in a company that supplied ppe during the pandemic. baroness mone insists the pm knew about her involvement from the beginning — he says he takes the allegations against her very seriously. with calls for baroness mone to leave the house of lords, we'll look at where this could go next. also tonight... a new international taskforce is set up to protect ships in the red sea, after militant attacks force them to take alternative, longer routes. a radical change for the catholic church — pope francis allows priests to bless same—sex couples. heading for court in hong kong — a tycoon and high —rofile democracy campaigner on trial for breaking a law brought in to stop protests. and the extraordinary challenge that took one couple all the way from the north to the south pole — 18,000 miles — in an electric car.

and 18,000 miles — in an electric car. stay with us here for and stay with us here on bbc news for continuing coverage analysis from our team of correspondents in the uk and around the world. good evening. the fallout from baroness mone�*s interview with the bbc yesterday, in which she admitted lying about how she and her family stood to profit from a government contract to supply ppe during the pandemic, continues. claim and counter—claim have been flying around today. the prime minister insisted he's taking the allegations against michelle mone extremely seriously. she replied, what's the pm talking about, he knew about her involvement all along. a former tory health minister thenjoined in, saying she didn't tell him about it. the company run by baroness mone�*s husband, ppe medpro, made £60 million profit from its contract with the government. 0ur political editor, chris mason, has the latest.

a pandemic strikes. suddenly, gowns and masks — personal protective equipment, ppe — is ata premium. the country needs it and needs it fast. at the time, rishi sunak held the purse strings as chancellor. covid contracts signed in a rush and worth millions — big questions still being asked now. we take all these things incredibly seriously and that is why the government is taking legal action and, because there's a criminal investigation ongoing i can't comment any further. do you think it's ok, though, for a former conservative peer to lie about these things and to admit about lying? as i say, what i would say is the government takes these things incredibly seriously, which is why they are pursuing legal action against the company concerned in these matters. this row is about this couple — baroness mone, given a seat in the house of lords by the conservatives, and her husband, doug barrowman. they've admitted lying about their role in a company that made millions from a ppe contract

with the government, which is now being sued by the department of health and is under investigation by the national crime agency. we should have told the press straight up, straightaway, nothing to hide, and again i'm sorry for that. but i wasn't trying to pull the wool over anyone's eyes. and this afternoon michelle mone hit back at the prime minister's remarks this morning, asking... "what is rishi sunak talking about? "i was honest with the cabinet office, the government and the nhs "in my dealings with them. "they all knew about my involvement from the very beginning." and look at this. the former health minister, lord bethel, is going for it. "michelle mone wasn't honest about her financial interests to me. "she didn't explain from the very beginning about her financial "involvement, it wasn't in her register of interest "as you would expect it. "rishi sunak is right to take this very seriously." but there are serious questions for the government, too,

because michelle mone's connections mattered. i made the call to michael gove. what did you say to him? ijust said, we can help and we want to help, and he was like, "oh, my goodness, this is amazing." mr gove, why didn't you call out baroness mone's lies? no answers from michael gove today. i think this is a shocking disgrace, from top to bottom, and as every day goes past there are more questions that need to be answered. covid connections and contracts, a company being sued by the government, and a police investigation ongoing. we've not heard the last of this. even within the limitations of what people are willing to say, given that there is this live police investigation by the national crime agency, we get a sense today of the anger and bitterness from a former

government minister and from michelle mone, and there are several voices who were in government at the time who have given evidence to that investigation and all here await its outcome. there is though a broader question beyond this particular case, which is, what was it legitimate for the government to do in an emergency? should it matter if you had the number of a cabinet minister that you could ring up and offer your services, minister that you could ring up and offeryourservices, or minister that you could ring up and offer your services, or was it right that the rules were more liberal, given the crisis the government and the country faced? was overspending, overpaying inevitable? it was, of course, taxpayers' money, or is it irresponsible? that broader debate rumbles on. in the last few minutes,

the us has announced a new international task force, including the uk, to protect commercial ships in the red sea. it comes after the energy giant bp suspended its shipping operations through the red sea because cargo vessels are being attacked by houthi rebels from yemen, in a show of solidarity with hamas — designated a terrorist organisation by the uk government. this british—owned ship, the galaxy leader, was seized by militants last month. this is the route taken by around 12% of world shipping, which then passes through the suez canal. but several major freight companies have stopped passing through here and are now taking the much longer route all the way around africa instead, adding costs and delays. here's our diplomatic editor, james landale. the threat to shipping in the red sea is very real. this was an attack by iranian—backed houthi fighters last month, storming a cargo ship registered in britain. the militia from yemen claiming that any vessels owned by allies of israel were legitimate targets. so intense have the attacks become,

