hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. the search for a killer. german police warn the public to be on heightened alert as they try to find the driver behind the berlin lorry attack. vigils have been held to remember the people who died when the truck smashed through a christmas market on monday night. the family of an italian woman whose mobile phone was found at the scene say they fear that she is among the victims. one man arrested has been released without charge. the so—called islamic state says one its supporters was responsible. good morning. it's wednesday the 21st of december. also this morning: a huge explosion at a fireworks market in mexico city has killed at least 29 people and injured many more. figures seen by breakfast show

a huge rise in the number of historical abuse allegations being tackled by police in england and wales. good morning. iam good morning. i am at a training centre in durham as part of our series this week on policing britain. i will be looking at how officers investigate abuse that happened decades ago while also dealing with crime and disorder that is happening now. good morning. one of the uk's biggest business groups doesn't want the government to favour one sector over another as we leave the eu. is that possible? i'll be taking a look. in sport, two—time wimbledon champion, petra kvitova, says she's lucky to be alive, after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she won't play tennis for at least three months. it's officially the first day of winter, and carol has the weather. good morning. good morning from

stonehenge. you can make them out behind me. it is the winter solstice. thousands of people are expected here later on. the forecast, rain and sunshine. even some show, forecast, rain and sunshine. even some snow, but that is largely on the hills in the north. and i'll have the full weather details in 15 minutes. thank you. good morning. first, our main story. an international search is under way for the person who drove a lorry into a crowded market in central berlin on monday. last night, police released the only suspect detained after the attack, saying there was insufficient evidence. so, what do we know so far? the lorry drove into a crowded christmas market packed with tourists and locals at breitscheidplatz, killing 12 people and injuring 49. the suspected driver fled into the darkness of the tiergarten park. he was pursued by a witness, who called the police. soon after that, a 23 year old pakistani man was arrested near the park's victory column monument. but police do not think he was involved. a polish man was found dead in the lorry‘s passenger seat.

he was the registered driver, but police believe he was the victim of a hijack. police are still hunting the killer and any accomplices. catriona renton has the latest. this had been a place filled with festive joy. now silence and sadness as people come together to support each other. members of berlin's muslim community sit outside the nearby church asking for peace. translation: we want to clearly distance ourselves from every person that attacks our society. germany is oui’ that attacks our society. germany is our home. we love germany. we want to live here. berlin is our city, and we will not allow our life to be threatened. it is still not known who crashed this lorry or who they are. this is the immediate aftermath. i2 are. this is the immediate aftermath. 12 people were killed. dozens were injured when the

christmas market was attacked on monday morning. this woman's family in italy fear she may be one of those who died. the lorry is key itself to the investigation. it appears it was hijacked. it was owned by a polish man. he says his cousin should have been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. police had arrested a man from pakistan who came to germany to seek asylum earlier this year. he was released without charge. the so—called islamic state group claimed the attack, but the person or people behind it are still at large. more eye witnesses have come forward describing what they saw. at first, to some, it seems like an accident. the impression we all had in general is that the truck lost control and just crashed by accident into the christmas market

but the speed that this truck needed to have two crash such a big part of the market was just too much. to have two crash such a big part of the market wasjust too much. last night, berlin's brandenburg gate was lit up in the colours of the german flag. the mayor of the city has urged them to be vigilant but not lock themselves into homes while the search for whoever did this continues. catriona renton, bbc news. let's join our correspondent, robert hall, who is at the markets in berlin. robert, what's the atmosphere like there this morning? police are still obviously looking for the suspect. yes, indeed, louise mensch it. a heavy atmosphere. they are still in darkness. you may catch are still in darkness. you may catch a glimpse of the kaiser church behind me. the only light is coming from these impromptu shrines set up last night. there was a vigil as a

show of solidarity as catriona renton reported. this investigation is widening to two key areas. what happened after the lorry crashed on to the market? where did the driver go? was at a man who was subsequently spotted, also to be spotted in tiergarten park, what was he before he came here? at what point was the polish man the original driver of the vehicle? where was he killed? and why do the police say the lorry was attempted to be driven earlier in the evening. there may be witnesses or cctv evidence. they will be looking at that in the hopes it will take them on new leads. 500 new leads so far yet to be followed. thank you so much. security has been tightened here in the uk in response to the attack in berlin. our reporter, leanne brown, is at buckingham palace. leanne, what extra measures are being put in place? good morning. can you explain what

is happening? yes. as you say, security is being tightened across the capital. roads surrounding buckingham palace will be closed from today during the popular changing of the guards. extra barriers are also being brought in to protect this iconic location. police say it is because when guards are changed it is highly popular and a tt ra cts are changed it is highly popular and attracts large crowds of people. this security measure was already in the pipeline but they brought it forward in light of what has happened. of course, it is notjust here where we see large groups of people. at london's hyde park, hundreds of thousands of people attend the christmas winter wonderland each year, and of course, the terms winter wonderland fireworks. they have a security plan

in place, they say. the threat to the uk remains severe, which means an attack is highly likely. they are reminding members of the public to remain vigilant and report any of their concerns. thank you so much for that this morning. this will be the main story this morning. we'll be asking one of the government's security advisers about the response to this attack, just after 7am this morning. elsewhere today. figures seen by bbc breakfast show the number of people coming forward to say that they were the victims of historical child abuse has more than doubled in the past year. louise can explain all the details. these figures have been given to bbc breakfast by operation hydrant, that's the name for the group of officers co—ordinating and cross—checking allegations. they show that the number of victims has risen sharply, to more than 3,500 today. there are around 3,500 suspects. one in ten of them are described as "people of public prominence." the officer in overall charge told us about the nature of their work. police also told us about the investigation into historical abuse in football.

we are dealing with complex and incredibly sensitive matters, sometimes in incredibly high—profile cases. and, of course, all those factors create a huge challenge for the service. police also told us about the investigation into football. in the month since andy woodward spoke about being abused, a29 victims have been identified, and 155 potential suspects. a police clinical psychologist told us why it can take so long for people to come forward. children develop coping mechanisms like blocking out the experience and blocking out their feelings about what happened. so it can take time for the survivor to face what

happened and the impact it had and then move forward. the home office says it's determined to bring perpetrators of historical crimes to justice. in the next half hour, we'll be hearing more from survivors and the police about uncovering the truth in cases like these as part of our policing britain series. at least 29 people have been killed in an explosion at a fireworks market in mexico. emergency services said dozens of others were injured, and they expect the death toll to rise. it's the third major explosion at the site since 2005. will grant reports. the moment the san pablito fireworks market was engulfed in flames. within minutes, the entire site destroyed in a blaze of smoke, noise and deadly explosions. once the smoke cleared, the scale of the damage became clear. most big celebrations in mexico involve fireworks so in the run—up to christmas, it was

full of shoppers. once nearby residents got over the initial shock of the blast, they did what they could to assist the emergency services. for the time being, authorities say they are still investigating the cause of the tragedy but whatever is behind it, this is not the first explosion at san pablito. in 2005, just before mexican independence day, the market caught alight, injuring more than 120 people. at the time, the mexican government vowed to impose strict regulations on the fireworks industry, but many mexicans are angry that the rules are often never applied or enforced, and that market traders and shoppers lost their lives through a potentially avoidable accident. will grant, bbc news. eating lots of processed meats like ham and sausage might make asthma symptoms worse, according to researchers.

the study says preservatives in meat could irritate the airways if people have more than four portions a week. but experts say the link hasn't been proved, and people should focus instead on eating a healthy and varied diet. people who buy drones could have to register it and take a test to prove they can fly it safely, under new rules proposed by the government. 59 near misses involving drones and airliners have been reported in the uk over the past 12 months. the department of transport hopes the scheme could help authorities identify the owners of devices which are flown illegally. you are right up—to—date with all the latest news. carol will have the weather in a few minutes' time. it is the winter solstice. she is at stonehenge today. we couldn't actually see it because it was dark. the sport. an incredible story about a tennis player. most people will no petra

kvitova from her success at wimbledon. she has won two times. she is at home. somebody came to the door posing as someone wanting to ta ke door posing as someone wanting to take a metre reading and it was a knife attack in the end. fortunately she is ok. but it is one of those times when you think blimey, what an awful story. she is lucky to be alive. two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitova says she's lucky to be alive after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she suffered severe injuries to her left hand, her playing hand, in an attempted robbery and underwent almost four hours of surgery yesterday. she won't play for at least three months. celtic are 14 points clear at the top of the scottish premiership, and unbeaten in 21 domestic games, after beating bottom club partick thistle 1—0 last night. scott sinclair, the scorer. there was a great reward for league one side peterborough united, who beat notts county 2—0 in their fa cup second—round replay last night. their next tie is at chelsea.

and lewis hamilton's new team—mate looks increasingly likely to be valterri bottas, on the left. felipe massa has agreed to drive for williams again next season, paving the way for bottas to join hamilton at mercedes. thank you. and we have a quick the morning papers. dominating the papers. berlin. this is the sun. this shows you the route the lorry would have taken through the christmas markets. just seeing it is horrifying. bear in mind, it would have been packed. the search continues for the man who was driving that laurie. so many questions unanswered about that. the times has a picture of fabrizia di lorenzo, 3i, times has a picture of fabrizia di lorenzo, 31, from italy. she is missing and they fear for her

safety. and this is canterbury cathedral. security is changing across european cities. one other picture. the guardian. this is appearing on many papers. chancellor merkel laying flowers at the scene. the hunt for the truck driver continues. the financial times. facebook and whatsapp. when facebook bought it a while ago they told the european commission they would not be able to combine the data from the two very easily. but as anyone who uses them may have noticed, they have now been linked quite heavily. if you have whatsapp contacts they may appear on facebook as suggestions. the european commission are happy and have charged facebook. there could be fined —— finds potentially down the road. edgarjones, the tough guy of rugby.

—— edgarjones. straight talking, tough man, but you do not want to get on the wrong side of his mum. she is the only one who calls me edward. no matter who you are, do not get on the wrong side of your mum. what is your favourite part of christmas dinner? turkey. ijust found i have newspaper print on my forehead. what is your favourite bit? sausage and bacon. trying to run off and work off the calories.

