the home secretary has said that gary lineker�*s characterisation of her immigration policy is offensive and "diminishes the unspeakable tragedy" of the holocaust. suella braverman was ppeaking to nick robinson on the political thinking podcast, have a listen. i think it is, from a personal point of view, to hear that kind of characterisation, is offensive. as you said, my husband isjewish, my children are therefore directly descendant from people who were murdered in gas chambers during the holocaust. my husband's family is very, you know, feels very keenly the impact of the holocaust, actually. to throw out those kind of flippant analogies, actually. to throw out those kind of flippantanalogies, diminishes actually. to throw out those kind of flippant analogies, diminishes the unspeakable tragedy that millions of people went through. i don't think

that anything that is happening in the uk today can come close to what happened in the holocaust. ifind it a lazy and unhelpful comparison to make. , , . a lazy and unhelpful comparison to make. , ., , ., a lazy and unhelpful comparison to make. , ., ., ., make. just a short time ago the former england _ make. just a short time ago the former england footballer- make. just a short time ago the former england footballer has l make. just a short time ago the - former england footballer has taken to twitter again, to thank people who supported him. police officers spend an estimated 20 to 40% of their time dealing with mental health calls and incidents. now new data obtained by the bbc shows the number of these incidents recorded by forces in england, wales and scotland have increased significantly over a five year period. newsnight�*s uk editor sima kotecha has had exclusive access to a triage vehicle in liverpool attending mental health calls with a medic

and a police officer. and a warning there is reference to suicide in this report. you might go from speaking to somebody who is seriously considering taking their own life. owen is a mental health nurse. we can try and help them and give them access to services that can can support around their mental health. with police officer paul, they travel through the streets of liverpool visiting those who are experiencing poor mental health. it'sjust about speaking to people with respect. they might have experienced mental health crisis, or there might be in some sort of mental health episode. so i always think that we should always deal with people correctly, no matter what. police can detain someone if they're thought to be mentally vulnerable. but they argue having owen here helps to prevent that, because he can try and get the person the help they need. data obtained by newsnight shows that 21 forces recorded a significant increase in mental health incidents over the last five years.

here in merseyside, there's been a nearly fourfold increase. it's late afternoon, and we've just pulled up outside a house. we're about to go and see a veteran who has been in contact with the police on several occasions before, talking about wanting to take his own life. so we're going to go in inside and see if he's 0k. 21 years, raf. i don't know, i don't know how to save my life. i think i've been in prison about eight times. i think i've been to court about 53 times. no one cares, love. no one cares. how does calling paul and owen help you? it keeps me alive. it's all i've got. senior police officers have spoken out about spending too much time on cases like this one.

but people like paul often call 999 as their first resort when looking for help. the home office says to free up police time, a new approach is being developed, which will make it easier for staff in police control rooms to identify the right agency to deploy at the outset, when responding to 999 calls concerning people in a mental health crisis. paul and owen feel working together is effective, where enforcement and empathy meet to save lives. three people have been arrested by police investigating the fatal shooting of elle edwards on christmas eve. the 26—year—old was shot in the head while celebrating with friends at a pub in wallasey

in north west england. a 20—year—old has been charged with possession of a prohibited weapon and assisting an offender and a second man and a woman were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder. a man has been arrested overfootage shot from inside a police cordon on the day the body of nicola bulley was found in a river in lancashire last month. ms bulley disappeared whilst walking her dog — and her body was found three weeks later. police say the 34—year—old man was detained on suspicion of malicious communications offences, and perverting the course ofjustice — and has been released on conditional bail. in 100 days' time, one of the biggest sporting events in the world begins in berlin. the special olympics world summer games features over 7,000 competitors from nearly 200 nations. it's the biggest celebration of sport for people with intellectual disabilities — and for british competitors, it's a huge opportunity. atjust 15 years of age, tayle mackenzie from dundee is the youngest member of the british team, and joe wilson has been to meet her. every day after school, taylor mckenzie trains. all that commitment for this moment. oh my god!

she is going to the special olympics world games in berlin. i struggle in school quite a bit, so i would say swimming just blows all that out and it is a better thing to focus on. it gives me something to express my feelings and how i am. taylor has autism and a learning disability, but swimming is her identity. something exceptional happened when she was five. she got out of the water _ happened when she was five. she got out of the water and _ happened when she was five. she got out of the water and then _ happened when she was five. she got out of the water and then she - happened when she was five. she got out of the water and then she said,, i out of the water and then she said,, we said _ out of the water and then she said,, we said what— out of the water and then she said,, we said what did she say? it was the first time _ we said what did she say? it was the first time we'd heard her speak. when _ first time we'd heard her speak. when taylor started achieving at 95155: _ when taylor started achieving at 95155: i— when taylor started achieving at 95155: i think_ when taylor started achieving at galas, i think she _ when taylor started achieving at galas, i think she realised - when taylor started achieving at galas, i think she realised that l when taylor started achieving at . galas, i think she realised that she could _ galas, i think she realised that she could do— galas, i think she realised that she could do something _ galas, i think she realised that she could do something well. - galas, i think she realised that she could do something well. she - galas, i think she realised that shel could do something well. she could be like _ could do something well. she could be like any— could do something well. she could

be like any other— could do something well. she could be like any other person _ could do something well. she could be like any other person in - could do something well. she could be like any other person in the - be like any other person in the pool — be like any other person in the pool in— be like any other person in the ool. be like any other person in the ool, ,., . be like any other person in the ool. . .,y ., pool. in the pandemic, taylor trained in _ pool. in the pandemic, taylor trained in the _ pool. in the pandemic, taylor trained in the garden, - pool. in the pandemic, taylor trained in the garden, with i pool. in the pandemic, taylor trained in the garden, with al pool. in the pandemic, taylor- trained in the garden, with a piece of bungee rope. but everything changed, and across all levels of intellectual disability, sport is often crucial.— intellectual disability, sport is often crucial. ., ., ., , often crucial. for our athletes, the andemic often crucial. for our athletes, the pandemic created _ often crucial. for our athletes, the pandemic created a _ often crucial. for our athletes, the pandemic created a lot _ often crucial. for our athletes, the pandemic created a lot of - often crucial. for our athletes, the l pandemic created a lot of challenges for them. they've lost structure, social connection, they've lost their sport. they've lost that sense of being and belonging. being able to have the world games come back is so significant. to have the world games come back is so significant-— so significant. taylor is training for berlin alongside _ so significant. taylor is training | for berlin alongside mainstream swimmers. to get clear and concise instructions. swimmers. to get clear and concise instructions-— instructions. what works for taylor works for the _ instructions. what works for taylor works for the others _ instructions. what works for taylor works for the others as _ instructions. what works for taylor works for the others as well. - instructions. what works for taylor works for the others as well. that l works for the others as well. that is inclusion _ works for the others as well. that is inclusion in _ works for the others as well. that is inclusion in action. _ works for the others as well. that is inclusion in action. that is the special olympics, represented by taylor mckenzie. the tv astrologer margaret lake, better known as mystic meg, has died at the age of 80.

the sun newspaper's horoscope writer for more than twenty years — she was a well—known tv figure in the i990s presenting mystic meg predicts on the national lottery, where she attempted to predict facts about the future lottery winner. a 25—year—old singer from london is to be the uk's entry for this year's eurovision song contest. mae muller will perform �*i wrote a song' at the competition in liverpool in may. our music correspondent mark savage has the story — and a warning his report does contain some flashing images. mystery pop star, please reveal yourself. mystery pop star, please reveal ourself. ., ., ~ ., yourself. hello i am mae muller, and i am representing _ yourself. hello i am mae muller, and i am representing the _ yourself. hello i am mae muller, and i am representing the uk _ yourself. hello i am mae muller, and i am representing the uk in - yourself. hello i am mae muller, and i am representing the uk in this - i am representing the uk in this year's _ i am representing the uk in this year's eurovision. find i am representing the uk in this year's eurovision.— i am representing the uk in this year's eurovision. and this is the son: she year's eurovision. and this is the song she will _ year's eurovision. and this is the song she will be _ year's eurovision. and this is the song she will be taking - year's eurovision. and this is the song she will be taking to - year's eurovision. and this is the i song she will be taking to liverpool in may.

her song was written about a brutal break—up. i her song was written about a brutal break-u -. . , her song was written about a brutal break-u. ., ., , her song was written about a brutal break-u. .,, ., , ., ., break-up. i was really annoyed at this au . break-up. i was really annoyed at this guy- l — break-up. i was really annoyed at this guy. i wanted _ break-up. i was really annoyed at this guy. i wanted to _ break-up. i was really annoyed at this guy. i wanted to do _ break-up. i was really annoyed atl this guy. i wanted to do something crazy, maybe then his house down, i don't know. instead, i took the high road and i wrote a song. that is called growth, ladies and gents will. �* , ., ., called growth, ladies and gents will. 2 ., ., ., called growth, ladies and gents will. a ., ., ., , will. it's a long way from her first taste of fame _ will. it's a long way from her first taste of fame in _ will. it's a long way from her first taste of fame in this _ will. it's a long way from her first taste of fame in this mika - will. it's a long way from her first taste of fame in this mika video, | will. it's a long way from her first l taste of fame in this mika video, 16 years ago. she was working on this pub when she signed her first publishing deal. since then she has racked up more than 2 billion streams. may was chosen for europe as by tap music, behind ellie golding and lana del rey. her determination, _ golding and lana del rey. her determination, all those things. she has such— determination, all those things. she has such a _ determination, all those things. she has such a great wit and is super intelligent — has such a great wit and is super intelligent. she seems like the right— intelligent. she seems like the right choice. she has big shoes to

fill. �* ,., �* , right choice. she has big shoes to fill. �* �*, , fill. after some rider's second lace fill. after some rider's second place finish — fill. after some rider's second place finish at _ fill. after some rider's second place finish at euro _ fill. after some rider's second place finish at euro vision. - fill. after some rider's second - place finish at euro vision. you've not to no place finish at euro vision. you've got to so big _ place finish at euro vision. you've got to so big and _ place finish at euro vision. you've got to go big and you've - place finish at euro vision. you've got to go big and you've got - place finish at euro vision. you've got to go big and you've got to i place finish at euro vision. you'vei got to go big and you've got to go right, and ifeel this is obviously such a level up from anything i have done. . , . such a level up from anything i have done. . ., ., , such a level up from anything i have done. . ., ., i, . done. fans are already predicting treat done. fans are already predicting great things- _ done. fans are already predicting great things. when _ done. fans are already predicting great things. when you _ done. fans are already predicting great things. when you think - done. fans are already predicting great things. when you think it's| great things. when you think it's auoin to great things. when you think it's going to come? _ great things. when you think it's going to come? i _ great things. when you think it's going to come? i think— great things. when you think it's going to come? i think it's - great things. when you think it's going to come? i think it's a - great things. when you think it's going to come? i think it's a top| going to come? i think it's a top ten entry- _ going to come? i think it's a top ten entry- top _ going to come? i think it's a top ten entry. top ten _ going to come? i think it's a top ten entry. top ten is _ going to come? i think it's a top ten entry. top ten is a - going to come? i think it's a top ten entry. top ten is a really - going to come? i think it's a top l ten entry. top ten is a really good result _ ten entry. top ten is a really good result. ~., ~ ten entry. top ten is a really good result. ,, ., “ , there's a new kind of lawnmower in italy, and it's woolly... a flock of sheep have taken over the city of pompeii. they're tasked with grazing to keep an archeological site from growing vegetation.

it's part of a sustainable agricultural initiative that helps to preserve landscape.the work of these 150 sheep are hoped to attract more visitors and revive the ancient vineyards. now it's time for a look at the weather with carol hello again. some of us have had some heavy snow through the morning and there's more heavy snow to come as well as ice. in fact, the met office has three amber weather warnings in force now. they run through this afternoon, tonight and into tomorrow. further details available on our website. the highest figures that you can see really relate to higher ground, but still we'll see a fair bit of snow at low levels. and we're also looking at some freezing rain across parts of central wales. couple this with gusty winds there will be drifting and blowing of that snow. and for some, we're looking at blizzards as well. so some atrocious conditions. low pressure is driving our weather. we've got the mild atlantic air in the south. so here we're looking at rain. but as these weather fronts bump into the cold air,

this is where we're seeing the snow, with yet more to come. so the snow continuing across north wales, the north midlands, in through northern england and also northern ireland. a few snow showers peppering the north and the east of scotland, but much of scotland staying dry and in the south, any showers are likely to be of rain, but even those could be heavy and also thundery. temperature—wise, you can see where we've got the milder atlantic air and the cold arctic air. now, it's going to be windy through the day and also through the evening and overnight period. and that wind will be causing the snow to drift. blizzard conditions on some of the transpennine routes, for example, as the snow continues to edge through north wales and north midlands, staying in northern england, getting into southern scotland and northern ireland. but you can see how it spreads across more of wales, as the low pressure, which is moving from the west to the east, slips a little bit farther east. cold night in the highlands tonight. we could see —15 in somewhere like kinbrace or altnaharra and a widespread frost. and of course, the risk of ice. tomorrow, the low pressure drifts off onto the near continent.

