Facing a revolt Boris Johnson holds a Cabinet Meeting as he come under increasing pressure to sack his top adviser Dominic Cummings. Mps in his own party and across the political spectrum criticise the Prime Ministers decision to back mr cummings who has just said he will make a statement in the next few hours. Borisjohnson is putting his political interest ahead of the Public Interest and when trust in a Public Health message and Public Health advice is as important as it is right now, the consequences of that could be very serious. Well be getting the latest from downing street, where the cabinet is discussing further easing of restrictions. Also this lunchtime. The price some children pay in lockdown as social services warn of an increase in abuse, neglect or harm going on behind closed doors. Brazil is declared the latest
coronavirus hotspot with more than with more than 36,000 second only to the united states, as president bolsonaro is accused of not taking the pandemic seriously. Separated at birth the surrogate children born under lockdown thousands of miles away who cant be handed over to their parents. And, getting training back on track the government gives the go ahead to some Contact Sport preparations, but with restrictions. Good afternoon. In the last few minutes its been revealed that borisjohnsons Senior AdviserDominic Cummings will be making a Public Statement and taking questions later this afternoon. It comes amid growing calls for his resignation over claims he broke the governments own lockdown guidelines. The Prime Minister is holding a Cabinet Meeting in
downing street right now its scheduled to be looking at further ways of easing the coronavirus lockdown restrictions, but borisjohnson is facing a revolt from mps within his own party as well as criticism from across the political spectrum, following his decision to back his most senior and most trusted aide. Our Political CorrespondentJessica Parker reports. The questions keep coming. Did you go to Barnard Castle, mr cummings . And cannot easily be waved away. Borisjohnson and cannot easily be waved away. Boris johnson strongly and cannot easily be waved away. Borisjohnson strongly backed his chief aide last night saying Dominic Cummings had acted legally and with integrity. The Prime Minister appearing to consider the matter closed. Very serious allegations have been levelled at Dominic Cummings in terms of the breaking of the rules and therefore breaking the law. Dominic cummings has set out absolutely clearly, and that is absolutely clearly, and that is absolutely categorically that he did not break the rules and he didnt
break the law. The Prime Minister is right to be asking those questions, right to be asking those questions, right to be asking those questions, right to be asking for those assurances. Amid lockdown, mr cummings travelled in late march from london to County Durham with his wife, who had covid symptoms and their young son, to self isolate on their young son, to self isolate on the family farm in case they needed help with childcare. Then, was there later a day out, 30 miles down the road at Barnard Castle . Durhams acting police and crime commissioner has requested the facts be investigated. Coming out last night to back his adviser. I think you follow the instincts of every father and every parent and i do not mark him down for that. But a number of conservative mps now want an investigation. 0thers conservative mps now want an investigation. Others for Dominic Cummings to go. My inbox is absolutely bloated with anger, real fury from constituents from across the political spectrum, from across
the political spectrum, from across the different professions and jobs in north dorset. Absolutely furious. Waiting for developments, it is now understood mr cummings will make a Public Statement later, take questions. But opposition parties have been calling on the Prime Minister to sack him. Boris johnson is putting his political interests ahead of the Public Interest. And when trust in a Public Health message and Public Health advice is as important as it is right now, the consequences of that could be very serious. Michael carter from surrey, staying home for Health Reasons didnt get to see his mother before she died and says he feels insulted. It looks as if it is the old boys clu b it looks as if it is the Old Boys Club looking after each other now. That is what it feels like. And to make rules for the British Public to follow and then to break them all to deceive people, which is what he has done, is unacceptable. At a Virtual Meeting today, the cabinet is looking at the next steps out of lockdown. As decisions are made