4.5 hours walk to walk off christmas dinner 37 minutes of frenetic iceskating for walking off a mince pie. mary christmas, everybody. thank you very much. it's 6:17 and you're watching breakfast from bbc news. good morning, it is cold. i am putting my gloves on as soon as i finish this broadcast. it is winter solstice, we are in stonehenge. lots of people are gathering already. last year there were thousands of people and some are all dressed up and waiting already. maybe we can talk to some later on. 1044 gmt is

when the winter solstice will occur. more on that as we go through the morning. there is a lot going on board the forecast. rain clearing but hanging on to score —— showers. some will have hailed, thunder and snow on higher ground. this morning, wet weather, damp conditions, and we also have another band of rain across england and wales heading south. in between there will be sunshine stop we will see some private conditions but this afternoon, across the north and west, some sleep. brighter in the east and south. down towards east

anglia and kent, at this stage we have something dry up. by four o'clock we will be starting to loose some of the daylight. in the south—west, we are into the rain. the north wales, drier and brighter conditions in northern ireland, back in two showers and stronger winds. possibly snow in the hills. heading on through the rest of the evening and overnight, the rain heading to the south—east, clearing. we will persist with showers. a cold night across england and wales. in scotland, the risk of some ice. tomorrow, a quieter day for most.

there will be windy conditions in the north, showers around but further south through england and wales, one or two showers but it will be mostly dry. temperatures not in great shape for most, milder in the south. on friday, and amber weather warning the wind has been issued. storm barbara. listen to the forecast you are travelling. we are looking at severe gales in the north of the country, possibly storm force winds. it will be windy wherever you are but not as windy as in the north. if you are travelling, bear that in mind. when coming from the north—west and travelling south—east. christmas eve on christmas day. christmas day looks

particularly windy. a lot going on this coming weekend. there are a number of ongoing investigations and inquiries into historical child abuse allegations across the uk, and thousands of people have spoken to police about their experience. as part of our policing britain series, we've been given new figures that show, in the past year, the number of people coming forward as victims in england and wales has more than doubled. it's just one of the big challenges that forces in britain are facing today. steph is at a training centre in durham to find out about the specialist work involved. good morning. i in a mocked up custody suite where officers are learning the ropes for dealing with crime and disorder that will face in theirjob. it is essentially a warehouse in the middle of durham.

they will learn about all the elements that come into theirjob. i will be showing you around to see exactly what they do. one of the big challenges facing police is how they deal with abuse that happened decades ago. john maguire has been looking at how durham has been dealing with one of the biggest investigations in the uk. it was supposed to provide a shock to the boys sent here. but the three—month sentence has in effect lasted for decades. it is not the sort of thing you talk about. i have a daughter, wanted love and cuddle her but i cannot. i could not because that is what it did to me. that is how much it ruined my life. it is not so much what happened here, it is the after—effects, that

is the biggest thing. this man was convicted for his crimes and has since died at durham police realised it was a much bigger case and have since been contacted by almost 11100 people claiming they have been victimised. detectives have spoken to further suspects. the size and scale of the investigation is huge — the biggest of its kind. the volume is the big thing. 11100 people. it is pretty straightforward getting the account but it is trying to corroborate it. one of the challenges that we have is the length of time. we have been doing this for at least 2.5 years and invariably investigations now we are dealing with short scale, defenders are caught by when things happened

30 years ago, the expectations are not what they should be. we still have not come to a conclusion. there has been a huge increase. the number of victims who has come forward has double in the past year. also, the number of offenders or suspects has risen to nearly 3500. the chief co mforta ble risen to nearly 3500. the chief comfortable here believes cases must be pursued. 5096 still pose a risk. age knows no barrier here and age is not a barrier here. i can give you exa m ples of not a barrier here. i can give you examples of cases perpetrated by men in their70s, examples of cases perpetrated by men in their 70s, 80s and 90s. we need to demonstrate we are responding to those victims now but also ensuring

moving forward that those alleged offenders are not in a position to carry on abusing and are not abusing as of today. enquiries are costing tens of millions of pounds but for the police and especially for the victims, the cases are notjust about the past but also about the future. with me is ron hopper, the police and crime commission in durham. this is one of many investigations going on into historical child abuse. for you, for someone who served as an officerfor 30 years, you, for someone who served as an officer for 30 years, how do you feel there are so many cases coming out now? i think it is a good thing. people have lacked confidence to

report in the past. i think it is important that we do have people coming forward and reporting these issues otherwise the abuse will continue into the future we must do what we can to stop it. do you think we will hear about all cases? absolutely. there is an awful lot yet to be uncovered and it is a very sad but we need to take these complaints very, very seriously. sad but we need to take these complaints very, very seriouslym can cost millions of pounds, how you make sure it is fully resourced? three — £4 million it will cost. it has taken an awful lot from resources to do that but the key thing is and we hope the judge when he sentenced rout clark, that we must give support to the victims and

ta ke must give support to the victims and take cases seriously. you chose to put victim in your title. why a? how can we best support them? we have to understand what goes on in the victim's life, encouraged to come forward , victim's life, encouraged to come forward, support them. some of the victims are the most vulnerable in oui’ victims are the most vulnerable in our community and they are exploited. we can see adults abusing younger people, people who do not have control. this is why i changed my title. i will be here throughout the morning. you will be able to see all the different operations at the training centre. i know it you will be looking at tasered training as well. plenty more coming up. time now to get the news, travel and weather where you are. good morning from bbc london news.

plans to block vehicles from large sections of the mall have been brought forward after the berlin lorry attack. from today, barriers will block a mile long section of road outside buckingham palace, between 10:45 and 12:30 on the days of the changing the guard. the metropolitan police said the road closures are not in relation to any specific intelligence. additional barriers will also be in place to maintain security for the guard movements. london councils are not doing enough to help house war veterans, according to new research from kent university. it looked at the provision by all 32 london's boroughs, plus the city of london, for homeless ex—servicemen and women. it found that all the capital's councils could improve, and that less than a third made explicit acknowledgments of their duty towards veterans. the london mayor is taking a step of introducing a minimum wage for london bus drivers. at the moment

they can receive varying salaries depending on the company if they work for. the changes will be introduced next april. plans to pedestrianise much of oxford street face fierce opposition by groups concerned that traffic will simply be re—routed through their residential areas. people living in nearby marylebone and fitzrovia are concerned their lives will be blighted by increases in congestion and pollution. city hall announced in the summer that all vehicles will be banned on the stretch from tottenham court road to bond street tube station, by 2020. let's have a look at the travel situation now. on the tube — there's a good service across al lines. equipment failure on the heathrow express. on the roads — its slow at blackwall lane approaching the blackwall tunnel — that's at the southern approach. on the m25, one lane remains closed anticlockwise between j9 for leatherhead and j8

following a lorry fire. a rather grey and damp start. things should start to cheer up as we had through the middle part of the dave stop fairly light and drizzly in nature. they will push to the east and a clearing. we shall see decent spells of sunshine through the day ahead of the next band of cloud and rain. the maximum temperature today between eight and 10 celsius. some of the rank and cause disruption during the rush hour but it will clear away overnight. behind it, it is colder. skies clearing, we may see some mist and fog. for tomorrow, a better day and more in the way of sunshine is up dry and pleasant. by

friday, stormy weather towards the north of the uk. we will get some outbreaks of rain and it will feel breezy but why saturday it will clear. for christmas day, looking cloudy, mild and we are expert some rain. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. now though it's back to louise and dan. bye for now. hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. we'll bring you all the latest news and sport in a moment, but also on breakfast this morning. as so—called islamic state lay claim to the lorry attack in berlin, we'll be live in the city to get the latest reaction, and speak to a security specialist. from dog—handlers to tazers, steph is taking a look behind the scenes of a police training facility in the latest of our policing britain series. joy?

joy? children laughing? and we'll hear from jennifer lawrence and chris pratt about their plans for christmas, and their new movie, passengers. all that still to come. but now, a summary of this morning's main news. a manhunt is under way in germany after police revealed the man they arrested following monday's truck attack in berlin has been released without charge. 12 people were killed, and nearly 50 were injured, after a lorry was driven into crowds at a christmas market. security has been stepped up in the german capital. catriona renton reports. this had been a place filled with festive joy. now, silence and sadness, as people come together to support each other. members of berlin's muslim community sit outside the nearby church asking for peace. translation: we want to clearly distance ourselves from every person that attacks our society. germany's our home. we love germany. we want to live here. berlin is our city,

and we won't allow our life to be threatened. it is still not known who crashed this lorry or who they are. this was the immediate aftermath. 12 people were killed. dozens more injured when the christmas market was attacked on monday morning. fabrizia di lorenzo's family in italy fear she may be one of those who died. the lorry is key itself to the investigation. it appears it was hijacked. it was owned by a polish man. he says his cousin should have been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. police had arrested a man from pakistan who came to germany to seek asylum earlier this year. he was released without charge. the so—called islamic state group claimed the attack, but the person or people behind it are still at large. more eyewitnesses have come forward describing what they saw.

at first, to some, it seems like an accident. the impression that we all had in general was that the truck lost control, yeah, and just crashed by accident into the christmas market, but the speed that this truck needed to have to crash such a big part of the market wasjust too much. last night, berlin's brandenburg gate was lit up in the colours of the german flag. the mayor of the city has urged them to be vigilant but not lock themselves into homes while the search for whoever did this continues. catriona renton, bbc news. it is just before dawn in germany we can show you what is going on right now at the scene of where this happen. a very different scene to

yesterday. still so much of the devastation is left in place as this ongoing investigation into who was behind the attack goes on in germany. you can see the truck as it sped through the market and came out the market... you can imagine the scene on that night when it was packed with tourists and visitors. the mayor of berlin has said security will be increased around all markets now to prevent any copycat attacks. we will bring you the latest from berlin throughout the latest from berlin throughout the morning. we'll be asking one of the government's security advisers about the response to this attackjust after 7am this morning. at least 29 people have been killed after an explosion at a fireworks market in mexico. around 70 others were injured and many buildings destroyed in the blast, which happened on the outskirts of the city. it's the third explosion at the market since 2005. the abortion provider, marie stopes international,

has been strongly criticised in inspection reports published by the regulator, the care quality commission. it voluntarily suspended the termination of pregnancies for under—18s and vulnerable women for seven weeks earlier this year, following unannounced inspections at 12 sites in england. the company says it has made considerable changes since the inspections. eating too much processed meats like ham and sausage might make asthma symptoms worse, according to researchers. the study says preservatives in meat could irritate the airways if people have more than four portions a week. but experts say the link hasn't been proved, and people should focus instead on eating a healthy and varied diet. people who buy drones could have to register it and take a test to prove they can fly it safely, under new rules proposed by the government. 59 near—misses involving drones and airliners have been reported

in the uk over the past 12 months. our technology correspondent, rory cellan—jones, has this report. earlier this month, amazon made its first delivery by drone. just one potential use of an exciting new technology. but after a number of reports from pilots of near misses with drones, there is now mounting concern about safety. if people do not use drones responsibly and follow the rules and regulations that are in place, obviously, that isa that are in place, obviously, that is a safety issue, first of all, but could also affect the long—term future of drones as well. there are already lots of regulation. i cannot fly here because we are too close to buildings and people. while professional users of drones have to register with the civil aviation authority, anyone else can just buy one and start flying. the government is consulting on regulations which would mean you drones would have to be registered, users would have to pass a theory test like that for

drivers, and there would be tougher penalties for using drones in no—fly zone is. peter, an experienced drone owner, believes it is already too complex. if you put in too complicated rules, you will scare people off and denied the future industry this pool of talent that we need. there will be thousands of new drone owner is this christmas. whenever new rules come in, they are being told they will be safer if they followed the —— follow the drone code. and now for a look at this morning's sport. horrible news. many people will know petra kvitova from her success at wimbledon. she was having breakfast at her apartment yesterday and someone came to her door to check out the metre and she was assaulted in a horrific

knife attack. she had emergency surgery, knife attack. she had emergency surgery, didn't see? she plays with her left hand and she had severe cuts on herfingers. doctors are optimistic she will be able to play again but as you can imagine it is just an awful situation for her and eve ryo ne just an awful situation for her and everyone closely associated with her. the two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitova says she's "fortunate to be alive" after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she spent almost four hours yesterday having surgery on her left hand, which is her racquet hand, and she won't be able to play for at least three months. it's thought it was a random burglary and kvitova wasn't specifically targeted. in a statement, kvitova said this. "in my attempt to defend myself i was badly injured on my left hand. i am shaken, but fortunate to be alive. the injury is severe and i will need to see specialists. but if you know anything about me, i am strong and i will fight this." celtic are 1a points clear at the top of the scottish premiership after beating bottom side partick thistle 1—0.

