today at six. gary linekar is forced to step back from presenting match of the day by the bbc — for his comments on the government's immigration policy. the presenter was told there has to be a clear and agreed position on his use of social media before he can return. the before he can return. pandit ian wright has said he will the pandit ian wright has said he will not appear on the saturday's programme in solidarity with gary lineker. we'll bring you all the latest. also on the programme. the uk promises france half a billion pounds to deal with illegal channel crossings — rishi sunak calls it their �*largest ever small boats deal�*. today we've taken our cooperation to an unprecedented level to tackle this shared challenge. the inside story of how a gang stole

£10 million of tax payer's money that should have been used to help small businesses during covid. drivers are stuck for hours overnight after snow in some parts of the uk causes disruption on the roads. # never fighting but it always wins. later in the hour on the bbc news channel, looking at the penultimate news channel for the six nations champion. can they keep the grand clean dream good evening. gary lineker has been pulled by the bbc from presenting match of the day — following his tweets criticising the government's latest immigration policy. a bbc spokesman said he will �*step

back�* from match of the day until there is "an agreed and clear position on his use of social media". the controversy blew up after gary lineker compared the home secretary�*s language on people arriving here on small boats across the channel with that used in 1930s germany. bbc staff are expected to remain impartial and not express personal opinions — those defending gary lineker have said that as a freelance sports presenter, the rules do not apply to him. ian wright has just announced he�*s pulling out of saturday�*s match of the day in solidarity. here�*s our media correspondent david sillito. gary lineker, for more than 20 years, the face of much of the day. and it was only yesterday he said on twitter he was looking forward to presenting once again on saturday. the bbc has decided, no. in a statement this afternoon, it said

his recent tweets on social media had broken guidelines and the bbc has decided that he will step back from presenting much of the day until we have got an agreed and clear position on his use of social media. the issue? a tweet in which he described a statement by the home secretary as beyond awful. and then defended the comment saying the policy was immeasurably cruel and the language used is not dissimilar to that used by germany in the 30s. a comparison which the home secretary said was deeply offensive. i don�*t think anything that is happening in the uk today can come close to what happened in the holocaust. close to what happened in the holocaust-— close to what happened in the holocaust. ., , holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday. _ holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday, he _ holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday, he was _ holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday, he was asked - holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday, he was asked if - holocaust. however, when he left his house yesterday, he was asked if he l house yesterday, he was asked if he feared suspension and he said no. do feared suspension and he said no. drr you fear getting suspended? feared suspension and he said no. do you fear getting suspended? no. - feared suspension and he said no. do | you fear getting suspended? no. gary lineker said nothing as he left home today, but his match of the day colleague ian wright will not be

appearing either in solidarity and alistair campbell, who has a podcast with gary lineker�*s production company thinks it is wrong. i with gary lineker's production company thinks it is wrong. i think this decision _ company thinks it is wrong. i think this decision is _ company thinks it is wrong. i think this decision is driven _ company thinks it is wrong. i think this decision is driven by _ company thinks it is wrong. i think this decision is driven by political. this decision is driven by political cowardice at the top of the bbc and this thing about stepping backwards, let�*s be absolutely frank about this, gary has been, it has been made clear to gary lineker, he is not presenting much of the day because he is not toeing the line. it is not the first time gary lineker has broken bbc guidelines but last time, he was just reminded of his responsibilities. now, it is rather more serious. the bbc said he is second to none as a sports presenter, but he should keep away from political controversies. so gary lineker thought it was all blowing away yesterday. it isn�*t. there has been, behind the scenes, back and forth between the bbc and

gary lineker�*s representatives. the bbc says he has broken guidelines and it says there is an extra responsibility for high—profile presenters to not be political in their twitter accounts. and he believes he has right as a freelancer presenter to express his opinions. so at the moment, an impasse. there is no resolution yet in this matter. david, thank you. the issue of small boat crossings has also been central at a meeting in paris between rishi sunak and the french president emmanuel macron. they agreed to redouble the effort to try and stop such crossings to the uk — with the french leader saying tackling migration needs to be a joint effort. as part of that, britain is to double the amount of money it�*s giving to france to tackle channel crossings — almost £500 million over the next three years. that will go towards a new detention centre in france — which the bbc understands won�*t be fully operational until the end of 2026.

