and i would have to start all over somewhere else. pouring money into potholes but scientists say one solution could be roads that mend themselves. commentator: game, set and match, etcheverry. - and more frustration for andy murray — out of the australian open in the very first round. and coming up on bbc news... the wimbledon champion marketa vondrousova is out of the australian open after losing to ukrainian qualifier dayana yastremska in straight sets. good afternoon. the defence secretary, grant shapps, says the government will consider more military action against houthi rebels in yemen, if they continue their attacks on cargo

ships in the red sea. last week the uk and us launched joint air strikes against houthi targets. meanwhile, mr shapps has also confirmed britain is sending 20,000 personnel to join the biggest nato military exercise in europe since the cold war. 0ur defence correspondent jonathan beale reports. last week's decision to strike houthi targets in yemen was the latest evidence, said the defence secretary, that the world is becoming a more dangerous place. and in his first major defence beach, grant shapps said britain had no choice but to act using its armed forces. ~ , . ., , . , forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is — forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is to _ forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is to surrender _ forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is to surrender to - forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is to surrender to a - forces. we stand at this crossroads, whether it is to surrender to a sea i whether it is to surrender to a sea of troubles, or do everything we can to deter. i believe, in reality, it

is no choice at all. to guarantee our freedoms, is no choice at all. to guarantee ourfreedoms, we must be prepared to deter. the enemies are gathering around us, we need to ensure that we lead our allies in whatever conflicts are to come, defend our nation whatever threat should arise. this is what britain has always done. ., , ., , done. he said the houthis actions, boardin: done. he said the houthis actions, boarding merchant _ done. he said the houthis actions, boarding merchant vessels - done. he said the houthis actions, boarding merchant vessels and - boarding merchant vessels and launching drones and missiles in the red sea was unacceptable. the us led strikes, he said, had delivered a blow. but he wouldn't rule out the need for further military action. we intend need for further military action. - intend it as a single action. we will now monitor very carefully to see what they do next, how they respond and we will see from there. but the threats facing the uk for much wider. and often connected. grant shapps highlighted rush of�*s

war in ukraine. with china watching, along with a nuclear armed north korea. and then there was iran, the houthis biggest backers. mps today had their first opportunity to debate last week's military action. the prime minister has made it clear he will defend his decision. it the prime minister has made it clear he will defend his decision.— he will defend his decision. it was a last resort. _ he will defend his decision. it was a last resort, it— he will defend his decision. it was a last resort, it came _ he will defend his decision. it was a last resort, it came after - he will defend his decision. it was a last resort, it came after the . he will defend his decision. it was| a last resort, it came after the end of exhaustive diplomatic resolutions and it is incumbent on the houthis to recognise the international combination for what they are doing and desist. we will not hesitate to protect our security and where required. protect our security and where re . uired. protect our security and where reuuired. .. ., ., required. the action that the government _ required. the action that the government took _ required. the action that the government took in - required. the action that the i government took in conjunction required. the action that the - government took in conjunction with the us— government took in conjunction with the us is_ government took in conjunction with the us is action that we support. what _ the us is action that we support. what we — the us is action that we support. what we now need to hear from the prime _ what we now need to hear from the prime minister is a scope, the bases, — prime minister is a scope, the bases, the _ prime minister is a scope, the bases, the full reasoning behind the decision_ bases, the full reasoning behind the decision that he took. of course, the question of whether more action may he _ the question of whether more action may be needed and what processes will he _ may be needed and what processes will he put — may be needed and what processes will be put in place. the may be needed and what processes will be put in place.—

will be put in place. the defence secretary said _ will be put in place. the defence secretary said britain _ will be put in place. the defence secretary said britain would - secretary said britain would also continue to take a leading role in the nato alliance. contributing more than 20,000 personnel to one of its largest exercises later this year. he said the government was spending more than £50 billion a year on defence, but that hasn't stopped many conservative mps demanding more cash to face these growing threats. jonathan beale, bbc news. this afternoon in the house of commons, the prime minister will face questions from mps about his decision to authorise the uk air strikes on houthi targets in yemen last week. live now to our political correspondent harry farley — and harry there'll be questions for rishi sunak about why he didn't consult parliament in advance of that military action? yes, that is right. the liberal democrats have called for a new law which would mean mps must have a vote before military action is launched. they say that rishi sunak, in not allowing the commons to vote, is riding roughshod over democratic

