today at six. more bad news for the royal family, as police investigate charles' prince's foundation over allegations of cash—for—honours. clarence house says he had "no knowledge of the alleged offer of honours or british citizenship" to a saudi national. it comes as questions are raised about who'll foot the bill, for prince andrew's out of court civil settlement, over sexual assault allegations. estimates suggest the deal could run into several millions of pounds. also on the programme... the cost of living hits a new 30—year high as energy, fuel and food costs rocket. so the things going up — transport, packaging, wages. nothing coming down. we're in a catch 22 situation.

children aged between 5 and 11 across the uk will now be offered a covid jab. and most scottish train services are already cancelled, with storm dudley threatening 80 mile an hour winds. coming up in sportsday later in the hour on the bbc news channel. are great britain's winter olympians heading for a 30 year low? 12 days into the games and still no medals in beijing. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the metropolitan police says it's investigating allegations of cash—for—honours linked to the prince of wales�* charity, the prince's foundation. it's claimed there'd been an offer

with a saudi national. clarence house says prince charles had "no knowledge of the alleged offer of honours or british citizenship, on the basis of donation to his charities." it's another blow for the royal family this week, with questions being raised about whether prince andrew will ever return to public life. it follows his out of court settlement with virginia giuffre, who'd accused him of sexual assault. there are no details of the size of the financial deal. prince andrew has not accepted any liability as part of the settlement. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell, has the very latest. i'm here! turbulent moments they may be for members of her family. one person, though, was as ever staying calm and carrying on. good morning, your majesty. how are you? well, as you can see, i cant move. well, many congratulations on the start of yourjubilee year. good morning. the queen was at windsor castle this morning meeting military officials. there are still evidently

some mobility issues, but her appearance dispels the rumours that she caught covid from the prince of wales. and the underlying message, it is business as usual. despite the problems faced by not one, but two of her sons. first, prince charles. there is to be a formal police investigation into his charity, the prince's foundation over allegations that honours and british citizenship were promised to a saudi billionaire in return for cash donations to the charity. in a statement, the metropolitan police said, officers liaised with the prince's foundation about the findings of an independent investigation into fundraising practices. the foundation provided a number of relevant documents. the assessment determined an investigation will commence. there have been no arrests or interviews under caution. the man who is expected to be at the centre of the investigation is michael fawcett, chief executive of the prince's foundation until his recent resignation. he has worked for charles for decades.

he used to be the prince's valet. in a statement, clarence house said, the prince of wales had no knowledge of the alleged offer of honours or british citizenship on the basis of donation to his charities. and then, to prince andrew and the continuing questions around his out—of—court settlement with virginia giuffre. variously estimated to be costing him anything up to £12 million. it is not thought andrew has that kind of spare cash. so will the queen have to help him? if andrew goes to the queen for help more than likely the money will come from the duchy of lancaster which is effectively the queen's cash cow. last year it brought her about £22 million in money. and it is mainly rental income from a portfolio of land. it seems inconceivable that any public money from the sovereign grant would be used. but already there are calls for greater openness from the palace. andrew is going to have to confirm that the public have not paid this. because that threatens to have wider

implications for the royal family. for the royalfamily, the threat of a damaging court case involving prince andrew has been avoided. but a number of questions remain. the queen must be tempted to wonder at whatever next? just as the situation around the court case with prince andrew starts to resolve itself then comes a police inquiry into the one of the main charities of prince charles. and as to where the money for andrew's out—of—court settlement will come on that buckingham palace is absolutely resolute and saying absolutely nothing at all. nick witchell, thank you. children aged between 5 and 11 in england, northern ireland and scotland, are to be offered a covid jab. wales made the same announcement yesterday. the body which advises on vaccinations, says it should be a low—dose injection, offered on a �*non urgent�* basis. here's our health editor, hugh pym.

