontario and detroit is one of the busiest border crossings in north america and a supply route for carmakers. there is disuption too at coutts in the province of alberta, and emerson in manitoba. the economic cost is likely to be considerable. samira hussain has the latest. horns blare. for yet another day, lorry drivers furious at vaccine mandates and covid restrictions have blocked the busiest land border crossing in north america. itjust keeps going on and on. the economic impact could be serious. a quarter of all trade between canada and the united states happens here, or it did until angry truckers decided to intervene. we want freedom.

there should be a choice in this country whether... they can't force something on you. many people have lostjobs with these lockdowns, and now with these mandates. the protests have forced two of the world's largest car makers to suspend operations, a financial burden that has caught the attention of the white house. i think it's important for everyone in canada and the united states to understand what the impact of this blockage is — potential impact on workers, on the supply chain, and that is where we are most focused. it's the focus for local businesses in ottawa, where the original trucker protest continues to obstruct daily life and commerce. but for the police force, attention has turned to the impending confrontation. on wednesday, they started warning the truckers they would be arrested and forcibly removed if they don't leave on their own. the response to that threat could dramatically change the carnival atmosphere which has prevailed, all of which seems strange in a country and political

system once renowned for its good manners. if canada's protesters can be removed from the roads, then businesses will likely bounce back. and as covid is starting to recede, so are some of those restrictions. but the anger that it has provoked may not be easily dispersed. samira hussain, bbc news, ottawa. meanwhile, france and belgium have promised tough action to prevent planned protests this weekend along the lines of those in canada. motorists intending to block roads into the french capital to show their anger about coronavirus restrictions have been threatened with fines and jail terms. line about the continuing situation in ukraine. there are various

meetings ongoing at the moment. britain's defence secretary ben wallace has been having a meeting today. we are hearing from moscow, russia's defence minister has told ben wallace that the situation in europe is growing increasingly tense. that is by far not our fault. we do not understand the reasons for whipping up the station, but we can see it is growing. this apparently is one of the things said between the two men during their meeting. those are comments from russia's defence minister, saying that the increased tension is absolutely not russia's fault. we note that are about 100,000 russian troops at various points on the border with ukraine. russia denies it is going to invade. just to remind you that the defence secretary ben wallace is

due to give a news briefing around half past two hour time. as and when that gets under way, we will bring that gets under way, we will bring that to you. perhaps more on that about 2:30pm. an australian icon, the koala, has now been classed as endangered. the number of koalas have fallen sharply along much of the east coast due to land clearing, bush fires and disease. scientists say the population in the state of new south wales has decreased by up to 60% in the past 11 years. dr kellie leigh — executive director of the non—profit research body, science for wildlife — has been explaining what is behind the koalas�* rapid decline in numbers. it's a pretty grim day to see the endangered listing today. it's been a combination of threats. so, habitat loss is definitely the key driver that we've seen. they certainly prefer really good soil types, but there's also

chlamydial disease that's really been heavily impacting the populations. and certainly the black summer fires that we saw two years ago had a devastating impact across most of the eastern states. in a lot of areas, the koalas do prefer habitats that are on good soil, types that people also prefer for developments and agriculture. so there has been a big net loss of habitat over the last couple of decades, and it's been accelerating pretty much every year under the increased protections now, under the epbc act, the hope is that that the decisions are much more in the favor of the koalas and that the habitat loss is stemmed. we've also been finding them inside protected areas, which has been quite hopeful. but then under climate change, that's now an added challenge as well. four lions have been rehomed in south africa two years after being rescued from appalling conditions in a french circus. the charity which rescued them weren't able to transport the lions from france because of the covid pandemic. but now their three—day final journey has been completed.

john maguire reports. free at last. after two years of delays caused by the pandemic, the females — angela, bellone and saida — along with the male louga, have been released into the shamwari big cat sanctuary in south africa. born into captivity, they had spent their lives performing in a french travelling circus. transported around the country in cramped trailers, this journey began when louga attacked the circus owner, who then decided they should go to an animal welfare group. the wildlife charity, the born free foundation, stepped in and a plan was hatched to transport the lions to africa. early this week, the foundation told bbc breakfast what it would be like for the animals to make what could be considered a return home. just imagine, every cell in their body is going to feel at home because of the warmth

of the sun, the sense and sounds surrounding them. but they will still have a function, because the born free foundation's big cat rescue centre is in shamwari in south africa and they have tens of thousands of schoolchildren visiting. the lions are not on display, they are not right up there. you maybe have to use binoculars to see them across an enclosure. but the kids will learn about the role of lions in their ecosystem. so they will be educating rather than entertaining. they have never lived in the wild, so would be unlikely to survive if released totally. they're three—acre enclosure filled with natural features is believed their three—acre enclosure filled with natural features is believed to be the next best thing for these free lions who are, in many ways, coming home. john maguire, bbc news. to the west midlands now — and more than 500 families have

