initiative to perform regular underwater canal cleanups. what gave you the idea to start cleaning the canals? about three years ago now we are working in gondolas now. the water not too much deeper. and i see many tires and many tires and... ..and the rest. right. we start in the february 2019. and we bring about 2000 kilograms in the first time. dredging up tons of rubbish ranging from shopping trolleys to car tires is a mammoth and potentially dangerous task. so the men are given bespoke training. they dive using specialist equipment in order to operate safely.

and early on sunday morning, long before tourists arrive, i'm joining the guys for the real deal. that's one hardcore scuba diving suit. there's not one bit of skin showing. i've dived before. i'm not sure i'd want to go into the canals of venice, as lovely as they are. i want to find out what the newly— trained canal cleaners have to contend with. okay. so what is all this? these are the heart of the operation. the teams have to stay in constant communication. it's crucial to help the guys underwater cope with the difficult conditions. it must be very dark and gloomy. can you see?

wow. you go by feel down there. so, stefano, how often do you do this? every sunday? not every sunday. just in the winter. because in the summer, i have to traffic right when it comes to water. you know, today's especially because this canal don't drive it too many boats. much of today's catch is all too familiar. many bottles. lots of bottles. the guys in the nighttime. you know you're chucking at the bottle empty in the tunnel, right? since the cleanup began, some 4000 carelessly discarded bottles have been retrieved. but later, a baffling object rears its head and has everyone mystified. there's something really big on the line here. it looks really, really heavy.

there's about three of them trying to pull it out. what is that? oh, my goodness. it's a trolley. it's probably somebody�*s luggage from about 20 years ago that went off into the canal. look, it's been down there for so long, it's covered in. there for so long, it's covered in... ..barnacles and slime and sludge. is that coral? oh, it's a sponge. what's it like down there? mud, mud. is it dangerous down there? the equipment they use is a full protection against pollution because the problem is not really the water itself, but the mud.

the mud is laying in the canal years after years and is full of bacteriological and chemical pollution. but what about the gondoliers when they are working? is it difficult if there is rubbish, you know? yes. when the tide is low, they feel something in... ..in the water that is not the real sea floor. the canals must be cleaned. to transfer this idea to the public is very important. and also for the sensibility of people, people living in venice and also tourists, that they do not have to throw things in the canals. once the rubbish has been retrieved, gondoliers handed over to the local council to dispose of it correctly.

it's been an impressive haul today, and that's just from one trip. so with another 200 or more canals to go something tells me they've got a lot to keep them busy for some time yet. so next time you're enjoying a leisurely ride along the waterways of venice, spare a thought for the gondoliers who donate their time to clean up the canals. even if they haven't mastered singing underwater yet. and if you're interested in a few days in venice in the nearfuture, here's a roundup of the best the city has to offer. i think all through the summer to november is the 59th venice biennale. as the name suggests, the contemporary art exhibition runs every two years. but due to covid, there's been a three year gap. this year is heavily weighted towards women, with 90% of the main exhibition given over to female artists.

bruno is a picturesque island in the venetian lagoon. famous for its handmade lace and colorful homes. go for a few hours in the morning or afternoon to wander around and take in the tranquillity and calm away from the hustle of central venice. whatever you do, don't forget your camera. from bruano you could then stop in to murano on your way back. this island is famous for its glassmaking, which is considered a fine art. it dates back to 1291 when the venetian government ordered glass makers in venice to relocate to murano to avoid causing a huge fire. you could even find a workshop to try your hand at the craft. as we reported last month from january 2023, you'll have to pay a daily charge to enter if you aren't spending the night in the actual city itself. overnighters already pay

a city tax at the hotel. but for day trippers, you'll need to pre—book your slot and pay through an app. prices will vary between 3—10 euros per person, depending on how busy it is. still to come on the travel show. potential changes to scottish laws and the swedish city hosting 202a. a bbc investigation has top secret filming found that they were...

the food standards agency says that an author rides sales equal criminal offences.. all shops involved will be investigated but there is confusion over the regulations. some other stories now. the man who killed 26—year—old ellie edwards on christmas eve has had given 48 years in prison. he opened fired with a sub machine gun. she was an innocent bystander. the scottish government wants to decriminalise all drugs with users being offered support and treatment rather than being

punished. time now to leave you with get your groove on because the city of malmo is to host eurovision. it has had your revision before in 1992 and in 2013. you are all caught up. goodbye for now. a mixture on friday, certainly for scotland and northern ireland. the rain that started on thursday lasted until the early part of friday morning with accumulations of around 32 millimetres across parts of northern ireland. a third of a month's worth of rain. a weather front across the north—west of the uk here, tending to edge away with brighter skies working in. across

scotland, a hot day, the hottest temperature with the warming spots getting up to 30 celsius, st james�*s getting up to 30 celsius, stjames�*s park and getting up to 30 celsius, st james�*s park and further getting up to 30 celsius, stjames�*s park and further north in hull. 28 celsius there and 28 in cambridge. heading into the weekend we will see showers and thunderstorms breaking out initially that will work their way across northern ireland and wales and then kind of leaping into north—east england and scotland. some of those downpours are likely to be torrential, 15 millimetres of rain and could bring some areas some flash flooding but some areas will dodge the downpours all day and just keep the warm sunshine. temperatures, high 20s in the use of england, and in northern scotland in the west, a cold front working through with the weather turning a little bit fresher with temperatures easing back a little bit. at wimbledon, the chance of a shower.

some torrential downpours on saturday and the risk of flooding but later in the night, we will see some fresher air edging in from the west and so the overnight temperatures will be at the lowest across these areas. sunday's forecast, showery weather picture. we there is a chance we will see storms breaking out across france that reach the areas in east of england but some bulk showers will move through the afternoon and they were moving from the south and the west. temperatures generally into the low 20s but still in the mid 20s across parts of east —— part of the east. there is origina central atlantic on sunday evening which is part of an amiga block pattern. they don't move around very much so the weather is kind of stark and where

under a trough of low pressure that will help low pressure form, so it looks pretty unsettled. one area of low pressure moving away gives the jet stream pattern that will encourage another area of low pressure to follow. so we are looking at rain and showers often into next week. the west will see some thundery rain. they will be warm sunshine around as well, temperatures quite close to average for the time of year, 19—23 c. you can see lots of showers in the forecast. temperatures if anything a degree or so below—average. rain torrential in places. so an eye in the sky into next week. goodbye for

now.

us treasury secretary janet yellen criticises china for what she calls "unfair" curbs on us companies.