this is bbc news. live from london, the us secretary of state meets with his chinese counterpart in beijing amid great tensions between the superpowers. in the uk, the partygate scandal is given fresh life as new footage of a lockdown party emerges. uganda s army still pursuing militants who attacked a school 7 brutally killing 37 students. and switzerland heads to the polls for a referendum on whether to make the country carbon neutral by 2050. the us secretary of state,

antony blinken has met the chinese foreign minister in beijing. it's the highest—profile visit to china by a us official since president biden took office. tensions remain high between the two nations over issues such as trade, technology and foreign policy. mr blinken�*s visit was originallly scheduled for february but was put on hold after the us found what it said was a chinese spy balloon in its airspace. it's possible the us secretary of state will also meet president xi during his stay. our correspondent steve mcdonnell is in beijing and says mr blinken�*s visit is very symobolic. the fact the meeting is taking place is quite an achievement and i can't recall another meeting by the us government official which is hard such low expectations crucially important. the relationship is so toxic between beijing and washington. at least some pathways

toward communications and possibilities for high—level meetings and of those kind of things can be set up i think both sides will be happy and think they have come away with something and it has been successful but it is because relations are so bad that nobody expects any sort of a break forward in any key issues and if they agree to keep talking that will be something. dr yuka kobayashi is a lecturer in china and international politics at the school of oriental and african studies. she says the visit is important.

this builds on a couple in the past couple months. i think when the spy incident happened and the blinken�*s visit was cancelled in february, really us—china relations hit a real low point. and we also saw earlier this month that this request for discussion with the defence ministers was cancelled. but what tends to really focus be focused is these negative kind of really tension points. but we forget that, you know, in may, jake sullivan went, met with their counterpart, wang yi, and discuss things. so there have been gradually some kind of opening up of channels. and i think it's a real positive point in the sense that we see this visit come and, you know, in terms of like the issues, there are so many issues to discuss. but it is really remarkable that, you know, blinken is actually visiting china, the first of this kind, you know, afterfive years of, you know, this kind of visits being cancelled. so in that sense, i think it's a remarkable step. and you mentioned that you think actually perhaps tensions are not as high as they have been recently.

but do you also think that concerns over the war in ukraine could be playing a part in encouraging both sides to come together at this stage? yes, i think tensions are really high, there's no doubt about that. and there's so many issues like, for example, taiwan, ukraine, the, you know, high tech and surveillance issues. however, we forget that there has been a lot of groundwork on both sides to really get communication channels, because there's no doubt that the us and china are real rivals at the moment. and there are many issues like, for example, taiwan. and we are seeing these tensions really develop with pelosi's visit over the summer. and, you know, these kinds of, you know, near near meetings between us and chinese naval ships. so in that sense, tensions are definitely high. but i wanted to emphasize that it is remarkable that blinken is actually visiting. he's meeting possibly xi tomorrow. so in that sense, communication�*s vital to really have this kind of discussion and negotiation and mediation. so i think in that sense, tensions and there's so many issues in terms of, you know, getting things out of these talks, it could be possible there there may be no resolution. but i think it's, you know, a massive step to actually have discussions and communications

where we see blinken actually going into beijing and holding face to face discussions to hammer out these issues. now, in the uk, footage has emerged showing people dancing at the conservative party headquarters in 2020 despite covid lockdown restrictions. the footage was been obtained by the mirror newspaper. at the time, there were tier—2 restrictions in london, which meant people should not socialise indoors, unless they were in the same household. police did investigate this event, but did not issue any fines. the levelling up secretary michael gove has been speaking to the bbc this morning and apologised for the video.

well, it's terrible. and i think what samuel, justin and simon said they are right. they are absolutely correct. they are all absolutely correct in their reaction to this. as simon pointed out, the restrictions were put in place. the curtailment of liberty happened because we needed to make sure that the virus did not spread and placed an intolerable train strain. forgive me on the nhs and. and then as a result provide people with a situation where health care

was not there for them. so we all accepted a curtailment of liberty and then people didn't. and then we see this. and naturally, anyone looking at this video is going to be extremely angry. should you say sorry to people this morning for this? this was happening in your party headquarters. we know it happened in downing street on your party's watch. should you apologise? yes, i am sorry and i do apologise unreservedly. this particular event, i think, led to an investigation that's already happened because the video is new. but it was known that there was an event, there was a photograph, i think, that was made public. and as a result, there was an investigation. disciplinary action was taken. and as we all know, there have been police investigations into what happened in downing street and never putting that to one side on a on a personal level. i would like to apologise to people for this behaviour. it's unacceptable and indefensible. officials in northern india say nearly 100 people have died in the past few days during a severe heat wave. temperatures have soared past forty celsius in the states experts say temperatures have become more intense in the past decade. more than 400 people have been admitted to hospital. the elderly and those suffering from health problems have been advised to stay indoors. the extreme weather has also led to power cuts, with no fans and air conditioners.

