media, e—mail newswatch@bbc. co. uk, or you can find us on twitter, @newswatchbbc. you can call us on 0370 010 6676. and do have a look at previous interviews on our website, bbc.co.uk/newswatch. that's all from us. we'll be back to hear your thoughts about bbc news coverage again next week. goodbye. hello. friday brought rain for some, a little bit of brightness for others, and it's actually a similar story as we head on into the weekend. there are some clear skies to come. the skies clearing across western parts of the uk as we head through this evening and tonight. that could allow for some pretty low temperatures by the end of the night, across parts of northern ireland particularly. elsewhere, we keep a lot of cloud and some showery right and those temperatures will hold up. but as we go through tomorrow, we're going to take these clear skies in the west and we are going to push them a little further eastwards. now having said that, i think across eastern scotland and the eastern side of england, we will hold onto cloud and showery rain right through the day. b

the bbc news channel is supposed to be national. alison coyle, writing from northern ireland on wednesday, had a similar perspective... and colin ainslie wasn't happy either... at least english viewers should be satisfied, you'd think. but the live broadcasts across the uk of briefings from scotland's first minister, nicola sturgeon, is annoying david watson, who emailed a couple of weeks ago... it's clear that you can't please all of the people, all of the time. but to tell us how the bbc tries to balance its coverage between the different nations and regions, i'm joined by toby castle, deputy news editorfor bbc news. thank you for coming on. let's start with the fact that huge parts of the uk have been in tier 3 for weeks even months. why did bbc news make such a big deal about london going into tier 3? well, i think we made a big deal about london going in this week to tier 3 because it was a big new story. and that's not to say that when lester went into tighter restrictions or nottingham or liverpool or greater manchester, thos

at the end of that negotiation, which you led for the bbc, the bbc had a time bomb placed underneath it, and that time bomb is going off just as you are leaving. you call it a time bomb, i say we've come to a solution, which is an absolutely fair solution, which is those who cannot afford to pay for the licence fee don't have to pay for it if you are on pension credit. but for a lot of people this is a very, very painful choice. there are hundreds of thousands or millions of people in this country who love the bbc, who have supported the bbc for years and have gotten used to having it forfree. why are you now actively hurting those people and saying you've got to pay for something you've been getting for free? but you have got to go back and say, who is actually responsible for this? a then majority conservative government put on the bbc. for many truly national institutions, from the bbc to the monarchy, the struggle to reflect a more diverse, divided and digital britain itself creates deep divisions. injuly, the bbc broadcast the n—word prompting an outcry. initially, it defended

this is bbc news: i'm james reynolds. our top stories: the us regulator authorises the pfizer—biontech coronavirus vaccine for emergency use — donald trump says the first person will be vaccinated in the next 2a hours. president trump's attempts to overturn the election result have potentially been dealt a final legal blow — the us supreme court rejects a lawsuit aimed at throwing out the votes in four states. borisjohnson and the eu say they're unlikely to strike a post—brexit trade deal by sunday — with differences over how a new relationship might look. plus: # make my wish come true, # all i want for christmas is you... a song released 26 years ago — and a christmas favourite — finally tops the charts

this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. us vice president mike pence gets his vaccine on live tv to encourage others to have the shot, as more than 3,000 americans die of covid—19 every day. with cases raising across the country, with hospitalisations rising across the country, we have a ways to go. the spread of covid—19 is accelerating in the uk, with the crucial r number on the rise. doctors are bring about capacity and health services. to add a third spike onto it, a post—christmas surge, potentially is very serious. more than 300 schoolboys freed from their kidnapping ordeal in nigeria are expected to be reunited with their families soon. after bugs, glitches and crashes, one of the year's biggest video games, cyberpunk 2077, is pulled from both the playstation and microsoft store. hello. the us vice president, mike pence, has become the first senior figure in the trump administration to get a coronavirus vaccine, which he ca

mark lobel, bbc news. people across europe have started to receive the coronavirus vaccine after countries including france, spain and italy, began the rollout of their vaccination programmes. more than 1a million people have been infected and strict lockdown measures are currently in place in nearly all eu member states. damien mcguinness reports now from berlin. the european vaccine roll—out has begun. in berlin, mobile teams are taking the first vaccines from this distribution centre to those who need it most — the elderly in nursing homes. this airport once provided a lifeline for west berlin at the height of the cold war. it was closed down in november to make way for a larger airport, and now it's been turned into a mass vaccination centre, providing yet again a lifeline for berliners, but this time in the fight against the pandemic. the first person in berlin to get the vaccine this morning was gertrude haase, 101 years old. translation: i told myself that i didn't have to be among the first. i