we still will have some snow for a time. it will be windy for a time, but then the wind will ease. still some snow showers, though, coming in across the far north of scotland. so we start on a snowy note first thing across parts of england and wales, that tends to push away as we go through the course of the morning. remember, it's going to be windy as well, but the winds will ease through the day. many of us having a dry day with some sunshine, but some wintry showers in the north and some rain starting to come in across the southwest. but across the board, it will feel cold.

this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories... russia has launched more than 80 missiles at ukraine. sustained strikes hit the kharkiv and odesa regions, killing at least nine people and leaving much of the capital, kyiv, without electricity. tens of thousands of people take part in demonstrations in israel against proposed reforms to the judicial system. childcare costs rise sharply in england, scotland and wales — a new report shows that one in four parents say the cost of their childcare is now more than 75% of their take—home pay. bbc presenter gary lineker says he stands by his comments attacking the uk government's latest immigration policy. weather warnings for heavy snow in the uk. the cold conditions are expected to last until the weekend. this is rowan bridge

in mold in north wales, where an amber weather warning for significant ice and snow could bring disruption through today. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. at least nine people have been killed in ukraine as the country has again come under sustained russian missile attack. there's been severe damage to parts of its energy infrastructure as well as residential areas. the mayor of kyiv says 40% of the capital's residents are without heating. shelling overnight in southern ukraine has damaged the only functioning power line used for electricity to cool the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which is occupied by russia. the ukrainian military said more than 80 mostly air—launched cruise missiles were fired at areas, including these shown here.

just under half are said to have been intercepted by air defences. our diplomatic correspondent james landale reports. this is what a cruise missile can do. a residential part of lviv in the far west of ukraine. homes turned to rubble, streets torn apart, lives turned upside down. in all, five people died here. this may be hundreds of miles from the fighting, but this morning it's very much on the front line. in all, russia launched more than 80 missiles, more than a0 getting through the air defences. many striking energy infrastructure here in south—west kyiv but also in cities like odesa in the south and kharkiv in the north. crucially, shelling cut off power to the zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in europe currently under russian control. it's now running on diesel generators but the risk of reactors overheating is real, much to the concern

of the un nuclear watchdog. how can we sit here in this room this morning in a residential area in north—west kyiv, cars were damaged by falling debris and shrapnel after a russian drone was shot down in the sky. two people were injured and taken to hospital. translation: there was an explosion in the sky. l i saw smoke and fire. victor told us how his car was damaged and how he tried to help his neighbours. translation: cars were set on fire. we took fire extinguishers from our vehicles to try and put them out but it didn't succeed in the fires spread. the firefighters then arrived and put it all out. translation: i'm fed up with it, can't stand all this. _ i don't have the strength any more. why are they doing this? they are not acting like humans. they are scaring the children. these strikes might have been targeted against energy infrastructure, but here not so much. as you can see, cars damaged, some

of them destroyed and burnt out, all around me the windows have been blown in in the residents' blocks, and over here debris litters this children's playground. meanwhile, fighting continues in the east with ukraine appearing to bolster its forces near bakhmut. despite reports of a possible withdrawal, commanders said the importance of holding the city was growing. james landale, bbc news, kyiv. can you tell us what has happened overnight in zaporizhzhia? overnight, we had news from our team of experts that due to a series of attacks which have covered most of

the territory of ukraine, as you have been reporting, there had been a complete cut of power lines, thereby letting the plant without any source for its cooling systems, which are of course essential for the safety of the reactors, hence the safety of the reactors, hence the emergency systems, the emergency generators kicked in, so is the largest nuclear power plant in europe for the sixth time since the beginning of the war has been working on emergency diesel generators, which is absolutely mind—boggling. what i can say is that at the moment, people are working to try to repair 750 kilowatts line that was the one that was affected so as to be able to stop the emergency systems and keep

cooling the plant in a normal way. but apart from the anecdote or the incident, this proves again how fragile, how terribly dangerous this situation is at zaporizhzhia. can ou sell situation is at zaporizhzhia. can you spell out — situation is at zaporizhzhia. can you spell out the _ situation is at zaporizhzhia. can you spell out the risks and how long that back—up cooling system can work while the power is restored? the dancer, while the power is restored? the danger. as _ while the power is restored? the danger. as l _ while the power is restored? tie; danger, as i have been while the power is restored? tt;e: danger, as i have been saying, would be that the reactors eventually will stop having a cooling function, they could eventually melt down. that would lead to a major accident with severe radiological effects. the emergency systems which do exist can operate for a few days, maybe ten days or something. of course, depending on the availability of

fuel to make them run. these are emergency, like the ones you can have in a private house or in a normal installation anyway. but i want to repeat, we are talking about six nuclear power reactors. the biggest nuclear site in europe. so you can see how enormously incredible this situation is. and this is why the nuclear agency that i preside has been working relentlessly to try to set up some protection mechanism around the plant. protection mechanism around the lant. �* , ., ., 4' protection mechanism around the -lant. �* , ., ., 4' it protection mechanism around thej plant-— it is plant. and it is that working? it is very difficult. _ plant. and it is that working? it is very difficult. i— plant. and it is that working? it is very difficult, i must _ plant. and it is that working? it is very difficult, i must say. - plant. and it is that working? it is very difficult, i must say. i - very difficult, i must say. i started my negotiations back in september. i have been several times in kyiv and moscow. i have seen of course many times, the president of

ukraine, volodymyr zelenskyy. i have also met with president putin to tell you the degree of importance. i suppose both sides gave to this problem. but so far we have not been able to come to a point of agreement. we have been making progress, i think i have been making progress, i think i have been making progress, but there is always some additional point, some additional expectation, and as we can see and i said today to the board of governors, we are rolling a dice here. there will be a day when our luck will run out. so i have been making a very serious appeal for everybody to support the agency in setting protections for the plant. this has nothing to do with the military operations, this is militarily neutral, but it could of

course spare us all from a catastrophic accident. what would that accident _ catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean _ catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean if— catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean if it _ catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean if it was - catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean if it was to - that accident mean if it was to happen? who would be affected and in what way? it happen? who would be affected and in what wa ? ., ., .., , , what way? it would of course depend on the dimension _ what way? it would of course depend on the dimension of _ what way? it would of course depend on the dimension of the _ what way? it would of course depend on the dimension of the accident, - on the dimension of the accident, how many reactors would be affected and what sort of radiological issues we would have, so you could have different scenarios. you could say, how bad is going to be the crash that i'm going to have? it could be a complete disaster or you could be less harmed. we don't want to try this. so the idea is to avoid this by establishing a commitment on both sides on something that is very simple, and i think the audience will understand it very quickly. don't shoot at the nuclear power plant. don't shoot at the nuclear power lant. . ~' ,. , don't shoot at the nuclear power lant. ., ~' , . don't shoot at the nuclear power lant. . ~ ,, , . ., don't shoot at the nuclear power lant. ., ~' y., , . ., ,., plant. thank you very much for your time. we know that some of the cities in

the ukraine also were hit. i spoke earlier to denys ganzha, a kyiv resident and ukrainian youth delegate to the united nations, who described a night continuous bombardment. the alarms started at 1am and we all went to the shelter to protect ourselves and it lasted for five hours. russia does not have any successes in the front line so now they are targeting civilians. but the biggest explosion was at 5:15am. russia used a missile which there is no chance ukrainian missile systems can get. and what situation are you in now personally? are you affected by the power cuts? in kyiv, there are no power cuts, but my family in the kharkiv region, they have not had electricity, there are also problems with water, but the mayor said 70% has now electricity, so russia has spent $500 million for nothing. and yourfamily are in

the kharkiv region. what are they saying about what happened there? all over ukraine, they targeted more than three power plants, so they tried to deliver another blackout, but what we are hearing from the minister for energy, everything looks good for now, we hope to have no more attacks in the future, but russia wants to make some kind of electricity genocide. obviously, that is a very strong word to use, but also very difficult for residents to keep going under this battery of attacks, i am sure. what is the mood in the capital today? i would compare russia trying to put ukraine in blackout if you remember how the nazis bombed london 80 years ago and this resulted in the victory of great britain and their partners

over hitler and his regime, and the same goes here. nothing will change because for those who are now in bakhmut, it is the biggest challenge today, not less, so we are supporting them, and i hope there is lots great news coming next because as we are receiving more ammunition, more weapons, and our soldiers are trained, the great offences are here to come. thank you very much indeed. protests in georgia have forced the ruling party to withdraw controversial plans to identify what it calls �*foreign agents�* who it claims are trying to undermine the country. protestors fear the plans would limit civil liberties and target criticaljournalists and media outlets. our caucasus correspondent rayhan demytrie has sent this report from the georgian capital, tbilisi. after two days of mass protests in the georgian capital tbilisi against a controversial foreign agents bill, the government announced on thursday morning it was withdrawing the draft legislation to keep the peace.

the bill would have targeted non—governmental and media organisations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. last night police used water cannons and tear gas to clear the streets of thousands of pro—western georgians opposed to the bill. protesters fear this law threatens georgia's chances ofjoining the european union and will take the country back into russia's orbit. i'm here along with all these people to guarantee that there will never be russian rule here ever. many georgians believe the legislation was introduced here to weaken their own democracy. western—funded civil society organisations, the primary target of this legislation, play an important role holding the government to account. what this law is really about is making it possible for the government to stigmatise,

marginalise, and eventually silence organisations and media that are critical of the government. though the government has promised to withdraw the bill, protesters say the fight is not over yet. georgians opposed to this legislation believe this is a pivotal moment for the country, that this fight is at heart a fight for their own freedom. and freedom here means joining europe and escaping russia's influence. protesters have promised to return to the streets until they have guarantees from the government that there will be no russian style law in georgia. rayhan demytrie, bbc news, tbilisi.

pa rt part of the food standards agency has not named the retailer that supplied the affected products but said it had immediately removed for food from its shelves. it is investigating the food business is suspected of supplying the mislabelled meat products. demonstrators in israel are holding a day of protests across the country against government plans to overhaul thejudicial system. activists are blocking major transport routes including the road to tel aviv airport, from where the prime minister benjamin netanyhu is due to leave on an official visit to italy. our middle east correspondent tom bateman has the latest. this is the main road that runs north— south in tel aviv. you can see the protesters. they breached the road, the police have been trying to stop them, they came down here, jumped over the fence, we

followed them over as we were filming, they got on the road and blocked it. this is exactly what israel's far right police minister said he would not accept. he called these protesters anarchists. you can hear them chanting for democracy. we are just hear them chanting for democracy. we arejust going to hear them chanting for democracy. we are just going to stop here and you can see the mounted police here. we watched as the mounted police came along the street, the protesters dug in, dozens were sitting on the road, and at that point they pushed them back. and there is now more of a stand—off. we saw one man being dragged away, arrested. just tell us the reason why the protesters are out on the streets today. protesters are out on the streets toda . , , , , protesters are out on the streets toda. ,, ., today. this is because of the lanned today. this is because of the planned judicial _ today. this is because of the planned judicial changes - today. this is because of the i planned judicial changes being today. this is because of the - planned judicial changes being made liy planned judicial changes being made by the _ planned judicial changes being made by the israeli government. they will allow— by the israeli government. they will allow the _ by the israeli government. they will allow the government, basically, to have near—