two vessels were hit by drones today, that some of the big shipping companies are pulling out of the red sea, sending their huge vessels around southern africa instead. today, the oil giant bp announced that it too would not send its tankers through the seaway that links asia with europe. israel was leaders say this shows that their war is our war. this israel was leaders say this shows that their war is our war.- israel was leaders say this shows that their war is our war. this is a battle against _ that their war is our war. this is a battle against the _ that their war is our war. this is a battle against the iranian - that their war is our war. this is a battle against the iranian axis - that their war is our war. this is a battle against the iranian axis of. battle against the iranian axis of terror which is now threatening to close the red sea, which threatens the freedom of navigation of the entire world. the united states, britain and other western allies do have warships in the region and have shot down some houthi drones and missiles. but lloyd austin, the us secretary of defence, visiting israel, said he wanted other nations to do more to protect shipping. these attacks are reckless, dangerous, and they violate international law.

so we are taking action to build an international coalition to address this threat. i would remind you that this is notjust a us issue, this is an international problem, and it deserves an international response. and he is right. the seaway between the suez canal in the north and the bab—el—mandeb strait in the south is crucial for world trade and the consumer goods we order blithely online. it is about protecting those important supply chains because so much global trade goes through the suez canal, about 12% of the total global trade volume. that is a huge amount. at london bus insurance markets, shipping premiums are going up, the price of fuel could rise and some consumer goods could take a bit longer to arrive but much will depend on how many shipping firms join this red sea boycott and for how long.

the impact of this war is now being held outside its borders, diverting ships, damaging trade. the risks of escalation still very present. james landale, bbc news. the prime minister says too many innocent lives have been lost in gaza, adding to growing pressure on israel for a "sustainable ceasefire". hamas says at least 110 palestinians were killed in israeli airstrikes yesterday at the jabalia refugee camp in northern gaza. there's been no direct response from israel, but it insists it's targeting terrorist infrastructure. lucy williamsom reports from jerusalem. they say there's nowhere safe in gaza. the children's unit at nasser hospital hit by a shell yesterday. doctors and parents who once raced to get wounded children in here now scrambling to get them out. the epicentre of the dust and panic, a children's bedroom on the second floor. translation: we were seated -

on the bed when something exploded and all the ceiling fell on us. i couldn't do anything. debris fell on us and we couldn't see anything. ijust grabbed my daughter and escaped. i don't know what happened to the others. this was 13—year—old dunia's bed. she was sitting here when an unexploded shell punched through the ceiling. and then the wall. it killed her without ever exploding. her leg had been amputated after a previous attack that also killed her parents. "i lost my family," she said last month, "and i lost my leg. "my dream is to become a doctor and treat children." strikes overnight on the jabalia and nuseirat refugee camps killed more than 100 people, according to hamas government officials. today, a senior hamas figure pointed to growing international calls

for a ceasefire and said the us was responsible for deaths in gaza. the united states administration is totally responsible of those massacres and violation taking place at the hand of the israeli occupation army in gaza through the us unconditional delivery of the weapons to kill palestinians without any form of accountability. america's defence chief has been meeting israel's government today. the us stopped short of calling for a ceasefire, but says it's keen to bring the current heavy fighting to an end. america's commitment to israel is unwavering. and no individual group or state should test our resolve. we'll continue to provide israel with the equipment that you need to defend your country, mr prime minister, including critical munitions, tactical vehicles and air defense systems. israel's troops were reminded

by their boss yesterday of the rules of war — when to fire, when to stop. orders for soldiers. questions for politicians. lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem. as diplomatic pressure for a ceasefire builds, a new united nations vote on a ceasefire was due to be taking place right now, but has been put off till tomorrow. 0ur north america correspondent, john sudworth, is at the white house. john, what should we read into this delay? and what chance of the vote actually changing anything? well, we already knew there was widespread support among un member states for a ceasefire but at security council level, with such a court would in principle have the force of international law, there has been gridlocked because of america bus produce of its veto. might that be going to change? a draft resolution is back in circulation, although they do not use the word ceasefire, coming

