today's report shows a decades—long moral failure at the heart of our national life. the prime minister has promised to give details of a compensation package tomorrow and says whatever it costs, the government will pay it. also on the programme... the chief prosecutor at the international criminal court seeks arrest warrants for the israeli prime minister and the head of hamas over alleged war crimes. new electric pulse treatment bringing some movement back to people paralysed from the neck down. and the king and queen drop in at the chelsea flower show to admire this year's gardens. and on newsnight at 10.30pm — we'll go deeper behind the headlines and speak live to key players in today's big stories. plus, we take a first look at what's on tomorrow's front pages.

good evening. just some of the faces of the victims of 50 years of the infected blood scandal. the wholly damning conclusion of today's inquiry into that scandal describes years of deception and cover—up in which doctors, the blood services and successive governments did not put patient safety first. it found that the biggest treatment disaster in the history of the nhs could and should have been avoided. over the two decades — the 19705 to the 19905 — more than 30,000 people were infected with diseases like hiv and hepatitis c. 3,000 have died already, many are living with ongoing side effects. the prime minister described today as a day of shame for the british state and will announce plans for compensation for the victims of the scandal tomorrow. 0ur health editor hugh pym reports. on day one of the inquiry, perry, supported by family, gave evidence.

there is a huge impact on family, because they carry you and... he didn't survive long enough to see today's report. he was infected with hiv and hepatitis c through his haemophilia treatment. his memorial service was this month. today his wife heather and son isaac were here in his memory. it is still very raw, him not being here. it was five weeks ago to the day today, so he so almost made it to see the result and have closure from what happened to him. the minute i read the first. recommendation, which was compensation and a second - recommendation was to apologise, i thought, thank goodness, we have been heard. - they had called for truth and justice for decades and today campaigners hoped to find it

as the final inquiry report was published at westminster. the findings a devastating indictment of health leaders and successive governments. the report says the scandal could largely, though not entirely, have been avoided, and that hiding the truth included not only deliberate concealment, but also a lack of candour, the retelling of half—truths. and of patients, harms already done to them were compounded by a refusal to accept responsibility and accountability. how shocked were you by what you found? how could anyone not be moved by a story, a story which begins with 30,000 people? one person is a tragedy. 30,000 is 30,000 tragedies. acro �*s how did we get here? and you

treatment has created called factor 8 from blood plasma. us pharmaceutical companies used blood for it that was created from high—risk paid donors including drug addicts and prisoners. in 1975, the uk announced a plan to be self—sufficient, only using blood products from the uk. but by 1978, the nhs was still importing around half the blood products needed to treat haemophiliacs from overseas, primarily the us. by the end of 1982, there were warnings by health officials about hiv in us blood products, but they were not withdrawn from use in the nhs. it wasn't until 1985 that blood products were heat—treated to remove hiv. by this time, there infected were calling for action. by 1989, hep c was formally identified in other countries started screening. but it wasn't until 1991 that screening of donations finally started in the uk. stuart died at the age of 27. he was given

american—made factor 8 that infected him with hiv in 1983. the guilt of his illness lives with his mum still today. i his illness lives with his mum still toda . ., ., , his illness lives with his mum still toda. ., ., i, today. i have always blamed myself for takinu today. i have always blamed myself for taking him _ today. i have always blamed myself for taking him to _ today. i have always blamed myself for taking him to have _ today. i have always blamed myself for taking him to have his _ for taking him to have his treatment which infected him. it doesn't matter if people say to you, you're not guilty of that, that wasn't your fault. it not guilty of that, that wasn't your fault. . , �* not guilty of that, that wasn't your fault.- but today's - not guilty of that, that wasn't your fault.- but today's reporti fault. it wasn't. but today's report confirmed that _ fault. it wasn't. but today's report confirmed that stuart's _ fault. it wasn't. but today's report confirmed that stuart's infection l confirmed that stuart's infection could have been avoided. american factor 8 should have been withdrawn earlier. figs factor 8 should have been withdrawn earlier. �* , . . , �* factor 8 should have been withdrawn earlier. a ., �* . earlier. as far as i'm concerned, this is just _ earlier. as far as i'm concerned, this is just the _ earlier. as far as i'm concerned, this isjust the beginning, - earlier. as far as i'm concerned, this is just the beginning, this . earlier. as far as i'm concerned, this isjust the beginning, this is not the end. if we don't get some form _ not the end. if we don't get some form of— not the end. if we don't get some form ofjustice, somebody being taken _ form ofjustice, somebody being taken to— form ofjustice, somebody being taken to task, then this could happen— taken to task, then this could happen again. taken to task, then this could happen again-— taken to task, then this could happen again. they played with --eole's happen again. they played with people's lives. _ happen again. they played with people's lives. they _ happen again. they played with people's lives. they were - happen again. they played with. people's lives. they were human beings, real people that have died. there were emotional hugs seeing a