this is bbc news. talks between the eu and the uk are continuing overnight in brussels — with both sides warning they're unlikely to reach a post—brexit agreement by tomorrow's deadline. a british government source says the eu often remains unacceptable. mass testing programmes like the one trialled in liverpool will be rolled out in the 67 tier 3 areas in england with the first starting on monday. the us regulator authorises the pfizer biontech coronavirus vaccine — donald trump says it'll be rolled out immediately. and we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers martin lipton and penny smith — stay with us for that. good evening. a former conservative defence minister says the government's decision to put the royal navy on standby, to protect british fishing waters in the event of a no—deal brexit, is "undignified" and "irresponsible". tobias ellwood who's now chair of the commons defence committee, was speaking ahead of tomorrow's deadline set by the uk and the euro

this is bbc news. merry christmas. i'm lukwesa burak with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. after lots of heated negotitions, the european union and united kingdom finally reach a post—brexit trade deal. both sides hail the agreement as a "big success". it is fair, it is a balanced deal, and it is the right and responsible thing to do for both sides. we have completed the biggest trade deal yet, worth £660 billion a year, a comprehensive, canada—style free trade deal between the uk and the eu. the final hurdle was access to fishing waters. but what will it mean forfishermen on either side of the channel? and a socially distanced christmas in bethlehem, as pilgrims stay away from the festive celebrations. four and a half years after britain voted to leave the eu, a post—brexit trade deal has finally been agreed. the uk prime minister, borisjohnson, said britain had achieved a £660 billion per year trade agreement which would protectjobs. but the opposition labour p

hugh pym, bbc news. hundreds of thousands of people in southern chile and argentina have been able to watch a total solar eclipse. the eclipse darkened the skies as the moon passed between the sun and the earth for around two minutes — although some were a little disappointed. the bbc‘s tim allman explains. this is not really eclipse weather. fog and heavy rain blocking the view of the many in this region of chile. they may not enable to see it but they knew it was happening, especially when things started getting dark. this, the middle of the day, but it may as well have been the middle of the night. a different story a little further east, ideal conditions in this part of argentina. there had been some concerns about the health consequences, people gathering together in the middle of her pandemic, so plenty of facemasks as well as protective eyewea i’. facemasks as well as protective eyewear. no obstructions here. a spectacular sight of a solar eclipse in full effect. over the course of several h

in sport on bbc news. champion jockey oisin murphy admits he saw cocaine present the night before he tested positive for the drug, and is now living with the consequences with a three—month ban. good afternoon, and welcome to the bbc news at one. the bbc understands that some of the first doses of the pfizer coronavirus vaccine will be transported via eurotunnel from belgium later today. it was given the green light by uk medical regulators yesterday — and the firstjab could be given as early as monday. england's deputy chief medical officer professor jonathan van—tam has insisted every effort will be made to get the newly—approved vaccine into care homes as soon as possible — despite the logistical challenges. the vaccine has to be kept at minus 70 celsius, and can be exposed to higher temperatures only under strict conditions, for a limited time. our health correspondent anna collinson reports. it is the day after what has been called a day to remember, the uk has now approved its first coronav

the bbc is in the dark as well as martin bashir. >> at a really critical time for the bbc. andrew, thank you very much for explaining this to us. >> thank you. >>> we're out of time here on television, join us online. you can find our weekly podcast there. i spoke with indicate starbird about disinformation, participatory disinformation. people are contributing to the voter fraud conspiracy. don't forget about the big tv event later tonight, it's debate night in georgia. we'll have live coverage at 7:00 p.m. eastern time. we'll see you back on "reliable sources" nethis time next week. ♪ ♪ track it ♪ share it ♪ compare it ♪ think it ♪ solve it ♪ try and crack it ♪ breath it ♪ calm it ♪ and renew it renew active from unitedhealthcare gives you so many ways to be healthy. powered by aarp staying sharp and fitbit. and included in unitedhealthcare medicare plans. unitedhealthcare. get medicare with more. pizza. tacos. pizza! what about subway? it's a good call and everyone loves it. we raised our kids on it. so it stopped the bickering? (mocking tone) "mom, j

welcome to bbc news — i'm shaun ley. coming up in five minutes reeta chakrabati will be here with a bulletin of the day's news and at half past ten i'll be joined by my guests for a first look at monday's newspapers. but first, uk and eu negotiators are making a final push to try to break the deadlock in the brexit trade talks. discussions resumed in brussels with three outstanding issues — fishing quotas, fair competition rules and the enforcement of any agreement. the irish taoiseach, michael martin, said tonight the talks were on a "knife—edge". my gut instinct is that it is 50—50 and i don't think one can be overly optimistic about a resolution emerging and my sense having spoken to some of the key principles is that this is a very challenging issue to resolve. and particularly around the level playing field. concerns have been raised about the financial help that sheep farmers would receive if no trade deal is reached with the european union. the welsh government has also raised concerns about disruption at th

