good afternoon. syrian state television says buses have entered the rebel—held enclave in eastern aleppo to enable the evacuation of thousands of people said to be living in desperate conditions. this follows reports of a deal having been agreed between the rebels and pro—government forces. richard lister reports. morbus is assembled on the outskirts of eastern aleppo this morning amid signs that this on— off evacuation would continue. red cross vehicles could also be seen waiting to go into the cities. smoke underlined how tense this process has become, disrupted by fighting and politics. caught in the middle are tens of thousands of people in the besieged eastern part of the city. in the past week, they've been told to prepare to leave, gather that

assembly points and then been forced to return home as another evacuation was cancelled. fewer than 10,000 people are thought to have gone so far, just a fraction of the total still trapped here. one reason for the delay has been the status of two shia villages held by opposition fighters. the syrian government says that people from those places must be allowed to leave as part of the process. across europe, thousands have demanded that western nations play a more active role in the crisis. they want to ensure the protection of the evacuees and those who choose to say the leg—mac stay. whether russian will accept un monitors isn't clear. in government—held western aleppo, where many back president assad, there is relief that their city is no longer on the front line. translation: we hope the ceasefire will pass without any problems. we hope all the gun men will leave and go back to where they came from.

they destroyed our country, they displaced all the people, and they destroyed all of aleppo. the evacuation buses have now been seen moving into eastern aleppo to continue the operation, but this is still a complex and dangerous pro—sex which has failed before and could fail again. richard lister, bbc news. the international trade secretary, liam fox, has said he will tell the cabinet in private whether —— or not —— the uk should stay inside the european customs' union after brexit, which would limit free trade deals. he told the andrew marr programme that the government was still debating the issue, but said there would be "limitations" if britain was to remain inside it. here's our political correspondent, mark lobel. british businesses approach the end of year with element of doubt hanging over future customs arrangements such as whether a new trade deal will bring less bureaucracy or trade deal will bring less bureaucracy oi’ more trade deal will bring less bureaucracy or more to our borders. speaking to the bbc this morning,

the international trade secretary left open the possibility that we could remain a part of the eu customs union. we need to look at all the options, all the possible... including staying in the customs union? the reason i asked, and in a non—confrontational way, if we stay inside the customs union, we cannot do the type of deals that your department was set up to create, and therefore there is no need for liam fox. there would be limitations in terms of tariff setting, which would limit what kind of deals you can do. that is quite correct. the customs union includes all 28 eu nations and turkey, monaco, san marino and andorra. all can trade freely but they must impose the same tariffs. they are also barred from doing bilateral trade deals with other countries. now only a back—seat driver to cabinet discussions, george osborne was asked what type

of trade deal should be done. we should have a hard headed assessment of what is in our national interest. it is true that the grass may be green outside of those arrangements and we may be able to conduct new free—trade deals with australia, the united states and so on, but that shouldn't come at a price of giving up shouldn't come at a price of giving up the existing free—trade arrangements we have with germany and france. and you think we can keep those? that is where i would start from. you cannot say we are a beacon of free trade in the wild and then perpetrate a huge act of protectionism, the biggest in british history. in spite of hearing from one of the brexit big hitters the day, we are no closer to knowing what type of deal is on the table author which options are fit. —— are

off eight. it. a suicide bomber has killed at least forty soldiers in the southern yemeni port city of aden. many others were wounded. the islamic state group says it carried out the attack, which targeted a crowd of soldiers as they were queueing up to receive their salaries near a military base. it's the latest in a string of such attacks targeting army recruits in yemen. a week ago, islamic state militants killed 50 troops in aden, which is under the control of the internationally—recognised government of yemen. palestinian officials say israeli soldiers have shot dead an arab teenager during a confrontation in the west bank. they say the shooting took place when the troops entered the village of beit rima near ramallah and were confronted by youths throwing stones. an israeli army spokeswoman said the security forces opened fire during clashes in beit rima. the government says it plans to make all civil servants and holders of public office swear an oath to uphold british values. the communities secretary, sajid javid, says he wants people to set an example by embracing concepts of tolerance, equality and freedom of speech.

