this is bbc news — these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. russia says there are no concrete plans for pretty matter on biden to meet in person, despite reports of a summit. but they say diplomacy will continue. borisjohnson will set out plans to scrap all remaining covid legal restrictions in england — including the requirement to isolate. i don't understand why people can't put a mask on when they are in an enclosed area, why they can't stay home, when they are covid positive. how do you feel about the prospect of ending all covid restrictions? is it coming at the right time, or do you think it's premature? you can get in touch with me

on twitter @annitabbc, using the hashtag bbcyourquestions. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week despite testing positive for covid. hundreds of homes are evacuated amid flood warnings, is the uk is hit by a third major storm in less than a week. a third ma'or storm in less than a week. ~ , ., , ., a third ma'or storm in less than a week. ~ ,, , ., y , a third ma'or storm in less than a week. ~ , ., , ., week. when you start off, it is a lonely place. — week. when you start off, it is a lonely place, and _ week. when you start off, it is a lonely place, and you _ week. when you start off, it is a lonely place, and you need - week. when you start off, it is a lonely place, and you need to i week. when you start off, it is a . lonely place, and you need to make sure you believe in yourself and youridea sure you believe in yourself and your idea to take to the next level. the british music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31 — tributes pour in from across the world of entertainment.

hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the kremlin has said it is �*premature' to organise a biden—putin summit on ukraine. it comes after the meeting was proposed by france. the white house said it will only happen if russia does not invade its neighbour. president putin is also due to hold what the kremlin has called a large extraordinary meeting of the russian security council later. explosions have been continuing in ukraine's eastern donbas region this weekend. there have been increased clashes between the ukrainian government forces and rebels backed by russia. mark lobel reports. military drills in belarus that were meant to end with russian tanks going back to their bases. not any more — leaving the fear of war hanging over its nearby border with ukraine. but after a series of phone calls, the french president says the us president and president putin could meet to discuss the crisis, offering hope of a peaceful solution.

president biden has made very clear that he's prepared to meet president putin at any time, in any format, if that will help prevent a war. and as long as — even if the die is cast, until it's settled, until we know that the tanks are rolling, the planes are flying and the aggression has fully begun, we're going to do everything we can to prevent it. to set the terms for a putin—biden meeting, their respective foreign ministers will speak on thursday. but the white house says any proposed summit will only take place if russia has not invaded its neighbour. in recent days, in eastern ukraine, russian—backed rebels and government forces have accused each other of violating a ceasefire. following the killing of two ukrainian soldiers, now russian—backed rebels there say two civilians have been killed in shelling by government forces. russia is helping evacuate women and children from the eastern breakaway regions it controls,

claiming kyiv is planning an attack there. russia has been demanding assurances nato will not admit ukraine, which it sees as a threat to its security. but that's an aspiration ukraine's foreign minister says remains alive, in an interview with cbs. ukraine is seeking membership in nato. has there been any subtle pressure from the united states for you to abandon your desire? no. so far, this message has came from a few european members of nato. meanwhile, resistance preparations for a wartime scenario in kyiv continue as fresh satellite images appear to show russian military units within nine miles of the border with ukraine. mark lobel, bbc news. let's talk to our correspondent in ukraine james waterhouse.

tell us about the reaction in ukraine to news of further contacts between the us and russian foreign ministers, and talk of a possible, and heavy emphasis on the word possible, summit between the russian and us presidents? yes. possible, summit between the russian and us presidents?— and us presidents? yes, we often hear a principle — and us presidents? yes, we often hear a principle repeated - and us presidents? yes, we often hear a principle repeated here - and us presidents? yes, we often. hear a principle repeated here from diplomats and politicians. nothing about ukraine without ukraine. it is about ukraine without ukraine. it is a sensitive issue, given the ongoing talks between russia and the us, with ukraine at the heart of it. the country's foreign minister is in brussels today, with eu foreign ministers. he is delivered has given a briefing this morning when he said he had a personal assurance from the us secretary of state antony blinken that no big decisions would be taken without him and his government. but there are still tentative steps on there are still tentative steps on the diplomatic path. yesterday,

granted, the us said we were on the verge of an invasion, given president putin leaving 30,000 estimated russian troops to the north. today, we understand, from the us, that president emmanuel macron of france has brokered a potential summit between president putin and president biden. then dmitry peskov has said that is premature, it is not concrete, it can happen but a lot would have to happen first. meanwhile, there is an extraordinary meeting between president putin and his security council happening today. and a lot needs to happen for such a summit to take place. the country's foreign ministers have to meet to thrash out an agenda. and nothing will happen at all if russia decides to invade. so, ukraine will no doubt welcome the continued diplomacy, but, as you allude to, it is delicate.— allude to, it is delicate. james, daily reports — allude to, it is delicate. james, daily reports pretty _ allude to, it is delicate. james, daily reports pretty much - allude to, it is delicate. james, j daily reports pretty much about incidents around the border between

russia and ukraine. give us context about that. we have been warned about that. we have been warned about false flag events, designed to create a pretext for an incursion, an invasion. so, to what extent should we take these reports with a pinch of salt? i should we take these reports with a pinch of salt?— pinch of salt? i think we can be re pinch of salt? i think we can be pretty clear _ pinch of salt? i think we can be pretty clear that _ pinch of salt? i think we can be pretty clear that there - pinch of salt? i think we can be pretty clear that there has - pinch of salt? i think we can be| pretty clear that there has been pinch of salt? i think we can be - pretty clear that there has been an increase in violence, exchanges of fire, along the border of the so—called people's republics of donetsk and lance. between the russian backed separatists and ukrainian government forces. that includes shell and mortar attacks, we had reports of two ukrainian soldiers killed over the weekend. and then you have the false flag accusations, we have had thousands of people that live there being evacuated by russia, across the border into the rostov region of russia because of what moscow describes as a concerning escalation in the area. we have had reports of shelling from ukrainian forces, into

moscow itself. that is extremely unlikely, given the build—up of troops there, and ukraine has very much deny that. as far as the west is concerned, yes, this is part of them trying to build an artificial justification for invasion. in the official stage, vladimir putin is saying, given what is happening in the region on the refugee crisis, as he sees it, that is why he is leaving 30,000 of his troops in belarus to the north. that is making both ukraine and the us very concerned. the uk prime minister is to lay out his vision for repealing all remaining covid restrictions in england, saying his plan will bring the country "towards a return to normality". despite this, borisjohnson is warning that we shouldn't "throw caution to the wind" as the virus remains dangerous for some. it's expected that by the end of the week the legal requirement to self—isolate will be scrapped for those who test positive, and will be replaced with advice instead. free lateral flow and pcr testing are likely

to be rolled back. the vaccine programme will remain open to anyone who hasn't had their doses yet. across the rest of the uk, in northern ireland, restrictions are no longer legally—binding. wales is at alert level zero, which is the lowest level of covid rules. and in scotland, first minister nicola strugeon is due to update msps tomorrow. in westminster today, the prime minister will chair a cabinet meeting this morning, before addressing the commons later this afternoon. earlier our chief political correspondent adam fleming, said the government's plans were down to politics as well as science. you remember boris johnson you remember borisjohnson first made this pledge to scrap the covid legislation, or the legal restrictions a month earlier than planned, right at the height of the challenge to his leadership. so, thatis challenge to his leadership. so, that is what is giving labour ammunition to say they are opposed to this, because it is on a political timetable rather than a

scientific one. but i think downing street are well aware of the fact that there will be some people, particularly among the backbenchers, who will be very pleased the legal restrictions are being lifted. they are also aware there are some people that are very anxious about covid and some people that are vulnerable, for whom it could still be potentially a very serious disease. which is why it has been described, this plan, is a balanced package that will try to speak to all of those different groups. so, it won't be about abandoning testing altogether. it's far more likely to be about gradually withdrawing universal testing and focusing it on where it is needed. it won'tjust be go to work if you've got a sniffle, it will be, make a careful decision about the rescue could be posing to other people if you go to work, if you have got a sniffle. it willjust not be backed up in law. that is the thing that will really pleased tory backbenchers when they that this afternoon. i'm joined now by professor adam finn, from thejoint committee on vaccination and immunisation. thank you very much forjoining us.

so, 34,377 cases on deaths within 28 days of a positive test. those are the latest figures that we have relating to andy. 0bviously that we have relating to andy. obviously the vaccination figures are very, very strong as well. do you think that we are in a place where all of the remaining measures, at least the legal requirements around them, should be removed? goad around them, should be removed? good mornin: , around them, should be removed? good morning. annita — around them, should be removed? good morning. annita. — around them, should be removed? (limp. morning, annita, well, yes and no, i think is the answer. as you correctly said, we are still in the middle of the way will be 0micron variant, covid is very much still around. it will be interesting to see how the announcement later is framed. i suspect, see how the announcement later is framed. isuspect, like see how the announcement later is framed. i suspect, like adam, see how the announcement later is framed. isuspect, like adam, the message will be that it isn't all over yet, message will be that it isn't all overyet, but message will be that it isn't all over yet, but they are trying to remove the legal requirements to some extent, partly for public health, but also partly for

political reasons. i think underlying this also is a wish to try and reduce the amount of public spending that is going on on the pandemic, as well. so, there are a number of different factors at play. but we haven't seen the end of covid yet, for sure. d0 but we haven't seen the end of covid yet. for sure-— yet, for sure. do you think that we are auoin yet, for sure. do you think that we are going to _ yet, for sure. do you think that we are going to hear— yet, for sure. do you think that we are going to hear from _ yet, for sure. do you think that we are going to hear from professorsl are going to hear from professors chris whitty and sir patrick vallance, the senior medical figures who appeared alongside borisjohnson at many of the news conferences? i know viewers getting in touch with me today are saying that they wanted to hear what they have to say on all of this. , ., ., ., of this. yes, well, i have no idea whether they _ of this. yes, well, i have no idea whether they are _ of this. yes, well, i have no idea whether they are going - of this. yes, well, i have no idea whether they are going to - of this. yes, well, i have no idea whether they are going to be - of this. yes, well, i have no idea - whether they are going to be brought out to be part of the announcement. it would certainly be reassuring to all of us to have that scientific support for whatever proposals are being bought through. i think in the meantime, we all still need to bear in mind the importance of trying to avoid spreading this infection around. the figures you just quoted, of course, to years ago, if you had

announced them, we would all have been extremely alarmed at the number of people in hospital and the number of people in hospital and the number of people in hospital and the number of people dying and so on. itjust goes to show how we have habituated, if you like, this new normal of having an illness circulating that is causing a lot of deaths. your speciality. _ is causing a lot of deaths. your speciality. of — is causing a lot of deaths. your speciality, of course, - is causing a lot of deaths. your speciality, of course, is - is causing a lot of deaths. your speciality, of course, is around vaccination and immunisation. do you think at this point we can rely, given the 0micron variant and what we know about it now, that we can largely rely on vaccinations to protect? largely rely on vaccinations to rotect? ~ ., largely rely on vaccinations to rotect? ~ . ., ., ., protect? we learned a lot about these vaccines _ protect? we learned a lot about these vaccines in _ protect? we learned a lot about these vaccines in the _ protect? we learned a lot about these vaccines in the last - protect? we learned a lot about these vaccines in the last year l protect? we learned a lot about i these vaccines in the last year and they are remarkably effective. what they are remarkably effective. what they are remarkably effective. what they are really effective at is preventing severe illness. they do that very effectively, and they do it for quite a long time. they are much less good at preventing the spread of infection and transmission within the population. they do that to an extent, but not for very long. as the virus evolves, they do it less and less well. so, we have

definitely got useful tools in the vaccines, but going forward, at least with the vaccines we have now, we are going to need to focus them on the people who are most likely to get sick, and try to get benefit that way. get sick, and try to get benefit that wa . ~ ., , ., get sick, and try to get benefit thatwa . ~ ., , ., , that way. would it be a mistake, in our that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion. _ that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion. to — that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion, to scale _ that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion, to scale back - that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion, to scale back on - that way. would it be a mistake, in your opinion, to scale back on the l your opinion, to scale back on the testing programme? and where does all of this leave people who are clinically vulnerable, the most susceptible to illness? the uk prime minister is saying that covid remains very dangerous for some still? ., ., ., , , ., ., still? there are two answers to that interestin: still? there are two answers to that interesting question. _ still? there are two answers to that interesting question. the _ still? there are two answers to that interesting question. the first - still? there are two answers to that interesting question. the first is - interesting question. the first is that self testing is actually a really effective tool for reducing transmission. we have seen in the last few months that people have really bought into this. testing yourself when you have been exposed to when you think you might have the infection is a really good way of finding out if you are infectious, and avoiding infecting other people. the other side to the testing

question is that it's really important that we are able to monitor what is going on with the epidemic. certainly in the vaccine field, the way we have been able to do that is by linking together the testing results with the vaccination database. so, if testing stops, to a large extent, that will become much more difficult. so, i think we are all very keen for there to be at least some degree of testing available going forward, so that we can keep an eye on things. with regard to vulnerable people, you are quite right. this is a concern. people who cannot make a good response to the vaccines need to be able to be protected. we have got anti—viral drugs now which are useful tools for them. but i think we do need to consider those people going forward, absolutely. thank you ve much going forward, absolutely. thank you very much for— going forward, absolutely. thank you very much for your _ going forward, absolutely. thank you very much for your thoughts - going forward, absolutely. thank you very much for your thoughts on - going forward, absolutely. thank you very much for your thoughts on that. very much for your thoughts on that story this morning. let me read out some of the tweets you have been sending me. this one is from jon

mclaughlin, whojust sending me. this one is from jon mclaughlin, who just says sending me. this one is from jon mclaughlin, whojust says proof, and i'm assuming by that, forgive me if i'm assuming by that, forgive me if i misinterpret that, that he wants to hear more about the science. dave says that my wife is a kidney transplant patient and classed as extremely vulnerable, being immunosuppressed. but even she is fed up with talk of masks and restrictions and thinks we should get on with our lives. butjules says pregnant women are thrown under a bus yet again. if they are more exposed in work, plus older workers who have health issues. peter mitchell, i don't think all restrictions should be removed, especially the wearing of masks. alan price says reckless self—serving decisions by boris johnson, whatever happened to following the science as justification for actions? it remains to be seen to what extent science will be mentioned later on today. do keep sending in your comments to me, you can do that on twitter. i will try to fit in more

of those comments throughout the hour. thank you very much so far for sending those in. the headlines colon russia says there are no concrete plans for pretty much biden to meet in person. at the kremlin says diplomacy will continue. boris johnson is to set out plans to scrap all remaining covid legal restrictions in england, including the requirement to isolate. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week, despite testing positive for covid. an inspection by the education and children's services regulator has found a significant number of venerable children remain at risk. it follows the death of arthur hughes, he was killed in 2020. the report, which hasjust been published, has also called for

urgent action to be taken by west midlands police. this report has just been published. what sort of actions do they want them to take? there are lots of agencies involved with young children like arthur, who are vulnerable and at risk. in this case, it involved schools, the probation service, the police, the borough council, in terms of the schools as well. they often get together and something called a multi—agency safeguarding hub, known ljy multi—agency safeguarding hub, known by the acronym mash, a lot of the criticism is directed at that. or record—keeping, failure to share knowledge, poor attendance. record—keeping, failure to share knowledge, poorattendance. it might be that has something to do with a pandemic, although that does not appear to be putting the finger blame at that. it does look pretty

bad for children and those at risk situations in solihull, according to this inspection, that was carried out last month, as a result of arthur's deaths. it says there is too much drift and delay in individual cases because of a lack of resources. i talked about the understaffing here. and a lot of experienced staff. because of arthur's debt and the subsequent outcry, they found it very difficult to recruit new members of staff as well. they are still running below maximum capacity. lots of other things within this. they say that the local safeguarding children's partnership does not have a clear understanding of how the mash works, the experience of children and families who are in need of help, urgent action is needed to identify at—risk children, they need to improve checks and the mash capacity. west midlands police needs to take urgent action to approve the information it holds, for instance, there are examples mentioned in the inspection with west midlands police, where there are multiple records for the same individual, and

so they are not always cross checked. some of that is down to simple spelling mistakes. if they get the name wrong in one place, does not appear on the person's record. there are also problems, the multi agency safeguarding hopes, they tended to be set up in response to a lot of big, high—profile cases in the early 2000s, people like kyra ishaq and daniel pelka. you get people in a room with the agencies that deal with them and you get a better idea what is going on with them, and you have a much better, joined up approach. it identifies some problems with that in the report. lots of children who live in solihull don't necessarily go to school in solihull, they might cross the border into birmingham or warwickshire, and as a result of that, there are different records being held by different authorities, and the mash in solihull was not necessarily getting all of the information. there's also criticism, something i often see when people carry out these reports into