childhood friends of stuart's, clive, who is now head of the haemophilia society. government, sin . le haemophilia society. government, single servants — haemophilia society. government, single servants and _ haemophilia society. government, single servants and health - haemophilia society. government, single servants and health care - single servants and health care professionals for many years thought that they— professionals for many years thought that they know best. well, today the community— that they know best. well, today the community knows best and i think one of the _ community knows best and i think one of the overwhelming emotions today will he _ of the overwhelming emotions today will be one _ of the overwhelming emotions today will be one of vindication. cathy married neil— will be one of vindication. cathy married neil in _ will be one of vindication. cathy married neil in 1999. _ will be one of vindication. cathy married neil in 1999. just - will be one of vindication. cathy married neil in 1999. just two l will be one of vindication. cathy married neil in 1999. just two years later, he died. he had contracted hepatitis c after a single blood transfusion earlier. my husband died otentiall transfusion earlier. my husband died potentially unnecessarily _ transfusion earlier. my husband died potentially unnecessarily in - transfusion earlier. my husband died potentially unnecessarily in my - potentially unnecessarily in my future could have been very different in my life been very different. ~ , different. the prime minister said it was a day _ different. the prime minister said it was a day of — different. the prime minister said it was a day of shame _ different. the prime minister said it was a day of shame when - different. the prime minister said it was a day of shame when he i different. the prime minister said . it was a day of shame when he spoke in the commons. it it was a day of shame when he spoke in the commons.— in the commons. it did not have to be this way- _ in the commons. it did not have to be this way- it _ in the commons. it did not have to be this way. it should _ in the commons. it did not have to be this way. it should never- in the commons. it did not have to be this way. it should never have l be this way. it should never have been _ be this way. it should never have been this— be this way. it should never have been this way. and on behalf of this and every— been this way. and on behalf of this and every government stretching back to the _ and every government stretching back to the 19705, i am truly sorry. the

to the 1970s, i am truly sorry. the a olo: to the 1970s, i am truly sorry. the apology was _ to the 19705, i am truly sorry. tie: apology was noted, but today was all about the victims and those present and remembering lives lost. tomorrow, they will want to hear plans for compensation. the inquiry found that in the 50 or so years since the first infected blood was given to an unsuspecting patient, whichever government was in power, the response was largely the same — cover—up and delay. 0ur political editor chris mason looks at how it happened. this report spells out a failure decade after decade, from one government to the next, some conservative, some labour. a picture is painted ofa rigid, inflexible, even inhuman state conspiring, collectively, to deny not only justice, but truth. take a look at this extract from the report: "the answer to the question, was there a cover up? — is that there has been. not in the sense of a handful

of people plotting an orchestrated conspiracy to mislead, but in a way that was more subtle, more pervasive and more chilling in its implications. to save face and to save expense, there has been a hiding of much of the truth". and the truth was hidden for more than a generation. take one example from 1983 — the government arguing publicly that there was no conclusive proof that blood transmitted aids. here was ken clarke — now lord clarke — a health minister at the time — talking about this to the inquiry. it is accurate, it seems to me, unless you can find some medical opinion that i have never seen before. it seems to me, having looked at these documents, the "no conclusive proof" phrase, these three words are taken out as though they are loaded with significance. no conclusive proof is a perfectly accurate description of the then medical opinion. the report concludes: "this line to take, whilst technically correct, was indefensible. it did not spell out the real risk. it gave false reassurance. it lacked candour and by not telling the whole truth was misleading".

