This is bbc news with victoria derbyshire. Music venues, theatres, galleries and museums are to get £1. 5 billion after being devastated by the coronavirus lockdown. This is all new money for the arts sector. Look, arts are at the absolute heart of our national life, whether it is your local theatre where you go to see the panto, or a part of the history of our nation. And if you work for a music venue, club, theatre, circus, museum or gallery is this new package enough to save yourjob . Message me on twitter vicderbyshire or email victoria bbc. Co. Uk. Lockdown restrictions continue to be eased around the uk beer gardens reopen in scotland, in wales the five mile travel restriction is lifted, and in Northern Ireland nail bars and tattoo parlours can reopen. In india, the level of virus cases reaches a new high. The country overtakes russia with the third highest number of infections. Delays in cancer diagnosis or treatment because of the coronavirus pandemic could lead to tens of thousands deaths in the uk, according to research seen by bbc panorama. And Ennio Morricone, one of hollywoods most iconic film score composers, had died at the age of 91. Hello and welcome if youre watching
in the uk or around the world, and stay with us for the latest news. A £1. 5 billion government rescue package has been announced for the uks arts and Heritage Sector, which has been devastated by the lockdown and social distancing rules. The funding throws a lifeline to venues which were on the verge of closing their doors forever. To venues which were on the verge the Prime Minister said the package, which runs until april, would safeguard the arts for future generations, but labour said the money had come too late to save some organisations. Heres our arts editor, will gompertz. Theatres, music venues, cinemas and museums across the country have been brought to their knees by the covid i9 pandemic, with many saying they will be bankrupt within weeks without emergency government support. That arrived today with the oliver dowden, the culture secretary, announcing a £1. 57 billion rescue package for the culture and Heritage Sector. We wished it would come sooner, but that does not mean were not extremely happy, but all i will say is that until we know what the future looks like for the Performing Arts,
it will still always be a bandage on a wound of unspecified scale. The announcement has been warmly welcomed by many arts leaders, who say they can now see a way for their organisations to survive at least until the spring. Of the total amount, £270 million will be made available as loans, with the rest, the vast majority, coming in the form of grants. All those communities, those regional vital social hubs, have now at least got something to at least tide them over while they think of what is next. There are no guarantees, of course. My big next follow up question would be, how do you plan to spend that cash, that emergency lifeline, to ensure that people still will be able to come and visit these vital venues . As ever, the devil is likely to be in the detail. The government has not specified how the money will be divided, nor how the application process will work. There are likely to be many winners, but the money has come too late for some venues that have already been forced to close, while others are onlyjust clinging on to the hope of a post pandemic return. Will gompertz, bbc news. Lets speak to amanda huxtable. Shes the artistic director and ceo of eclipse Theatre Company, a black led touring Theatre Company which creates works telling the stories of black british people. Amanda, hello to you. How do you react to this package, then . Amanda, hello to you. How do you react to this package, themm amanda, hello to you. How do you react to this package, then . It is a good morning. You know, it came in late last night, and the general consensus was thank you, we have been lobbying for such a long time, and we are glad we have been heard. Will you definitely get some money, do you think . There are no definite is for anyone. We know the figure, and we are glad of the figure, although we have to look at the
details because it goes right across the whole culture industry, which is a concern. Someone with a bigger calculator than me will have to work that out, but in terms of eclipse, we are a Theatre Company that goes right across the country, and whatever affects one will affect another. All the venues will be impacted, and then of course freelances as well. That is true, andi freelances as well. That is true, and i am getting a few messages from freelancers, gary says, great news for the theatre industry getting financial support, but lets hope it is not all swallowed up by the debts racked up by venues and it finds its way to those who have received zero support thus far. It does not seem funds will filter down to people in the companies. It is great that
theatres are being saved, and without us, and a date for theatres to reopen, there will be no show is to reopen, there will be no show is to fill theatres in the future. What do you think of that . Id totally understand. I have been a freelancer for 25 years, then i became ceo of eclipse in december, so i totally understand the conversations. We cannot do anything without venues, and we could not work without freelances. What i have been really excited about is the understanding of how our industry works, so we know that we campaigned for freelancers, we know they can campaignfor freelancers, we know they can campaign for themselves and have been standing up really clearly about who they are. 47 of our industry, so they have a voice in his conversation about how it gets distributed and how we all get supported in the best way. With, you know, real concerns, because the fa ct know, real concerns, because the fact is we have to make sure that