children's deaths, that the people at individual cases are rather too optimistic, rathertoo at individual cases are rather too optimistic, rather too willing to believe the people that were often abusing those young children, and perhaps not curious enough to follow—up inspections. there was a key moment in arthur's case, you may remember, a couple of months before he died, when one of his grandparents sent a picture to social services of arthur with a lot of bruising, extensive bruising on his back. that led to a visit by social workers, who carried out a visit and had a look, didn't think the bruising was not bad and didn't think there were safeguarding issues. unfortunately, that was really a moment that could have been a missed opportunity, because arthur then suffered tremendous, appalling abuse at the hands of his father, thomas hughes, and his father's partner, which led to him being physically beaten, starved, poisoned with salt. there were some appalling video recordings, sound recordings, made by them, which were played to the court, which was of little

publicised somewhat at the end of the trial. that led to the public outcry, which is notjust lead to the 0fsted inspection which we have seen today, but also a national review, a safeguarding review, which will probably look in greater detail at the arthur case, although obviously what has happened here has shown that there are failures systemic and institutional within solihull that need urgent action. thank you for taking us through the detail of that. the queen will continue with "light duties" today after she tested positive for covid. palace officials say her symptoms are mild and that she'll be receiving medical attention, and following all guidelines. 0ur royal correspondent nick witchell has more. let's speak now with royal historian and biographer, robert lacey. many people will be asking why the queen needs to do even light duties

when she has covid, given her age, but i guess it is a way of palace official saying that she seems to be coping 0k official saying that she seems to be coping ok with this? yes. official saying that she seems to be coping ok with this?— official saying that she seems to be coping ok with this? yes, there is a convention — coping ok with this? yes, there is a convention that _ coping ok with this? yes, there is a convention that the _ coping ok with this? yes, there is a convention that the queen's - coping ok with this? yes, there is a convention that the queen's health | convention that the queen's health is not discussed and not revealed. she wants it kept quiet. the palace respect that. so must we. this is the nature of the woman. this is a lady of 95, who, let us not forget, was born in the 1920s, in the first decade of the creation of the house of windsor. she has seen the tradition of service that she followed, from her grandfather, george v, her grandmother, queen mary and, of course, the queen mum, george vi, and some of us remember that. duty has been dealt into her. it's only natural on the day that she tests positive to flash off a message to the curling teams in china, because that is herjob. she

lives for it. china, because that is her 'ob. she lives“.— lives for it. wish you good at takin: lives for it. wish you good at taking her— lives for it. wish you good at taking her doctor's - lives for it. wish you good at taking her doctor's advice? i laughter i think she is, i know know more about this than you do, because they work hard to keep it private. i was told the other day, before christmas, when everybody first got so worried, apparently a member of the family spoke to her and said, why don't you take a few days off? and she looked puzzled, as if the idea of taking time off, itjust wasn't in her nature. of course, she has taken time off. and now i think, you know, for what it's worth, that the work for her, doing her duties, is a tonic. ., �* , the work for her, doing her duties, is a tonic. . �* , ., , is a tonic. that's an interesting wa of is a tonic. that's an interesting way of looking _ is a tonic. that's an interesting way of looking at _ is a tonic. that's an interesting way of looking at it. _ is a tonic. that's an interesting way of looking at it. many - is a tonic. that's an interesting i way of looking at it. many people say that, that they just want to keep going and doing what it is that they normally do. nonetheless, she

is 95, almost 96. a very, very important year ahead for the platinum jubilee important year ahead for the platinumjubilee year. important year ahead for the platinum jubilee year. presumably, her doctors, her platinumjubilee year. presumably, her doctors, herfamily platinum jubilee year. presumably, her doctors, herfamily around her, will want her to take the time to really rest up and fully get over this covid, in order to deal with all of the events that she has got coming up throughout the year. lets not for: et coming up throughout the year. lets not forget the _ coming up throughout the year. lets not forget the current problems. in the last few weeks, she had to deal with the prince andrew situation, which, after some time, supporting her son, she decided, which, after some time, supporting herson, she decided, no, enough is enough. now there is the latest problem with the accusations, they are only accusations, of prince charles or people in prince charles's stuff, let's put it that way, selling access to his charity, not to his personalfunds, but to his charities in return for favours and titles. the police are looking into that. it means the air to the

throne could possibly be interviewed under caution. these are serious things to worry about. as we agreed, her way of coping with this is to do her way of coping with this is to do her duty. her way of coping with this is to do her du . ., ~ her way of coping with this is to do her du . ., ,, i. her way of coping with this is to do herdu . ., ~' , her way of coping with this is to do herdu . ., , . ., her duty. thank you very much for our time her duty. thank you very much for your time today. _ a third named storm in less than a week is sweeping across the uk this morning, bringing high winds and heavy rain. storm franklin has already caused severe flooding in parts of northern ireland, while in yorkshire and greater manchester people have been forced to leave their homes for safety. more than 12,000 homes are still without power. a yellow warning for wind covering wales, northern ireland, most of england and parts of south—west scotland is still in effect for another three hours. will bachelor has more. it came from the west. storm franklin battered the irish coast before causing heavy rainfall across northern ireland. counties londonderry and tyrone suffered the worst of the flooding,

with the river in 0magh among those close to bursting its banks. an amber wind warning is in force for the north of northern ireland until 7am today. wales, too, was badly hit by flooding. this torrent in powys is usually a small stream. last night, in nearby llandinam, seven people were rescued by boat after the river severn burst its banks. siren wails northern england may have avoided the worst of storms eunice and dudley, but it's bearing the brunt of franklin. that's the flood warning siren for todmorden in west yorkshire. this equipment was supposed to be working on future flood defences on the river aire at kirkstall until it was washed away. in hebden bridge, the river close to bursting its banks and more high water in matlock, sheffield, barnsley, kirklees. this is knaresborough, where residents and their pets were rescued from a flooded holiday park. and in south manchester, more than 400 homes were being evacuated last night after two severe flood

warnings on the river mersey indicated a danger to life. in liverpool, the mersey looked extremely choppy as this tug boat went to work. and a bumpy ride too for this police helicopter above the wirral. plenty more journeys will be disrupted by franklin this morning, as train lines are flooded and blocked with fallen trees. south western, great western and avanti among the operators urging passengers to cancel or delay their journey. and with wind warnings still in place this morning, the full extent of the damage is yet to be assessed. will batchelor, bbc news. 0ur correspondent nick garnett is in south manchester for us. that is one of the areas worst affected by storm franklin, still recovering from the turn of the storms we had over the past seven days. give us the latest? {lilia storms we had over the past seven

days. give us the latest?— days. give us the latest? ok, so, this is the — days. give us the latest? ok, so, this is the river _ days. give us the latest? ok, so, this is the river mersey - days. give us the latest? ok, so, this is the river mersey behind i days. give us the latest? ok, so, | this is the river mersey behind me and you can see just how much water is in there and how fast it is flowing. it has been incredibly, incredibly full for over 12 hours now. you can see that aluminium gate, the steel gate over on the far side of the river. that is one of the storm overflows. that storm overflow is what has saved a lot of the housing from any major flooding problems in south manchester. 430 homes were said to be at risk, and could have problems. so some people were told to leave their homes. about eight people stayed overnight in a rest centre because they were too worried to stay in their homes. of these gates here, where the river of these gates here, where the river gets to a certain point, the water flows over there, and then fills a huge drain basin, made up of a golf course on some woodland. but has alleviated the pressure, it has dropped the water rates in the has allowed the river to start to recover. so, overnight, at about

midnight, was the highest of the flood water. that has drafted out by about 1.5 to two metres. so the water is dropping down. at the golf course on the other areas that have been flooded are going to stay flooded for a while until the water level from here really drops down to a safe level, and they can see all the river off and let it do its not for work again. there is an awful lot of clearing up still to be done here. you can see from the speed of the river, and some of the debris thatis the river, and some of the debris that is in there, that the current is really, really strong. it is an awful lot faster. this is somewhere i walk my dog most days. it normally doesn't run anywhere near that sort of level. so it's going to be some time until get back to normal. at the great thing is that the flood defences in manchester seem to have done their work. good news indeed. thank you. the headlines on bbc news...

russia says there are no concrete plans for presidents putin and biden to meet in person — despite reports of a summit — but the kremlin does say diplomacy will continue borisjohnson will set out plans to scrap all remaining covid legal restrictions in england — including the requirement to isolate ido i do not understand why people cannot put a mask on pin in an enclosed area.— enclosed area. 0fsted says a significant — enclosed area. 0fsted says a significant number _ enclosed area. 0fsted says a significant number of - enclosed area. 0fsted says a | significant number of children remain in danger in the west midlands. it follows the death of a six—year—old who was killed by his mother and partner in the town. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week despite testing positive for covid hundreds of homes are evacuated amid flood warnings — as the uk is hit by a third major

storm in less than a week the british music entrepreneur and youtube star jamal edwards has died at the age of 31 — tributes pour in from across the world of entertainment. and staying with that story. music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31. he was a leading figure in britain's rap and grime scene. no details have been given of the cause of his death. he set up the youtube channel, sb—tv, which helped launch the careers of artists including ed sheeran, dave, and rita 0ra. helen devlin looks back at his life. jamal edwards set up such a successful film operation straight after leaving school, google asked him to tell his story to help endorse their product. when you're starting off, it's a very lonely place, and you need to make sure that you believe in yourself and you believe in your idea to take it to the next level. he got over a million followers by filming up—and—coming and established rap and pop music

stars and putting them on his youtube channel, sb.tv. he was soon rubbing shoulders with some impressive figures, including richard branson and prince charles, becoming an ambassador for his charity, helping young people getjobs. if you can't, nobody can. not bad for a council estate west londoner whose filming began with no training and just a basic video camera his parents gave him when he was 15. one of the things that i wish i knew when i was a little bit younger was stuff about vat, everything about tax, finance, receipts... he became a multimillionaire by the age of 23, mainly from ad revenue on his youtube channel on which mainly 13 to 30—year—olds saw his work with artists including ed sheeran, stormzy and skepta. in a tweet, the organisers of the mobkoards said... presenter, comedian and brit awards host mo gilligan mourned the loss of a truly humble

and blessed soul, saying... jamal edwards was awarded an mbe in 2015 for his work in music. he set up youth clubs and penned a self—help book. he spoke about getting bad anxiety at times, often reminding himself to slow down. the london mayor, sadiq khan, said... the inspirational entrepreneur will be remembered as a pioneering figure in british rap and grime music. jamal edwards — who's died at the age of 31. with me as a presenter from with me as a presenterfrom bbc radio leicester. tell me about what this young man meant to you. we are

the exact same _ this young man meant to you. we are the exact same age. _ this young man meant to you. we are the exact same age. 31. _ this young man meant to you. we are the exact same age. 31. someone - this young man meant to you. we are the exact same age. 31. someone i i the exact same age. 31. someone i have grown up with. grown up to see and admire over the years. to me, he was someone who had a vision. he did notjust have that vision, he acted on it. instrumentally, had a huge impact on so many up—and—coming artists, talent, creatives. i saw the news yesterday and i could not believe it. someone so key in this industry, i would not sayjust to wrap or grime music but music as a whole, so many people today, it is a whole, so many people today, it is a huge loss. a whole, so many people today, it is a huge loss-— a huge loss. some of the names, --eole a huge loss. some of the names, people whose _ a huge loss. some of the names, people whose talent _ a huge loss. some of the names, people whose talent he _ a huge loss. some of the names, people whose talent he allowed l a huge loss. some of the names, | people whose talent he allowed to develop, rita 0ra and ed sheeran, to name but a few, they are so well known. mil name but a few, they are so well known. �* u,

name but a few, they are so well known. �* . ., , name but a few, they are so well known. �* �*, , known. all i can say, it's 'ust terrible. fl known. all i can say, it's 'ust terrible, it is i known. all i can say, it's 'ust terrible, it is terrible. h known. all i can say, it'sjust terrible, it is terrible. really| terrible, it is terrible. really sad. he believed in his art, his work. he was someone, anytime i came across him online was humble, genuine. very loving. had a huge passion for this game. there are messages out there share how he would wait outside for hours to speak to people, to interview people. it resonates so much with me, being a young creative myself, being in this industry and really wanting to see other people progress. i know how much that takes, how much dedication, sacrifice. and the accolades that he has received over the years are just a testament to that and i know everyone who will mourn his loss will feel this on a number of levels, notjust today will feel this on a number of levels, not just today for a very long time. i levels, not 'ust today for a very long time.— levels, not 'ust today for a very lona time. ., ., i. long time. i can tell from what you sa and it long time. i can tell from what you say and it seems _ long time. i can tell from what you say and it seems strange - long time. i can tell from what you say and it seems strange to - long time. i can tell from what you say and it seems strange to be - say and it seems strange to be talking about the legacy of someone

when they were just 31 years old. clearly, the artists he spotted and whose talent he helped develop and promote, they will be his legacy, won't they? but tell us about what his legacy will be. itruiith won't they? but tell us about what his legacy will be.— his legacy will be. with his platform. _ his legacy will be. with his platform. it's _ his legacy will be. with his platform, it's there, - his legacy will be. with his platform, it's there, since| his legacy will be. with his - platform, it's there, since 2006, he has been building that legacy. there's even a tweet he wrote in 2012 where he said the dream isn't to just live long, 2012 where he said the dream isn't tojust live long, it's 2012 where he said the dream isn't to just live long, it's to build something that will continue to live on and that is just what he has done. the artists he has given a platform to will continue to live on what he was working on, his mother, she was his biggest cheerleader and he was hers, he was building charities, so much work, he wasjust getting started, people like myself, so many other creatives, dreamers,

artists will continue to ensure everything that he dedicated himself to will not die, it will continue to live on. we hope to continue to make him and his family proud.— him and his family proud. thank you so much for— him and his family proud. thank you so much for talking _ him and his family proud. thank you so much for talking to _ him and his family proud. thank you so much for talking to us. _ the threat of a russian invasion is already having a significant impact on the lives of thousands of civilians who have been uprooted from their homes in the separatist territories of ukraine. our correspondent caroline davies has been to meet some of them. overlapping chatter. some sweet snacks after hours on the road. evacuees from the rebel—held areas of ukraine arrived in a convoy of buses to russia. yulia left more than 24 hours ago with her three children. how's that been with a small child? "it was very hard — unbearable," she tells me. "i did it for my children.

if it was not for them, we probably wouldn't have left." this is why many did get on the buses. on friday, a separatist leader told women, children and the elderly to evacuate. he says the decision was made that day because of ukrainian shelling. but looking at the metadata, it suggests this video was filmed two days before the flare—up. the west has repeatedly warned that russia plans to stage a fake crisis to give a reason to attack. the fallout is already real for some — like the evacuees who'll spend the night in this sports hall. ekaterina and six—month—old miroslav packed up their lives in hours. she worries that she'll be sent further away from home. translation: we would go somewhere near, but what they're offering, - we don't want to go there. we are so tired. we want to sleep, to take shower — the basic things for a person and a child.

minds here are on those that stayed. men have been told they must fight. many have not been allowed to leave — including victoria's husband. "he wasn't let out," she tells me. "i'm very worried." her daughter asks her, "why are you crying?" the evacuees have been told it's ukraine that's trying to start an offensive. it's a baseless claim that's strongly disputed by ukraine — and many who say that provoking a war while surrounded by thousands of russian troops would be inconceivable. sent to the station, handed paperwork to apply for the equivalent of around £100 per person promised by president putin, and put on a train. so this is the third coach—load of families we've seen getting off here in the course of the last ten

minutes, and many on board didn't know where they were going, but we've just been told by the authorities that they're being taken to a city that's just to the east of moscow, which is more than 1,000 kilometres away from here. some worry that if they were expected to come back soon, they wouldn't be sent so far. but these decisions are in russia's hands, and as the geopolitical wrangling continues, no—one is certain what's planned next. caroline davies, bbc news, taganrog. as we've been hearing, the uk prime minister borisjohnson is to lay out his vision for repealing all remaining covid restrictions in england, saying his plan will bring the country "towards a return to normality". john maguire has been speaking to people across england about the incoming changes. it's been a while since i've worn this level of ppe for an interview, but you'll understand why when you consider that juliette coffa, who has a severe lung condition, hasn't left her home for more than 850 days.

