tonight at ten... a last—minute legal battle to stop a flight from the uk taking asylum seekers to rwanda. the plane is standing by, reportedly with just four passengers on board. there is no departure time confirm. there is no departure time confirm. the prime minister says it is justified. we think it's sensible partnership we've set up with rwanda. yes, it may take a while to get working properly but it doesn't mean we're not going to keep going. during the day, more than 250 asylum seekers arrived in the uk after crossing the english channel in small boats. we'll have the latest on the first flight due to leave for rwanda. also tonight... the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon, unveils

what she calls a refreshed case for independence. the duke and duchess of cambridge mark the fifth anniversary of the fire at grenfell tower in west london, which claimed 72 lives. he hits it to the cover point boundary. and a thrilling win for england as they beat new zealand by five wickets to take the test series. and coming up on the bbc news channel, serena is back. williams says she'll make her return at wimbledon after pulling out with injury last year. welcome to bbc news at ten.

there is a last—minute legal battle under way to stop a flight from the uk from taking asylum seekers to rwanda. was due to leave the military airport the uk this evening but a series of legal challenges mean there will be no more than just a few people on board. among them, iraqi kurds and iranians. the government insist the flights are necessary to deter gangs trafficking people across the english channel. the church says the plans are a moral and other critics say the flight is unworkable, unethical and extortionate expensive. our home editor mark easton has the latest. the flight to an uncertain future is ready for take—off in less than half an hour. just five or six of asylum—seekers apparently due to fly now. one more was removed following the intervention of the european court of human rights. home office lawyers now think a judge in strasbourg will overturn the decision of british courts and stop the plane tonight. the

government says today provided more than 300 reasons why there are when the flight should have been allowed to depart. that is how many asylum seekers arrived in dover, having attempted to cross the channel in small boat from france. the government deems them inadmissible for centuries in britain and in a bid to deter them, threatens them with forcible relocation to east africa. one of those on the passenger list was in a rain incurred who had been held at this immigration detention centre near heathrow. we spoke to him just before he learned his appeal against removal had been turned down. translation:— removal had been turned down. translation: ,, . ., ., translation: since i learned i am auoin to translation: since i learned i am going to be — translation: since i learned i am going to be deported _ translation: since i learned i am going to be deported to _ translation: since i learned i am going to be deported to rwanda, i translation: since i learned i am going to be deported to rwanda, ll going to be deported to rwanda, i hardly can communicate and eat. i cannot sleep, i am restless. hardly can communicate and eat. i cannot sleep, iam restless. i prefer to die here, not to be transferred to rwanda. it is shocking- — transferred to rwanda. it is shocking. the _ transferred to rwanda. it is shocking. the prime - transferred to rwanda. it is shocking. the prime minister told the cabinet this morning that the policy goes ahead, suggesting lawyers trying to stop the flight was supporting criminals. what

was supporting criminals. what the criminal gangs _ was supporting criminals. what the criminal gangs are _ was supporting criminals. what the criminal gangs are doing _ was supporting criminals. what the criminal gangs are doing and - was supporting criminals. what the criminal gangs are doing and whatl criminal gangs are doing and what those who effectively bar abetting the work of the criminal gangs are doing, is undermining people's confidence in a safe and legal, undermining people is general acceptance of immigration. re'ecting acceptance of immigration. re'ecting a last-minute — acceptance of immigration. re'ecting a last-minute appeal�* acceptance of immigration. re'ecting a last-minute appeal to h acceptance of immigration. re'ecting a last-minute appeal to stop _ acceptance of immigration. rejecting a last-minute appeal to stop the - a last—minute appeal to stop the flight, the president of the supreme court, lord reid, defended those lawyers who had challenged the policy. in lawyers who had challenged the oli . , ., policy. in bringing that application, _ policy. in bringing that application, the - policy. in bringing that - application, the appellant's policy. in bringing that _ application, the appellant's lawyers who were _ application, the appellant's lawyers who were performing their proper function _ who were performing their proper function of ensuring that clients are not— function of ensuring that clients are not subjected to unlawful treatment at the hands of the government. a treatment at the hands of the government-— treatment at the hands of the government. a poll conducted yesterday _ government. a poll conducted yesterday suggests _ government. a poll conducted yesterday suggests there are l government. a poll conducted - yesterday suggests there are when the policy divides britain, 44% said they supported the idea, 40% opposed it, with the split along party lines with 70% of tory mps are in favour and 74% of labour voters were not.