now time for across the uk. more than 500 families have signed an open letter demanding improved support for children with special needs. concerns about worcestershire�*s services for children with special education needs and disabilities have been raised during a recent ofsted review. the county council admitted it had "not been getting it right." audrey dias has spent the morning with one of the parents behind the letter. well, the families say they have lost all faith in the county council. i'm in bromsgrove with tracy winchester — she helped set up the send national crisis worcestershire group. tracy, can you remind us about the situation with your family? yeah, i have two children — rowan and maeve — rowan is ten and maeve is seven. they both have several special educational needs, but i suppose predominantly it's autistic spectrum disorder. my son specifically has pathological demand avoidance, they both have

really severe anxiety. we've been battling with the local authority for many years to get a suitable education for them. we've made progress, but its cost us thousands and thousands of pounds and, unfortunately, we're still at it. tracy, you helped set up this group, send, which represents so many otherfamilies — why do you believe there are so many other families in a situation like yours? unfortunately, there, of course, on a nationwide level, is a chronic funding issue. so we acknowledge that completely — that it goes well beyond the borders of worcestershire. we've addressed it to the key mps and secretaries of state, but the department for education really need to step in at this point to be that external scrutiny and intervention that's needed at worcestershire children first. we can't trust that things will happen as they should do as it stands. so what are you hoping to achieve with this appeal? i suppose, ideally, we'd like to call for an independent review, so worcestershire children first could actually bring in some independent consultants to give an external and unbiased view

as to exactly what needs to happen and how they should go about it, and also provide some sort of due diligence on how that's then put into place, because i feel that's what's lacking at the moment. well, thank you, tracy — and, as tracy said there, she and the families will continue to fight to get the children the care that they deserve. audrey dias reporting. next, meet billy menezes. he's often spotted around the streets of hackney with a pack of cards. from impressing dua lipa to confusing rita ora, the 18—year—old street magician says all he wants to do is make londoners smile. he told bbc london about some of his latest tricks. touch of the back of any card you like, anyone. diamond? that's a diamond? red? yeah. bro, what the...? that's your card, right?

how?!? hi, my name's billy menezes, i'm an 18—year—old magician and i live in london. i think magic is a feeling. i don't think it is what you see, i think it is how you feel. i like impromptu magic. i like going up to people and just changing their mood for a minute. there's stuff that we did with some cans of drinks, tricks we did with money. no top hats or rabbits. magic is like the best networking tool. you canjust go, "pick a card," and from there, i have already put a smile on their faces and if they like it, they will say, "what's your name?" it's just like lucky in london, i guess, just bumping into people, being able to do it. kate moss and skepta and dua lipa. sick! i think the favourite one i did was a trick for a guy called slowthai. i got him to sign a £20 note. would you ever like to rule the country, like, be the king? i am the king. you are the king? look, if you were the king, your face would be on a £20 note, wouldn't it?

laughter. look at this, look. turn over the note. the queen's face had vanished, and it was now his face, printed on the note. my face is on the note! i can't tell him how it was done, but it's nice to see like a really nice reaction to a trick. since he was little, - he's been blowing my mind. every time he comes out- with something bigger, better, more impressive, more creative. i think it is nice to express, like, and give people a sense of happiness or hope from something that is unexplainable. magic is just a catalyst for making people smile, i think. that is possibly the story of the day. billy out on the streets of east london entertaining lots of people. to the north—east of england now. they say they're being ambushed. gangs, deliberately starting fires, then when the crews arrive, attacking them with fireworks, bricks and bottles. officers say the assaults are now becoming far more frequent. in the last couple of weeks,

cleveland fire brigade says its crews have been attacked 20 times. and the vast majority have happened in just one area of middlesbrough. now residents are being urged to report those responsible for the violence. stuart whincup reports. over the years, our cameras have captured the attacks, but they are now becoming more serious and more frequent. this crew had fireworks thrown at them. but the missiles come in many forms. alpha three will come out now. now youngsters are regularly starting fires, then hiding away and attacking the crews when they arrive. we've seen an alarming rise in the last few weeks of what seems to be deliberate fires to lure us in and then people are ambushing us, really. that's probably the best way of putting it. attacks with bricks, stones, fires being lit with accelerant, petrol, etc, which is very dangerous.