this is where i feel like literally the house is closing in on me. there's days i want to see the sea. there's days i want to go and see my parents. all these things that people do normally. when people start going out and you see their facebook posts, and you see people at adventure parks or at dinner, or out with friends and you think, "the world's leaving me behind here." and you do get that sense that we're very much left behind because there's not enough measures in place to make it safe for us to be out. juliette is extremely clinically vulnerable and extremely concerned that all restrictions in england are being swept away. i don't understand why people can't put a mask on when they're in an enclosed area, why they can't stay home where they are covid positive. and ijust don't get why my life

isn't valuable enough for society to take on those measures, so that everybody can have a plan to live with covid. notjust the people who are able to. community pharmacies have been among the unsung heroes of the fight against the pandemic, providing front line care support ade williams is anxious that the gains we've made against covid could now be undermined. we have also seen lots of people, whose journey during the pandemic has been quite traumatic. they have really worked, you know... they're making tender steps out because of their own personal frailties. and what we don't want to do is to see that they feel that the rug is being pulled underneath their feet, and in some way, they need to then make a decision to absorb themselves away from our wider society. we've got three different rolls of material. - we have a blue, which is waterproof,

slightly waterproof, _ we have the antibacterial layer and we have this layer- in a transparent material. when the pandemic began to take hold two years ago, this air filtration firm used its expertise to start manufacturing facemasks. they set up this factory in rural herefordshire, where they make a million masks a day and will continue to do so. the requirement, even a medical grade type two, ask in all of the hospitals around europe, pre—pandemic, is related maybe to only 1% of our production capacity. so we are going to continue and we are going to continue to provide to the united kingdom and europe, making us, as a nation, independent from those overseas suppliers. two lots of ear loop. few lives have been left untouched by the impact of covid.

roger powell lost his job in the first lockdown, but was then employed here when production ramped up. i couldn't have askedl for a better outcome. two years ago, i was looking for probably a part time job i because people won't want to take a 64—year—old. - but dean offered me the job and i haven't looked back. i it's been fantastic. this group of builders merchants, who work for selco across the uk haven't got together socially for two years — until tonight — where they're striking out at the lanes bowling alley in bristol. we used to have an occasion like this once a month, yeah. so we've missed out mostly two years' worth of it. yeah. i mean, how important is it to do something like this? very. they work in birmingham, we work in bristol, people work in wales, and it's times when you meet up like this, you can

actually discuss things that you don't normally discuss. so one, it's about the business side of it, but then again, it's building bonds with the guys in birmingham. so yeah, it is important. the debate about if, when and by how much restrictions should be lifted goes on. meanwhile, what was once mandatory now becomes discretionary. the decisions are all ours to make. john maguire, bbc news. it's been a long time coming — almost two years, but from today most of australia — with the exception of western australia will open its borders to vaccinated international tourists. nine million foreign visitors visited australia each year prior to covid, but the country closed its borders in march 2020, crippling the tourism industry. simon calderjoins us now. hello to

you and what a moment this is! given that australia has had some of the tightest border controls throughout the pandemic. thea;r tightest border controls throughout the pandemic-— the pandemic. they certainly have. if ou no the pandemic. they certainly have. if you go back _ the pandemic. they certainly have. if you go back to — the pandemic. they certainly have. if you go back to march _ the pandemic. they certainly have. if you go back to march the - the pandemic. they certainly have. if you go back to march the 20th i if you go back to march the 20th 2020, that was when australia basically closed its doors, notjust to international visitors like me and joo but also to australian citizens. they were kind of rash and coming back into the country and an awful lot of them had to spend a couple of weeks in quarantine in a mining camp in the northern territory before they were allowed to rejoin society. but as you say, much of australia has opened up today. everywhere apart from western australia. welcoming visitors. 57 flights came in today, most of them to sydney where i am at the moment. i was on one of the first two coming in from tokyo, great experience to be here. but my goodness, an awful

lot of palaver in terms of the paperwork!— lot of palaver in terms of the paperwork! lot of palaver in terms of the -a erwork! , ., ,., ., [m paperwork! tell us about that. first of all ou paperwork! tell us about that. first of all you must _ paperwork! tell us about that. first of all you must be _ paperwork! tell us about that. first of all you must be fully _ paperwork! tell us about that. first of all you must be fully vaccinated, | of all you must be fully vaccinated, they are not worried about boosters but you have to take a lateral flow test. in the 24 hours before your flight departs for australia. you also have to fill in a passenger declaration, to get an idea of what this is like, imagine your worst ever exam and pretend you have not revised for it. that is what it is like filling bad in but i managed it, they let me in and actually, coming through sydney airport took about three minutes from the aeroplane to exiting into the arrivals hall. really, very fast procedures. then when i got there, things really hotted up because they were giving out gifts, like this lovely koala bear to every arrival! very nice of them! we have had

today, the tourism minister saying australia is the best country in the world and we are delighted to welcome back international visitors. but there is a catch. first of all, it's tricky to get in, still, impossible if you are not fully vaccinated and secondly, air fares have gone up, i paid £1200 return, i cannot remember the last time i paid more than £1000 return ticket to sydney and on top of that they do not have visitors coming in from china and new zealand before the pandemic, were absolutely their top market for incoming tourists. so there is a long way to go and a lot of people saying, australia cannot suddenly go from ok, everybody keep out to come back, you are welcome. it does not work like that.— it does not work like that. simon, aood to it does not work like that. simon, good to hear _ it does not work like that. simon, good to hear from _ it does not work like that. simon, good to hear from you _ it does not work like that. simon, good to hear from you as - it does not work like that. simon, good to hear from you as ever. i

since the start of the year, gun crime in new york as a by a third compared to 2021. our correspondence has more. present arms! new york was once hailed as the safest big city in america. that's not how it feels today. a rise in crime is claiming the lives of civilians and police too. anytime there is a death, it's the thing we fear. joe fox, a retired police chief, is on his way to the wake of the latest officer fatally shot on duty. he says they feel attacked in more ways than one, with morale plummeting after calls to defund the police followed racialjustice protests. when we tolerate police officers being vilified and attacked, when we don't

stand up against it none of us are safe. and who's suffering? people of colour. homicides have gone up by more than a third in new york city. these mothers all lost children to gun violence. they are part of a support group called harlem mothers save. tragically, they tell me they've comforted at least two new members every month for the last year. i sat down with a few of them to get their views on policing as shootings soar in their neighbourhoods. we have never had this kind of violence in our city. never. it is the worst. it was days, back then, �*80s, it was bad back then, but this is the worst. it is so unreal that you are scared to walk outside because bullets are flying everywhere and hitting innocent people. everybody has a gun. we don't want to fight the police, we need the police. there's nobody else to call if something happens to us. people are yelling "defund -

the police, defund the police." my question is, if we defund. the police, what communities are going to suffer? those people who are i crying defund the police, their communities won't suffer. it is our city against the killers. the harlem mothers' views aligned with the city's new mayor, eric adams is a former police captain who was elected promising more officers on the street, including a controversial unit of plainclothes police in the community. jarrel e daniels spent six years in prison for gang violence. he now helps young inmates and advocates for criminal justice reform. the previous new york city administrations in the early 2000s and late �*90s and they followed a tough on crime policy. we have fallen back into that same model and it's not really a productive model. you really think we are returning to the model? i think we're close to it. we on the bridge of being

back at the same state. gun violence is a crisis across america. a lot is at stake for democrats as they grapple with public safety and police reform. nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. the olympic games offers us a glimpse of the sacrifices athletes make. but how about this: the american endurance athlete camille herron has just won the usa track and field 100—mile championship in nevada — and with a new record. she won the race in 12 hours—41 minutes—11 seconds, averaging around 7 minutes 37 seconds per mile. she recently turned 40. she spoke to the bbc earlier about her achievement. i say that women ultra runners age like fine wine, so i seem to be getting better with age, so i'm just going to enjoy the ride while i can. i mean, it's my pleasure to show the world what's possible and push my human limits and i enjoy every moment out there.

ijust i feel like i'm born to run and i'm doing what i'm supposed to do for my life. camille was a former marathoner before she got into the ultra running, so we actually, our whole training, the way we look at training is we continue training just like marathoners train. you know, we haven't changed a thing. you know what she did as a marathoner. what she continues to do. i think part of it is that she just has got really good genes. and, you know, like i said, she's all over the sport and she just loves to win. and, you know, she won this race outright, so she beat all the men too, which is very rare. i was very motivated going into the race to beat all the... everybody there, both men and women. and i knew ijust had to be patient and run my own race and pace myself. and the men, i started to catch up to the men later in the race, and thatjust really motivated me. the author and illustrator who worked on more than a children's

books has died. probably best known for illustrating the megan box book about a hapless witch hunter stripey car. his work often inspired by his childhood in poland. and his experiences as a wartime refugee. a dog has been reunited with its owner in california 12 years after going missing. zoe had been done from a vehicle earlier this month looking old and unwell. police scanned the dog and found her original owner via a microchip who reported her lost in 2010. the owner says she is delighted to get back and hopes to bring her back to health and happily live out the rest of her life. that is it. you can always contact us on bbc news. and of course you will find plenty more on all the main stories of the day as well as features on the bbc news website. you have been watching bbc news.

hello. we have had some gusts in excess of 70 miles an hour from storm franklin as it moves across northern ireland and the irish sea coast lines. now, but we have a say yellow weather warning and force from the met office, valid until one o'clock with gusts of winds 50—60 miles an hour in land, more of that with exposure so this could hamper the clean—up operation after the previous storms. storm franklin continues to push on with strong winds onto the near continent, still windy behind it before this ridge of high pressure builds in and calm things down. a lot of dry weather and sunshine today, many showers tending to fade, still one or two especially down the north sea coastline but the wind continues to ease and you seeby the time we reach

for pm, the wind speed coming down. temperatures today, five or 6 degrees in the north, 11 or 12 pushing further south. by the end of the afternoon the cloud thickens towards the west, through this evening we see patchy light rain and drizzle. as we go through the over night, a new weatherfront drizzle. as we go through the over night, a new weather front shows drizzle. as we go through the over night, a new weatherfront shows its hand, bringing heavy rain and some squally winds around it. these are the temperatures, 4 degrees in north, a high of 11 degrees as we push towards the west and that is where we have the ring. this cold front three tomorrow will continue to sing steadily south, you see from the isobars it will be windy especially in the north and west. after a relatively dry start in the south—east, we had that weather front sinking south, petering out as it does so, drying up sunshine behind it but a lot of showers coming in on the wind across the northern half of the country.

temperatures 5 degrees up to 13, north to south. heading into wednesday, we start on a dry note, even some sunshine first thing. but we have another weather front coming our way introducing more rain and also the wind will pick up through parts of the day. starting with hill snow but behind that increasingly we start to see the snow getting down to lower levels. thursday looks like the coldest day of the week, starting with frost, friday this ridge of high pressure means things settle down but low pressure is back for the weekend.

this is bbc news. the headlines at 11. borisjohnson will set out plans to scrap all remaining covid legal restrictions in england, including the requirement to isolate i don't understand why people cannot put a mask on when they are in enclosed area, why they cannot stay home, where they are covid—positive. russia says there are no concrete plans for presidents putin and biden to meet in person, despite reports of a summit, but the kremlin does say diplomacy will continue. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week, despite testing positive for covid.

0fsted see a number of children remain at risk in solihull. as homes are evacuated, as the uk is hit by a third major storm in less than a week. it's a very lonely place and you need to make sure that you believe in yourself and you believe in your ideas and take it to the next level. the music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31, tributes pour in from across the world of entertainment. australia reopens its borders to international travellers.

the prime minister is to lay out his vision for repealing all remaining covid restrictions in england, saying his plan will bring the country, "towards a return to normality." despite this, borisjohnson is warning that we shouldn't "throw caution to the wind," as the virus remains dangerous for some. it's expected that, by the end of the week, the legal requirement to self—isolate will be scrapped for those who test positive, and will be replaced with advice instead. free lateral flow and pcr testing are likely to be rolled back. the vaccine programme will remain open to anyone who hasn't had their doses yet. across the rest of the uk, in northern ireland, restrictions are no longer legally—binding. wales is at alert level zero, which is the lowest level of covid rules. and in scotland, first minister nicola strugeon is due to update msps tomorrow. in westminster today, the prime minister will chair a cabinet meeting this morning, before addressing the commons later this afternoon.

i'm joined by fiona loud, policy director at kidney care uk. what is your reaction to the end of compulsory isolation? i what is your reaction to the end of compulsory isolation?— what is your reaction to the end of compulsory isolation? i have to say, for --eole compulsory isolation? i have to say, for people who _ compulsory isolation? i have to say, for people who are _ compulsory isolation? i have to say, for people who are severely - for people who are severely immunocompromised, some are worried about this because there are two reasons. forthe about this because there are two reasons. for the last two years, many others had to shield and take a great deal of care, because the vaccine, while incredibly important, don't have quite the same end on people who are immunocompromised as the general public, and secondly, people are less likely to do well if they get covid and there, for, what we would like to see is that people should still take a level of care, because the people who felt they were just about to come out of this and it was not quite as bad as people had feared, they still had that structure around them of the

free laterals flow tests, pretty strong rules that people should self—isolate when they are positive, that confidence will slip away if we abandon all those rules. this afternoon. abandon all those rules. this afternoon-— abandon all those rules. this afternoon. , ., _ , afternoon. obviously people will hear our afternoon. obviously people will hear your plea — afternoon. obviously people will hear your plea for _ afternoon. obviously people will hear your plea for people - afternoon. obviously people will hear your plea for people to - afternoon. obviously people will i hear your plea for people to remain cautious and think of those who are immunocompromised and more vulnerable than them, perhaps, but it's not something of course that if you are immunocompromised, you can rely upon. so what impact do you think this will have on the people that you represent? i think this will have on the people that you represent?— that you represent? i think it will have quite _ that you represent? i think it will have quite a _ that you represent? i think it will have quite a negative _ that you represent? i think it will have quite a negative impact - that you represent? i think it will - have quite a negative impact because some people will say quite rightly that we do have to move on and we have to take care of ourselves and that's quite right, but actually, the confidence and the anxiety that this or the lack of confidence, the anxiety this can cause, is nevertheless there. it has been a very difficult to use and we're not

saying everybody should stop just because of the situation but we are saying we need to see a plan and a plan that, to be able to move forward with confidence so we can see what the messages are for people who are immunocompromised, what protections will remain in place for example protector —— preventative treatment, specifically for them around employment rights and actually in order to be able to get some of those new treatments you need to be able to freely run lateral flow tests so you can work it if you have got covid or not and the people around you will also want to be able to know that they can do that and if that structure falls away, it's really uncertain and what we would rather see is a slightly slower, well explained, science —based set of evidence that sets up the steps and how they are going to protect all of us so that we can continue, we can move on to live more normally in a society where covid—19 remains dangerous, the

future is uncertain, but with just a little bit more confidence and protection and support, and understanding as well. obviously the wa we live understanding as well. obviously the way we live our _ understanding as well. obviously the way we live our lives _ understanding as well. obviously the way we live our lives and _ understanding as well. obviously the way we live our lives and the - understanding as well. obviously the way we live our lives and the habits l way we live our lives and the habits we have got into and some of the fears that have come into the mix, will stay. is that particularly going to be the case for people who are immunocompromised? can you see someone deciding that they would want to continue having, working from home going forward? that's riaht, from home going forward? that's right. actually. — from home going forward? that's right, actually. even _ from home going forward? that's right, actually. even when - from home going forward? that's right, actually. even when the i from home going forward? that's i right, actually. even when the plan b guidance was stopped. earlier in the year, the work from home advice was still in place although not many people knew that we and other charities in made employers away of that. it's that kind of gap where many people, we have learned that people can work from home incredibly productively and we have adjusted to that now. for that situation to continue in people able to have the

right to do that in live productive lives but not be exposed so much to crowded trains and rush hours and things like that, would be something that would be really positive to hearin that would be really positive to hear in the government because plans. joining me now is craig beaumont from the federation of small businesses. where will the end of restrictions leave small businesses? they hope to see and end to the chopping and changing, ii see and end to the chopping and chanauin , , see and end to the chopping and chanuain, , . ., ,., see and end to the chopping and chanuain, , . ., , ., ., changing, if these changes are more medium-term _ changing, if these changes are more medium-term or _ changing, if these changes are more medium-term or permanent - changing, if these changes are more medium-term or permanent that. changing, if these changes are more | medium-term or permanent that will medium—term or permanent that will be a major plus, because there is no point reducing things then bringing them back immediately. that was the kind of primary finding we have had, talking to small businesses. covid has not left, it's not gone, this is not the end, and the guidance the government will produce we hope it will be very clear and in the statement today, that it's not all

