this is bbc news with the latest headlines. asylum seekers arriving in the uk will be sent to rwanda while their applications are processed, under new plans unveiled by the government. critics say the plans would lead to more suffering. the issue here is we are trying to treat people, people who have lost everything and we are banishing them to another country which i think is rather cruel and humane actually. what do you think of the government's plans? you can reach me on twitter @annitabbc and use the hashtag bbc your questions. a key russian warship has been "seriously damaged" in the black sea. russia says a fire on board the flagship moskva caused ammunition to explode, but ukraine claims it was hit by its missiles.

nhs leaders are warning that the health service is facing the "brutal reality" of an easter as bad as most winters, with figures due this morning expected to show record waiting times. i have been let out of the studio and sent to the seaside in the north wales coast and i have in speaking to voters all day to find out what is important to them in the elections in may. hello and welcome to bbc news. some asylum seekers are to be sent to east africa while their claims are processed under a new deal between britain and rwanda.

it's understood that single men who travel across the english channel in small boats will be sent more than four—thousand miles to rwanda. the government sees it as a way to discourage people from crossing the english channel in small boats while critics have called the plans �*cruel�*. last year almost 29,000 people crossed the english channel in small boats. yesterday alone 600 people made the crossing. the uk is expected to give 120 million pounds to the rwandan government under a trial scheme. but there are big concerns over rwanda's human rights record — last year at the un, the uk demanded investigations into killings, disappearances and torture in the country. sending migrants abroad isn't new though —

australia has already tried the policy. the home secretary priti patel arrived in rwanda telling reporters she had spent the last nine months trying to finalise a deal with another country to process some of the illegal immigrants who arrive into britain across the channel. at a conference centre in the rwandan capital, kigali, she will announce plans to relocate single male asylum seekers from kent more than 4000 miles south to central africa. the uk—rwanda migration and development partnership is the centrepiece of a wider policy blitz to deal with what has been a humiliation for ministers who promised brexit would mean control of britain's borders. record numbers of asylum seekers turning up in dinghies beneath the white cliffs of dover. in the last four years, the numbers of people crossing the channel in small boats has climbed from 297 in 2018 to almost 29,000 last year. this year has already seen 4,578 arrivals and looks set to be a new record. sending asylum seekers to rwanda, however, is likely to prove hugely controversial.

this is a despicable policy, quite frankly. one that we know how awful it is in all of its guises because we can see what happened in australia. it costs huge sums of money to do a huge amount of cruelty to a very few people and with no ultimate impact on the fact that people need to flee. in a speech later this morning, the prime minister will say that outsourcing parts of the asylum system to rwanda will help break the business model of the people traffickers exploiting those seeking a better life in the uk. just as brexit allowed us to take back control of legal migration, he will say, the government is now determined to take back control of illegal migration. but critics point to rwanda's poor human rights record. at the un last year, the uk demanded investigations into alleged killings, disappearances and torture. is this the right place to entrust with protecting the human rights

of vulnerable asylum seekers who hoped britain would protect them? flying in the ministerialjet for a day trip to rwanda is evidence that priti patel thinks the policy will prove popular with voters. even she accepts, though, that there are potentially insurmountable practical and legal hurdles before it can actually happen. mark easton, bbc news, rwanda. 0ur chief political correspondent adam fleming is in westminster. stop impostor is to move the conversation on from partygate, but this is certainly far from uncontroversial as well. tell us more about what the government is saying about how this process will work. , ~ ., ., work. very little. we will have to wait for a — work. very little. we will have to wait for a speech _ work. very little. we will have to wait for a speech from _ work. very little. we will have to wait for a speech from the - work. very little. we will have to wait for a speech from the prime i wait for a speech from the prime minister and we will get some details and then i understand we will get a text of this memorandum signed between the uk and rwanda

later on. then we will have a little more clarity about what is going on. various bits and pieces are dribbling out. for example, mark easton who was in rewind with priti patel the foreign secretary, the home secretary, is saying this will be a one—way ticket for people to rwanda. it will not be used as an offshore processing centre that people could then move from there back to the uk if they have been awarded to refugee status, it is actually for people who have arrived illegally in the uk and did not have any chance of staying under the new regime that has been put in place and would then basically be deported to rwanda, if you like. but let's wait for the details. in terms of the time of all of this, the opposition parties are saying it is very cynical and has been done to distract from the fact that the prime minister got those fines for breaking the covid rules in lockdown. we have got evidence from the radio station lbc from a couple of weeks ago by the minister of

ukrainian refugees, lord richard harrington, who splits his time between the home office and the levelling up department who do the humanitarian he visa scheme, and he was asked about reports that this ranter deals on the cards. the home office is in the _ ranter deals on the cards. the home office is in the same _ ranter deals on the cards. the home office is in the same corridor- ranter deals on the cards. the home office is in the same corridor that i office is in the same corridor that i am _ office is in the same corridor that i am in _ office is in the same corridor that i am in and — office is in the same corridor that i am in and they have not told me about— i am in and they have not told me about it — i am in and they have not told me about it i— i am in and they have not told me about it. i am having difficulty getting — about it. i am having difficulty getting them from ukraine to our countries, — getting them from ukraine to our countries, so no possibility of sending — countries, so no possibility of sending them to rwanda. he countries, so no possibility of sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed _ sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed very _ sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed very recently - sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed very recently to - sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed very recently to do i sending them to rwanda. he said he was appointed very recently to do a l was appointed very recently to do a very differentjob and he was trying to explain why he might not have known how this policy was happening. the other thing is that this has beenin the other thing is that this has been in the works for a very long time, you do notjust magic up a bilateral deal with an african country at a couple of days' notice in response to domestic headlines. also i was told three mondays ago that this was going to happen three wednesdays ago, so it has been delayed rather than being rushed out. i am sure we know that they are