there�*ll also be more french personnel and enhanced technology to patrol beaches from where over 16,000 people made the crossing last year. 0ur political editor chris mason reports now from paris. heading overseas by train, the early service to france, arriving in the courtyard of the elysees palace... is france a friend or foe, prime minister? a reminder that relations have been bumpy of late. but look at this, a warm parisian breeze, pleasantries and handshakes, arm in arm, hand in hand. the two leaders met for an hour and 20 minutes, although, we were eased out rather sooner. later, they almost gushed in mutual admiration. i believe today�*s meeting does mark a new beginning. speaks french. the french president said the summit was exceptional and a moment

of reunion, of reconnection. and the prime minister set out why they thought a new deal for dealing with migrants was necessary. emmanuele and i share the same belief, criminal gangs should not get to decide who comes to our countries. within weeks of my coming into office, we agreed our largest ever small boats deal. and today, we have taken our cooperation to an unprecedented level to tackle this shared challenge. today�*s new deal will see more than double the number of personnel deployed here in northern france. this will be paid for in part by uk more than doubling its annual funding for this. some of the money will help build a detention centre in france too. although it will not be fully up and running until the end of 2026. all part of the efforts to cut the number of people trying to cross the channel like this. the same question to you both, if i may, do you think you will ever be able to arrange a deal

where migrants leaving france for the uk are returned to france? what you have seen today is an unprecedented level of cooperation on tackling the shared challenge because that is what it is. it is a shared challenge. and going forward, there will be more that we can do. we started that last november, we built on it today. first, i think we focus on what we have to do in the short run. second, it is not an agreement between uk and france, but an agreement between uk and the eu because to be in agreement are no more in a situation to be implement and. so this is something now to be negotiated. in other words, a returns agreement isn�*t happening. brexit has been something of a stone in the shoe of uk—france relations for years, but the prime minister hopes he has shaken it out. with his personal relationship with the president and that new brexit deal for northern ireland which has improved relations

with the european union. but, on the issue of small boats, rishi sunak acknowledges there is no simple solution to resolve the issue. i remember, this is one of his key promises, resolving the issue. personal relationships aren�*t everything in diplomacy, but they do matter. bromance under a shared brollie tells you rather a lot about how things have changed. but ultimately, it is what it delivers that really matters. chris mason, bbc news in paris. 0ur europe editor katya adler is in paris. how do you assess the significance of today? i think one of the biggest significance, this meeting happened at all. it happened after five years of cancelled high—level summits, post—brexit sniping about migrants and vaccines and fishing rights. this was a very public resetting of relations between two important

allies. and more than that, it felt like a public resetting of the uk relations with its wider european allies. the prime minister was very careful to say, the uk may have left the eu, but it hasn�*t left europe. think of the backdrop to today�*s meeting, russia�*s invasion to ukraine, the wider stability it is because, spiralling energy prices and rising inflation as well. these are challenges that europe�*s leaders think should be tackled together and the uk and france have the biggest military powers inside nato. across the channel, rishi sunak is seen as a brexiteer, but also as a pragmatist. today he was careful to address the president with a new tone after his predecessor liz truss, just this summer questioned whether emmanuel macron was a friend orfoe whether emmanuel macron was a friend or foe to the uk. whether emmanuel macron was a friend orfoe to the uk-— or foe to the uk. thank you very much. they were government loans meant to help keep companies afloat

during the covid pandemic, but billions of pounds was defrauded in the government�*s bounceback loan scheme. now a bbc investigation can reveal the inside story of a criminal gang who stole more than £10 million of taxpayers money. they launder tens of millions more. after a final court case which ended today, a total of ten people have been sentenced. 0ur correspondent angus crawford has the details bags full of cash. bundles of dirty notes. they even needed a safe. now after a series of court cases, the inside story of the gang that stole £10 million of taxpayers money. i�*ve never seen anything like it. it is the biggest one i know of, it�*s the biggest one i�*ve seen and it�*s probably going to be the biggest one we�*ll see for a long time. when covid shut down the economy, the chancellor announced the bounce back loan scheme. today we announced a brand—new loan scheme...