scott sinclair scored the only goal of the game, the champions are now unbeaten in 21 domestic matches and they have a game in hand on second placed rangers. league one side, peterborough united, will face premier league leaders chelsea in the fa cup third round, after beating notts county 2—0. peterborough struck with less than two minutes gone, gwion edwards the scorer. and just five minutes later, paul taylor made his first fa cup goal a memorable one, helping to earn his side a trip to stamford bridge. newcastle united midfielder, jonjo shelvey, has been banned for five games and fined £100,000 after being found guilty of using racially abusive language. shelvey was charged following an incident with wolves midfielder romain saiss in september. he has also been ordered to attend an fa education course. michael vaughan says he expects alastair cook to resign as england captain following their 4—0 series defeat by india. cook says he'll take time to make a decision on his future after four years in the job, but vaughan,

a former captain himself, believes cook will give up the role. he isa he is a stubborn chap and is mentally very, very tough. he has probably been through similar spells a few times. but looking at his body language, it looks like he wants to call it a day. lewis hamilton's new team—mate looks likely to be valterri bottas, after his current team williams persuaded felipe massa to stay on for another season. that leaves bottas clear to join hamilton at mercedes, following the retirement of world champion nico rosberg. a deal is expected to be done in the new year. the five—time champion, raymond van barneveld, is into the second round of the pdc world darts championship. at alexandra palace, he beat england's robbi green, averaging nearly 100 in the process. and we finish with some gnarly

pictures. that is right, gnarly pictures. that is right, gnarly pictures. big wave challenge in nazare in portugal. have a look at those bad boys. laughing. . that is an incredible height. normally they do just to look at the waves but now they are competing. normally they do just to look at the waves but now they are competinglj can give you my best surfing lingo. he used a trademark railgrab off the bottome and ejected at the end of the ride ahead of a doubleup and avoided a two—wave hold down. at the end of it he said today was the next level. it was survival... it was... "heavy." "heavy." probably that

means good. we will look at the weather this morning from a rather amazing and unique vantage point. good morning. good morning from stonehenge. look at this view. isn't it amazing? we are lucky to be here this morning. we are here before eve ryo ne this morning. we are here before everyone else gets in. the public arrive at 745. they are expecting between three and 5000 people to come for the winter solstice which ta kes pla ce come for the winter solstice which takes place today at 1044 gmt. the public will get in before sunrise at 809. everyone is getting here at 745. it is an amazing place. it feels quite spooky, actually, especially in the dark. it was bought at auction in 1915 by a man

cold cecil who purchased it for 6600. he was only coming to buy some shares, interestingly enough. three yea rs later shares, interestingly enough. three years later he gave it to the nation asa years later he gave it to the nation as a gift. we will notice a gift in the next few days. rain is clearing today. then we are looking at some showers. strong and blustery winds with showers of hegel and sleet in scotla nd with showers of hegel and sleet in scotland and also thunder and lightning. that has become a nation we have. snow in the hills in scotla nd we have. snow in the hills in scotland and northern ireland to be rain in southern counties. another band will come south in northern england and wales. it will continue south. in between all of that there will be some sunshine. not all of us will be some sunshine. not all of us will get wet today, at least not in daylight hours. in the afternoon in scotla nd daylight hours. in the afternoon in scotland we will hang on to the showers. hale, sleet and snow in the hills. southern and eastern scotland

seeing something drier. northern england and the wash in east anglia and kent, something drier and brighter. it will get dark at four o'clock. in the midlands and the south—west of england and south wales, back into the rain. breezy around that. north wales, drier and brighter conditions. the rain passes through. northern ireland, like scotland, continuing with showers on and off through the day, some of them heavy with hail and thunder and possibly dumb snow on the hills. if you are stuck in that, nation it will feel cold. through the evening and overnight, the rain will be heavy. eventually it will all clear. behind that, clear skies in england and wales. cold enough for a touch of frost. showers continue in northern ireland and scotland. we are not looking at frost. it is too windy. but there may be ice on some surfaces. tomorrow is quieter in

terms of weather, especially for england and wales. one or two showers around. for most, dry with sunny spells. scotland and northern ireland, we continue with the showers. still windy, especially with exposure. snow in the hills and also a combination of rain and possibly hail as well. as we are into friday, the met office has issued this amber warning. it is one down from the top which is a red colour. storm barbara, the second one of this season. we are looking at rain heading south. the wind will be the main feature. what we are looking at is severe gales for some northern parts of the country and locally storm force winds for a time. wherever you are it will be windy but for the southern part of the country it will not be as windy but it will be windy. the rain will push through quickly as a result. it

does not settle down for the christmas weekend either. back to you. thank you. we are looking forward to a cracking view of the stonehenge. it's nearly six months since the vote to leave the eu, and today business leaders have been saying what they think the priorities should be for brexit. sean's here to explain. they want the government to look at the whole economy. it sounds simple but it is not quite that straightforward. one of the concerns for businesses is what kind of trade deal that will be negotiating and that some sectors will be getting a better deal. they have come up with some tips for the government. we talked to the president now of the cbi, paul drechsler. barry free and

no tariffs. what does that mean? good morning. let me start by saying this is as a result of speaking to thousands of firms and 50 trade associations right across the country looking at 18 different sectors. all people we spoke tour committed in making a success of brexit and that means continued economic growth and continued success for the uk. in order to do that and across all sectors, we recognise they are interconnect that an interdependent. a great example isa an interdependent. a great example is a supermarket which has such a wide range of products from manufacturing to agricultural inside it. we are talking about many different relations. what we see in common, no matter what sector, is

that we continue to maintain an excellent relation with the trading partner, the eu. we haven't heard from neeson who have said they have committed to the future in the uk. would you class that is one sacked are being favoured more than another. —— nissan. are being favoured more than another. -- nissan. a successful brexit means that it is successful across all parts of the uk, every sector. we want to see that every can do three things — continued tariff free and non— tariff free access to the european market, that they can have the people and skills they can have the people and skills they need, and to have a set of rules and regulations where there is stability and certainty. i have

every confidence that will be achieved across all sacked as... around the christmas period we are talking about zero hours contracts, strikes about pay, do you think british business could have done with a bit more in the past ten years? too many people, in the uk and across the world, have been left behind and we have to correct that and the best weight to do that is through productivity improvement, economic growth and business success. that is a cause which government and business share together. if you find yourself in a bit of debt, we will be talking later about what you can do about it. the days in the run-up to christmas. the days in the run—up to christmas are the busiest of the year for our police forces,

and throughout the week we're looking at the work that goes on, both behind the scenes and on the front line. so how do officers prepare for and cope with the pressures on the beat? we've sent steph to a police training centre in durham to find out. lam in lamina i am in a marked up person of a pub. —— mocked up. this is where they trained police for some of the things that they may face. grant is one of the sergeants. you essentially run this place. tell us about the training? we do public audit, self—defence, method of entry, tasered training. there are so entry, tasered training. there are so many elements. you have one that you can demonstrate. these are officers approaching this building under threat from missiles. they try

to enter the building in a safe manner as possible and deal with the threat inside. they are in the building. what happens next? they secure the doors, stairways and deal with any threat. they will deal with the person in a room down. they have a baseball bat. how often do things like this happen? not very often but they need to be trained just in case it happens. this person is kicking off. what do the officers have to do now? they try to communicate, trying to get the person to become compliant. the best scenario is for the person to give themselves up. not using any physical force. communication skills, decision

skills, being calm in stressful situations. it is stressful. this is a new pc, four weeks in the job. how is it going? absolutely amazing. brain overload. fantastic, more than i could imagine. we have been doing quite a lot of practical is. we have won this afternoon. it is fantastic. do you not get scared?” won this afternoon. it is fantastic. do you not get scared? i never said that i was not but your adrenaline gets going. did you always know you wanted to be a police officer? always. i joined wanted to be a police officer? always. ijoined in march last year and started going on the beat in august and i knew this is what i wa nted august and i knew this is what i wanted to do. what are the key skills? you have to be hard as nails. you have to have

co—ordination. you need to know what you are doing and have it down to a tee. unique to get on with it. is there anything you are worried about? at the minute i not sure because i have not had that much experience. i worry about getting attacked but you have things to back you up. do your family worry about your? they do but it is part and parcel. good luck with that. you can see you clearly love it. we will be here throughout the morning showing you all the different elements. this isa you all the different elements. this is a big warehouse with a different situations they have to deal with. there is a custody suite, all different elements. you saw me in a park. they have a mocked up prison, it is all going on this morning. the

guys it is all going on this morning. the guys are it is all going on this morning. the guys are finished their training over there. they have gone camera shy! more from me later on. fascinating to watch that. steph‘s going to be back in durham tomorrow for our policing britain series. she'll be at the police force's headquarters finding out about a rise in violent crime committed by over—65s. lots more from their today. still to come for you this morning... his name is the doctor. for 80 years the bbc has been broadcasting tv on christmas day. we will discuss what we should be looking forward to this year. i still remember getting the magazine and circling what i wanted to watch. shall we get some news and

weather from where you are watching? see you in a minute. good morning from bbc london news. plans to block vehicles from large sections of the mall have been brought forward after the berlin lorry attack. from this morning, barriers will block a mile long section of road outside buckingham palace between 10:45 and 12:30. it will happen only on the days the changing the guard takes place. the met police say the measures are not in relation to any specific threat. london's mayor sadiq khan says he is taking the first steps to introduce a minimum wage of £23,000 a year for london's bus drivers. at the moment, drivers can receive varying salaries, depending on the bus company they work for. the issue has led to a number of strikes. the changes will be introduced next april. london councils are not doing enough to help house war veterans, according to new research from kent university.