pretty close, using phrases like suspension of hostilities. although that can sound like a lot of semantics, were america to drop its opposition, and there is speculation they might in the vote tomorrow, it would be seen as a sign that there is nuance creeping into its position. president biden said, only under international pressure over this issue, that pressure also among his domestic political base. might this make a difference on the ground? public not in an immediate sense, but america is one of the few outside countries with real clout in this conflict, and sometimes, as they say, in diplomacy, the symbolism is the substance. john sudworth at _ symbolism is the substance. john sudworth at the _ symbolism is the substance. john sudworth at the white house, thank you. the french family who let alex batty, the british teenager who disappeared six years ago and was found at the end of last week, stay with them in their guesthouse in the mountains of the french pyrenees have been speaking today about the last time they saw him.

the last time we saw him, it was approximately, i think it was the 11th or something, and he told us he was going tojoin his mother in order to go back to the uk or to find a solution with his id. we already proposed him several times to go to the british consulate in montpellier in order to get proper id, because we realised a couple of weeks ago that he didn't have id. why? because we really wanted him to be educated, and he's very gifted in computer science. he's a very smart guy. pope francis has approved a landmark ruling that allows same—sex couples to be blessed by roman catholic priests. the vatican says the ruling does not change its stance on gay marriage. 0ur correspondent harry farley is here. harry, how significant a step is this? arguably its the most significant step francis has made to changing the teaching of the church, changing

the teaching of the church, changing the church's approach to gay couples. it's an official declaration from the vatican's declaration from the vatican's declaration body, so it's among the most weighty things that the vatican issues, and for the first time it says that priests can bless same—sex couples, reversing a ruling from as recently as 2021 which says that priests can't do that. we should be clear what this is not, it is not a change to the teachings of the church for marriage. that remains firmly that marriage is only between one man and one woman for life in the view of the church and is also clear that the blessing doesn't symbolise approval, so it's blessing the individuals, not the relationship itself, and it's not a formal liturgy or special service. the blessing says —— the vatican says this blessing must not resemble a wedding ceremony. some will say, that does not go far enough to what they want to see and others in the church, conservatives, will say it

confuses its teaching on sexuality, but, throughout his pontificate, francis has tried to change notjust what the church says about issues like sexuality and divorce but also the practice of the church without actually changing its teaching and this is another example of a major shift which doesn't change the teaching of the church but is nonetheless significant as serial development in the approach of the church to gay catholics. a new type of drug that prevents hot flushes and night sweats for women going through the menopause has been approved for use in the uk. and crucially, it's not hrt — hermone replacement therapy. it's called veoza and it could benefit hundreds of thousands of women. 0ur medical editor, fergus walsh, has more. a hot flush is when you get a feeling from your toes right the way up your body, to the top of your head, of heat. it's very uncomfortable. you feel really, really hot and sweaty. elaine barker, who is 68, used to have hot flushes day

and night until shejoined a medical trial of a new, non—hormonal, menopause drug. the daily tablets worked. my symptoms improved immensely. and it was just great, a great feeling. not just for me, but for the future for us women who suffer with it. up to 80% of women going through the menopause experience hot flushes and night sweats which can have a significant impact on daily life. the new drug veoza, also known as fezolinetant, works by blocking a protein in the brain called neurokinin b which plays a key role in regulating body temperature. it's likely to be an option for women who can't take hrt, such as those with a history of cancer or blood clots. but it's worth stressing that it won't control other menopause symptoms listed here. now, like all drugs, it can have side effects. the most common are

diarrhoea and insomnia. veoza is now licensed in the uk, but not approved for use by the nhs. the health body nice is not expected to assess it until next summer. in the us, the list price is £430 a month. so it's far from clear when other women will be able to benefit like elaine. for now, the drug will only be available privately. fergus walsh, bbc news. in hong kong, the veteran pro—democracy media tycoonjimmy lai has gone on trial facing charges of breaching national security and colluding with foreign forces. the 76—year—old self—made millionaire, who founded the pro—democracy newspaper apple daily, has been held in solitary confinement since december 2020 and faces life in prison if found guilty. he denies all charges. this is being seen as a landmark trial and lai faces charges under