central to his deal was the bbc taking ona bbc. central to his deal was the bbc taking on a welfare payment for free tv licenses for the over 75. he considered this nuclear. did you threaten to resign over that?|j thought threaten to resign over that?” thought about resigning, but at that moment i thought you got to get in there and try to stop this or eliminate what they're proposing to do. did you say that this is a welfare payments? we made all of those arguments. it was one of the most difficult and tense sets of negotiations or discussions i've ever had. it says the bbc will only pay for those on pension credit, a level the government decides on. at the end of that negotiation which led to the bbc, the bbc had a time bomb placed underneath it, and that time bomb is going offjust as you are leaving. you call it a time bomb, i think it's a solution, it's a fair solution, which is those that cannot afford to pay for the licence fee don't have to pay for it if you are on pension credit. but this is a very painful choice. there a

hugh pym, bbc news. the education secretary for england has issued a legal order demanding that greenwich council in london withdraw its advice to schools to close from tomorrow. gavin williamson said using his legal powers was a last resort and continuity of education was a national priority. greenwich, along with islington and waltham forest, have urged schools to move pupils to online learning to help tackle a rise in coronavirus cases. 0ur education editor bra nwen jeffreys reports. arriving for what could be their last day, parents told schools were being advised to move online, leaving them facing a sudden childcare crisis. it's just too short notice to get any sort of childcare arrangements in place, so you would either be taking the day off unpaid, coming up to christmas, which is just not doable. they have to do what they have to do. it's a shame, though, that things have been left till the last minute. this is something that should have been done ages ago. schools in greenwich are the first to

this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: italy imposes a nationwide lockdown over christmas and new year as it tries to halt the sharp rise in coronavirus infections. translation: we must intervene — and i assure you, this is not an easy decision. americans are to get a second coronavirus vaccine, as the moderna injection is approved. a us senate report finds that boeing officials "inappropriately coached" test pilots during a review of the 737 max aircraft after two fatal crashes. and we speak to people in different parts of the uk to see how the covid restrictions are affecting

andy moore, bbc news. eu ambassadors have been given a briefing about the post—brexit trade deal reached with the uk, by the bloc‘s chief negotiator michel barnier. uk mps will vote on the deal in parliament next week, before the existing trade rules expire on the 31st of december. here's our political correspondent leila nathoo. glad tidings of greatjoy, because this is a deal. some light reading. the post—brexit deal agreed yesterday between britain and the eu runs to more than 1,200 pages. this morning, the man who negotiated it for the eu side, michel barnier, briefed ambassadors of eu member states on its detail. reporter: what is the plan for today, then? mission accomplished! what's in that blue folder sets out how the eu and uk will trade and co—operate from the new year. to finally have something on paper is a success for both sides. the deal was done in the nick of time, with the uk already out of the eu and transition arrangements expiring within days. mps and peers will have until wedne

at the end of that negotiation, which you led for the bbc, the bbc had a time bomb placed underneath it, and that time bomb is going off just as you are leaving. you call it a time bomb, i say we've come to a solution, which is an absolutely fair solution, which is those who cannot afford to pay for the licence fee don't have to pay for it if you are on pension credit. but for a lot of people this is a very, very painful choice. there are hundreds of thousands or millions of people in this country who love the bbc, who have supported the bbc for years and have gotten used to having it forfree. why are you now actively hurting those people and saying you've got to pay for something you've been getting for free? but you have got to go back and say, who is actually responsible for this? a then majority conservative government put on the bbc. for many truly national institutions, from the bbc to the monarchy, the struggle to reflect a more diverse, divided and digital britain itself creates deep divisions. injuly, the bbc broadcast the n—word prompting an outcry. initially it defended

this is bbc news. the headlines: millions of people in the uk wake up to tougher covid restrictions, as rule changes come into force. as the uk grapples with a new strain of coronavirus, france confirms its first case of the variant. millions of americans face losing unemployment benefits, as the stand—off continues between donald trump and congress over a coronavirus stimulus package continues. more than a thousand people are told to leave their homes in bedfordshire, as another severe flood warning is issued overnight. next, amol rajan takes a close look at a year dominated by covid—19 and how it accelerated underlying trends and created new ones, in the media year. hello. what a year it's been. i hope you and your family are doing 0k. welcome to our look back at the media year of 2020. and if there's one word i don't think we've heard enough of this year, it's unprecedented. when it comes to the media, the pandemic has had a cataclysmic effect. local and national media, especially those funded b

hugh pym, bbc news. earlier i spoke to paul duprex, director of the center for vaccine research at the university of pittsburgh. i asked him what he thought of the speedy authorisation of the vaccine in the uk. i think it is a testament to the hard work of the regulatory agencies and the individuals who have poured over these thousands of pages of documents. and looked at the data in great depth and done their absolute utmost to get all of the data reviewed carefully and and methodically as scientists do and get it to the point where the agency are happy to say "let's get this vaccine into the arms of individuals in the united kingdom." is there a different from the way the uk's mhra would do that compared to the fda in the us? of course they are under immense pressure, not least from president trump, to get a vaccine approved. absolutely. all of the agencies are under immense pressure. but we have to remember that science is not politics and politics is not science. we have to disassociate those two thi