it looked at the provision by all 32 of london's boroughs, plus the city of london — for homeless ex—servicemen and women. it found that all councils could improve. plans to pedestrianise much of oxford street face fierce opposition by groups concerned that traffic will simply be re—routed through their areas. people living in nearby marylebone and fitzrovia are concerned their lives will be blighted by increases in congestion and pollution. city hall announced in the summer that all vehicles will be banned on the stretch from tottenham court road to bond street tube station by 2020. let's have a look at the travel situation now. on the tube — there's a good service across al lines. on the trains — the heathrow express is not calling at heathrow terminal 4 — due to equipment failure

on the roads — the a13 is slow westbound heading out of goors—brook into barking on the m25, one lane remains closed anticlockwise between j9 for leatherhead and j8 following a lorry fire a rather grey and damp start to the day. things should start to cheer up as we had through the middle part of the day. these outbreaks of rain fairly light and drizzly pushing through to the east and gradually clearing. we shall see some decent spells of sunshine ahead about next band of cloud and rain. the maximum temperature today between eight and 10 celsius. the rain could cause some disruption during the rush hour but will clear away. behind it, the temperatures will drop as the sun clears. we could see a bit of mist and fog. for tomorrow,

clears. we could see a bit of mist and fog. fortomorrow, it clears. we could see a bit of mist and fog. for tomorrow, it is a better day with more in the way of sunshine. dry and quite pleasant. by friday, stormy weather towards the north of the uk. we will get some outbreaks of rain and it will fill breezy but by saturday that should clear away. christmas day, looking cloudy, mild and we are expecting some rain. by by bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. the search for a killer. german police warn the public to be on heightened alert as they try to find the driver behind the berlin lorry attack. one man arrested has been released without charge. the so—called islamic state says one its supporters was responsible. the family of an italian woman whose mobile phone was found at the scene say they fear that she is among the victims. vigils have been taking place to

remember the 12 people who died when the truck crashed through the market on monday night. this is the scene this morning for you. we will be live in berlin with the very latest. a very good morning. it's wednesday the 21st of december. also this morning: a huge explosion at a fireworks market in mexico city has killed at least 29 people and injured many more. figures seen by bbc breakfast show a huge rise in the number of historical abuse allegations being tackled by police in england and wales. good morning. i am at a training centre in durham as part of our series this week on policing britain. i will be looking at how officers

prepare for public disorder and crime they will face in theirjobs. the number of people asking for help with their debts before christmas is at its highest level for at least four years. i'll be finding out what you should do if you're worried about overspending. in sport, two—time wimbledon champion, petra kvitova, says she's lucky to be alive, after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she won't play tennis for at least three months. and on the shortest day of the year, carol has hit shorthand. good morning. good morning from stonehenge. it is the window solstice. later on, between three and 5000 people are expected to come into stonehenge. we can hear the drums already in the distance as people prepare to come in later on this morning. rain clearing in the south—east. another band in the north of england. in between those, sunshine. northern ireland and northern scotland, showers with

rain, hail, sleetand northern scotland, showers with rain, hail, sleet and thunder. northern scotland, showers with rain, hail, sleetand thunder. i will have more details in 15 minutes. thank you, carol. good morning. first, our main story. a manhunt is under way in germany after police revealed the suspect they arrested following monday's truck attack in berlin has been released without charge. 12 people were killed and nearly 50 were injured after a lorry was driven into crowds at a christmas market. security has been stepped up in the german capital. catriona renton reports. this had been a place filled with festive joy. now, silence and sadness, as people come together to support each other. members of berlin's muslim community sit outside the nearby church asking for peace. translation: we want to clearly distance ourselves from every person that attacks our society. germany's our home. we love germany. we want to live here. berlin is our city, and we won't allow our life to be threatened. it is still not known who crashed this lorry or where they are.

this was the immediate aftermath. 12 people were killed, dozens more injured, when the christmas market was attacked on monday evening. fabrizia di lorenzo's family in italy fear she may be one of those who died. the lorry itself is key to the investigation. it appears it was hijacked. it's owned by a polish man. he says his cousin, lukash urban, should have been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. police had arrested a man from pakistan who came to germany to seek asylum earlier this year. he was released without charge. the so—called islamic state group claimed the attack, but the person or people behind it are still at large. more eyewitnesses have come forward describing what they saw. at first, to some, it seemed like an accident. the impression that we all had in general was that the truck lost control, yeah, and just crashed

by accident into the christmas market, but the speed that this truck needed to have to crash such a big part of the market wasjust too much. last night, berlin's brandenburg gate was lit up in the colours of the german flag. the mayor of the city has urged them to be vigilant but not lock themselves into homes while the search for whoever did this continues. catriona renton, bbc news. let's join our correspondent, robert hall, who is at the markets in berlin. so many questions still to be answered. good morning. good morning. yes, this market will remain closed for a second day. it is patrolled. you see armed can

police behind me. there is work to be done. as catriona renton was indicating in that report, this investigation is widening across germany. police thought they had a suspect but they have been forced to release him as they found they had no evidence to link him. what are the key points they can look it? what happened immediately after the lorry struck the market? where did the driver of that vehicle go? they thought they had traced a route through tiergarten park. and what happened to the lorry? where was it hijacked? where was the original polish driver murdered? the lorry instruments seemed to show efforts to learn how to dry it before it was driven here. there are more than 500 leads to be followed up. authorities are making it clear they will not

rest until the person or group are brought tojustice. rest until the person or group are brought to justice. thank you. robert in berlin. security has been tightened here in the uk in response to the attack in berlin. our reporter, leanne brown, is at buckingham palace. leanne, what extra measures are being put in place? good morning. good morning. yes, the roads surrounding buckingham palace will be closed during the changing of the guard is. and as you can see, extra barriers have been brought in. they will be placed around this iconic location. police say they are doing it because when the guard is changed, it is a high—profile event which attracts large crowds of people. but this security measure was already in the pipeline. they have just brought it forward in light of the events in berlin. of course, it is notjust here, at buckingham palace, where large crowds congregate, but also at the

winter wonderland event and new year's fireworks along the thames. scotla nd year's fireworks along the thames. scotland yard say they have a detailed plan in place to protect the public over the festive season, but they are reminding people to be vigilant. thank you for that this morning. we'll be asking one of the government's security advisers about the response to this attack, just after 7am this morning. figures seen by bbc breakfast show the number of people coming forward to say that they were the victims of historical child abuse has more than doubled in the past year. louise can explain all the details. these figures have been given to bbc breakfast by operation hydrant, that's the name for the group of officers co—ordinating and cross—checking allegations. they show that the number of victims has risen sharply, to more than 3,500 today. there are around 3,500 suspects. one in ten of them are described as "people of public prominence." the officer in overall charge told us about the nature of their work. we are dealing with some of the most

complex investigations you can imagine and and incredibly sensitive matters, sometimes in incredibly high—profile cases. and, of course, all those factors create a huge challenge for the service. well, police also told us about the investigation into historical abuse in football. in the month since andy woodward spoke about being abused, 429 victims have been identified, and 155 potential suspects. a police clinical psychologist told us why it can take so long for people to come forward. the home office says it's determined to bring perpetrators of historical crimes to justice. in the next half hour, we'll be hearing more from survivors and the police about uncovering the truth in cases like these as part of our policing britain series. some other news this morning.

at least 29 people have been killed in an explosion at a fireworks market in mexico. emergency services said dozens of others were injured, and they expect the death toll to rise. it's the third major explosion at the site since 2005. will grant reports. the moment the san pablito fireworks market was engulfed in flames. within minutes, the entire site destroyed in a blaze of smoke, noise, and deadly explosions. once the smoke cleared, the scale of the damage became clear. most big celebrations in mexico involve fireworks, so in the run—up to christmas, it was full of shoppers. once nearby residents got over the initial shock of the blast, they did what they could to assist the emergency services. for the time being, the authorities say they are still investigating the cause of the tragedy,

but whatever is behind it, this isn't the first explosion at san pablito. in 2005, just before mexican independence day, the market caught alight, injuring more than 120 people. at the time, the mexican government vowed to impose strict regulations on the fireworks industry, but many mexicans are angry that the rules are often never applied or enforced, and that mexico state's market traders and shoppers lost their lives through a potentially avoidable accident. will grant, bbc news. the abortion provider, marie stopes international, has been strongly criticised in inspection reports published by the regulator, the care quality commission. it voluntarily suspended the termination of pregnancies for under—18s and vulnerable women for seven weeks earlier this year, following unannounced inspections at 12 sites in england. the company says it has made considerable changes since the inspections.

people who buy drones could have to register it and take a test to prove they can fly it safely, under new rules proposed by the government. 59 near misses involving drones and airliners have been reported in the uk over the past 12 months. the department of transport hopes the scheme could help authorities identify the owners of devices which are flown illegally. you are right up—to—date with the latest news. now more on the main story this morning. police across germany have urged the public to be on heightened alert as they search for the driver of the lorry that ploughed into crowds at a christmas market in berlin on monday, killing 12 people. last night, police released the only suspect detained after the attack, saying there was insufficient evidence. so, what do we know so far? let us run you through some main points. the lorry drove into a crowded christmas market packed with tourists and locals, killing 12 people and injuring 49. the suspected driver fled

into the darkness of the tiergarten park. he was pursued by a witness, who called the police. soon after that a 23—year old pakistani man was arrested near the park's victory column monument. but police do not think he was involved. a polish man was found dead in the lorry‘s passenger seat. he was the registered driver, but police believe he was the victim of a hijack. joining us from our london newsroom is professor michael clarke, a government security advisor. good morning. thank you forjoining us good morning. thank you forjoining us this morning. so many questions to ask. top of the list is we prepared for attacks of this kind? security services take this seriously. a lot has been done already. we are ahead of our continental friends in thinking about this in terms of how buildings are instructed and arrangements are created outside buildings. as we saw today, some plans to prevent heavy

vehicles during the changing of the guard. they have been advanced. the most important thing is always intelligence. in that respect, the intelligence. in that respect, the intelligence services have been successful. they are ahead of the game. that does not mean it cannot happen. it can. the chances are, with the law of averages, it will, in the future. but we are in a good place with doing everything we can do to maintain a free society. we know that, or they did know, the german security services, that christmas markets could be a target. did they put in enough effort? on the face of it it does not seem so. the director of the bmd, the german security service, warned only two or three weeks ago that christmas markets would be a likely target and it was necessary to be vigilant. it isn't like they did not think this through. the area where this place

is not difficult to block off to traffic during the market. it is surprising to me that could get a lorry that close, a big five ton lorry. it looks on the face of it like the german police and security services were somewhat slow about thinking about the likely preventative measures to take. police in london and in spain and france and the netherlands are all now reviewing their procedures, and so now reviewing their procedures, and so they should. ok. and at this point, they still have the driver on the loose, as it were. so it seems. it is often the case in these sorts of circumstances that what seems a fairly clear—cut event, when it happens, some people dead and someone happens, some people dead and someone driving and escaping, very often the story begins to unravel in the hours afterwards, because these events a re the hours afterwards, because these events are so confusing. so it does appear that the perpetrator, maybe more than one person, is out there.