behind the store, public trust, a crucial commodity. Jessica parker, bbc news. So in a highly unusual step the Prime Ministers Senior Adviser, Dominic Cummings, is going to make a Public Statement this afternoon. 0ur chief Political Correspondent vicki young is at downing street. What are we expecting him to say . We dont know how hes going to do this, we know it is a Public Statement and he will also take questions. It is a real acknowledgement that things have not been handled well, but what the Prime Minister did yesterday, coming out and defending his adviser might have made things worse. A lot of conservative mps are concerned that people are questioning the judgment of the Prime Minister by clinging on to his adviser. I think the anger from conservative mps, some of them going public, because they in turn, are hearing the anger from their constituents. Even if Dominic Cummings didnt break the law, he undermined the governments message, he didnt behave in the same way as millions of other people have done. This feels like a last and potentially very risky and dramatic way of trying to save Dominic Cummings job. Vicki young, thank you very much. As weve heard, durhams acting police, crime and victims commissioner, has written to the forces chief constable, calling on officers to establish whether mr cummings breached the law. Our Home Affairs CorrespondentDaniel Sandford is here. What happens next . Steve white has asked the chief co nsta ble to steve white has asked the chief constable to establish the facts, so the people of durham can be satisfied the police force are continuing to do theirjob independent of government. Clearly, what the force does in terms of the resources put into it is a key question. It would be disproportionate to put huge amounts of resources into it like a murder enquiry, but are there simple things that can be done, like checking cameras for the movement of the car, talking to witnesses who did see Dominic Cummings, spoke to Dominic Cummings himself, that can be done to establish quickly, the set of fa cts to establish quickly, the set of facts for what is in the end, a
breach of health regulations. It is not a major crime but it is of something of great concern at the moment to people across the country, including some tory mps. That is why steve white is keen the facts can be established. Thank you very much. A hospital in Weston Super Mare has temporarily stopped accepting new patients, including to its a e department, because of a high number of existing patients with coronavirus. Weston General Hospital said it was taking the measure as a precaution in order to maintain the safety of staff and patients in the hospital. Arrangements are in place for new patients to get access to treatment and care in other Healthcare Settings nearby should they need it. Theres concern that demand on childrens social services in england will increase, as Vulnerable Children come out of lockdown. Social workers have tried to keep in contact with those already known to them, but limited access to some children during the pandemic could mean abuse, neglect or harm behind closed doors. 0ur education and family correspondent Frankie Mccamley reports. This Homeless Youth shelter in yorkshire is looking after some of the areas most vulnerable people. Young people whod otherwise be on the streets during lockdown. Now, all living under roof together. Including this teenager who we are calling jen. My mum, she was a big alcoholic, she was a big druggie. She had kind of like a meltdown about it and, like, didnt want anything to do with us. Jen moved to her grans, but couldnt stay during the pandemic. Desperate for somewhere to live, her social workers brought her here where she met 18 year old amelia. She became homeless in lockdown following a family breakdown. Amelia says any support young people can get to leave a bad situation at this time can make a huge difference. I was having moments where i would completely break down. I would be in tears on the floor. I didnt think that was fair
for my younger brother to have to walk into my room and find his sister on the floor crying her eyes out. I was so torn up about the breakdown that had happened with my family. The hostel is working closely with social services to make sure these young people are safe. Theyve got a safe bed here and can be a lot better off than some other people. Without connections to the outside world or connections to social workers, you probably fear for those people more. Its a fear shared by many. In east london, social workers are video calling the Vulnerable Children they know about. Hey, its dan, the social worker. Some, making home visits where they can. Ive just spoken to your mum and she said she is feeling a bit anxious at the moment. So im going to sit outside. Trying to get a full of a picture as possible, talking through windows from gardens, or behind closed doors. Its difficult, without face to face contact, social workers must pick up on the smaller science. Ive been working with a child where weve been doing a lot of video calls. Normally hes quite happy,
upbeat and engaged but there were a lot of one word answers and glancing off screen. So im here today to do a surprise, unannounced visit. There are concerns some may be using isolation to stop contact altogether. We did have some families who were quick to tell us they were isolating with a cough or a temperature and sometimes we werent100 sure that the children really had symptoms, or rather where they trying to avoid a social worker coming to the home . Social workers like maryanne are going out across the country trying to find creative ways to stay in touch with children. But there are concerns about what is happening to those young people who are not in touch with social services. Abuse and harm will still be going on, as well as for young people, exploitation and county lines in gangs. So that will re emerge and we need to be prepared for the increase in pressure of work, which we think will come. But worryingly for now, referrals to Child Social Services are much lower than usual as childrens needs are hidden. The concern is, when normality does begin to emerge, so will the pressure on already squeezed services. Frankie mccamley, bbc news. The government is considering plans to step in and support some large british businesses that are struggling financially with the impact of coronavirus. Our Business CorrespondentKatie Prescott is here. These have the backing of the chancellor, rishi sunak . Yes, the government stepped in to bail out the banks in the financial crisis, so there is precedent. There is a message measure of package in, the government stepped in to pay the wage of workers, but for some businesses it is not enough. The aviation system, it has been shut down for the last couple of months