all done and dusted. covid jabs have already started for some young children at clinics like this in northumberland. those who are critically vulnerable or living with someone with an immune condition and there is plenty to put them at their ease. now that office to be extended to all five to ii—year—olds following advice from the committee of vaccine experts.— of vaccine experts. vaccinated gives ou a of vaccine experts. vaccinated gives you a broader— of vaccine experts. vaccinated gives you a broader immunity _ of vaccine experts. vaccinated gives you a broader immunity even - of vaccine experts. vaccinated gives you a broader immunity even on - of vaccine experts. vaccinated givesj you a broader immunity even on the basis that a child has previously had covid so many ways this is an offer to future proof against potential further waves or variants arising. potential further waves or variants arisinu . ., potential further waves or variants arisina. ., ,, . ., , potential further waves or variants arisina. ., ,, . ., arising. the health secretary today on a hospital_ arising. the health secretary today on a hospital visit _ arising. the health secretary today on a hospital visit in _ arising. the health secretary today on a hospitalvisit in birmingham . on a hospital visit in birmingham gave the go—ahead for vaccination of younger children in england did ministers in the other uk nations. one thing the nhs will be doing as it rolls out this offer is starting

from april in the easter holidays and making sure that where it is offered that vaccine centres or maybe pharmacies, there is a child friendly offer. but maybe pharmacies, there is a child friendly offer-— friendly offer. but some parents to at the school _ friendly offer. but some parents to at the school gates _ friendly offer. but some parents to at the school gates in _ friendly offer. but some parents to at the school gates in birmingham| at the school gates in birmingham seemed sceptical. this at the school gates in birmingham seemed sceptical.— seemed sceptical. this is quite a ounu seemed sceptical. this is quite a young age _ seemed sceptical. this is quite a young age and — seemed sceptical. this is quite a young age and i _ seemed sceptical. this is quite a young age and i think _ seemed sceptical. this is quite a young age and i think the - seemed sceptical. this is quite a i young age and i think the immune system is quite strong to fight against the coronavirus. i think the are against the coronavirus. i think they are too — against the coronavirus. i think they are too young, _ against the coronavirus. i think| they are too young, personally. against the coronavirus. i think. they are too young, personally. i know _ they are too young, personally. i know how — they are too young, personally. i know how lot of people have side effects _ know how lot of people have side effects if— know how lot of people have side effects. ., know how lot of people have side effects. . . ., ., effects. if it meant we could do more think— effects. if it meant we could do more think socially _ effects. if it meant we could do more think socially that - effects. if it meant we could do more think socially that i - more think socially that i definitely— more think socially that i definitely would. - more think socially that i definitely would. but - more think socially that i definitely would. but if. more think socially that i definitely would. but if it more think socially that i - definitely would. but if it doesn't make _ definitely would. but if it doesn't make any— definitely would. but if it doesn't make any difference _ definitely would. but if it doesn't make any difference in— definitely would. but if it doesn't make any difference in terms - definitely would. but if it doesn't make any difference in terms ofl make any difference in terms of social_ make any difference in terms of social passports _ make any difference in terms of social passports i— make any difference in terms of social passports i probably - social passports i probably wouldn't _ social passports i probably wouldn't-— social passports i probably wouldn't. . .,. social passports i probably wouldn't. . .. , ., wouldn't. one head teacher nestor welcomed the _ wouldn't. one head teacher nestor welcomed the move. _ wouldn't. one head teacher nestor welcomed the move. transmission| wouldn't. one head teacher nestor l welcomed the move. transmission is the problem — welcomed the move. transmission is the problem ready _ welcomed the move. transmission is the problem ready so _ welcomed the move. transmission is the problem ready so if— welcomed the move. transmission is the problem ready so if it _ welcomed the move. transmission is the problem ready so if it reduces . the problem ready so if it reduces that it would be a benefit. not only to the children and the staff