every voice is heard, particularly those of us who are underrepresented. We are black allowed for a reason, we have different needs and understandings, covid i9, which is the whole point of this package, has revealed the disparities, has revealed it is not the same for everyone. The culture secretary was asked on the radio this morning while it was that we could sit on planes and trains alongside each other without social distancing, Wearing Masks, but we cant yet do that in theatres. I wasnt clear what the answer was, i didnt know if it was based on science or economic decisions, but a lot of our audiences saying it is more about the performance, you know, you would know more about this, amanda, what do you think the reason is . There have been a lot of conversations, but in terms of the science, we know that some of our artists and communities, our audiences, are very vulnerable, so in terms of disability, you know,
ethnicity, some of us cannot return safely, so we have to have those concerns and considerations in terms of our return, and we dont want it to cost lives. I have heard about singing, laughter, which is very pa rt singing, laughter, which is very part of our practice, which is going through the pain and making sure that we understand the joy of who we are. So you can imagine being in a space where you dont laugh, it would be very quite. But im very interested in relaxed spaces, being who we are. I think this is an opportunity to be imaginative. Imagination is what we do, we have to think about how we can return safely and be the best we can be and keep everyone safe, notjust the artists on the stage, but our workforce and the audiences. Thank you very much, amanda, good luck. Amanda huxtable, artistic director
and ceo of eclipse Theatre Company. India has now overtaken russia to become the country with the worlds third highest confirmed Coronavirus Infections, after the United States and brazil. But experts warn the true scale of the outbreak in india could be far bigger. A sharp rise in new cases in recent days has taken the total Health Ministry figure to nearly 700,000. More than 19,000 people have died in india so far. The high numbers have forced the government to rethink plans to open up the country. Lets cross to our india correspondent, Yogita Limaye. So we have the official figures, but then this idea that actually there could be many more cases and many more deaths. Thats right. Officially, we have around 700,000 cases and around 20,000 deaths, and one of the things that government authorities are continuously citing is that indias death rate, its mortality rate, is a lot lower than
other countries with a similar number of cases, and that is where the question arises. Over the past several weeks, we have been talking to front line doctors in different parts of the country, some have told us parts of the country, some have told us that, on the death certificate. They often write the co morbidity but not covid 19. In other cases, we have been told that people who are brought dead two hospitals, even if they have covid like symptoms, they are not tested. Overall in india, a large percentage of deaths happen at home, not at hospitals, so even before the coronavirus outbreak, the counting of deaths, how these records are kept and maintained, the cause of death, you know, you always either have a long delay in knowing the exact cause of death, some of these numbers are mixed, and it may bea
these numbers are mixed, and it may be a lot more than 20,000. So what does it mean in terms of how the government manages this, tries to reduce the number of cases and deaths in the future, and how it tries to open up the economy . India has a federal structure, so what were seeing in the country is that different parts of india are doing different parts of india are doing Different Things. I am in mumbai, actually a quarter of the deaths that taken place in this city, so it is the worst affected city, although the total number of cases is higher in delhi. Here, for example, we have had a very nominal easing of lockdown restrictions. Public transport is back on the streets, but restaurants, shopping malls, cinemas are closed, private offices are only allowed to have 10 of their staff working from workplaces, everybody else has to work from home. There are checkpoints across the city to ensure that people arent venturing out unnecessarily. There are other parts of the country
where, you know, because of the surge in the number of cases, they have reimposed a stringent lockdown for either ten days or two weeks. In the city of delhi as well, a lot of questioning happening on how do we continue to ease lockdown restrictions, to try to reopen the economy, because for a country as vast as india, keeping it shut down for a prolonged period of time is also catastrophic. And this is the difficult situation that they are stuck in, you know, you open up for a while and two weeks later you see a while and two weeks later you see a sudden surge in cases, the medical infrastructure really struggling. Makeshift hospitals are being built in different parts of the country, a 10,000 bed covid care facility set up 10,000 bed covid care facility set up in delhi over the weekend, but if you open up fully, Indias Health infrastructure is not going to be able to take that. Thank you very much. India now has the third highest number of confirmed cases in the world,
it also has the second highest population, at over 1. 3 billion people. And this is important to consider when comparing how the country is faring. In terms of confirmed cases per1 Million People, the worst affected countries, not including european microstates, are qatar, with over 35,500 cases per million. Bahrain has more than 17,000 cases per million. And chile has more than 15,000. India does not currently make the top 100 cases per Million People, but the epidemic in the country is not expected to peak for several more weeks. Lockdown restrictions are being eased in scotland, wales and Northern Ireland today. In scotland, beer gardens and pavement cafes are allowed to open again. This weekend, children under 11 got to hug their grandparents for the first time in months, as they no longer need to physically distance from each other or from adults. And nonessential shops have also reopened from friday, it will be mandatory to wear an in store face covering. In wales, Outdoor Attractions will reopen, with owners saying theyre thrilled to return. The stay local guidance, asking people to stay