the national security law beijing brought in making it easier to prosecute protesters. it followed the massive pro—democracy uprising in hong kong three years ago. beijing considers mr lai a traitor who sought to undermine china's security. critics say this case is another example of china tightening its grip on the former british colony. the us and the uk have called for him to be released. the foreign secretary, lord cameron, says he is gravely concerned at the "politically motivated prosecution of british nationaljimmy lai." from hong kong, danny vincent reports. record numbers of police lined the streets of hong kong for the city's most high—profile national security trial. supportjimmy lai! 0utside court, a lone protester, surrounded in silence by the police. another activist targeted by the authorities. translation: hong kong has turned into a useless city. _ there is nojustice now,

there is only a crackdown. they only understand the language of force and they imprison people every day. they have imprisoned jimmy lai for two or three years. pro—democracy campaigners say a beijing—imposed security law has ushered in a new political era in hong kong. critics say that hong kong's legal system has been weaponised in order to silence anyone that dares to speak out. over the last three decades, jimmy lai has been the biggest critic of beijing. his supporters say this is simply a show trial but the authorities sayjimmy lai has endangered national security. in 2020, jimmy lai became the most high—profile activist arrested under a sweeping national security law. for 25 years, he ran hong kong's most popular opposition newspaper. when arrested, he was paraded through apple daily�*s newsroom. in 2020, i was the lastjournalist to intervieinmmy lai, just hours before his detention. fear...

..is the most inexpensive and convenient way of ruling people and controlling people. you know, if they can induce fear in you, that's the easiest way to control you. that's the cheapest way to control you and the most effective way. today, his son, sebastien lai, is living in self—imposed exile in taiwan, campaigning for his father's release. last week, he met with lord cameron. freedom of speech as in freedom from, you know, freedom to say what they want you to say. it is freedom to say what they don't want you to say. and that's what it is, that is the message, that you can't hold jimmy lai, you can't hold jimmy lai injail and tell everybody that hong kong is still fine, that people are safe to go to hong kong, people are safe to hold that firm beliefs in hong kong _ jimmy lai's trial is set to last for 80 days, in what is seen as a test for hong kong's judicial independence.

if found guilty, he could face life in prison. danny vincent, bbc news, hong kong. now let's take a brief look at some other stories making the news today. the bbc understands russell brand has been questioned by police for a second time investigating allegations of sexual offences. the comedian is believed to have been interviewed by detectives from the metropolitan police under caution over six non—recent sexual offences. in september, brand was accused of rape, assault and emotional abuse, which he has strongly denied. councils in england will receive an extra £4 billion in funding in the next financial year, giving them 6.5% more on average to spend on services, assuming they also put up council tax. the local government association says the settlement will not be enough to meet demand for services. the woman voted miss france 2024 is causing a bit of a stir, because she has short hair. 20—year—old eve gilles has come

in for a storm of criticism in france for her hair style and her less than curvaceous figure. miss gilles is the first short—haired woman to win in the competition's100 years. she says it's a triumph for diversity. the scottish government's tax and spending plans will be announced tomorrow. economists are warning that ministers are grappling with a black hole in the budget amounting to £1.5 billion. 0ur scotland editor, james cook, has this assessment of what's expected. in nearly a quarter of a century of devolution, the scottish state has expanded. university tuition, prescriptions, personal care for the elderly and much more are all free here at the point of use. but every year comes the question, how to pay the bills and balance the books. the scottish government has a limited ability to borrow money. it can cut spending and has already warned of public sectorjob losses, and it can set the levels of various taxes, including income tax. that is the kind of pricing

model we have got... and a tax rise for higher earners does seem to be on the menu for the finance secretary. we are... we need to land as a country recognising the needs of household budgets, absolutely, and we don't take any decisions lightly around tax, of course we don't. but also the needs of public services and our values are around making sure we have sustainable public services. but why are the public finances so tight? one reason is inflation. rising prices and rising wages do mean the government takes more in tax. they also make governing costlier. not much she can do about that. but a lot of pressure on the budget is a result of decisions taken by the scottish government. for example, increasing welfare payments to tackle poverty and putting up pay for public sector workers to avoid strikes. the snp�*s decision to freeze council tax is also costly because it means finding more money to fund local authorities.