allow the government, basically, to have near full control over the selection _ have near full control over the selection ofjudges and will also stop the — selection ofjudges and will also stop the supreme court from being able to— stop the supreme court from being able to strike down legislation that is passed _ able to strike down legislation that is passed by the government. really, it has— is passed by the government. really, it has been— is passed by the government. really, it has been a long—standing complaint from those on the israeli i’ilht complaint from those on the israeli right in— complaint from those on the israeli right in particular, that there is judicial— right in particular, that there is judicial overreach as they say by the supreme court, the country's highest _ the supreme court, the country's highest court. what the protesters say is _ highest court. what the protesters say is that— highest court. what the protesters say is that this is going to undermine democracy. it is going to undermine _ undermine democracy. it is going to undermine the independence of the israeli _ undermine the independence of the israeli judiciary. and they are calling — israeli judiciary. and they are calling this a coup by the israeli government, led by benjamin netanyahu. government, led by ben'amin netanyahmfi government, led by ben'amin netan ahu. ., , ., , , netanyahu. can you give us examples of laws or policies _ netanyahu. can you give us examples of laws or policies or _ of laws or policies or investigations that could be affected if these changes go through? i affected if these changes go throu . h? . affected if these changes go throu~h? . ., , affected if these changes go throu h? ., ., , ., through? i mean, really, there are far reaching _ through? i mean, really, there are far reaching consequences - through? i mean, really, there are| far reaching consequences because through? i mean, really, there are i far reaching consequences because it means— far reaching consequences because it means that _ far reaching consequences because it means that any legislation that the government wants to push through

that the _ government wants to push through that the supreme court might have an issue with. _ that the supreme court might have an issue with, some people point to the fact that _ issue with, some people point to the fact that religious nationalists in the current coalition government are looking _ the current coalition government are looking to _ the current coalition government are looking to expand settlements in the occupied _ looking to expand settlements in the occupied west bank. then there would be not _ occupied west bank. then there would be not the _ occupied west bank. then there would be not the same records to go through— be not the same records to go through the supreme court to challenge that. another thing that many— challenge that. another thing that many of— challenge that. another thing that many of those protesting are worried about _ many of those protesting are worried about is— many of those protesting are worried about is the — many of those protesting are worried about is the fact that benjamin netanyahu, despite the fact he remains — netanyahu, despite the fact he remains as prime minister, he is facing _ remains as prime minister, he is facing corruption charges, he remains _ facing corruption charges, he remains on trial. he denies those charges _ remains on trial. he denies those charges but they are concerned this could _ charges but they are concerned this could ultimately have an impact on him if— could ultimately have an impact on him if there was any conviction, could _ him if there was any conviction, could that — him if there was any conviction, could that to be struck down. it is giving _ could that to be struck down. it is giving the — could that to be struck down. it is giving the government a lot of power in a system _ giving the government a lot of power in a system where you don't have an israeli _ in a system where you don't have an israeli constitution, you only have these _ israeli constitution, you only have these quasi—constitutional laws and these quasi—constitutional laws and the parliament consists of a single

chamber — the parliament consists of a single chamber. now, the government itself says that _ chamber. now, the government itself says that people voted for these changes — says that people voted for these changes when they went to the last election— changes when they went to the last election and that is why his coalition— election and that is why his coalition has got the majority that it has, _ coalition has got the majority that it has, 64— coalition has got the majority that it has, 64 out of 120 parliamentary seats _ it has, 64 out of 120 parliamentary seats he — it has, 64 out of 120 parliamentary seats. he says they have a mandate for change — seats. he says they have a mandate for chance. �* ., seats. he says they have a mandate for change-— for change. and do the protesters have much _ for change. and do the protesters have much public— for change. and do the protesters have much public support - for change. and do the protesters have much public support or- for change. and do the protesters have much public support or is - for change. and do the protesters have much public support or is it | have much public support or is it likely these changes are going to go through anyway? i likely these changes are going to go through anyway?— likely these changes are going to go through anyway? i mean, these have been some of— through anyway? i mean, these have been some of the _ through anyway? i mean, these have been some of the biggest _ through anyway? i mean, these have been some of the biggest protests i through anyway? i mean, these have been some of the biggest protests in j been some of the biggest protests in israeli _ been some of the biggest protests in israeli history. we have seen nine weeks _ israeli history. we have seen nine weeks now— israeli history. we have seen nine weeks now when you have got really lar-e weeks now when you have got really large crowds, an estimated 150,000 turning _ large crowds, an estimated 150,000 turning up— large crowds, an estimated 150,000 turning up in tel aviv last saturday, for example. thousands more _ saturday, for example. thousands more in _ saturday, for example. thousands more in different locations across the country. and these days of disruption _ the country. and these days of disruption that are taking place are really— disruption that are taking place are really bringing to a wider israeli audience — really bringing to a wider israeli audience the feelings, the strong feelings— audience the feelings, the strong feelings of those deeply opposed to the changes being planned by the

government. this is the second day of disruption, as it's being called. but, _ of disruption, as it's being called. but, yes, — of disruption, as it's being called. but, yes, the president, who has a figurehead — but, yes, the president, who has a figurehead role, he has been trying to get— figurehead role, he has been trying to get the _ figurehead role, he has been trying to get the government to speak to members — to get the government to speak to members of the opposition, trying to -et members of the opposition, trying to get them _ members of the opposition, trying to get them to come up with some kind of compromise. benjamin netanyahu did address that when he was speaking to reporters before he was able to _ speaking to reporters before he was able to take off on his flight from tel aviv— able to take off on his flight from tel aviv airport, able to take off on his flight from telaviv airport, heading able to take off on his flight from tel aviv airport, heading to italy, because — tel aviv airport, heading to italy, because he — tel aviv airport, heading to italy, because he used a helicopter in the end because of the roads being blocked — end because of the roads being blocked. he said that the government was going _ blocked. he said that the government was going to try to reach an understanding over legal reform with -- legal— understanding over legal reform with —— legal reform, but he accused them of trying _ —— legal reform, but he accused them of trying to— —— legal reform, but he accused them of trying to degenerate the country into anarchy, so for the moment there _ into anarchy, so for the moment there is— into anarchy, so for the moment there is this _ into anarchy, so for the moment there is this political stalemate that remains, but there are warnings to the _ that remains, but there are warnings to the government from international allies. _ to the government from international allies. from _ to the government from international allies, from those who play important roles in the economy and also from _ important roles in the economy and also from the military, because it

has been — also from the military, because it has been very much affected by the participation of reservists, who still play — participation of reservists, who still play an active role on the front— still play an active role on the front line _ still play an active role on the front line in israel. they are refusing _ front line in israel. they are refusing to serve, some of them, because — refusing to serve, some of them, because of— refusing to serve, some of them, because of the changes going through _ because of the changes going through. so there are a lot of impacts— through. so there are a lot of impacts on the government, even though— impacts on the government, even though it — impacts on the government, even though it does have the number of seats— though it does have the number of seats it _ though it does have the number of seats it would need to try to push these _ seats it would need to try to push these changes through. in the united states, a congressional committee has begun hearing witness testimony about america's withdrawal from afghanistan in 2021. one former marine, who was badly injured when suicide bombers attacked crowds at kabul airport, described the withdrawal as a catastrophe. here's our diplomatic correspondent caroline hawley. for afghans the chaotic withdrawal from the country was seen as a betrayal, and abandonment. many in the us and in the uk military who have served there felt the same. thousands of afghans did make it out but millions more were left behind. the whole evacuation is now

being examined at congressional hearings in washington. but this marine sergeant testified, there was no disguising the trauma of being caught in a bomb at the entrance to kabul airport. the deadliest moment of the withdrawal. i went to the ground and i knew what had happened. i opened my eyes and there were marines dead or unconscious lying around me. the bomb killed 13 american soldiers and 170 afghan civilians, an explosion he said he had intelligence about and had warned his superiors about, but had been ignored. my body was overwhelmed from the trauma of the blast, my abdomen was ripped open, every inch of my exposed body apart from my face was covered in shrapnel. the withdrawal also caused moral injury, the hearing has heard, the pain and guilt of leaving afghan colleagues behind. the sergeant said afghanistanis were murdered by the taliban not farfrom his position, others were so terrified they they killed themselves. it was a catastrophe

in my opinion and there was an inexcusable lack of accountability and negligence. 11 marines, one sailor and one soldier were murdered that day and have not been answered for. perhaps most damning was the testimony of a former colonel who warned of a tsunami of mental health problems for veterans and said america was building a nasty reputation of systemic abandonment of its allies. caroline hawley, bbc news. at least six people have been killed in a crash between a bus and a train in nigeria's commercial capital, lagos. more than 70 others were injured when the train collided with a bus during rush hour. reports indicate at the time of the accident, there were no barrier separating the railway line from the main road. our west africa correspondent mayeni jones has the lates from lagos. in this hospital in ikeja on the mainland of lagos. patients have been brought and are being triaged in these white tents that you can see behind me.

they've been set up very hastily to a lot of patients to be sorted out and prioritized. makeshift mattresses have been put on the floor. people are waiting for doctors to attend to them. dozens of family members are also here trying to find their loved ones. the accident happened early this morning as commuters were heading into work. a train and a bus carrying commuters collided in a junction that didn't have any barriers when we visited the scene earlier today. a lot of bystanders were very angry. they said there should be a barrier separating the road from the tracks. the rail network coming in and out of lagos has expanded massively in the last five years, but manyjunctions are missing basic features like barriers, like any kind of signal to tell traffic to stop. at the moment, authorities say that the death toll stands at six and that 71 people have been injured, 29 of them critically, and many of them have been attended

to in hospitals like this one. the israeli actor topol, whose career was defined by the musical fiddler on the roof, has died aged 87. # if i were a rich man...# haim topol won international fame playing the milkman tevye in the hollywood version of the musical and he played the part on stage more than 3,500 times. his credits also include a role in the 1981 bond film for your eyes only. the actor chaim topol, who has died at the age of 87. you are going to be singing that all day, i suspect. you are going to be singing that all day, isuspect. we you are going to be singing that all day, i suspect. we are back in a few minutes. dojoin us if you can. bye

for now. hello again. some of us have had some heavy snow through the morning and there's more heavy snow to come as well as ice. in fact, the met office has three amber weather warnings in force now. they run through this afternoon, tonight and into tomorrow. further details available on our website. the highest figures that you can see really relate to higher ground, but still we'll see a fair bit of snow at low levels. and we're also looking at some freezing rain across parts of central wales. couple this with gusty winds that will be drifting and blowing of that snow. and for some, we're looking at blizzards as well. so some atrocious conditions. low pressure is driving our weather. we've got the mild atlantic air in the south. so here we're looking at rain. but as these weather fronts bump into the cold air, this is where we're seeing the snow, with yet more to come.

so the snow continuing across north wales, the north midlands, in through northern england and also northern ireland. a few snow showers peppering the north and the east of scotland, but much of scotland staying dry and in the south, any showers are likely to be of rain, but even those could be heavy and also thundery. temperature—wise, you can see where we've got the milder atlantic air and the cold arctic air. now, it's going to be windy through the day and also through the evening and overnight period. and that wind will be causing the snow to drift. blizzard conditions on some of the transpennine routes, for example, as the snow continues to edge through north wales and north midlands, staying in northern england, getting into southern scotland and northern ireland. but you can see how it spreads across more of wales, as the low pressure, which is moving from the west to the east, slips a little bit farther east. cold night in the highlands tonight. we could see —15 in somewhere like kinbrace or altnaharra and a widespread frost. and of course, the risk of ice. tomorrow, the low pressure drifts

off onto the near continent. we still will have some snow for a time. it will be windy for a time, but then the wind will ease. still some snow showers, though, coming in across the far north of scotland. so we start on a snowy note first thing across parts of england and wales, that tends to push away as we go through the course of the morning. remember, it's going to be windy as well, but the winds will ease through the day. many of us having a dry day with some sunshine, but some wintry showers in the north and some rain starting to come in across the southwest. but across the board, it will feel cold.

this is bbc news, the headlines. russia has launched more than 80 missiles at ukraine. sustained strikes hit the kharkiv and odesa regions killing at least nine people and leaving much of the capital, kyiv, without electricity. tens of thousands of people take part in demonstrations in israel against proposed reforms to the judicial system. child care costs rise sharply in england, scotland and wales — a new report shows that one in four parents say the cost of their childcare is now more than 75% of their take—home pay. bbc presenter gary lineker says he stands by his comments attacking the uk government's latest immigration policy. weather warnings for heavy snow in the uk. the cold conditions are expected to last until the weekend.

sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, good afternoon. england have lost to bangladesh in their first t20 match since winning the t20 world cup in november. they lost by six wickets in chattogram. bangladesh won the toss and put england in to bat, for the first of three t20 matches. it initially looked like it would be a good move for the tourists with captainjos butler making a strong start. he'd pass the half century mark before eventually falling to hasan mahmud for 67. only two other england players made it to double figures though, setting bangladesh a target of 157 to win.