lord clarke has not returned our calls today. by the late �*905, labour were in government. the report sets out baldly the concerns then about the implications of compensation — how much it would cost, what it might mean for claims from other patient groups failed by the nhs. i spoke today to andy burnham, now the mayor of greater manchester, a former labour health secretary. why had he not done what theresa may eventually did and set up an inquiry? well, i always ask questions - of myself and i said to campaigners, i am sorry that i couldn't do more, more quickly. - i was not aware that this - was a cover—up when i was in the department of health - and i was told at the time that nobody was knowinglyl given unsafe products, but that was a lie. that was the officialj line and it was a lie. so that is the blunt truth here. there you were as a secretary of state, of all things. it's incredible. ..and the system was lying to you.

it's incredible, isn't it? that is why i say the most serious questions should be asked - here of whitehall departments. how can it be that thousands i and thousands of british citizens were left in the wilderness? and yes, an apology too from labour today — here was keir starmer addressing mp5 and addressing victims and their families in the public gallery of the house of commons: politics itself failed you. that failure applies to all parties, including my own. there is only one word — sorry. and let me play you this, finally, from the prime minister — about what he says will come next: whatever it costs to deliver this scheme, we will pay it. and my right honourable friend the minister for the cabinet office will set out the details tomorrow. second, it is not enough to say sorry, pay long overdue compensation

and then attempt to move on. there can be no moving on from a report that is so devastating in its criticisms. the troubling truth tonight is that this is not an isolated case. think the post office inquiry. the hillsborough disaster. institutional instincts for obfuscation, delays and denials, piling injustice upon injustice. chris, thanks. hugh pym is here with me. so we heard about years of obfuscation, denialand so we heard about years of obfuscation, denial and delayed justice. the victims now want justice. the victims now want justice. details of a compensation package will be announced tomorrow and then there will be other questions. will there be any criminal charges?— questions. will there be any criminal charges? questions. will there be any criminal chares? ., ., ., criminal charges? fiona, we had the aolo: criminal charges? fiona, we had the apology from _ criminal charges? fiona, we had the apology from the — criminal charges? fiona, we had the apology from the prime _ criminal charges? fiona, we had the apology from the prime minister. i apology from the prime minister. tonight amanda pritchard, head of

nhs england, has made the first apology of its kind by such a senior nhs figure in modern times since this issue started rising up the political agenda. this issue started rising up the politicalagenda. she this issue started rising up the political agenda. she said she offered the deepest and heartfelt apologies for the role the nhs played in suffering and loss, with tens of thousands of people badly let down with their care. campaigners i spoke to today welcomed the apologies, but said words were one thing, what about actions? that is where we need to move to compensation tomorrow. there will be a government statement in the commons, and the detail is important. how long will it take to set the scheme up, when can it start paying out? the inquiry chairman sir brian langstaff said in april last year, the government should set a compensation scheme up then to be ready to roll, and that didn't happen. 0n the issue of criminal action, the inquiry chair does not have the power to initiate that, but he can certainly pass on the report

to prosecuting authorities. then there is the issue of legal action. there is an action against the government department of health which was in the courts, and one against the school where young haemophiliacs were treated with infected blood. they were both put on hold, but we will have to see what happens now that the inquiry is over. ~ . ~' what happens now that the inquiry is over. ~ ., ~ , ., the chief prosecutor of the international criminal court has applied for arrest warrants for israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, and the leader of hamas in gaza, yahya sinwar. he says there are reasonable grounds to believe both men bear responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed since the hamas attacks on october 7th and the subsequent war with israel in gaza. mr netanyahu described the move as "absurd". president biden says it is outrageous, the uk government has called it unhelpful. lucy williamson has more. today israel and hamas found themselves attacking the same target. their leaders listed side by side