not here in parliament today to scrutinise all of this. but i wonder about the interesting political implications of all of this. in the short term this will be the prime minister in a little while doing a speech about following the rules, the law and doing the right thing. he has been found to have not followed the rules, broken the law and not done the right thing in the eyes of many people, can he actually have this kind of conversation it era? and also medium to long term, this policy of sending people to another country, it cost the australian government when they did it quite a lot of grief and they got a lot of criticism. so i do wonder at medium to long term does this, with more political cost and political benefits? we with more political cost and political benefits?— with more political cost and political benefits? we will see. adam fleming, _ political benefits? we will see. adam fleming, our— political benefits? we will see. adam fleming, our chief - political benefits? we will see. i adam fleming, our chief political correspondent. adam fleming, our chief political correspondent. our correspondent simonjones is in doverfor us this morning. simon, the government says this deal is needed to tackle the growing number of people making the dangerous journey across the channel? i believe you have been seeing life

and bringing in new have been picked up and bringing in new have been picked up from small boats in the channel. i suppose the big question about this planned the government is talking about is will it deter people from making the often dangerous journey? that people from making the often dangerous journey?— people from making the often dangerous journey? dangerous “ourney? that is the big aim of the dangerous journey? that is the big aim of the government _ dangerous journey? that is the big aim of the government because i dangerous journey? that is the big l aim of the government because they want this to act as a deterrent. they are saying to people if you cross the channel illegally as they see it, your case will be deemed inadmissible and you will not have the right to stay in the uk, potentially you will be sent pretty much directly to rwanda where you can asked to stay there but you will not eventually be allowed back to the uk. it has already been a busy morning, as you say, for the border force and the lifeboats. just down at the port in the last few minutes the lifeboat has come back in and we understand there are around 50 people on board who have been picked up people on board who have been picked up from a boat or boats in the channel. also several other boats said to be en route. the border force are out in the channel and there is a lot of activity this

morning. hardly surprising when you look at the weather conditions, it is really flat and calm out at sea and it is very warm. there were similar conditions yesterday and thatis similar conditions yesterday and that is when we saw almost 600 or so people make the crossing. what we are going to hearfrom borisjohnson this morning is it is only a matter of time before once again we will see 1000 people make the crossing. for the government politically that is very sensitive because this is a government that was elected on the promise to take back control of britain's borders. i think we will see borisjohnson also frame this as a humanitarian issue. he will say last november we saw 27 people lose their lives after their boat capsized in the channel. he will say we will see more deaths and that is why action is needed. but it is proving to be hugely controversial. politically we have got labour saying it is unethical and not workable. the liberal democrats are

saying that at a time when families are welcoming ukrainian refugees into this home, this is slamming the door into the faces of people fleeing persecution. ispoke door into the faces of people fleeing persecution. i spoke to the kent refugee group who described this as appalling. at the moment priti patel is in rwanda visiting an accommodation block that could be used to house 100 asylum seekers sent from the uk. we are not sure of the timescale or how many people overall the uk would seek to percent. lots of questions and we will get further details this morning from the prime minister and from priti patel 4000 miles away in remand. ,, ., , ., ., simonjones in rwanda. we can speak now to zoe gardner, from thejoint council for the welfare of immigrants. the time to time when people in the uk are showing a lot of compassion

for people from ukraine, what you make of this policy?— make of this policy? yes, i concur with the express _ make of this policy? yes, i concur with the express this _ make of this policy? yes, i concur with the express this policy - make of this policy? yes, i concur with the express this policy is - with the express this policy is despicable and the people in this country have shown time again that we one and welcoming and we help people with persecution. we have shown an open—hearted and generous response to the crisis in afghanistan and the government is completely out of step with the public here. we simply cannot support sending vulnerable refugees who have been victims of torture and packing them off halfway around the world to a poor country. it is despicable. i5 world to a poor country. it is despicable-_ world to a poor country. it is despicable. world to a poor country. it is desicable. , ., ., ., despicable. is the government out of ste with despicable. is the government out of step with all — despicable. is the government out of step with all of _ despicable. is the government out of step with all of the _ despicable. is the government out of step with all of the public? _ despicable. is the government out of step with all of the public? clearly i step with all of the public? clearly people who support the government have listened to what it said about taking back control of borders and the government would argue, we heard adam fleming say this was a one—way ticket to rwanda for people who have

arrived in the uk illegally, so what is the government to do if it is to try to manage the system? what is the government to do if it is to try to manage the system? what does a one-way ticket _ try to manage the system? what does a one-way ticket mean _ try to manage the system? what does a one-way ticket mean to _ try to manage the system? what does a one-way ticket mean to somebody l a one—way ticket mean to somebody who has already made a journey through hell, experiencing the enormous risk of death, the enormous risk of trafficking, abuse, slavery, to finally make it to safety in the uk where they believe this is the best place for them, perhaps because they have family, language connections, or they have worked with our military as interpreters? what does a one—way ticket mean? all this means is putting a huge amount of taxpayer money to bring people to rwanda. this will not work. the way you stop people getting on those dangerous boats, as all of us want to do, is you offer people a safe alternative ways to travel. this will not make refugees disappear. this is another desperate and cruel attempt by this government to distract from its own political