£50,000 on offerfor small firms with a few questions asked. the gang used a network of bogus companies to make hundreds of claims. ringleaders, artem terzyan and deivis grochiatskij, received long prison sentences. they have strong links to lithuania and we�*ve learned that directors of two of the companies used in the fraud are still living there. and here they are yekaterina kobrina and povilas bartkevicius, a model and a chef. we just want to ask you where the money went? what money? the money from the bounce back loans. your name is on a company, bart solution, yes? and that received £10 million in your name. yes, your name. i don�*t know anything.

if i had some money or 10,000, i didn�*t work two jobs here. povilas tells us he has no idea his name was being used in this way. next, we tracked down yekaterina. nice to meet you. yeah, nice to meet you. i ask her about the company in her name. but i don't know anything and you should ask other people. no comments, only with my lawyer. we have no idea if either of them knew what those companies were being used for and the national crime boss says the investigation is over. it was a colossal sum of money gone to some very bad people. lard was a colossal sum of money gone to some very bad people.— was a colossal sum of money gone to some very bad people. lord agnew was the government's _ some very bad people. lord agnew was the government's counter— some very bad people. lord agnew was the government's counter fraud - the government�*s counter fraud minister until he resigned. appalled by the loss of billions of pounds from the scheme. i by the loss of billions of pounds from the scheme.— by the loss of billions of pounds from the scheme. i am worried that there is still— from the scheme. i am worried that there is still a _ from the scheme. i am worried that there is still a reluctance _ from the scheme. i am worried that there is still a reluctance to - from the scheme. i am worried that there is still a reluctance to grip -

there is still a reluctance to grip this with real vigour. so there is still a reluctance to grip this with real vigour.— this with real vigour. so as we stand, this with real vigour. so as we stand. do _ this with real vigour. so as we stand. do we _ this with real vigour. so as we stand, do we think _ this with real vigour. so as we stand, do we think that - this with real vigour. so as we stand, do we think that those | this with real vigour. so as we l stand, do we think that those at this with real vigour. so as we - stand, do we think that those at the top of the government have learnt the lesson of the bounce back loans scheme? i the lesson of the bounce back loans scheme? ., ~' the lesson of the bounce back loans scheme? ., ~ ., ., , the lesson of the bounce back loans scheme? ., ~ ., , scheme? i would like to hope so, but i am not convinced. _ scheme? i would like to hope so, but i am not convinced. so _ scheme? i would like to hope so, but i am not convinced. so where - scheme? i would like to hope so, but i am not convinced. so where does i i am not convinced. so where does that leave — i am not convinced. so where does that leave us? _ i am not convinced. so where does that leave us? we _ i am not convinced. so where does that leave us? we have _ i am not convinced. so where does that leave us? we have found - i am not convinced. so where does that leave us? we have found two | that leave us? we have found two people whose names are on the companies which were used for the money laundering and the bounce back loan fraud. but we just don�*t know if they had any idea where the money came from and where it went to. and as for that money, are we going to find it? is the british taxpayer going to get it back? it looks highly unlikely. loans which kept firms afloat also made criminals rich. angus crawford, bbc news. and you can see the full inside story of the gang on the bbc iplayer — that�*s the chef, the model

and the missing millions. police in the city of hamburg in germany say a gunman has killed seven people — including an unborn child — at a religious service forjehovah�*s witnesses. they say the attacker, who was a former member of the community, acted alone — and took his own life. jenny hill has the details and a warning — some viewers may find her report upsetting as it contains footage of the events as they unfolded. in the quiet of a suburb, a man prepares to kill. caught on a mobile phone as he peers through a window, readies his gun. inside, jehovah�*s witnesses had gathered to worship. oblivious to his presence, his intentions. gunshots. translation: l was filming - with my phone and only realised through the zoom that someone was shooting at the jehovah�*s witnesses. by the time police arrived, he was inside, a deadly rampage under way, but then