najmul hossain shanto hit a half—century to put the hosts in a strong position and an edged effort from shakib al hasan saw bangladesh secure victory with two overs to spare. the second match is on sunday. owen farrell has been dropped by england for the first time since being benched at the 2015 world cup. marcus smith has won the battle for the no 10 jersey in saturday's crunch fixture against france. it is arguably steve borthwick�*s biggest call of his tenure to date. farrell has struggled for form of late though. he has turned tojonny wilkinson for assistance with his goal—kicking and with borthwick seeking a more expansive approach, smith is set to be given licence to run the show against france, with ellis genge selected as captain for the first time. farrell will be on the bench. rhys webb will make his first six nations start for wales since 2017 when they take on italy in rome on saturday. the 34—year—old ospreys scrum—half, who is believed to be

considering a move to play injapan, replaces tomos williams in coach warren gatland's side. he's also decided that rio dyer will take over on the wing from luis rees—zammit. former captain alun wynjones and leigh halfpenny are among those to miss out. both wales and italy are seeking their first wins of this year's competition. following tottenham's disappointing loss to ac milan in the champions league last night which saw them exit the competition at the round of 16 phase, questions are mounting around the future of manager antonio conte. his contract is up at the end of the season and there are rumours of player unrest. he's said fans need to be patient and that the club know what his vision is for the future, but earlier bbc football reporter simon stone told us it's a matter of when and not if he leaves tottenham hotspur.

don't think anybody realistically thought tottenham would challenge for the league title, but they probably thought they would do well in the champions league, and compete in the champions league, and compete in one of the cups. i think that is what antonio conte thought when he brought players in during the summer, but they have just not managed to get any kind of consistency, too many players of the pace. as you say, fan discontent and there appears to be irritation behind the scenes as well. itjust has not worked out. itjust has not worked out. a winter world cup is a non—starter, without significant changes to how the tournament is arranged. that is the view of world players�* union fifpro following a post qatar world cup review and player survey. fifpro�*s report on player workload paints, what they say is a "worrying picture". normal world cup preparation and recovery time was cut from 31 and 37 days respectively to seven and eight, to cause the least disruption possible to the european club calendar. saudi arabia are considering a bid to take the 2030 world cup back

to the gulf, whilst portugal and spain could also host a winter tournament. the opening round of the 2023 players�* championship is under way with rory mcilroy, scottie schefler and jon rahm all in action. all eyes were on hayden buckley though after he hit this incredible hole—in—one on the 17th. his shot landed just right of the hole, bounced once and then spun back into the cup. he�*s five under for the day and currently top of the leaderboard. you can get the full leaderboard on the bbc sport website. and that�*s all the sport for now. ill be back later with another update. the bbc understands the uk government is about to announce a delay to the construction of certain sections of britain�*s new high speed rail line,

known as hs2, to save money. the delay is likely to affect sections from manchester to crewe and birmingham to crewe. the project has run billions of pounds over budget and is years behind schedule. hs2 is the uk government�*s flagship transport levelling up project and the largest infrastructure project in europe. our transport correspondent katy austin says the project has long been beset by delays and rising costs. where we�*re at now, is that about 40% of work to build the first phase, between london, orwest london, and birmingham, has actually been done. the idea is then that that would open by 2033 and the station at euston in central london will open later. the puppet in the west london midland and crewe is due by 2034, and it would which manchester by 2044. plans to go all the way to leeds were scrapped. inflation has posed a fresh challenge when it comes to costs,

and behind—the—scenes, hs two and the department for transport have been looking at the project�*s overall scope and timing as they try to find ways of trying to control costs. in a move apparently aimed at spreading out spending over a longer period of time, we are expecting the government to announce delays, particularly to the second part of hs two, between birmingham and manchester, and possibly the euston end of things too. it is unclear exactly when that announcement will come but we are expecting it to be sue. come but we are expecting it to be sue. i�*m joined now by paul chapman who is a senior fellow in operations management at oxford university�*s saeed business school. thank you forjoining us. what do you make of this possible further announcement of delays? i you make of this possible further announcement of delays?- you make of this possible further announcement of delays? i think it has been beset _ announcement of delays? i think it has been beset with _ announcement of delays? i think it has been beset with issues. - announcement of delays? i think it has been beset with issues. it - announcement of delays? i think it has been beset with issues. it is i has been beset with issues. it is not unusual for big projects like hsz to not unusual for big projects like hs2 to experience a bit of a wobble. hsz hs2 to experience a bit of a wobble. hs2 appears to have more than most. there have been questions over the

costs. it was only january that the scope of the project was being challenge. would it go to euston, would it not, and that was after the arm through to leeds was chopped off in 2021. now i have questions arising about when it is going to open. arising about when it is going to 0 en. ~ . , arising about when it is going to oen.~ . , ~' , arising about when it is going to oen, . ., , ~' , ., open. what is it likely to deliver as far as we _ open. what is it likely to deliver as far as we can _ open. what is it likely to deliver as far as we can see, _ open. what is it likely to deliver as far as we can see, given - open. what is it likely to deliver. as far as we can see, given these delays, and when?— as far as we can see, given these delays, and when? that is the big ruestion, delays, and when? that is the big question. and _ delays, and when? that is the big question. and l— delays, and when? that is the big question, and i think, _ delays, and when? that is the big question, and i think, one - delays, and when? that is the big question, and i think, one thing i delays, and when? that is the big l question, and i think, one thing we do know, is this in certainty is doing the project no good. and also to key stakeholders. just after you had the weather, and it is snowing, there are hard—working people out there, delivering this project, and they really need to hear that management has got their back, not just for the bit they are working on now, but for the next few years. where is that were coming from and when is it going to happen? this uncertainty is causing them challenges. i am struggling to see how delaying it is going to help with the cost, either. that is not

something we usually see. why? because the _ something we usually see. why? because the government - something we usually see. why? because the government is - something we usually see. why? | because the government is facing increasing costs, and arguably, the pandemic has led to people travelling less for work and is working from home. is this project still going to be a government priority? still going to be a government riori ? , . priority? delaying the pro'ect might sread priority? delaying the pro'ect might s - read the priority? delaying the pro'ect might spread the cost, h priority? delaying the pro'ect might spread the cost, so _ priority? delaying the pro'ect might spread the cost, so how_ priority? delaying the project might spread the cost, so how much - priority? delaying the project might spread the cost, so how much does| priority? delaying the project might i spread the cost, so how much does it cost in one year reduces, but does it reduce the overall cost of the project? i think that is unlikely. it also starts to delay the benefits, so what people want to see is the project up and running, so i think it is really important that key people, indeed ministers, come out and get behind the project. remind us why it is important. it is a government priority project, so we can see all the money going in. what is coming out? a bit like the chancellor did injanuary, he was crystal clear about that commitment all the way through to euston. we need a bit more reinforcement of

what this project is going to deliver for the country. what do you see as the most _ deliver for the country. what do you see as the most likely, _ deliver for the country. what do you see as the most likely, if— deliver for the country. what do you see as the most likely, if we - deliver for the country. what do you see as the most likely, if we are - see as the most likely, if we are seeing the sections from manchester and birmingham to crewe being delayed? what are we likely to see and within what time frame? what delayed? what are we likely to see and within what time frame? what we are likel to and within what time frame? what we are likely to see _ and within what time frame? what we are likely to see and _ and within what time frame? what we are likely to see and what _ and within what time frame? what we are likely to see and what we - and within what time frame? what we are likely to see and what we should l are likely to see and what we should hope to see, i think are starting to part company a little bit. i think we will get more reassurance when we see the first trains going between london and birmingham. but i think that will give a huge boost in confidence, and then, what we really need to see, is progress being made up need to see, is progress being made up to crewe and manchester. the government can deliver some stuff before then. if this is then well designed, some of these trains can go on high speed and then back on the regular network. that will improve things, but i don�*t think we should lose sight of the bigger goal, of what this can really deliver. . ., , ., goal, of what this can really deliver. . . , ., ., ~ goal, of what this can really deliver. ., ., , ., ., ~ , ., deliver. paul chapman, thank you very much — deliver. paul chapman, thank you very much indeed. _ paul chapman, thank

you very much indeed. more than 500 schools across wales and the west midlands have been closed because of heavy snow. icy conditions gripped much of the uk overnight with minus sixteen degrees celsius recorded in the highlands, the coldest march temperature in more than a decade. the met office is warning of further snowstorms in northern england and wales with an amber amber warning in place for parts of the north midlands and the north of england, starting this afternoon. our reporter nick garnett has updates on closures from peak district. that road is managing to stay open, that is the main road between chesterfield and the north—west of england. if i come round a bit here, you can see that the smaller road, the more minor roads, they have gone completely. they were shutting at 9:30am. there was not an awful lot of notice that this bad weather was coming, and so the authorities have been out gritting, they have been working with all the local authorities to make sure that what could be done to prepare for this was being done properly. you have seen the roads, the main roads are staying open. the one that has shut in the last

few minutes is the a66 between penrith and scotch corner. that was shut because there is too much traffic on its, or wanting to use it, and there is no way off it once you get on it. that road is now being closed. these other roads, though, are staying open for now, at least. the problem is that tomorrow, there are three amber weather warnings in place, one in northern england, one in northern ireland and one in north wales. i�*m just going to have to move because there is another car coming towards us. those weather warnings are in place until tomorrow morning, at least. then they turn into yellow warnings as well, and that is going to continue on right the way through until the weekend. in some ways the bad weather is here to stay for quite awhile. is here to stay for quite a while. as i was saying about the authorities, schools have been planning this as well, so you have schools closing in the sheffield areas, in buxton which is over my shoulder somewhere in the distance,

most of the schools in buxton have already closed. in huddersfield they have already said that some of the schools are not going to open tomorrow as well. one other little bit of transport news, east midlands airport, the runway has been closed there. manchester airport, as far as we know, has managed to stay open. the weather is going to stay like this, perhaps not as bad as this, for a couple of days at least. the cost of childcare in the uk is soaring, with an average full time nursery place for a child under two now costing nearly £15,000 a year. a report by the charity coram says average costs have risen by nearly 6% while the availability of places has fallen. some parents say it�*s now so expensive to have their children looked after that they�*re being forced out of work the uk is one of the most expensive countries in the world for childcare. the average cost of a full—time nursery place for a child under two in great britain stands atjust under £15,000 a year. that puts the uk in the top three most expensive

countries in the world, according to the oecd. the only countries where parents need to spend a higher percentage of their income on childcare are switzerland and new zealand. around the world the costs vary hugely, with childcare costing much less in austria, hungary and portugal. some parents in the uk state is now so expensive that they are being forced out of work. hannah miller reports. hannah miller reports. # wake up, wake up...# the singing and the smiles come for free at this toddler group. but parents here are less enthused about spending to the tune of £15,000 on child care. that�*s the average full—time cost for a single child under two. and these parents say it�*s keeping them out of work. when i had my daughter, who�*s five, i had to quit myjob because we couldn�*t afford childcare. how did you feel about having to quit yourjob? it's so frustrating because you spend years working in something that you really enjoy and then you have to quit. i look forward to - going back to nursing. my plan is to goj back to nursing. if there'd be more options and if childcare had been. either cheaper or there was more flexibility -

or whatever, that would have definitely been something. i would have done. and my wife looks after her full—time. but it does put a strain on the bank account, especially with the energy bills going up and stuff like that. so childcare is something we�*ve considered. but then unless she managed to get a job, where the hourly pay was so much higher than the cost of the childcare, there would just literally be no point. purple. you are such a good girl knowing all your colours. brown. and the cost of childcare is only going one way. it is the glue on your fingers? it is it making your fingers sticky? at this nursery in st helens, they�*ve just announced a fee increase of 10% to cover wage rises, bills and business rates. how do you feel when you�*re asking parents for more money? i feel guilty. it really is hard to ask parents. it really is, because we know that for some of our parents

and many of them, they�*re actually paying more for childcare than they�*re paying for their mortgages, which is just crazy. how would you describe the state of childcare? in crisis. the government really, really needs to sort it out, help us, support us and understand that the first five years of a child�*s life are the most important. and if we don�*t want a broken economy, then we need to fix it. and in some places, it�*s already too late. this nursery in southampton is one of four that�*s closed in the past week. so normally we'd have about 50 children here. when parents are reliant on so—called free hours, which are paid for by the government, nurseries say the rate they get isn�*t keeping up with rising costs. it's been very, very difficult. the money that is provided via the local authorityjust isn't sufficient to be able to make it viable, unfortunately. the actual rate provided is over £2 per child per hour lower than actually it needs to be for us to really just cover our costs.