at the international criminal court. international law and the laws of armed conflict apply to everyone. no foot soldier, no commander, no civilian leader, no one can act with impunity. prosecutors accuse israel of a state sanctioned attack against gaza's civilian population, including extermination and using starvation as a weapon of war. and hamas of extermination, hostagetaking, torture and sexual violence, including rape. tonight, a very personal rebuttal from israel's prime minister. mr khan creates a twisted and false moral equivalence between the leaders of israel and the henchmen of hamas. this is like creating a moral equivalence after september 11 between president bush and osama bin laden. hamas also strongly denounced what it said was an attempt

to equate the victim with the executioner, and that the palestinian people, like all those under occupation, had the right to resist. in israel, the response from across the political spectrum has been outrage. israel's president said it was scandalous to equate the two sides. one opposition leader called it moral blindness. those in mr netanyahu's own party said it would only galvanise support. the israelis, when they feel that we are under attack, they realise it's not the prime minister being attacked, it's the idf soldiers, it's the citizens of israel, it's people who care about democracy, people who have moral clarity are under attack. so if you are talking about politically, it will support the prime minister. throughout this war, israel has insisted it is a democratic country with a moral army and a right to self—defence. seeing its leaders named alongside those of hamas has sparked widespread outrage here. but the prosecutor is clear — there are reasonable grounds

to accuse both sides of war crimes, including crimes against humanity. outside the knesset today, mr netanyahu's opponents had gathered to protest his handling of the war. for a prime ministerfacing such criticism at home, criticism from the international court might actually help. lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem. a woman in her 505 has died after being mauled by her two xl bully dogs. the metropolitan police said she was found at her home in east london this afternoon. frances read is here. what more can you tell us? the met olice has what more can you tell us? the met police has told _ what more can you tell us? the met police has told us _ what more can you tell us? the met police has told us the _ what more can you tell us? the met police has told us the attack - police has told us the attack happened this afternoon and sadly a woman in her 505 died opened medics from the london ambulance service desperately try to save her life but said sadly could not and armed police actually attended such was the threat police felt the dogs posed. officers seized two dogs

which were apparently registered xl bully dogs and the family of the woman who was the owner is now being supported by officers. ownership of these american xl bully dogs is restricted under the dangerous dogs act so in england and wales it has been against the law to sell, give away, abandon or breed from an xl bully since the 31st of december last year and from february this year it became a criminal offence to own an xl bully without an exemption certificate. those changes came into place after the government said that deaths caused by dogs were disproportionately involving the xl bully type. disproportionately involving the xl bull e. ., ~ a nursery nurse who left a baby girl faced down, strapped to a bean bag for more than an hour and a half has been convicted of her manslaughter. manchester crown court heard that kate roughley placed nine month old genevieve meehan in "mortal danger," as a punishment. she died of asphyxiation. genevieve's father spoke after the trial.

we will never forgive the callousness of kate roughley�*s actions. she was entrusted with the care of our daughter, yet she put her own convenience and selfish interests above genevieve's life. she treated our daughter with cruelty and contempt. iran has declared five days of mourning, after its president, ebrahim raisi, was killed in a helicopter crash yesterday. he'd been travelling with the foreign minister through thick fog and rain, in a remote area near the border with azerbaijan. iran's supreme leader, ali khamenei, says the vice—president will take over until elections. here's lyse doucet. in the fog at first light on this forbidding terrain, the crash site was finally reached and the bodies pulled from this wreckage, including president raisi and his foreign minister, amirabdollahian. a journalist from iran's state tv reporting from this scene, the blue—and—white tailfin behind him.

no—one survived when this helicopter came down in the mountains of north—west iran, killing eight people on board. they had flown in a convoy of three choppers, close to the border with azerbaijan. president raisi inaugurating a new dam. the azeri president, ilham aliyev, says he bid him a friendly farewell. in tehran today, a sad goodbye — the grief of his faithful flock. and on social media, scenes of sorrow, but also, celebration. the bbc�*s persian service, which can't report inside iran, has been monitoring the messages. they see him, they call him, he is the president of the poor people. but the reality is, if you look at the mass majority of iranians, we know what we are hearing from inside iran and those people who dare to come on social media and express their opinions,

we see there are huge numbers of people are expressing their excitement...his death. chanting on president raisi's watch, iran cracked down on unprecedented protests — a new generation lashing out against strict islamic rules, restricting their freedoms. his sudden demise won't change iran's direction. it's a big mistake that western governments, they rely very much on people hostile towards iran for their analysis and for their information, and that's what makes them pursue mistaken policies that only backfire. in the islamic republic, the 85—year—old supreme leader, ayatollah khamenei, is the ultimate authority. raisi was seen as his possible successor. the hardliners control all the levers of power.