but labour says that making people swear an oath to british values would make "no difference" to the problems of radicalisation and integration. angus crawford is here. angus, what is the background? there are two words at the heart of this — community cohesion. a government commissioned report came out earlier this month, saying that there was some communities living in isolated bubbles of ethnic segregation. amongst other recommendations, it said there should be an oath of allegiance brought in for migrants but also for those in leadership positions in civic life, public life. they should now to uphold values of tolerance and freedom of speech. what the communities secretary appears to have done is to fully embrace those two recommendations and go further on the second. he wants to go beyond leaders in civil life and have

school governors, local councillors and potentially lead that onto the nhs and even the bbc. angus come thank you. —— angus, thank you. a group of mps says the government must not use the introduction of new mayors across england next year to shirk its responsibility to properly fund public services. the public accounts committee says the government needs to make clear who is spending taxpayers' money and where responsibility lies after the mayors are elected. ministers say the new roles in seven areas of england will help communities take control of decision making. thick fog has again been affecting many parts of the uk, leading to travel disruption for a second day. a severe weather warning issued by the met office has now been lifted but parts of southern england and south wales are expected to be affected into this afternoon. similar conditions yesterday led to some flight cancellations at heathrow and gatwick airports. the 2016 bbc sports personality of the year will be announced tonight. viewers can vote for 16 contenders, who've been shortlisted for the prestigious award. last year's winner — the wimbledon and olympic tennis champion, andy murray —

is in the running again. the ceremony takes place in birmingham. 0ur sports news correspondent, andy swiss, is there. andy, what can we expect? finally, we are at rehearsals which are about to get underway here in birmingham. we expect around 12,000 people tonight to celebrate what has really been a bumper year for british sport. normally, there arejust 12 names on the short list. this year, there are 16. it is some less to choose from. the winner will be decided by a public vote. you can vote by phone, or you

can vote. you can vote by phone, or you ca n vote vote. you can vote by phone, or you can vote online. details will be given out during tonight's show. plenty of other awards. there is the tea m plenty of other awards. there is the team of the year award, the coach of the year. there will be a lifetime achievement award for american swimmer michael phelps. it gets underway at 6:a0pm and it is live on bbc one. you can see more on all of today's stories on the bbc news channel. the next news on bbc one is at quarter past five. bye for now. you're watching bbc news. hundreds of thousands of commuters on southern rail face disruption again this week because of a walk—out by

rmt workers. there were three days of strikes earlier last week. british airways cabin staff are due to strike over christmas as well, and some post office workers will walk out for five days from tomorrow. meanwhile, theresa may is allegedly getting flak from within her own party for not curbing union powers. speaking to us, the rmt leader denied accusations that his union is using the dispute with southern rail to take on the government. all i southern rail to take on the government. alll know southern rail to take on the government. all i know is that we as a trade union have been fighting the introduction of driver only operation on since february. we have been trying to get an agreement with southern to keep a second safety critical guard on every train. for us, it is about safety, which is our priority, and that is what we are seeking to do, and we frustrated we can't get a deal with southern on this issue. surely, the evidence from other parts of the world and

here too is that driver controlled trains are perfectly safe. you as a union arejust trains are perfectly safe. you as a union are just about protecting jobs, which nobody can blame you for, but it is not about safety, it is about holding onto jobs. for, but it is not about safety, it is about holding ontojobs.m for, but it is not about safety, it is about holding onto jobs. it is about safety, not jobs. is about holding onto jobs. it is about safety, notjobs. the norm in the railway industry is to have a guard on every train. we've done deals this year in scotland, where we kept a guard on the train, we have a deal on east coast trains to keep a guard, a deal on great western to keep a guard, and brand—new trains are being introduced in all those areas, as on trans—pennine express, and they will be keeping a guard. that is the norm because it is safer, more efficient and better for passengers. as we does mention, there are all sorts of walk—outs we are facing from rail workers, airport staff, post office workers, airport staff, post office workers too. to what extent is your

union involved in a coordinated attempt to create social problems, even the economic damage, according to some reports in the sunday newspapers that a ? to some reports in the sunday newspapers that a? we are not. we area newspapers that a? we are not. we are a trade union. we have been fighting the unsafe practice, the u nsafe fighting the unsafe practice, the unsafe introduction of driver operation, since february. the first i heard about a lot of these actions is in the newspapers when they got published, so we are not about trying to bring a trotskyite conspiracy to bring down the government. we are here to try and make sure that we have a save railway. that is our priority and thatis railway. that is our priority and that is why we are conducting a strike this week, to ensure the safety of passengers. that is our first and only objective. but the president of the rmt is quoted in one of the papers today from a speech in brighton in september saying, any trade unionist with any sense would want to bring down this bloody working—class hating tory

government. why would he say that if there isn't some kind of effort to dojust that? there isn't some kind of effort to do just that? i am there isn't some kind of effort to dojust that? i am not interested in what is said that fringe political meetings. but that is the president of your union. can ijust say, meetings. but that is the president of your union. can i just say, the general secretary speaks on behalf of the rmt, and i am telling that you are —— that our dispute with southern is about having a second safety person on every train. it is nothing new and we have done it in a number of companies this year. we wa nt to number of companies this year. we want to see the same on southern. why is it that in scotland, on east coast, great western and on the trans—pennine express, we can keep a guard and not give the same benefit to passengers on southern. why would your president a statement if he is not meant to go off script? why would he be saying it? he is a significant figurehead for your union. our focus is about the fight to keep a safety critical second

person on the train. it started in february, i need to remind you, with the director of franchise for the department for transport saying he would take on the unions and get the trade unions out of his industry. if you have questions about what is going on politically, you should ask chris grayling, the secretary of state, why his director of franchise was seeking to have a bust up with unions when all we are trying to do is keep a second safety critical person on every train. that is our priority. that is an interview for another time. we have you here today from the rmt. are you saying that your union is not in a coordinated effort and would not want to see this conservative government brought down by your actions? most definitely, we are not doing coordinated action. if people want to get rid of government, they do it through the ballot box. we are in industrial dispute about getting rid of the guard on the train. we have real serious concerns about that.