difficulties by blaming foreigners for our problems. it will not work and it is really truly shameful that we are even considering it. tell us more about _ we are even considering it. tell us more about your _ we are even considering it. tell us more about your concerns - more about your concerns specifically about rwanda? how does this plan sit within the uk's obligations under international law? it is very questionable whether it would be illegal under our obligations under the refugee convention, which is about protecting people fleeing persecution. we don't know the details. we are obviously hoping the prime minister will give us more details in his speech, but i fear instead we willjust get more rhetoric about strong borders, which is meaningless in practice because this does not work. what we know is they want to send men to rwanda. will be sent a man who worked with the british military as an interpreter from afghanistan? the british military as an interpreterfrom afghanistan? if the british military as an interpreter from afghanistan? if we will not, how will we identify that thatis will not, how will we identify that that is who that person is? that is

why we have an asylum system in this country. we need to invest in an asylum system that needs to work quickly and fairly and let's people rebuild their lives here in safety when they are fleeing persecution. instead what we are talking about a sending off people to a country which is not democratic, we will be paying a dictator huge amounts of british taxpayer money to detain refugees halfway around the world in a country which does not have a free press, in a country which does not respect the rights of lgbtq people. this is absolutely unacceptable. i think you have accepted there is a problem with small boats and the sheer numbers of people coming across the channel and the dangerous nature of those crossings? absolutely. as i begged and pleaded for at the time, jcw has solutions to offer which would create safe ways for people to travel. when 27 men, women and children lost their lives in the channel in november, we

don't know how many other people die along other points along this terribly dangerous journey and we need a new approach, not the same old rubbish that has failed us. this is not a new suggestion, by the way. israel has had an agreement in place with rwanda to return refugees, this is 2013. what has happened? we have clear evidence that people get detained, beaten up in prison and then they pay smugglers to escape and then they go along those terribly dangerous journeys and they get traffic to, they are subjected to slavery along the way. this is just about fuelling the same tired, failed and cruel logic of closing off our borders, pushing people away out of sight, out of mind and it does not relieve the suffering. please can we be spared the idea that this is some kind of humanitarian solution. this is about saying this is not our problem and the uk will not take responsibility and that does not reflect the

position of the british people. the “oint position of the british people. the joint council _ position of the british people. the joint council for the welfare of immigrants. let mejust bring in some comments. lee says, it is red meat for some tory voters in the run—up to the local elections and is a distraction from partygate. the tories have misjudged public reaction. this is from brazilian boy on twitter, it will not work, it did not work in australia. in australia they are called concentration camp is. 0r they are called concentration camp is. or is it spends more than $12 million plus yearly with it. bo farley says these are not asylum seekers, asylum started in greece, italy, spain and france and the majority are young, male economic migrants. send them to rwanda. keep your thoughts coming into me because this will be one of the big stories that we follow today. you can do that we follow today. you can do that on twitter. reports from russian state media say the most important ship

in russia's black sea fleet, the moskva missile cruiser, has been badly damaged after ammunition on board blew up causing a fire. the moskva is the flagship of the fleet. quoting the russian defence ministry, interfax said the crew had all been evacuated and the cause of the fire was being investigated. earlier, a ukrainian official said the ship had been hit by two missiles, but this has not been confirmed. lieutenant colonel daniel davis, is a senior fellow at the foreign policy think tank defense priorities. here's his perspective. well it has to be very serious that they evacuated crew areas. there is a crew contingent of about 500 on one of those kinds of missile cruisers. so it had to be something very, very serious. and that's not something you do very simply, that had to have taken some time and, of course, this is the second ship that has been damaged in the war. there was also a russian landing ship in the port city of berdyansk,

that we know for sure was destroyed by the ukrainians. we still don't know whether this one was actually destroyed by the ukrainians of whether it was just another bad accident in the russian navy. but in any case, this is a really black eye on them because it was the flagship, notjust a ship. let's go live now to anna foster who's in kyiv. hello, what more are you hearing there about what exactly happened to there about what exactly happened to the ship? there about what exactly happened to the shi - ? , ., ., , there about what exactly happened to theshi? , ., ., , , the ship? these two really competing narratives we — the ship? these two really competing narratives we are _ the ship? these two really competing narratives we are getting _ the ship? these two really competing narratives we are getting this - narratives we are getting this morning about what exactly happened last night and ukraine is adamant this was a result of its own military action. two missiles fired at that ship and they hit their target. they are projecting this very much as a win for them this morning. russia said this was some sort of accident. what is interesting is the possible military

impact of this. it might mean that russia perhaps pulls its remaining fleet further offshore than it is now, which might make them potentially less agile and potentially less agile and potentially less agile and potentially less likely to react. but also the way people in ukraine are seeing this. it is also worth mentioning that ship became famous a few weeks ago at the start of this conflict because that was the ship that approached snake island and the ukrainians on their told it were to go to with words that i cannot repeat you just now. that became a huge thing in and you see it for sale on t—shirts and emblazoned across bags and mugs. for that to befall this particular ship as far as ukrainians are seeing it, that is another symbol of ukrainian push back potentially in this war. competing narratives as well, no surprise, we are seeing that all the way through this war about the situation in the city of mariupol, russia saying a large number of

ukrainian soldiers had surrendered to them, but ukraine saying the soldiers are still fighting and in control of sections of the city. what more are you hearing? again this is something _ what more are you hearing? again this is something that _ what more are you hearing? again this is something that has - what more are you hearing? n— “1 this is something that has really moved to an fro for weeks now and trying to get really concrete verifiable information out of mariupol is so difficult. but russia does say it is now fully in control of that city. ukraine says their forces still have key strategic areas, places like the iron and steel works, which is a really important part of that important port city. at the moment both ukraine and russia say they still have a stake there, but of course remember that alongside all of that the key thing about mariupol is there are tens of thousands of civilians still trapped there and while the fighting continues they cannot be evacuated and they cannot get the thing that they desperately need, things like food and water and