in the ones that we have closed in the past week there's over 100 families from deprived areas thatjust won't have that support now. and it leaves parents like kerry in a difficult situation. she wants to keep working as a carer, but her four—year—old�*s nursery has shut down. i've contacted so many nurseries, they're - full to the brim. i'm quite lucky really, i cos i have got my mum who will have olly. she adores olly, but it's not the same, is it? - it's not the same as. going to your nursery and interacting every day with a group of children. | so, yeah, it was a little bit sad and a little bit worried| really, because now what'sl he going to be like when he goes to school with no social interaction, really? - the government says it recognises that families and early years providers are facing financial pressures, but nurseries across the country warn that without imminent action we�*ll be counting the cost of a crisis in child care long after these children are grown up.

hannah miller, bbc news. we can speak now to kirsty lester, managing director of sunbeams day care in dorset. thank you forjoining us. how old other children that you look after, and do you mind telling us how much the fees are for parents? we and do you mind telling us how much the fees are for parents?— the fees are for parents? we look after children _ the fees are for parents? we look after children from _ the fees are for parents? we look after children from babies, - the fees are for parents? we look after children from babies, from i after children from babies, from four months, right up to ten or 11, when we do after and holiday clubs. look after children of all ages. the fees vary and it is too complex to try to explain, but basically we are not getting funded enough by the government per hour, for the free entitlement, as they call it, and so the costs have to be taken into account. ., . ., , ., ., account. how much do you get from the government, _ account. how much do you get from the government, if— account. how much do you get from the government, if it _ account. how much do you get from the government, if it is _ account. how much do you get from the government, if it is a _ account. how much do you get from the government, if it is a child - the government, if it is a child under two? we the government, if it is a child under two?— the government, if it is a child under two? ~ ., �* ., , under two? we don't get anything from the government _ under two? we don't get anything from the government for - under two? we don't get anything from the government for children | from the government for children under two, that the point, it is too messy, the system. we are here, doing a really good job, but the system for parents to try to claim

is complex. system for parents to try to claim is complex— is complex. have you seen then risin: is complex. have you seen then rising costs _ is complex. have you seen then rising costs at _ is complex. have you seen then rising costs at your _ is complex. have you seen then rising costs at your end - is complex. have you seen then rising costs at your end as - is complex. have you seen then | rising costs at your end as well? absolutely. minimum wage has gone up since 2017. the government freely admitted in 2017 that they were under funding admitted in 2017 that they were underfunding is by almost admitted in 2017 that they were under funding is by almost 50%, admitted in 2017 that they were underfunding is by almost 50%, and that has got worse. we have been in crisis for quite a while. now it has been compounded. we have no retention, we can�*t attract staff. we are underfunded and nurseries are closing left right and centre. even if they fixed all the money that they want to put into it, there aren�*t any of us left to do the job. are you worried about keeping open? absolutely. it�*s been a worry for the last three years, where can we make cuts, and we have got to the point where there is nowhere else to make cuts. there are a lot of hidden costs that parents don�*t seek to provide a quality child care service. we wouldn�*t be charging as much now if we were getting more from the government for the bits that were supposed to be free. good

quality childcare costs money, so do we want quality educational care for our under fives, we want quality educational care for our underfives, what we want quality educational care for our under fives, what we want to budget baby—sitting service. lanthem budget baby-sitting service. when ou sa budget baby-sitting service. when you say you _ budget baby-sitting service. when you say you are — budget baby-sitting service. when you say you are struggling - budget baby—sitting service. when you say you are struggling to retain staff, why is that?— staff, why is that? because of the -a . we staff, why is that? because of the pay- we are _ staff, why is that? because of the pay- we are paying _ staff, why is that? because of the pay. we are paying minimum - staff, why is that? because of the l pay. we are paying minimum wage. these are quality, skilled, dedicated staff. we have a was paid more than minimum wage, but because that has gone up by such a lot in the last few years, but our income hasn�*t, the government is the biggest purchaser of childcare in this country, and yet it sets the rates, and we are being underfunded by at least 40 to 50%. what rates, and we are being underfunded by at least 40 to 50%.— by at least 40 to 50%. what are arents by at least 40 to 50%. what are parents saying _ by at least 40 to 50%. what are parents saying to _ by at least 40 to 50%. what are parents saying to you? - by at least 40 to 50%. what are parents saying to you? they - by at least 40 to 50%. what are - parents saying to you? they worried about your place closing? obviously it is critical to have safe childcare, good childcare, to allow parents to go to work?— parents to go to work? absolutely and there are _ parents to go to work? absolutely and there are enough _ parents to go to work? absolutely and there are enough spaces - parents to go to work? absolutely. and there are enough spaces where there are people are happy to leave their children. we are looking for building a relationship that builds trust between you for your most precious commodity. you are leaving

your children with us. it is really difficult to try to explain to them where all of those hidden costs are. how much more do you think the government should be providing, say, for a business like yours christmas can you give us a percentage? in 2017 there was a white paper published. they admitted they should have been paying £7 39 an hour. my rates this term has just increased to £4 52. it depends on the age. thank you very much for sharing those details and your thoughts with us. us. police officers spend an estimated 20 to 40% of their time dealing with mental health calls and incidents. now new data obtained by the bbc shows the number of these incidents recorded by forces in england, wales and scotland have increased significantly over a five year period. newsnight�*s uk editor sima kotecha has had exclusive access to a triage vehicle in liverpool attending

mental health calls with a medic and a police officer. and a warning there is reference to suicide in this report. you might go from speaking to somebody who is seriously considering taking their own life. owen is a mental health nurse. we can try and help them and give them access to services that can can support around their mental health. with police officer paul, they travel through the streets of liverpool visiting those who are experiencing poor mental health. it'sjust about speaking to people with respect. they might have experienced mental health crisis, or they might be in some sort of mental health episode. so i always think that we should always deal with people correctly, no matter what. police can detain someone if they�*re thought to be mentally vulnerable. but they argue having owen here helps to prevent that, because he can try and get the person the help they need. data obtained by newsnight shows

that 21 forces recorded a significant increase in mental health incidents over the last five years. here in merseyside, there�*s been a nearly fourfold increase. it�*s late afternoon, and we�*ve just pulled up outside a house. we�*re about to go and see a veteran who has been in contact with the police on several occasions before, talking about wanting to take his own life. so we�*re going to go in inside and see if he�*s ok. 21 years, raf. i don�*t know, i don�*t know how to save my life. i think i�*ve been in prison about eight times. i think i�*ve been to court about 53 times. no one cares, love. no one cares. how does calling paul and owen help you? it keeps me alive. it�*s all i�*ve got. senior police officers have

spoken out about spending too much time on cases like this one. but people like paul often call 999 as their first resort when looking for help. the home office says to free up police time, a new approach is being developed, which will make it easier for staff in police control rooms to identify the right agency to deploy at the outset, when responding to 999 calls concerning people in a mental health crisis. paul and owen feel working together is effective, where enforcement and empathy meet to save lives.

that is doodle a half. a 25—year—old singer from london is to be the uk�*s entry for this year�*s eurovision song contest. mae muller will perform �*i wrote a song�* at the competition in liverpool in may. let�*s catch up with the weather. plenty more snow to come particularly in the northern half of the uk, with strong gusty winds to at times, leading to blizzard —like conditions. this is powys in wales. there are three amber weather warnings. the first for northern

ireland, the next four wales and parts of shropshire. the third for the north midlands, northwards into the north midlands, northwards into the pennines and particularly high snowfall totals for here. we have a deep area of low pressure moving eastwards over the next 24 hours or so, but it is pretty much stalled over the central swathe of the uk. there are some strong gusty winds. cold air towards the north, milder further south. all of this across southern england and south wales is falling as rain, but there could be some heavy thundery downpours as we head through the rest of the day. all the concern is for within these warning areas where the snow will just keep on falling for the rest of the day. it will be very windy, blizzard —like conditions with drifting snow. a range of temperatures, 12 or 13 in devon and cornwall in that much milder air towards the south. overnight tonight the snow will continue to fall for many, drifting snow and blizzards. treacherous driving conditions, and on the edge of this area of low pressure some very strong gusty

winds to four coastal areas of the south—western to the channel tricky travelling conditions. there will be thrust from the midlands northwards, maybe —15 or 16 celsius in the northern highlands as we start off on friday. on friday this area of low pressure will eventually be pulling its way southwards and eastwards into the near continent. it will start off the early part of the morning with some snow across and parts of northern ireland, but that will be clearing as we head through the early part of the morning and then the snow across north wales should also start to clear. still some snow for the pennines, northern england, as we head through the morning, but that�*s no risk transfers further into lincolnshire pop, possibly east anglia. wejoin a northerly lincolnshire pop, possibly east anglia. we join a northerly wind and that will blow down some showers across scotland and northern england as we had throughout the day. there will be some brighter skies as well, feeling cold wherever you are with plenty of added wind chill. the winds lighted by the end of the day.

this is bbc news — welcome if you�*re watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories... russia has launched more than 80 missiles at ukraine. sustained strikes hit the kharkiv and odesa regions killing at least nine people and leaving much of the capital, kyiv, without electricity. of the capital, kyiv, the head of the un�*s nuclear watchdog warns �*this cannot go on�* after the overnight strikes left the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant without power. ukraine now says the power supply to the plant has been restored. we are rolling a dice here and there will be a day when our luck will run out. tens of thousands of people take part in demonstrations in israel against proposed reforms to the judicial system. childcare costs rise sharply in england, scotland and wales —

a new report shows that one in four parents say the cost of their childcare is now more than 75% of their take—home pay. bbc presenter gary lineker says he stands by his comments attacking the uk government�*s latest immigration policy. the home secretary has said that his comparisons are offensive. to the home secretary has said that his comparisons are offensive.— comparisons are offensive. to throw out those flippant _ comparisons are offensive. to throw out those flippant analogies - out those flippant analogies diminishes the unspeakable tragedy that millions of people went through. weather warnings for heavy snow in the uk. the cold conditions are expected to last until the weekend. hello and welcome to bbc news. at least nine people have been killed in ukraine as the country has

again come under sustained russian missile attack. there�*s been severe damage to parts of its energy infrastructure as well as residential areas. the mayor of kyiv says 40% of the capital�*s residents are without heating. shelling overnight in southern ukraine has damaged the only functioning power line used for electricity to cool the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which is occupied by russia. (map)the ukrainian military said more than 80 mostly by russia. the ukrainian military said more than 80 mostly air—launched cruise missiles were fired at areas, including these shown here. just under half are said to have been intercepted by air defences. our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, reports. this is what a cruise missile can do. a residential part of lviv in the far west of ukraine. homes turned to rubble. streets torn apart. lives turned upside down. in all, five people died here. this may be hundreds of miles from the fighting, but this morning, it�*s very much on the front line. in all, russia launched more than 80 missiles, more than 40,

getting through the air defences, many striking energy infrastructure here in southwest kyiv, but also in cities like odesa in the south and kharkiv in the north. crucially, shelling cut off power to the zappa region nuclear power plant, the largest in europe, currently under russian control. it�*s now running on diesel generators, but the risk of reactors overheating is real. much to the concern of the un nuclear watchdog. in a residential area in northwest kyiv, cars were damaged by falling debris and shrapnel after a russian drone was shot down in the sky. two people were injured and taken to hospital. there was an explosion in the sky. i saw smoke and fire. viktor told us how his car was damaged and how he tried to help his neighbours. the cars were set on fire. we took fire extinguishers from our vehicles to try and put them out, but it didn�*t succeed

and the fires spread. the firefighters then arrived and put it all out. i'm fed up with it. can't stand all this. i don't have the strength any more. why are they doing this? they're not acting like humans. they're scaring the children. these strikes might have been targeted against energy infrastructure, but here not so much. as you can see, cars damaged, some of them destroyed and burnt out all around me. there�*s windows have been blown in and the residents blocks and over here, debris litters this children�*s playground. meanwhile, fighting continues in the east, with ukraine appearing to bolster its forces near barmouth. despite reports of a possible withdrawal, commanders said the importance of holding the city was growing. james landale, bbc news, kyiv. earlier i spoke to rafael mariano grossi,

