hello — this is breakfast, with charlie stayt and mega munchetty. an early christmas present for motorists as hundred of roadworks are temporarily lifted. but there's a warning that there'll still be severe delays as millions of drivers take to the roads on one of the busiest days of the year. iam here i am here at the rac control centre in birmingham are expecting a busy day as the christmas getaway begins. good morning — it's friday 22nd december. also this morning: the woman who accused the former deputy prime minister damian green of inappropriate behaviour, says a downing street official knew of claims against him before he was promoted. back to blue — the colour of the british passport will change when we leave the european union. in sport, the best of football kicks

off tonight with arsenal looking for seasonal jeweller by off tonight with arsenal looking for seasonaljeweller by replacing liveable in the top four champions league places. —— seasonaljoy. —— liverpool. six breakfast presenters, what could possibly go wrong? and carol has the weather. the forecast for the next few days is mild. rain at times. also windy across the north—west. the brightest conditions in the east and north—east. good morning. first, our main story. hundreds of miles of roadworks have been suspended by highways england

as the great christmas getaway begins. today is predicted to be the busiest travel day of the festive period, with millions of extra vehicles taking to the roads. there's good news for rail travellers as planned strike action on the west coast mainline has been called off. our reporter kathryn stanczyszyn is at the rac‘s headquarters in walsall. how is it looking? it looks like it might be the calm before the storm. still looking pretty quiet out there. and in here as well although staff say they are gearing up for an extremely busy day. it is a double whammy before christmas because it's fat friday that people go away for the christmas weekend. it would be busy anyway but of course, you've still got people who are finishing work today, finishing school because of the way christmas has fallen and thatis of the way christmas has fallen and that is why it's being advised to and avoid journeys if you don't have to do them. it's going to be exceptionally busy, particularly between 4pm and 8pm tonight and if

you don't have to make a journey, if it is visiting auntie mildred and uncle bob, you can do it tomorrow it's just a supermarket, you can do it's just a supermarket, you can do it elsewhere. the motorways and the roads will be busy. 3 million people will be expected on the roads today. it will be busy at our ports and ports and international train stations around 4.5 million people expected to get away there as well. but some good news for travellers today. 392 miles of roadworks which caused so much misery have been suspended from midnight last night all the way up to the second of january so that should help you if you are getting out and about and also good news for rail travellers as well. that virgin trains strike has been suspended. here at the rac, they are saying determination will get them through today because it will be a busy one. the woman who alleged damian green made inappropriate advances to her has told bbc news she spoke

to a senior downing street official about his behaviour — before he was promoted to first secretary of state. number ten denies theresa may was aware of the claims. mr green was sacked on wednesday for making misleading statements about the discovery of pornography on his commons computer nine years ago. our political correspondent leila nathoo is in westminster. how damaging are these new claims? i think it is an increasingly serious suggestion that number ten new about damien green before he was promoted to number ten flatly denies the prime minister knew anything about it but it does raise questions about it but it does raise questions about the culture here in westminster, the working culture, how serious the allegations of inappropriate behaviour were taken

in the past. remember, it was kate moore to be, the young conservative activist, her claims that damien green centre suggested texts, touched her on the knee fleetingly. it is those claims which led to the investigation. she says she told the bbc yesterday that she was coming forward because she said things needed to change your in westminster. there seemed to be an improper mixing of mental ship and sexual advance within the conservative party. — — sexual advance within the conservative party. —— mentorship. in his case, i was aware he was the deputy prime minister and i was aware that number ten new about it. the investigation into damien green found kate moore to be plausible but

damien green, although he has apologised, he says he does not recognise that version of events. competing accounts of what were private meetings. downing street said it was very clear that he wants everybody to work in westminster. the party leaders are working together to try to implement new grievance procedures. parliament is also trying to put new measures in place but it will take a lot of convincing for people to think that things really have changed. they will be taken seriously. and that action will be taken against people against whom claims are made. borisjohnson will warn russia to stop cyber attacks which threaten britain's national security or face retaliation of a similar kind from the uk. he's making the first visit to moscow by a british foreign secretary for more than five years. he'll say he wants the two countries to co—operate on international challenges, including the threat

posed by north korea. pro—independence parties in catalonia have won a majority of the seats in an election for the regional parliament. the result is a setback for the spanish government, which called the poll after an independence referendum held by the region in october was declared unlawful. speaking in brussels, where he is in self—imposed exile, the catalan leader carles puigdemont said the "the spanish state had been defeated". a man is being questioned on suspicion of murdering a woman who was stabbed in a supermarket in north yorkshire yesterday. the 30—year—old woman was attacked in an aldi store in skipton. police said the suspect, who's 44, was detained by shoppers and supermarket staff. the dark blue british passport is to make a return after brexit. the government said what it described as the "classic" colour would be reintroduced from october 2019. here's our home affairs

correspondent tom symonds. what does brexit mean? it turns out brexit means no more european burgundy. brexit means british blue. and on the new passport, the e word is nowhere to be seen. some like this person will rejoice. it is the reality of what we are, where we feel we belong. and for some people, pocket sized burgundy simply is not british. the past is something so many people still have fond memories of. the british blue passport was with you for many years. i am pleased to let people know we are going back to the classic blue and gold design. not quite. the classic 19805 era passport was bigger and hard—backed. the eu one, definitely easier to slip into a shirt pocket. the new one will be the same design. the government says the new colour

will not cost any more. passports are redesigned regularly to make them harder to forge. the blue one will start appearing in 2019 as passports are renewed. tom symonds, bbc news. mps are calling for the introduction ofa mps are calling for the introduction of a national deposit scheme for plastic bottles to protect the sea from pollution. the environmental audit committee wants free drinking water and public premises and using phones which uses plastic house —— packaging companies financially responsible. a policeman in the us state of florida has been dragged by half a mile. despite falling off at high speed, the officer was unharmed. filmed by his body camera. have you got id? a police officer in

florida are putting on protective gloves. this car pulled over with two suspects inside. the officer has spotted what he believes could be heroin and needles in is about to search the vehicle. but the driver has other idea. it's going to be in front of cambridge and m. clinging to the open door and with one foot in the car, he takes off at high speed. despite his shouts, the driver shows no signs of slowing down. for the officer, this unexpected ride is only and in one way. —— ending one way. amazingly, the officer gets back on his speech. the suspect is long gone but the video camera is still recording. you area hero, video camera is still recording. you are a hero, awesome. the pembroke

pines police force later posted this to ditch that facebook, the office are somehow unharmed. to ditch that facebook, the office are somehow unharmedlj to ditch that facebook, the office are somehow unharmed. i came and saw syringes everywhere. and with the evidence they need to pursue these dangerous drivers. you got the camera. good job. all should on camera. good job. all should on camera. “— camera. good job. all should on camera. —— should on camera. —— all ca ptu red camera. —— should on camera. —— all captured on camera. now, what do you think a japanese christmas tradition would look like? something like this. a choir of around 10,000 people get together each year to perform beethoven's ninth symphony. it's thought the tradition began during the first world war when a group of german prisoners of war being held in the country sang ‘0de tojoy‘ at christmas time. wow, that would get in the mood. a

busy time. they play mostly tomorrow and boxing day as well. they don't have any time off but we don't feel sorry to them. with the wages they get. borno state told to hold. they can't have that extra roast potato? arsenal against liverpool. it's a big victory to kickoff the traditional run of festive fixtures. chamberlain returns to his old ground as arsenal hosts liverpool. milk was thrown and it all turned sour but both mancheter clubs have

escaped punishment after the rumble in the tunnel folowing the recent derby. and the start of the six nations is still six weeks away, but two of england's stars may miss the tournament. and south africa's devon peterson is at it again at the pd world darts championship. you might remember his walk—on efforts going viral in year's gone by — this was his latest effort at ally pally — but it couldn't stop him going to defeat against darren webster. he is really put a lot of effort into that. the precision, the make—up. i have another story after the weather. carol was in sparkling form. as always. even more so. in a sparkle has come out. good morning, carol. good morning, all. this morning, not very sparkly outside. it is quite grey but it's also a