fuel and medicine. need, things like food and water and fueland medicine. ithink need, things like food and water and fuel and medicine. i think when we eventually do see some sort of cessation of hostilities in mariupol, whichever way that may go, the humanitarian crisis that will be revealed there could potentially be devastating. revealed there could potentially be devastatina. �* . revealed there could potentially be devastating-— the family of an elderly woman who waited in a wheelchair for more than 11 hours for an ambulance to take her to a&e, have spoken of the distressing and chaotic scenes in hospital. it comes as nhs figures are expected to show record long waits for treatment. 87—year—old jean shepherd also spent 31 hours on a trolley in the emergency department in nottingham. 0ur health correspondent, sophie hutchinson, reports. not having a good day? jean shepherd recovering at her nursing home after what her family says were disgraceful delays getting emergency treatment. it's 2022. i don't know whether it is outdated, this concept that you judge your society by the way it looks after its elderly, its vulnerable, its poorly people.

and, clearly, the picture that is emerging at the moment, we are failing. we are failing miserably. jean, who is now 87, had been active in her retirement until a series of strokes left her paralysed. but after catching a virus, she waited more than 11 hours for an ambulance and then another 31 hours on a trolley in a&e. her son was shocked by what he saw. i appreciate that a&e departments have always been busy, but ijust wasn't prepared for what greeted me at the hospital. there were patients on ambulance trolleys literally everywhere, stacked in the centre of the a&e department, down the corridors to the a&e department. and the staff were absolutely rushed off their feet. and he says his mother had clearly suffered from the experience. she had deteriorated markedly. it was quite upsetting and quite distressing to see the difference from just a couple of weeks before.

and what was very noticeable was how stressed she was and how her ability to communicate had deteriorated. east midlands ambulance service has said... figures collected by emergency care doctors show in the last week of march, more than one in ten people waited 12 hours or more in a&e in england — the highest rate they have recorded. and they say delays are harming patients. we are struggling to get round everybody. we worry about old people going missing, ora young person who is distressed might leave and we don't realise for bit that they have actually gone missing. so itjust makes everybody really anxious and we know that people are not getting the care they deserve. and for those needing nonemergency care, there are also record delays. in england, more than 6

million people are waiting for routine operations. that is one in nine of the population and more than 24,000 have waited two years or more. high rates of covid are undoubtedly putting pressure on the nhs, but experts say that is not the only cause. the nhs in england says despite the challenges, it is ensuring patients are getting the care they need. but others are warning the brutal reality is that the pressures this easter could be as bad as any winter. sophie hutchinson, bbc news. and we'll get that monthly performance data from nhs england after half past. we will bring you the news of what that says. we will bring you the news of what that says. in the united states, videos have emerged of a police officer fatally shooting a black man in the back of the head as he lay face—down on the ground. footage shows patrick lyoya running

from a white officer. the two men were then involved in a struggle over a taser. you may find some of the images in tim allman's report disturbing. grand rapids, michigan earlier this month. police stop a car being driven by 26—year—old patrick lyoya. the two men get out of their vehicles in what appears to be a fairly routine interaction, but that's when things start to go wrong. i'm stopping you. do you have a license? do you have a driver's license? do you speak english? yes. can i see your license? what does he want? the plate doesn't belong in this car? do you have a license or no? the officer repeatedly asks to see patrick lyoya's driving license, which he says is inside the car. but then he closes the door and appears to try and walk away. no, no, no. stop, stop, put your hand where i can see them... the policeman tries to stop him.

there's a struggle, and mr lyoya runs off. he's caught and they both fall to the ground. they get back up again. the officer has pulled out his taser, which they then fight over. let go of the taser. at this point, according to police, the officer accidentally turned off his body camera. stop! by now, the passenger in patrick lyoya's car was filming the incident on his phone. then the police officer appears to shoot mr lyoya in the back of the head. when i saw the video, it was painful to watch, and i immediately asked what caused this to happen? and what more could have been done to prevent this from occurring? what do we want when we? justice. when do we want it? now! following the release of this footage, hundreds of people gathered peacefully outside the headquarters of the local police department. not for the first time in america

there are demonstrations following the death of a black man killed by a white policeman. the officer in question has not been named and is on paid leave while state police investigate whether to bring charges. patrick lyoya was a son, a brother and a father. grand rapids police chief said he viewed his death as a tragedy. tim allman, bbc news. police in new york are continuing to question a man suspected of shooting ten commuters in brooklyn on tuesday. frankjames, who is 62 and already known to the authorities, was arrested after a 30—hour manhunt following the attack. in total, 23 people were injured in at the subway station, when 33 rounds were fired from a semi—automatic handgun. the actor, cuba gooding junior, has pleaded guilty to forcibly touching a new york city waitress four years ago. he's also admitted to touching two other women without their consent.