he turned his gun on himself. it has emerged that he once belonged to this community, but he had left the jehovah�*s witnesses on bad terms. translation: this is a horrible act, a very cruel deed. - we have seen a few things in hamburg, but a mass killing on this scale is new to us. we knew it from tv, but we didn�*t imagine it could happen in our city. and he brought terror to the streets. casualties rushed to safety, no time for stretchers, at this point, no one knew whether he was acting alone. by first light, a terrible tally, seven people shot dead, among them, an unborn baby. bodies brought out as investigators scoured the building. revelations emerging too. police confirmed they once investigated and dismissed a tip—off that the attacker who legally owned a gun was mentally unstable.

this is a city in mourning, but it is a country in shock too. shock which deepens with every fresh distressing revelation. and one question persists here — why? jenny hill, bbc news, hamburg. the time is 17 minutes past six. our top story this evening... gary lineker is forced to step back from presenting match of the day on the bbc for his comments on the government�*s immigration policy. teachers, children and trading standards officers are warning of the dangers of vaping, after reports of a big rise coming up on sport today in the next 15 minutes on the bbc news channel. emma raducanu overcomes injury and illness to reach the second round of the prestigious indian worlds tournament in california.

hundreds of schools across the uk have been closed today as heavy snow caused widespread disruption and misery for motorists. drivers heading across the pennines were stuck for up to seven hours overnight after heavy snowfalls on the m62 motorway — at one point there was a 17 miles of congestion. 0ur north of england correspondent danny savage has the details. it was a long night for hundreds of drivers on the m62. the snow started falling late in the evening and continued for hours. we�*re at a standstill again. and this is what we are looking at the moment. 2am in the morning with no sign as to when we are actually going to get off of here. police expressed frustration at drivers using the hard shoulder and lanes which were marked as closed. i think people are actually getting a little bit impatient now, driving up here. mountain rescue teams ended up getting people to safety.

getting from the car to the actual jeeps that they were in was just something that i have never even experienced before. you know, the force of the wind and the snow, i couldn�*t even breathe. 0ther roads were blocked too. this was the main route between harrogate and skipton. long before first light, clearance teams were out. this was unusually heavy snowfall. until lunch time, it was silent on the a66, still closed to all traffic over its highest stretch. is scotch corner down here? it's down that way, yeah. police were getting a little fed up at the growing queues. so you have come through all of the sign saying it's closed already, but you have got here, haven't you? it is about ten foot wide, bright blue, six foot tall. i saw that one. no, the one that says "closed". eventually, it did reopen, under blue skies, traffic once again

was flowing freely east to west across england. well over 1,000 schools in england and were closed for the day. last—minute childcare plans were rapidly put in place. so, my youngest has come to work with me to help me with the housekeeping and reception and being a waiter, and just a little bit of everything as well as doing his home—schooling from the front desk. for millions of people who woke up to a white landscape, shifting snow was the first challenge of the day. it is pretty, isn't it? it is a lot of snowfall, causing a lot of problems for our staff getting in as well as our guests getting home. so, we are doing what we can to help everyone get on their way. parts of north wales saw heavy snowfall too, causing more disruption. and some schools in northern ireland took the decision not to open. much of the snow did melt through the day. what is left behind will freeze hard as temperatures plunge overnight, leading to warnings of treacherous conditions continuing into the weekend. danny savage, bbc news.

the king has made his youngest brother prince edward the new duke of edinburgh. it is a title strongly associated with theirfather, prince philip, who was duke of edinburgh for more than 70 years, up to his death in 2021. prince edward will hold the title for his lifetime. little is to lift all restrictions on fruit and veg as supply begin to ease. 0ther supermarkets will also lift restrictions on some items. 26—year—old elle edwards was shot dead in a pub in merseyside on christmas eve. herfather, tim, has been taking part in a walk across the uk to raise awareness of gun and knife crime. today crowds lined the streets to welcome him back into liverpool. 0ur correspondent jayne mccubbin was with them. yes. thank you. this is amazing. it