that is our priority. we want to see passengers put at the front of this. the safety of passengers is key, and thatis the safety of passengers is key, and that is why we are in dispute. that is why the guards are on strike on southern this week, no other reason. the first priority is the safety of passengers. how important are those passengers. how important are those passengers because they faced 22 days of action since april? there are hundreds of thousands of people affected, and you are damaging customer relations, surely. they are not going to support your action if you keep this up. we don't want to be taking industrial action, but ultimately it is about safety. the new secretary of state for transport hasn't met us. chris grayling, as far as hasn't met us. chris grayling, as farasi hasn't met us. chris grayling, as faras i am hasn't met us. chris grayling, as far as i am concerned, is failing, failing to stand up for the industry, the stand—up passengers, by failing to meet us. he needs to get round the table so we can sit down and try to resolve this. they

are contractors for the department for transport. the solution lies in getting round the table, not barring people like myself from talks. i need to remind you, i try to have meetings with southern this week to stop the industrial action and i was barred from those discussions. we need to get round the table. i wrote to chris must mandate and he still hasn't responded. we have to get round the table, let's see if we can get southern to come up with an offer that make sure we keep our garden every train and keep the trains safe. mitt cash, the general secretary of the rmt speaking to us earlier this morning. the headlines: ahead of a strike tomorrow, the rmt leader denies accusations that the union is using the disputed take on the government. fresh hope civilians trapped in aleppo as buses arrived to begin evacuated again two days after they we re evacuated again two days after they were stopped. swearing an oath to british values —

the community secretary was people in the civil service to swear an oath to values such as democracy and freedom of speech. now, sport. richard is here. let's start with cricket, and the fifth and final test between england and india in chennai. india are closing in on england's first innings total of 477. at the close of play on day 3, the home side are 391—4, trailing the tourists by 86 runs. the lynchpin of india's innings was kl rahul, who was out on 199, just one run short of his double century. the men who'll return to the crease tomorrow are nair, who's on 71 and vijay who's 17 not out. jim lumsden looks back at the action. there has been little to sing and dance about for england. india's motto has been anything you can do we can do better. the target was 477. the 150 partnership was slugged out in some style by patel.

soon after, he provided a little relief for a grateful england into the hands ofjos buttler. his replacement pujara didn't hang around, going cheaply to alastair cook. rahul swatted his way to a fourth test 100. it was often pedestrian stuff from cook's men. for some the attention started to wonder. the last time kohli picked up a bat, he stayed for days, for some the attention started to wander. the last time kohli picked up a bat, he stayed for days, making 235. not this time. not many wickets were falling. england's frustration became plain to see. rahul rattled ? it would seem not. he looked certain to make a double century before playing a dreadful shot. he had recorded the biggest score by an indian opener against england in the process, but his exit mayjust have let the other side back in.

bournemouth host southampton. that match kicks off at 1:30pm. at apm, totte n ha m match kicks off at 1:30pm. at apm, tottenham welcome burnley to white hart lane. chelsea are nine points clear at the top of the premier league, and today manchester city and arsenal face each other hoping to close that gap. so lots to play for in the top half of the table today. starting with tenth placed bournemouth hosting southampton who are ninth. at 4 o'clock, 5th place tottenham face burnley, who are the only side in the bottom half of the table in action today, they lie 16th having lost four of their last five games in the league. at the same time, it's that game at the etihad stadium. we have played many times, when i was in barcelona and bayern munich. there is a lot of respect. of course, they have quality. arsenal has quality and they always buy the right people. they have fast players in front. they can defend well. they use perfectly the counterattack. so,

a good team. this game, we need to defend well together and not be timid every time we get the ball. we need to try to attack, because that is part of our philosophy. that is what you have to do, but you have not to forget that city as a team is very strong going forward , city as a team is very strong going forward, maybe even more now with pep guardiola. we certainly have to focus to defend well. real madrid have won the club world cup. the antlers took a 2—1 lead in the second half, both goals from gaku shibasacki, but real levelled it with a cristiano ronaldo penalty. one of the legends of boxing, 51—year old bernard hopkins, has lost his final fight. he's won multiple world titles in a glittering career, but was knocked out of the ring