mild. it will continue in that way as we had on towards christmas. some drizzle around, some of us seeing some splashes of rain but the drizzle was clearing away. this ridge of high pressure builds across us ridge of high pressure builds across us and as you can ridge of high pressure builds across us and as you can see ridge of high pressure builds across us and as you can see from the squeeze on those isobars, breezy in the north of the country but in the south, in south—west england, there isafair south, in south—west england, there is a fair bit of drizzle. a lot of low cloud around. and it is mild. some murky conditions around. for east anglia and the midlands, a lot of cloud as well. seven o'clock, 10 celsius. also some patchy frog across northern and —— northern england and central scotland. northern scotland seeing a fine start to the day. northern ireland, youtube have some patchy fog. we have also got some drizzle across

southern and western parts of wales. there is a weather front —— the weather front taking things with it. behind, there will still be a lot of cloud around. the brightest breaks will be across eastern scotland and also north—east england. temperatures rise, —— temperature—wise, pushing down towards cardiff. 0vernight, it could be fairly cloudy and once again, some patchy mist and fog. it's also going to be breezy in the north with coming in. not particularly heavy. to visualise, between five and 10 degrees. most of those temperatures are degrees. most of those temperatures a re pretty degrees. most of those temperatures are pretty good overnight lows. tomorrow, we start off on a cloudy note. the front is still across the north of scotland. fairly windy. elsewhere, the wind won't be as

noticeable. much lighter but still cloudy with one or two brighter breaks. the temperature creeping up in aberdeen. in the christmas eve, if you're travelling, we still have a weather front. if you're travelling, we still have a weatherfront. bringing in some heavy rain. by then, starting to mount up. can see how it sinks into southern scotland. some showers and murky conditions. a mild day generally. for christmas day, if you're travelling, it's going to be wet across the northern half. we still have the south—westerlies coming in. not quite as great.

i think this is on every front page. 0ne picture dominating this morning. the royal pictures, meghan markle and prince harry. their engagement shots. some people commenting on that, others just using shots. some people commenting on that, othersjust using it shots. some people commenting on that, others just using it as a moment. the other main story, following on from damian green, the suggestion that police turned on officers who brought down green. there are questions about the behaviour of the police in the run—up to the revelations. behaviour of the police in the run-up to the revelations. the black—and—white version of that action, harry and meghan markle on the front page of the telegraph, also leading with that story about the police, saying that they had a green vendetta, according to boris johnson. on the front page of the daily mirror, a very different story. a suggestion of a russian spy in downing street, standing inches behind theresa may. a political aide

was arrested yesterday over claims he has been spying. boris johnson is on his way to russia. the uk is prepared and able to launch a massive retaliatory cyber attack against russia, he warned yesterday. and on the front page of this newspaper, the return of the blue british passport. that is coming back after brexit. well, we've heard of grunting in tennis. putting off opponents. now there are accusations of coughing in darts, on the cue. —— occy. bernie smith throwing arrows from the occy, and behind him is justin smith. nothing was set at the time. justin had a cough. it was one of the commentators on tv who said it was disgusting trying to put him off. it seems to be happening at particular moments? yes, and not turning away. so who won? the bloke coughing one, but there was no complaint from bernie at the time.

it was the commentator who raised it, saying thatjustin it was the commentator who raised it, saying that justin should it was the commentator who raised it, saying thatjustin should be investigated. he has hit back, saying he certainly didn't mean to put anybody off and it is hurtful to him and his family has been accused of this. he said he would never do anything like that. it might be a story thatjust goes anything like that. it might be a story that just goes away, it depends if the comments are taken further. i am thinking of snooker, the accepted norm is that there is no noise. yes, darts is different because there is the enthusiastic crowd. they do tend to go quiet for the vital points. now, santa claus wears a red, but sam allardyce is wearing a blue hat and bringing some festive cheer to the children's hospital in liverpool. his team are in good form, so he is smiling away. that looks white. no, the hat is blue. and what looks like red, angry bird. the whole team turned out? yes, lots of teams do their bit at

this time of year. it is all over social media this weekend, teams going to local hospitals and helping out. i will draw attention to the inside pages, you might have heard, there has been lots of hype. the musical hamilton, which has been an amazing success story in the united states on broadway. it had its opening night in london last night. almost all the critics now agree, believe the hype. sensational. a view of the others have in talking about this. the reviewer says, i didn't want the interval to happen. i was sorry when the show ended. didn't want the interval to happen. i was sorry when the show endedlj i was sorry when the show ended.” feel a bit ignorant about this. hamilton, the musical. it has had this extraordinary reception in the us. what is it about? it is sort of a story about... it is in american history story, really. it involves, as it explains here, what they call the maelstrom of wrap, hip—hop and the maelstrom of wrap, hip—hop and the ballet and jazz. —— rap. so it

works as a historical monument, but also a show in its own right. it is about alexander hamilton, a leading politician in the creation of the united states. a bit of contrast. it's good, but don't believe the hype. that is what the daily mail says. hamilton is no revolution. these things are no good if they don't divide us. exactly. we will see later on, my. —— mike. are you prepared for christmas dinner? lots of us still aren't and today is expected to be the busiest day of the year for food and drink sales as we stock up for the big day. in a moment we'll hear from john maguire, who's at a hospital in stockport where staff are preparing to cook some of the 400,000 christmas lunches the nhs will serve up across england. first, let'sjoin ben thompson at a supermarket in east london, where the doors have just opened. yeah, that's right. welcome to east london. the doors at morrisons have just opened and already people were queueing outside when i write this morning to make sure they get the last—minute things they need before christmas. —— when i arrived. there

arejust christmas. —— when i arrived. there are just two christmas. —— when i arrived. there arejust two shopping christmas. —— when i arrived. there are just two shopping days left for people to get their self—service supermarkets have a lot of work to make sure they get the right stuff on the right shelves at the right time. let me run you through the numbers. we are expected to spend a staggering amount of money over the next 48 hours, about 1.5 million pounds. that is just over the next two days alone. —— £1.5 billion. that is up nearly 3% on last year. that is up nearly 3% on last year. that is up nearly 3% on last year. that is interesting, because there has been a lot of talk lately about whether we are tightening our belts, especially on things like food and drink. that is partly because food and drink prices have gone up. they are about 4% higher due to the inflation we have heard about this year. so, even though prices have risen we are still spending more. and for the big supermarkets, that has been good news. their sales are up has been good news. their sales are up about 2%, for the big five supermarkets. they are cashing in on what is a pretty crucial time of yearfor what is a pretty crucial time of year for them, what is a pretty crucial time of yearfor them, to what is a pretty crucial time of year for them, to make what is a pretty crucial time of yearfor them, to make sure what is a pretty crucial time of year for them, to make sure that we spend and spend it with them. let me

introduce you tojennifer. good morning. explain to me how you make sure you get all of this right. it is pretty crucial. yes, it is the busiest time of year for us. to put it in context, we will sell about twice as much as normal in a typical week this week. it is a bit challenge. we have 1000 lorries on the roads, getting stock to our stores. we have lots of measures in place inside the stores to make sure that customers can to the right shelves. we have a new online ordering system that will help stop you to our stores and make sure it is the right stock. just explain to me, we have a full weekend this year, so you can shop on saturday and sunday before christmas day, which is monday. but sunday is a sure today and that could catch people unawa res? sure today and that could catch people unawares? yes, it is restricted due to sunday trading hours. customers will have six hours to shop on sunday. at morrisons we are doing what we can to make sure customers get what they need on sunday. there are helpful reminders around the store. we know how frustrating it is if you forget an