is mind blowing. today in liverpool, city came together to make a stand against gun and knife crime. everyone here invited by tim edwards, his daughter was shot dead in merseyside on christmas eve. you love being her dad a mac yes. yes. a rickl love being her dad a mac yes. yes a prickly position —— a privileged position? prickly position -- a privileged osition? ~ , , prickly position -- a privileged position?_ this - prickly position -- a privileged position?_ this is l prickly position -- a privileged l position?_ this is the position? absolutely. this is the last art position? absolutely. this is the last part of _ position? absolutely. this is the last part of the _ position? absolutely. this is the last part of the walk— position? absolutely. this is the last part of the walk being - position? absolutely. this is the last part of the walk being made position? absolutely. this is the i last part of the walk being made by liverpool actor and comedian. both of them will now walk and raise money for a scheme called weapon stam, gloves up. gives children an alternative to crime. how do the families feel?— families feel? good. it is

important _ families feel? good. it is important. i've _ families feel? good. it is important. i've got - families feel? good. it is important. i've got to - families feel? good. it is i important. i've got to help families feel? good. it is - important. i've got to help my important. i�*ve got to help my fellow men out wherever i can. this has civen fellow men out wherever i can. this has given you _ fellow men out wherever i can. this has given you something, hasn't it? has given you something, hasn�*t it? a reason to put one foot in front of the other. . �* . a reason to put one foot in front of the other. , �* , ., the other. yes. i'm freed up from not having _ the other. yes. i'm freed up from not having to _ the other. yes. i'm freed up from not having to deal _ the other. yes. i'm freed up from not having to deal with _ the other. yes. i'm freed up from not having to deal with the - the other. yes. i'm freed up from | not having to deal with the chaos. it's not having to deal with the chaos. it�*s got to change. not for us, it�*s for the kids who ultimately have to make that decision to be a better person. and if they are better people, their kids are going to be better people. tim people, their kids are going to be better people-— better people. tim edwards has a determination _ better people. tim edwards has a determination to _ better people. tim edwards has a determination to make _ better people. tim edwards has a determination to make a - better people. tim edwards has a i determination to make a difference in his daughter�*s mabe, a determination not to be consumed by rage and he shared that message with liverpool. rage and he shared that message with liverool. ., . rage and he shared that message with liverool. ,, . ., �* ., liverpool. stand together, we've got to solve problems. _ liverpool. stand together, we've got to solve problems. we've _ liverpool. stand together, we've got to solve problems. we've got - liverpool. stand together, we've got to solve problems. we've got to - liverpool. stand together, we've got i to solve problems. we've got to make to solve problems. we�*ve got to make the future different and better for everyone else. d0

the future different and better for everyone else-— the future different and better for everyone else. do you feel that elle is with you? — everyone else. do you feel that elle is with you? always. _ everyone else. do you feel that elle is with you? always. she _ everyone else. do you feel that elle is with you? always. she will - everyone else. do you feel that elle is with you? always. she will live i is with you? always. she will live forever. jayne mccubbin, bbc news. teachers, children and trading standards officers are warning of the dangers of vaping, after reports of a big rise in vaping amongst the under 18s — for whom it�*s illegal. although the nhs says they are far less harmful than cigarettes and are usefulfor adults who are trying to quit smoking, there are fears that a generation of young people who�*ve never smoked are increasingly getting hooked on the nicotine in vapes. 0ur health editor hugh pym reports. this school has a problem. right, so this is our vape sensor that we had installed at christmas. the headteacher is trying to stamp out vaping. we�*ve noticed a real reduction, 16 cases or alerts on the first day down to one or two a week. he wanted to show us the scale of the challenge and the numbers involved. so these are the ones that we�*ve confiscated and these ones really are my least favourite. they�*re branded as sweets. connor, leon and oscar see