bets are off. we still have cases, hospitalisations and deaths even though they are all coming down. we are entering what feels like different world and that means every small business will now be looking at its risk appetite. if you are moving from a legal responsibility to a personal responsibility, how does every small business operate? if you own a shop, how do you want to operate to protect both your staff and customers? we are asking people today to respect the house rules, small business might have an immunocompromised member of staff are example or might visit lots of elderly customers but either way we want every category to respect the rules of small businesses. it’s rules of small businesses. it's auoin to rules of small businesses. it's going to be — rules of small businesses. it's going to be potentially quite complicated. you mention for instance if someone is immunosuppressed and works at a business, that person could feel nervous about going in. it might lead to them wanting certain behaviours within the company, work

from home, there is going to be a point at which legal rights and the rights of the business might conflict. do use either that there is going to be the potential for quite a lot of conflict going forward and the difficulties of navigating that? i forward and the difficulties of navigating that?— forward and the difficulties of navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting. _ navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting. you _ navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting, you have _ navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting, you have to - navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting, you have to have - navigating that? i don't think it's conflicting, you have to have a i conflicting, you have to have a really good conversation as an employee with your employer because actually we are all on the same side. we all want to see covid continue to decrease and not be spread in workplaces. employers and i know employees are encouraging that. you won't rely on specific covid legislation but it is already legislation around the workplace, negotiations, how you engage about contracts, so i think what will happen is we will all analyse what happens today, what are the guidance rules that will be coming in, how shall business behave, employees behave, and then look at what the best solution is. your previous

guest hit the nail on the head, it's about things like i don't feel comfortable being rammed on the tube at rush—hour, so can i come into work slightly earlier or later? it's those discussions you want to have in order to protect the business because, underworker, because if you do not protect the worker or the business, the business will get into trouble and may have to close for a short time because they had an outbreak. ., ., ., ., , outbreak. can all of that be achieved — outbreak. can all of that be achieved without _ outbreak. can all of that be achieved without extra - outbreak. can all of that be. achieved without extra cost? outbreak. can all of that be - achieved without extra cost? i'm thinking of the leave etc over the course of the pandemic, there has been helpful businesses. presumably something like that going back to normal going forward, will businesses be left out—of—pocket doing the right thing? the businesses be left out-of-pocket doing the right thing?— doing the right thing? the full level of business _ doing the right thing? the full level of business support - doing the right thing? the full level of business support has | doing the right thing? the full - level of business support has been pulled back and there's a few extra things which are residual which will soon end and one of those is the statutory sick pay support for example. if you are a small—business and your staff fall ill and you want them to be at home and to

self—isolate, then the one worry they don't have is on 14 days of statutory sick pay, so that as a rebate provided by the government. that ends at the end of march. there is a very strong case to keep that in perpetuity. it should be there to protect a business keeping going and protect a business keeping going and protect the worker as well. we have learned through covid and hopefully the government is just not walking off the pitch and will look at all the aspects it needs to do. yes, the guidance but also a bit of support as well. , ., . ., , ~ ., as well. get in touch to let us know what ou as well. get in touch to let us know what you think _ as well. get in touch to let us know what you think of _ as well. get in touch to let us know what you think of the _ as well. get in touch to let us know what you think of the changes. - as well. get in touch to let us know what you think of the changes. we | what you think of the changes. we will be getting the news from the prime minister later today but it has been well trailed in terms of it being a final end to the legal restrictions that need to self—isolate. get in touch. the kremlin has said it is premature to organise a biden—putin summit on ukraine. it comes after the meeting was proposed by france. the white house said it will only

happen if russia does not invade its neighbour. president putin is also due to hold what the kremlin has called a large, extraordinary meeting of the russian security council later. explosions have been continuing in ukraine's eastern donbas region this weekend. there have been increased clashes between the ukrainian government forces and rebels backed by russia. mark lobel reports. military drills in belarus that were meant to end with russian tanks going back to their bases. not any more, leaving the fear of war hanging over its nearby border with ukraine. but after a series of phone calls, the french president says the us president and president putin could meet to discuss the crisis, offering hope of a peaceful solution. president biden has made very clear that he's prepared to meet president putin at any time, in any format, if that

will help prevent a war. and as long as... even if the die is cast, until it's settled, until we know that the tanks are rolling, the planes are flying and the aggression has fully begun, we're going to do everything we can to prevent it. to set the terms for a putin—biden meeting, their respective foreign ministers will speak on thursday. but the white house says any proposed summit will only take place if russia has not invaded its neighbour. in recent days, in eastern ukraine, russian—backed rebels and government forces have accused each other of violating a ceasefire. following the killing of two ukrainian soldiers, now russian—backed rebels there say two civilians have been killed in shelling by government forces. russia is helping evacuate women and children from the eastern breakaway regions it controls, claiming kyiv is planning an attack there.

russia has been demanding assurances nato will not admit ukraine, which it sees as a threat to its security. but that's an aspiration ukraine's foreign minister says remains alive, in an interview with cbs. ukraine is seeking membership in nato. has there been any subtle pressure from the united states— for you to abandon your desire? no. so far, this message has came from a few european members of nato. meanwhile, resistance preparations for a wartime scenario in kyiv continue, as fresh satellite images appear to show russian military units within nine miles of the border with ukraine. mark lobel, bbc news.

the days events were that he well sorted, followed by a statement from the prime minister in commons. the timings were to be decided with that sequence of events was clear. we are just hearing the cabinet meeting we thought would have started by now is not happening because there is a row. let's go to iain watson. what can you tell us? the cabinet meeting was scheduled to be beginning now. i have been told that cabinet meeting has indeed been delayed. there is no time given for its resumption. what is not clear is exactly why it's been delayed. downing street sources are suggesting the prime minister needed to receive a briefing, there's a lot going on at home and abroad at the moment. that's perfectly credible. but other sources in government suggest there is ongoing tensions with the department of health because today was a day that living with covid strategy was to be

unveiled, we asked expecting the prime minister to give a statement to that effect later today in parliament. we are still expecting a press conference take place, but the underlying tensions, i'm told, are around the cost of testing. for example, we knew because the prime minister previewed this himself a couple of weeks ago at prime minister's questions, he is going to get rid of the legal requirement to self—isolate if you test positive for covid in england. however, the question was when and wherever testing would be route risdon, who would be eligible for free testing and how many people would have to pay for tests in the future. this has been something of a political hot potato inside government and with the opposition parties. labour use a football analogy, saying this is like a team taking off its best defender if you take away free testing. if the government wants to, as borisjohnson suggested, moved to as borisjohnson suggested, moved to a system of personal responsibility,

if you have symptoms of cold, the opposition says people need to be able to continue to test to find out whether or not they ought to be staying at home valentine honorary rather than being told to do so by law. —— val —— voluntarily. the government has concerns that free testing costs as well as the devolved administrations who wanted to continue during the first—half of this year, question also about time scale. all of these issues have been bubbling under the surface and a couple of sources suggest that those issues have not yet been resolved and that has caused a delay to today's cabinet meeting but as i say downing street sources suggested simply because the prime minister needed to be briefed on other matters ahead of that cabinet taking place. is matters ahead of that cabinet taking lace. , , ., ., place. is it strange that if there is a row over — place. is it strange that if there is a row over the _ place. is it strange that if there is a row over the finances - place. is it strange that if there is a row over the finances of. is a row over the finances of testing going forward, that it is something that is an issue today, on the day the strategy is supposed to be announced when it has been so

widely trailed? it be announced when it has been so widely trailed?— widely trailed? it has been widely trailed. ithink— widely trailed? it has been widely trailed. i think the _ widely trailed? it has been widely trailed. i think the big, _ widely trailed? it has been widely trailed. ! think the big, if- widely trailed? it has been widely trailed. i think the big, if you - trailed. i think the big, if you like, announcement, one which we, very pleasing to borisjohnson because like mps, was getting rid of the last vestiges of the regulations, the state telling you what to do, personal responsibility taking over, we knew all of that once you strip that away and see you don't have to sell closely any longer, other questions remain. a whole range, how long you continue the free testing regime, others about how much investment has been put into alternative vaccines, vaccine is meant to be ourfirst line of defence for example, and how much testing is going to be necessary to keep an eye out on whether any new variants are emerging. you would have thought in the intervening period between the prime minister announcing ten days ago that he was likely to lift these restrictions months earlier than previously planned and now these outstanding issues would have been resolved, we would have expected the cabinet to sit around a table and give a sign up to the living with

covid strategy. it does not look like that has happened. keep us u dated. an inspection by the eductation and children's services regulator has found that a "significant number" of vulnerable children remain unassessed and at risk in solihull. it follows the death of 6—year—old arthur labinjo—hughes, who was killed by his father and stepmother in the town in 2020. the report, which has just been published, has also called for urgent action to be taken by west midlands police and the agencies who deal with at—risk children. let's speak to our correspondent phil mackie who's in solihull. tell us more about what is in this report. tell us more about what is in this re ort. , , ., report. first, let me remind you about the _ report. first, let me remind you about the author _ report. first, let me remind you about the author case, - report. first, let me remind you about the author case, a - report. first, let me remind you about the author case, a horrific case, he was six years old, he was starved, beaten, mentally abuse, poisoned with salt by thomas hughes, his father and his father's partner when they lived together in a house in solihull back in 2020 in the

first lockdown and it led to a trial at which she was convicted of murder, thomas hughes of manslaughter, which finished in december last year and you probably remember the public outcry about the case. there were recordings that were made by them which were played during the trial which i think really deeply affected a lot of people when they saw and heard part of that and just showed the terrible state that this little boy was in at the time of his death and that has led to a number of calls for reviews. there is a national review which will look to specifics, in cases like arthur's where things have gone wrong, that will be published in a few months. this 0fsted inspection was carried out last month to see whether there is something going wrong at a systemic level, they found a number of things and one of the things they found is that there are problems with the multi—agency safeguarding hub, which looks at cases where vulnerable children and adults are at risk in solihull. that is not, for a number

of reasons,, but it has highlighted a couple of them. these things were set up years ago, in the last ten years, to make things better so there was more joined years, to make things better so there was morejoined up years, to make things better so there was more joined up thinking when they were cases like arthur, but it does not seem to be working particularly well because people are not turning up to them, they are not all there at the same time, and there are problems with the information being shared. west midlands police, one case, another case where a young child, name was spelt and entered incorrectly, so you had multiple records for the same trial, they were not always accessible. there are also issues that not every child who is at risk goes to score in solihull, they might cross the into birmingham or warwickshire and again, information not shared. lots of things we have seenin not shared. lots of things we have seen in the past with children like arthur but another criticism is there is a tendency for overoptimistic views when they were looking at cases in solihull. tending to believe the people who

were in some cases responsible for abuse. perhaps not a sense of urgency. some of that is down to problems with staff shortages and a lack of resources. we have had a statement from the government, which just came in a little while ago. this is from gillian keegan, who is the minister for care this is from gillian keegan, who is the ministerfor care and this is from gillian keegan, who is the minister for care and rachel mclean who is the minister for safeguarding. they see each agency has equal duty and we are writing to all three to make clear our expectation the participate fully in producing and delivering on a written statement of action. the government so you have got to get your act together. lots of agencies involved here, solihull borough council, the health agencies, the police. you have got to sort things out because we don't want to see another case like arthur labinjo—hughes. arthur labinjo-hughes. you outline arthur labin'o-hughes. you outline the issues arthur labinjo-hughes. you outline the issues while _ arthur labinjo-hughes. you outline the issues while kids _ arthur labinjo-hughes. you outline the issues while kids are _ arthur labinjo-hughes. you outline the issues while kids are falling - the issues while kids are falling through the net are complicated. how

is it going to change? because you mentioned resources are an aspect, the government sent all of the agencies you have to fix this, but what is there? what is being done to make sure there is concrete change? that's what we're waiting to hear from the local authority and from the west midlands police and health agencies. they have to come up with agencies. they have to come up with a plan of action. multi—agency hubs, often known by an acronym mash, often known by an acronym mash, often are set up in response to terrible cases, they were seen as an answer to that left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing when these cases are going. what this case and the inspection report highlights is that they are not the be all and end all, things can still go wrong, even when you switch to the system where people physically get into a single room, to share information about a vulnerable, at risk child. it does not work if not

everybody turns up and if there are vacancies and it does not work as i mentioned somebody spells a name incorrectly so the information is not necessarily in one place and that's quite interesting and more significant other than just here in solihull. the failure is with redlands police is a systemic failure and the problem does not, again, just restricted to solihull because west midlands police covers six other areas. all of those areas will have the same kinds of issues. west midlands police clearly needs to come under some quite significant answers and changes to the way its system works. i must remind you though, there is another report coming. that will come the end of may, beginning ofjune, this national review that was ordered not just into this case but will look at the more specific failures and we think there were missed opportunities in arthur's case where an intervention might have saved the

young boys's life. the queen will continue with light duties today after she tested positive for covid. palace officials say her symptoms are mild and that she'll be receiving medical attention and following all guidelines. the queen is understood to be fully vaccinated but, at 95, her age puts her at increased risk from the virus. 0ur royal correspondent daniela relph is in windsor. what's the latest? no updates today and to be honest we are not expecting one. royal officials have said that if there is anything significant to say about the queen's health, they will let us know but other than that, don't expect to get any daily bulletin about the queen's health. we are in a holding position but my sense from officials with the queen at windsor castle is that things are calm, cautious, but no

sense of alarm. as you say, there are a couple of aggravating factors that doctors will want to keep an eye on. the queen, 95, very nearly 96, she has not been that well in recent months. doctors will want to keep an eye on that because her age picture into a vulnerable category. , she is looking thinner and frailer than she was this time last year. that means the doctors will be keeping a particular eye on her at the moment to see how things progress over the coming days. the kremlin has said it is premature to organise a biden—putin summit on ukraine. it comes after the meeting was proposed by france. we have heard 0laf scholz will speak to president putin on the phone this afternoon. steve rosenberg is in moscow. what's the latest there? earlier, there had been some hope

that there could be some diplomatic breakthrough in this crisis, because we heard the palace say they had both agreed the principle of the summit then resort the reader from the white house. biden had accepted in principle a meeting from putin and we waited and waited and waited for a readout from the kremlin. eventually, the kremlin spokesman said no, no concrete plan yet. for a bite on putin summit. he did it out, but he said diplomacy would continue on the level of foreign ministers. the kremlin pouring cold water on those earlier indications that there would be an imminent high—level meeting between the us and russia. fitter; high-level meeting between the us and russia. ,, , . ., �*, and russia. stay with us. what's the latest on the — and russia. stay with us. what's the latest on the ground? _ and russia. stay with us. what's the latest on the ground? foreign - latest on the ground? foreign minister is — latest on the ground? foreign minister is at _ latest on the ground? foreign minister is at an _ latest on the ground? foreign minister is at an eu _ latest on the ground? foreign minister is at an eu foreign i minister is at an eu foreign ministers meeting in brussels. he is

taking _ ministers meeting in brussels. he is taking a _ ministers meeting in brussels. he is taking a more urgent tone, basically calling _ taking a more urgent tone, basically calling on— taking a more urgent tone, basically calling on that european union to walk the — calling on that european union to walk the walk instead of talking the talk. what does he mean? he has long wanted _ talk. what does he mean? he has long wanted along with president zelensky, new and immediate sanctions, economic punishment to be brought— sanctions, economic punishment to be brought in_ sanctions, economic punishment to be brought in now. they want russia to be punished — brought in now. they want russia to be punished now for what it has done in its _ be punished now for what it has done in its eight _ be punished now for what it has done in its eight years of prolonged aggression and for that, they say, that will— aggression and for that, they say, that will help put russia off escalating things further. we often hear a _ escalating things further. we often hear a saying here, nothing about ukraine _ hear a saying here, nothing about ukraine without ukraine. it's a sensitivity— ukraine without ukraine. it's a sensitivity felt by many in this part— sensitivity felt by many in this part of— sensitivity felt by many in this part of the world, he said he has had a _ part of the world, he said he has had a personal assurance from the us secretary— had a personal assurance from the us secretary of _ had a personal assurance from the us secretary of state antony blinken that no _ secretary of state antony blinken that no big decisions will be made without— that no big decisions will be made without ukraine being included. whilst _ without ukraine being included. whilst stuttering, this diplomatic path continuing will be good news especially given america's predictions yesterday that we are on the verge _ predictions yesterday that we are on the verge of war and invasion given