given that they know there will be a manhunt after them like in early attacks this year, there will be a tendency for them to try to go down fighting. they will try to hide. given that they know they are likely to be caught, chances are they will try to create some other event. that is what is worrying the german police. absolutely. what strategy will they employ? intelligence is key to this, presumably. they are not as it extensive as ours, they still have the background of the old east german security service. they are not as trusted as ours. they need to work on the intelligence and find out as much as they can about who might have perpetrated this crime. the german police at the same time will try to narrow down the areas of search and chances are that will come across

other likely suspects and other jihadist who might be fleshed out. it is politically very important for germany because this isn't doing angela merkel, the german chancellor, great harm. that will be the main story throughout that day. other things in the papers, including this device you consent a kiss to somebody. you smooch down this device, it has a mouth piece. and you can send them a kiss and they can feel it. you do not like that idea? no. well, in that case we will send carole a normal keys. thank you, kisses are always welcome any time.

iamat i am at the stonehenge, look at the view behind me. a few thousand people will be arriving here. we have already been hearing the drums. the stonehenge points to the winter solstice sunset and it is thought to have had significance more so than the summer solstice. sunrise is at around 80 nine a.m.. tourists have a ready been gathering. the rat allegedly some witches as well so lots of different people from different walks of life. the weather has been kind, it has been wet at it will continue to clear. we will hang on to the squally showers. a mixture

of rain and hail around scotland. sleet in the north and west of scotland. the band of rain pushes away in the south, the second band across northern england and wales continues to move southward. some sunshine. into the afternoon, we hang on to the squally showers. we will see fewer of them. across northern england, heading down towards the wash, east anglia and kent, at four o'clock, dry conditions. for the midlands, kent, at four o'clock, dry conditions. forthe midlands, into the south—west, and south wales, it is going to be a pretty wet afternoon as the rain peps up. brightening up in other areas. we hang on to this squally, rain, sleet

and snow on the hills. it will feel cold wherever you are today. overnight, we lose a rain from southern counties. we are looking at some frost. for scotland and northern ireland, we hang on to the squally showers. no risk of frost because to wind the but there is the risk of ice. tomorrow, acquired the date weatherwise. the england and wales, one or two showers. most are drier with sunshine for scotland and northern ireland, we hang on to the squally showers and feeling cold wherever you are. temperatures are little bit higher in the south. on friday, and amber warning has been issued from the met office. it is for wind. the second named storm,

storm barbara, is likely to bring severe gales across parts of scotla nd severe gales across parts of scotland and northern ireland along with some rain. that rain will rattle through quickly. the england and wales, it is also going to be a windy day but not quite as windy as in the north but still, if you are travelling, stay in touch with the weather forecast. lots of people starting to arrive, he can probably see them in the background. starting to arrive, he can probably see them in the backgroundm starting to arrive, he can probably see them in the background. it looks amazing. it looks like to be getting better all the time. 21 minutes past seven. there are a number of ongoing investigations and inquiries into historical child abuse allegations across the uk, and thousands of people have spoken to police about their experience. as part of our policing britain series, we've been given new figures that show, in the past year, the number of people coming forward as victims in england and wales

has more than doubled. it's just one of the big challenges that forces in britain are facing today. steph is at a training centre in durham to find out about the specialist work involved. it looks like a worrying corridor! yes, good morning. i in the mockup ofa yes, good morning. i in the mockup of a prison. this is where officers from all over the country are training on how to deal with any disorder they may face in their jobs. am going to be showing you around here later on. as you mention, one of the big challenges police are facing is dealing with abuse cases are that happened decades ago. john maguire has been looking into an investigation that has been happening here in durham. it was supposed to provide the famous short sharp shock but for many of the boys sent just for minor offences

to the medomsley detention centre in county durham the three—month sentence has in effect lasted for decades. it is not the sort of thing you talk about. it is not the sort of thing i would discuss with anybody. i mean, i've got a daughter, i want to love her, i want to cuddle her, i want to kiss her, i want to tell her how much i love her and i couldn't. and i just couldn't that is what it did to me. that is how much it ruined my life. it is not so much what actually happened here, it is the after—effects, it's how it effects your life, that is the biggest thing. neville husband was one of the staff who prayed on peter. he was convicted for his crimes and has since died but durham police realised it was a much bigger case and have since been contacted by almost 1400 people claiming to have been victimised. detectives have spoken to further suspects. the size and scale of this investigation is huge — the biggest of its kind. the volume is the big thing. straight away, we're dealing with 1400 people. that in itself is pretty

straightforward getting the account off somebody — it is trying to corroborate that account. and then it's the difficulty of supporting them people. one of the challenges that we have is the length of time the investigation is taking place. we have been doing this for at least 2.5 years and invariably investigations now we are dealing with the next year, the offenders are caught very shortly, but when you're looking at offences that happened 30 years ago, the expectations of them victims — i want some justice, i want it soon — but in reality it is 2.5 years later and we still have not come to a conclusion. there has been a huge increase in historical abuse cases. bbc breakfast can reveal the number of victims who have come forward has double in the past year. from around 1500 to 3500. also, the number of offenders or suspects has gone from almost 2300 to near 3500. chief comfortable simon bailey of norfolk police takes the lead on these cases and believes they must be pursued. we are looking at about 60% of those

alleged offenders still potentially pose a safeguarding risk. age knows no barrier here and age is not a barrier here. so i can give you examples of cases of abuse that have been perpetrated by men in their 70s, 80s and 90s. we absolutely have to investigate these matters. not only to be able to demonstrate we are responding to those victims now but also ensuring moving forward that those alleged offenders are not in the position to carry on abusing and are not abusing as of today. across the uk, the historical abuse enquiries are costing tens of millions of pounds but for the police and especially for the victims, the cases are not just about the past but also about the future. john maguire, bbc news, county durham you chose to speak out about the

abuse you suffered as a child decades ago, which must have been really ha rd. why decades ago, which must have been really hard. why did you decide to do that? other people had come and spoken out before me about my school. when i saw that i was not the only one and that potentially by allegations would be taken seriously, that is when i decided to step forward and reported in 2008. are you glad you did? yes, it has lifted a wait. i held that secret for over 30 years and throughout that 30 years, i tried for most of my life to destroy myself. i really felt i was complicit in my abuse, that i had wanted this and had been involved in it. it has taken 30

yea rs involved in it. it has taken 30 years to realise i was a little boy and was not responsible for these. you think it is important that people speak out about these were smacked i think if people are able to speak out, it is essential. police and out listening to allegations. they are taking the cases of forward and investigating thoroughly. if you have the ability to speak out, now is the time to step forward and shine a light into these dark places. what can we do to better support victims? we need services up and down the country, support services that are generic so that people can access them when they choose, freely. unfortunately it is pop like at the moment. we will be talking more about this

throughout the programme. thank you very much. let's get some news, travel and weather wherever you this morning. good morning from bbc london news. i'm alpa patel. plans to block vehicles from large sections of the mall have been brought forward after the berlin lorry attack. from this morning, barriers will block a mile long section of road outside buckingham palace between 10:45 and 12:30. it will happen only on the days the changing the guard takes place. the met police say the measures are not in relation to any specific threat. a book of condolence will be open today and again on to later dates. london's mayor sadiq khan says he is taking the first steps

to introduce a minimum wage of £23,000 a year for london's bus drivers. at the moment, drivers can receive varying salaries, depending on the bus company they work for. the issue has led to a number of strikes. the changes will be introduced next april. london councils are not doing enough to help house war veterans, according to new research from kent university. it looked at the provision by all 32 of london's boroughs, plus the city of london — for homeless ex—servicemen and women. it found that all councils could improve. plans to pedestrianise much of oxford street face fierce opposition by groups concerned that traffic will simply be re—routed through their areas. people living in nearby marylebone and fitzrovia are concerned their lives will be blighted by increases in congestion and pollution. city hall announced in the summer that all vehicles will be banned on the stretch from tottenham court road to bond street tube station by 2020. let's have a look at the travel situation now. on the tube — there's a good service across al lines. on the roads and there

are southbound delays on the heathrow spur, following a collision approaching the heathrow tunnel queues are back to j4 m4 a rather grey and damp start. things should start to cheer up as we had through the middle part of the day. fairly light and drizzly in nature. they will push to the east and clearing. we shall see decent spells of sunshine through the day ahead of the next band of cloud and rain. the maximum temperature today between eight and 10 celsius. some of the rain could cause disruption during the rush hour but it will clear away overnight. behind it, it is colder. skies clearing, we may see some mist and fog. for tomorrow, a better day and more

in the way of sunshine dry and pleasant. by friday, stormy weather towards the north of the uk. we will get some outbreaks of rain and it will feel breezy but why saturday it will clear. for christmas day, looking cloudy, mild and we are expecting some rain. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. now though it's back to louise and dan. bye for now. hello. this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. german police are searching for the driver of a lorry that ploughed into crowds at a christmas market in berlin on monday, killing 12 people. they believe one or more perpetrators are on the run, and may be armed, and have urged people to be vigilant. the sole suspect, a pakistani asylum seeker, was released without charge last night. earlier, we spoke to

professor michael clarke, a government security advisor, who said he thinks the german intelligence were slow to act to warnings. the director of the bmd, the german security service, warned only two or three weeks ago that christmas markets would be a likely target and it was necessary to be vigilant. it isn't like they didn't think this through. the area around the attack is not difficult to block off. it is surprising to me anyone to get a lorry, a big five ton lorry, was able to get that close. it seems to me the german security forces were quite slow. we will take a look at the scene where this happened. on the right you can see some of the devastation this truck caused as it drove through this market. it would have been packed at 815 at night when it happened. that is where the truck ten out of the market and came to a halt on the left. —— came out. we

will talk about security in germany and back here as well later on in the programme for you. figures seen by bbc breakfast show the number of people coming forward to say that they were victims of historical child abuse has more than doubled in the past year. operation hydrant, which coordinates investigations into historical allegations, said more than 3,500 people in england and wales had reported abuse. of the potential suspects identified, one in ten were said to be "people of public prominence." at least 29 people have been killed after an explosion at a fireworks market in mexico. around 70 others were injured and many buildings destroyed in the blast, which happened on the outskirts of the city. it's the third explosion at the market since 2005. the abortion provider, marie stopes international, has been strongly criticised in inspection reports published by the regulator, the care quality commission. it voluntarily suspended

the termination of pregnancies for under—18s and vulnerable women for seven weeks earlier this year, following unannounced inspections at 12 sites in england. the company says it has made considerable changes since the inspections. eating too much processed meats like ham and sausage might make asthma symptoms worse, according to researchers. the study by researchers in france says preservatives in meat could irritate the airways if people have more than four portions a week. but experts say the link hasn't been proven, and people should focus instead on eating a healthy and varied diet. coming up on the programme, we'll get the weather with carol. it is the shortest day of the year. the winter solstice. we have some fa cts the winter solstice. we have some facts about that. look forward to those. and now another story. petra kvitova, people will recognise her