because that is what disrupts their learning when i cannot come to school. ., , learning when i cannot come to school. . , , ., ., school. the latest extension of the vaccination — school. the latest extension of the vaccination programme _ school. the latest extension of the vaccination programme comes - school. the latest extension of the | vaccination programme comes after the omicron wave and a surge of cases among schoolchildren. figures from the office for national statistics suggest that 71% of eight to ii—year—olds in the uk have covid antibodies reflecting previous infections and offering some protection compared with 90.2% of 12 to 15 euros and 98% among adults. those high levels also reflecting the impact of vaccination. some other countries are alreadyjabbing other countries are already jabbing five other countries are alreadyjabbing five to 11—year—olds including the us which started in november. italy as well as france, germany and canada are among other countries doing the same. it has taken the uk longer to reach the same decision. the cost of living hit a new 30—year high last month, as energy, fuel and food costs continued to soar. prices surged by 5.5%

in the 12 months to january. inflation is now rising faster than wages, and is expected to climb above 7% this year. our business editor, simonjack, explains what it all means, for the pound in your pocket. getting food to market takes time and money. at this wholesale market in bristol the effects of a 50% rise in oil prices in the last 12 months is showing up in the price of fruit and veg. things are just going up. certainly transport, packaging, wages. all three. nothing coming down, nothing coming down. this time last year a lorry from spain cost £2200 to get to bristol market. now we are paying £3600. it can't be absorbed any more, we are at a point where we cannot absorb any more. it is a constant pressure. petrol prices hit a new record this week and the recent surge in the cost of crude oil means more pressure is in the pipeline.

i can't afford to live as it is. i'm getting rid of my car because i can't afford to keep it any longer. i'm happy to get buses and stuff moving forwards. it would have gone to half a tank. it's gone tojust over a quarter now. i only put £20 in obviously. but no, it isjust how it's going to be, isn't it? you're frightened to use it, now. these price pressures would be more bearable if wages were keeping up. but as the treasury acknowledges, so far they are not. over the last year average wage rises were distorted by people coming back off furlough to full wage packets. at the last look, they are rising at under 4%. meanwhile prices have been rising steadily and overtook wages late last year. when those lines cross over it means on average people are getting poorer every day, with public sector workers and pensioners among the hardest hit. painful for individuals but also very uncomfortable for the government, which won't want to see it persist. and it is about to get worse with real implications for the public finances.

in april a rise in energy bills and a £6 billion tax hike on wages will push prices even higher. increasing the cost of the government's inflation linked debt repayments. we estimate that in this year this will add 11 billion to the entrance to the interest spending next year. rising oil, gas and electricity prices are affecting countries around the world. that doesn't make them any less painful or easier to fix. inflation will be setting new records and tightening its squeeze on household budgets for many months to come. simon jack, bbc news. america and its nato allies say russia is increasing its build up of troops around ukraine, despite claims by president putin that he's withdrawing forces. ukraine's government has been holding what it calls a "day of unity" in response to fears of a russian invasion. the country's president, volodymyr zelensky, has told the bbc that a genuine russian

withdrawal would be "clear to see". western intelligence estimates suggest russia still has well over 100,000 troops camped on ukraine's borders, encircling the country. many of those forces are in belarus, to the north, with the borderjust 60 miles from the ukrainian capital kyiv. from there, paul adams reports. ukraine's day of unity. in kyiv�*s olympic stadium, a gesture of defiance and a pledge to stay put, come what may. translation: putin willl attack but we came to the biggest stadium with the biggest flag and showed that we are not afraid, we will not go anywhere from here, we will stand here for our land and the land of our ancestors. translation: today we need to show . everyone that it is impossible to - scare us, that we are confident in ourselves, in our people, in our strengths. elsewhere, more modest displays.