themselves as addicts. two of them started vaping at 12. they bring a new flavour out. you want to try that. and itjust keeps going so on and so on. you�*re buying nicotine and you�*re really like, you�*re spending your money on nicotine and stuff. like, it�*s not something you can stop that easy. it controls the whole way that you think. but like i said, i would literally go out and meet someone if i hadn't had one for a few days and crave it. but the boys say that unlike them, children who�*ve never smoked are now starting to vape. year 7s are going on to it. but they�*re going on to vapes, just sort of social life. not because they used to smoke, and it�*s not because i�*ve been brought up in a house, smoked or whatever. so what measures are being taken on the high street to restrict supplies of e—cigarettes to under—18s? some retailers say they�*re doing everything they possibly can to avoid underage sales. it�*s illegal to sell to children. andy says he�*s always on the lookout

forfake id, but some other retailers are less responsible. if we spot an adult buying for kids, we�*d ban them for life. you know, we do everything we can, basically. there�*s £2,500 fine if you get caught selling to under—age. but i just wish they�*d enforce it or double it. cheers, cole. cole is a regular at the shop. he says he�*s often mobbed by children waiting outside. there are groups of them. they come up to you and just go, "go in there for me. "go and get this for me. "here's the money, will you go in and get this for me?" and it'sjust if i do it, i'll get banned. and i don't want to get banned and i would never do it because they're underage. back at the school, they say health warnings for children must be stronger. these vapes are helping people quit smoking and that�*s a good thing for their health. but we�*re not talking about children that were smoking and start using electronic cigarettes. they�*re actively up—taking the vapes as a lifestyle choice. hugh pym, bbc news. now it may surprise you to know that country music is the fastest

growing genre in the uk. last year, country songs were streamed a record 1.4 billion times in the uk, that�*s up nearly fourfold from five years ago. this weekend sees the tenth c2c country music festival taking place in london, glasgow and dublin. felicity baker has put on her cowboy boots and has gone along for the ride. he sings. country music is here. the genre best known for tunes about love, heartbreak and pickup trucks is seeing a huge surge in popularity across the uk. now country music is bringing its own distinct identity to these shores. i feel like the thing that is always going to set country music apart is the ability to say what a lot of people are thinking in song form. there�*s something really true and really authentic about it.

and so many of us write from legit experience, you know, whether it happened to us or whether it happened to a family member or a friend. those are the songs that really just speak to people. with all the stetsons and cowboy boots, you might think you�*re in nashville, but this is c2c festival being held in london, glasgow and dublin this weekend. now in its tenth year, it attracts some of country music�*s top stars and it�*s the biggest festival of its kind outside the us. i love guitars. i love hats. tassels, boots. i love it all. silly cars, big stakes, country music, wide open spaces. that's what it's allabout, isn't it? the songs really like - take you somewhere and they tell your story. i love that about country music. that's the main thing i love. and obviously, you know, love a cowboy boot. - love a cowboy. turns out the artists love it just as much as we do.

i always tell the uk fans honestly that they are my favourite audience to play in front of in the world, and london is my favourite city to play in, in the world. and that�*s that�*s high praise because i�*m from the states. it�*s notjust us artists taking the scene by storm. they were the first country act to have a chart topping album in the uk. country music is now the biggest growing genre of music in the uk officially. is that real? that is so exciting! i mean, it's proof. you can see here at the c2c it getting bigger and bigger every year, like more stages are coming up. it's really exciting. so the uk is embracing the boots, the hats and the rhinestones. is this just the beginning? felicity baker, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here is alina jenkins, a lovely

scene behind you, but it has caused a lot of problems. very much so. this is buxton and derbyshire. many of the roads around this area were impossible for a while. the good news is there will be something milder coming through over the weekend, but we are not out of the woods in terms of snow. could see that front being pulled off towards the east end there is another one waiting in the wings. it's another one waiting in the wings. it�*s all about clear skies tonight. there is this band of rain across the southwest england pushing into parts of wales. for many with clear skies, temperatures might be down to -11 skies, temperatures might be down to —11 or —12, particularly where there is lying snow. for the weekend, drive for many tomorrow, more snow coming in for northern england and scotland overnight. things will turn a bit milder by the time we get into sunday. saturday, a good deal of sunshine fermented to start the day,

keeping an eye on this area of