the poor and daily—wage labourers employed in outdoor work have been the worst hit. let s get some of the day s other news now. the conservative mp david warburton has announced that he is resigning his seat. he was suspended last year amid claims over sexual harassment and drug use.his departure leaves the prime minister, rishi sunak, facing four byelections after the resignations of borisjohnson, nadine dorries and nigel adams last week. here in the uk churches across nottingham are holding special services today in solidarity with those affected by the recent attacks in the city. 19—year—old students barnaby webber and grace 0'malley—kumar, and 65—year—old school caretaker ian coates, died after they were stabbed in the early hours of tuesday. the british police have released the names of four people including a three—year—old boy and an 11—year—old girl, whose bodies were found at a flat in west london. officers say they're not looking for anyone else in connection with

the deaths of michal, monika, maja and dawid wlodarczyk. all four were found at the property in hounslow and thought to be from the same family. let's get more now from our political correspondent helen catt. we did know about this event and the police did not take any action. what we have seen before is still photos and i think with a moving footage it will have more impact and you can see people dancing and quite clearly alcohol and a karaoke machine in the background and this was in december 2020 when the rules in london if conservative party headquarters are that you could not socialise indoors

with anyone outside of your household or support bubble so in terms of what the consequences might be the police have not yet responded to the footage so we do not know if there are any potential consequences with the police. there have been questions asked about some of the people in the video and there is one person in the video who received an order on the borisjohnson resignation honours list last week, he received an mbe and people are asking if that should be reconsidered. also a member of staff who used to work for the london mayor candidate shaun bailey. shaun bailey it is not in this video and at the time the foot emerged he apologised and said he made a speech and left shortly afterwards, said the assistant. —— the footage

emerged. it looks bad with some of the staff dancing and drinking and having a party have the time those covid rules were enforced on the time could be much worse with uk having started its covid inquiry last week and the testimony of people who had lost loved ones during the lockdown and when covid rules were imposed during the pandemic. the conservatives are about to face for by—elections where they are defending seats so they will have to send activists out knocking on doors with this as a backdrop. the ugandan army is continuing its hunt for the militants who attacked a school on friday night, killing at least a0 people, many of them children.

the rebels — from an islamist extremist group known as the adf — also kidnapped six students before escaping back across the border into the democratic republic of the congo. 0ur correspondent, barbara plett—usher, sent this report from nairobi, and a warning it does contain distressing details. he survived, but has to live with the horror. the community stunned by this brutal attack against children. targetted in their dormitories, the militants set fire to the boys�* residence. the girls were hacked or shot to death as they fled, some abducted. translation: then they started shooting at the windows and the door. we went to hide under our beds on the floor. as they continued to shoot out the windows, one of us was hit by a bullet and started shouting, "help! come and help me!" those who escaped, still in shock. schools are an easy target but this

was the worst attack in years. there are angry questions. if they are telling us the borders are secured, security is tight, i want security to tell us where they were when these killers came to kill our people. the military drove the rebels across the border decades ago into the eastern congo, but it didn't defeat them. they are now linked to the islamic state group. translation: security is a collaborative work. why do you people keep quiet when you see strangers? right now we have deployed planes in various places to hunt them down. it's an alarming escalation and an unbearable tragedy. barbara plett usher, bbc news, nairobi.

at two weeks ago swiss voters rejected the call for proposals for a carbon neutral environment but now it looks like they may be passed. as if the latest opinion polls show voters are ready to back this bill.