that putin's — the verge of war and invasion given that putin's decision to keep an estimated 30,000 troops stationed in the north— estimated 30,000 troops stationed in the north in belarus. that is seen positive, — the north in belarus. that is seen positive, but this increase in fighting we are seeing increase in fighting we are seeing in occupied territories in the east and the _ in occupied territories in the east and the blame game is moscow is accused _ and the blame game is moscow is accused of— and the blame game is moscow is accused of creating a phased fake justification for an invasion, that's doing nothing to relax— invasion, that's doing nothing to relax tensions.— relax tensions. how is moscow responding _ relax tensions. how is moscow responding to _ relax tensions. how is moscow responding to those _ relax tensions. how is moscow responding to those claims - relax tensions. how is moscow responding to those claims ofl relax tensions. how is moscow - responding to those claims of false flag operations and what's happening there, as the diplomacy continues? the russians dismiss all of that as western hysteria, western hype. if you look at what russian state television is reporting, about the crisis in ukraine, it's the polar opposite of what we are seeing in the west. i was watching russian state television's flagship news show yesterday and there was some incredible language being used. the

programme ask the question, who needs war in ukraine? the anchor reeled off a whole list of names, joe biden, borisjohnson, even prince charles and prince andrew, basically creating this remarkable alternative reality, but that is how things are seen here in the state media. , ., , ., , things are seen here in the state media. . ., , ., , ., ~ media. james, we have been talking obviously in — media. james, we have been talking obviously in the _ media. james, we have been talking obviously in the weeks _ media. james, we have been talking obviously in the weeks since - media. james, we have been talking obviously in the weeks since this - obviously in the weeks since this really has ratcheted up, and the message that comes through clearly from the people in ukraine is, don't panic. they have been living with this threat for some time and it has been a case of life continuing as normal. is that still the case? yes, there is no military presence visibly at least in kyiv, going out and having nights out, lively capital city. the message from the government has been to stay calm. that is frustrating for some because

if the west are saying the threat is imminent but we are being told to stay calm, whose right here? we have seen the president wearing a green uniform on a unity tour meeting with troops, that has been welcomed in some corners. his defence minister once again has given a complete opposite assessment to the west and said i have seen no intelligence suggesting an invasion is imminent. he said on satellite images he has not seen groupings of russian troops across the border to give him that impression. the tale of two assessments continues. some are upping assessments continues. some are upping sticks and moving to western parts of the country. the uncertainty drags on as well as this dual messaging, if you like. james waterhouse in kyiv and steve rosenborg in moscow, thank you very

much. ba has said that the continuous high winds during the last few days have made it difficult to run essential services for aircraft at heathrow. specifically — the airline says — the strong winds make opening the luggage hold of aircraft very difficult. in the last 24 hours, many passengers have complained about not getting their bags after landing at heathrow. ba added that other items of machinery needed to offload bags also can't be operated in high winds. this disruption in offloading baggage has had an impact on inbound and outbound plane movements causing delays. a third major storm in less than a week is sweeping across the uk this morning. the storm, named franklin, brought heavy rain and strong winds overnight with gusts of more than 70 miles an hour. it comes only days after storm eunice killed three people and left 1.4 million homes without power. so far storm frankin has brought severe fooding in parts of northern ireland, leaving more than 4,000 households without electricity. in yorkshire and greater manchester, people have been forced to leave their homes for safety.

there are currently more than 140 flood warnings across the north of england and the midlands. 2,900 properties across the east of england and 9,200 across the south east are without power. this is the scene at rotherham station this morning, i can't see behind me. i think it is! i think that is rotherham. northern railway has adviced customers not to travel on its network as trains are likely to be cancelled, delayed or suspended. a yellow warning for wind covering wales, northern ireland, most of england and parts of south—west scotland will remain in place until 1 o'clock today. 0ur correspondent nick garnett is in south manchester, one of the areas worst areas most affected by south franklin. affected by storm franklin. this is the river mersey behind me, and you can see just how much water is in there and how fast it's flowing.

it's been incredibly, incredibly full for over 12 hours now. now you can see that aluminium gate or that steel gate over on the far side of the river — that's one of the storm overflows. now that storm overflow is what has saved a lot of the housing from any majorflooding problems in south manchester. 430 homes were said to be at risk and could have problems, and so some people were told to leave their homes. about eight people stayed overnight in a rest centre because they were too worried to stay in their homes. but these gates here, when the river gets to a certain point, the water flows over there and then fills a huge drain basin made up of a golf course and some woodland. and that has alleviated the pressure. it's dropped the water rates, the water in the river, and has allowed the river to start to recover. so overnight at about midnight was the highest of the floodwater. that's now dropped down by about 1.5 to two metres. so the water is dropping down. but the golf course and the other

areas that have been flooded are going to stay flooded for a while until the water level from here really drops down to a safe level and they can seal the river off and let it do its natural work again. there is an awful lot of clearing up still to be done here. you can see from the speed of the river and some of the debris that's in there that the current is really, really strong in there. it's an awful lot faster. this is somewhere i walk my dog most days and it normally doesn't run anywhere near that sort of level. so it's going to be some time until it gets back to normal. but the great thing is, is that the flood defences in manchester seem to have done their work. a man has admitted causing the deaths of two children in a crash on the m4 motorway. gracie—ann lucas, four, and her three year—old brother jayden—lee lucas died following the crash on 5th february. the family had been returning from a birthday party when the car in which they were travelling

was in collision with a van. martin newman, 41, from neath port talbot, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing their deaths by dangerous driving. he was remanded in custody and will be sentenced in april. a crash involving two trains in salisbury in october happened after one of them failed to stop at a red signal because its wheels were sliding along the track. that's according to an interim report by the rail accident investigation branch. the raib said its full investigation will consider the actions taken on the day to manage the risk of "low adhesion". australia has reopened its borders to international tourists today, with fully vaccinated travellers allowed in, after almost two years since the start of the pandemic. but travellers are still restricted from entering the country's largest state — western australia. due to a spike in covid cases, it is still under restrictions and will reopen on the 3rd of march. this has also meant that people within other australian states haven't been able to visit.

let's talk to two people affected by this. margo blacklaw who lives in sydney in new south wales and her daughter samantha, who lives in perth in western australia. tell us how it has affected you. your daughter has not been able to visit you, margo? irlerar your daughter has not been able to visit you, margo?— your daughter has not been able to visit you, margo? new south wales has not been _ visit you, margo? new south wales has not been able _ visit you, margo? new south wales has not been able to _ visit you, margo? new south wales has not been able to go _ visit you, margo? new south wales has not been able to go into - visit you, margo? new south wales i has not been able to go into western australia. i haven't seen her, i was able to go injune 2021. she moved six years ago. i decided to expand my business, mental health awareness, in perth so i could see her and work at the same time. we

haven't been able to get over there since lastjune, for eight months, and she hasn't been able to come out either. 50 and she hasn't been able to come out either. ., ., ., , , either. so month, how has it been? reau either. so month, how has it been? really difficult. _ either. so month, how has it been? really difficult. for— either. so month, how has it been? really difficult. for the _ either. so month, how has it been? really difficult. for the last - either. so month, how has it been? really difficult. for the last few - really difficult. for the last few years _ really difficult. for the last few years not — really difficult. for the last few years not being able tojust come back and — years not being able tojust come back and forth has felt isolating. i moved _ back and forth has felt isolating. i moved to— back and forth has felt isolating. i moved to perth six years ago and when _ moved to perth six years ago and when i _ moved to perth six years ago and when i first— moved to perth six years ago and when i first moved i could just come back 4-8 _ when i first moved i could just come back 4—8 times a year depending on what was _ back 4—8 times a year depending on what was happening. since the pandemic studied, i have not been able to— pandemic studied, i have not been able to see — pandemic studied, i have not been able to see my family as much, my brother— able to see my family as much, my brother has — able to see my family as much, my brother has had the first baby in our immediate family, archie. i am a godmothen — our immediate family, archie. i am a godmothen i— our immediate family, archie. i am a godmother. i did a zoom christening. my godmother. ! did a zoom christening. my cousin— godmother. i did a zoom christening. my cousinjames had me on the phone with a _ my cousinjames had me on the phone with a zoom _ my cousinjames had me on the phone with a zoom. that is not ideal. i am missing _ with a zoom. that is not ideal. ! am missing all— with a zoom. that is not ideal. i am missing all the milestones and i am looking _ missing all the milestones and i am looking forward to connecting with the family again.—

the family again. margo, there is the family again. margo, there is the delay for— the family again. margo, there is the delay for western _ the family again. margo, there is the delay for western australia, | the family again. margo, there is - the delay for western australia, how do you feel about that? i was the delay for western australia, how do you feel about that?— do you feel about that? i was 'ust so disappointed i do you feel about that? i was 'ust so disappointed about i do you feel about that? i was 'ust so disappointed about that h do you feel about that? i wasjust i so disappointed about that because we had all the plans organised for the 5th of february and suddenly reneges on it. there was no date set when that was going to have it again. he was talking about 80 or 90% of people would have to be triple vaccinated before he opened up triple vaccinated before he opened up the border again. we are absolutely devastated by that, you know. because samantha had organised all the plans and everything. ianthem all the plans and everything. when the border does _ all the plans and everything. when the border does open _ all the plans and everything. when the border does open on _ all the plans and everything. when the border does open on the - all the plans and everything. when the border does open on the 3rd of march, what is the plan for then? i planned actually to go to sydney because — planned actually to go to sydney because i did not want to do a shorter— because i did not want to do a shorter trip on the 3rd of march, and that— shorter trip on the 3rd of march, and that date could change. we have plans _

and that date could change. we have plans to _ and that date could change. we have plans to go _ and that date could change. we have plans to go away, doing a walk on the beach— plans to go away, doing a walk on the beach and catching up with everyone. _ the beach and catching up with everyone, seeing my nephew for the first time _ everyone, seeing my nephew for the first time. ., , .,, first time. your birthday as well, samantha! _ first time. your birthday as well, samantha! mum _ first time. your birthday as well, samantha! mum doesn't - first time. your birthday as well, samantha! mum doesn't forget! | first time. your birthday as well, - samantha! mum doesn't forget! no, definitely not- _ samantha! mum doesn't forget! no, definitely not. what _ samantha! mum doesn't forget! no, definitely not. what will _ samantha! mum doesn't forget! no, definitely not. what will it _ samantha! mum doesn't forget! no, definitely not. what will it be - definitely not. what will it be like, margo, when you are all back together again? like, margo, when you are all back togetheragain? i like, margo, when you are all back together again?— together again? i cannot believe it sou~ht together again? i cannot believe it sought help- _ together again? i cannot believe it sought help- at — together again? i cannot believe it sought help. at hope _ together again? i cannot believe it sought help. at hope it _ together again? i cannot believe it sought help. at hope it all- together again? i cannot believe it i sought help. at hope it all happens. we do plans with trepidation because it is just so time—consuming and it takes so much out of you. i have such a special bond with my daughter, we have laughs and hugs and fun together. i am just missing all those things. it sounds ridiculous but even getting our nails done together. just the walks and the talks, i do not know, you miss that. we have a very close—knit

family and her two brothers are missing her terribly. it will be great to get here. you have to factor in the equation all the weddings, christenings, the times we have together, you do not get them back. it isjust have together, you do not get them back. it is just not going to come back, time moves on. back. it isjust not going to come back, time moves on.— back, time moves on. your mum obviously — back, time moves on. your mum obviously said _ back, time moves on. your mum obviously said some _ back, time moves on. your mum obviously said some of _ back, time moves on. your mum obviously said some of the - back, time moves on. your mum obviously said some of the bits l obviously said some of the bits there that you do together and she particularly misses, but what is it for you, so month? for particularly misses, but what is it for you, so month?— particularly misses, but what is it for you, so month? for me it would 'ust be for you, so month? for me it would just be like — for you, so month? for me it would just be like connecting _ for you, so month? for me it would just be like connecting again. - for you, so month? for me it would just be like connecting again. the i just be like connecting again. the over the — just be like connecting again. the over the phone but it is not necessarily necessarily the same as seeing _ necessarily necessarily the same as seeing my— necessarily necessarily the same as seeing my parents in person and i did manage to go to sydney 14 months a-o, did manage to go to sydney 14 months ago. when _ did manage to go to sydney 14 months ago, when northern beach banishment beaches— ago, when northern beach banishment beaches was in the strict lockdown, i did beaches was in the strict lockdown, i did the _ beaches was in the strict lockdown, i did the two weeks home quarantine after that _ i did the two weeks home quarantine after that i— i did the two weeks home quarantine after that. i do feel like that was after that. i do feel like that was a special— after that. i do feel like that was a special time we had together even

with the _ a special time we had together even with the quarantine. no quarantine on the _ with the quarantine. no quarantine on the 3rd — with the quarantine. no quarantine on the 3rd of march is a big improvement, really looking forward to that _ improvement, really looking forward to that. ., ~ improvement, really looking forward to that. ., ,, improvement, really looking forward to that. ., ~ ., improvement, really looking forward to that. ., ,, ., ., to that. thank you, margo and samantha _ to that. thank you, margo and samantha blacklaw. _ music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31. he was a leading figure in britain's rap and grime scene. no details have been given of the cause of his death. he set up the youtube channel, sbtv, which helped launch the careers of artists including ed sheeran, dave, and rita 0ra. helen devlin looks back at his life. jamal edwards set up such a successful film operation straight after leaving school, google asked him to tell his story to help endorse their product. when you're starting off, it's a very lonely place, and you need to make sure that you believe in yourself and you believe in your idea to take it to the next level. he got over a million followers by filming up—and—coming and established rap and pop music stars and putting them

on his youtube channel, sb.tv. he was soon rubbing shoulders with some impressive figures, including richard branson and prince charles, becoming an ambassador for his charity, helping young people getjobs. if you can't, nobody can. not bad for a council estate west londoner whose filming began with no training and just a basic video camera his parents gave him when he was 15. one of the things that i wish i knew when i was a little bit younger was stuff about vat, everything about tax, finance, receipts... he became a multimillionaire by the age of 23, mainly from ad revenue on his youtube channel on which mainly 13 to 30—year—olds saw his work with artists including ed sheeran, stormzy and skepta. in a tweet, the organisers of the mobkoards said... presenter, comedian and brit awards host mo gilligan mourned the loss of a truly humble and blessed soul, saying...

jamal edwards was awarded an mbe in 2015 for his work in music. he set up youth clubs and penned a self—help book. he spoke about getting bad anxiety at times, often reminding himself to slow down. the london mayor, sadiq khan, said... the inspirational entrepreneur will be remembered as a pioneering figure in british rap and grime music. jamal edwards, who's died at the age of 31. jamal�*s mother, singer and presenter brenda edwards sent a message to the loose women team, saying she was devastated. she went on to say, "jamal was an inspiration to myself and so many," and that his legacy lives on.

as we've been hearing, the prime minister borisjohnson is to lay out his vision for repealing all remaining covid restrictions in england, saying his plan will bring the country "towards a return to normality". john maguire has been speaking to people across england about the incoming changes. it's been a while since i've worn this level of ppe for an interview, but you'll understand why when you consider that juliette coffa, who has a severe lung condition, hasn't left her home for more than 850 days. there are days i feel like literally the house is closing in on me. there's days i want to see the sea. i want to go and see my parents. all these things that people do normally. when people start going out and you see their facebook posts, and you see people at adventure parks or at dinner, or out with friends and you think, "the world's leaving me behind here." and you do get that sense that we're very much left behind because there's not enough measures

in place to make it safe for us to be out. juliette is extremely clinically vulnerable and extremely concerned that all restrictions in england are being swept away. i don't understand why people can't put a mask on when they're in an enclosed area, why they can't stay home where they are covid positive. and ijust don't get why my life isn't valuable enough for society to take on those measures, so that everybody can have a plan to live with covid. notjust the people who are able to. community pharmacies have been among the unsung heroes of the fight against the pandemic, providing front line care support and advice to millions of people. andy williams is anxious that the gains we've made against covid could now be undermined.