and the vast majority of these attacks are coming from just one estate in middlesbrough. of the 20 attacks over the last few weeks, 17 have happened here in hemlington. fire crews say they've had bricks, bottles, stones thrown at them and the groups are made up of older teenagers. but some of those throwing the missiles at children as young the missiles are children as young as nine or ten. the crews are convinced people living here know who is responsible and know the names of the youngsters carrying out the attacks. we just need your help. we need the help from the community to identify these people so that we can bring them to justice. we can carry out full investigation and potentially prosecute these people. we need to stop these attacks. we need to stop the attacks on the firefighters and on the fire engines themselves. this mindless violence, the brigade says, is putting firefighters lives at risk and preventing crews from responding to real emergencies. stuart whincup, bbc look north.

in the republic, a 12—year—old boy has died after a road crash in which it's believed he was driving his parents car. it happened near adare in county limerick in the early hours of this morning. let's speak to our dublin correspondent, shane harrison. tell us more on what happened, shane. the 12—year—old boy was driving alone in his parents card when it collided with a lorry roughly around two o'clock this morning. that's when the emergency services were called to the scene. the accident happened close to a roundabout on

the m21, near adare in county limerick. the lorry driver was not seriously injured, he did not require hospitalisation, but he is said to be in a state of shock. the boy's parents are a polish eye and had set out in the newcastle west area of county limerick for some time, roughly 25 kilometres away from where the accident happened. irish police have appealed for witnesses and drivers who had dashcam footage to make it available to them. local people and politicians have expressed their shock about what happened. it postmortem examination is being carried out on the dead boy. his name is yet to be officially released, but people in the area are greatly shocked about what happened shane, thank you for the update.

there is much more coming up here on bbc news from two o'clock. we are waiting for that these conference from the defence secretary, ben wallace, as we turn our attention to the growing tension between russia and ukraine. much more on that after two o'clock. right now, let's catch up two o'clock. right now, let's catch up with the weather prospects. hello, there. we saw a widespread frost across the uk to start our friday morning — a little bit of mist and fog around, too — but essentially it's been dry and sunny for all areas, and it's going to continue so into the second part of the day, as well. just a bit more cloud building up across western areas as this new area of low pressure starts to move in. this will bring wet and windy weather into the start of the weekend, but this is the ridge of high pressure which brought us the cold, dry and sunny weather through friday. temperatures by the end of the day

reaching five to nine degrees after that cold, frosty start — that's around the seasonal norm. so a fine end to the day for many central and eastern areas, but out west, the area of low pressure starts to move in, bringing wetter and windier weather — a bit of snow over the hills of scotland for a while as it bumps into the cold air — but temperatures will recover by the end of the night, it will turn milder here, but under clearer skies across the southeast — another chilly night to come here. so saturday's a very different—feeling today compared to friday. it'll be windierfor all, more cloud, outbreaks of rain — particularly across northern and western areas. some heavy across parts of wales, particularly south wales, in towards northwest england. sunshine and showers for scotland and northern ireland — here we'll see gales — and some drier weather across the southeast of england. i think it'll stay dry here until after dark. temperatures coming up a little bit, as well — highs of nine or ten degrees, certainly across southern and western areas. it turns wetter and windier for southeast england through saturday night, and then into sunday

we look to the southwest, a new area of low pressure which will bring another round of wind and rain, and this is going to affect large parts of england and wales — gales across the southwest through the channel and the channel islands, and heavy rain pushes its way northwards to all areas but the far north of scotland. temperatures again on the mild side, particularly across the south — highs here of nine to 11 degrees. now that area of low pressure pushes out into the north sea for monday, then we're in a run of cold north—northwesterly wind, so it's a slow, improving day, i think — once we lose the wind and the rain across eastern areas, we should see quite a bit of sunshine around, but there will be some showers around, too, blowing in on this fairly brisk northwest wind. they will be wintry over northern scotland — where it will be chilly here — but, actually, a cooler day to come across the board. then after monday, the rest of the week, it remains unsettled, with areas of low pressure pushing off the atlantic to bring very

this is bbc news. the headlines... the search is on to find a new commissionerfor the uk's largest police force after dame cressida dick quits. campaigners have welcomed her resignation and say now is the time for change. what will be looking for, those of us who are pushing for reform, is somebody who has a history of speaking truth to power. better than expected — the uk economy rebounded from the pandemic last year, growing by 7.5%. but warnings remain about rising inflation. britain's defence secretary is told by his russian counterpart of an increasingly tense situation in ukraine. the pair have been holding talks in moscow. we're expecting a to hear from ben wallace at a news conference at the british embassy

in moscow in half an hour. we'll bring it to you live.