t leap for mankind. ♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook:hese are people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyda people who know, know bdo.

narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. announcer: and now, "bbc news". ben: hello. i'm ben thompson. this is "the context" on bbc news. >> there has to be some privacy in government. and labour has something to cover up. >> if they say the government can decide what's relevant, then what's to stop everyone what they're sending to the inquiry, at wch undermines their authority to do their job.

♪ ben: welcome to the program. the government is to launch a legal challenge over the covid inquiries, demand that it hd over what's -- whatsapp messages. they missed a deadline between boris johnson and his advisors during the pandemic. also on the program, the influencer andrew tate has defended his reputation and denied fueling misogyny in his interview with the bbc. and deleting vital footage of war crimes in ukraine. we have the report on gathering evidence because social media fans are deleting content that's deemed too violent without saving it. as u.k. house prices fall at the fastest rate, we assess the impact on homeowners and those trying to get a foot on the

housing ladder. but first, the legal challenge launched by the government that over demands from the covid public inquiry that ministry's whatsapp messages, the request goes beyond the remit of the inquiry. a deadline for the government to submit messages passed at 4:00 this afternoon. but the inquery instead received notice of lal action. within the last hour, we also heard from boris johnson who says he's more than happy to hand over any letters. now, we're going to speak to our correspondent, ben wright, on that story in just a minute. he's standing by in westminster. this breaking news relates to the drowning of two young people,wo children off the pier in bormouth. police say they were investigating. they arrested a man in his 40's. he was in the water at the time of the deaths of those two young

people. police now say they have released him pending further investigations. the boy and the girl, they died, they were from separate groups who were visiting the beech. the a -- beach. the arrested man, the police say, was not known to the children, the young people who died. so this related t that death, two young people in the water in bormouth. he had initially been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. he though now released without charge buturther inquiries are continuing. an important point, they say, the arrested man was not known to them. so they go on in that statement, they say we're continuing our investigation. it is still at the early stages. we would ask people not to speculate about the circumstances surrounded that incident to protect our inquiries and out of respect for the victims' family. so the man who was arrested, now released. the investigation continues.

more on that story as we get it but let's return to that story we were just telling you there about the deadline now passing for the government to hand over documents related to the covid inquiry. we bring in our political correspondent ben wright who is in westminster. ben, thank you for waiting there patiently as we cover that breaking news. give us a sense what you're hearing? the 4:00 p.m. deadline come and gone. ben w.: opposition parties say in their view is a cover-up what's going on. that's what they see as the government is contesting the inquiry's demand for all of this unredacted, un-editied material connected to boris johnson. his what's app, his diaries. they refute. what they say this is a matter of principle and that in their view this would breach the

privacy of many of the people whose communications would be released to the inquiry. they also think it would set a harmful precedent for the inquiry to succeed in simply getting all of this unredacted material as it's asked for. this has been going on for a few weeks, ben. you have the chair of the covid inquiry who is insistent under the powers of the inquiries act 2005 she has the absolute right to request this material. the government says no. they are now taking this to the high court to have it adjudicated by a judge. so that's where we are. separately, as part of this story, theres also continuing dispute between the cabinet office and boris johnson over what material they actually have and what he has provided. and in a letter from boris johnson to the covid inquiry this evening, the former prime minister has said he's quite happy to hand overall his whatsapp messages should the

inquery wants it. he just needs to know where and when to send it. what we have also discovered today in some of the material produced by the cabinet office, that they don't have any of his whatsapp messages before 2021. that's when he got a new phone, new phone number. the spokesman for mr. johnson said he's very happy to provide that material if the cabinet office can help him find a secure way of accessing that phone and releasing the materials. so that is an ongoing wrangle between boris joonts and the cabinet -- johnson and the cabinet office. ben t.: the government saying they are not prepared to hand over these documents because it would be, in their words, an affront to privacy and the right to public discussion. there is a certain irony, though, isn't there, because it's based on the legislation, the human rights act, that the government actually wants to repeal. ben w.: there are many ironies including the government is in a really tough battle, it seems, with the inquery that it set up,