from her success at wimbledon. she was having breakfast in the morning and somebody came to the door and she was subjected to an awful knife attack in her own home. she plays left—handed and all those fingers we re left—handed and all those fingers were badly hurt. she is undergoing an operation. doctors are confident she will be ok. but time will tell. the two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitova says she's "fortunate to be alive" after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she spent almost four hours yesterday having surgery on her left hand, which is her racquet hand, and she won't be able to play for at least three months. it's thought it was a random burglary and kvitova wasn't specifically targeted. in a statement, kvitova said this. "in my attempt to defend myself i was badly injured on my left hand. i am shaken, but fortunate to be alive. the injury is severe and i will need to see specialists. but if you know anything about me, i am strong and i will fight this." celtic are 14 points clear at the top of the scottish premiership

after beating bottom side partick thistle 1—0. scott sinclair scored the only goal of the game, the champions are now unbeaten in 21 domestic matches and they have a game in hand on second placed rangers. league one side, peterborough united, will face premier league leaders chelsea in the fa cup third round, after beating notts county 2—0. peterborough struck with less than two minutes gone, gwion edwards the scorer. and just five minutes later, paul taylor made his first fa cup goal a memorable one, helping to earn his side a trip to stamford bridge. michael vaughan says he expects alastair cook to resign as england captain following their 4—0 series defeat by india. cook says he'll take time to make a decision on his future after four years in the job, but vaughan, a former captain himself, believes cook will give up the role. he is a stubborn chap and is mentally very, very tough. he has probably been through similar spells a few times. but looking at his body language, it looks like he wants to call it a day. lewis hamilton's new team—mate looks

likely to be valterri bottas, after his current team williams persuaded felipe massa to stay on for another season. that leaves bottas clear to join hamilton at mercedes, following the retirement of world champion nico rosberg. a deal is expected to be done in the new year. and we finish with some gnarly pictures. that is right, gnarly pictures. the big wave challenge in nazare in portugal. have a look at those bad boys. it was won byjamie it was won by jamie mitchell from australia. i can give you my best surfing lingo. he used a trademark railgrab off the bottom and ejected at the end of the ride ahead of a doubleup to avoid a two—wave hold down. do you know what a hold down is? he

would need between two waves, incredibly scary. we makejokes, but if that happened that would be scary. we all know what we are talking about. have you ever lost luggage? fortunately, no. i did for three weeks. i lost some in poland a few years ago. heathrow, 200 bags per month go to this auction because no one ever claims them. they are sold off at the auction. you are not allowed to look inside. you bid for it based on the case. you could end up it based on the case. you could end up with... do you go on size? you could have used bikinis. you could have diamond rings. you just bid on the suitcase. 200 a month! you would wa nt to the suitcase. 200 a month! you would want to know if they were going on

holiday or going back. want to know if they were going on holiday or going backlj want to know if they were going on holiday or going back. i had a light sabre and a pair of pants that i lost in poland. if anyone has that i would like that back, actually. you can keep the pants. lovely. 730. the number of people asking for help with their death before christmas is the highest it has been in four yea rs. the highest it has been in four years. that is according to a leading helpline. the number of people calling the national debtline is at its highest for four years, with an average of 715 calls happening a day. and according to the money advice trust an estimated 2.3 million people have already missed, or expect to miss, a payment on everyday household bills in order to fund christmas spending. we asked a few shoppers in salford how they managed their festive finances. it is hopeless, but we are trying to

tone down on the gifts. it feels indulgent. then come january it feels frugal. i don't like the contrast. most is done on the credit card. at the same time, that account is checked and we never are on a deficit on that. so we are pretty well organised on that respect. oh, i will be fine. that is one way of doing it. let us speak to the money advice trust. that person was having a joke about using student finances. do you find people this time of year are using loa ns to people this time of year are using loans to pay off other loans? people are drawing a lot of credit. recently, one third of british adults use credit to find their christmas festivities and presence

and activities. while that is natural for most of us, we all use our credit card, our concern is about those overstretching themselves. you say all of us use credit cards. look at deals on offer, 3.5 years interest free credit effectively with your credit card. you don't have to pay any interest in that amount of time. is that a good thing for people?m interest in that amount of time. is that a good thing for people? it can bea that a good thing for people? it can be a good thing if you are good at managing finances and keeping on top of them. the risk is whether or not you are able to keep up with that and keep an edging the balance on your credit cards at various different stages. -- maintaining the balance. it seems like it goes up and down a bit. we are at similar levels we saw a few years ago. does this you feel any different? this year has been a particularly busy year has been a particularly busy yearfor year has been a particularly busy year for us. year has been a particularly busy yearfor us. it has year has been a particularly busy year for us. it has taken us by surprise, it is that is it. people are tackling finances early, we would love to say, but we are seeing inflation creeping up and months of

advance in consumer credit. we are concerned some of those factors are filtering through to finances. the particular worry will be january because that is when all the ills arrived at the again, we encourage all people to think about that stage now. “— all people to think about that stage now. —— bills arive. we tell people to think now about what their budget is and ask themselves if they will be able to manage those. we have talked about payday loans. what kind of debt are people having? is it credit card or mortgage debt? we have seen an increase in people calling us about household bills. energy bills, water bills, everyday living costs. that is a concern for us living costs. that is a concern for us because we know that is what people need to get by in everyday lives. thank you. a few tips. take it easy over christmas. that is the main thing. don't go spending everything on suitcase auctions or anything like that. bring it down a

bit. thank you. ajourney anything like that. bring it down a bit. thank you. a journey through space. jennifer lawrence and chris pratt star as to passengers who wake up pratt star as to passengers who wake up from pratt star as to passengers who wake upfrom a pratt star as to passengers who wake up from a cryogenic sleep in passengers. we have spoken to them about the film and christmas plans. it is lovely to see you. we are doing well. are you excited? yes. overwhelmed. we have to start on presence. it is not fun when you are not a child. when you are an adult it is like, oh man. that has brought the mood down. i love being with my familyi the mood down. i love being with my family ijust the mood down. i love being with my family i just wish the mood down. i love being with my family ijust wish i did not have to give anybody presents. what is that sound? joy? blegh. just kidding.

give anybody presents. what is that sound? joy? blegh. just kiddingm isa sound? joy? blegh. just kiddingm is a big movie. like space movies often are. hello, is anyone here? we woke up 90 years too soon. there is a reason we woke up woke up 90 years too soon. there is a reason we woke up early. the setting is huge. it is an epic. it isa human setting is huge. it is an epic. it is a human and intimate story and an interesting story that poses a question which i always liked from movies. i feel everyone will have a different opinion. what is the question? i cannot say that or it will give something away. it is one of those movies that may be best to not know too much going into it. we are allowed to say that this is about people being frozen and taken toa about people being frozen and taken to a different place. essentially,

yeah. were put into a state of suspended animation. the movie takes place with 5000 passengers travelling to a new planet to start a new life. and, umm, our hibernation pods mysteriously malfunction, waking us up 90 years earlier than the ending of our journey. we are still fascinated with space. the final frontier. i think that is because people are natural explorers and pioneers. we used to get on to ships and go off for yea rs used to get on to ships and go off for years and most of us would die just trying to explore what was out there. and now i think we feel like earth earth has been explored and we arejust doing what earth earth has been explored and we are just doing what comes so naturally to us. we want to keep expanding and see what else is out there. in the film, your character, chris pratt, is a mechanic. that is his dayjob. it is quite handy. we will be careful about what we say

about that. argue generally a person who can fix things? you know, i would say yes, but i can picture my wife rolling her eyes. i am the kind of guy who was like honey, i got that. but i lack the ability to follow through. i have a list of things around the house i should just pay someone to do but i am too proud to do that. but i built a car. you built a car? wow! that means you are extremely handy! it broke. it is not quite as good as a car that may bea not quite as good as a car that may be a professional had built but it ran fora be a professional had built but it ran for a while. that is impressive. your character is a writer and that is why she went in the first place. she wanted to be the first person to go there and live there for a year and go back to earth. seeking inspiration. probably eight pulitzer prize. thank you very much. and it

is out soon. yes, very soon. quite a gaggle by high—end carole at stonehenge! it is noisy now. thousands of people have already arrived for the winter solstice. it is almost upon us, the sunrise. a colourful mix of people. we have duets, we have people thatjust want to get in touch with the earth. stonehenge is a very spiritual place to come. in 1915, it was bought at auction on local businessmen. he went to the auction to buy some shares instead he bought ston hedge that even gave it back to the nation and he was knighted for his trouble. it is nice and dry but it is not dry

everywhere. the rain continuing to clear this morning and continuing with squally showers across northern ireland and this morning, the first band of rain clearing the south—west of england, the second south. in between them dry weather and some sunshine. for northern ireland and scotland, we will have squally showers on and off throughout the day with brighter conditions in the east and south of scotland. this afternoon, squally showers continuing. sleet at lower levels. drier conditions in the south and east. northern england, down the east coast, it east anglia, essex and kent, dry and relatively

bright. from the midlands, to the south—west, south wales, act into the rain and it will be heavy at times. in north wales, it will be drier and brighter. in northern ireland, back into the squally showers. the combination of rain, hailand showers. the combination of rain, hail and possibly thunder. through the evening and overnight, the rain will pep up across the south—east continuing in the southern countries and then clear. —— counties. frost possible. for scotland and northern ireland, continuing with the stronger winds. ice could be an issue. tomorrow, a quieter date weatherwise. sunshine for england and wales. still windy and still the showers persisting across northern ireland and scotland. most of the

stove will be on the hills. wherever you are, it will feel cold. the met office has issued an amber warning for friday. this is the second from the top level, the top being a read. for scotland and northern ireland in particular, the possibilities of severe gales from storm barbara, the second named storm. rain coming in. for england and wales, we will see the rain come through and it will still be windy, not as windy in the north but gusts of up to 60 mph and we are not done with it yet. more windy weather this christmas weekend. thank you, carole, go and enjoy the party behind you. the days in the run—up to christmas are the busiest of the year

for our police forces, and throughout the week we're looking at the work that goes on, both behind the scenes and on the front line. so how do officers prepare for and cope with the pressures on the beat? we've sent steph to a police training centre in durham to find out. good morning. good morning, everybody. i in front of a mockup of a house. ——i am or stop let's go and have a look what is going on in this one. in this room, it is a typical setup but there is an incident happening. grant, who is in charge of the operation can tell us what is going on. we have been deployed to an address to deal with the subject who has been involved in an assault and is in possession of a knife. the officer draws on the taser and hopefully they will get a result. often, it gets result with

communication but in this case it did not. 70% of cases get resolved just by producing the taser. generally the individuals come down. is he all right? he is fine. these officers trained for one day annually, where we test their skills. we then put them under stressful situations. just to show you, he is all right. lots of different training and operations. in another room, what else are you doing here were smacked with ran probationers starts. they train for 13 weeks. they do evidence gathering, and that is just my team. iam going gathering, and that is just my team. i am going to go in and have a look

elsewhere. the row so many different elements to what the police need to do these days. we have another setup. in here training going on for a drug search. again, a typical setup and i believe we have the dog handlers. good morning, lads. oscar is as six or old labrador. —— you rolled. sean is going to ask him to search the room. how do you train the dog for these? we use of their natural hunting instinct. we train them with a tennis ball first. he will search the bed area. sean will ta ke will search the bed area. sean will take it around the room. once he is