item on christmas eve. we have help is at the checkout to walk run to get items if you have forgotten one, and we have arrows all over the store pointing people to the right items. thank you. so, that is how the supermarkets are preparing. buying all the food we are going to cook. who is going to cook it? my colleaguejohn maguire cook. who is going to cook it? my colleague john maguire is cook. who is going to cook it? my colleaguejohn maguire is in south of —— southwark, with some people who have their work cut out over the next few days. yes, a busy day. the nhs will be cooking the use of —— biggest christmas lunch in the uk on monday. there will be 1 million people working across the country on christmas day. the nhs will serve 400,000 meals. here at southwark hospital, it is busy, it smells wonderful, they will cook 30 turkeys, 3500 russell sprouts, love them or loathe them, and they will serve 450 patients, 250 staff. —— brussels sprouts. let's see what is oi'i brussels sprouts. let's see what is on the menu today, just one of the

choices. a beautifuljoint of beef. some roast potatoes and some pigs in blankets. you can already smell the rosemary coming off the beef, it smells wonderful. we were here yesterday filming during a busy lunch service, and i spoke to a couple of patients to ask them what they thought of the food in the hospital. it is something you look forward to, yeah. as far as i'm concerned, it is this good. it is delicious. a surprise, because i'd a lwa ys delicious. a surprise, because i'd always heard hospitalfood is, you know, not very good. every meal is gorgeous. it really is. satisfied customers all round. greedy bubbling away. paul, good morning. what do you cooking this morning? just getting breakfast ready for the restaurant. most people do not have a cooked breakfast in hospitals, but it isjust for the people who really need to eat something in the mornings to get them going, especially some of the elderly patients. you'll do something like

700 people, 900, on a normal day? how do you achieve that kind of level of service? teamwork, you know. we go through the teamwork, we just crack on with it, you know? can't stress out. you just get on with it. if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. let me show you his festive apron. look at that. what a body. it certainly is christmas. let's come around and have a chat to tracy. good morning. the girls are chopping away, all very busy this morning. it is quite a challenge to feed that many people at the same time. you have so many different dietary requirements and speciality needs. how do you cope? dawn is the back and of all this, she keeps it to gather. absolutely. it is important to note is that you have the different dietary requirements? yes, about eight or nine different dietary requirements, every lunchtime and evening. good stuff. lovely. the patient's order

their food one day in advance. the syste m their food one day in advance. the system is very impressive and sophisticated. as we say, certainly the people we have spoken to so far have been satisfied customers. wonderful smells from the kitchen. i hope we are not making you feel too hungry yet at home. everybody looks very neat and tidy there stop don't they just. we will be very neat and tidy there stop don't theyjust. we will be back very neat and tidy there stop don't they just. we will be back with john this morning, and benjamin. we have been talking about people travelling back home for christmas. yes, if you need to know if there are any problems with the news travel and weather this morning, you are in the right place. see you shortly. good morning from bbc london news. i'm victoria hollins. a prison in hertfordshire is at breaking point, according to staff, who say they need 60 more recruits to get the unit back under control. neighbours living close to hm the mount say they are increasingly hearing disturbances at night time after it's claimed inmates are locked up for hours on end due to officer shortages. the ministry ofjustice says a staff recruitment drive is improving the situation but officers

on the ground say its too little, too late. they probably really need another 60 offices. it is compound and with different issues. you have sickness because of the working environment, then you have temporary promotion because people are not promoted any more. which leaves holes on the ground floor, which is covered by the time. and then, you know, everybody is getting burned out, burned out and burned out. nearly 300 hundred people will spending christmas on the heart transplant waiting list — that's nearly a quarter increase from last year. across the capital there are currently 32 people on the waiting list for a heart transplant. nhs blood and transplant is urging londoners to use the time together with their families over christmas to tell them they wish to donate. let's have a look at the travel situation now. good news to start your day because

there is currently a good service on there is currently a good service on the tube, and the trains have only minor delays, on the dlr. lots of engineering work over the christmas period, starting from tomorrow. full details and our travel guide can be found on the bbc website. turning to the roads, the a1 remains closed at highbury cornerfor the roads, the a1 remains closed at highbury corner for major works on the bridge for the railway line, outside highbury & islington station. looks pretty quiet right now. in euston, temporary traffic lights on ever shot straight halfway between mornington crescent tube and euston station for repairs to a collapsed manhole cover. and i remind, the congestion charge and tea charge will be suspended for the festive season, from six o'clock tonight. apple jeumont january two. —— that will resume onjanuary two. lets have a check on the weather now. good morning. today's weather will be very similar to how it was yesterday. it is rinse and repeat. mild, gray, a bit of mistand

yesterday. it is rinse and repeat. mild, gray, a bit of mist and merc around, a bit of drizzle and western areas, fading away. it could brighten up in the afternoon. we start of about nine or 10 celsius. it should stay dry. that rain towards the west will be thinking south. with some slightly dry around. we may see a bit of aid brighter afternoon. 11 or 12 celsius, no sunshine, really, and the wind is really very light. it will stay mild overnight tonight, the same as it was last night. a little bit of hill fog, mist and merc developing. temperatures down to nine or 10 celsius, which is higher than we would expect to see in the afternoon this time of year. it will send windier over the course of the weekend but stay mild, rather gray on christmas day itself. some changes on boxing day. then it will turn colder. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. now, though, it's back to charlie and naga. bye for now. hello this is breakfast

with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. we'll bring you all the latest news and sport in a moment. do you remember these? well the blue passport will be making a come back after brexit. what could possibly go wrong? six breakfast presenters, one christmas song and an audience of over 1000. see how we got on in rehearsals for our bbc sing challenge. and after nine, finding their feet in theirfrozen world. the story of two polar bear cubs as they travel 400 miles in search of food. there is a summary of this morning's main stories. hundreds of miles of roadworks have been suspended by highways england as the great christmas getaway begins. today is predicted to be

the busiest travel day of the festive period, with millions of extra vehicles taking to the roads. many airports are also expecting a pre—christmas rush. there is good news for rail travellers as planned strike action on the west coast mainline has been called off. inafew in a few minutes, we will talk to someone in a few minutes, we will talk to someone at the rac headquarters for all the latest on the roads. kate maltby, the woman who alleged damian green made inappropriate advances to her, has told bbc news she spoke to a senior downing street official about his behaviour — before he was promoted to first secretary of state. number ten denies theresa may was aware of the claims. mr green was sacked on wednesday for making misleading statements about the discovery of pornography on his commons computer nine years ago. i wrote about the problem of sexual harassment in westminster because i knew it was a persistent problem but i also knew of similar experiences with many other people in

westminster across all parties. what i was not seeking was a resignation. i've never called for damien green's resignation as an mp or minister, frankly i was expecting an apology. borisjohnson will warn russia to stop cyber attacks which threaten britain's national security or face retaliation of a similar kind from the uk. he's making the first visit to moscow by a british foreign secretary for more than five years. he'll say he wants the two countries to co—operate on international challenges, including the threat posed by north korea. it will pro—independence parties in catalonia have won a majority of the seats in an election for the regional parliament. the result is a setback for the spanish government, which called the poll after an independence referendum held by the region in october was declared unlawful. speaking in brussels, where he is in self—imposed exile, the catalan leader carles puigdemont said the "the spanish state had been defeated". the dark blue british passport is to

make a return after brexit. it will replace the current burgundy design from october 20 replace the current burgundy design from 0ctober2019. the immigration minister said the change was a tangible symbol of the uk taking back control. a policeman in the us state of florida has had a lucky escape after being dragged for more than half the nile —— half a being dragged for more than half the nile —— halfa mile clinging being dragged for more than half the nile —— half a mile clinging to a car door. 0fficerjohn cusack was about to carry out a search of the car after spotting the driver asleep, surrounded by suspicious packages. the video, recorded on a body—camera, shows the driver suddenly waking up and driving away with the officer still holding on to the car. despite falling off at high speed, he was released from hospital the next day. the driver was eventually arrested and charged with attempted murder and drug offences.