within five miles of home, has ended, with no limits on travel. And from today two households will also be able to Stay Together indoors and overnight. People in Northern Ireland will be able to visit loved ones in hospital for the first time in months as part of lockdown measures easing there. Close contact businesses, such as hairdressers and nail salons, can now reopen. The revised guidance means spas, tattoo pa rlou rs and massage providers can also resume trading from today. Our correspondentjohn mcmanus has all the details. In england, by the way, and e mail, have instructions for shielded people changed from today . I will remind you that you can meet six other people outside, as long as you are social distancing. That is for shielding people in england, from today you can meet six others
outside as long as you maintain two metres social distancing. As you probably know, shielding officially ends in england at the end ofjuly. Here isjohn ends in england at the end ofjuly. Here is john mcmanus ends in england at the end ofjuly. Here isjohn mcmanus with all the details. Soho in Central London on saturday night. Partygoers enjoyed the return of pubs and bars, but there was virtually no sign of the social distancing measures the government had insisted should be followed. Elsewhere across england, it seems the reopening of bars went off mostly trouble free. But one High Profile Police officer said that drunk people cant or wont practise social distancing and that may become a problem as more venues reopen. Lets go in wales, the first minister, mark drakeford, joined in the celebrations for the 72nd birthday of the nhs on sunday evening. Hes urged visitors to the country to behave safely and respectfully as some welsh restrictions come to an end today. The bar on people travelling more than five miles has been lifted, and Outdoor Attractions can also reopen. The tourist sector may welcome
more guests from july 11th if conditions are right. For now, though, bars and restaurants remain closed. Hi, how are you . Good to see you. In scotland, though, beer gardens and pavement cafes will welcome back customers from later today, although they wont be able to go inside until at leastjuly 15th. At a rooftop bar in edinburgh, first minister Nicola Sturgeon saw for herself how venues will try to keep customers and staff safe. As in england, bar goers will have to leave their Contact Details in case they need to be traced. Everyone has a part to play. Weve all got a personal responsibility right now to keep ourselves safe and protect others and ultimately to save lives so each of us as an individual citizen, from washing our hands to public transport, wearing a face covering, make sure you arent in crowded places, comply with test and protect, all of that is really important. Northern ireland reopened its Hospitality Industry on friday. Today, hairdressers, barbers, beauty parlours and nail salons will follow suit. Its a welcome move. A new analysis by the stormont government says job losses caused by the pandemic could match those of the 1980s. Its something that all parts of the uk are desperate to avoid. John mcmanus, bbc news. In a moment, well speak to our ireland correspondent chris page, whos in belfast with some people trying to get a haircut for the first time in weeks. But first our scotland correspondent Alexandra Mackenzie is at falkland palace and gardens, a National Trust property in fife. Tell us more about this place. Well, the National Trust has been struggling financially since lockdown, but from today lovely
gardens like these here at falkland palace can open to the public. This was a Hunting Lodge back in the 15005, was a Hunting Lodge back in the 1500s, and mary queen of scots played tennis here on a tennis court thatis played tennis here on a tennis court that is still in use today. And i am joined by the head gardener, susan. The gardens are absolutely gorgeous, you have got them in good shape for the day, hard work . Yes, there is lots to do, and there will be for quite some time to come, but as always, theres always lots to see in the garden at this of year. I think it is fair to say that the wilder parts of the garden are thriving at the moment, some of the areas that are a little bit more buffered need a little bit more tender loving care from us, but we all need a good haircut and a manicure at this time. But otherwise, lots in flower, yeah, i encourage people to come and see the gardens and see what nature has
done. Hopefully this weather will help as well. Excellent gardening weather. It has been yourjob to make sure that everything is in place in regards to Safety Measures, what can people expect here . When people arrive, we are asking them to maintain two metres distance in come up maintain two metres distance in come up with it being an outdoor area, there is nine acres of garden and orchard to explore, so hopefully people will be able to keep their distance. We have a hand sanitising station coming as well, we have had to work out exactly what two metres looks like in some of our areas, so for instance in the greenhouse, it isa for instance in the greenhouse, it is a one way system, and also in the tennis court, it will be worn in, one out. Also, i am sorry to say that our toilets are not open today. It has not been possible to get those ready and maintain the standards that we need to. But yeah, i think we are about ready to go, ready and wai