that boris johnson created to try to get to the bottom of what really happened in government during the pandemic. but you're absolutely right. legislation on both sides now is being cited and contested. but we have seen over the last few weeks that they are ready for a fight on this one. she is not going to concede. she feels the law is on her side. there clearly are government lawyers who feel the argument, once it's before the courts, will go down in their favor. and as i said, from the government's picture spective -- perspective, even though they are getting some political flack from opposition parties, they feel there is a principle here that's important to defend. ben t.: ben, it's good to talk to you. that is our political correspondent, ben wright. now to the director of inquiries and representative for the covid-19 be-reeved families

for -- bereefed families for -- bereved families for justice. i wonder what your assessment is of what happens next. >> well, firstly, i think this is a power struggle between the cabinet office and her. if it does go to the high court as a judicial review and if the high court judge can't have some common sense into the process, the law is the chair of the inquiry has the power to compel anyone to provide documents that relate to a matter in question of the inquiry. johnson set up the inquiry. was very wide agreement. it's difficult to think of anything that doesn't relate directly or indirectly to a matter into the inquiry. i think the high court will likely find in favor of the

inquiry itself. there is another wrinkle to this. the law also says that the chair can compel someone to produce any other thing in his custody or under his control. and the test of the inquiry isn't part of the act. he could probably get a phone itself. there are problems with getting the printouts. ben: yes. the question it seems here is what deems to be relevant to material. one would assume the chair of the inquiry is whether it is relevant or not. elkan: yes. and the purpose argument. this is not a question of making all the documents made available to the public immediately. there is a filtering process. it goes to the cir. he decides if it's relevant or not and she decides whether to share it with the core participants and there is a separate decision whether to make it publicly available. so i don't think privacy comes into it at this stage. ben: and legalities aside, this

boils down to a perception issue, doesn't it, a perception that the government has something to hide. elkan: it does. it essentially becomes worse than that because the fears that the government has are leading to them developing a conflict with the chair of the inquiry that they have set up. and if the chair feels she's not being given access to the documents or other things that will enable it to do her job, her only logical recourse is to resign. though it's very much an ex existential batt. ben: elkan, thank you. also tonight, the bbc has questioned the controversial social media influencer andrew tate at his home in the romanian

capital bucharest. he's been investigated by romanian prosecutors for accusations including rape, human trafficking, and exploiting women which he denies. the bbc has also challenged him on whether his views about women broadcast to his millions of online followers harmed young people as many teachers and police officers allege. our correspondent lucy williamson spoke to andrew tate this morning. have a listen. lucy: andrew tate has built his image around cars, cigars, and controversy. his flowers swallowing his sexism along with his success. andrew: i'm innocent. lucy: he said little in public since his arrest in romanian five months ago for rape and human trafficking. to bbc was the first major media outlet to challenge him on those allegations. and on concerns from police, schools, and rights organizations that he's spreading misogynistic attitudes among boys and men. andrew tate, have you raped

anybody? andrew: absolutely not. lucy: very exploited anybody? andrew: absolutely not. lucy: you said you would get people to work in the webcam industry for you. andrew: no. lucy: someby said exactly those things, with you it's all manipulation. l louis andrew: is it sophie? the fake name, no face. lucy: i was so intent on wanting to please him and wanting him to be happy that i was like, ok, do whatever you want. andrew: has she accused me of a crime, this imagine naer sophie? lucy: emotional or psychological -- andrew: i allowed you in my house. you are not the boss here. lucy: i'm asking you the question. you get to decide the answers. andrew: no. we are equal here. i allowed you into my house. you don't come here with a position of authority. i'm doing y the favor by speaking to you. i'm telling you now, this

sophie, which has no face of, the -- lucy: the bbc. did not invent anything. andrew: of course. because you don't invent anyone. lucy: you spread a dangerous ideology of misogynistic rape culture. are the comments you make leading people to act like this? andrew: absolute garbage. lucy: national organizations blaming you with is i knowledge knee, schoo saying they have increased incidents of girls being attacked, of female teachers being harassed by people because of you and your teaching and influence? andrew: that's absolute garbage. i have never ever encouraged anyone a student to attack a teacher, male or female. i preach hard work, discipline. i am an athlete. i preach no alcohol. i preach no knife crime. every single problem with modern society i am against. lucy: i presented you with case after case, quote after quote of people concerned with the impact