daniela relph, bbc news. the new strain variant, which was first found in the uk in september, carries a genetic fingerprint that makes it easy to track, and it happens to be one that is now common. with france being the latest country on saturday to disclose a case, in the last several days, the world health organization has reported that nine cases have been detected in denmark, four in spain, and one case each in the netherlands, germany, italy and australia. switzerland is also saying the variant is most likely present in the country, and it has been recorded in sweden. japan also confirmed its first five cases, leading it to ban all non—resident foreign nationals from entering the country from the 28th of decmeber. meanwhile, researchers say that the virus found in south africa, while having similar properties to the uk variant, has developed independently. parts of the us city of nashville remain cordoned off after a camper van exploded in the early hours of christmas day. three people were injured an

this is bbc news. the latest headlines... dozens of governments around the globe ban arrivals from the uk after the country announced cases of a new, more infectious strain of coronavirus. in the us, republicans and democrats and months of wrangling to agree on a $900 billion financial relief package for those hit hardest by the pandemic. the italian authorities have destroyed hundreds of millions of pounds' worth of the amphetamine captagon, seized when shipments from syria were intercepted. it was part of a coordinated effort against a trade in lucrative narcotics likely to be run by the syrian regime and its allies. captagon is used recreationally across the middle east but is also taken by militants fighting on the frontlines. our correspondent, quentin sommerville, gained exclusive access to the operation in naples. syria's war can seem a million miles away from europe but tonight, in naples, it intrudes once again. italy's financial crimes police are on a night—time mission that has been months

sarah corker, bbc news. the government has announced that it will end direct support for overseas fossil fuel projects. the commitment comes as the uk hosts a virtual climate summit with 75 world leaders. it marks five years since the adoption of the paris climate agreement, as our chief environment correspondent, justin rowlatt, reports. l'accord de paris pour le climat est accepte. there were celebrations when a global deal on climate was finally done in paris five years ago today. for the first time, the whole world agreed that all nations need to play their part in keeping climate change to 1.5 celsius. the only problem was the commitments made in paris weren't enough to do the job. in fact, until this year, co2 emissions have been steadily rising. in paris, world leaders agreed to get together every five years to try and up their game, raising their targets for cutting emissions. thanks to the covid—19 pandemic, world leaders will be gathering virtually today. boris johnson, the uk prime minister, wil

james shaw, bbc news, glasgow. -- bbc —— bbc news, edinburgh. time for a look at the weather. here's stav da naos. this mixture of rain, sleet and snow, and also strong winds, will ease down this we can. it will be cold but dry, a little quieterfor many of us, and even a little sunshine around. we still have low pressure spinning around on top of us, bringing rain, some hillsnow gci’oss us, bringing rain, some hillsnow across central and northern areas, and strong winds, particularly down the irish sea coast. things will dry up the irish sea coast. things will dry up across eastern the irish sea coast. things will dry up across eastern england, clear skies here with a touch of frost and ice. heavy showers on the east coast in east anglia and the far south—east. the low pressure will pull south as we head into the weekend, so it looks like it will affect wales and the south west of england with stronger wind and bands of rain, a little hill snow in places. it will ease down through the day. in north and eastern scotland, perhaps eastern england, one or two showers, winterin

adam wilde, bbc news. burnley‘s new american owners say they will fully support the manager, sean dyche, and give him funds in the januray transfer window. the investment group alk capital has completed its takeover of the club by buying an 8a% stake. alan pace has replaced mike garlick as club chairman and he says the takeover marks a new era for burnley and they are looking to be involved for year to come. what attracted us specifically to burnley had a lot to do with the passion of the fans, the quality of the club and the way it had been managed, the longevity of the coaching staff, and the ability for us coaching staff, and the ability for us to see a path to growth. we would not do anything that is not on a long—term basis. this is not a short buy to flip opportunity, it is very much something we have been passionate for ourselves and we are looking for the opportunity to be involved for years to come. the premier league says the idea of pausing the season after a rise in coronavirus cases at clu

lisa hampele, bbc news. this is bbc news, the headlines... the uk‘s chief negotiator arrives for the final day of post—brexit trade talks in a last—ditch bid for a breakthrough. poland has been rocked by weeks of protests over a ruling by the constitutional court that has all but outlawed abortion. the ruling, which bans termination even in cases of foetal defects, hasn‘t come into force yet, but critics say it will drive even more polish women to seek abortions abroad. those countries include neighbours such as the czech republic, from where our correspondent rob cameron sends this report. once it comes into effect, poland‘s strict new law will make abortion all but illegal. it will only be possible in cases of rape, incest, or where the mother‘s health is in danger. it has forced thousands onto the streets, and some to leave their homeland. anna, not her real name, grew up in a conservative catholic household in southern poland, but an unwanted pregnancy changed everything. so i was 22 years old, i was studying at the time and i