634 is the time. mike is here with sport. gearing of festive fun. boxing day as well. a busy time. 0bviously boxing day as well. a busy time. obviously a great time probably the only time in the year that families do that. and it kicks off tonight with arsenal holst in liverpool. —— hosting. the festive run of fixtures in the premier league kicks off tonight at the emirates, where arsenal welcome, jurgen klopp's liverpool. it'll be liverpool's alex 0xlade—chamberlain‘s first game against his former club, since leaving arsenal in the summer, and his current manager, still thinks, the england midfielder can improve as he adjusts, to his new clubs style of play. it is on the pitch, he needs to be

involved in these situations as well. the moment, it is fine, i am all good. but i see space for as well. milk was thrown and it all turned sour, guardiola took the points, mourinho got the pint. but both manchester clubs have escaped punishment after the tunnel bust up at old trafford, folowing city's recent 2—1 derby win. separately, mourinho has also escaped with a warning about his pre—match comments, regarding match officials. now, how about this for a christmas present? huddersfield town defender mathias yorgensen has offered to buy a pint, for every fan who makes the 500 mile round trip to southampton on saturday. (tx 00v) it's payback for their amazing support, he says, but that's a round that could end up costing the defender, who's nicknamed "zanka", over 8 thousand pounds. . .. it easy to say yes, this is football, they get a lot of money, drive flashy cars but we are all people, we all just

drive flashy cars but we are all people, we alljust normal people that enjoyed the life that we have been given and sometimes, you get at the show that. having thought about how much this is going cost you. it's christmas anyway. england will be without, wing elliot daly, and back row nathan hughes for at least, half of the six nations. daly has an ankle injury and could miss up to 12 weeks, while hughes is suffering from a knee problem, and is expected to be out for 10. missing both players, will be a blow for eddiejones‘ side, who are looking to win a third 6 nations title, on the bounce. they start their title defence on the 4 february against italy. wbo world middleweight champion billyjoe saunders says former heavyweight champon tyson fury is doing all the right things as he bids to make a return to competitive boxing. fury hasn't fought since his victory over wladimir klitschko in 2015, but saunders thinks he could announce his return to the ring any day. he's linked up with ben davies who

isa he's linked up with ben davies who is a very good trainer. i've had on my corner. he's the youngest man ever, youngest man ever to be involved in a world tournament. that isa involved in a world tournament. that is a good element. he is on it. i speak to him every day. he is in the gym twice a day. he is back in love with boxing. he is looking at opponents now. expect an announcement as soon as he opponents now. expect an announcement as soon as he teams opponents now. expect an announcement as soon as he teams up with a promoter. there are plenty of characters that grace the stage at darts' pdc world championship, but one person who goes the extra mile for his walk to the oche is this man. devon peterson's known as the african warrior — he's the only player from the continent of africa in this year's draw — and you may remember his walk—ons going viral in previous years. these were his latest moves for the ally pally crowd but it didn't help him to victory in his first round match against darren webster. and very intricate. you know what?

you didn't make any difference to his darts because he was beaten by darren webster. so we won't be seeing any more of that. it was a cross between blow, body popping and lots of things. keeps us entertained. —— though. for many of us today marks the start of the christmas break, meaning millions will take to the roads and railways as the great christmas getaway begins. this evening is expected to be the busiest day period for holiday travel. 0ur reporter kathryn stanczyszyn is keeping an eye on the roads from the rac‘s headquarters in walsall. what is the situation today? they are gearing up for a busy day here at the nerve centre of the rac, the place where they manage all their

patrols. this is the eastern team, knights team who swapped quite soon. but the eastern team has been quite at the moment, hasn't it? we don't use the cute word. because that all the workload in quickly. what is going to get you through today? team spirit, and working together and some christmas treats. and then we break for 12 days. there you go. lots of people are saying it will be an extremely busy day. 3 million motorists on the road today. a bit ofa motorists on the road today. a bit of a double whammy going on because as well as people finishing the christmas weekend and heading to are over they will be the christmas, there are people finishing work on school today because of the way the christmas weekend has fallen. that means it will be very busy, particularly between four and 8pm tonight although some good news on the roadworks suspension. nearly 400

miles of roadworks will be suspended. i am joined miles of roadworks will be suspended. iam joined by miles of roadworks will be suspended. i am joined by the travel editor to the independent and all—round travel guru. editor to the independent and all-round travel guru. telstra hotspots will be. the morning rush hour is getting under way and it's fairly quiet. problems in the 850 and stanford share. but it is later on that things get really exciting when you have the normal end of the week working rush combined with lots of people if they start ourjourneys between four o'clock and eight o'clock. particularly on the m6 mainly southbound just where we are here. any direction around the m25 and then worst jams of all of last friday before christmas last year is anything to go by. stonehenge, we have four lanes coming down for two. just where the ancient stones. they

have 13 hours ofjams there last year. if you are aiming between south—east england and south—west england. a really good idea. a bit of good news for rail travellers. the virgin trains strike was called off late yesterday. they are having to runa off late yesterday. they are having to run a full service today. they have now got to plan everything again. the still got a strike taking place in merseyrail. a gap in the middle of the day. elsewhere, the railengineering middle of the day. elsewhere, the rail engineering works, the best of times kicking in tomorrow. airports are going to be very busy as well. you need to pack some festive cheer.

there will be lots of festive cheer. as this is breakfast. that is the main story this morning. hundreds of miles of roadworks have been temporarily lifted on what is predicted to be the busiest travel day of the christmas period. the woman at the centre of allegations of inappropriate behaviour by damien green said a senior downing street official knew about games before he was promoted. lots of people on the roads, a lot of travel. what is the picture across the uk? fairly cloudy and some patchy fog and drizzle but it smiled. the drizzle will clear through the course of the morning. foremost, the will remain. the

drizzle was courtesy of the weather front pushing away. if you look at isobars in the north of the country, they are tightly squeezed. for south—west england, very murky this morning. a lot of low cloud and patchy fog. the drizzle continues. continuing to push away to the continent. look at temperatures. not bad at this late in december. a lot of low cloud and some fog, especially around the vale of york. north of the central lowlands is this different story. a beautiful but cold start to the day. western scotla nd but cold start to the day. western scotland and northern ireland, murkier. also some patchy fog across wales. the drizzle will continue

through the channel islands. the fog will slowly lift and the most, a cloudy day. the brightest breaks will be in the shelter of any mountains soar across north—east scotla nd mountains soar across north—east scotland and england adhere to example, only six degrees in aberdeen. through this evening in overnight, cloudy. we also have the wind strengthening with a weather front coming in. not terribly heavy. alert times heavier bursts. again, around the hills, it will be damp and murky. the weatherfront around the hills, it will be damp and murky. the weather front on the north of scotland, producing some rain. it could reach gale force. away from that, a lot of dry weather

and cloud. murky once again in the west. a big difference in aberdeen tomorrow. for christmas eve, the weather front producing wet and windy conditions. if that is sinking and across northern england by the end of the day, showery conditions and drizzle across west wales and south—west england. the south—westerly is bringing a smile throughout. some snow in the hills. a wee bit uncertain. windy, cloudy, but not quite as cloudy and grey as the next few days. it's 06:45 and you're watching breakfast from bbc news. this week we've been hearing all about the benefits of singing. so the producers set us the challenge to have a go ourselves. did you notice that carol got out of it? yeah, she wasn't there. she got

out of it. they gave us just a few hours to learn a christmas classic, and then perform it to a crowd of more than 1,000 people. what could possibly go wrong? i think you are going to see the brea kfast tea m a i think you are going to see the breakfast team a little bit naked. people have come to hear nice singing. that's us. what could possibly go wrong. six presenters and the ultimate christmas challenge. here we are. i hope you are ready for this. we've all got a bit of a voice in us. but actually, we sound terrible. they have just a few hours to learn a song. and sing