it is set to divide opinion along party lines and with the prime minister's popularity within his own party low, it isjust minister's popularity within his own party low, it is just what boris johnson needs right now. for whatever— johnson needs right now. fr?" whatever reason, migrants are prepared to lead the comparative safety of france to endure perilous journeys to make it to the uk. unless you are prepared to say, it is not worth making thatjourney, you are better staying in france where you can claim asylum and live a good life there, the migrants will continue to make thatjourney. but all continue to make that journey. but all the bishops in the house of lords have condemned the rwanda deal as an immoral policy that shames britain. it as an immoral policy that shames britain. , ., ., ., britain. it is about the moral --rincile britain. it is about the moral principle of _ britain. it is about the moral principle of saying, - britain. it is about the moral principle of saying, we - britain. it is about the moral principle of saying, we are i britain. it is about the moral. principle of saying, we are not dealing — principle of saying, we are not dealing with this, we are outsourcing it to another nation. whatever— outsourcing it to another nation. whatever the issues are, go away, your future — whatever the issues are, go away, your future lives will be sorted out there. _ your future lives will be sorted out there. not — your future lives will be sorted out there, not here.— there, not here. that is immoral. convo s there, not here. that is immoral.

convoys of _ there, not here. that is immoral. convoys of police _ there, not here. that is immoral. convoys of police vehicles - there, not here. that is immoral. convoys of police vehicles are - there, not here. that is immoral. | convoys of police vehicles are still at raf boscombe down tonight to go the remaining asylum seekers and protect their aranda band aircraft, and there is fury at the home office that months of planning and millions of pounds have been spent on a programme that looks to have been stopped in its tracks by a late—nightjudge in another country. late—night judge in another country. mark late—nightjudge in another country. mark easton, bbc news. the flights to rwanda are meant to act as a deterrent to those trying to cross the channel in boats. but today at least 300 more people made the journey. in rwanda — the government has defended its deal to take in asylum seekers from the uk, saying it was neither immoral nor a punishment. our senior africa correspondent anne soy reports from the rwandan capital kigali. this was home for orphans of the 1994 genocide. they lived here until recently. then they were moved to an unknown location to make way for the asylum seekers from the uk, we are told. the hostel is now refurbished, the rwandan government

says it's ready for use. the plan is once the asylum seekers come here, they will be handed over to the rwandan government. it will assume full responsibility over them and it will be processing their claims of asylum under rwandan and applicable international laws. and they will be given three options — to stay here permanently or to return to their home countries. the third option is to go to a third country. how that works isn't clear yet. the deal is a source of pride for the government, despite the global condemnation. we're doing this for the right reasons. we have the experience. we want it to be a welcoming, welcoming place for people in precarious conditions. and we are determined to make this work. unlike in the uk, the plan is not the subject of much public debate here in kigali, and surprising, critics say, in a context of limited freedoms.

translation: why is | the uk rejecting them? here in rwanda, we want them to come. we welcome them. we're alljust one people. i think that's very nice. that's very nice as rwanda, because as i said, we are welcoming everyone to come and contribute to the development of the country. so if they can join the other population to build rwanda, to invest, to do the jobs, i think that's fine. for providers of the accommodation it's good business, all funded by britain, which is to also give £120 million to the government here for development projects. there's clear benefit to rwanda, but at what cost to those seeking safety? anne soy, bbc news, kigali. our political editor chris mason is at westminster. chris, what are you being told about

the latest status on the flight and the latest status on the flight and the state of this policy? i the latest status on the flight and the state of this policy?— the state of this policy? i can tell ou that the state of this policy? i can tell you that in _ the state of this policy? i can tell you that in the _ the state of this policy? i can tell you that in the last _ the state of this policy? i can tell you that in the last couple - the state of this policy? i can tell you that in the last couple of- you that in the last couple of minutes, the home office have confirmed this flight will not be departing this evening. it was due to leave in about 20 minutes, but just a couple of hours ago there were still seven asylum seekers due to fly. that fell to six after an intervention from the european court. as recently as 15 minutes ago, it was down to four and in just the last couple of minutes, confirmation it is now zero. the government, very frustrated, particularly frustrated at the intervention of the european court so shortly before this plane was to go. they remain absolutely determined and committed to this policy. borisjohnson suggesting he is willing to change the law. it is worth looking back, i have been looking back at the conservative manifesto from the last election where they promised to update the human rights act, a bit of legislation 2a years old now, which