iain watson, bbc news. the coronavirus vaccine will be given to millions of people across europe from today, as countries including france, spain and italy begin the rollout of their vaccination programmes. meanwhile there have been confirmed cases of the more contagious variant of covid 19 in several european countries, as well as canada and japan. tim allman reports. time is of the essence in the fight against covid—i9. here at this nursing home in north—east germany, the vaccination programme has begun a day early. health workers said they weren't prepared to wait for the eu's coordinated roll—out, which was due to begin on sunday. clearly, for governments all around the world, it could be a real game changer. but as the vaccine spreads in vans and lorries across the continent, so, too, it seems, does the new variant strain of the virus. it was first identified here in the uk nearly two weeks ago, leading to tough new restrictions for millions of people. despite some countries effectively closing t

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: joe biden has praised the ‘strength and resilience' of american democracy after the electoral college certified his victory in the presidential election. and in washington, outgoing president trump announces his attorney general, william barr, will be leaving by christmas. the bbc has learned that hundreds of thousands of people from ethnic minorities, including the uighur communty, are being forced by the chinese authorities to pick cotton in the far western region of xinjiang. china's cotton crop, which makes up a fifth of the world's total supply, could be far more dependent on forced labour than previously thought. the chinese government denies the claims, saying that a program to transfer more than two million people into factories and fields is part of a massive poverty alleviation campaign. 0ur china correspondent john sudworth reports. xinjiang makes mountains of cotton, a fifth of the world's total and our investigation will only heighten concerns abou

would you guys make the bbc? if it fell under bbc one, would you make them put a disclaimer on it? i think it's an interesting question. there are different rules for different kinds of streamers that we can now see on our tvs. so, if you are watching a programme on bbc one, itv, anything pretty much, then you're watching programmes are regulated by ofcom. if you are watching netflix, it's much narrower and the regulator is in holland because netflix are headquartered there. if you're watching on youtube, then there is no regulation at all. so, it is quite confusing sometimes for the viewer, i think. you mentioned that it's pretty confusing, who ofcom does and doesn't regulate. you don't regulate netflix, but you do regulate disney+ and amazon prime. why is netflix treated differently? in principle, why should be treated differently? it's about the regime they are regulated under. it's a new set of rules, and this hasn't been looked at in the uk for a number of years. and i think the broader question for us is actually, when it comes to the regulation that allows our public service

andy swiss, bbc news, twickenham. tottenham have gone back to the top of the premier league after a 2—0 win in the north london derby against arsenal. and it was the league's most prolific combination that brought both goals — first harry kane set up son heung—min who hit a brilliant shot into the top corner, and then son repaid the favourjust before half—time as kane became the highest goalscorer in north london derbies. the win puts tottenham two points clear of chelsea at the top whilst arsenal are languishing in 15th. we've gone match after match, we are enjoying the situation, of course, very much. i believe that the public and the ones at home in front of the screen, the tottenham fans, they are also enjoying the moment and for one more week, we are going to be top of the league, so it's good fun. we have a lot of situations, we have the chances, we have the crutches, but we didn't have the improvement to wina but we didn't have the improvement to win a full— blown match. they had a situation, a score

this is bbc world news. the headlines — joe biden has been formally certified as the next president of the united states, with results from electoral colleges in all but one us state giving him 302 votes. president trump announces that his attorney general, william barr, will be leaving office before christmas. barr said the department ofjustice would continue to pursue allegations of voter fraud. the united states has begun its mass coronavirus vaccination campaign, with an intensive care nurse in new york the first to receive the injection. their biggest inoculation campaign comes as the number killed by the virus passes 300,000. the world health organization says it's investigating an apparently new strain of coronavirus that's been identified in london.