as they start the process to select a new president, continuity is their top priority. lyse doucet, bbc news. in new york, the prosecution has rested its case in donald trump's trial after the end of four days of testimony from the former president's ex lawyer michael cohen. in a moment of some drama, thejudge took exception to the conduct of one of the defence witnesses and ordered the courtroom to be cleared. our north america editor, sarah smith, is outside the court. sarah, it's certainly never dull, this trial. it isn't and this is something that almost never happens in a criminal trial. thejudge ordered everybody out of a court room so he could reprimand a witness who had been visibly and audibly disagreeing with thejudge's rulings put at visibly and audibly disagreeing with the judge's rulings put at that witness was paul costello, probably the only witness the defence were calling, is that you can to try to undermine the testimony of michael cohen to portray him to be a liar.

that is because mr cohen is the key witness for the prosecution. he is donald trump's from a fixer,, the man who handed over the 130,000 dollars of hush money to stormy daniels and also the witness who says donald trump did personally know about the fraudulent scheme to disguise its legal expenses, the reimbursement about hush money. there was another dramatic moment when michael cohen himself was on the stand and he was forced to admit that around the time all this was happening, he stole money from the trump organisation. he made a payment of $20,000 to a tech firm and told donald trump he had paid out 50 grand and kept the difference of $30,000 for himself which is clearly theft. and a lot of the prosecution case really comes down to whether or not the jury believed the story michael cohen has been telling them about what happened around the hush money payments and obviously with his admission he was at the same time stealing money from the trump organisation, his

credibility has taken a big blow toda . ,,., ., ., ~ credibility has taken a big blow toda _ ., ., ~' , ., new research suggests electric pulses along with physiotherapy can help restore some movement in people paralysed from the neck down. a clinical study of 60 patients found that 43 showed some improvement in their hand movements. our science correspondent pallab ghosh has spoken to one of the first patients to try it. this is before the treatment — a patient finds it hard to pick up a small plastic ball. he lost most of the movement in his hand after he broke his neck 12 years ago. now see what happens after, when pulses of electricity are sent to the damaged nerves. wow. not all the patients showed this dramatic improvement. some didn't improve at all, but nearly three quarters of the 60 patients that tried it had some benefit. this is how it works. the brain sends instructions to move arms and legs through nerves in the spinal column. if there's a break, those

signals are weakened. but the signals are boosted by electrical pulses from electrodes around the damaged area, when coupled with physiotherapy. so this is the device that the patients use. it sends pulses of high frequency electricity to these electrodes, which are attached to the patient�*s spine. and these are attached here and here. they're return electrodes to complete the circuit. tell me when you're ready. 0k. go. melanie reid had her injury a long time ago in 2010. she could hardly use her left hand since then. but two months with the device, combined with intensive physiotherapy, has led to small improvements that have made a big difference, even without the device. i can undo my seat belt with my left thumb. i can pick up small things. i use it for scrolling

on a smartphone or a tablet. how significant a development is this? there are no miracles in spinal injury, pallab, you know that. there are no miracles. but if this device is able to allow someone with tetraplegia to lift their arm, to put food in their mouths or to have a drink, that is life—changing. melanie's doctor has helped test the device. she says it's a combination of the physiotherapy and the pulses that have led to the improvements. this device has been proven to be safe and result in some benefit to chronic patients. so you've never known anything like it? i haven't. no, i haven't. the results, published in the journal nature medicine, have been sent to regulators to see if they think that the treatment is safe and reliable enough to be used widely on patients in hospitals. pallab ghosh, bbc news, glasgow. let's take a look a look at some