is connected to the european convention on human rights. the conservatives want to loosen it, they feel the the european court of human rights rules. but public opinion, we have heard lots of people with big voices and big platforms from which to articulate their opposition from archbishops, we hear privately, the heir to the throne. when you look up public opinion, it is more nuanced on this and broadly speaking, those opinion polls think there is greater support for this government policy that there is opposition. borisjohnson is determined to press ahead with it. , ~ ., , ., is determined to press ahead with it. chris mason, thank you very much. the first minister of scotland, nicola sturgeon, has unveiled what she called a �*refreshed' case for independence. nicola sturgeon said she believed the scottish parliament had a

mandate for calling a referendum and urged westminster to respect that. downing street said it is not the time for another poll and said people across scotland want to see both governments working together. james cook has the story. many seasons have rolled by since scotland rejected independence, and the landscape has changed. we have had a pandemic, a cost of living crisis, and brexit, which was rejected by a majority of voters in scotland. it has affected us in so many different ways. sally williams says dragging the nation out of the eu against its wishes has been a disaster. it really boils down to governance and my belief that the scottish parliament is the best place to govern scotland. the damage that has been done by covid, by brexit, by everything else, in a funny way, it's probably the perfect time for us to then get on and build ourselves back out of it, again using our own levers, our own tools. nicola sturgeon agrees, of course.

her new paper argues that the uk is failing scotland because comparable countries are richer, happier, and more equal. the great question before us is this — if all of these countries can and do use the powers of independence to create wealthier and fairer societies, why not scotland? but how? the only undisputed route to a referendum is for the prime minister to transfer the power to hold one to holyrood, using what is called a section 30 order. i don't know if he will be watching or not but if he is, i make it clearagain, prime minister, i stand ready to negotiate a section 30 order if you decide that you now are a democrat. there is no sign of the prime minister agreeing to that request. he says the union sees scotland through tough times. that, by the way, is the firepower of the uk exchequer, _ that is the firepower of our single uk treasury, and i think- it is a great thing, _ we should keep going with it.

it being the 3is—year—old union of the nations on either side of this river, a union rooted in commerce. brexit may have strengthened the political case for independence, the democratic case, but critics say it has weakened the economic argument. they are worried about what would happen to trade across this border if scotland voted to leave the uk. that is why this gin maker has switched sides. ross jamieson voted for independence eight years ago. do you want to smell it? but now he says he has started a business and sobered up. what does that experience of brexit tell you about independence for scotland ? i'm a proud scotsman, i think the idea of independence, you know, if you stand there, again, you are top of the hill with your kilt, having a wee dram, it's brilliant. but the reality of it, especially now through the experience of brexit, i honestly believe it would be a disaster for the country.

but that is far from a settled view in this divided nation. james cook, bbc news, on the river tweed. and for more information and anaylsis on this story, head to our website. the duke and duchess of cambridge have laid a wreath at the foot of grenfell tower in west london as people marked the fifth anniversary of the fire which claimed 72 lives. survivors called forjustice for the bereaved and more immediate action to tackle the threat posed by flammable cladding, which still affects tower blocks across britain, as our home affairs correspondent tom symonds reports. now in their honour, we will observe a 72—second silence. the people who called grenfell home were scattered by the disaster.

they returned today — alongside them, neighbours and supporters — to rememberfriends and relatives lost to the flames. # i once was lost # but now i'm found... but this event was also about the survivors. # but now i see... eight—year—old aisha among them. never forget. i will never forget the fire. i will never forget the smoke. i will never forget the sirens. i will never forget how scary the fire was. - i will never forget how worrying the fire was. | i will never forget that i survived. we can't change our pasts, i but we can change the future. never forget. applause. the community group grenfell united

said today, "we don't want our 72 to be remembered for what happened, but for what changed. safer buildings, of course, but also justice." five years have passed, and still...still we have not heard the click of a single pair of handcuffs. but alongside an exhaustive public inquiry, there has been a massive police investigation. i've sometimes been shocked at what i've heard, but what i can say is there is nothing which is being heard at the public inquiry which we from our criminal investigation perspective, are not already aware of. only when the public inquiry produces its final report will criminal charges even be considered. many in this area believe that the tower should stay exactly as it is until people go to prison. but for many survivors, the agony of the wait has made the healing harder. i've always said that, you know, grenfell was a tragedy-

in three acts, you know? the way we were treated before the events of the night - and what happened afterwards. if there had been some criminal convictions, i if people that lived in social housing were never going l to be treated the way| that we were treated, if there was no one going to bed |at night with the same cladding| as grenfell on their buildings, that would be something. - but none of that has happened, and that's why it's so painful. . because, people here say, this is not over untiljustice is done. tom symonds, bbc news, at grenfell tower. and you can see a special programme called grenfell: has anything changed ? available now on the bbc iplayer at bbc.co.uk/iplayer or via the iplayer app on your smart device. as we reported last night, russian forces are making progress in eastern ukraine, where fighting has reached a new intensity. tonight we report from kharkiv in the north—east of the country, a city bombarded by russian shelling, but surrounding