we have also seen lots of people, whose journey during the pandemic has been quite traumatic. they have really worked, you know... they're making tender steps out because of their own personal frailties. and what we don't want to do is to see that they feel that the rug is being pulled underneath their feet, and in some way, they need to then make a decision to absorb themselves away from our wider society. we've got three different rolls of material. - we have a blue, which is waterproof, slightly waterproof, _ we have the antibacterial layer and we have this layer in - a transparent material. when the pandemic began to take hold two years ago, this air filtration firm used its expertise to start manufacturing facemasks. they set up this factory in rural herefordshire, where they make a million masks a day and will continue to do so. the requirement, even a medical grade type 2, ask in all of the hospitals around

europe pre—pandemic is related maybe to only 1% of our production capacity. so we are going to continue and we are going to continue to provide to the united kingdom and europe, making us, as a nation, independent from those overseas suppliers. two lots of ear loop. few lives have been left untouched by the impact of covid. roger powell lost his job in the first lockdown, but was then employed here when production ramped up. i couldn't have asked for a better outcome. two years ago, i was looking for probably a part time job because people won't want to take a 64—year—old. but dean offered me the job and i haven't looked back. it's been fantastic. this group of builders merchants, who work for selco across the uk, haven't got together socially for two years — until tonight — where

they're striking out at the lanes bowling alley in bristol. we used to have an occasion like this once a month, yeah. so we've missed out mostly two years' worth of it. yeah. i mean, how important is it to do something like this? very. — they work in birmingham, we work in bristol, people work in wales, and it's times when you meet up like this, you can actually discuss things that you don't normally discuss. so when it's about the business side of it, but then again, it's building bonds with the guys in birmingham. so yeah, it is important. the debate about if, when and by how much restrictions should be lifted goes on. meanwhile, what was once mandatory now becomes discretionary. the decisions are all ours to make. john maguire, bbc news.

joining me now is our health correspondent, nick triggle. we expect the legal restrictions to come what threat does covid now pose? come what threat does covid now ose? ~ ., , ., pose? when covid first emerged, our immune systems _ pose? when covid first emerged, our immune systems had _ pose? when covid first emerged, our immune systems had never— pose? when covid first emerged, our i immune systems had never encountered this virus before so did not know how to fight it, they had to learn and the result was a huge numbers of deaths, particularly among older people and those with health conditions. 80% of the covid deaths we seen happened in the first year of the pandemic. since then, the vaccination roll—out combined with the infections people have had have seen perhaps we can see this on a chart, the antibody levels in the population across all age groups increase dramatically. we can see the situation in december 2020 compared to at the start of 2022, the orange bars are 2022. the

antibody levels do not tell you how well you are protected from the virus but they are a sign your immune system recognises, knows how to fight it. people over the age of 60, most of that immunity has been built up by three doses, a booster jab. the death rate, a second chart should illustrate this, has fallen dramatically over the past year, so much so that despite the huge number of infections we have seen this winter with the 0micron variant, it is very much in line with what you would usually see in winter. underlining covid is not the threat it once was. for testing, the government's argument is because it is not the threat it was, the

response to covid needs to be reviewed. £37 billion has been set aside for testing and tracing since the start of the pandemic. to put that into context, that is more than has been budgeted for gp care. it could make huge inroads into the waiting lists in hospitals. we should hear later today quite significant dismantling of this testing system we have gotten so used to. the pcr testing in the community, that is where we have symptoms, advised to go to the test centre, swab down, sent to the lab. i understand those testing centres will go. the pcr testing will be reserved for hospitals were seriously ill patients will be tested to clinically diagnose it is covid so they can be treated but also keep an eye on the emergence of new variants. and then the office of

national statistics surveillance programme, costing half a billion per year, that can be slimmed down significantly or it could be incorporated into the full surveillance system. the 0ns every week reports, half a million people take part. the difficult cult, lots of debate, the future of rapid testing. the government is looking at not ending these completely, i understand, but providing more limited access, maybe just for older people and those with health conditions so they can get their friends and family to use a rapid test before they see them to reduce the risk of catching it. that will be a tricky balancing act and the key thing to look for today when we hear more about the living with covid strategy from the prime minister. ., ~ covid strategy from the prime minister. ., ,, , ., a ., covid strategy from the prime minister. ., ,, , ., ., ., minister. thank you, nick, on that, we heard cabinet _ minister. thank you, nick, on that, we heard cabinet was _ minister. thank you, nick, on that, we heard cabinet was delayed - minister. thank you, nick, on that, we heard cabinet was delayed thisi we heard cabinet was delayed this morning, it was supposed to be the

session cabinet would sign off on the new strategy going forward. some reports there was disagreement between the department of health, the treasury and number ten about the treasury and number ten about the strategy on testing and most likely the costs of it going forward. so that was what we were hearing. we are now getting reaction to that from labour's health and social care secretary, west straiton, has tweeted to say the government is paralysed by its own chaos and incompetence, what confidence can the public have that the conservatives are acting in the national interest when they cannot agree a plan for covid? this shambles cannot continue. —— wes streeting.

imagine if you found out your job wasn't actually real? that's what happened to more than 50 people who were hired to work for a design agency that turned out to be fake. through an online web of phoney profiles, stolen work and lies, the group was lead to believe they were joining a successful business. catrin nye reports. just over a year ago, james harris from york was desperately searching forjobs online. he'd applied for more than 2,000 before landing a great—looking role with a glamorous design agency called mad bird. i was buzzing — absolutely buzzing that i'd finally found a job that i knew i could, like, progress in. one of my best friends, helen was like, "oh, my god, this is it, jim — this is it!" more than 50 people from all over the world got a job at mad bird between mid 2020 and early 2021 — when the pandemic was raging. they were impressed by the company's client list. nike, samsonite, national geographic — that sounds like big budget, as well. and i showed it to lots of people who i know who are in the same industry as me, and they all agreed — it looked great. it's established.

it's based in kensington. mad bird's ambitious recruits were told they'd only earn commission for the first six months, before getting a salary if they pass their probation. that didn't seem like a problem, given the impressive clients the agency already had. are you web—based ? everyone worked remotely — some for almost six months. the sales team was in talks with some big clients. if you guys have any questions, feel free to ask me. have a good weekend. but then, everything changed. i've received an email from jane smith, who i wasn't familiar with. the rest of the mad bird employees were ccd in. i'm like, "jane smith? who's jane smith? " "for the attention of mad bird employees. some shocking evidence has come to light regarding mad bird." and as i was reading the email, my mouth kept dropping, like... "we have strong reason to suspect that the founders of mad bird have knowingly participated in the following activities." all of the work was stolen. that bombshell email from an unknown whistle—blower claimed to have evidence that mad bird was a fake design agency.

the work on the website was stolen, several staff members didn't really exist, and mad bird's impressive client list wasn't real. i've literally been here for, like, two months. working for, like, how many hours, not getting paid, telling people to do this. recruiting people to a fake company... i've spent the last year investigating the truth behind mad bird. i found many more victims and reams of fakery. one of the co—founders of the company didn't exist — his picture turned out to belong to a beehive designerfrom prague — and other staff members turned out to be fake, too. an entire pitch document that staff had been using to try and get work was stolen from another design agency. so who was behind this elaborate con? 0ur investigations all led us to one man — mad bird's charismatic boss ali ayad. he was the director of the company, he looked like an influencer — appearing in g0 magazine — and had claimed to have worked for nike.

but all that turned out to be lies, too. we needed to speak to ali. hi, ali ayad. my name's catrin nye, i'm from the bbc. come on, it's time to talk to us, ali. why did you make up a fake company and then take advantage of people when they were at their most desperate? your version of the story. 0k? we have been waiting to hear your version of the story, ali, for months. you don't know all the things behind the story. you have heard one version of the story. you need to see two sides of the story. will you say sorry to the people who you hurt? i'm sorry? whose lives and time you wasted? if i hurt somebody — if i hurt somebody, of course i'm sorry, but i'm telling you there's another version of the story. was there another version of the story? as far as we knew, ali ayad didn't make any money from mad bird — he insisted he was trying to create opportunities for people during the pandemic.

one thing we did know — many people around the world had been job—fished and needed answers. catrin nye, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol. stalin franklin pushes from the west of the east with strong wind. the windies is, most of the showers fade. these are the wind gusts by the time we get to four o'clock in the time we get to four o'clock in the afternoon, losing the 50—60 mph gusts. temperatures range from six in the north to 12th in the south. afternoon, more cloud, showers and drizzle coming into the west. through the night, the next weather

front comes in bringing heavy rain and squally winds. tomorrow continuing to sink southwards, another windy day, snow showers, especially on the tops of the hills, but able to have dry weather as well. this is bbc news. the headlines... as the government prepares to announce plans to scrap all remaining covid legal restrictions in england, a scheduled cabinet meeting is delayed at the last minute, amid reports of disagreements over the way forward russia says there are no concrete plans for presidents putin and biden to meet in person, despite reports of a summit, but the kremlin does say diplomacy will continue. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week despite testing positive for covid 0fsted says a significant number of vulnerable children remain at risk in solihull in the west midlands. it follows the death of 6—year—old arthur labinjo—hughes, who was killed by his father and stepmother in the town. hundreds of homes are evacuated amid flood warnings, as the uk is hit by a third major

storm in less than a week. the british music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31, tributes pour in from across the world of entertainment. nearly two years after the start of the pandemic, australia reopens its borders to international travellers. borisjohnson is due to set out his plans this afternoon, to end all legally binding covid restrictions in england, including

the requirement to self—isolate. but a cabinet meeting that had been due to take place this morning to discuss the proposals was delayed at the last minute. downing street sources say the prime minister is receiving a briefing after a busy few days, but some reports suggest there are ongoing tensions with the department of health over some of the changes. so what do we know about the plans? it's expected that, by the end of the week, the legal requirement to self—isolate will be scrapped for those who test positive, and will be replaced with advice instead. free lateral flow and pcr testing are likely to be rolled back. the vaccine programme will remain open to anyone who hasn't had their doses yet. across the rest of the uk, in northern ireland, restrictions are no longer legally—binding. wales is at alert level zero, which is the lowest level of covid rules. and in scotland, first minister nicola strugeon is due to update msps tomorrow. but with the delay to today's cabinet meeting there is now some confusion over the timeline

for the government announcement. labour's shadow health spokesman wes streeting has accused the government of being paralysed by its own chaos and incompetence. joining me now from westminster is our political correspondent, iain watson. what are you hearing about why this cabinet meeting is delayed's the official cabinet meeting is delayed's ii�*uéi official line coming from downing street is that with a lot going on at home and abroad, the prime minister required a briefing this morning and that meant there was a delay to the cabinet taking place. we already saw various ministers going into number ten downing st, fully expecting that cabinet meeting to take place. it was previously, the cabinet need to sign on off the living with cover plan for england. as you suggest, that will see the end of the legal need to self—isolate, if you catch covid. the weather seems to be, where there seems to be far less agreement is drawing the line at retesting for

england, disagreement over eligibility, who would still be able to get free testing as case numbers continue to fall, and the timescale for withdrawing testing too. it has certainly been suggested to me by government sources, not downing street itself, but other government sources, that those underlying tensions between the department of health and the treasury over the £2 billion cost, monthly cost of free testing, have not yet been resolved. we were expecting a carefully choreographed day, the prime minister had previewed this ten days ago, prime minister's questions when he said he would lift restrictions a month early, we then expect to get the cabinet sign off then a statement from the prime minister, then get a press conference, but at then get a press conference, but at the moment, i have not been told when cabinet is likely to resume or if any of these underlying issues have been resolved. star; if any of these underlying issues have been resolved.— if any of these underlying issues have been resolved. stay with us. a lot of reaction _ have been resolved. stay with us. a lot of reaction to _ have been resolved. stay with us. a lot of reaction to what's _ have been resolved. stay with us. a lot of reaction to what's happening. | the first minister of wales says...

scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, has also been speaking today, saying that sensible decisions staying at home while we have a virus seems, to me, to be a sensible thing to do, to try to protect that greater sense of normality. similarly, with testing, of course we want to move to a situation where we want to move to a situation where we are using testing in a much more targeted way, although we need to continue to have the right infrastructure for surveillance. but it is the phasing in the timescale over which we do that. we have still got a really highly transmissible variant circulating right now, cases are still at quite a high level, so

it is about striking the right balance. we all want to get back to normal, but crucially, we want to stay back to normal and that means taking sensible decisions about managing the whole thing. is it possible to see exactly where we are? is it possible there may not be a statement in the commons and to the country? figs be a statement in the commons and to the country?— the country? as far as downing street is concerned, _ the country? as far as downing street is concerned, it - the country? as far as downing street is concerned, it looks i the country? as far as downing street is concerned, it looks as though they still plan for this to go ahead and one government source said we will have to reconvene the cabinet before the statement. the statement itself may be delayed for other reasons, if for example there is any update on the situation in ukraine or the damage caused by the recent storms, so it may be that that comes out later in the day in any case, in time for the cabinet meeting to take place, but i have been told the cabinet meeting at the side will have to reconvene ahead of the planned statement by the prime minister. it's also interesting listening to a couple of the leaders of the devolved administrations

there, because their position seems to be that they would like the funding for free testing to continue untiljune, 2022, thereafter having this targeted testing that nicola sturgeon was talking about, making sure there is enough surveillance and place in case there are new variants, the clinical setting would still be testing, so they are very clear in their position, but they have written to the government at westminster couple of days ago and said, suggested they had not had guarantees that kind of timescale would be either in england or that it would be made available to keep the testing going throughout the uk, for up to another five months. still a lot of uncertainty, and although there is a lot of briefing about ending the regulations which would please conservative backbench mps, we have seen far less detail about the rate or scale of the withdrawal of free testing in england.- of free testing in england. there was a suggestion _ of free testing in england. there was a suggestion that _ of free testing in england. there was a suggestion that it - of free testing in england. there was a suggestion that it would i of free testing in england. there was a suggestion that it would be no

testing for asymptomatic. what's yoursense testing for asymptomatic. what's your sense of what is being discussed? possible compromise. there has certainly been a lot of discussions about the eligibility of people who are extremely vulnerable, the over 80s for example, or whether it should be far more widespread. there would be concerns as well if people are not testing asymptomatically about whether as nicola sturgeon pointed out there would be enough infrastructure to keep an eye on the virus. there have been concerns elsewhere, not necessarily within government, but elsewhere amongst some of the trade union, gmb and general union today saying they are worried about people perhaps going to work, when they are sick, that would spread the virus but economically we feel we have no choice but to do so. and go to work ignorant of the fact they have the virus as well. those concerns, whether the cabinet agreement not, would been articulated today, so

this is something which is not necessarily a straight win for the government, getting rid of the regulations is likely to prove popular, certainly with conservative backbench mps, not necessarily either with the opposition who suggest the prime minister is declaring war, or the war is over against the pandemic, prematurely, and it's certainly not something which would necessarily be welcomed entirely by people in the health service or elsewhere.— entirely by people in the health service or elsewhere. thank you very much. we service or elsewhere. thank you very much- we will— service or elsewhere. thank you very much. we will obviously _ service or elsewhere. thank you very much. we will obviously stay - much. we will obviously stay updated. i'm joined by professor clare bryant, an immunologist from the university of cambridge. thank you forjoining us. what are your thoughts around ending isolation and the issues around what happens with testing going forward? it's very complicated. we knew we were going to have to move to a position where we would live with the virus and manage it accordingly. personally, ifeel this the virus and manage it accordingly. personally, i feel this is the virus and manage it accordingly. personally, ifeel this is slightly too soon because we have a high level of virus in the community. we

really do need to know where we are with the virus, so i think testing should stay in place so we can understand what's happening and where. certainly for the next few months. to understand how the disease will progress over time and whether there are new variants. surveillance really does give us a really good handle on what's going on in the community, particularly with asymptomatic testing and so forth. it cannot last forever but i wonder if right now is the time to be doing this. you wonder if right now is the time to be doing this-— be doing this. you talk about it bein: be doing this. you talk about it being useful — be doing this. you talk about it being useful as _ be doing this. you talk about it being useful as a _ be doing this. you talk about it being useful as a way - be doing this. you talk about it being useful as a way of- be doing this. you talk about it. being useful as a way of keeping tabs on the virus. if testing continues and people are testing positive but not showing symptoms, no requirement to isolate, how should that be handled? testing ositive, should that be handled? testing positive. they — should that be handled? testing positive, they should _ should that be handled? testing positive, they should stay - should that be handled? testing positive, they should stay at - should that be handled? testing i positive, they should stay at home and obviously it is very complicated for the reasons, financial reasons and the other implications, but we still have vulnerable people in their community and we need to

protect them and we need to moving towards a process where we just behave sensibly. while may be carrying the virus if we are. access to tests would allow us to tell that. it's a complicated moving picture but we do need to know if we generate a new variant, we need to know it's out there and without surveillance testing going on we cannot do that. hopefully with the drop in numbers we are seeing at the moment as we move towards the summer, it's going to be sensible to have a break process because it's complicated at the moment. it could cause problems by ceasing to isolate if people are infected. 0bviously that increases the chances are people transmitting the virus in the community. people transmitting the virus in the communi . ., people transmitting the virus in the community-— people transmitting the virus in the communi . ., ., ., ., ., community. how great a threat to you think there really _ community. how great a threat to you think there really is _ community. how great a threat to you think there really is going _ community. how great a threat to you think there really is going forward? i think there really is going forward? as things are with 0micron, it's a