it's part of a plea deal, in a criminal case against him. in 1997 gooding won an oscar for best supporting actor for his role injerry maguire. let's ta ke let's take a look at the weather forecast and carol has that for us. how are things looking? things are looking pretty settled for most of us today. we have a one day ahead again and it is mostly dry with sunshine. but we have a lot of cloud on the irish coastline and the english channel coast line. the fog from this morning is slowly starting to live. sunshine is developing and there is rain in the north and west of scotland and northern ireland. temperatures from eight in the north up temperatures from eight in the north up to 19 or 20 in the south. if this is tempting you to the coast, these are the temperatures you can expect in the sea, so still pretty chilly. the other thing we are looking at is

the pollen level and tree pollen is high in england and wales. tomorrow any mist and fog in land will lift and there will be a fair bit of sunshine, but once again still around the coasts in the west and the south—west and the channel islands we will have some of that mist and fog coming onshore at times. 0ne mist and fog coming onshore at times. one or two showers, potentially up to 22 degrees. hello this is bbc news. the headlines: asylum seekers arriving in the uk will be sent to rwanda while their applications are processed, under new plans unveiled by the government. critics say the plans would lead to more suffering. the issue here is we are trying to treat people, people who have lost everything and we are banishing them to another country which i think is rather cruel

and hinumane, actually. a key russian warship has been �*seriously damaged' in the black sea. russia says a fire on board the flagship, moskva, caused ammunition to explode — but ukraine claims it was hit by its missiles. nhs leaders are warning that the health service is facing the �*brutal reality�* of an easter as bad as most winters, with figures due this morning expected to show record waiting times. the prime minister continues to face criticism after he and the chancellor were fined for breaking coronavirus rules. last night, conservative peer lord woolfson resigned as a justice minister over what he called "repeated rule—breaking". sport and for a full round—up, from the bbc sport centre, here'sjohn. good morning. uefa are almost certain to launch disciplinary proceedings into events at the wanda metropolitana stadium in mmadrid last night, as police intervened in the tunnel after manchester city knocked ateltcio madrid out of the champons league to reach the semi—finals.

tempers spilled over firstly on the pitch following the goalless second leg, but continued after the final whistle. pep guardiola said his side are in big trouble as they count the cost of injuries in a bruising encounter. 0lly foster reports from madrid. pep guardiola said that this match was always going to be intense, but that doesn't come close to what happened at atletico madrid. a goalless draw enough to see manchester city through, but it was a brutal night against the spanish champions. they gave everything within all this competition, and this stadium, it's always difficult, really was. and that's why it was a big compliment for the players, because we have to leave these kind of situations, we have to leave, we cannot expect that every time, especially in champions league, with the champions from spain, we are going to make, you know, everything marvellous. atletico set the tone of this tie last week, stifling city's creative streak. and again, chances

were hard to come by. john stones should have done a lot better with an early header. phil foden had had trouble. he played on despite that clattering challenge from felipe. a desperate scramble in the box, saw gundogan hit a post. it was all city but they were being frustrated. guardiola adopted this position for most of the second half. he knew that atletico would push for a goal. how close was that from antoine griezmann? mighty close! as the home side became increasingly desperate, felipe crunched into foden again and was sent off and that helped city's cause. a madrid melee and nine minutes of extra time later, there was relief. city had scraped into the semifinals. they're not going to forget this night in a hurry. there was a football match in there somewhere but they are going to return to this city soon enough, because in the semifinals, they have got real madrid. 0lly foster, bbc news,

at the wanda metropolitano. also a thriller for liverpool, 3—3 they drew with benfica last night, but are through 6—4 on agregate, they face villareal in the last four. ibrahima konate put klopp's side in front, but benfica pulled level. roberto firmino's two second—half goals put the reds back in pole position. benfica finished with two more goals of their own, to level the game, but couldn't overhaul liverpool's first leg advantage who are still chasing a total of four trophies this season. it is great, absolutely great. never take something _ it is great, absolutely great. never take something like _ it is great, absolutely great. never take something like this _ it is great, absolutely great. never take something like this for- take something like this for granted. i am take something like this for granted. iam really, take something like this for granted. i am really, really take something like this for granted. iam really, really happy. i know about challenges in a football game and you reach a phase constantly and tonight it was after 3-1.

constantly and tonight it was after 3—1. everyone, me included thought, thatis 3—1. everyone, me included thought, that is it. but benfica said, give it a try. i respect them for that. some sad news to bring you, the former colombia captain freddy rincon has died after suffering severe head injuries in a car crash. the 55—year—old was driving a car that collided with a bus on monday in cali, in colombia. the former real madrid midfielder scored 17 times for his country, and is remebered for playing in the 1990, 1994 and 1998 world cups. and one of the all time greats and ultimate speedsters — allyson felix has announced that she will retire at the end of the season. the 36—year—old american has won 11 olympic medals, including seven golds and she competed at her fifth and final olympics in tokyo last summer. and is the most decorated female track and field 0lympian of all time. that's all the sport for now. there are just three weeks to go until voters across the uk go to the polls. voters in england, wales, and scotland will pick who they want to run services that affect everyday life

in their local area. those in northern ireland will choose its government. ahead of the vote we will be profiling some of the key contests in the uk's four nations. today my colleague martine croxall joins us from the seaside town of rhyl on the north wales coast. the sea airand the sea air and not even a coat on? no, that might change throughout the day. we are hoping it stays dry. bracing, that is the adjective you use at the seaside. the wind turbines are only slowly rotating. we are here to take a look at the political picture across wales. testing the temperature throughout the day ahead of the elections on may the 5th, the local elections. last time around, in 2017, labour lost seats, and since then the conservatives have made gains in some of labour's heartlands in the general election.