happy there is no indication in that area. he is a searching on top of the wardrobe, on the chair. in terms of the training, we have the dog handler, what type of training to do with the police officers? we have various specialist dogs... he is getting close. we train them to detect fire runs, blood, explosives. add body scanning drug dogs... he is getting close now. he has nailed it. laughter his reward is the tennis ball. this is something you are doing a lot? we use of the facility here in the initial stages for

training the dogs. how long have you beenin training the dogs. how long have you been in office are? i have been a handlerfor 16 years been in office are? i have been a handler for 16 years and a trainer for four. does it get scary? sean is the operational handler, he might get scared by training the dogs i do not get scared. i enjoy it. there will be more from me throughout the morning. this is such a big facility with hundreds of officers from around the country coming here to learn about public disorder and crime. absolutely fascinating. just to read the rate, we did not see a live tasting, the fellow was wearing the protective gear. it was a reconstruction. we would not do that to you on bbc breakfast. in other

news? have you got your festive tv schedule worked out yet? his name is the doctor. for 80 years the bbc has been broadcasting tv on christmas day. we will be discussing how it has changed and what we will be looking forward to. not as much comedy. her majesty the queen, of course and other staff. the seven challenges of sinbad, i found course and other staff. the seven challenges of sinbad, ifound it. course and other staff. the seven challenges of sinbad, i found it. we will guide you through it a little bit later. now for the news, travel and weather from wherever you are. good morning from bbc london news. i'm alpa patel. plans to block vehicles from large sections of the mall have been brought forward after the berlin lorry attack. from this morning, barriers will block a mile long section of road outside buckingham palace

between 10:45 and 12:30. it will happen only on the days the changing the guard takes place. the met police say the measures are not in relation to any specific threat. at the german embassy, a book of condolences will open between two and 4pm and again on the 22nd and 23rd of this month for the big terms of the burly and attack. —— victims of the burly and attack. —— victims of the burly and attack. —— victims of the berlin attack. london's mayor sadiq khan says he is taking the first steps to introduce a minimum wage of £23,000 a year for london's bus drivers. at the moment, drivers can receive varying salaries, depending on the bus company they work for. the issue has led to a number of strikes. the changes will be introduced next april. london councils are not doing enough to help house war veterans, according to new research

from kent university. it looked at the provision by all 32 of london's boroughs, plus the city of london — for homeless ex—servicemen and women. it found that all councils could improve. plans to pedestrianise much of oxford street face fierce opposition by groups concerned that traffic will simply be re—routed through their areas. people living in nearby marylebone and fitzrovia are concerned their lives will be blighted by increases in congestion and pollution. city hall announced in the summer that all vehicles will be banned on the stretch from tottenham court road to bond street tube station by 2020. let's have a look at the travel situation now. on the tube — there's a good service across al lines. on the roads and there are delays on the m25, anticlockwise betweenj9 leatherhead and j8 reigate following a lorry a lorry fire. traffic on the a13 is queueing westbound through limehouse towards the rotherhithe tunnel a rather grey and damp start to the day. things should start to cheer up as we had through the middle part of the day. these outbreaks of rain fairly light and drizzly pushing through to the east and gradually clearing. we should see some decent spells

of sunshine ahead about next band of cloud and rain. the maximum temperature today between eight and 10 celsius. the rain could cause some disruption during the rush hour but will clear away. behind it, the temperatures will drop as the sun clears. behind it, the temperatures will drop as the sky clears. we could see a bit of mist and fog. for tomorrow, it is a better day with more in the way of sunshine. dry and quite pleasant. for friday, stormy weather towards the north of the uk. we will get some outbreaks of rain and it will fill breezy but by saturday that should clear away. christmas day, looking cloudy, mild and we are expecting some rain. join me again in half an hour if you

can. bye—bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with louise minchin and dan walker. the search for a killer. german police warn the public to be on heightened alert as they try to find the driver behind the berlin lorry attack. vigils have been held to remember the people who died when the truck smashed through a christmas market on monday night. the family of an italian woman whose mobile phone was found at the scene say they fear that she is among the victims. one man arrested has been released without charge. the so—called islamic state says one its supporters was responsible. we'll be live in berlin with the latest. good morning.

it's wednesday, 21st december. also this morning: a huge explosion at a fireworks market in mexico city has killed at least 29 people and injured many more. good morning. i'm at a training centre in durham as part of our series this week on policing britain. i will be looking at how officers are prepared to deal with the public disorder and crime they will face in theirjobs. good morning. one of the uk's biggest business groups doesn't want the government to favour one sector over another as we leave the eu. i'll have more on that shortly. in sport, two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitova says she's lucky to be alive, after a knife attack at her home in the czech republic. she won't play tennis for at least three months. it's the big christmas blockbuster out today. but jennifer lawrence's passengers co—star chris pratt tells breakfast that, frankly, she's a bit of a grinch.

0h oh what's that sound? joy! jingle bells. children laughing. i love christmas. that's what we want to say. and carol has the weather. i do. good morning from strength. it is winter solstice. there are thousands of people here this morning to celebrate it. the sunrise is at 08.09 and we have got rain clearing from the south east. another band moving across england and wales. in between, there is sunshine, but for scotland and northern ireland, you've got squally showers. some of which are heavy and thunder quid with hail and wintry. i'll have more details in a few minutes. thank you, carol. good morning. first, our main story. a manhunt is underway for the person who drove a lorry into a crowded market in berlin on monday. last night police released the only suspect detained after the attack, saying

there was insufficient evidence. so, what do we know so far? the lorry drove into a crowded christmas market packed with tourists and locals killing 12 people and injuring 49. the suspected driver fled into the darkness of the tiergarten park. he was pursued by a witness who called the police. soon after that a 23—year—old pakistani man was arrested near the park's victory column monument. but police do not think he was involved. a polish man was found dead in the lorry‘s passenger seat. he was the registered driver, but police believe he was the victim of a hijack. police are still hunting the killer and any accomplices. catriona renton has the latest. this had been a place filled with festive joy. now silence and sadness as people come together to support each other. members of berlin's muslim community sit outside the nearby church asking for peace. translation: we want to clearly distance ourselves from every person that attacks our society.

germany is our home. we love germany. we want to live here. berlin is our city, and won't allow our life to be threatened. it is still not known who crashed this lorry or where they are. this is the immediate aftermath. 12 people were killed. dozens more injured when the christmas market was attacked on monday morning. this woman's family in italy fear she may be one of those who died. the lorry itself is key to the investigation. it appears it was hijacked. it is owned by a polish man. he said his cousin should have been at the wheel. he was found shot dead in the passenger seat. police had arrested a man from pakistan who came to germany to seek asylum earlier this year. he was released without charge. the so—called islamic state group claimed the attack,

but the person or people behind it are still at large. the german security service warned only two or three weeks ago that the christmas markets would be a likely target and it was necessary to be vigilant. so it wasn't as if they hadn't thought this through and the area where this attack took place, it is not difficult to block off to traffic during a market. it is surprising to me that anyone could get a lorry that close, a big 25 tonne lorry. it looks as if the german police and security services we re german police and security services were somewhat slow. last night, berlin's brandenburg gate was lit up in the colours of the german flag. the city's mayor has urged residents to be vigilant, but not lock themselves in their homes while the search for whoever did this continues. security has been tightened here in the uk in response to the attack in berlin. our reporter leanne brown

is at buckingham palace. tell us what's going on. well, i don't know if you can see, but barriers have just arrived don't know if you can see, but barriers havejust arrived on don't know if you can see, but barriers have just arrived on a truck behind me and they are being put out around this iconic location. roads surrounding buckingham palace will also be closed from today during the changing of the guard. now, police say they're doing this because when the guard is changed here at buckingham palace, it is a very high—profile event in which huge crowds of people turn up. but, of course, it is notjust here where we see large amounts of people, there is also huge amounts of tourists that go to the winter wonderland at hyde park and the fireworks display along the thames. scotla nd fireworks display along the thames. scotland yard say detailed plans are in place to protect the public, but

that people should remain vigilant and report anything that they think isa and report anything that they think is a cause for concern. thank you. let's join our correspondent robert hall, who is at the market in berlin. police released a suspect there last night. where do they go from here? what's the latest on the manhunt? good morning, dan. good morning, louise. two very strong elements as pa rt louise. two very strong elements as part of this on going story here in berlin. perhaps reflected in the morning papers. iwill come berlin. perhaps reflected in the morning papers. i will come on to the police investigation in a moment ifi the police investigation in a moment if i may, but perhaps this front page is symbolic. it translates to saying "now grief carries our colours." the saying "now grief carries our colours. " the brandenburg saying "now grief carries our colours." the brandenburg gate lit up colours." the brandenburg gate lit up in last night in sympathy for those who lost their lives and papers reflecting that police investigation which you've just referred to. tracing the route that the lorry took. it is thought to

have travelled across berlin for five kilometres and took half an hour coming into the market. police will want to know what happened it got here? where did the driver go? at what point was the lorry hijacked? all of that information just one of the 500 leads that they're following up. robert, we are getting more on this in a few minutes time. figures seen by bbc breakfast show the number of people coming forward to say that they were the victims of historical child abuse in england and wales has more than doubled in the past year. louise can explain all the details. these figures have been given to bbc breakfast by operation hydrant — that's the name for the group of officers co—ordinating and cross—checking allegations. they show that the number of victims has risen sharply, to more than 3,500 today. there are around 3,500 — one in ten of them are described as "people of public prominence". the officer in overall charge told us about the nature of their work. police also told us about the investigation we are dealing with some of the most

complex investigations and dealing with sensitive matters. sometimes in very, very high—profile cases and of course, all those factors create a huge challenge for the service. police also told us about the investigation into historical abuse in football. in the month since andy woodward spoke about being abused, 429 victims have been identified and 155 potential suspects. the home office says it's determined to bring perpetrators of historical crimes to justice. in the next half hour, we'll be hearing more from survivors and the police about uncovering the truth in cases like these as part of our policing britain series. at least 29 people have been killed in an explosion at a fireworks market in mexico. emergency services said dozens of others were injured,

and they expect the death toll to rise. it's the third major explosion at the site since 2005. will grant reports. the moment the san pablito fireworks market was engulfed in flames. within minutes, the entire site destroyed in a blaze of smoke, noise and deadly explosions. once the smoke cleared, the scale of the damage became clear. most big celebrations in mexico involve fireworks so in the run—up to christmas, it was full of shoppers. once nearby residents got over the initial shock of the blast, they did what they could to assist the emergency services. for the time being, the authorities say they are still investigating the cause of the tragedy, but whatever is behind it, this isn't the first explosion at san pablito. in 2005, just before

mexican independence day, the market caught light, injuring more than 120 people. at the time, the mexican government vowed to impose strict regulations on the fireworks industry, but many mexicans are angry that the rules are often never applied or never enforced, and that mexico state's market traders and shoppers lost their lives through a potentially avoidable accident. the abortion provider, marie stopes international, has been strongly criticised in inspection reports published by the regulator, the care quality commission. it voluntarily suspended the termination of pregnancies for under—18s and vulnerable women for seven weeks earlier this year, following unannounced inspections at 12 sites in england. the company says it has made considerable changes since the inspections. people who buy drones could have to register them and take a test to prove they can fly them safely,

under new rules proposed by the government. 59 near misses involving drones and airliners have been reported in the uk over the past 12 months. the department for transport hopes the scheme could help authorities identify the owners of devices which are flown illegally. so you are right up—to—date. we saw pictures of strength there. that's where carol is. there is a few thousand people with her as well for the shortest day. we will be with carol in five minutes time. the mayor of berlin has urged residents not to panic, after an attack at the city's christmas markets on monday evening. speaking on german television, michael mueller urged people to remain vigilant, and not to lock themselves in their homes.