it, in front of a live audience. 1400 people. that is daunting, isn't it? i am terrified. via presenters will be singing with the gospel choir manchester inspirational voices, the gospel choir manchester inspirationalvoices, led the gospel choir manchester inspirational voices, led by wayne ellington. we are going to nail it. i know is a sure that i can't, naga. when we walked out earlier i suddenly thought, i'm not sure i can do this. applause no pressure, then. to make things a bit more fun, they don't yet know which song they have to learn. good

morning. good morning! welcome to the beautiful ridge —— the beautiful bridgewater hall. the song, you have been waiting to find out what this songis been waiting to find out what this song is going to be. and the song is... the christmas song. how does that go? you might know it as chestnuts roasting on an open fire. # chestnuts roasting on an open fire. #jack fire. # jack frost nipping out your nose. is there a soul singer, a crooner, add adding that king cole lurking in this group? let's find out. —— a budding nat king cole. braying. the team have just over an

hour with the whining to learn the song. it starts fairly well. # chestnuts roasting on an open fire... i have the opening line. # jack frost nipping at your nose... nos! and i'm pleased, because in my head, numberone, i know nos! and i'm pleased, because in my head, number one, i know the line. i've heard the line before. i'm fairly comfortable with it. but also, i've got it out of the way. that's good. it is not the sort of singing that i'm used to. i'm struggling without it. # and folks... it is like around the corner a bit, i'm # and folks... it is like around the cornera bit, i'm a # and folks... it is like around the corner a bit, i'm a straight down the middle man. if dan is struggling, naga is flying. # everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe... i feeljoyful.

# everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe... ifeeljoyful. i really do. the song is bringing usjoy, so i feel good. # out to make the season bright. sing loud, sing proud. will it? i presumed we would be singing together in a quiet, i did not think for one second, one millisecond, that at any point i would be singing on my own. #we on my own. # we will find it hard to sleep tonight... i literally don't even know how it should be. ok, it sounds... the babies will be crying ifi sounds... the babies will be crying if i sing this. i look at the words and literally, the tune goes out of my head. # they know that santa's on his way... i've got to rein myself in. # he's bringing all sorts of goodies and toys...

who knows what can happen? in rehearsal i learned the lines off by heart but suddenly couldn't think of the word... i've forgotten it again. presence? no, goodies. # he's bringing lots of toys and goodies on his way... i was thinking of chicken giblets for some reason. it is notjust remembering the notes, it is remembering the notes, it is remembering to make short lines, which has so far proved difficult. you can either sing or you can't, thatis you can either sing or you can't, that is how i see it. and i'm definitely one of the people who can't. #tocf can't. # to cf reindeer really know how to fly... you will be absolutely fine. fly... you will be absolutely finem fly... you will be absolutely fine. it is very hard. with just a few hours ago you could say there is quite a bit of work to do, and we haven't even shown you the harmonies. # and every mother's child is going

to smile... when i'm harmonising, i'mjust to smile... when i'm harmonising, i'm just hearing other stuff the whole time. that is... i really am struggling with that. #tocf struggling with that. # to cf reindeer really know how to fly... —— see if. humming. in quiet corners of manchester's bridgewater hall, there is determined, slightly panicky humming. we know they get up early. #we humming. we know they get up early. # we know... they know... they can even # we know... they know... they can eve n rea d # we know... they know... they can even read an autocue. # santa's on his sleigh... on his way, not on his sleigh. but as showtime approaches... # every mother's child is going to

try... there is genuine fear. my hands are sweating. my heart is going. i'm going to lock myself in a room and hopefully nobody can find me. next time, charlie loses his trousers. apparently mike took my trousers. the audience arrives. today will be a doddle. enjoy yourselves! and it is showtime. i think we are on. will the breakfast presenters rise to the christmas challenge? so, you can find out how we got on on christmas day, if you can bear to hear it. it will be on breakfast on bbc one. the big mystery as mike busheu bbc one. the big mystery as mike bushell and your trousers. there was... there was a deal of confusion, in the dressing room. we

went going to the details. that will emerge as the story unfolds. i don't know about you, but seeing those people arriving at the hall, this was filmed last week, it made be quite nervous again. just watching that unfold. if you have performed regularly in front of a lot of people you might be more comfortable with that. as we all were. it is a good team bonding exercise. with that. as we all were. it is a good team bonding exercisem with that. as we all were. it is a good team bonding exercise. it was interesting. we are going to see some beautiful polar bears later in the programme. kate winslet has narrated a documentary that is coming. we will be talking to the person behind that and all the filming as well. lots to come. yes, slightly better with pictures. if we have them we will float them. maybe we will see those later on. it is a remarkable story, like travelogue. it is an adventure of two babies and their journey across the it is an adventure of two babies and theirjourney across the ice, as they try to escape predators. we will see what else is coming up this morning. so, the knives were

sharpened and the gas was turned up higher, but only one chef could be crowned champion of master chef. we will be speaking to the winner. that is after 8:30am. time now to find out if there are any problems where you are. good morning from bbc london news. i'm victoria hollins. a prison in hertfordshire is at breaking point, according to staff, who say they need 60 more recruits to get the unit back under control. neighbours living close to hm the mount say they are increasingly hearing disturbances at night time after it's claimed inmates are locked up for hours on end due to officer shortages. the ministry ofjustice says a staff recruitment drive is improving the situation but officers on the ground say its too little, too late. they probably really need another 60 officers. it is compounded with different issues. you have sickness because of the working environment,

then you have temporary promotion because people are not promoted any more. which leaves holes on the ground floor, which is covered by overtime. and then, you know, everybody is getting burned out, burned out and burned out. nearly 300 people will spending christmas on the heart transplant waiting list — that's nearly a quarter increase from last year. across the capital there are currently 32 people on the waiting list for a heart transplant. nhs blood and transplant is urging londoners to use the time together with their families over christmas to tell them they wish to donate. from this evening the congestion charge and t—charge will both be let's have a look at the travel situation now. good news to start your day because there is currently a good service on the tube, and the trains have only minor delays, on the dlr. lots of engineering work over the christmas period, starting from tomorrow. full details and our travel guide can be found at bbc.co.uk/london.

turning to the roads, the a1 remains closed at highbury corner for major works on the bridge for the railway line, outside highbury & islington station. looks pretty quiet right now. in euston, temporary traffic lights on eversholt road halfway between mornington crescent tube and euston station for repairs to a collapsed manhole cover. and a reminder, the congestion charge and t—charge will be suspended for the festive season, from 6:00 tonight. that will resume january 2. lets have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. good morning. today's weather will be very similar to how it was yesterday. it's rinse and repeat. mild, grey, a bit of mistand murk around, a bit of drizzle in western areas, fading away. it could brighten up in the afternoon. we start off about 9 or 10 celsius. it should stay dry. that rain towards the west will be shrinking south. with some slightly direr ground. we may see a bit of a brighter afternoon. 11 or 12 celsius, no sunshine, really, and the wind is really very light. it will stay mild overnight tonight, the same as it was last night. a little bit of hill fog, mist and murk developing. temperatures down to 9 or 10

celsius, which is higher than we would expect to see in the afternoon this time of year. it will send winds over the course of the weekend but stay mild, rather grey on christmas day itself. some changes on boxing day. then it will turn colder. before we go, a reminder that from this evening the congestion charge and be t—charge will be suspended from 6pm tonight, resuming on the second of january. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. bye for now. hello, this is breakfast, with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. an early christmas present for motorists as hundred of roadworks are temporarily lifted. but there's a warning that there'll still be severe delays as millions of drivers take to the roads on one of the busiest days of the year.