the director geral of the iaea, the international atomic energy agency, and asked about the extent of the damage at zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. overnight, we had news from our team of experts at the plant that due to a series of attacks, by the way, have covered most of the territory of ukraine, as i think you have been reporting, there have been a complete cut of the off site power lines, thereby letting the plant without any source for its cooling systems, which are, of course essential for the safety of the reactors. hence the emergency systems, the emergency generators kicked in. and so they have been, i mean, the largest nuclear power plant in europe, for the sixth time since the beginning of the war, has been working

on emergency diesel generators, which is absolutely mindboggling. what i can say is that at the moment, people are working to try to repair 750 kilowatt line. that was the one that was affected so as to be able to stop the emergency systems and keep cooling the plant in a normal way. the iaea, the agency, the nuclear agency that i preside, has been working relentlessly to try to set up some protection mechanism around the plant. can you spell out the risks and how long that back—up line can work? the long that back-up line can work? the dancer long that back-up line can work? the dan . er as long that back-up line can work? the dancer as i long that back—up line can work? tt9: danger as i have been long that back—up line can work? tt9 danger as i have been saying is that the reactors eventually, when you

stop having a cooling function, they could eventually melt down. thus leading to a major accident with severe radiological effects. the emergency systems, which do exist, can operate for a few days, maybe ten days or something, of course, depending on the availability of fuel to make them run. these are emergency generators like the ones that you can have in a private house or in a normal installation anywhere, so, here, as i want to repeat, here we are talking about six nuclear power reactors, the biggest nuclear site in europe so you can see how enormously incredible the situation is and this is why the agency, the nuclear agency that i preside over, has been

working relentlessly to try to set “p working relentlessly to try to set up some protection mechanism around the plan. —— the plant. and is that working at all? it�*s very difficult, i must say. i have been i started my negotiations back in september. i�*ve been several times in kyiv and in moscow. i�*ve seen, of course, many times my natural interlocutor for this, who is the president of ukraine, volodymyr zelensky. i�*ve also met with president putin to tell you the degree of importance i suppose both sides give to this problem, but so far we have not been able to come to a point of agreement. we have been making progress, i think i have been making progress. but there�*s always something some some additional point, some additional expectation. and as we can see, and i said today to the board of governors of the iaea,

we are rolling a dice here, and there will be a day when our luck will run out. so i have been making very serious appeal for everybody to support the iaea in setting protection for the... this has nothing to do with the military operations. this is militarily neutral, but it could, of course, spare us all from a catastrophic accident. what would that accident mean if it was to happen? who would be affected and in what way? well, it would, of course, depend on the dimension of the accident, how many reactors will be affected and what kind of radiological release you would have. so you could have different scenarios. it is like saying how bad is going to be the crash that i�*m going to have? well, you know, you�*re going to have a crash, try to avoid it, then it could be a complete disaster or you could be less harm. it depends, but we don�*t want to try this. so the idea is to to avoid this

by establishing a commitment on both sides on something which is very simple. and i think the audience will understand it very, very easily. don�*t shoot at a nuclear power plant. live now to kyiv and christina katrakis, a un ambassador to ukraine for the un sustainable development goals foundation. did you feel or see the attacks over thank you for having me. basically, all night, bombing and shelling and missiles and you know that ukraine was attacked with all kinds of missiles this time so it�*s really unprecedented. even though the ukrainian air defence worked very

well, 34 out of 48 were shot down and for drones but still the missiles landed and hit the ground. kyiv saw probably about three — four big explosions that i was able to hear and around five o�*clock, that�*s when the really big explosion happened, when the missile hit really close to our house here in a district. russians were targeting basically infra— structure once again and not any military objects or military —related issues and areas. once again, we see russians targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure. they did do damage to the electric plant in kyiv so there was a loss of electricity in some areas after five o�*clock, after that last missile landing, and internet failure, still no hot water

at least in our place and no heating in some places as well. but it is slowly, slowly coming back. as you know, i�*m an american and i�*m here with my seven—year—old sun, mark, he is also an american, he was shaken, shaken at five o�*clock, we all went to our own box shelter where we spent all this time of attack and air raid this morning and this night. air raid this morning and this niuht. : , :, air raid this morning and this niuht. : y:, :, air raid this morning and this niuht. : :, :, .,~ night. are you going to take him home now? _ night. are you going to take him home now? must— night. are you going to take him home now? must be _ night. are you going to take him home now? must be absolutelyl home now? must be absolutely terrifying to through that. we made our decision — terrifying to through that. we made our decision on _ terrifying to through that. we made our decision on the _ terrifying to through that. we made our decision on the first _ terrifying to through that. we made our decision on the first day - terrifying to through that. we made our decision on the first day of - terrifying to through that. we made our decision on the first day of war. our decision on the first day of war and we decided to stay because we figure if everybody leaves it�*s going to help. as long as we stay together as a family, that makes it much easier even for a child, so as long as he sees that his mum and dad are together and everybody is, one, as a family, that makes a whole different. but of course, for many children, it�*s very dramatic. they

basically live in a different reality, you cannot even imagine what reality they have to deal with. in addition, ourfoundation provides help forfront line. so in addition, ourfoundation provides help for front line. so we do trips to all front line areas and help civilians and children there who are still living there, in fact, we just returned from the donetsk region front line, from many other regions as well, where people are still living in the basement because all of the buildings are destroyed and they have no water at all, no electricity, no heat, so they basically live in the basements with with that they burn so we started a programme called power to ukraine with the light and we have ambassadors such as charles wes lee, ambassadors such as charles wes lee, a famous hollywood film producer,

lennon miss and other companies and people who help and participate and try to bring power to ukraine to be the light. we were able to provide generators and power stations, food, clothing, rechargeable lights, medical supplies, all the important basics. of course, some british partners such as tanya parks and the phoenix group were very helpful at night but what we need right now is help on the big scale because we realise that we need help before a difference and we read it now. we cannot wait for things to happen. this is not ukraine�*s war, this is a world war. this is not ukraine's war, this is a world war-— this is not ukraine's war, this is a world war. :, ,, , :, , . world war. thank you very much. un ambassador— world war. thank you very much. un ambassador to _ world war. thank you very much. un ambassador to the _ world war. thank you very much. un ambassador to the ukraine - world war. thank you very much. un ambassador to the ukraine for- world war. thank you very much. un ambassador to the ukraine for the i ambassador to the ukraine for the un. we wish you the best and of course your sun, we hope he is all

right and all of those other children living through this. protests in georgia have forced the ruling party to withdraw controversial plans to identify what it calls �*foreign agents�* who it claims are trying to undermine the country. protestors fear the plans would limit civil liberties and target criticaljournalists and media outlets. our caucasus correspondent, rayhan demytrie, has sent this report from the georgian capital, tbilisi. after two days of mass protests in the georgian capital tbilisi against a controversial foreign agents bill, the government announced on thursday morning it was withdrawing the draft legislation to keep the peace. the bill would have targeted non—governmental and media organisations that receive more than 20% of their funding from abroad. last night, police used water cannons and tear gas to clear the streets of thousands of pro—western georgians opposed to the bill.

protesters fear this law threatens georgia�*s chances ofjoining the european union and will take the country back into russia�*s orbit. i�*m here along with all these people to guarantee that there will never be russian rule here ever. many georgians believe the legislation was introduced here to weaken their own democracy. western funded civil society organisations, the primary target of this legislation, play an important role holding the government to account. what this law is really about is making it possible for the government to stigmatise, marginalise, and eventually silence organisations and media that are critical of the government. though the government has promised to withdraw the bill, protesters say the fight is not over yet. georgians opposed to this legislation believe this is a pivotal moment for the country, that this fight is at heart a fight for their own freedom.

and freedom here means joining europe and escaping russia�*s influence. protesters have promised to return to the streets until they have guarantees from the government that there will be no russian style law in georgia. rayhan demytrie, bbc news, tbilisi. tens of thousands of israelis have taken part in the latest day of demonstrations against the government�*s proposed radical overhaul of thejudicial system. protesters tried to block the roads around tel aviv airport, forcing the prime minister benjamin netanyahu to take a helicopter there. opponents of the plan say that it�*s a threat to israel�*s democracy. our middle east correspondent, tom bateman, has the latest. this is the main road that runs north—south in tel aviv. you can see the protesters. they breached the road, the police had been trying to stop them, they came down here, jumped over the fence, we followed them over as we were filming, they got

on the road and blocked it. this is exactly what israel�*s far right police minister said he would not accept. he called these protesters anarchists. you can hear them chanting for democracy. we are just going to stop here and you can see the mounted police here. we watched as the mounted police came along the street, the protesters dug in, dozens were sitting on the road, and at that point they pushed them back. and there is now more of a stand—off. we saw one man being dragged away, arrested. so what is this all about? this is all about the new nationalist israeli government led by benjamin netanyahu pushing through a series ofjudicial reforms that would, as

its critics say, strip the israel supreme court of his independence and would stack the judiciary in favour of the government. it is led to increasing protests over the weeks, now we think things culminate even further and the way this is spread is also unprecedented, into israel�*s military, its security forces, we have seen this week, reservists in israel saying that they would refuse to serve, training because of this issue. they say this as israel turning into a democracy. we are now seeing a bit more movement with the protesters he ever stop the government, for its part, says that they are just trying to restore the balance between the executive and the judiciary and that is not abnormal but it has led to increasing tension and increasing clash here over the future of this country. all of this is meant to be as benjamin netanyahu is due to fly out to italy for a state visit, protesters have been trying to block the main airport, he has given an

interview to the italian media, in the to that, he said that all of this proves that israel is a thriving democracy, as many critics here say he is trying to destroy that. the cost of childcare in the uk is soaring, with an average full time nursery place for a child under two now costing nearly £15,000 a year. a report by the charity coram says average costs have risen by nearly 6 %, while the availability of places has fallen. the uk is one of the most expensive countries in the world for childcare. the average cost of a full—time nursery place for a child under two in great britain stands atjust under £15,000 a year. that puts the uk in the top three most expensive countries in the world, according to the oecd. the only countries where parents need to spend a higher percentage of their income on childcare are switzerland and new zealand. around the world the

costs vary hugely — with childcare costing much less in austria, hungary and portugal. some parents in the uk say it�*s now so expensive to have their children looked after that they�*re being forced out of work as hannah miller reports. # wake up, wake up...# the singing and the smiles come for free at this toddler group. but parents here are less enthused about spending to the tune of £15,000 on child care. that�*s the average full—time cost for a single child under two. and these parents say it�*s keeping them out of work. when i had my daughter, who�*s five, i had to quit myjob because we couldn�*t afford childcare. how did you feel about having to quit yourjob? it's so frustrating because you spend years working in something that you really enjoy and then you have to quit. i look forward to - going back to nursing. my plan is to goj back to nursing. if there'd be more options and if childcare had been. either cheaper or there was more flexibility - or whatever, that would have definitely been something. i would have done. and my wife looks after her full—time. but it does put a strain on the bank account,

especially with the energy bills going up and stuff like that. so childcare is something we�*ve considered. but then unless she managed to get a job, where the hourly pay was so much higher than the cost of the childcare, there would just literally be no point. purple. you are such a good girl knowing all your colours. brown. and the cost of childcare is only going one way. it is the glue on your fingers? it is it making your fingers sticky? at this nursery in st helens, they�*ve just announced a fee increase of 10% to cover wage rises, bills and business rates. how do you feel when you�*re asking parents for more money? i feel guilty. it really is hard to ask parents. it really is because we know that for some of our parents and many of them, they�*re actually paying more for childcare than they�*re paying for their mortgages, which is just crazy. how would you describe the state of childcare? in crisis. the government really, really needs to sort it out, help us,

support us and understand that the first five years of a child�*s life are the most important. and if we don�*t want a broken economy, then we need to fix it. and in some places, it�*s already too late. this nursery in southampton is one of four that�*s closed in the past week. so normally we'd have about 50 children here. when parents are reliant on so—called free hours, which are paid for by the government, nurseries say the rate they get isn�*t keeping up with rising costs. it's been very, very difficult. the money that is provided via the local authorityjust isn't sufficient to be able to make it viable, unfortunately. the actual rate provided is over £2 per child per hour lower than actually it needs to be for us to really just cover our costs. in the ones that we have closed in the past week there's over 100 families from deprived areas thatjust won't have that support now. and it leaves parents like kerry in a difficult situation. she wants to keep working as a carer, but her

four—year—old�*s nursery has shut down. i've contacted so many nurseries, they're - full to the brim. i'm quite lucky really, i cos i have got my mum who will have olly. she adores olly, but it's not the same, is it? - it's not the same as. going to your nursery and interacting every day with a group of children. | so, yeah, it was a little bit sad and a little bit worried| really, because now what'sl he going to be like when he goes to school with no social interaction, really? - the government says it recognises that families and early years providers are facing financial pressures, but nurseries across the country warn that without imminent action we�*ll be counting the cost of a crisis in child care long after these children are grown up. hannah miller, bbc news.