0ur wales correspondent, tomos morgan, went to wrexham and denbighshire, where the battle for wales could go either way. after some turbulent times, tourists are now rushing back down the dee. get down! the river and denbighshire's natural beauty are a big draw for holiday—makers. it's the main reason that bearded men adventures began trading out of nearby llangollen four years ago. but with visitors come certain issues for locals. mind your heads! so, i would never say problems but i would suppose trying to find places to live is quite difficult, that's renting or buying a house. the co—owner hugh has lived in denbighshire for years, but recently had to move out of the area due to a lack of affordable housing. that's mainly because it's a small area, as well as the tourists come taking up some of the aianbs and stuff like that. so quite hard to rent and then not a lot of houses are for sale,

really, especially houses that you can buy first time. for only the second time ever, the conservatives became the largest party in this council in 2017. one that was part of the north—east red wall, seats flooding blue from labour. having lost over 100 councillors last time around, labour will be hoping to make up for lost ground across wales, especially in those historical heartlands. for the tories, fielding more candidates than ever before and gaining significantly five years ago, the fight will be holding on to and increasing the gains in areas like north—east wales. plaid will be looking to maintain control of their only majority in gwynedd, and building on those modest gains in 2017, with the lib dems are looking to make up lost ground. and independents are also a big factor here. they make up the second largest group and they are in a leadership coalition in several councils across wales. just a few miles down the river dee in neighbouring wrexham council, is the pontcysyllte aqueduct,

another draw for sightseers. this is also historically a former labour strong hold but again an area the tories are now in a coalition. bridging the gap between local and national issues can be a tricky course to navigate for both candidates and voters alike in these elections. with turnout often notoriously low in much of wales. sally roberts�*s tea room is a stone's throw away from the unesco site. for her, it's the way covid was dealt with which will play a part in her voting strategy. we struggled last year obviously through the pandemic, we struggled and then again once we were open, there were so many different rules and regulations between ourselves and england, it was really hard with the hospitality. you could do one thing four miles away and it was a different thing here, so i think people just went over the border and had a party. so after decades of dominance, the changing political waves have forced the red wall to crack under the pressure of the tories here.

yet there are signs, ripples of positivity for welsh labour. they will be hoping that after such a strong showing in cardiff bay last year, and those negative headlines for borisjohnson, will reverse the flow of votes back in labour's direction. tomos morgan, bbc news, in north—east wales. we are in real all day, we will be talking to business owners, residents and politicians, talking about all the policies that will make a difference. joining me now is our correspondent brendon williams. when you think of real, you think of buckets and spades, how has the time being faring because the pandemic had an impact on places like this? it is something we have discussed since we have been here. we are in

the easter holidays and it doesn't seem very busy for a tourist town. look at the beautiful beach, the beautiful views and this is what it is known for. i never made it here as a child but there will be people watching he did and will remember it very fondly. but that was in an era, in its heyday when people were content with a bucket and spade, sandy beach and a chip shop. things have moved on thanks to package holidays in places like rhyl, other seaside towns had to adapt to survive. some did and some didn't. some did better than others and some just stood still. rhyl, when it comes to tourism and the services it has been able to provide has been stuck. it has been in need of regeneration and reinvestment. it is now happening, there has been a standstill for many years but there is reinvestment here. you will see reinvestment, a lot of it. it is quite a step away from regeneration.

what struck me when i got off the train here yesterday, how quiet it was and how clean it is as well. it was and how clean it is as well. it was and how clean it is as well. it was a very welcoming arrival to have had, but as you say, it is pretty quiet this morning. the other issue often, rhyl is the same, there is a local population here all year round that need somewhere to live and there is a tension between the accommodation they need and what the holiday—makers want? it was picked up holiday—makers want? it was picked up in that piece, affordable housing. it is something that we talk about a lot, because it is a real issue in wales. when it comes to second homes, rhyl and denbighshire is not an area that springs to mind, you tend to be talking about places further west, more rural places like gwynedd, anglesey where people buy second homes they can pop two of the weekend. it pushes up prices that

local people cannot afford to buy. the government is trying to tackle it, local councils from next year will be able to impose a 300%, a real big premium on council tax on second homes. we will see how that goes. what was being referred to in the teeth there, the effect of air dnb properties in tourist towns. there are less houses for people to buy, less affordable houses. this is hugely controversial, whichever side of the fence you sit on, most people agree that what is needed is more affordable housing and that is something where local governments can influence through planning and housing policy. and denbighshire, there is a lot to play for. what was notable to me when i looked at the candidates, just how many independents are standing. you wonder whether they might have a

different view of things, especially when it comes to the cost of living, where a lot of people are feeling the pinch? where a lot of people are feeling the inch? , . where a lot of people are feeling the pinch?— where a lot of people are feeling the inch? , ., ., ., ., ., , the pinch? they are, and other areas of denbighshire _ the pinch? they are, and other areas of denbighshire are _ the pinch? they are, and other areas of denbighshire are no _ the pinch? they are, and other areas of denbighshire are no different - the pinch? they are, and other areas of denbighshire are no different to i of denbighshire are no different to anywhere else. i suspect it is certainly very high up on people's agenda, and that is how much money they have in their pockets at the end of the day. he mentioned the independence, the last time round there were eight independent councillors in denbighshire, only one behind plaid cymru. they have an important role to play and ijust wonder this time, when people are so worried about the cost of living, will they perhaps, where in the past they have voted along party lines, it will they be looking to single issue politicians or looking to the independent candidates and asking, what are you going to do for me? and perhaps even those who are not the

poorest in society may be looking to the council and saying, we are having to watch how we spend our money, we are now going to be carefully watching how you spend yours. so that could be a real factor in this election.- yours. so that could be a real factor in this election. how is that reflected across _ factor in this election. how is that reflected across the _ factor in this election. how is that reflected across the whole - factor in this election. how is that reflected across the whole of - factor in this election. how is that i reflected across the whole of wales? are the independent candidates are featured generally across the country? featured generally across the count ? , , ., ., ., country? yes, they are. you have our country? yes, they are. you have your traditional _ country? yes, they are. you have your traditional battlegrounds, i your traditional battlegrounds, labour, the tories and plaid cymru, of course, in wales. in denbighshire, there were eight last time round, many independents taking to the battleground in the next few weeks now, hoping to win seats again. denbighshire, again, last time round in 2017 there was no overall control. when you have a party that has more seats than others, but not enough to hold a majority, then they start looking to those independence and the other parties to try and form a coalition

in order to govern. so absolutely, the independent candidates are extremely important, particularly in council elections.— extremely important, particularly in council elections. brandon williams, one of the bbc— council elections. brandon williams, one of the bbc wales _ council elections. brandon williams, l one of the bbc wales correspondence. a lot of those themes brendan was mentioning, tourism, the cost of housing and environmental matters as well and also tourism, of course. they are going to feature a lot throughout the day as we speak to voters, business people in not real, as an english person would say it, but rhyl, with a h in it. if you would like to find out more about the candidate standing here and also how to vote on may the 5th, you can go to the local council website which is denbighshire dog of the code at uk. join related, i might have my coat on. thanks very much.