iamat i am at the national rac control centre as a busy christmas period begins. good morning, it's friday 22nd december. also this morning the woman who accused damian green, of inappropriate behaviour talks to the bbc. kate maltby says a downing street official knew of claims against the former deputy prime minister before he was promoted. back to blue — the colour of the british passport will change when we leave the european union. today is expected to be the busiest grocery shopping day of the year as people stock up ahead of the christmas holiday. how other supermarkets preparing for

the rush? i am how other supermarkets preparing for the rush? iam in how other supermarkets preparing for the rush? i am in east london this morning to find out. and the nhs are gearing up to prepare britain's biggest christmas lunch, in the kitchens of southpaws —— southport hospital were it smells fantastic. and in sport, festive football kicks off tonight. arsenal are hoping to get —— to take away the last champions league place from liverpool. six breakfast presenters, 1000- liverpool. six breakfast presenters, 1000— strong audience. what could go wrong? find out how we prepared for our big debut. voices of angels. if you're out and about today, it will be cloudy and mild. some drizzle in the south which will clear and in the south which will clear and in the north, especially in scotland, some blue sky. i will have more in

15 minutes. hundreds of miles of roadworks have been suspended by highways england as the great christmas getaway begins. today is predicted to be the busiest travel day of the festive period, with millions of extra vehicles taking to the roads. there's good news for rail travellers as planned strike action on the west coast mainline has been called off. our reporter kathryn stanczyszyn is at the rac‘s headquarters in walsall. the morning. of course, the last thing anyone wants to do today breakdown that people will and so the rac will be on hand to try and help. that is the map which shows the current incidents. it is likely to get busier throughout today. it will be busy. we have a double whammy of christmas travel today. people who are finishing their standard week, the working week. there have been at work right up to

the 22nd. and some schoolchildren as well. we have those and everybody was travelling to get where they need to be for christmas. it's not looking too bad out there on the motorways at the moment but it is getting busier and we hear the busiest time today will be between 4pm and 8pm. the advice is not to travel than if you can help it. 3 million motorists expected to be out there. on the railways, now that the virgin strike has been called off, it's better but it likely to be very busy and all our international sites, airports, ports and international train stations expected to be extra busy. 4.5 million people expected to travel through international sites. here at the rac, they are gearing up for it to get busier. they have got the christmas chocolates out and they will power on fruit. we will be back

with your across the morning throughout the morning. thank you very much. the woman who alleged damian green made inappropriate advances to her has told bbc news she spoke to a senior downing street official about his behaviour before he was promoted to first secretary of state. number ten denies theresa may was aware of the claims. mr green was sacked on wednesday for making misleading statements about the discovery of pornography on his commons computer nine years ago. our political correspondent leila nathoo is in westminster. how damaging are these new claims? many would have built perhaps theresa may had managed to draw a line under this. there is a suggestion that downing street was aware of damien green's behaviour before he was promoted to first secretary of state. although as you say, number ten denying the prime ministers knew anything about it. but certainly these name —— these claims made i kate maltby, that is

what led to the investigation into damien green and her account of events was found by the investigation to be plausible. she has told the bbc she wanted to come forward because she wanted the culture at westminster to change. there seemed to be an improper mixing of men touring and sexual advance within the conservative party. —— advance within the conservative party. — — people advance within the conservative party. —— people being mentors. in his case, i was aware he was the deputy prime minister. i was aware that numberten deputy prime minister. i was aware that number ten knew about it. damien green has apologised the making kate maltby uncomfortable but he says he does not recognise that version of events. downing street say they are clear they want people to be able to work at wentz —— westminster without fear of harassment. this goes to the heart of how serious these claims of

inappropriate behaviour were taken in the past before we had this flurry of activity and before we had a flurry of claims, people coming forward in recent months. despite the best efforts of party leaders, but i must —— convened all parties to introduce new grievance procedures. despite this impetus to change, a lot of people will need some convincing that the claims in the warm words about changing the culture in westminster will really make a difference. borisjohnson will warn russia to stop cyber attacks which threaten britain's national security or face retaliation of a similar kind from the uk. he's making the first visit to moscow by a british foreign secretary for more than five years. he'll say he wants the two countries to co—operate on international challenges, including the threat posed by north korea. pro—independence parties in catalonia have won a majority of the seats in an election for the regional parliament.

the result is a setback for the spanish government, which called the poll after an independence referendum held by the region in october was declared unlawful. we'll be speaking to our correspondent in barcelona now. given the height of emotions and the subsequent events, this vote takes ona subsequent events, this vote takes on a bit of significance. the recent election was a gamble ordered by the spanish government. the spanish prime minister mariano rajoy recast the system of government by ousting the system of government by ousting the separatist government. somewhere in self—imposed exile. they were trying to get both spain parties backin trying to get both spain parties back in the business and it appears to have backfired. those who voted,

record turnout, 86%. the party with the most seats was a pro unity party. ines arrimadas would be the youngest leader in the region. she said she should be. i said, can you form a coalition government? she said it would be difficult but she will try. three separatist parties, with carles puigdemont‘s party, they together can take the majority. that is reflected across the board. they cannot hold the separatists. that is ines arrimadas celebrating. weeks of

wrangling in talks. it could be deja vu in terms of the independence crisis playing out again. thank you, gavin lee, our correspondence on the streets of barcelona. a man is being questioned on suspicion of murdering a woman who was stabbed in a supermarket in north yorkshire yesterday. the 30—year—old woman was attacked in an aldi store in skipton. police said the suspect, who's 44, was detained by shoppers and supermarket staff. the environmental audit committee is looking for making firms that make plastic packaging environmentally responsible. the uk uses around 13

billion plastic bottles each year. nearly half are put in landfill, incinerated or lectures in it. many ultimately find their way into the sea. ultimately find their way into the sea. the mps are urging the government to introduce a deposit and return scheme for wattles as soon as and return scheme for wattles as soon as possible. they want a new rule obliging all cafes, pubs and restau ra nts rule obliging all cafes, pubs and restaurants to provide free tap water so people can top up their own refilla ble water so people can top up their own refillable bottles. and they want many more public water fountains. the mps also propose a sliding scale of charges on plastic packaging so firms using easy to recycle material they least in those using conflux materials pay the most. ministers say they are consulting with firms to find the best solutions to what they acknowledges a serious problem with plastic waste. a policeman in the us state of florida has been dragged

by half a mile. he was trying to surge as —— search a driver. a police officer in florida pulling on protective gloves. i know this car pulled over with two suspects inside. the officer has spotted what he believes could be heroin and needles in is about to search the vehicle. but the driver has other idea. it's going to be in front of cambridge and mike. clinging to the open door and with one foot in the car, he takes off at high speed. despite his shouts, the driver shows no signs of slowing down. for the officer, this unexpected ride is only and in one way. clinging to the open door and with one foot in the car,

he is hurtled along at high speed. amazingly, the officer gets back on his feet, the suspects now long gone, but the video camera is still recording. you're a hero! awesome. the pembroke pines police force later posted this now, what do you think a japanese christmas tradition would look like? something like this. a choir of around 10,000 people get together each year to perform beethoven's ninth symphony. it's thought the tradition began

during the first world war when a group of german prisoners of war being held in the country sang ‘ode tojoy‘ at christmas time. as we discuss brexit, very little is known about how life will change. but one tangible consequences been revealed, the british passport. burgundy? this latest announcement just part of a long tradition of announcements about the passport which a bolt from a piece of paper 450 yea rs which a bolt from a piece of paper 450 years ago to the document were used to now. martin lloyd is the author of passport: the most travel document. it became quite an emotive

debate, didn't it? we will get back our passport. a lot of attention because it is a focal point, isn't it? yes, the european burgundy passport was a red rag to a bull to some people. i wanted to keep their blue passports. in fact, some people, when we changed over, they went abroad in order to renew their passports at consulates abroad, because the consulates didn't have the machine—readable red passports. so some people actually went abroad to renew their passports there. and they are still travelling on those... ? well, they have now expired. but they got another ten yea rs of expired. but they got another ten years of edward passport. 1990 was the last time blue passports were circulating. so around 2000, they we re circulating. so around 2000, they were gone. why is the colour so significant? it is not important, is it? why we chose blue is probably because it was a serviceable colour. it doesn't get dirty, it doesn't show the dirt. it is probably a

