good evening, i'm asad ahmad. tonight a special report on ‘county lines‘.anised criminal gangs groom mainly young people to deliver drugs to areas outside london. it's been found that during lockdown, when demand was said to be "very high", dealers disguised themselves as key workers to avoid detection. thousands are thought to have been recruited to supply drugs to dozens of areas around the country, with a key route being hello to viewers in the uk joining those around the world. it's now time for us to take a first look at the national and international front pages in the papers. hello, and welcome to our look ahead to what some of the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are political strategist jo tanner, and author and journalist, rachel shabi. thank you both forjoining us on wednesday evening. let's start with the daily telegraph. it says the uk prime minister has defied calls for an easing of covid restrictions, insisting that the only way to tackle the virus is to maintain a tough stance. "we're going in the wrong direction!", says the expr

i'm asad ahmad.nd singer jarvis cocker, says the coronavirus pandemic is likely to increase the problem. the house of st barnabas trains homeless people to find jobs. but they fear that covid's impact on the hospitality sector will cause large—scale unemployment and risk more people losing their homes. i think there is a significant cliff edge coming and we are optimistic here at the house that people do still want a connection to other people and that community is more important than ever. the widow of thames valley police constable andrew harper is pushing for cross—party support over her campaign for life sentences for those who kill emergency services workers. lissie harper is meeting politicians this week after her 28—year—old husband died last year when he was dragged behind a car in berkshire whilst on duty, causing his death. the pandemic has caused live music to suffer as gigs across london have been cancelled overnight for nearly six months now. so a musician from east london has found a wa

good morning, i'm asad ahmad. sadiq khan has said he'll meet council leaders today. it comes as data from just a few days ago suggested london was two weeks behind those areas, but now it's believed the gap has closed to two or three days. well, the health secretary matt hancock says he won't rule out new restrictions in london to slow the virus's spread. thousands of private renters across london are bracing themselves for court action, now that a temporary ban on evictions has ended. the government introduced the measure to prevent people losing their homes during the pandemic. it's thought tens of thousands of people have been served eviction notices in recent months. the national residential landlord association says it's encouraged landlords to "work with their tenants to sustain tenancies wherever possible". for most of this year, many people have felt isolated, which has seen a return of pen pals writing to each other. it's united people across the generations, like a 93—year—old care home resident from lut

i'm asad ahmad. epidemiologist at university college london. there's concern about a return to colleges and universities, while public health london's director told us the rise in cases in young people could be linked to ignoring guidelines. young people are not remembering to do some of the basics that we all need to do to prevent the transmission of infection. wearing masks, washing your hands, keeping your distance. and that is really important to be reinforced as we see this increasing cases occur. —— increase in cases. one of london's largest historical cemeteries is to reopen to the public from today. willesden jewish cemetery was closed to everyone during the pandemic, opening only for funerals but from today, people can once again visit gravesides and also learn about london'sjewish heritage. a woman from south london has launched a children's magazine for boys to tackle the under—representation of black children in the media. serlina boyd launched cocoa boy to celebrate black culture, having

i'm asad ahmad.cision has been made about whether they'll still be playing their league cup match against tottenham hotspurs tonight. 0rient's football ground has been closed until further notice and the club is in discussions with public health england about whether any further action needs to be taken. it's understood that if 0rient can't field a team tonight the game will be awarded to spurs as there's not enough room in the schedule to rearrange the tie. londoners are being advised to get a flu jab to help protect against what's being called the "double danger" of flu and coronavirus. research shows people can catch both diseases at the same time with serious and sometimes deadly consequences. anyone over 50 is eligible for the jab. a start—up firm in south east london is trying to make it cool for men to wear wigs. and it's focus is upon young black men with hair loss. it's already proving popular in america, where after preparation, the so—called "man—weave", using natural hair, is attached to