jim reed, bbc news. dr katherine henderson is president of the royal college of emergency medicine, and joins me now. thank and joins me now. you forjoining us on bbc news. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. some suggestions that the new variant is 70% more transmissible. is this the right decision to go into tier 4? we have been calling for not doing the christmas relaxation for some time, so, yes, from my point of view, sadly, medically, it is absolutely the right thing to do. your report talked about could put pressures on the nhs. it is already under pressure. we are already getting crowding in our departments and already getting ambulance crews. we are already finding it difficult to get beds for patients. we certainly can't carry on as we were. england has had to divert patients 44 times since last week. just talk is what that means and what that means in terms of the pressure hospitals are under. no one would ever want to do this because the worst thing to happen is for the patient to end up in

bbc news. northern ireland has imposed a fresh six—week lockdown, and even supermarkets will be forced to close by eight in the evening during the first week. we can speak now to mal houston who owns the river rooms in belfast, who only opened for the first time last thursday — the same day the new lockdown was announced. thank you very much for being with us. thank you very much for being with us. just tell us what all of this means for you and your industry. the hospitality industry has basically been decimated here in northern ireland along with the restaurants and the white pubs. the white pups who have never opened their doors since march this year. —— wet pubs. we basically started on thursday last week and had the announcement from the executive that we would into a new six week lockdown which took us basically by surprise. i know that the health of people is paramount and protecting the nhs but we we re paramount and protecting the nhs but we were giving very, very short notice

fergus walsh, bbc news. we will hear more on this just a little later from an expert on public health in the states. for three weeks president trump has made unfounded claims about the election result in georgia, but a secound recount has made no change tojoe biden‘s victory there. mrtrump is angry, and has taken it out on state officials, including the governor, who have faced death threats from supporters of the president. barbara plett usher has the story. georgia has become a focus of president from's battle to reverse his life took miklos to joe biden, a last of his supporters, republican stronghold that he refuses to give up. that means gabriel sterling is getting more camera time than he ever wanted. a seasoned election official has been overseeing the recount of votes, but it's turned nasty and he's blaming the president. yes, fight for every legal vote, go through your due process , we vote, go through your due process, we encourage it, use your first amendment, that's fine. death threats, physica

this is bbc news. the headlines: new lockdown orders and restrictions are imposed in san francisco to help curb a surgeon coronavirus cases. brexit trade talks have been temporarily put on hold without agreement. the lead negotiators say the eu president and the british prime minister will talk directly on saturday. tough new coronavirus restrictions have come into force in wales this evening. pubs, bars and restaurants have to close at 6pm and can't sell alcohol on the premises. the first minister —— first minister says wales is experiencing an unmistakable rise in infections again with a record number of covid related patients in hospital. 0ur wales correspondent hywel griffith reports. pints and profits down the drain. for this pub in cardiff, a dry december isn't viable, and so it will close. like many brewers and landlords around wales, simon doesn't accept that pubs are the place where the virus is spreading. he says the new restrictions don't make sense. how can it be right and safe to open

welcome to bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: it's official — joe biden will be the next president of the united states as the electoral college certifies his victory. our democracy pushed, tested, threatened, proved to be resilient, true and strong. and in washington, outgoing president trump announces his attorney general, william barr, will be leaving by christmas. the coronavirus vaccine has begun rolling out across america on the day the death toll on the country passes 300,000. in china, questions about the alleged forced use of people from minority communities in the country's huge cotton industry. joe biden has been formally certified as the next president of the united states and has promised to govern for "all americans". the state of california has formally delivered its 55 electoral votes to mr biden, and that has taken him decisively over the 270 vote threshold needed to secure the white house. the president—elect then addressed the nation, from his home state, delaware, and directly referenced d

this is bbc news. the headlines at five: talks continue in brussels with both sides warning they're unlikely to reach a post—brexit agreement by tomorrow's deadline. four royal navy patrol ships are being put on standby, to help protect britain's fishing waters, in the event of a no—deal brexit. world leaders are holding a virtual climate summit — addressing the summit, borisjohnson laid out his priorities in renewable energy. we are putting our foot to the accelerator, in a carbon friendly way of course, with a ten—point plan for a green industrial revolution. the us regulator authorises the pfizer biontech coronavirus vaccine — donald trump says it'll be rolled out immediately. in boxing, anthonyjoshua defends his ibf, wba, and wbo world heavyweight titles against kubrat pulev at wembley arena tonight. and coming up at 5.30 — with the promise of a covid—19 vaccine, global questions examines if it could really be the silver bullet to end the pandemic? good afternoon. with one day to go u

tim allman, bbc news. what a year it's been for captain sir tom moore, the former british army officer known for his achievements raising tens of millions of pounds for charity in the run—up to his 100th birthday during the covid—19 pandemic. john maguire has been back to meet him. it's been a year like no otherfor all of us. but for captain sir tom moore, 2020 has seen him catapulted from his back garden to worldwide adoration, and to a specially convened ceremony where he was knighted by her majesty the queen. december‘s always a time to look forward, but also back to boyhood christmases during the 1920s. you got up at six o'clock in the morning to see what father christmas had left overnight. when we were small boys, or small children, we didn't get a stocking, we got a pillowcase. you knew there'd be an orange at the bottom of it somewhere. but not a lump of coal? no! and later, as a young officer in the british army during the second world war. all the officers gave all the other ranks their chr

this is bbc news. the headlines: the uk has become the first country in europe to approve the use of two covid—19 vaccines. the country's medicines regulator gave the go—ahead for the oxford astrazeneca vaccine, signalling a landmark moment in the fight against coronavirus. half a million doses will be made available next week. four and a half years after britain voted in a referendum to leave the european union, both chambers of parliament in london have approved the new free trade deal that was finalised last week. borisjohnson said britain was marking a new beginning in its relationship with the eu. ten people have been injured — one critically — in a landslide that buried houses in a norwegian municipality north—east of the capital, 0slo. police say 11 people are unaccounted for and it's not clear if some were caught up in the landslide or were away when it occurred.