you're having and you brush it often as if you've done nothing. andrew: you come here with an andrew, loaded questions, things taken out of context, things you don't understand which is satirical. lucy: would you like to apologize for any of them? andrew: for you to sit down -- for you to sit down and say that one woman saidhat i'm -- her boyfriend watched and andrew tate video and now won't do the dishes -- lucy: schools, police. andrew: i am the worst man in the world because i have a car is disingenuous. lucy: andrew tate's is followed by media to the prosecutor's office. follow by millions on twitter. an indictment in this case expected here within weeks will mark a new phase in his fight with romania's legal system. as teachers across the u.k. continue to battle his message. lucy williamson, bbc news,

bucharest. ben: if you want to watch that full combative interew, you can do so. it's on the bbc news youtube channel. a much longer version of that interview that we brought you there. but lots of issues raised. so let's talk about them with the filmmaker matt shea. he made the documentary, "the dangerous rise of andrew tate." matt, thanks for being with us. i hope you were able to see that and hear that interview. i wonder what you make of it. does it reinforce or dispel any of the perceptions and any of the things that you learned while making your documentary about andrew tate? matt: one of the things that lucy picked up on what andrew tate denied trafficking any humans was he did on his website mention using emotional manipulation of women to webcam porn and that's something we put to andrew tate months ago before he was arrested because his online courses in which he also teaches other men to emotionally

manipulate women into doing webcam prorn were -- porn were publicly available at the time. that would constitute human trafficking under romanian law. ben: what's interesting about this interview, he's very quick to dispel any of the accusations, to refute any of those allegations that lucy puts-time had. but he says, and i preach hard work, discipline. i'm an athlete. i'm anti-drugs. i preach religion. i preach no alcohol. i preach no knife crime. no one would argue with those parts of his statement. but i wonder whether you got a sense, there is any truth in them? matt: this is a classic tactic he uses, this kind moral grandstanding wheref he o will redirect every question to the positive messages that he has. i tell guys to go to the gym. ok, fine. but what she's asking you is not about you telling men to go to the gym. it's about the multiple allegations against you, both being heard in the romanian courts soon, and there have been multiple women in the u.k. who

ve alleged that he raped and used them. he, of course, denies all of those allegations. ben: he's very dismissive of the bbc in that interview. calls it legacy media. the bbc will finally come to realize that he's correct. the point there, though, is that his rise to fame has been fueled by social media. he's able to speak directly to the people that want to follow him without any sort of third party, maybe, validation or checks or balances. and that really is the crux of this problem, isn't it, able to speak to a mass market without anyone able to say, hang on a minute, that's not right. matt: absolutely. i mean, i speak to a lot of people, parents and teachers, who don't even know who andrew tate is or they may know who he is but it's universally agreed he's a bad guy. but even if you don't know who andrew tate is, your sons, your nephews, probably do. they might be watching him right now. he is one of the most viewed

people on tiktok. hope not hate did a survey. they found more 16 and 17-year-old males in u.k. know who andrew tate is than they know who reshi is. even now after tiktok has banned his profile on tiktok, he's ill appearing quickly and frequently on young people's tiktok feeds and that's partially because it's not him posting these videos. it's his army of followers cutting, re-edthing and -- reediting and reposting them. ben: matt shea, the host of the documentary "the dangerous rise of andrew tate", thank you. around the world and across the u.k., you're watching bbc news. now, let's have a look at some of the other stories that are making headlines today. a coroner has been told two teenagers who died after an electric bike crash suffered

head injuries. the deaths of the two led to a r riot. the local coroner says an inquest is required after the police investigation is finished. a new alert system will warn the public when high temperatures could damage their health this summer in england. it will be run by the u.k. health security agency and the office aimed at reducing illness and deaths amongst the most vulnerable. and a rare plant normally found only in the swamps of west florida and in cuba is beginning to flower in the u.k. for the first time. this is the florida ghost orchid. there are less than 2,000 in existence. it was flown to the u.k. from chicago two weeks ago and now on display at the gardens in london. more on all of those stories on the bbc website. you are live with bbc news. now the bbc has found there is