joining us from berlin is alan posener, a correspondent at die welt newspaper in germany. we are hearing a lot from our correspondents telling us about how the investigation is developing. how is the news sinking in in germany and particularly in berlin today? well, sinking is the right sort of expression.s is sombre. i have been, you know, out and about yesterday evening, this morning, where normally you know this is new york. this is germany's new york. we're a happy city, but the mood is sombre. people are realising, you know, i meanjust people are realising, you know, i mean just around the corner 12 people were killed and we have been hit as paris was hit, as london has been hit, as brussels has been hit, so been hit, as brussels has been hit, so it has hit us now. it is orlando, it is our turn. it seems as well,

alan, because it is unclear yet as to who carried out that attack and there was an arrest yesterday and that man has now been released, is that man has now been released, is that feeding the sense of nervousness? well, you know, berlin is like london, it is resilient, but it isa is like london, it is resilient, but it is a strange thought to think that someone must have jumped out of the lorry here just where we're standing and runaway and he's still at large and he seems, he has got a gun presumably. he is a dangerous quy- gun presumably. he is a dangerous guy. this attack shouldn't have happened. this market should have been protected. the police fell down on thejob, let's been protected. the police fell down on the job, let's face it, been protected. the police fell down on thejob, let's face it, that's not been said yet, it has to be said and now they didn't get the guy. yes, i think at the moment there is more sort of sadness, but anger is going to develop. you say the police are coming under criticism and so too is the german chancellor, angela merkel, she is on the front pages of

many of the newspapers back here in the united kingdom. did it surprise you, and again this is one of the things she has been criticised for, that she didn't come out and make a statement straightaway on this? yes, that was surprising. the attack was at 8pm and she didn't come out until 11am the next morning. i have a feeling there were discussions in her party, what this meant and should actually about her political future, but i think she is in control again, because quite frankly, firstly, we don't know who did this. secondly, even if it was a refugee, we knew, no one made any bones about the fact that there are terrorists within the refugee movement. this was not an attack by refugees on germany. this was an attack by islamists on germany. this wasn't an attack by mrs merkel on anybody, this was an attack by enemies on our society. i think people who try to bhake sort of political hay out of this, are going to find it rebounding on themselves. i don't see a mood in germany today

to accuse mrs merkel of being responsible for this. if your thoughts are representative, it seems that there is still shock, but now there are all these questions about what the police did, why they arrested the wrong man, and more generally about german intelligence, whether it is resourced enough, what sort ofjob they are doing. absolutely, these are the questions we need to ask. in france, you have military on this street, this would not have been as unprotected. in france, the reaction to an attack would have been to strike at islamic militarily. the very low— key strike at islamic militarily. the very low—key response firstly, and the fact that this was not protected enough. i was in cologne two weeks

ago, there are many christmas markets, i had an eerie feeling, where if the police? who is taking ca re of where if the police? who is taking care of this? these are the questions that need to be asked, not about refugees or angela merkel, questions about funding and the way our intelligence and to the apparatus works. asking many of the questions that so many are asking. here's carol with a look at this morning's weather, from a well—known prehistoric monument. it is the winter solstice. yes, there are thousands of people here, dressed up for the occasion, from lots of different walks of life. the sunrise has already happened, but the winter solstice ta kes pla ce happened, but the winter solstice takes place at 10:44am. it happens

at the same time for everybody around the earth. it is the shortest day and the longest night. the shortest day lasts for seven hours, 49 minutes and 41 seconds. from tomorrow, the days start to get longer, so we will leap back up towards summer. it is getting noisy here, but it stays dry. the rain that we have will slowly clear, and we will hang on a lot of squally showers coming in across northern ireland and scotland. this morning we have the combination of rain, sleet, snow, thunder and lightning and hail across scotland and northern ireland, interspersed with brighter skies, but it is squalling. eastern and southern scotla nd squalling. eastern and southern scotland has something dryer. for england and, the first band of rain clears the far south. in between the

bands, we are looking at some sunshine. into the afternoon, the showers continue across scotland, but for northern england, the wash, east anglia, essex and kent, it is drier and brighter, but it will get husky by 4pm. for the midlands, the wales, we will have some rain, and some of it will be heavy. quite windy as well. for north wales, the rain will already have gone through by 4pm, so it will brighten up. for northern ireland, we are back into the squally showers, with a mixture of rain, hail, thunderand the squally showers, with a mixture of rain, hail, thunder and lightning at lower levels, we are more likely to seek snow. the rain perks up in the south—west, pushes into the south east, and the whole lot pushes into the near continent. for england and wales, clear skies, a cold night with frost and patchy fog. for

scotla nd with frost and patchy fog. for scotland and northern ireland, it is too windy for frost. the showers are winter in nature in places, the risk of ice. tomorrow we start with a combination of squally showers for northern ireland and scotland. for england and wales, it is a quieter day. there will be sunshine. one or two showers, but they will be the exception. where ever you are, it is going to feel cold. although the temperatures will be higher the further south you travel. for friday there is an amber weather warning for wind. we have a second named storm of the winter, barbara. she will introduce some strong wind across scotland and northern ireland, severe gales for some, locally storm force for others. accompanied by heavy rain. the rain will whip through quickly. for england and way, the rain is coming your way as well, but we are looking

at winds that are not quite as strong. but still 50 to 60 miles an hour gusts. and there is more wet and windy weather coming our way across the christmas weekend. what an amazing time to be there, it looks brilliant. it is not often you are and are to be that close. if you goons enjoying their time on the bbc this morning! move to your right! stick your tongue out! well done! sean is here with a roundup of today's business stories. good morning. mps want the pensions regulator to be given much stronger powers, including fines of up to £1 billion, to punish bosses who don't support their company pension schemes. all of this has come on the back of the failed bhs scheme, and the work and pensions committee wants to see the regulator getting involved earlier and with more urgency, to stop a similar

thing happening again. president of the cbi says a successful brexit will be one that benefits all parts of the uk. it has said a british companies should not be subjected to trade tariffs with only minimum other barriers in place. he said many people have been left behind as businesses and economies have grown. a bit of good news if you've got a flight booked for this weekend. a strike by airport baggage handlers and check—in staff planned for friday and christmas eve has been called off. more than 1,500 people employed by swissport had been due to walk out in a row over pay and conditions, but the company made a revised offer, which the union involved will now recommend that workers accept. shampoo sales down, more of us are

working from home. we are not bothering in the morning. i think you should still bother! one of the major factors. i have learned something everyday on this programme! one in 11 people in the uk lives with asthma, but new research out today suggests that eating lots of processed meats like ham and sausage might make their symptoms worse. the study in the journal thorax says preservatives in the meat could aggravate the airways, but experts say there needs to be further research. dr samantha walker is the deputy chief executive of asthma uk. tell as, what do you make of this research‘s i think it is very good and it is interesting that people are trying to unpick the effect of diet on their asthma. it is complicated, because what you eat is difficult to disentangle, but this study seems to indicate that there

is some relationship between these processed meat and the development of asthma symptoms later. but it is difficult to say that that would cause worsening of asthma symptoms on an individual basis, and it is only one study, it is the beginning of the work only. the key thing for people with asthma is, what is your advice to them? we know that many more things, or think that not food, are important. if you smoke or are overweight, for example. there is no specific dietary advice. but making sure you are taking your preventative medicines and spotting worsening symptoms, making sure you have a written action plan for an emergency, that will be more useful than starting to avoid processed meat. that is key, we do talk about it here, the medication and the way

you take it is important? people on preve nters you take it is important? people on preventers need to take them regularly, even when they do not have symptoms, if you start to feel worse, consult your doctor or nurse or take more of your medicine or start taking your medicine, and if you have had an attack on the last six months, you are at more risk of having another one, so it is worth concentrating harder on making sure you have your medicines under control. isaid i said earlier that there were so many stories i wanted to talk about. christmas dinner, people obsessed with calories, and how long it takes to run off a christmas dinner. a four and to run off a christmas dinner. a fourand a to run off a christmas dinner. a four and a half hour walk. i will not do that. there is tv to watch! a mince pie, 37 minutes of frenetic ice—skating. how many did you eat yesterday?

four on the trot. i shall be ice—skating until mid—march. good luck with that! may be just three next time. business on the bbc news channel next. here, steph is in durham to find out how officers get ready for the front line. it has been fascinating, what is going on now? totally fascinating. i am in the mock—up of a pub, it is here they will help to train the police on how to deal with different crimes. it is a warehouse in the middle of durham. what is happening here? what are you on about? i am not drunk! here we go! lets get the news, travel and weather where you are. i have come quietly! things are really stepping up a

gear. there is a lot going on with our weather over the next few days. today, blustery winds and showers particularly up towards the north and the west. a band of rain swindoninging south and east across england and wales. in between, yes, there will be some sunshine, but it is the showers across the north—west that will really mean business. some heavy ones and thundery ones with hailand heavy ones and thundery ones with hail and indeed, some snow particularly over high ground, but to lower levels at times across western scotland and feeling cold in the wind. across northern ireland, some showers as well. the blustery winds and gale force winds in places. across england and wales, yes, some sunshine, but we have this band of rain sinking its way south and east. it will turn really wet for a time across the south—west for the end of the day. through this evening and tonight, that wet weather slides eastwards across southern parts of england, leaving clear spells behind. the odd fog

patch and blustery showers into the north—west and icy conditions here on what will be quite a cold night. into tomorrow, more showers across north western areas, scotland and northern ireland. further south, and east, not a bad day. lighter winds and more in the way of sunshine and temperatures around five to nine celsius. then we turn our attention into the atlantic. this deepening area of low pressure. it has been named storm barbara which could cause disruptive weather for the end of the week. the christmas get away, this amber warning is not great news. we could see gusts of 90mph. a band of rain sinking south and east and top temperatures of nine to 12 celsius. this is business live from bbc news with ben thompson and sally bundock. make or break for monte dei paschi.

the world's oldest bank needs to find over $5 billion to avoid the prospect of a government bailout. live from london, that's our top story on wednesday, 21st december. a bailout of monte pasci would see investors facing compulsory losses. it presents a tough choice for the new italian prime minister. also in the programme, a new twist in malaysia's1mdb scandal. we will have the latest from singapore. and as economies grow, so too does demand for office space.