and we'll be live across the uk in the coming weeks — with special coverage of the election campaigns. for full details of the elections in your area — go to the bbc news website. in the politics section — you can enter your postcode and get all the details. that's all at bbc.co.uk/ news. let me read out a few more of your comments on our top story of the government's plans to send asylum seekers arriving in the uk to have their applications processed in rwanda. this will says, singling out men to be deported to rewind it will mean more vulnerable women and children being coerced into making this dangerous journey with men as actual or pretend families. it will only make things worse, she says. and this one, journeying across the

channels so hopefully they will claim asylum in safe europe, which they should have done in the first place. it is already out of control, this is an election winner. it is boris's way to redirect the attention away from him and remind voters why they voted for him in the first place. the old tactics of division and hatred. this one from maria, it is a very good idea, these mostly males are illegal migrants and have safe places to go to before they get to britain, our services are overstretched as it is. another one from barbara, talk about double standards. while this government is welcoming certain asylum seekers to the uk with open arms, other asylum seekers are to be sent to rwanda, even though both groups are fleeing persecution. thank you for sending in those comments. you can see clearly it is a divisive subject, isn't it? if you would like to get in touch with me about the story,

let me know what you think of the government's plans and proposals, you can do that on twitter. and use the hashtag bbc your questions. the headlines on bbc news... some asylum seekers arriving in the uk would be sent to rwanda while their claims are processed, under new plans being announced by the government. refugee charities have criticised the proposals. a record number of people are waiting for routine hospital treatment in england. new figures show 6.2 million people were on waiting lists at the end of february, the highest number since records began in 2007. we will have more on that in a few seconds. a key russian warship has been �*seriously damaged�* in the black sea. russia says a fire on board

the flagship, moskva, caused ammunition to explode — but ukraine claims it was hit by missiles. we�*ve had the latest analysis of how the nhs is coping in england, as we head into easter. jim reed, our health correspondent, joins me now. what correspondent, joins me now. are the key headline data? what are the key headlines from this data? hf what are the key headlines from this data? ., ., ~ what are the key headlines from this data? ., ., ~ ., ., what are the key headlines from this data? ., ., 4' ., ., , what are the key headlines from this data? ., ., ~ ., ., , ., data? if we look at waiting list for routine treatment _ data? if we look at waiting list for routine treatment in _ data? if we look at waiting list for routine treatment in england i data? if we look at waiting list for| routine treatment in england only. cataract operations, hip replacements, things that are booked in advance that you go to the hospital for. in advance that you go to the hospitalfor. in total, this is 6.2 million people in england waiting for that kind of treatment. that is one in nine people in the whole of england now on a waiting list like that. there was some better news on the people who have been waiting the longest and this is the stuff the health secretary wants to concentrate on. people waiting longer than a year for that

treatment has come down slightly to about 300,000. that is the first fall we have seen in awhile. people waiting over two years, people waiting over two years, people waiting the very longest, we have seen a small fall of around 500. but it is still significant. that is how the nhs is thinking about tackling this backlog, looking at the very longest wait first and then working through. we can expect to see the overall numbers increase for a while on this waiting list for treatment. to what extent can we separate this out into the covid backlog, which clearly the nhs is still working through and delays caused by staff being ill at the moment? i through and delays caused by staff being ill at the moment?— through and delays caused by staff being ill at the moment? i think you see that most _ being ill at the moment? i think you see that most when _ being ill at the moment? i think you see that most when you _ being ill at the moment? i think you see that most when you look - being ill at the moment? i think you see that most when you look at i being ill at the moment? i think you see that most when you look at a i see that most when you look at a different set of figures, that has also been released. this looks at accident & emergency departments and this is where you are seeing the major crunch at the moment, the difficulty in people getting seen quickly. if you look at the

statistics, there is a target the government has in england, which is four hours for when you turn up at a&e to when you get discharged back home or you get referred on for other treatment elsewhere in the hospital. you are notjust to be seen by a doctor, but for all your treatment in a&e to be completed. 95% of people should be seen and treated and discharged within four hours. that number has not been met for many years, but it has fallen again in march. 58% of people are being seen through to discharged within that four hour period. that is coming down to a lot of different reasons, staff absences, co—video and the complications in hospital about having to test people and isolate people is another reason. and people being stuck in hospital and not been discharged from main roads because the social care components aren�*t there. it is another reason you see backlogs appearing at accident & emergency at the front end of the hospital. thank