it�*s been revealed that ben van beurden, the former boss of the energy firm, shell, was paid almost £10 million last year. that�*s up 50% on his pay in 2021. shell reported the highest annual profits in its 115—year history last year after a surge in energy prices following russia�*s invasion of ukraine. the israeli actor topol, whose career was defined by the musical fiddler on the roof, has died aged 87. # if i were a rich man...# haim topol won international fame playing the milkman tevye in the hollywood version of the musical and he played the part on stage more than 3,500 times. his credits also include a role in the 1981 bond film for your eyes only.

the actor chaim topol, who has died at the age of 87. plenty more snowfall to come particularly in the northern half of the uk, over the next couple of days or so, with strong, gusty winds too at times, leading to blizzard—like conditions. this is powys in wales. we are starting to see the snowfall stack up here. there are three amber weather warnings. the first for northern ireland, the second for north wales and into parts of shropshire where there could also be some freezing rain falling, treacherous driving conditions here. the third for the north midlands, northwards into the pennines and particularly high snowfall totals for here. we have a deep area of low pressure moving eastwards over the next 24 hours or so, but it is pretty much stalled over the central swathe of the uk. there are some strong, gusty winds. cold air towards the north, milder further south. all of this across southern england

and south wales is falling as rain, but there could be some heavy, thundery downpours as we head through the rest of the day. all the concern is for within these warning areas where the snow willjust keep on falling for the rest of the day. it will be very windy, blizzard—like conditions with drifting snow possible. a range of temperatures, 12 or 13 in devon and cornwall in that much milder air towards the south. overnight tonight the snow will continue to fall for many, drifting snow and blizzards. treacherous driving conditions, and on the edge of this area of low pressure some very strong, gusty winds too for coastal areas of the far south west and into the channel islands. tricky travelling conditions for much of the country, particularly the transpennine route. there will be a frost from the midlands northwards, maybe —15 or 16 celsius in the northern highlands as we start off on friday. on friday this area of low pressure will eventually be pulling its way southwards and eastwards into the near continent. it will start off the early part

of the morning with some snow across and parts of northern ireland, but that will be clearing as we head through the early part of the morning and then the snow across north wales should also start to clear. still some snow for the pennines, northern england, as we head through the morning, but that�*s no risk transfers further into lincolnshire pop, possibly east anglia. we join a northerly wind and that will blow down some showers across scotland and northern england as we had throughout the day. there will be some brighter skies as well, feeling cold wherever you are with plenty of added wind chill. the winds lighter by the end of the day.

this is bbc news — welcome if you�*re watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories? russia has launched more than 80 missiles at ukraine. sustained strikes hit the kharkiv and odesa regions killing at least nine people and leaving much of the capital, kyiv, without electricity. the head of the un�*s nuclear watchdog warns �*this cannot go on�* after the overnight strikes left the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant without power. ukraine now says the power supply to the plant has been restored. we are rolling a dice here and there will be a day when our luck will run out. tens of thousands of people take part in demonstrations in israel against proposed reforms to the judicial system. child care costs rise sharply in england,

scotland and wales — a new report shows that one in four parents say the cost of their childcare is now more than 75% of their take—home pay. bbc presenter gary lineker says he stands by his comments attacking the uk government�*s latest immigration policy. the home secretary suella braverman has defended the policy and says mr lineker�*s comparisons are offensive. to throughout those flippant analogies, diminishes the unspeakable tragedy that millions of people went through. weather warnings for heavy snow in the uk. the cold conditions are expected to last until the weekend. the bbc understands the uk government is about to announce a delay to the construction of certain sections of britain�*s

new high speed rail line, known as hs2 to save money. the delay is likely to affect sections from manchester to crewe and birmingham to crewe. the project has run billions of pounds over budget and is years behind schedule. hs2 is the uk government�*s flagship transport levelling up project and the largest infrastructure project in europe. our transport correspondent katy austin says the project has long been beset by delays and rising costs. where we�*re at now, is that about 40% of work to build the first phase, between london, orwest london, and birmingham, has actually been done. the idea is then that that would open by 2033 and the the parts between west london midland and crewe is due by 2034, and it would which

manchester by 2044. plans to go all the way to leeds were scrapped. inflation has posed a fresh challenge when it comes to costs, and behind—the—scenes, hs2 and the department for transport have been looking at the project�*s overall scope and timing as they try to find ways of trying to control costs. in a move apparently aimed at spreading out spending over a longer period of time, we are expecting the government to announce delays, particularly to the second part of hs2, between birmingham and manchester, and possibly the euston end of things too. it is unclear exactly when that announcement will come but we are expecting it to be sue. i�*m joined now by andy bowes—roden, deputy editor of modern railways. you�*ll make i can�*t see how this benefits anyone. the work that might take place over the next couple of years will take longer, it will cost more and construction will take longer, that will cost more. the benefits we get, the revenue from

hsz benefits we get, the revenue from hs2 will also be delayed. to top it all, local communities all the way from birmingham to crewe, face even more disruption and uncertainty for longer. forthe more disruption and uncertainty for longer. for the life of me, i cannot see a single good reason for doing this. to see a single good reason for doing this. :, ~' see a single good reason for doing this. :, ,, :, , this. to think the government is still committed _ this. to think the government is still committed to _ this. to think the government is still committed to making - this. to think the government is still committed to making this l this. to think the government is - still committed to making this work? i think it is, otherwise it would have cancelled phase two to crewe and to manchester. this is the worst of all worlds. as taxpayers, whether you support it or oppose it, this railway is probably going to end up costing us more and will take longer for the benefits to come through. we need this railway, we need this extra capacity on the west coast main line between london and crewe, because doing that means we suddenly transform the ability of europe�*s busiest mixed—use railway. there is nothing else that comes close to london to crewe in terms of busyness and the variety of traffic it carries. we can transform the amount of freight it carries, we can

transform the amount of local and regional trains, and you can even, if you want to, start looking to reconnect communities that was severed 60 years ago. in reconnect communities that was severed 60 years ago.— reconnect communities that was severed 60 years ago. in terms of eo - le severed 60 years ago. in terms of people commuting _ severed 60 years ago. in terms of people commuting for _ severed 60 years ago. in terms of people commuting for work, - severed 60 years ago. in terms of people commuting for work, is i severed 60 years ago. in terms of| people commuting for work, is not fair to say that people are working from home and travelling less, and a genuine question about the value of all of this? we genuine question about the value of all of this? ~ :, , genuine question about the value of all of this? 9 . , ,:, all of this? we are seeing, in some arts of all of this? we are seeing, in some parts of the — all of this? we are seeing, in some parts of the country, _ all of this? we are seeing, in some parts of the country, that _ all of this? we are seeing, in some| parts of the country, that passenger numbers are higher than they were before pandemic. in west cornwall it is way ahead. this demand may come back. it may take a different form and railfreight demand, something we often overlook, in transport terms, is booming. we need more transport capacity. most people aren�*t really bothered whether it is road or rail. the reality is a new railway takes up about a third of the space is a new motorway, which would be the only other alternative for the same transport capacity. hs2

has its problems, it has its issues with costs, but if it is happening, the sections will be built and delaying it doesn�*t benefit anybody. it is hard to think of a decision on hsz that it is hard to think of a decision on hs2 that any government has made, that benefits nobody at all false white whose fault is it that it is run so much over budget and has seen so many delays? why has this happened? it is a long time in the planning. there is a lot of environmental mitigations that the victorians wouldn�*t have looked at, they would have driven straight through things. that is part of it, at the design phase. there are certainly questions about the amount of consultants that have been applied and for how long, and the rates that have been charged. as anyone who has looked at getting a quote for a house extension in the last year will know, prices of everything have shot up. there is a combination of factors. we have got to get this done, we have a north—south transport crunch,

whether it is road or rail, and this is the only game in town. we don�*t do anything something else will take its place and we will be doing it in 20 years�* time. we could be having this conversation again in 20 years�* time. this conversation again in 20 years' time. , , ., ,:, this conversation again in 20 years' time. , , ., , time. lets see if we are both still here! thank _ time. lets see if we are both still here! thank you _ time. lets see if we are both still here! thank you very _ time. lets see if we are both still here! thank you very much. i time. lets see if we are both still here! thank you very much. just | time. lets see if we are both still. here! thank you very much. just to let you know about some news coming in from the georgian capital, to blue sea. the georgian president has hailed test is a victory after the government dropped a controversial bill. thousands of people are still joining anti—government demonstrations in georgia that we are telling you about. it does look as though there has been some movement on that and the protesters are still on the streets. the georgian president saying that he was in the us for an official visit and saying she would veto the bill.

lots of people still on the streets in tblisi, but it does look as though there has been political movement there. the bbc�*s highest paid presenter gary lineker says he�*s "looking forward" to hosting match of the day on saturday. earlier, he said he was standing by his criticism of the government�*s asylum policy after likening the language used by ministers, to that of nazi germany. downing street called his remarks �*unacceptable�*. in a tweet lineker said: "it�*s been an interesting couple of days. happy that this ridiculously out of proportion story seems to be abating and very much looking forward to presenting @bbc match of the day on saturday." thanks again for all your incredible support. it�*s been overwhelming. our media correspondent david sillito reports. as he left home today, gary lineker didn�*t have a lot to say about the furore about his comments about the government�*s policy on migrants. he did say he stood by his words and he was asked

if he feared suspension. do you fear getting suspended? no. but he had a little to say about what the director general of the bbc may or may not have said to him. has the director general said anything to you? what has he said? he said, "well, we have a chat. we chat often. anything about the tweet, gary? do you regret sending the tweet at all? no. the tweets which have led to all of this began with a description of the home secretary�*s statement as "beyond awful." he then defended the statement, saying the policy was "immeasurably cruel" and added that the language used is not dissimilar to that used by germany in the 30s. does my friend agree that the requirement to be politically impartial must cover all those who are presenters on the bbc, including the highest paid? in the commons today the culture secretary said those comments were disappointing and inappropriate. it�*s important for the bbc to maintain impartiality if it is to retain the trust of the public who pay the licence fee.

the bbc is operationally independent and i�*m pleased that the bbc will be speaking to gary lineker to remind him of his responsibilities in relation to social media. that conversation, the bbc said, was going to be frank, but further than that, no one�*s said anything yet. david sillitoe, bbc news. the home secretary has responded to gary lineker�*s comments about her immigration policy — she said his characterisation is offensive and "diminishes the unspeakable tragedy" of the holocaust. suella braverman was speaking to nick robinson on the political thinking podcast. i think it is, from a personal point of view, to hear that kind of characterisation, is offensive. as you said, my husband isjewish, my children are therefore directly descendant from people who were murdered in gas chambers during the holocaust. my husband�*s family is very,

you know, feels very keenly the impact of the holocaust, actually. to throw out those kind of flippant analogies, diminishes the unspeakable tragedy that millions of people went through. i don�*t think that anything that is happening in the uk today can come close to what happened in the holocaust. i find it a lazy and unhelpful comparison to make. more than five hundred schools across wales and the west midlands have been closed because of heavy snow. icy conditions gripped much of the uk overnight with minus sixteen degrees celsius recorded in the highlands —— the coldest march temperature in more than a decade. the met office is warning of further snowstorms in northern england and wales with an amber warning in place for parts of the north midlands

and the north of england, starting this afternoon. our reporter nick garnett has updates on closures from peak district. that road is managing to stay open, that is the main road between chesterfield and the north—west of england. if i come round a bit here, you can see that the smaller road, the more minor roads, they have gone completely. they were shutting at 9:30am. there was not an awful lot of notice that this bad weather was coming, and so the authorities have been out gritting, they have been working with all the local authorities to make sure that what could be done to prepare for this was being done properly. you have seen the roads, the main roads are staying open. the one that has shut in the last few minutes is the a66 between penrith and scotch corner. that was shut because there is too much traffic on it, or wanting to use it, and there is no way off it once you get on it. that road is now being closed. these other roads, though, are staying open for now, at least. the problem is that tomorrow, there are three amber weather warnings in place, one in northern england,

one in northern ireland and one in north wales. i�*m just going to have to move because there is another car coming towards us. those weather warnings are in place until tomorrow morning, at least. then they turn into yellow warnings as well, and that is going to continue on right the way through until the weekend. in some ways the bad weather is here to stay for quite a while. as i was saying about the authorities, schools have been planning this as well, so you have schools closing in the sheffield areas, in buxton which is over my shoulder somewhere in the distance, most of the schools in buxton have already closed. in huddersfield they have already said that some of the schools are not going to open tomorrow as well. one other little bit of transport news, east midlands airport, the runway has been closed there. manchester airport, as far as we know, has managed to stay open. the weather is going to stay like this, perhaps not as bad as this, for a couple of days at least.