at fire station number two, the anthem, the flag, and then back to work. ukraine's president is touring the country, visiting troops practising with new, british supplied weaponry, and speaking to the bbc, voicing scepticism about reports of russian troops pulling back. translation: when the troops do . withdraw, everyone will see it, . notjust reconnaissance or the military, we will all see it but for now, it is just statements. these, the pictures he was talking about. russian armour leaving the crimean peninsula. moscow, which insists it has no plans to attack ukraine, says some of its military exercises are over. nato isn't buying it but says there is still room for dialogue. we face a dangerous moment for european security. russia has amassed an invasion force on the borders of ukraine. at the same time, there are signs

from moscow that diplomacy should continue. and it is notjust the russians putting on a show. ukraine says its military is stronger than ever, ready, if necessary, to resist. it is certainly in better shape than it was eight years ago, when the conflict with russia began. but it is still no match for the superpower next door. the fact that today has passed without incident doesn't mean a thing. a russian attack is neither more nor less likely. unless we see significant changes around this country's borders, we could be in this situation for weeks to come. pauladams, bbc news, kyiv. our top story this evening... police investigate prince charles' charity, the prince's foundation, over allegations of cash—for—honours. and coming up, the wait for a british medal goes on at the winter olympics. coming up in sportsday in the next 15 minutes on the bbc news channel,

we are going to get the latest from milan ahead of liverpool's champions league knockout tie against the italian champions, people who test positive for covid, and who are at high risk, are being offered new treatments to fight the virus. the anti—viral and antibody drugs significantly reduce the likelihood of serious illness. our medical editor, fergus walsh, has been to the royal victoria infirmary in newcastle, where the first covid—19 patient was cared forjust over two years ago, and he's been finding out how medical treatments have improved. covid—fighting antibodies in a bottle. 100,000 doses of sotrovimab are on order for vulnerable patients like david, who is immunosuppressed and covid positive. hi, david. hello. i'lljust get you hooked up. the monoclonal antibody cuts the risk of hospital admission and death by up to 80%.

as soon as this one—off infusion is over, david will continue self—isolating at home. i was only diagnosed with covid yesterday and they are saying this already, it will boost my ability to fight the virus. give it a helping hand. mattias schmidt treated the uk's very first covid patient, in january 2020. we didn't know what we were dealing with. it was an unknown disease. he says doctors are now far better equipped to combat the virus. two years ago, we had nothing. now we have a range of treatments available which reduce the severity and prevent death in a huge number of patients. the aim now is to stop covid before it takes hold. with anti—viral pills like molnupiravir and paxlovid,

to be taken at home. the hospital pharmacy is dispatching prescriptions to high—risk adults newly diagnosed with covid. in trials, paxlovid cut the risk of hospital admission by nearly 90%. as you can see today we've got two empty beds. so we can immediately admit two critically ill patients who require intensive care. the reduction in pressure on the nhs is largely due to vaccines which are keeping the vulnerable out of hospital. the milder omicron variant is also helping. it's a very different situation to where we were during the peak of the pandemic, with the unit entirely full of covid. at the peak a year ago, there were 90 covid patients in critical care across the trust. now there are three. and when covid patients are admitted to hospital, it is usually to general wards like this one. you're looking much better.

you are definitely looking better, james. covid patients like james are treated and discharged home in days rather than weeks. i'm just going to do a test to see how fast and how much you can blow out... but this virus is leaving a bitter legacy. long covid. you really do blast the air out... danielle got infected in the first wave. a fitness instructor, she still suffers severe fatigue and brain fog nearly two years later. i'm 31, but i feel like i'm 61. i feel like my bodyjust is so much older than what i am. i have lost a lot of my life, especially when it affects my job in so many ways. in and blow. she is having her lung function assessed. there is no magic pill for long covid. but this clinic says most patients will eventually get better. after two punishing years, the uk is emerging from the shadow of covid.