i think last summer with its heat waves and as you can see, we're only middle ofjune and it's getting very hot again here. but the research into the glaciers, which showed a really shocking shrinkage, much higher than even the experts had expected. i think that brought it home to the swiss. and also they became very conscious of how dependent they were on foreign gas and oil imports. i mean, i don't if you see the houses behind me, they were built in the seventies and eighties and they will all have oil generators for their heating. now, those over the next few years, if this proposal goes ahead, should be replaced with heat pumps. and maybe if you talk to me again in a couple of years�* time, you'll see those roofs with solar panels on as some of the houses unfortunately can't see them. the more modern ones on this street already do. the government says it's ready to spend three and a half billion dollars even more helping households and helping businesses to make that transition to invest more in renewables. obviously today we've got great source of solar power, but in hydropower as well, which switzerland is pretty strong on. and to really get away from dependency on foreign oil and gas, but above all, stop being dependent on fossil fuels net zero by 2050 and imagine the subject of becoming carbon neutral is one

that's talked about by governments around the world. the subject of becoming carbon neutral is one that's talked about by governments around the world. how does switzerland compare with other nations when it comes to how it's doing? not fantastic. in fact, despite all there, you know, environmentalfriendly street cred that switzerland has, they haven't been doing very well hitting their prime paris climate accord targets. so this is a way to put them back on track. as i said, i think voters will back it. and one of the things with this, which is for me as a voter myself now is encouraging, is that you hear a lot about countries saying, oh, we're going to be carbon neutral by ten years or 20 years. this one has a plan inside it. this is what we're going to spend. this is what we're going to spend it on. so it will be replacing those oilfired generators. it will be replacing the gas heating that many urban centres in swiss cities are dependent on. it will be giving people tax breaks and grants to put solar panels on their roofs and make the most of solar power. so i think at least in this, we can see a plan, but right wing people's parties, the swiss people's party, they are against this. they're consistently against it. they feel that it will penalise people who drive cars, for example, who are still using

petrol or diesel. and they feel that the price of power in the midterm, the short term perhaps could go up. we'll see later today, maybe early evening, what the swiss voters have said. as i said, the polls, it looks as if it will be passed, but voters can always surprise us. as if the latest opinion polls show voters are ready to back this bill. russian president vladimir putin has been holding talks in st petersburg with a delegation from seven african nations who've called for peace talks to end to the war in ukraine. many african countries have been hit by the cut in exports of grain and fertiliser as a result of the russian invasion. cyril ramaphosa had to say. here's what the south african president, cyril ramaphosa had to say. this war must be settled and it must be settled through negotiations and through diplomatic means. and we are here to communicate a very clear message

that we would like this war to be ended. we say so because this war is having a negative impact on the african continent and indeed on many other countries around the world. mr putin said improving ties with african countries was a priority. he praised what he called their balanced position on the war, and blamed the food crisis on western countries. translation: we understand that, in spite of everything, in spite of all the issues connected to the conflict on ukrainian territory and the conflicts between russia and ukraine, developing countries, including countries in africa that are in need of food, should not suffer.

we do not believe that ukrainian grain supplies on the world market solve the problems of hunger. earlier i spoke to our correspondent mayeni jones in kyiv. he said they had achieved their aims, and he hoped to bring african perspective to the conversation and another reason he thought the trip had been successful is because his delegation was one

of the today, said that despite that fact, he thought that they had achieved, you know, some of their aims, one of which was to be listened to as a delegation from a region that's been affected by the conflict. he said he was happy to have been able to draw and to bring an african perspective to the conversation. and he said another reason why he thought the trip had been successful is because his delegation was one of the peace missions that i've spoken to both sides of the conflict within a short space of each other. but the ultimate aim of the trip, which was to bring both the ukrainian president and the russian president closer to negotiating, hasn't really been met at this stage, i think it's fair to say. and do you think the african leaders who were part of that delegation will have another attempt at meeting with either side in due course? or do you think the failure of any consequence from this has closed the door on that? well, he did say that president ramaphosa, in this statement he released this morning, did say

that there was the russia—africa summit that's taking place at the end of next month, where leaders from across the continent will be traveling to russia to meet with president putin. and he said that would be another opportunity to discuss some aims. i think the sticking point for negotiations at the moment is this idea of territorial integrity. ukraine has said several times it won't negotiate with russia until it leaves the territories, the ukrainian territories that it's occupied. but president putin repeated yesterday something that he's also said multiple times, that in order for there to be negotiations, ukraine would have to respect what he describes as new territorial realities. so the fact that russia has now occupied some of ukraine's territory, so neither side seems willing to compromise on that. and it's not clear that by next month, when these african leaders meet president putin, that situation will have changed. and among the seven african nation leaders who were part of the delegation. and among the seven african nation leaders who were part of the delegation is there consensus around their approach? i mean, of course, they have the same priorities around wanting peace to help secure food supplies. but what about their overall approach to how to tackle this? yeah. actually, it's interesting that you ask that question because the delegation was put together to provide some sort of balance, although not many african countries have come

down on either side with this. they say they ultimately see it as a conflict between russia and the west. some have shown indications that they lean one way or another. so, for example, south africa and uganda are largely perceived to be leaning towards russia, whereas countries like comoros or zambia, which who are also part of the delegation, are seem to lean more towards ukraine. so they do have slightly different approaches to this.