cheap die. —— dye. so wejust kept with the blue. you have brought in some items. let's go back in chronological order. these ones are the ones which look more familiar, to those of us who remember the blue passports. yes, the one on the left is actually the first writ —ish blue passport to be issued as a booklet. —— the british. passport to be issued as a booklet. -- the british. when was that? that was 1921, we had about eight months to design that. and fast forwarding, they haven't changed much. yes, the design stayed the same for 70 years. then we went to the burgundy one. and of course we have all the technology as well, now, in the burgundy one. is that going to change in terms of what we will have with the next blue passports? the burgundy one, yes... i think probably it will be the same.” mean... so it will be the same size? the thing is, the passport design is

really dictated by the icao. that is pa rt of really dictated by the icao. that is part of the united nations, the international civil aviation organisation, which decides what passports should look like and what information it carries. so we are still being told what to do by somebody? yes, the un. you have brought some documents in, the really early passports? yes, they we re really early passports? yes, they were not always issued by the foreign office in london. anybody with authority could issue one. that is the harbourmaster in port belfast, issuing a passport to a man and his son to go to redneck, that is 7099. -- and his son to go to redneck, that is 7099. —— granik. and his son to go to redneck, that is 7099. -- granik. so that would have been specific to one journey? that's right. going over to grenech. in the 19th century it was reorganised so that passports were issued centrally in london by the foreign office in london. and the passport would have looked like a single sheet of white paper, i will ta ke single sheet of white paper, i will take this out... are you allowed to ta ke take this out... are you allowed to take that out? this is one of the

first ones to have a photograph. now, you can see that photograph. yes, just here. the thing about the photograph is, they were told, go get a photograph or your passport. so they did. there were no rules and regulations. in this one, you can see the lady has taken a photograph from her family album and she has cut off the persons and into the side. you can see his left shoulder and his fingers around her waist. side. you can see his left shoulder and his fingers around herwaist. i don't think you would get away with that today but that was what happened. when did we standardise the passport, in terms of what we see now? well, the passport you see there, that lasted for about 70 years, again. a design which lasted 70 years. it then went to a pink foldout, with two blue covers. then to the booklet passport. could i just ask you, on a technicality, the burgundy passport, which everybody has now, people have had those for quite a long time... ten years. they will remain valid. so as you travel around the world, the world will

know we are no longer part of the eu. on the passport, you will still be an eu citizen? you could always ta ke be an eu citizen? you could always take a magic marker and wipe out the black is at the top. wipe out the european community, if you want. that is probably an offence in itself, defacing a passport. yes, don't do that. we don't recommend that. very interesting. thank you for bringing these in. here's carol with a look at this morning's weather. carroll, others spots of snow that you are predicting for christmas day in scotland still going to pop down? —— carol, are those. in scotland still going to pop down? -- carol, are those. yes, but in the scottish mountains. most of us will not see it. if you are hoping to alight christmas you will be disappointed. notjust alight christmas you will be disappointed. not just today, alight christmas you will be disappointed. notjust today, but the next few days it will be cloudy, damp and mild. not damp everywhere but it will become mild even if it isn't yet. a ridge of high pressure above us. breezy in the north—west

of the country, clearing in the south. the weather front from the south. the weather front from the southis south. the weather front from the south is still producing drizzle. lots of low cloud around this morning. some patchy fog. the fog will be slow to lift. look at those temperatures. nines and tens. that is good for this time of december. those would be good for maximum temperatures, not mine got in the morning. as we go north into england there is patchy fog across the vale of york, and some patchy fog across the central allowance. north of that, under clear skies, it the central allowance. north of that, under clearskies, it is the central allowance. north of that, under clear skies, it is cold. there will be sunshine. not as cold in the west. more cloud here. across northern ireland, a relatively mild start, again, with lots of cloud and patchy fog. patchy fog across wales. as you can see in the chart, a lot of low cloud. through the day, as the fog lifts, the drizzle pushes away and goes through the channel islands before doing so. then the best of the brakes are going to be

in the shelter of the mountains. north—east scotland, north—east england, these are the best areas. six degrees in aberdeen, highs of 12 as we push down towards the south. getting through the evening and overnight, again, there will be lots of cloud around. a further mist and fog patches forming. the breeze picking up in the north—west. windy overnight. most of the rain will be fairly light but you will see the odd heavy burst. temperatures overnight, 5— ten. not bad for the end of december. tomorrow we start off with a lot of cloud. patchy fog slow to lift. the wind is still a feature of the weather in the north. rain coming in courtesy of the weather front which is going to be sliding south through the course of the day. so we will start to see those amounts across north—west scotland, accumulating. temperatures in aberdeen, 12. a six degrees higher than had to what we are looking at today. —— hike compare to. that weather front is still

across the north—west on christmas eve. windy, breezy further south. lots of dry weather but lots of murky conditions coming in on the south—westerly winds to western facing coasts and hills. just before igo,a facing coasts and hills. just before i go, a quick look at christmas day. rain across the north, moving east. this is the snow that naga was referring to on the mountains in scotland. it will be drier and brighter, but fairly windy in the irish sea. carol, that looks fantastic. it is interesting, we we re fantastic. it is interesting, we were just talking about the christmas dinner and obviously the weather is important because everybody is gathering with their families. how much preparation have you done to your big piece? absolutely none, because i'm eating out. i knew it! that is too much. you are a wise woman. carroll, thank you. it is one way to avoid the stress. other people can't avoid it because it is part of theirjob. we will see some of those preparations.

now, the nhs workers, they have a heavy workload. 400,000 servings of turkey and trimmings to patients on christmas day. we've sent breakfast'sjohn maguire to a hospital in southport to find out how preparations are going. organisation is key, isn't itjohn? yes, it is a well oiled machine here. a christmas tune is playing in the background. i think it isjohn lennon, merry christmas, war is over. we are on the beef watch. we have been keeping an eye on disjoint. it has been in the other four now, it smells amazing. race potatoes as well. a really big day on monday for the nhs. there will be 1 million people working across the uk, all source of different walks of life. the nhs in england alone will feed 400,000 people. here in southport, for christmas lunch on monday, they will serve up a total

of 30 turkeys, three and a half thousand sprouts, love them or hate them. they will be feeding 450 patients and 250 staff. let me show you how the system works. these days in hospital wards, patients have a computer screen in hospital wards, patients have a computer screen with a television over their bed. they can order from the menu is one day in advance. it comes into the system here in the kitchen. the staff are manning these belts. we were here yesterday filming, and it was extremely busy. each patient gets exactly what they wa nt each patient gets exactly what they want and there order goes onto the trade. the food goes on down into the ward in a very large trolley, which you can see at the back. we spoke to a couple of patience yesterday about what they thought of the food here at southport and this is what they said. it is lovely, something you look forward to at the end of the day. to me, as far as i am concerned, it is great. it is delicious. it is a surprise, because i had always heard hospital food

was, you know... every meal is gorgeous. it really is. good morning to pat and eric if they are watching this morning. thanks for talking to us yesterday. this is mellow vision. what are we cooking here? a lovely healthy option by our serving chef. it isa healthy option by our serving chef. it is a lovely vegetable and sleet potato curry. dairy free. obviously at the hospital, we cater for lots of different diets. we have a long—standing menu but the most common is high protein. if you are having a long stay you get extra options. if you are here for a while to get extra choices on the menu. notjust a to get extra choices on the menu. not just a standard to get extra choices on the menu. notjust a standard menu. does that make it complicated for you?m notjust a standard menu. does that make it complicated for you? it can do. it depends how busy it is and the dietary requirements? we have gluten—free, renal, low residue, it can vary from day to day, how many