new variants may emerge, but it is science, through vaccines and medicines, that is set to liberate us. fergus walsh, bbc news, newcastle. the public inquiry into the wrongful conviction of hundreds of post office branch managers has heard testimony from a widow who says the investigation and charges against her husband "massively contributed" to his early death. more than 700 people received wrongful criminal convictions, because it software made it look as if money had gone missing from their tills. it was the most widespread miscarriage ofjustice in british legal history. our consumer affairs correspondent colletta smith has more details. karen wilson has been through more than most people dealing with the loss of a husband. whenjulian died in 2016, he still had a conviction for a crime he did not commit. after years of fighting the post office on his behalf, that conviction was quashed last year.

and now karen wants answers. who knew? i can't believe alarms weren't going off between the bottom, the investigators, the auditors and the top, the board? who signed all of these prosecutions off? did nobody ever say, "this isn't right?" when i spoke to karen last year, she told me the impact it had had on both their lives. i said to him about a week before he passed away, "what were you thinking about?" he just shrugged his shoulders. how do you die knowing you've done nothing wrong? he knew... he knew. ..and you knew that he'd done nothing wrong? i said to him, "everybody else knows," but he didn't have the chance to go to court and that like i did. to see that awesome judge say, "your husband was right." this used to bejulian's post office in worcestershire.

like thousands of others right across the country, the weekly accounts just hadn't added up. in west yorkshire, gillian howard had taken over the post office from her husband when he suffered a stroke. the auditors arrived and the sums didn't add up. gillian told the inquiry today she didn't know where to turn. at that point, i considered ending my life. i talked to myself and i thought about my family and i thought about graham, and i knew i'd got to return and face whatever they was going to find. a court summons arrived for gillian on the day of her daughter's wedding. we were all robbed of that wedding day. robbed. each day of this public inquiry will bring equally devastating stories to light, of thousands of lives ruined by the post office's decision to blame their staff rather than question their software. coletta smith, bbc news.

an amber weather warning is in place across parts of scotland, northen ireland, and the north of england, as storm dudley is set to bring heavy rain and winds. gusts of between 70 and 80 miles an hour are expected in some places. many rail services in scotland have finished early, because of safety concerns. our scotland correspondent, alexandra mackenzie, is bathgate in west lothian for us this evening. this is the fourth storm to hit scotland injust this is the fourth storm to hit scotland in just three this is the fourth storm to hit scotland injust three months this is the fourth storm to hit scotland in just three months and the amber when the warning had been in place since 2pm this afternoon, likely to go through until midnight tonight —— amber weather warning. a cab is the most northern part of northern ireland, right across to the island of islay glasgow, away to edinburgh in the east and all the way down to the north of england. we are likely to seek gusts of wind up to 70 or 80 mph and that could bring

extremely hazardous conditions tonight. that is why there has been some rail disruption to trains stopping running in most parts of scotland since 4pm this afternoon. here in bathgate, it would normally be quite busy around this time of night but it is pretty much deserted. the schools have also been affected, many going home early today. ferries have also been disrupted, many services have been cancelled. and the ferry company haligonian macbrayne said they were going to prioritise island communities and get essential items to those islands that have been affected —— caledonian macbrayne. this is not the end, storm eunice is expected to hit on friday and that could bring even stronger winds and could bring even stronger winds and could also bring some snow, so some extremely tricky weather conditions in the next few days. {lilia extremely tricky weather conditions

in the next few days. ok, alexandra, thank ou in the next few days. ok, alexandra, thank you from _ in the next few days. ok, alexandra, thank you from bathgate _ in the next few days. ok, alexandra, thank you from bathgate in _ in the next few days. ok, alexandra, thank you from bathgate in west - thank you from bathgate in west lothian. great britain is still without a medal, 12 days into the winter olympics in beijing. the last time team gb ended a games without a podium finish was 30 years ago. today dave ryding, who recently became the first british skier to win an alpine world cup race, also missed out on a medal. laura scott reports from beijing. team gb needs someone to ride to the rescue of these games. the rocket is away! step forward dave ryding to try. the clock went green, he was up, but slalom doesn't forgive errors and he just couldn't carve the time back, finishing 13th. well, it is becoming an all—too—familiar pattern at these olympics — team gb's medal hopefuls finishing way out of contention. dave ryding, just the latest example of that. and with the end of the games looming, the hunt for medals is becoming more desperate by the day. i think we would love to be on the medal table obviously at this stage of the games but i think