to end the contest. his opponentjoe smithjunior put hopkins through the ropes, you canjust see him here. this all happened in the 8th round. he recovered and was given medical attention. a remarkable end to his 28—year boxing career. that is all the sport for now. more throughout the afternoon. prince harry has revealed he no longer struggles with his royal role, and says he feels the need to "make something" of his life. speaking in an itv documentary about his charity work in lesotho the prince said losing his mother at a young age made him question his position, but that he now views life "very, very differently". secunder kermani reports. what is it that you are making? clothes, obviously. laughter prince harry looks in his element as he helps out in a centre teaching life skills to young people affected by hiv. it is run by a charity he co—founded ten years

ago in the small south african state of lesotho. sentebale have helped more than 21,000 people, many of them teenagers. and harry's clearly passionate about its work. hiv/aids is the number one killer of adolescents across sub—saharan africa. because kids don't take their drugs? lesotho is an example. you have a bunch of kids who have no idea about hiv. they are not allowed to talk about it. and now that we have the drugs and pills to be able to give these kids a healthy, happy long life, yet we're not educating them or empowering them to make their own decisions. harry first visited africa in 1997, not long after his mother's death and he says he still feels a connection to the continent. i think the first time that i went to africa, i was tiny. i think i went with my dad to a spice girl concert injohannesburg? for me, personally, it is an escape.

not only have i found that escape but i have found a way to try and use the name and the position for good. in recent weeks, harry's relationship with actress meghan markle has placed him firmly in the media spotlight once again. he says, in the past, he resented his position and wanted to bury his head in the sand. now, though, he's excited to be able to use his profile to help those less fortunate. "prince harry in africa" will be broadcast on itv at 9pm on monday. 13.1 million viewers tuned into strictly last night to see 0re 0duba and his partner take on the glitter ball trophy. i've been speaking to

keith and judy clifton, parents of professional dancers jalan and kevin, who both competed in the final. i asked about the moment when jalan and 0re were announced champions. she nearly fainted. she had to be held up. she was busy. she just didn't think they were going to win it. —— she was dizzy. just didn't think they were going to win it. -- she was dizzy. you have been champions in latin dance in the past, haven't you? yeah, it was a long time ago. but you run a dance... we run a dance school in grimsby. i suppose jalan and kevin

had no choice, did they? if this is your livelihood. strangely, we didn't push them into it. it was them who wanted to do it. we didn't push them at all. they danced up the age of 16. then they realised it was difficult to dante rumba with your sister. —— to dance a ram bar. difficult to dante rumba with your sister. -- to dance a ram bar. is dance champions, what have you made of the quality of the performances on strictly this year? from the word 90, on strictly this year? from the word go, it was an astounding bunch of people. relevant mac —— go, it was an astounding bunch of people. relevant mac -- they all

brought something to the dance floor, and you could not call the final at all. they were astonishing, all three of them. they have all made a huge impact. each and every one of them was brilliant. even melvin, who went at first, he could have made the final with a bit more training. they were all so good. len goodman, obviously his last series, and he has been very complimentary about the standard this year. but what does it take? 0re had not been a dancer before and sport was his thing. how hard has he worked? they have been doing 12—15 hours a day. joanne and kevin are very competitive. they wanted to produce their celebrity the best they could. what are your feet and brain like after 15 hours of dancing?

scrambled. we are over the moon with it all and it is difficult to talk about it because we are so proud of them. they are too lovely kids. even though we are saying it ourselves, they are two lovely kids. the best thing they have said to us is that they are nice kids. they are very grounded. they remember where they come from in grimsby. that's what's important to us. i'm sure that louise redknapp, who danced with kevin, would say the same of him, but 0re has given such credit to joanne. they have been lovely in training, really lovely to us. you know, it has been a terrific series. when we met 0re, the first thing he said to us was, can i be part of your family for the next 12 weeks?

it was lovely. as it felt like that? yes. they all say they want to carry on. the world opens up for them. i would imagine some of them will do musical theatre things, perhaps in the west end. things are opening up for all of them. proud parents, keith and judy clifton, the mum and dad ofjoanne clifton, the mum and dad ofjoanne clifton, who won strictly last night. now, the weather. stea m steam was adding to the fog in the river dart earlier today. i will

keep showing this picture of keswick throughout the afternoon because it is so glorious. i don't think things will change radically. if you are in one of the holes in the cloud, good for you, you will see some brightness. temperatures around 10 celsius. in the fall, the temperature closer to five celsius. the fog will remain overnight. because the breeze is dropping out further north in england and into the scottish borders, you might get fog here as well. not a particularly cold night, it has to be said. watch out for the dense fog patches on monday morning. we have a weather front pushing its way into scotland and northern ireland, a little rain associated with that. perhaps some rain later on in eastern parts as the cloud thickens. see you later.