james shaw, bbc news, glasgow. -- bbc —— bbc news, edinburgh. time for a look at the weather. here's stav da naos. this mixture of rain, sleet and snow, and also strong winds, will ease down this we can. it will be cold but dry, a little quieterfor many of us, and even a little sunshine around. we still have low pressure spinning around on top of us, bringing rain, some hillsnow across central and northern areas, and strong winds, particularly down the irish sea coast. things will dry up the irish sea coast. things will dry up across eastern england, clear skies here with a touch of frost and ice. heavy showers on the east coast

this is bbc news. i'm sally bundock with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. let's face facts. the state of our planet is broken. humanity is waging war on nature. this is suicidal. we hearfrom the un secretary general who says tacking global warming will be central to the united nations next year — antonio guterres is taking part in a special bbc broadcast. one of donald trump's closest allies, the attorney general william barr, says he's found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the us presidential election. first details in the case of a swedish man allegedly held captive by his motherfor nearly 30 years. china's lunar probe successfully lands on moon in an historic mission to collect the first rock samples in more than a0 years. south korea passes a ‘bts‘ law allowing k—pop megasta rs to postpone military service until the age of 30. glad to have you with us. "our planet is broken." that's what the secretary general of the united nations will warn today —

justin rowlatt, bbc news. last—minute brexit talks are likely to continue late into the night in brussels, although neither side thinks its likely they will agree a trade deal by sunday's deadline. one of the remaining sticking points is fishing rights. a former conservative defence minister has condemned as "irresponsbile" a threat to deploy the royal navy to protect british fishing waters if no deal is reached. a spokesman for the french president said france is preparing to "keep calm and carry on" regardless. 0ur political correspondent iain watson reports. in brussels, the briefest of glimpses of the uk's chief negotiator. he is locked in talks behind closed doors with his eu counterparts to see if a deal is possible in the next 2a hours. but indications tonight are not positive. a government source told the bbc talks are continuing overnight and, as things stand, the offer on the table from the eu remains unacceptable. the mood around the talks, like the weather, is rather gloomy. in fact, the only agr

caroline davies, bbc news. the rapid spread of a new variant of coronavirus in southeast england has been blamed for the introduction of strict tier four mixing rules for millions of people, and other countries placing the uk on a travel ban. so why is it causing concern? firstly it is rapidly replacing other versions of the virus, and now accounts for the majority of cases in london and the south east. there have been changes to the spike protein — this is the key the virus uses to unlock the doorway to our body's cells. some of those mutations have already been shown in the lab to increase the ability of the virus to infect cells. all of these factors have come together to have come together to build a case for a virus that can spread more easily thoughout the population. i'm joined now by dave kennedy, assistant professor of biology at penn state in the centre for disease control and prevention infectious disease dynamics. thank you forjoining us. with pointing out that this virus is mutating many times an

hugh pym, bbc news. the latest government figures show there were 55,892 new coronavirus infections recorded in the latest 24—hour period. that means that the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week is now 42,765. and 964 deaths were reported — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive covid—19 test. it means on average in the past week, 554 deaths were announced every day. it takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 73,512. hughjoins me hugh joins me now. we're ending a very bad year in a really serious situation? yes, reeta, and it won't get any easierfor the nhs yes, reeta, and it won't get any easier for the nhs at all, even harder because what the fear is that we haven't had any case numbers really which might reflect the mixing of households on christmas day. that is probably yet to come through. already, you can see cases going up even higher, above 50,000 toa going up even higher, above 50,000 to a new high. the message really from the front l

this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: italy imposes a nationwide lockdown over christmas and new year as it tries to halt the sharp rise in coronavirus infections. we must intervene. but i assure you, this is not an easy decision. a warning from doctors in the uk as the spread of covid—i9 accelerates with the crucial r number now back above one. more than 300 schoolboys freed from their kidnappers in nigeria are now reunited with theirfamilies. a us senate report finds that boeing officials "inappropriately coached" test pilots during a review of the 737 max aircraft after two fatal crashes. sony halts the worldwide sale of one of the most highly anticipated video games of all time, cyberpunk 2077, as it keeps crashing and freezing. hello and welcome to bbc news. italy is imposing a nationwide lockdown over much of the christmas and new year period — a measure aimed at reducing the sharp rise in coronavirus infections. italians will only be allowed to travel for work, health,

