Covid-19: Scotland to ease restrictions, 1.5m pupils absent from school in England

Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Tuesday evening. We'll have another update for you tomorrow morning.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced that Scotland will move to level zero of Covid restrictions on 19 July, but the mandatory use of face coverings is to remain in place for "some time". She says the planned easing had to be modified due to the spread of the Delta variant. We already know England will remove nearly all Covid restrictions on 19 July - our health correspondent Nick Triggle considers whether the unlocking will pay off or backfire with infection rates and hospital admissions already rising sharply.

Almost 1.5m pupils were absent from classes in England's primary and secondary schools last week, a snapshot of one day's official data shows. The weekly Department for Education figures show about 840,000 were off for Covid-related reasons and a further 630,000 were absent for other reasons. Meanwhile, BBC Wales has spoken to a family who are keeping their children off school so they can avoid self-isolating ahead of their summer holiday.

The nightclub industry has been reacting to the UK government's guidance that venues in England should ask for the NHS Covid pass or a negative test result when they reopen on 19 July. Michael Kill, who runs the Night Time Industries Association says the guidance is "disingenuous and unclear" and says his members have asked him whether the policy is really voluntary. At present, organisers are not legally required to follow the guidance but the government says it "reserves the right" to force venues to require people to show their Covid passport or proof of a negative Covid test.

The UK government has fended off an attempt by MPs to force it to reverse its cut to spending on overseas aid, with Boris Johnson saying it is needed during the "economic hurricane" caused by the coronavirus pandemic. MPs voted to keep the budget for international development at 0.5% of national income. Several Tory MPs had joined Labour and other parties in an attempt to reinstate the 0.7% figure, in place until earlier this year.

It's been a hard 15 months for residents who have been unable to leave their care home since the start of the pandemic. The Knightwood home in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire, has so far avoided any cases of Covid-19 but says residents have found the lack of contact with family and friends tough. In this video we hear from residents who have enjoyed their first trip out since the pandemic began.

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Find more information, advice and guides on our coronavirus page.

With restrictions easing across the UK this summer, here's a reminder of what measures are in place and where.

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