territory has been retaken by ukrainian troops. the international criminal court's chief prosecutor has been in the city to see the devastation for himself, and he said the court would prosecute the highest ranks of russians responsible, as our correspondent wyre davies reports. with this city still under daily attack... so there was an air strike. ..karim khan's visit to kharkiv was more a statement of intent than gathering evidence. what were the ages of children that normally you see? that will come later. the international criminal court's chief prosecutor toured several badly damaged parts of the city, including a primary school which was being used as a shelter when it was hit by russian shelling. civilians were killed here. explosions. from the start of the war, russia has been accused of indiscriminate shelling and rocket attacks. this children's hospital peppered

with lethal shrapnel from internationally prohibited cluster bombs. one of many such incidents, which led to calls for the international criminal court to act. this icc investigation into alleged war crimes in ukraine has already been fast tracked, and mr khan has said that they will look into allegations of atrocities by either side. but if the evidence points to the higher levels of the russian military or politics, that is where they will follow. khan's team has already set up base in kyiv, and 42 investigators are already on the ground. but this was his first visit to the eastern front. i will keep on trying to engage with the russian federation, because i think any state that wishes to fly the flag of democracy and legality should have nothing to hide and nothing to fear. mr khan didn't have time to stop and talk as he walked past irina's shell—damaged apartment,

but she's in no doubt who his investigation should find accountable. putin. translation: putin and his cronies. we ukrainians have already condemned them. this is not the way to do things. we are brothers. we are supposed to respect each other. why are they attacking us? iryna will have to be patient. the war isn't over, and investigations of this magnitude take time. cooperation from moscow is also unlikely to be forthcoming. wyre davis, bbc news, kharkiv. the number ofjob vacancies in the uk has hit a new record high ofi.3 million, mainly due to older workers choosing to retire early during the pandemic. the chancellor says the uk jobs market remains robust, but labour has accused the government of utter complacency about the high number of people choosing not to work.

other figures out today show how pay rises are falling behind soaring infation. our economics editor faisal islam is here to explain. thanks, huw. well, it's a bit of a mixed picture. the good news is that unemployment is close to historic lows reflecting the success of pandemic support measures. at 3.8%, it's one of the lowest levels in half a century, but the smallest signs that its starting to tick back up again in the very latest data. however, take a look at this — vacancies in the economy hit another record, this time above 1.3 million, more than the population of birmingham, with hundreds of thousands of missing workers, reflecting those retiring during the pandemic, long—term ill, and fewer european workers post—brexit under new immigration rules. though this is the consequence of a rebound from the pandemic, the impact of all that is becoming material contributing

to visible problems at our airports, in nhs hospital waiting rooms and in our cleaning companies too. there are around 200,000 unfilled cleaning vacancies, and now more workers from abroad are required, says this cleaning company boss. we believe we are around 15% down. i would describe it as a crisis because the simple fact is it is getting worse. there simply isn't enough staff to go round so in that regard, we really need to sit with government and look at all opportunities to bring people into the country. if we don't, then you are running the risk that standards reduce and reduce. while some of these pressures have helped push up cash wages, for those injobs, a very sharp squeeze is on. on average, wage rises seem quite strong — up 6.8% on the year. strip out bonuses, mainly though not exclusively in the banking sector, and we are down to just over 4%. but then apply inflation to get the real—terms increase and it is almost wiped out,

close to zero growth in total pay, and without bonuses, it is down 2.2% in real terms — the lowest figure for a decade and significantly less than that for public sector workers. so the jobs figures showing workers in high demand, but high inflation watering down the value of wage rises. faisal islam, bbc news. the airline industry and the government must both shoulder the responsibility for the recent chaos seen at airports. the head of the consumer group which? told a parliamentary committee at westminster that staff shortages had been underestimated, leading to thousands of flight cancellations and long queues at airports. our transport correspondent katy austin is here to explain more. yes, huw. most people have got away without major problems, but you'll probably have seen pictures of long queues at some airports and heard about flight

cancellations. so far injune, more than 900 flights leaving the uk have been cancelled, most in advance. easyjet has had the highest number. there have been various reasons for disruption, and problems are happening elsewhere in europe, too. but aviation staff shortages are a big underlying factor. the industry shed manyjobs during the pandemic, including 30,000 at airlines. now some firms have struggled to hire again quickly as demand has risen. it's not all about cabin crew. other workers like baggage handlers are in short supply. that was a reason tour operator tui cancelled dozens of flights from manchester this month. here's what they said today. we needed to be confident we could operate and that the baggage system in particular at manchester was one of the primary causes for the delay because the bags couldn't be loaded before the crew went out of hours, because there was such a delay in loading the bags. we learnt our lesson, we're building more resilience in terms of things we can influence.