chi chi izundu, bbc news. the latest headlines on bbc news... boris johnson promises big changes following his brexit trade deal as chancellor rishi sunak says the deal brings reassurance to those worried about the impact on businesses. the rollout of the pfizer biontech covid vaccine begins for millions of people across the eu — starting with italy and the czech republic. storm bella continues to bring heavy rain and high winds. more than 17 hundred customers remain without electricity in south west england and wales bangladeshi authorities are planning to move a second gorup of rohingya refugees to a remote, flood—prone island in the south of the country. officials say up to 1000 of the refugees, originally from myanmar, will be moved from camps into a specially built housing complex. farah kabir is the bangladesh country director of action aid and joins me now from dhaka. thank you for speaking to us. you are welcome. this is something that we have seen before, a few weeks ago, the movement of these refugees to this island. what do you ma

this is bbc news. i am lukwesa burak. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. millions of people in the uk face tougher covid restrictions, as rule changes come into force. and canada confirms its first cases. some eu countries begin vaccinations against covid—19, one day ahead of the planned co—ordinated rollout across the bloc. us federal agents searched the house on the outskirts of nashville as pa rt on the outskirts of nashville as part of their investigation into the christmas day explosion in the city. former mi6 officer and soviet spy george blake has died, aged 98, in moscow. a fast—food joint, roman—style — archaeologists unearth an ancient takeaway restaurant in pompeii. hello and welcome, if you're watching in the uk or around the world. six million people in the east and south east of england have joined those living under the strictest coronavirus restrictions, in tier 4. around 2a million people in england — more than 40% of the population — are now living under the toug

this is bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: it's official, joe biden will be the next president of the united states, as the electoral college certifies his victory. our democracy pushed, tested, threatened, proved to be resilient, true and strong. and in washington, outgoing president trump announces his attorney—general, william barr, will be leaving by christmas. the coronavirus vaccine has begun rolling out across america on the day the death toll on the country passes 300,000. the whole of london is to move into the highest level of virus restrictions from wednesday after a sharp rise in the number of cases. in china, questions about the alleged forced use of people from minority communities in the huge cotton industry. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. joe biden has been formally certified as the next president of the united states and has promised to govern for "all americans". the state of california has formally delivered its 55 electoral votes to mr biden, and that has t

in response, a bbc spokeswoman said... thank you for all your comments this week, if you want to share your opinions about what you see or hear on bbc news on tv, radio, online and social media, e—mail us at... or you can find us on twitter at... you can call us on... and you have a look at our website... that's all from us, we will be back to hear your thoughts about bbc news coverage again next week. goodbye. hello there. it's been a very wet day across some central and northern parts of the uk. we've seen further sleet and snow, mainly over the hills, and as we head through the course of the night, it stays very wet, very unsettled across central, northern and western parts of the uk as this area of low pressure continues to spiral across the country. it's going to bring further snow, mainly over the pennines and across the hills of scotland, but it generally should be rain, maybe sleet, down to lower levels. some clear spells across eastern england. here, it will turn cold, a touch of frost and ice. now, into the wee

wales against belarus is on bbc two wales from 7pm, and scotland against finland is on bbc alba from 7:20pm. let's take a look at some of the day's other sports news now. the chief executive of celtic has given back into neil lennon. he's urged fans to stick by the club. supporters of call for women to be sacked after crashing out of the lea k sacked after crashing out of the leak up and wejust sacked after crashing out of the leak up and we just one sacked after crashing out of the leak up and wejust one win in the last five games. —— supporters have called for neil lennon to be sacked. billy burns and james lowe have been ruled out of ireland's autumn nations cup third place play—off with scotland this weekend. fly half burns has failed to recover from a groin problem suffered in sunday's win over georgia, while winger lowe will be absent due to a similar issue. captainjohnny sexton and centre robbie henshaw could return. argentina's pablo matera has been stripped of the captaincy and suspended along with two team mates for "discriminatory and xenophobic" comments in historic

mark lobel, bbc news. people across europe have started to receive the coronavirus vaccine after countries including france, spain and italy, began the rollout of their vaccination programmes. more than 1a million people have been infected and strict lockdown measures are currently in place in nearly all the eu member states. damien mcguinness reports now from berlin. the european vaccine rollout has begun. in berlin, mobile teams are taking the first vaccines from this distribution centre to those who need it most. the elderly in nursing homes. this airport once provided a lifeline for west berlin at the height of the cold war. it was closed down in november to make way for a larger airport, and now it's been turned into a mass vaccination centre, providing yet again a lifeline for berliners, but this time in the fight against the pandemic. the first person in berlin to get the vaccine this morning was gertrude haase, 101 years old. translation: i told myself that i didn't have to be among the first. i wa