convention. but it is just that, a convention. the prime minister does have a right to launch military action without consulting parliament first and the government said in this case, the timing and security meant the debate in the commons beforehand was not possible. he will face questions around the bases and reasoning for the strikes, what legal advice, what intelligence did he receive. and as we heard in the package just there, the he receive. and as we heard in the packagejust there, the possibility of further action. the prime minister's spokesman said this morning that the strikes last week had had the intended effect but we have seen the houthis more missiles in the red sea since then. grant shapps said the strikes were intended as a single action but neither he nor the prime minister are ruling out further action, so i think we will see more questions on that. and what line needs to be crossed before that decision is reached. ., , crossed before that decision is reached. . , ., ~ crossed before that decision is reached. . , ., ,, , crossed before that decision is

reached. ., , ., , . train drivers from the aslef union will stage a fresh wave of strikes and an overtime ban between 29th january and sixth february, in their long—running pay dispute. 0ur transport correspondent katy austin is with me. this has just this hasjust broken this has just broken the last hour, and it is quite a complex picture with drivers from different train company striking on different days? that's right, we are in the new year, but here we go again. this announcement is from aslef, which represents most train drivers and they will take part in strikes between tuesday the 30th of january and monday the 5th of february. although there will not be any on the thursday all the sunday that week. more than a dozen operators are affected, a handful of them will have strikes on each day. different days for different train companies, it will be a week to check before you travel. there is also an overtime ban across the whole week until tuesday the 6th of february, so as i say, it will be want to

check before you take the train. remind us of the background to this dispute because it has been going on for months and months? it dispute because it has been going on for months and months?— for months and months? it has, and ou would for months and months? it has, and you would be _ for months and months? it has, and you would be right _ for months and months? it has, and you would be right in _ for months and months? it has, and you would be right in thinking - you would be right in thinking there was a deal a few months ago. but that was the rmt union, aslef�*s pay dispute continues. the government said pay rises would be dependent on changes to working practices to be agreed. but aslef said this sacrifices to working conditions is not acceptable. it is a very long time since those proper progress talks. it was last april that aslef rejected the latest offer from the train companies, which the prime minister's official spokesperson described today as fair and reasonable. 0ne described today as fair and reasonable. one thing that has changed, minimum service rules have now come into effect. it is not clear whether they will be used for the strikes. meaning some staff will be required to work. if they are

usedit be required to work. if they are used it will be the first real test of those new rules. i think it is fair to say it would also make aslef even angry. fair to say it would also make aslef even angry-— fair to say it would also make aslef evenan: . . ~ , ., a report today says young girls in rochdale were left at the mercy of paedophile grooming gangs — because police and council leaders failed to protect them. the report examined how young people — mainly white girls from poor backgrounds were preyed upon by asian men between 2004 and 2013. here's rowan bridge. get in. we're just going for our breakfast. don't cross me. it was a bbc documentary and this drama which prompted today's report. they highlighted allegations the police and authorities had repeatedly failed to tackle the sexual exploitation of girls in rochdale. the report says that was true repeatedly. the report being published today finds unequivocally that failures

that could and should have been avoided were, in fact, repeated. and successive police investigations over several years were insufficiently resourced and failed to properly investigate allegations. this woman was a victim of exploitation in rochdale as a child. she wants someone to face consequences for what happened to her. ijust want answers as to why it happened because they use excuses and excuses. i want to know who is accountable for the neglect and the abuse that i suffered. i was a looked after child. parental rights were taken away from my mum and dad so somebody had parental rights for me. somebody must be held accountable for what happened to me as a child. today was a moment for contrition and promises the failures of the past would not be repeated. i know that some who might have thought that they had got away. with these dreadful crimes are now living in fear that _

a reckoning is coming. my message to these people is that you are right to be fearful. - and you may be the next person that we arrest. i but not everyone's convinced attitudes have changed. maggie 0liver was the canary in the coal mine in rochdale. a former police officer who said the force's response wasn't adequate. she has helped many victims but fears the same mistakes are still being made. this report talks about the path. this report talks about the past. but what i want to do is to bring it from the past into the present and into the future. because my work in the maggie 0liver foundation now means that i have current information about what is going on today. and i would say categorically, and i'm sorry, mrwatson, but the failures that happened then are still happening now. greater manchester police's current approach will be