the athletes, more than anyone, are disappointed with that. i think if you look back, we have had some really promising results, looking to the future, but of course we are not going to shy away from some that are disappointing. much of the fallout will wait until after the finish line of these games has been crossed, but reviews have been promised into the number of brits who crashed out early. the british boys have flipped over! difficult questions are already being asked, though, around skeleton, after britain failed to make a podium for the first time since 2002. i just think that they got _ the technical part of the equipment wrong, and that is what slowed the athletes down. _ because look at laura deas — her slides were amazing - but the equipmentjust did not let her sort of produce - the speeds she deserved. concerns are now creeping in that team gb could return home empty—handed, despite £27 million of funding. but with six wins in a row and a semifinal spot secured,

bruce mouat�*s curling team could well spare britain's blushes in beijing. laura scott, bbc news, beijing. time for a look at the weather. here's louise lear. dudley and eunice, they sound innocuous but not when they are storms! i innocuous but not when they are storms! ~' ., , innocuous but not when they are storms! ~ ., , ., ., ., , storms! i know, they are memorable names but i — storms! i know, they are memorable names but i think _ storms! i know, they are memorable names but i think eunice _ storms! i know, they are memorable names but i think eunice might - storms! i know, they are memorable names but i think eunice might have| names but i think eunice might have a bit more of a sting in the tail, a larger storm and certainly a wider impact across the country but that is friday. but we have dudley here at the moment and i don't want to underplay the significance of it because we have seen in the last hour or so gusts of wind in excess of 60-70 hour or so gusts of wind in excess of 60—70 mph and even 80 mph. that is a strong enough to have an impact and it looks likely we will continue to see that a storm in the next few hours and the amber weather warning remains in force until midnight tonight across parts of central and southern scotland, northern ireland

and northern england. certainly be aware for further disruption put of the storm will drift steadily eastward and as the low pressure pushes into the north sea, it will bring some snow at lower levels in the highlands, but gradually the isobars will open up which means that winds will fall a little lighter going into the early hours of tomorrow morning. it will drive in plenty of showers, snow at lower levels as well at the moment. quite a lot of cloud further south will keep temperatures above freezing. tomorrow will quite literally be the calm before the storm because for many on thursday it will be a dry day with sunshine coming through. yes, there will be some showers in the far north and west and still blustery winds, 30—110 mph, but it will be dry and temperatures in the north will peak at around 5—8 , not quite as mild as the weather in the south—east to date with highs of 15 degrees. tomorrow it will be 10—12 c but then all eyes on thursday night

into friday morning. storm eunice. this low pressure will rapidly intensify in the early hours of friday morning and it is a double—edged sword in some respects because we have more significant snow potentially on friday across northern ireland, central and southern scotland and we could see as much as 30 centimetres before the storm clears. it will gradually drift eastwards, perhaps the snow not reaching the north—west of the great glen, the western and northern isles, but to the south of the centre of the low is where we are likely to see the strongest winds come on the southern flank. yes, some showers in england and wales, but thickly to the west of the pennines but here it is the strength of the winds that will have a significant impact. gusts in excess of 90 or even 100 mph on exposed coasts and inland we could see gusts of 70 or 80 mph. and that could have quite a significant impact.—

quite a significant impact. louise, thank you- _ a reminder of our top story... police investigate prince charles�*s charity, the prince's foundation, over allegations of cash for honours. that's it. i'm back again at 10pm, but now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. have a very good evening.

hello, and welcome to sportsday. i'm olly foster. on a ryding to nothing — another british medal chance slips away in beijing. we'll get the latest from the san siro, where liverpool start the champions league knockout stages. with the euros this summer on home soil, england's women