but there sudan's warring factions have agreed to a new 72—hour ceasefire, which began early this morning. more than 3,000 people have been killed and 6,000 people have been injured in sudan since the war broke out in april, the sudanese health minister has said. haitham ibrahim said only half of the capital khartoum's 130 hospitals were still operating and all hospitals in west darfur state are out of service. at least 17 people, including five children, were killed on saturday after an air strike in the south of the capital. president biden has held his first political rally of the 2024 election campaign, in his birth state of pennsylvania. biden addressed union members in philadelphia, a key demographic in the battleground state. he touted his success on infrastructure and what he called "biden—nomics," in a speech his campaign said was designed to lay out his economic message. let me tell us what it's about, it's about building an economy literally, not figuratively, from the bottom up

in the middle out, not the top down. because when the middle class does well, everybody does well. williejames inman, white house reporter for our partners cbs news, was at the rally and gave us this update. this was the first major campaign rally for president biden since he announced his re—election campaign. you had about 2,000 people there, many of them union members, the afl—cio, a federation of unions essentially announced this early announcement. president biden in his remarks earlier here on the east coast, philadelphia actually, he essentially said this would be a major boost for his campaign, a gigantic thing that we have this union group come out and support him early on in the nomination process. remember, the president still has to earn the democratic nomination,

it is not clear—cut yet, but the mood in the room was one of excitement, there were chants of let's go, joe, four more years!, a very enthusiastic crowd for president biden, and that's something he'll be looking towards an forward down the road. it will be that coalition of voters, union voters, minority voters, specifically black voters, which were key to his win in south carolina which boosted his campaign early on in the democratic primary process. you will need that coalition to get him across the finish line, not only in the primary states but also in the general election as well. the us secretary of state meets with his chinese counterpart in beijing amid great tensions between the superpowers. tensions remain over trade and technology and foreign policy.

hello. well, some of you will stay dry through the rest of today. for others, there is the potential for some severe storms around. going to have a little pressure out towards the west at the moment. that means the air�*s rising, so builds up the shower clouds, add in the elements of some very moisture—laden and warm air that could spark off some particularly severe storms. and the worst of these, we could see over a month's worth of rainfall in the space of a few hours. flash flooding is likely with those to go with it, potentially some large hail and some gusty winds, too. but there will be some drastic variations over short distances in conditions. so not everyone will see the storms. and even if your app shows the chance for some thunderstorms, it doesn't mean it's a guarantee.

these are how they'll develop across england, wales, northern ireland as we go through the afternoon, there'll be parts of south wales, south west england and a good part of scotland that stays dry throughout to the fairly misty to the north and east. humid in the sunny spells. but by the afternoon it's parts of southeast england, the midlands, northern england, north wales and the west and northern ireland, where some of those severe storms will develop, having the biggest impact. and they could merge into some longer spells of thundery rain across parts of england and later into scotland as we go through the evening and overnight. northeast england and later eastern scotland could see some large totals of rainfall too. again, with that added risk of flooding, still very muggy night in store and temperatures for one or two spots could hover around 17, 18 degrees through the end of the night. now, tomorrow, a different day for scotland, who's got all the dry weather. today, the north starts very cloudy. outbreaks of rain heavy at times easing its way northwards away from that sunshine and a scattering of heavy showers. the odd rumble of thunder, a bit more breeze and fewer showers than today.

so more sunshine, temperatures up a little bit. humidity levels down just a touch. but overall, it does stay humid as it will do through monday night into tuesday. low pressure�*s close by, still a potential for thunderstorms. and this system here could give some longer spells of thundery rain, especially across central and eastern england through tuesday morning that gradually eases away. but as skies brighten, the temperatures rise to the south and the west. we will see some more thunderstorms develop. temperatures down a little bit. still quite humid, maybe a touch fresherfor some of you through wednesday and thursday. but there's still the potential for some showers and thunderstorms in the sunnier moments it will get hotter and more humid

by the end of the week again.

this is bbc news. the headlines: counterpart at a time of great tension between the two countries. it isn't clear if mr blinken will meet the chinese leader, xi jinping, while on his trip to beijing.