judged later this year. this report covers the past. but present practice will be covered in a further report due in the summer. in 2023, five men, four of south asian heritage, and one white british, were jailed for sexually abusing girls in rochdale. the jury was told the town was synonymous with grooming. the shadow cast by this scandal is a long one. its impact is still being felt. there was raw emotion in the room todayis there was raw emotion in the room today is maggie 0liver, the former police detective and sara rowbotham said the impact wasn'tjust on the victims but on them themselves. maggie 0liver said it almost destroyed her life. this report covers a dark period for the authorities in greater manchester. something we had repeated apologies for today. the mayor of greater manchester, andy burnham said there would be no complacency and was determined the review would bring a

change in culture both here in greater manchester and across the country. roman bridge reporting, thank you very much. lava from a volcano in south—western iceland has reached the nearby fishing port of grindavik, setting several homes on fire. some of the defences built there after an eruption last month have been breached. most of grindavik�*s 4,000 people had already been evacuated. nick beake has the latest. in the line of fire... the icelandic town of grindavik. homes consumed by the creeping lava from this latest eruption. the fishing community had been evacuated hours before, but newly built defences weren't enough to stop the flow. translation: people of iceland. what we all hoped would not happen has come to pass. lava is flowing into grindavik, a thriving town where people have built their lives, engaged in fishing and other occupations, and created a community

in harmony with god and one another. overnight pockets of molten rock kept on, bursting through and bubbling up, although the activity seemed to be stabilising. but this is the second eruption injust a month. forjohn, who, with his neighbours, have been forced from their homes, there's huge uncertainty about whether they'll be able to go back. i am born in this town. i actually live in the house that i'm born in. and it's kind of...it�*s a tough... it's a tough thought to think that that this town might be over. it's extremely sad. it's just unbelievable. i thought that i would never live to witness this. - it's been quiet for 800 years. 800 years. experts believe the spectacular explosions last month may have heralded a new era on this, the reykjanes peninsula. nothing like this had been seen

here for the past 800 years, so regular eruptions could be on the way. a nation that's been built around the twin perils of ice and fire, now facing more danger and more uncertainty. nick beake, bbc news. ..our top story this afternoon. the government says it will consider more military action against houthi rebels in yemen, if they continue their attacks on shipping in the red sea. and still to come: once you've got the dog, i want another £200. we report on the scammers who prey on vulnerable pet owners for money. coming up in the sport on bbc news... three more matches to come at the africa cup of nations after mohammed salah's late penalty saves egypt from a shock defeat to mozambique in their opening group game.

the number of vehicles breaking down because of potholes has reached a five—year high, according to the local council data and the aa. it says it's responded to more than 600,000 call—outs because of them — up i6% on the year before. and hundreds of cyclists have also faced serious problems with potholes too. scientists warn climate change will worsen the problem of potholes — because of more wet weather but scientists think new technology could be part of the solution, as harriet bradshaw reports. my head hit the kerb and my hand went over and hit the kerb as well and broke both the bones in this arm. caroline ashton ended up with a titanium plate in her wrist after she says she hit a pothole while cycling. roads are deteriorating fast. i've been a cyclist for 25 years and you can see certainly in the last ten years just how poor

the surface is and how dangerous it can be. the road where she fell has since been repaired. but looking into the issue of potholes, there's a problem which scientists say will only get worse with the effect of climate change. and whilst local councils are calling for more regular and consistent funding to deal with them, across several british universities, engineering solutions also promise some answers. our roads are either made out of concrete or asphalt. the majority of our roads are asphalt, although a lot of the damage in both starts with cracks. those cracks turn into potholes through freeze—thaw cycles and wear—and—tear. the university of cambridge is working on a range of solutions from sensors in our roads to investigating 3d printed fixes and the materials that can adapt to temperature changes. we're trying to enhance these materials - through their environmental impact or performance by adding things . like fibres and also maybe trying to make them self—heal. -

but whilst it's all very well knowing what materials are best to use, you still need to know quickly and specifically where the cracks are to fix them. so i'm going to get immersed in some pothole data now. engineers are also developing a way of using anonymised car sensor data to create a detailed digital map of our roads, including the size of cracks. right now, modern cars have the ability to capture the data all around them with video, with accelerometers, with mini weather stations, with several other sensors. and eventually, the idea is to send robots to fix the issue with universities testing the possibilities of robotics for efficiency and safety purposes. but is it enough? with climate change, if we're expecting more extreme weather events, whether that's freeze—thaw cycles, more extreme wind events, and rainfall events, these can have an impact on the rate at which our roads deteriorate. the government says it's investing