ou ve the front end of the hospital. thank you very much- _ the front end of the hospital. thank you very much. let's _ the front end of the hospital. thank you very much. let's continue i the front end of the hospital. thank you very much. let's continue with | you very much. let�*s continue with the story now. with me now is dr layla mccay, policy director at nhs confederation. iam going i am going to assume you don�*t need this actual data to confirm what you have been hearing from people working on the front line in the nhs in england? working on the front line in the nhs in encland? ~ , working on the front line in the nhs inenuland? ~ , ~ working on the front line in the nhs in england?— in england? absolutely. we hear all the way across _ in england? absolutely. we hear all the way across england _ in england? absolutely. we hear all the way across england about i in england? absolutely. we hear all the way across england about the i the way across england about the huge amount of pressure that is currently being exerted on the nhs. everybody is working so incredibly hard at making some fantastic gains. while we see, in some ways, some positive figures, fewer people waiting extremely long times, we are seeing more and more people being added to the waiting list and that is creating this a real challenge at a time when there are a lot of people in hospital with covid, which creates all sorts of capacity problems. there is staff off with covid and that affects what services

have been offered and how many people can be seen. there is record numbers of people needing emergency care all the way through the system, from primary care, gp surgeries, all the way up to people calling for ambulances and the emergency department. incredibly busy at the moment and on top of that, the challenges social care is experiencing is contributing to this challenge in discharging people safely from hospital. it is a lot of things building up and getting in the weight of the nhs�*s ability to do as much as they really want to do on the waiting lists. that said, there is some progress. has a on the waiting lists. that said, there is some progress. as a warning sounds from — there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the _ there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the nhs, _ there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the nhs, how— there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the nhs, how is - there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the nhs, how is it i there is some progress. as a warning sounds from the nhs, how is it going to try to coax to manage all of the challenges you have just outlined over easter and the weeks ahead. —— try to cope. it

over easter and the weeks ahead. -- try to cope-— try to cope. it is a matter of everybody _ try to cope. it is a matter of everybody working - try to cope. it is a matter of| everybody working incredibly try to cope. it is a matter of- everybody working incredibly hard hoping people will use the full range of options available to them, whether it is going to their gp rather than going to accident and emergency or calling an ambulance, doing the most appropriate for whatever might be wrong with people. and having patience with the nhs staff, who are working under this incredible amount of pressure. it really affects everyone across the service. we speak to leaders all the time who tell us how much trauma it causes to them personally, knowing those people are waiting and they really want to treat. there is so much pride and celebration when we are able to inroads into some of that, but the real problem at the moment, and everybody feels concerned, is the levels of covid, which we know create these huge challenges. the question is, what are the levels of covid going to do? some analysis say it might be

peaking and other analysis says it might be too soon to tell. so everybody has their eyes on the particular question.— everybody has their eyes on the particular question. thank you very much. we particular question. thank you very much- we are _ particular question. thank you very much. we are expecting _ particular question. thank you very much. we are expecting the i particular question. thank you very much. we are expecting the prime | much. we are expecting the prime minister to make a speech this morning about the government�*s plan to send asylum seekers to rwanda to have their applications processed. the government is saying these are people who arrive in the uk illegally. 0bviously, people who arrive in the uk illegally. obviously, there is controversy around that, but the government is offering this defence of this, the statement we are expecting the prime minister to say, we are told, the british people voted several times to control our borders, not to close them, but to control them. it is a plan to make sure the uk has a worldwide asylum officer for those fleeing trauma. we

expect to hear more from the prime minister on that plan. right now it�*s time for a look at the weather. carol, i believe it is going to be feeling very warm tomorrow? absolutely right. 22 celsius across many parts of england and way above average. the easter weekend, the first half is looking warm, sunshine around and the best of which will be in the east. for easter sunday and easter monday, there is an increasing chance of rain as weather fronts try to push in from the north and the west. behind them it will turn fresher. we still have mist and fog this morning to lift but it is continuing to do so. around the coast and the west and english channel coast line, we are looking at mist and fog lapping onshore through the course of the day. a lot of dry weather, a fair bit of sunshine for england, wales and

eastern parts of northern ireland, the west of scotland on the west of northern ireland seen some rain. cloudy for the rest of scotland but drier in the northern isles. temperatures eight to 19 or 20 as we push further south. pollen levels today are high across much of england and wales and we are talking tree pollen. through the evening and overnight, under clear skies we will see patchy mist and fog reform. still have this low cloud, mist and fog lapping and across the west and also part of the english channel coastline. and these are the temperatures, five to about nine or 10 degrees. tomorrow, we will lose the mist and fog and they will be a lot of sunshine around. we will have the low cloud lapping onshore because part of the south—west, the channel islands and irish sea coastlines and we could see the odd shower from that. coastlines and we could see the odd showerfrom that. but coastlines and we could see the odd shower from that. but it is tomorrow we he temperatures up to 22 degrees, 17 in glasgow, 14 in belfast. as we head into the weekend, the focus

becomes more complicated. high pressure is drifting away, allowing low pressure to come in with its various fronts. depending on the timing of this will depend on whether or not you see rain this weekend or not. so saturday we start with some sunshine, there will be a bit more cloud towards the west and we also have some showers coming out of the cloud in northern england and parts of scotland. you can see the fly in the ointment, we have this weather front waiting in the wings. temperatures round about 14 to 19 degrees. this is what we think is going to happen, but this rain could slow up and there could be some showers behind it, feeling fresher. i had of it, still some sunshine with temperatures getting up to about 20 degrees.

this is bbc news, these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. asylum seekers arriving in the uk will be sent to rwanda while their applications are processed, under new plans unveiled by the british government. critics say the plans would lead to more suffering. the issue here is we are trying to treat people, people who have lost everything as though they are human cargo and banishing them to another country which i think is rather cruel and inhumane actually. what do you think of the government�*s plans? you can reach me on twitter @annitabbc and use the hashtag bbc your questions. a record number of people are waiting for routine hospital treatment in england. new figures show 6.2 million people were on waiting lists at the end of february,

the highest number since records began in 2007.