and we know there are some businesses like Jaguar Land Rover and tartare steel who have been speaking to the government about a bespoke package of support. This is the government saying, if a business has explored all other avenues and exhausted all other avenues, they are prepared to step in and help them. We are starting to see this in other countries like germany, who will step in to help lufthansa. Thank you very much. Brazil, the worlds sixth largest country has been declared the latest coronavirus hotspot with more than 360,000 reported cases that puts it second only to the united states. Despite the crisis, president Jair Bolsonaro has played down the threat from the virus and repeatedly argued that lockdown measures are unnecessary and harmful to the economy. From sao paulo, our correspondent katy watson sent this report. Singing. Sundays sermon was a lesson in love. Evangelical pastor luiz reminding the congregation,
which is mostly online nowadays, that they need to care for people both near and far a fitting message at a time of socially distanced devotion. Translation we cant bring politics into church. 0utside, we can talk about it, but here we talk about the soul. On this day of worship, though, brazils president was devoted to another cause protesting against isolation measures with his flock. And once again, not wearing a mask. The pandemic took a back seat over the weekend. On friday, the Supreme Court released a dynamite video recorded last month. Its being used as evidence in an investigation into allegations mr bolsonaro tried to replace senior members of the federal police to protect his family. But his foul mouthed ranting was wide ranging attacking politicians, the press, and laying bare his belligerent attitude. Translation i want everybody to be
armed because armed people will never be enslaved. But perhaps most surprising of all, in the two hour video, the cabinet barely mentioned the all consuming coronavirus. These past few days have revealed some ugly truths here in brazil. Not only has it become the latest epicentre of the coronavirus crisis, but bolsonaros government has shown itself to be unable, even unwilling, to lead the country through it. Meanwhile, more and more are struggling to get by. This kitchen run by the church used to have 50 people turning up a day now its closer to 2,500. Each and every one of them, their hands sprayed before they can pick up their meal. I was working, but i got laid off, this man tells me. What will happen to us in sao paulo . How are we going to live . Bolsonaro thinks one thing, the others think another, but nothing has been done for the people. Theres fear that bolsonaros
constant calls to reopen the economy will be responsible for more deaths in the coming weeks. Translation people have the right to health and a dignified way of life. Its irresponsible, its genocide making people decide marginalised and excluded people do they get contaminated by the virus or go hungry . Brazil, too, is becoming more and more marginalised. The world watching as its president seems unwilling to take this pandemic seriously. Katie watson, bbc news, in sao paulo. Lets take a look at some of todays other news. Japan has lifted the nationwide state of emergency it had imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Prime minister shinzo abe said his country had managed to bring the disease under control in less than two months. Japan has had fewer than 20,000 confirmed cases and just over 800 deaths. Greeks are once again able to travel freely to the countrys islands, as lockdown restrictions are eased there. The return of Domestic Travel is an important step towards restarting the wider tourism industry,
which makes up at least a fifth of the greek economy. Ferry services to the islands are operating with reduced capacity, to ensure social distancing, and passengers are having their temperatures checked. The italian air forces Aerobatic Team have done a fly past over milan to honour the countrys heroes and victims of the coronavirus pandemic. They will be flying over major towns and cities every day until the 2nd ofjune, when theyll fly over rome to mark italys republic day. The bbc has been told that there are now more than 100 newborn surrogate babies stranded in ukraine following restrictions brought in because of the coronavirus. Some of the newborns are stuck because flights have been cancelled, while other countries who oppose surrogacy have refused to support the parents trying to get special permission to go to ukraine. Ukraine is one of the worlds leading destinations for commercial surrogacy, as our correspondent as jonah fisher reports. The manu is eight weeks old and has never met his parents. He was born to a surrogate
in ukraine,