an extra £8.3 billion into repairs. but with a vast road network, this is a problem not going away anytime soon. harriet bradshaw, bbc news. in the united states, republican contenders for the white house face their first real electoral test today. republican supporters in the state of iowa will go to meetings, known as caucuses, to vote for the candidate they want in this year's presidential election. former president donald trump leads the way in the opinion polls. he's urging voters to turn out and support him, despite sub—zero temperatures. you can't sit home... applause even if you're as sick as a dog, even if you vote and then pass away, it's worth it. laughter that's the message from donald trump. so will any of donald trump's rivals

be able to beat him — oi’ even come close? nomia iqbal reports. sat nav: and keep left at the fork. the long, unpredictable road to the white house begins in iowa. every presidential cycle, the quiet, corn—producing midwestern state gets swamped by politicians. and this year, a once in a decade winter blizzard. it's the first us state that gets to pick its party's nominees for president. the democrats have changed their schedule so it's all eyes on the republicans. and polls suggest the field is frozen. donald trump dominates despite his legal problems, and so much of the battle here is about who can take him on. if you will caucus for us on monday... there's the former un ambassador, nikki haley, who has called trump the wrong choice for america. if you're willing to bring people to the caucus... the florida governor, ron desantis, whose so—called war on woke is his main promise to voters. and the big tech outsider,

vivek ramaswamy. however, the candidates' biggest battle right now is not each other... ..but the whether. the way a caucus works is that voters have to show up in person at a specific location, like a gym, a school, a library at a preset time and cast their secret ballots. but with historic subzero temperatures and snow and ice everywhere, it could affect voter turnout. the advice is don't stay out longer than ten minutes, so let's go somewhere warmer. at a downtown bar people told us how they're feeling ahead of caucus night. are you caucusing? not sure yet. i'm not a huge fan of anyone really running, so i'm undetermined right now, if i'm going to go out or not. i think our country needs a lot of hope right now. and i'm reallyjust for whoever is going to make a big difference. and i hope that's who wins. so when it comes to the republican i side, i think that they are leaningl

towards donald trump that way. so i think that's - who's going to win. now, whether that's— what i would like to see happen, that's a totally different thing. whoever wins iowa doesn't necessarily get the presidential nomination or go on to win the white house. but this is a place that can make or break a candidate. trump wants to deliver a knockout punch to his rivals. that's if the arctic weather doesn't threaten to dent his chances. nomia iqbal, bbc news, iowa. junior doctors in wales have started a three—day walk—out over pay. the welsh government says a 5% pay increase — which has been rejected by the doctors' union — is all it can offer. though the action is expected to have a significant impact, urgent care will continue. it is of course hugely upsetting if your pet goes missing — but some criminals are making it much worse. they're trawling the internet for posts that have been put up

by desperate pet owners appealing for help. the criminals then use that information to extort money from them. dan o'donaghue has the story. a menacing voice at the end of the phone. in this recording which the bbc has obtained, a blackmailer is demanding payment for a lost pet. it's one of hundreds of calls made to innocent pet owners in the last two years, leaving many people distraught and scared. we've found evidence of organised criminal gangs using lost pet social media posts to extort cash from owners. it's something linda tongue from tyldesley had first—hand experience of. i got a phone call from this guy

who said that he had lulu. he'd found lulu, and i believed him because he was describing her as nervous, which she is, and shy. and i thought it's the phone call i've been waiting for that, i was going to get her back. linda's dog lulu went missing last year and after searching to no avail, linda posted a plea on social media. it's then that the phone calls started. and they started talking about money and how much money i should pay. i think he mentioned £2,000, then he came down to £1,000 and i said, "i'm going to ring the police". he said, "if you ring the police, you'll never see lulu again". detective inspector amanda sykes is leading a cumbria police investigation into social media pet scams. we've identified over 200 victims and that is country—wide. - whether we've identified absolutely everybody that's been offended - against by this group of people, ll'm not at all sure as it standsl at this moment in time. but we've done everything - that we can to try and establish all of the victims in this case.

emma taylor from wigan has been left so scared that she doesn't want to show her face on camera. after her cat, ziggy, went missing, she received a threatening call. he said, "listen". and his voice was getting more and more aggressive. he said, "this the way it's be. "if you don't pay me £500, your cat's gone". so i ran up to my partner and ijust threw the phone at him when i said, "someone's got ziggy". so he just, you know, he picked up the phone and he spoke to him. the things that he was saying, my partner then realised he was reading off the posters. emma gave a statement to cumbria police and this led to the arrest of brandon woolveridge, who was convicted of nine counts of blackmail and one count of theft, and jailed for 44 months. but that hasn't put an end to emma's torment. she still receives calls to this day. he said, "i want £1,000 or else i'll come back and burn your house down". whilst linda was fortunate to be reunited with lulu, ziggy still hasn't been found.