ijust want i just want to confirm the announcement on the fast rail between birmingham and crewe stop the government has confirmed it is going to be delayed by two years. the transport secretary has put out a statement that this was expected. they say they are still committed to supporting all forms of transport and have invested in travel between 2021 and 2022, 2023. but they are delaying some of the spending here and some of the infrastructure development. experts think the widespread use of carbon capture technology will be needed if the world is to avoid

dangerous levels of warning. i am john by professor of carbon capture. how much of a game changer is this latest method. this process has been going on in various methods around the world. :, : , going on in various methods around the world. :, . , ., , going on in various methods around the world. :, . , .,, , the world. conduct site has been se arated the world. conduct site has been separated from _ the world. conduct site has been separated from other _ the world. conduct site has been separated from other than i the world. conduct site has been separated from other than gases the world. conduct site has been i separated from other than gases for more than 100 years. what we are going through is a rapid evolution and improvement of innovation, because it is clear we need to develop a lot better carbon capture and storage. we also need to develop this entirely new industry of extracting the already emitted carbon dioxide from air. both of these need the existing techniques and technologies improved and made much more efficient, and to use less energy. that is what is going on here. this is the first report of a really quite novel and elegant way

of capturing carbon dioxide from air, which is much more sensitive, if you like, and can capture from very low quantities of concentration in air. :, , :, very low quantities of concentration in air. . , :, , very low quantities of concentration in air. . y:, , ., , very low quantities of concentration in air. . ,., , ., in air. can you tell us a bit about how it works _ in air. can you tell us a bit about how it works and _ in air. can you tell us a bit about how it works and whether - in air. can you tell us a bit about how it works and whether you i in air. can you tell us a bit about i how it works and whether you think it can be scaled up, and how fast? it is a very detailed report, although it is a preliminary report and still in the laboratory. we have to be a little cautious. what happens at the moment is that carbon dioxide gas is mixed in with the gas from a power station or an industry or a chemical works, or emitted from the back end of a car, even. to extract and separate that carbon dioxide a whole variety of techniques are used, but one of the most common is to use a chemical solvent called an amine. it can get

a good separation of carbon dioxide. to get the carbon dioxide back of the solvent you need to then heat it up the solvent you need to then heat it up to 90 degrees, 120 degrees, sometimes more. that uses a lot of energy and tends to partly destroy the solvent each time that goes round the loop. these folks have used some elegant chemistry to put a copper atom right in the centre of one of these amine compounds, adapting an existing compound. that copper enables the carbon dioxide to fasten on to it with very little energy, but securely. it also means that it energy, but securely. it also means thatitis energy, but securely. it also means that it is three times more effective than the existing solvents at catching the carbon dioxide from air. secondly, if you want to take the carbon dioxide off that copper molecule, all you need to do is, not heated, but to put sodium chloride solution through that material, so it is the same as sea water. as you

do that the carbon dioxide is released with very little energy, but it is can also be released directly into sea water, and sea water can dissolve a lot of carbon dioxide, if the carbon dioxide goes into the very deep water, which is hundreds of years old, and the carbon dioxide could stay down there for long periods of time to remove that from the atmosphere. professor, thank ou that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for— that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for taking _ that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for taking me _ that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for taking me back - that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for taking me back to i that from the atmosphere. professor, thank you for taking me back to my i thank you for taking me back to my chemistry lessons there. i hope everyone followed that. it sounds like a bit of good news on the climate front. thank you for your time. let�*s catch up on the latest business news now with ben thompson over to the us now... where president biden will outline his budget plans for next year. his aim is to reduce the federal budget deficit by $3 trillion over the next decade and raise taxes on wealthy people and top businesses. but don�*t expect any of this to be a done deal. the republicans hold the majority

in the house of representatives and are likely to reject most of the proposals. let�*s talk to samira in new york... it is not a done deal, and it could be quite the fight?— be quite the fight? absolutely. i think what's _ be quite the fight? absolutely. i think what's really _ be quite the fight? absolutely. i think what's really important i be quite the fight? absolutely. i think what's really important to | think what�*s really important to note is that, if you are operating in more of a parliamentary system, when you hear the word budget, you think 0k, when you hear the word budget, you think ok, this is the framework that the government is going to be using for the rest of the year, and it is going to be adopted. that isn�*t exactly the case right here right now. this first budget is basically outlining what us presidentjoe biden, and his administration, wants to do in the very near future, what their plans are, what their goals are, what their aspirations, frankly, are for the economy. the reality is that this is just presented, and then the republicans will present their own budget in the spring. to be honest, they are both going to look very different, and thatis

going to look very different, and that is when the battle begins. it that is when the battle begins. it could be a battle for the white house, of course. president biden perhaps laying out his plans for how he would like to be re—elected. a lot of these issues will be so divisive. it could also turn into an election campaign rather than a budget strategy. i election campaign rather than a budget strategy.— budget strategy. i think that is absolutely _ budget strategy. i think that is absolutely correct. _ budget strategy. i think that is absolutely correct. i— budget strategy. i think that is absolutely correct. i think i budget strategy. i think that is absolutely correct. i think if i budget strategy. i think that is. absolutely correct. i think if you look at just even absolutely correct. i think if you look atjust even some of the proposals, raising taxes on the wealthy, further protecting some of the social safety programmes that exist in the united states, or refunding them, putting more money into them. these are all things that are basically what republicans have said they are just not interested in. one of the ranking members of the republican party has already said that president biden�*s budget is what he called dead on arrival. it very much does it set up a lot of political fighting it very much does it set up a lot of politicalfighting between democrats political fighting between democrats and politicalfighting between democrats and republicans. as we know, this is and republicans. as we know, this is a very divided congress, so the idea of either side coming together and

creating a shared document, is really hard to believe. shill creating a shared document, is really hard to believe.- creating a shared document, is really hard to believe. all of this happening _ really hard to believe. all of this happening it _ really hard to believe. all of this happening it a — really hard to believe. all of this happening it a pretty _ really hard to believe. all of this happening it a pretty fragile i happening it a pretty fragile economic recovery. the jobs figures look quite good, but we can�*t read too much into those numbers right now. there are a lot of ifs, buts and maybes as to which way the economy is headed. that is or was the better ground when it comes to elections. :, : , the better ground when it comes to elections. .: , ., ., elections. exactly, and right now, for the democratic _ elections. exactly, and right now, for the democratic party, - elections. exactly, and right now, for the democratic party, they i elections. exactly, and right now, | for the democratic party, they are wearing a lot more of this high level of inflation, even though in some respects, the economy is doing goodin some respects, the economy is doing good in some areas are not in others. republicans are very good at laying the blame at the feet of democrats. when you look at the economy now, the fact that inflation still remains so high, and it has such an impact on the pocketbooks of everyday americans, that is going to be a tough sell for the democratic party come election time, which is hard to believe, we are here again.

we are here again, it will keep us all busy again for a while. the battle is hotting up over supplies of computer chips. last year a shortage of chips led to supply chain disruption around the world — meaning delays to everything from cars and washing machines to smartphones, and, of course, computers. and now, the dutch government has announced that it will impose new export restrictions on chips being sold to china. the dutch have some of the most significant companies in the field and china is keen to buy them but the us have been putting pressure on european countries to curb exports of sensitive technology to china as our correspondent in the hague, anna holligan explains. one of europe�*s smallest nations has found itself in the middle of a battle between the world�*s two biggest superpowers. and at the heart of it, microchips, that power everything from our mobile phones, to military hardware. and the us has been applying political pressure on countries to limit exports.

the netherlands is home to asml, until recently, a relatively obscure company, but it makes the most advanced machines used in the manufacturing of microchips. in fact, it�*s europe�*s most valuable tech company. in a letter to parliament, the country�*s trade minister explains that the netherlands considered it necessary on national and international security grounds, that this technology is brought under control as soon as possible. noting that the dutch government had considered the technological developments and geopolitical context, without mentioning china or asml. of course, this decision represents a significant victory for washington, and an example of the deal—making that has been going on in europe with the us, but it is also bad news for china. a foreign ministry spokesman said, "we are firmly

opposed to the netherlands�* usage of administrative means to intervene and limit normal economic and trade exchanges between chinese and dutch co ' mpan|es." we are going to stay with that theme of microchips. the government has been warning that it must act now set to secure the future of the uk semiconductor industry. that is according to a new report. it says that skills, shortages and high costs and low public awareness or threaten the uk�*s petition to their position in the semiconductor race. the indian government has brought crypto transactions and virtual assets under the purview of the country�*s money laundering act. the decision is being seen as the latest step taken by authorities to tighten their supervision of digital assets.

i think for a start, vw�*s actual basic position is, "how do we make sure we�*re competitive in the transition to electric vehicles?" and that net zero transition is another huge part of what�*s going on at the moment in the us and the eu. volkswagen is not necessarily the leading player in electric vehicles at the moment. then in terms of basically the production, so where are we going to locate production? where are the markets for electric vehicles? where is our market? are we going to build in the us and export back to the eu? probably not. on the other hand, if the us is obviously offering subsidies, can we ask for more from the eu? that�*s more likely to be what�*s what�*s going on here, is that the reason that there are global disciplines on subsidies through the world trade organization is to stop this kind of situation

where a company gets an offerfrom one geography and it uses it against another to say, well, we need more of your money 110w. ultimately, i suspect that car production is going to remain in the eu and in the us because it�*s more competitive that way to sell in in those in those markets, to sell and build in those markets. but a lot of complex factors there. headlines coming up but first look at the weather. plenty more snowfall to come particularly in the northern half of the uk, over the next couple of days or so, with strong, gusty winds too at times, leading to blizzard—like conditions. this is powys in wales. we are starting to see the snowfall stack up here. there are three amber weather warnings. the first for northern ireland, the second for north wales and into parts of shropshire where there could also be some freezing rain falling, treacherous driving conditions here. the third for the north midlands, northwards into the pennines and particularly high snowfall totals for here. we have a deep area of low pressure moving eastwards over

the next 24 hours or so, but it is pretty much stalled over the central swathe of the uk. there are some strong, gusty winds. cold air towards the north, milder further south. all of this across southern england and south wales is falling as rain, but there could be some heavy, thundery downpours as we head through the rest of the day. all the concern is for within these warning areas where the snow willjust keep on falling for the rest of the day. it will be very windy, blizzard—like conditions with drifting snow possible. a range of temperatures, 12 or 13 in devon and cornwall in that much milder air towards the south. overnight tonight the snow will continue to fall for many, drifting snow and blizzards. treacherous driving conditions, and on the edge of this area of low pressure some very strong, gusty winds too for coastal areas of the far south west and into the channel islands. tricky travelling conditions for much of the country, particularly the trans pennine route. there will be a frost from the midlands northwards,

maybe —15 or —16 celsius in the northern highlands as we start off on friday. on friday this area of low pressure will eventually be pulling its way southwards and eastwards into the near continent. it will start off the early part of the morning with some snow across and parts of northern ireland, but that will be clearing as we head through the early part of the morning and then the snow across north wales should also start to clear. still some snow for the pennines, northern england, as we head through the morning, but that snow risk transfers further into lincolnshire pop, possibly east anglia. we join a northerly wind and that will blow down some showers across scotland and northern england as we had throughout the day. there will be some brighter skies as well, feeling cold cold wherever you are, with plenty of added wind chill. the winds lighter by the end of the day.

this is bbc news. i�*m reeta chakrabarti. our top stories. russia launches more than 80 missiles at ukraine — the head of the un. we are rolling the dice here and there will be a day when our luck will run out. you can government — day when our luck will run out. you can government formally delays sections of hs2 in a bid to cut costs. the georgian government drops a controversial draught law which would limit press freedom and civil liberties in light of violent protests in the capital. tens of thousands of people take part in

demonstrations against proposed reforms