evidence of potential war crimes that is being lobbed by social media firms because they automatically delete videos with content. they can stay online if it's in the public interest, but an investigation by the bbc's disinformation team suggests the opposite. we should warn you that this report does contain distressing images and descriptions of violence. >> since the russian invasion of ukraine, igor has bn documenting attacks on civilians likes this one on a road outside of kyiv. men, women and children were shot and burned by russian children soldiers while trying to flee oipgs. igor -- occupation. igor placed them on facebook but immediately taken down. >> russians were saying those are fakes. they didn't touch civilians. they fought only with the ukrainian army. it was really important to not only film this evidence but to

spread it. but my post was banned immediately. >> major social media companies have long been criticized for allowing easy access to distressing content. now, with the help of artificial intelligence, they are increasingly cracking down swiftly to delete it. but by deleting it evidence of war crimes can be lost. >> we're living in an extraordinary period where millions of people are capturing important evidence. whether or not the social media companies publish it or take it down, you can't afford to lose this material. >> while plate forms say graphic content can stay if it's in the public interest, we saw the opposite. we uploaded images. instagram took three of four images. 10 minutes later removed them all. and then there are repeal to restore the video was rejected. this is happening all over the world. international archiving

organizations say hundreds of thousands of videos from conflicts in ukraine, syria, yemen, and sudan have also been removed from platforms. losing even one video is concerning for open source investigators. proving that war crimes have been committed is incredibly hard. so they need to view asany angles as possible. ben: let's talk about that with steven, former prosecutor and ambassador at large of war crimes in the office of global criminal justice. thank you for being on the program. and that last thought there in that report suggests it's really difficult to gather vital evidence and the problem's getting even harder, isn't it? steven: it is getting harder and social media companies are not helping, they're hindering it. i'm particularly concerned about the loss of this material. i mean, after the use of the social media to incite the genocide of the rohgya in 2017, we thought we had commitments from social media companies like facebook, now knn as meta, to preserve this

information, at least. but now we see this deletion by artificial intelligence. you know, without the touch of a human hand or anybody evaluating it. and the danger that it's going to be lost when we need to prove these cases. and to be frank, some of the best evidence we have of these crimes are stuff posted on the social media, sometimes by the perpetrators themselves. if we lose that and don't have control of the scene of the crime when the crime is committed, we lose, really, the best evidence of these offenses. ben: yeah, social media firms say they have a duty of care to the audience. they need to take down harmful content. anything that is inappropriate. but what you're saying there, there needs to be more human interaction, more people need to be looking at this and deciding whether it should be deleted or preserved? stephen: absolutely. they need to preserve it so it can be available if somebody cites it.

civil society organizations, some groups like the syrian archive has done this in certain context. but now i don't -- it would be very hard to be on there quickly en enough. ben: it's about the speed, getting in there before that stuff is deleted. stephen: you don't have it. you can't build the case, build the leads and even talk to the witn witnesses with some of the evidence that tells you a little bit who, what, where, and how. you know, it really harms the investigation. but i'm particularly concerned about, you know, this fellow's justifiable concern of disinformation pushing out information. we think of the marketplace of ideas. bad speech countered by good speech, etc. and basically, you know, the russians say it's a lie. it isn't. it's true. and he can't refute it. they prevent that. i mean, meta developed -- appointed an international blue ribbon commission to deal with some of these things.

indicating they were going to respond. frankly, the business model is one, of course, with the algorithm finds the eyeballs and now we have artificial intelligence that goes in and deleted material without anybody evaluating whether it meets the standards they announced, if it's in the public interest to keep it up. if that's the standard, they need to put the humans to work to basically preserve that material, evaluate it. otherwise, put warnings on it. etc. you put it on things that are pretty bad. it's true. they should be able to do the same. ben: stephen, timing is tight. give me a sense of what you need when you are trying to prosecute cases like this, what is the data you need to have in front of you in order to prosecute successfully? stephen: you need, evidence, of course, the crime was committed. attacks on civilians that are fleeing. they're not combatants. this is very solid evidence of

the commission of war crimes. you may have information about the insignia on the uniforms of the people doing the shooting. you may have images of the individual. can ask themtalk to survivth ca. smart questions because they were at the scene of the accident. you -- scene of the crime. you know it's a real narrator: funding fothis presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. man: bdo. accountants and advisors. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ ♪

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♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provideby... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook: these are people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.