other stories making the news today. the high court in london has ruled that wikileaks founder julian assange should be allowed to bring a new appeal against his extradition to the us. mr assange is currently being held in belmarsh prison but is wanted on charges relating to the release of classified american military documents 15 years ago. the united states argues that the leaked files — which disclosed information about the iraq and afghanistan wars — put lives at risk. the bank of england has given its strongest hint yet that interest rates could be cut this summer. in a speech, the deputy governor ben broadbent said lowering rates at "some time" over the next few months was "possible". the bank of england has kept interest rates at 5.25% — a 16—year high — to try to help bring down inflation. new figures due out on wednesday are expected to show inflation has dropped sharply. the king and the queen have been taking a look at this year's chelsea flower show in london ahead of its full opening tomorrow. as well as meeting growers

and designers, they visited the no adults allowed garden — the first in the history of the show to be designed by children, for children, as daniela relph reports. a first visit to the most famous of flower shows in his new role as patron of the royal horticultural society. the king, a keen gardener himself, cast an expert eye over the chelsea offer. for the first time this year, young people becamejudges, to select a children's choice award. we're going around gardens and judging them to see if we like them or not and, like, the meanings behind it and stuff. to be honest, the best garden so far has been this one. it's, like... it has everything a really good garden needs. a place to feel calm and, like, a place to really think. this year's show is also a reminder of how gardening can change lives. nettie served five years in prison, where she did a horticultural qualification. since her release, she has worked

with women prisoners. this year, the glasshouse is exhibiting at chelsea. knowing that, you know, there's more adventures for me with these plants, knowing that people respect me now, knowing that people believe in me, it'sjust amazing. for the celebrities here today, there were triumphs and disasters to share. well, not my wisteria. seven years in and there's still no flowers. so i'm hoping to get some tips today on how to get those flowers to bloom! i have to say, it's coming from the wilderness, which is my garden, into thought—out, careful, beautifully planned, colourful. my garden, i love with all my heart, but it had to get away from me this year because i've been away so much. something new to please the king — this year chelsea has its first ever green medal for sustainability, given to gardens with the lowest carbon footprint. daniela relph, bbc news, at the chelsea flower show.

the weather looked gorgeous at chelsea. what about for the rest of us? here's sarah keith—lucas. we had a bit of sunshine and some showers and they could be some tomorrow at chelsea and many of us see things turning a bit more unsettled over the next few days. this is how we ended the day in london, a beautiful pink sunset. tomorrow we start with some mist and fog and low cloud and through the day the sun comes out but also some showers and some can be heavy and thundery. more showers tomorrow than today. forthe thundery. more showers tomorrow than today. for the next few hours, a bit of low cloud and showery rain moving into eastern england and the midlands, also some mist and sea fog on some coasts, particularly in the far north—east of scotland and perhaps the east coast of england but for northern ireland as well. some low cloud and murk, template under clear skies down to three or 4 degrees in a few spots. heading through the morning, the low cloud, mist and fog clears slowly but we

will see more shower cloud bubbling up will see more shower cloud bubbling up which will bring some outbreaks of rain. looking at the afternoon, where we are likely to see this showers, they will be hit and miss but some can be quite heavy in the south—west of england and the south—east, the odd thunderstorm and also for wales, northern ireland, very frequent and heavy showers. fewer showers in northern england and southern scotland but some showers bubbling up around the highlands. temperatures in the high teens for most of us. tomorrow evening, the rain starts to become more persistent in the east which is a sign of things to come in the middle of the week because this low pressure drives in from then a confident and that will bring some pretty slow moving heavy rain. we will see that on wednesday for parts of northern england, southern scotland as well, rainfall totals really mounting up in the next few daysin really mounting up in the next few days in the north. sunshine and showers in the south, perhaps a slight improvement towards the bike at —— bank holiday weekend. thanks, sarah. and that's bbc news at ten. newsnight is just getting under way on bbc two with kirsty wark.

on bbc one, it's time tojoin our colleagues for the news where you are.