stable and diminishing issue, but what's the risk of their suddenly being a mutation that could change the picture? a worse mutation? it�*s hard to predict. i wish i had a crystal ball, we know 0micron has mutated and the 0micron sister is in the community and seems to be behaving similarly to 0micron which is really good news. it's impossible to predict. the good news of course is that now we have great anti—virals. fantastic vaccines, a number of new vaccines are being developed as well moving forward. we have fantastic tools to tackle this, so we should be able to move forward into a zone where we can learn to live with the virus, which is great news. i think it's just a question of taking a little bit slowly, because if we can make sure we have got low levels of virus in the community, decrease the chance of further variant arising, and then hopefully that will bring an end to

the situation we are currently in plaster. than if we stopped things to soon which is more or less exactly what nicola sturgeon has just said. exactly what nicola sturgeon has 'ust said. ., ~ exactly what nicola sturgeon has 'ust said. ., ,, , ., , exactly what nicola sturgeon has 'ust said. ., ,, ,, , . just said. thank you very much. thank you- _ a man has admitted causing the deaths of two children in a crash on the m4 motorway. gracie—ann lucas, 4, and her three—year—old brother jayden—lee lucas died following the crash on 5th february. the family had been returning from a birthday party, when the car in which they were travelling was in collision with a van. martin newman, 41, from croeserw in neath port talbot, pleaded guilty to two counts of causing their deaths by dangerous driving. he was remanded in custody and will be sentenced in april. a crash involving two trains in salisbury in october happened after one of them failed to stop at a red signal because its wheels were sliding along the track. that's according to an interim report by the rail accident investigation branch. the raib said its full investigation will consider the actions taken on the day to manage the risk

of "low adhesion." you're watching bbc news. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. the chair of uk sport says it's right to question how public funding for winter sports has been spent, after team gb fell well short of their medal target for beijing. they won just two medals, both in curling, with the women's team claiming gold on the final day of the games. they'd been set a target of three to seven. there were only 15 top—10 finishes from team gb, compared to 17 outside the top—25 orfailing to finish. we review the findings, checking in, seeing what the potential is. these results in a big part of it that the

whole thing is looking forward to the future. i think there is always a misunderstanding of funding is the kind of reward comes if you have got the medals, but it's not nearly as simple as that. the medals and the potential and the results of the winter games are an element, a piece of information we use, but it's all about what does it look like in minutes' time what the age group is, the results. british number one cameron norrie is up to a career high of 12 in the world rankings, after winning the delray beach open in florida. he won his third career title, beating american reilly 0pelka in straight sets, both on a tie break. this time last year, he was the world number 65 and has credited his rise to being more aggressive on court. novak djokovic is playing competitive tennis for the first time in three months today, as he prepares for the first round of the dubai tennis championship. djokovic couldn't play in the australian 0pen last month, because he hasn't had a covid vaccine and could face difficulties playing in other tournaments this year too. as a result, this week, daniil medvedev could overtake him at the top of the world rankings,

if the russian wins the tournament he's playing in mexico. the only scenario i have in my head is to win every match i play here and if i win the tournament i guess would i be able to stay number one? he has to win. it is in his hands, but he has deserved to be number one, eventually it's going to happen, and if it happens this week, i will be the first one to congratulate him. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. a third named storm in less than a week is sweeping across the uk this morning, bringing high winds and heavy rain. storm franklin has already caused severe flooding in parts of northern ireland, while in yorkshire and greater manchester people have been forced to leave their homes for safety. several train companies have asked people to travel only if theirjourney is essential. a yellow warning for wind covering wales, northern ireland, most of england and parts of south—west scotland is in place until 1pm today.

joining me now in the studio is our bbc weather presenter, stav danaos. difficult few days? absolutely. before we going _ difficult few days? absolutely. before we going to _ difficult few days? absolutely. before we going to franklin, i difficult few days? absolutely. - before we going to franklin, since renamed, start naming goes back nearly to ten years, this is the most active we have ever seen, three names disarms in less than one week. it has been pretty active. ajet stream which has been powering across the uk. franklin the latest, brought strong winds across the uk. thankfully, that system is moving away now and at the winds will be easing down through the afternoon. still quite blustery through the day but nowhere near as strong as what we have had during the overnight period across northern areas and we are also concerned about the amount of rainfall, we have dozens of flood

warnings across england and wales and a couple of severe warnings in north—west england around the river mersey and is worry that time of that will be in the next few days. after be very vigilant with the high river levels in this area.— river levels in this area. what's the forecast — river levels in this area. what's the forecast in _ river levels in this area. what's the forecast in the _ river levels in this area. what's the forecast in the days - river levels in this area. what's| the forecast in the days ahead? river levels in this area. what's - the forecast in the days ahead? when water levels are high, any more rain is not a good thing.— is not a good thing. that's right, an more is not a good thing. that's right, any more rainfall— is not a good thing. that's right, any more rainfall is _ is not a good thing. that's right, any more rainfall is going - is not a good thing. that's right, any more rainfall is going to - any more rainfall is going to exacerbate the problem. we don't think we will have any more named storms, fingers crossed, still some windy spells the week, particularly wednesday into thursday, perhaps a yellow tear weather warning for northern and western parts of the uk, but bands will move west to east followed by sunshine and showers. i'm thinking it looks like it will not be quite as severe this upcoming week as what we have had over the last week and in between these where the systems we should see some drier, sunnier intervals, as storm

franklin continues to move away. storm franklin, the warning is in place until 1pm and that set? that's it, ellow place until 1pm and that set? that's it, yellow warning, _ place until 1pm and that set? that's it, yellow warning, widespread - it, yellow warning, widespread gales, the strongest of the wind transferring to the eastern side of the country, particularly eastern england but even here, it will ease through the afternoon.— an inspection by the eductation and children's services regulator has found that a significant number of vulnerable children remain unassessed and at risk in solihull. it follows the death of 6—year—old arthur labinjo—hughes, who was killed by his father and stepmother in the town in 2020. the report, which has just been published, has also called for urgent action to be taken by west midlands police and the agencies who deal with at—risk children. 0ur correspondent phil mackie has more. this was a horrific case, arthur was six years old, he was starved, beaten, mentally abuse, poisoned with salt by thomas hughes,

his father, and his father's partner emma tustin, when they lived when they lived together in a house in solihull during the first lockdown back in 2020, and it led to a trial at which emma tustin was convicted of murder, thomas hughes of manslaughter, which finished in december last year and you probably remember the public outcry about the case. there were recordings and video footage that were made by tustin and hughes which were played during the trial which i think really deeply affected a lot of people when they saw and heard part of that and just showed the terrible state that this little boy was in at the time of his death and that has led to a number of calls for review. there is a national review, which will look to specifics in cases like arthur's, where things might have gone wrong, that will be published in a few months. this 0fsted inspection was carried out earlier last month to see whether there is something going wrong at a systemic level, actually, they found a number of things and one of the key things they said is that there are problems with the multi—agency safeguarding hub, which looks at cases

where vulnerable children and adults are at risk in solihull. that is not, for a number of reasons, but it has highlighted a couple of them. so these things were set up years ago, probably in the last ten years, to try and make things better so there was more joined—up thinking when there were cases like arthur, but it does not seem to be working working particularly well, not least because people are not necessarily turning up to them, they are not all there at the same time, and there are problems with the information being shared. west midlands police, one case, another case where a young child's name was spelt and entered incorrectly, so you had multiple records for the same child, they were not always accessible. there are also issues with the fact that not every child who is at risk goes to score in solihull, they might cross the into birmingham or warwickshire and again, information not shared. lots of things we have seen in the past in the deaths of children like arthur but another

criticism is there is a tendency for overoptimistic views when social workers were looking at cases in solihull. tending to believe the people who were in some cases responsible for abuse. perhaps not a sense of urgency. some of that is down to problems with staff shortages and a lack of resources. we have had a statement from the government, which just came in a little while ago. this is from gillian keegan, who is the minister for care and rachel mclean who is the minister for safeguarding. they say each agency has equal duty in this work and we are writing to all three to make clear our expectation that they participate fully in producing and delivering on a written statement of action. the government saying you have got to get your act together. lots of agencies involved here, solihull borough council, the health agencies, the police. you have got to sort things out, and tell us what you are going

what you are going to do, because we don't want to see another case like, arthur labinjo—hughes. it may give you an update to the cabinet meeting, supposed to sign off on the strategy for living with covid that has been much trailed. the prime minister was talking about it yesterday on the programme with sophie ralph worth when he said that requirement would be coming to an end. 0ne requirement would be coming to an end. one of the issues apparently being causing around this morning within government has been what happens in terms of testing going forward. let me bring you the latest tweets from our political editor, laura coombs burke, who says, after a messy it obviously has morning been around about cash for covid and sign off of the much briefed end to covid restrictions. iam sign off of the much briefed end to covid restrictions. i am told she says that the department of health asks number 11 for more than £5 billion extra last week to maintain one free testing. eg the testing of

nhs staff even without symptoms. by saturday, the department of health demand was down to 3 billion, but warned of cuts elsewhere if there was no more money. by sunday, department of health demand was down to 1.8 billion, but she says it seems talks between the department of health and the treasury have now been settled with no extra cash. the plan seems instead to move money around within the existing department of health budget. no new time agreed yet for cabinet. it seems from lauder that the row has been resolved. but we have yet to hear when cabinet will be meeting. part of a schedule of events today to outline the strategy and addressing the country later on. we will keep you updated as we get more. the kremlin has said it is premature to organise a biden—putin summit on ukraine.

it comes after the meeting was proposed by france. the white house said it will only happen if russia does not invade its neighbour. president putin is also due to hold what the kremlin has called a large, extraordinary meeting of the russian security council later. explosions have been continuing in ukraine's eastern donbas region this weekend. there have been increased clashes between the ukrainian government forces and rebels backed by russia. in the last hour, our correspondents in moscow and the ukraine capital, kyev, gave us the latest on the tensions and confusion. first, steve rosenberg from the russian capital. earlier, there had been some hope that there could be some diplomatic breakthrough in this crisis, because we heard biden and putin had both agreed the principle of the summit then we heard from the white house. biden had accepted in principle a meeting from putin and we waited and waited and waited for a readout from the kremlin.

eventually, the kremlin spokesman said no, no concrete plan yet for a biden—putin summit. he did not rule it out, but he said diplomacy would continue on the level of foreign ministers. the kremlin pouring a bit of cold water on those earlier indications that there would be an imminent high—level meeting between the us and russia. stay with us, steve. james, what's the latest on the ground? the country's foreign ministers is at an eu foreign ministers meeting in brussels. he is taking a more urgent tone, basically calling on that european union to walk the walk instead of talking the talk. what does he mean? he has long wanted, along with president zelensky, new and immediate sanctions, economic punishment to be brought in now. they want russia to be punished now, for what it has done with this eight years of prolonged aggression and for that, they say,

that will help put russia off escalating things further. we often hear a saying here, "nothing about ukraine without ukraine. " it's a sensitivity felt by many in this part of the world, the minister said he has had a personal assurance from the us secretary of state antony blinken that no big decisions will be made without ukraine being included. whilst stuttering, this diplomatic path continuing will be good news especially given america's predictions yesterday that we are on the verge of war and invasion, given that putin's decision to keep an estimated 30,000 troops stationed in the north in belarus. that is seen positive, but this increase in fighting we are seeing in occupied territories in the east and the blame game is moscow is accused of creating a fake justification for an invasion, invasion, that's doing

nothing to relax tensions. how is moscow responding to those claims of false flag operations and what's happening there, as the diplomacy continues? the russians dismiss all of that as western hysteria, western hype. if you look at what russian state television is reporting about the crisis in ukraine, it's the polar opposite of what we are seeing in the west. i was watching russian state television's flagship news show yesterday and there was some incredible language being used. the programme ask the question, "who needs war in ukraine?" then the anchor reeled off a whole list of names, joe biden, borisjohnson, even prince charles and prince andrew, basically creating this remarkable alternative reality, but that is how things are seen here in the state media.

we can play the two clips now. the first clip you'll see is on february 18th published on the telegram channel of the press service of the people's militia of the donetsk people's republic. the second clip is claimed to have been from a finnish defence forces the investigativejournalism website, bellingcat, say they've discovered an attempted false flag by russian separatists. the video reported by russian media shows a video of alleged polish saboteurs creating major chemical incident. but bellingcat says the data inside the video tell a different story. let's speak now to christo grozev, executive director of bellingcat, an independent investigative journalism website. tell us about this. what have you found? , , .,. , tell us about this. what have you found? , , , ,y found? first, i will preface this by sa in: it's found? first, i will preface this by saying it's not _ found? first, i will preface this by saying it's not the _ found? first, i will preface this by saying it's not the only _ found? first, i will preface this by saying it's not the only example i found? first, i will preface this by| saying it's not the only example of a false flag operation that has been leaked by russian media or government to the press. it is one of the interesting ones because it contains indisputable evidence of being tampered with and falsified. a couple of days ago, two days ago,

the russian media received from somewhere the alleged video footage of a ukrainian and polish sabha tours, who were trying to access a chemical facility in the dnr republics to blow up chemical storage facility and cause major havoc. a lot of people on twitter contributed to analysing the video and the audio byjust looking for similar images from the video that was produced and similar audio that was produced and similar audio that was contained in this alleged attack video. we found both video and the audio come from different sources, none of them current. the video actually correspond to something that had been public and recorded, meta data showed it had been recorded on the 8th of february. more than two weeks before, it was actually made public. the audio

interestingly came from, it was a perfect match to a no deal that had been published back in more than ten years ago. in fact, it was one of the few cases we find out how old something resented as current evidence of an attack by ukraine has been compiled. but there are many more of these and we see more and more of these and we see more and more of the last three days, we have seen at least eight different false flag attacks represented by russian media as authentic. let’s flag attacks represented by russian media as authentic.— media as authentic. let's take a look at the _ media as authentic. let's take a look at the videos. _ media as authentic. let's take a look at the videos. the - media as authentic. let's take a look at the videos. the first - media as authentic. let's take a look at the videos. the first is l media as authentic. let's take a i look at the videos. the first is the fake allegations, the other from finland. first, the fake video allegations.

that is the fake video allegations, now let's play the finland video taken from youtube. explosions. can you explain? how have you linked these two. we can you explain? how have you linked these two. ~ ., ., ~' can you explain? how have you linked these two. ~ ., ., ~ ., ., can you explain? how have you linked these two. ~ ., ., ., these two. we took the audio from these two. we took the audio from the two videos _ these two. we took the audio from the two videos and _ these two. we took the audio from the two videos and compared - these two. we took the audio from | the two videos and compared them from using a waveform analyser showing that each microsecond of the audio in both of the videos are a complete match. essentially something that has been completely published before and has been taken completely out of context,

superimposed on the current video, is presented as an operation that has taken place in the last two days. this isjust one has taken place in the last two days. this is just one example of what we have seen in the last several days. for example, the two so—called leaders of the separatist republic publishing appeals, a mass mobilisation and repatriation into russia of women and children published on february 18. even in these addresses they return to february 18 but meta data shows that they were record hurriedly in the latter part of the 16th of february, two days earlier. 0n the 16th, the initial plan had been intercepted by american intelligence, suggesting that day the invasion would have started if they had stuck to the mysterious original plan. iloathed mysterious original plan. what im act mysterious original plan. what impact do _ mysterious original plan. what impact do you _ mysterious original plan. what impact do you think _ mysterious original plan. what impact do you think it - mysterious original plan. what impact do you think it is -

mysterious original plan. what impact do you think it is having that this is being put out there, the intelligence is being widely reported? the intelligence is being widely re orted? , the intelligence is being widely reorted? , ., ., reported? first of all, the intelligence _ reported? first of all, the intelligence being - reported? first of all, the intelligence being out - reported? first of all, the i intelligence being out there, reported? first of all, the - intelligence being out there, an unprecedented impact on media because we have kind of con on these reports. —— clung to it. what we see in terms of evidence of attacks by ukraine is so poorly repaired and full of holes that it seems they are only putting it out there for the audience in russia and not for the western audience.— audience in russia and not for the western audience. what impact does this false flag — western audience. what impact does this false flag material _ western audience. what impact does this false flag material have, - western audience. what impact does this false flag material have, do - this false flag material have, do you think? it this false flag material have, do you think?— this false flag material have, do ou think? ., , ., ., ., you think? it does have an impact on russians, you think? it does have an impact on russians. not — you think? it does have an impact on russians, not all— you think? it does have an impact on russians, not all russians _ you think? it does have an impact on russians, not all russians but - russians, not all russians but russians, not all russians but russians who are passive consumers of news, they see the headline, see that there is a video out there, they do not have time to deep dive.