there are. dawn, you are always smiling. angela is over here. you are from the sister hospital, holds the. freshly made, i was surprised by that. why do you do that? traditionally cooked, local and sustainable source vegetables, meats, they are all locally sourced and additionally cooked. we feel as though that is the best way for our patients. it can be close to a time when the patients can be eating, one hour before, so it is all fresh and heated. well done. amazing to see that in action. imagine that, as angela was saying, all the food freshly cooked. let's come around. a bit of soup. alan, what is in the soup? well, there is potato and watercress. it is dairy and gluten—free. watercress. it is dairy and gluten-free. ok. it is made from scratch. we just put a little bit of salt and pepper. it looks good, it

will be amazing later on. we will be back later on. if you are a southport hospital and you watered your soup, your fresh vegetable soup, that is what is coming up later. we will just soup, that is what is coming up later. we willjust show soup, that is what is coming up later. we will just show you soup, that is what is coming up later. we willjust show you what christmas lunch will look like on monday to really get the juices flowing. a traditional christmas lunch. this will be served to all the patients, as well as the special diets. and our vegetarians, obviously. that is fantastic. you will not be needing this, will you, dawn? right, iwill talk will not be needing this, will you, dawn? right, i will talk to you later. i wonder how many turkey gin as he hasn't already. it is going to be one of those days. let's make in each, every time we go to him. he can eat another dinner. and we have the masterchef winner is, later on today. we should get them to give us their view on that in, and that was ona their view on that in, and that was on a turkey dinner as well. it is 7:27am. christmas getaway is our lead story this morning, giving you

plenty of information about what it is like on the roads and the rail network. time to find out if there are any problems where you are. good morning from bbc london news. i'm victoria hollins. a prison in hertfordshire is at breaking point, according to staff, who say they need 60 more recruits to get the unit back under control. neighbours living close to hm the mount say they are increasingly hearing disturbances at night time after it's claimed inmates are locked up for hours on end due to officer shortages. the ministry ofjustice says a staff recruitment drive is improving the situation but officers on the ground say its too little, too late. they probably really need another 60 officers. it is compounded with different issues. you have sickness because of the working environment, then you have temporary promotion because people are not promoted any more. which leaves holes on the ground floor, which is covered by overtime. and then, you know, everybody is getting burned out, burned out and burned out. nearly 300 people will spending christmas on the heart transplant

waiting list — that's nearly a quarter increase from last year. since last christmas day 31 people have died while on the waiting list. across the capital there are currently 32 people on the waiting list for a heart transplant. nhs blood and transplant is urging londoners to use the time together with their families over christmas to tell them they wish to donate. let's have a look at the travel situation now. there's a good service on the tubes and the trains this morning apart from london overground which has no service between richmond and camden road. and severe delays camden road to stratford. lots of engineering work over the christmas period, starting from tomorrow. full details and our travel guide can be found at bbc.co.uk/london. turning to the roads, the a1 remains closed at highbury corner for major works on the bridge for the railway line, outside highbury & islington station. in euston, temporary traffic lights on evershott road halfway between mornington crescent tube

and euston station for repairs to a collapsed manhole cover. chelsea embankment closed westbound between cheslea and battersea bridges for gas works until april. and a reminder, the congestion charge and t—charge will be suspended for the festive season, from 6:00 tonight. that will resume january 2. let's have a check on the weather now with elizabeth rizzini. good morning. today's weather will be very similar to how it was yesterday. it's rinse and repeat. mild, grey, a bit of mistand murk around, a bit of drizzle in western areas, fading away. it could brighten up in the afternoon. we start off about 9 or 10 celsius. it should stay dry. that rain towards the west will be shrinking south. with some slightly direr ground. we may see a bit of a brighter afternoon. 11 or 12 celsius, no sunshine, really, and the wind is really very light. it will stay mild overnight tonight, the same as it was last night. a little bit of hill fog, mist and murk developing. temperatures down to 9 or 10 celsius, which is higher than we would expect to see in the afternoon this time of year. it will send winds over the course of the weekend but stay mild, rather grey on christmas day itself.

some changes on boxing day. then it will turn colder. i'm back with the latest from the bbc london newsroom in half an hour. plenty more on our website at the usual address. now, though, it's back to charlie and naga. bye for now. hello this is breakfast with charlie stayt and naga munchetty. hundreds of miles of roadworks have been suspended by highways england as the great christmas getaway begins. today is predicted to be the busiest travel day of the festive period, with millions of extra vehicles taking to the roads. many airports are also expecting a pre—christmas rush. there is good news for rail travellers as planned strike action on the west coast mainline has been called off.

in a few minutes, we will talk to someone at the rac headquarters for all the latest on the roads. kate maltby, the woman who alleged damian green made inappropriate advances to her, has told bbc news she spoke to a senior downing street official about his behaviour — before he was promoted to first secretary of state. number ten denies theresa may was aware of the claims. mr green was sacked on wednesday for making misleading statements about the discovery of pornography on his commons computer nine years ago. i wrote about the problem of sexual harassment in westminster because i knew it was a persistent problem but i also knew of similar experiences with many other people in westminster across all parties. what i was not seeking was a resignation. i've never called for damien green's resignation as an mp or minister, frankly i was expecting an apology. borisjohnson will warn russia to stop cyber attacks which threaten britain's national security or face

retaliation of a similar kind from the uk. he's making the first visit to moscow by a british foreign secretary for more than five years. he'll say he wants the two countries to co—operate on international challenges, including the threat posed by north korea. pro—independence parties in catalonia have won a majority of the seats in an election for the regional parliament. the result is a setback for the spanish government, which called the poll after an independence referendum held by the region in october was declared unlawful. speaking in brussels, where he is in self—imposed exile, the catalan leader carles puigdemont said the "the spanish state had been defeated". the dark blue british passport is to make a return after brexit. it will replace the current burgundy design from october 2019. the immigration minister said the change was a tangible symbol of the uk taking back control. mps are calling for the introduction of a national deposit scheme for plastic bottles, to help protect

the seas from pollution. the committee also wants free water in public premises. it is also considering making firms which use plastic packaging financially responsible for the waste they create. gambling giant ladbrokes has agreed toa gambling giant ladbrokes has agreed to a takeover by an on line rival. the deal, worth up to £4 billion, was announced. ladbrokes is the uk's largest high street bookmaker. those are the main stories this morning. right now, mike is here on the sofa. it looks very warm to those football fa ns it looks very warm to those football fans travelling the length and breadth of the country. all these matches, a festive cracker tonight. arsenal are looking to take where

the champions league place. it'll be liverpool's alex oxlade—chamberlain's first game against his former club, since leaving arsenal in the summer, and his current manager, still thinks, the england midfielder can improve as he adjusts, to his new clubs style of play. if we watch arsenal in the past, it is decisive players. there were two decisive players there. we put them on “— decisive players there. we put them on —— we put much more on their shoulders and if they need to be involved in situations like this, i'm fine, at the moment, it's all good but i see improvement as well that it good but i see improvement as well thatitis good but i see improvement as well that it is up to dash. milk was thrown and it all turned sour, guardiola took the points, mourinho got the pint. but both manchester clubs have escaped punishment after the tunnel bust up at old trafford, folowing city's recent

2—1 derby win. separately, mourinho has also escaped with a warning about his pre—match comments, regarding match officials. now, how about this for a christmas present? huddersfield town defender mathias yorgensen has offered to buy a pint, for every fan who makes the 500 mile round trip to southampton on saturday. (tx 00v) it's payback for their amazing support, —— it's payback for their amazing support, he says, but that's a round that could end up costing the defender, who's nicknamed "zanka", over £8,000. it easy to say yes, this is football, they get a lot of money, drive flashy cars but we are all people, we alljust normal people that enjoyed the life that we have been given and sometimes, you get at the show that. having thought about how much this is going cost you. it's christmas anyway. if you're a huddersfield band, go

and geta if you're a huddersfield band, go and get a pint of whatever you like and get a pint of whatever you like and the cost will be covered by za nka and the cost will be covered by zanka he was named after a character from cool runnings, the movie. and asking about