maintaining the more generous public service provision in scotland and these new, more generous benefits, will become increasingly difficult without substantial tax rises. more than half of the scottish government's budget comes from here, london. is now the right time - for tax cuts, chancellor? it would be larger if the conservatives were spending more on public services and less on tax cuts. but the prime minister still insists it's a great deal. the uk government has provided a record amount of funding to the scottish government through the barnett formula, record amount of funding, so they are ultimately responsible for the finances here in scotland but i can tell you what we're doing here in the uk is controlling spending and cutting people's taxes. and tomorrow we will find out if the gap between scotland and other parts of the uk will widen. james cook, bbc news, edinburgh. the welsh government will deliver their budget tomorrow too. 0ur correspondent hywel griffith is at the senedd. what are we expecting?

they will set out plans to spend £22 billion worth of public money, and around half will go on the welsh nhs and another quarter to councils to provide things like social services and schooling. those are the front line things that ministers will say they are prioritising. expect a language to be about protecting rather than enhancing or expanding and put simply, we will be told there was no money to do anything extra. inflation costs, yes, but also not a very good track record of managing money in that welsh nhs and the labour government here actually has power to increase income tax but it's unlikely, yet again, to do that. so there will be cuts to come in other areas, may be the thing is that the welsh government does not have absolute control over, like policing or welfare issues. whatever the decisions, the budget will come into force in april by which time they will be a new first minister here. two horses in the race at the

moment, jeremy miles and vaughan gething and whoever gets the top job will have to own it some of these difficult decisions and the consequences of the budget tomorrow. thank you. now, some people with electric cars are familiar with what's known as charging anxiety — fear the battery will run out before they reach their destination. but how about this? this electric car has just taken a couple from aberdeen from the north to south pole — 18,000 miles — in what's believed to be a world first. chris and julie ramsey set off in march and have just completed the trip, as ben philip reports. touch the pole! a moment years in the planning. a first—of—its—kind adventure, driving pole to pole into an electric car. it is such a relief to finish this expedition. six years in the planning, six years in the making, and we are finally here. it is a bit surreal to be in antarctica and to have been at the south pole, right? it's exactly that. i mean, we've been on the road ten months and, as chris says, huge sense of relief. we can't believe we've made history

and it's just absolutely amazing. chris and julie's expedition started in march on arctic sea ice. the 18,000—mile journey took them through 17 countries, from north to south america. their car, powered by charging points along the way, or portable solar panels. adventure wasn't in short supply, but at times their relationship was put to the test. what? it's just a little twig! it wasn't a twig! it was a twig! it wasn't a twig! and our mission is to show how exciting and capable electric vehicles are, and to debunk all those myths out there that currently are surrounding electric vehicles. can they work in the cold? can the batteries work in the cold? can they drive in the snow? so many, so many questions. modifications to the car were kept to a minimum but bigger tyres were added to help cope with harsh terrain. the story has been seen by thousands around the world. this is a messagel forjulie and chris. you are crazy! so, you go to the north pole, to the south pole? _

and i think you're going to do it. and after you have to come here to manchester, - and explain me the experience. nearly a year on the road is a long time so a few home comforts kept them going. so, we have some irn—bru, which has been chilled by the arctic sea ice. we have the tunnock�*s caramel wafer... 0ther scottish products are available! chris and julie are looking forward to a rest over christmas but haven't ruled out more adventures in the future. ben philip, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's elizabeth rizzini. hello and thank you. a bit colder here tomorrow but not that cold, there will be a bit more sunshine as well. it was cloudy and rather damp today and quite a mixed week ahead. it could be tricky for travelling at times in the run—up to christmas.

there will be more rain in the forecast and later in the week it will turn very windy indeed with the chance of some wintry showers. temperatures flip flopping all over the place as we head through the next few days, and currently overnight we have colder air gradually sinking southwards. the skies will clear across scotland and there will be some wintry showers feeding in on that north—westerly wind. furthersouth feeding in on that north—westerly wind. further south in england and wales, very mild, temperate is not much below 11 celsius but we will see plenty of heavy rain, a very 5°99y see plenty of heavy rain, a very soggy start to the day tomorrow. in southern england and wales, the rain will gradually clear as we head through the afternoon but still cloud across much of kent and sussex and blustery conditions through the channel. the winter turns more north—westerly and we see more sunshine emerging for most. still wintry showers across the higher ground of scotland, temperatures dropping through the afternoon so it will feel colder. but it's not set to last because heading into wednesday, some milder conditions again taking hold from the west and

again taking hold from the west and a warm front will give us some