cumbria police are continuing to look into cases and advise pet owners to be wary of any caller who demands cash in return for information about their animals. dan o'donoghue, bbc news. a new menopause treatment becomes available later this week. the daily pill is called veoza — or fezolinetant. it tackles two of the most common symptoms of menopause — hot flushes and night sweats. and it's potentially useful for women who can't take hormone replacement therapy, such as those with a history of some cancers or blood clots. tim muffett went to meet one woman who's been following the arrival of the new drug closely. it's like an overwhelming sensation of being near a fire, but you can't get away from it and itjust engulfs your whole body. as the menopause approached, fiona's hot flushes began. they come at different

points of the day, and theyjust overwhelm you. so you just stop and put your fan on and try and carry on your normal day. hot flushes and night sweats are very common amongst women going through the menopause, which typically happens between the ages of 45 and 55. this is a fantastic neck fan and it is...itjust cools you down. hormone replacement therapy was a huge help for fiona, but a breast cancer diagnosis meant it had to stop, as hrt is not recommended for those who've had the disease. i was very grateful that my breast cancer was very minor. obviously the big downfall is i couldn't take hrt anymore. i was crying about that. because it's not yet available on the nhs, this drug will cost around £45 per month. plus there's the cost of a private specialist needed to get a prescription — that could be around £200 to £300 per visit. and frustratingly for many, this drug is not yet licensed

for women who've had breast cancer. i'm hoping that the trial for looking at breast cancer patients who are going through active treatment, can have a non—hormonal version of this treatment for their symptoms because they're the ones that are really...in my nhs practice i'm struggling to look after. and i'm not in the position to have to pay for it privately and i really need the nhs to step up and get a move on and and provide it for people that like myself, and people who haven't got that massive income, to be able to afford, it so we can to afford it so we can benefit from it as well. tim muffett reporting. tennis now. look away if you are an andy murray

fan. there's more disappointment for him, as he's been knocked out of the australian open in the first round. he suffered a straight sets defeat to the argentine tomas etcheverrey. it's only the second time in his career that murray's been knocked out in the first round of the competition, as katie gornall reports. we think of andy murray as the man with the metal hip and the iron will. that he continues to compete at this level has, at times, defied logic. but is the end in sight? for the first half an hour of this match murray held his own against the 30th seed tomas martin etcheverry. commentator: you've got to love that! - but once the argentine won the first set, he began to give murray the run around. commentator: simply. sublime from etcheverry. and it was difficult to see a way back. fans had cued around of the game's all—time greats. fans had cued around the block to see one of the game's all—time greats. but this was a far cry from the glory days. many times, murray has dragged himself back from the brink of defeat. that he offered such little resistance here will only intensify questions about his future. his tournament ended by tomas martin etcheverryjust over two hours after it had begun.

not to be for andy murray. there is a definite possibility that will be the last time i play here. whilst you are playing the match you are obviously trying to control your emotions, focus on the points and everything and then when you are one point away from the end, it's like, i can't believe this is over so quickly. and so murray waves goodbye to the australian open, perhaps for the final time. katie gornall, bbc news. before we get the latest weather forecast, just take a look at this. it's a very rare white penguin, filmed in antarctica earlier this month. she's female and from the gentoo species — which usually, like most penguins, have black and white feathers. but experts say she has a genetic condition affecting her pigmentation, so she has this snowy white complexion. she might be at home in parts of the uk this week, actually. indeed but you'd be lucky to find her with these massive snow drifts we have in aberdeenshire. i suspect

the threat of seeing disruptive snowfall in scotland will increase tomorrow as we will see in a moment. before we get there we have the rest of today, of course. the snow showers are coming through thick and fast, turning heavier and more frequent across the north—east of scotland and northern isles afternoon. snow showers coming through in northern ireland but not particularly heavy. for the vast majority of the country, we have clear, blue sunny skies, not that it does much for temperatures, below freezing across much of scotland and north—east england. tonight, more of the same with snow showers packing in with the snow continuing to accumulate and another widespread and sharp frost, —2, —4 quite widely, in rural areas even colder. tomorrow, across england and wales are quiet day after a frosty start. most of you have dry weather with spells of sunshine. another cold day with temperatures at best around three or four celsius but colder

weather further north. three or four celsius but colder weatherfurther north. further three or four celsius but colder weather further north. further north