experts say hiring challenges are partly down to people having left the sector for the otherjobs, and as faisal was just saying it's now an extremely tight labour market. british airways which has cut 10% from its schedule until october said today 3,000 new hires were still waiting for security clearance, and it was taking up to 140 days to get people through. ground handling firm swissport, said it was taking 60—90 days to get people an airside pass. the airports trade body said some people are quitting while waiting to start the job. the system is speeding up a little bit, but there certainly were delays and it took much longer when, you know, recruitment really kicked in. so we do, as airports, you know, there are still, i would say several hundred people who are still awaiting that final clearance. now, this afternoon, the aviation regulator and department for transport told airlines to review their schedules

for the rest of the summer again, to ensure they can deliver them, saying cancellations as early as possible were better than late notice on the day. they also said consumers must be dealt with properly when disruption does happen. huw. katy austin, our transport correspondent, thank you. england, wales and scotland have been in action this evening in the uefa nations league. scotla nd scotland recovered from a rocky start to beat armenia 4—1. and it was a pretty bad one for england who lost 4—0 who lost to hungary, the biggest margin of defeat since 1928. 12 months ago, england's memorable journey to the final of the euros was well under way. they needed a

fast start against hungary, and they didn't get it. the visitors ahead with their first attack. more questions for him to ponder. but his team barely answered any of them. they struggled to create chances of their own, and hungary made them pat’- their own, and hungary made them pay. this was as close as england got to their first goal from open play in four matches. harry kane, so often the saviour, not this time. but still it would get first. this rocket of a finish, and then finally a fourth for hungary. southgate's england embarrassed at home, and with just two more matches before the world cup, he will know things need to change quick. to the cricket. a big—hitting century from jonny bairstow

steered england to a stunning win in the second test against new zealand at trent bridge. bairstow made the second—fastest century by an england bastman, in the history of test cricket and in doing so helped seal the series for england. our correspondent andy swiss was watching the play. it was as breathtaking as it was brilliant. england's new captain, ben stokes, sealing a victory which almost beggared belief. earlier, the fans had flocked to trent bridge. every age, every hairstyle, hoping for some heroics. but chasing 299 to win, those hopes seem to be fading as new zealand took four early wickets. 0h, gone! he's chipped it straight back to trent boult. butjust when england needed something special, enterjonny bairstow with one of the most blistering displays you'll ever see. he clobbered new zealand to all corners of nottingham, reaching his century in just 77 balls, the second fastest test hundred ever by an englishman. and at the other end, stokes was doing what stokes does. one gravity—defying six

as he thrashed a half century. it was mayhem. that is an enormous six. by the time bairstow fell for a staggering 136, trent bridge rose as one and england were on the brink. and moments later, stokes blazed his team to glory. victory, and with it the series. england's new era is off to some start. well, for the lucky fans that were here, it's been a day of quite exhilarating entertainment. rarely has english cricket seen a more remarkable victory. andy swiss, bbc news, trent bridge. while the glorious sunshine there. time for a look at the weather. here's matt taylor. it is warming up as well, but the weather is not very evenhanded this week. look at these skies in cambridgeshire from one of our weather watchers. a different story, though, as we look toward scotland and northern ireland, this was argyll and bute. grey skies, and the contrast remain in some form. this

chart shows how the rain for tots up, darker colours here, an inch or two of rain in the western isles. but it is here where the heat will peak at its greatest, by friday we could see temperatures widely 30-33 c, that is 91 in could see temperatures widely 30—33 c, that is 91 in fahrenheit. that is a few days away, it is fresh out there tonight, not so much across scotland and northern ireland for clear skies. we could see rain all day long again across the north and west of scotland, and in northern ireland the cloud will increase. away from that, the odd shower may crop up in the peak district as the cloud starts to creep, still some sunny spells, further south already 27 degrees in central london. most spots a degree orso central london. most spots a degree or so above average, and even with the cloud, pollen levels increase across scotland and northern ireland, highest for england and wales once again under this area of

high pressure which is dominating