0nly state—run or aligned media... christo grozev. music entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards has died at the age of 31. he was a leading figure in britain's rap and grime scene. no details have been given of the cause of his death. he set up the youtube channel, sb—tv, which helped launch the careers of artists including ed sheeran, dave, and rita 0ra. helen devlin looks back at his life. jamal edwards set up such a successful film operation straight after leaving school, google asked him to tell his story to help endorse their product. when you're starting off, it's a very lonely place, and you need to make sure that you believe in yourself and you believe in your idea to take it to the next level.

he got over a million followers by filming up—and—coming and established rap and pop music stars and putting them on his youtube channel, sb.tv. he was soon rubbing shoulders with some impressive figures, including richard branson and prince charles, becoming an ambassador for his charity, helping young people getjobs. if you can't, nobody can. not bad for a council estate west londoner whose filming began with no training and a basic video camera his parents gave him when he was 15. one of the things that i wish i knew when i was a little bit younger was stuff about vat, everything about tax, finance, receipts... he became a multimillionaire by the age of 23, mainly from ad revenue on his youtube channel on which mainly 13 to 30—year—olds saw his work with artists including ed sheeran, stormzy and skepta. in a tweet, the organisers of the mobkoards said... presenter, comedian and brit awards host mo gilligan mourned the loss of a truly humble and blessed soul, saying...

jamal edwards was awarded an mbe in 2015 for his work in music. he set up youth clubs and penned a self—help book. he spoke about getting bad anxiety at times, often reminding himself to slow down. the london mayor, sadiq khan, said... the inspirational entrepreneur will be remembered as a pioneering figure in british rap and grime music. jamal edwards — who's died at the age of 31. now, at the beginning of last year a man named gary who believed some comments from number ten, we are hearing borisjohnson will still be addressing mps in the commons on his living with covid plan, the prime minister is expected to set out his points to the commons at 4:30pm, slightly later because of

the delay of the cabinet meeting to sign off his proposals. the timing could change. he will later hold a news conference alongside professor sir chris whitty and sir patrick vallance. the delayed cabinet meeting chaired by borisjohnson is likely to be a call rather than in person, downing street has said, and the prime minister's official spokesman said the cabinet was postponed so there could be a security briefing and further meetings to finalise the plan on living with covid. the queen carries out light duties at windsor castle this week despite testing positive for covid.

the queen is understood to be fully vaccinated but — at 95 — her age puts her at increased risk from the virus. 0ur royal correspondent daniela relph is in windsor. we will not get a daily update, royal official saying if there is something significant to say they will tell us. but she wants to carry on with white duties if possible this week, going through her paperwork from her state boxes, perhaps carrying on with some virtual audiences like we have seen her do in recent weeks, phone calls including may be one with the prime minister later in the week. the team around the queen will take a day to day view on how she is doing. but the mood is ifs she is well enough she will continue to continue with these light duties but we do not expect to get any regular update on her health over the course of the next few days. her health over the course of the next few days-— her health over the course of the next few days.

thank you, daniela. there has been toing and froing with last—minute discussions on the plan for testing, last—minute discussions on the plan fortesting, it last—minute discussions on the plan for testing, it seems. what do you think should happen with testing going forward? we think should happen with testing going forward?— think should happen with testing going forward? we have been very clear that testing _ going forward? we have been very clear that testing and _ going forward? we have been very clear that testing and access - going forward? we have been very clear that testing and access to i clear that testing and access to testing is a really important way to manage our way back to normal life. the information that it gives scientists is really critical to that. it really is just beyond shambolic now, isn't it that the prime minister announced before parliamentary recess this is happening and we are postponing meetings this afternoon when people really need some certainty about

what the plans are. we are not even sure what the row is about, it really is very disturbing. it seems to be, according _ really is very disturbing. it seems to be, according to _ really is very disturbing. it seems to be, according to our— really is very disturbing. it seems to be, according to our political. to be, according to our political editor on twitter, that the row is or was around money for testing with the department of health last week asking for 5 billion initially to maintain more free testing, for instance, testing nhf staff even if they do not have symptoms. it seems now it has been agreed that there will be no extra cash but instead money will be moved around within the existing department of health budget. —— testing nhs staff. 0bviously budget. —— testing nhs staff. obviously there is an implication that testing is going to continue but we'd do not know how long for and in what form. what would they point b in testing, as far as you are concerned, if people do not isolate? is itjust about monitoring now? i isolate? is it 'ust about monitoring now? ~ ., ., , ., isolate? is it 'ust about monitoring now? ~ ., ., , now? i think we are all flying a bit blind on this, _ now? i think we are all flying a bit blind on this, we _ now? i think we are all flying a bit blind on this, we really _ now? i think we are all flying a bit blind on this, we really need - now? i think we are all flying a bit blind on this, we really need the i blind on this, we really need the government, and i think they are

coming back this afternoon, to be very clear on the evidence they have got, the detail of the plan to manage our way out of this. what is a relationship between testing, how many people they want to keep testing, what is the relationship with isolation? how should people behave, particularly around vulnerable people, and those caring for vulnerable people? to make sure we managed this as safe as possible. given the argument in testing, given how much money the treasury itself lost given the poor preparedness around ppe contracts and loans that went out of the treasury it is too late to think about this now. they also need to support local authorities who as public health leads manage this at a local level. they had to do that very rapidly, lots of that money comes to an end at the end of march and it is the local level where we all live that

we need to be making sure that our venues are safe, schools, care homes, hospitals can operate properly. and testing is a crucial part of that. i properly. and testing is a crucial part of that-— part of that. i 'ust want to be clear on what — part of that. i just want to be clear on what you _ part of that. i just want to be clear on what you think- part of that. i just want to be clear on what you think in i part of that. i just want to be i clear on what you think in terms part of that. i just want to be - clear on what you think in terms of how widespread the testing should be, who should be tested. should people be tested if they are asymptomatic? which particular groups, and what money should be available for that testing? figs groups, and what money should be available for that testing?- available for that testing? as we have always _ available for that testing? as we have always said, _ available for that testing? as we have always said, we _ available for that testing? as we have always said, we will- available for that testing? as we have always said, we will followl available for that testing? as we i have always said, we will follow the scientific advice. we need to be very clear now what scientific advice is being given to the government, we need them to be open about that, to allow us to make a judgment on exactly those sorts of decisions. the role of parliament and politicians is to make judgments, balance the risks and we need to do that only if we have the evidence to do so. 50 need to do that only if we have the evidence to do so.— evidence to do so. so we will be heafina evidence to do so. so we will be hearing later — evidence to do so. so we will be hearing later from _ evidence to do so. so we will be hearing later from the _ evidence to do so. so we will be hearing later from the prime i hearing laterfrom the prime minister and the scientific

advisers. from what you are saying, you are not confident the government is following what it is being sold by its scientific advisers, are you? otherwise you would be behind the otherwise you would be behind the government. brute otherwise you would be behind the government-— otherwise you would be behind the government. we have asked for this over the weekend _ government. we have asked for this over the weekend and _ government. we have asked for this over the weekend and we _ government. we have asked for this over the weekend and we we - government. we have asked for this over the weekend and we we seem i government. we have asked for this. over the weekend and we we seem to be now, through which the journalists, which is unacceptable, to hear this is a row about money. that is not scientific advice. the advice seems to being pushed way down for exactly the sorts of questions you have asked about who should be testing, how often, where are the real risks, and how do we manage that over time? the country has responded so well to testing and adhering to the rules, apart from those in number ten obviously, but most of us have. in order to continue over the summer and onwards to make sure we don't have to go backwards, we need a clear plan about how the relationship between testing, isolation and where the viruses and how it mutates affects

our everyday lives. that is what we need to see from the government. whatever we get from the government today, there is nothing labour can do change it. if you disagree, that is it, in terms of the policy? before christmas, it was only with the support of the labour party that we had the plan b measures in place because the government could not organise its own people to support them. they have been in this chaotic state for a long time, critical time in our nation's history so let's see what they come out with this afternoon and if their own people support them. we have always wanted to be a responsible opposition working with the science and supporting the best possible actions in light of public health. no one wants restrictions but we do want to be safe so we will look at that later on this afternoon.- later on this afternoon. karen smith, thank— later on this afternoon. karen smith, thank you. _ now, at the beginning of last year a man named gary who believed in covid pseudoscience died at the age of 46 after

catching coronavirus. he was a talented artist, sociable and well—liked — and a familiarface in his hometown of shrewsbury. marianna spring, the bbc�*s specialist disinformation reporter, has travelled to the town to investigate its conspiracy underbelly, and what happened to gary. she is with me now. i wasn't sure if i was going to a report of your investigation. tell us more about gary. investigation. tell us more about ga . ., ., investigation. tell us more about ga. ., ., gary. for a new ten part podcast series by radio _ gary. for a new ten part podcast series by radio four— gary. for a new ten part podcast series by radio four available - gary. for a new ten part podcast series by radio four available on| series by radio four available on bbc sounds today, i have been investigating gary's story. if you cast your mind back to one year ago, the deep depths of lockdown in january, gary court coronavirus, died at the age of 46. he was talented, well liked, sociable, but in recent years his views had begun to take a more conspiratorial tone, interested in this information about the war in syria. —— dis—

information. he did not wear a mask. he did not worry about restrictions, when he fell ill we have no evidence he sought medical care. in many ways, his story is a cautionary tale but what it tells us about and what the podcast focus on, notjust gary's descend into conspiracies, but this conspiracy underbelly pretty town, shrewsbury. i spent a lot of time talking to people protesting there. one man accused of having blood on his hands for running a facebook group with false information about covid. horse running a facebook group with false information about covid.— information about covid. how many are involved — information about covid. how many are involved in _ information about covid. how many are involved in these _ information about covid. how many are involved in these groups? - information about covid. how many are involved in these groups? it - information about covid. how many are involved in these groups? it is i are involved in these groups? it is h er are involved in these groups? it is hyper local- _ are involved in these groups? it is hyper local- i _ are involved in these groups? it 3 hyper local. i spent the last two years investigating the uk's covid conspiracy movement, everything from covid isn't real, not that serious,

now they think they vaccines are part of a sinister global plot. when gary died he was not able to get the vaccine but the movement he was a part of has latched onto this— information about the vaccine. the podcast reveals to us, i think the most poignant thing we learn is about the misconceptions we have about the misconceptions we have about covid conspiracy is and who believes them. everyone tells me they have an aunt, uncle, cousin, neighbour or friend heading they have an aunt, uncle, cousin, neighbour orfriend heading down neighbour or friend heading down this neighbour orfriend heading down this path, believes these conspiracies. as you can see, in gary is case they have a real human cost. a belief that people have to be mad, bad or stupid to believe things like this is unhelpful. it boils down to a deep distrust. tells us about the impact of social media on our world and new fault lines opening up in our society across the pandemic. the responsibility lies across the board and from hearing

from gary's friends and family members, i hope we build up a picture of what happened to him, what happened in shrewsbury and reveal how there are many garys and many shrewsburys. 0n bbc sounds today. 30 years ago, lady—marie dawson—malcolm suffered a devastating spinal injury that left her paralysed from the chest down. despite the mental and physical trauma, she fought to overcome her situation and has since devoted her life to helping others with similar injuries. it's a cause that's being supported by manchester arena bomb survivor martin hibbert. graham satchell reports. shush lady—marie has been in a wheelchair for the last 30 years.

she remembers with unerring clarity the moment her life changed forever. it was on the 12th ofjanuary, in 1992, about 11:30am in the morning. i'll never forget it. i was having a disagreement with my ex—husband, and we had a struggle around the living room. i went over the arm of the sofa and i fell on the floor and broke my neck. at the time of her injury, lady—marie was a physical instructor in the army. she'd just won soldier of the year. thank you. is it hot or is it fine? no, it's ok. the domestic violence attack left lady—marie paralysed from the chest down. she is doubly incontinent, relies heavily on carers. it's a profound injury... thank you. ..that took years to come to terms with. in the beginning stage, you know, denying that this has happened, that i'm going to be able to walk again, there's no way i'm going to accept this. and then getting very angry at the fact that nothing was happening, i'm not... you know, i'm not able to manage my own condition, all my independence had gone, i have to rely on people to do

things that were once private. i started to bargain with god. i said, "well, if you heal me, then i will do this and i will do that," and of course, got to the point where i had to accept, well, this has happened, so what do i do with my life? lady—marie went to college and university — she got a law degree. she then decided to dedicate her life to helping other people with spinal—cord injuries. how are you? nice to see you again. rose was a senior spinal nerves in the nhs. have you spoken to a spinal nurse? lady—marie works for the charity the spinal injuries association. she guides people to vital support. it's physical, emotional, psychological, financial — the whole gamut. i mean, it's a total toolkit, and i can only say, thank god for lady—marie coming into my life. the light has come in

and it was badly needed — badly needed indeed. take care. i look forward to seeing, catching up very soon. sustaining a spinal—cord injury doesn't mean that your life is over, because you can still be a contributor to society. all we need isjust a little help. mount kilimanjaro — the highest peak in africa. in the summer, it will be the setting for an extraordinary challenge. martin hibbert will attempt to reach the summit in a modified wheelchair — he's hoping to raise money for the spinal injuries association. martin was left paralysed after the manchester arena terror attack. i think it's a brilliant idea, of what martin is actually trying to achieve, because it's so important for spinal—cord injury to be highlighted because it can happen to anyone at any time. i think there's not that

much help out there. occupational therapy, district nursing services — there's a severe shortage, and therefore people struggle. so if we can raise the funds through what martin is doing to provide this service, it can only go to help people with spinal—cord injury. 20 years after her injury, lady—marie started driving again in a specially modified car. she advises rail companies and airports on accessibility. she's been a consultant on the show eastenders. she is living proof that, with help, a spinal—cord injury can be overcome. i've been skiing again, which was fantastic because itjust showed me the possibilities. i went to sweden, i skied at night, saw the northern lights. i took the challenge of going over the 02 to do some fundraising. i've been rock climbing — indoors and outdoors — i've been abseiling,

off—road biking. i've been... done archery. itjust goes to show that, you know, in spite of everything, we can give something back — we can still live a fulfilling life. areas near sapporo in japan areas near sapporo injapan are expected to get much snow, with one in four power cuts due to snow damage of power lines. now it's time for a look at the weather with stav danaos. a stormy pass 24 hours, storm frank when bringing severe gales,

particularly to the north. we still have dozens of flawed mornings across england and wales, severe ones across north—west england around the river mersey. storm frank when clearing away. improving sort of day, summer showers across central and eastern areas. still a very blustery day but not as windy as it has been. the gusts are still as it has been. the gusts are still a feature across eastern areas and through the afternoon, lighter for the north and west. temperatures not too bad for this time of year, 10-12, too bad for this time of year, 10—12, above the seasonal. winds easing this evening and overnight, ridge of high pressure builds on, windy turner slight and chilly, the next frontal system arrives across the west of the country increasing cloud, wind, outbreaks of rain. a chilly night across eastern areas. a

new frontal system, strong wind, spreading across the country, not as severe as what we have seen over the past few days but still a blustery sort of day i think with outbreaks of rain. some heavier across the north and west of the country, fizzling out as it moves its way south east through the morning into the afternoon. eventually clearing the afternoon. eventually clearing the south east around the middle part of the afternoon, again a bright day with sunshine, blustery showers, wintry across the north and west. quite a bit of sunshine around, good news for the flooding in many areas. temperatures double figures in the south, cooler in the north. more high pressure bringing a high date to central and southern areas for wednesday, to the north—west, a deep low, the north atlantic bringing a cloudy, windy wet day across northern ireland and scotland, gales across the north—west of the country. they went lighter the further south that you are, one or two showers, otherwise not a bad day with variable cloud and spells of sunshine, temperatures double figures here, potentially

snow in the hills. very windy day on thursday, widespread gales particularly in the north and west with sunshine and showers, then quieterfor friday with sunshine and showers, then quieter for friday with some sunshine.

the prime minister prepares to announce plans to scrap all remaining legal covid restrictions in england. the requirement to self—isolate if you test positive is among measure to be scrapped — ministers say it's the right thing to do. there is that fine balance. because we've obviously got to look after people and make sure they are safe. we've also got to make sure that we can allow our economy to recover. but some who are clinically vulnerable question the scrapping of all restrictions. i don't understand why people can't put a mask on when they're in an enclosed area, why they can't stay home when they are covid positive. a cabinet meeting to finalise the details has been delayed. we'll bring you all the latest from westminster.

also this lunchtime...