this is bbc news. the headlines: motorists are warned of dangerous conditions because of snow and ice. thousands of properties are without electricity in the midlands and parts of wales a small number of critically ill syrian children are allowed to leave a rebel held area of damascus. the company that ran grenfell tower gives up control of thousands of other properties, saying it can't guarantee tenants the service they expect. also in the next hour: prince harry guest edits radio 4's today programme. ina wide in a wide ranging interview with barack obama, the former us president warned that irresponsible use of social media is distorting the public‘s understanding of complex issues. tesco investigates after customers complained that their christmas turkey was "rotten" or had "gone off". in halfan in half an hour, i'll look back over a landmark year in the world of business. markets obsessed over brexit, trump's first year in office, also, big developments for some of the world's most influential companies. that's review 2017 — a

yearin companies. that's review 2017 — a year in business. good morning, welcome to bbc news. high winds and snow have caused disruption for much of england and wales. 111,000 properties are without power in the midlands, the south west and parts of wales , after power lines were brought down overnight. birmingham airport closed for a time to allow for slush and snow to be cleared from the runway. and collisions on the m1 and m25 caused by treacherous driving conditions left parts of both motorways closed. 0ur news correspondent joe inwood is here. pretty chaotic overnight in parts of the country. those hoping to travel and many people are today — what do they face? fairly widespread

disruption, treacherous conditions. the most severe incident was the one on the m1, a jackknifed lorry by junction 19, which closed large sections of the motorway. we understand the lorry has been cleared. but delays will go on for a long time because of diesel on the road. nearby, the a14, reports of multiple accidents — really terrible driving conditions there. the a14 is closed in parts and in its entirety. the highways agency say they have vehicles there trying to sort it out. there will be severe delays and people should try to find other routes. we have found out there's been an accident involving an ambulance on the a30 in cornwall. fortu nately ambulance on the a30 in cornwall. fortunately no further injuries were suss fortunately no further injuries were suss tarned by anyone on board. also power cuts right across the uk. particularly western power, 107

incidents there, causing nearly 14,000 people to be without power, not something anyone wants at this time of year. it's notjust ice and snow, though there have been warnings right across the country. there have been flood alerts because of heavy rain we've had. so 15 flood warnings. that means that flooding is expectedment and 114 flood alerts across england. joe, it's going to bea across england. joe, it's going to be a busy morning. certainly is. thanks very much. in a few minutes we'll speak to phil avery from the bbc‘s weather centre to find out what's causing the poor weather. in the meantime you can send in your pictures of the weather in your area to our dedicated twitter account for viewers. that's @ bbc underscore have your say. also@bbc simon mccoy. this is bbc news. aid workers have started to evacuate critically—ill patients from a rebel—held suburb near the syrian capital, damascus. it comes after weeks of negotiations between the united nations and syria's president bashar al—assad, to allow children with cancer to be transferred from eastern goo—ter

—— ghouta into damascus for treatment. virginia langeberg reports. these photos posted on twitter by the syrian red crescent, an international committee of the red cross. a sign of hope forjust a few. four patients with critical medical conditions will now receive treatment in a hospital in damascus. in the rebel held suburb of eastern ghouta, the most vulnerable have little help. sick and malnourished and trapped under siege since 2013. on christmas day, the bbc aired a story of baby karim, two—month—old who lost an eye and suffered severe injuries in a suspected government attack. un efforts to arrange medical evacuations from ghouta have until now fallen on deaf ears. last month, nine people who needed urgent medical care died

after a request to get them out were denied. now the attention turns to those who can still be saved including seven children curable cancer, but without the medicine to treat them. if we can save these seven children maybe we may also be able to get out the other 125 children in ghouta who are in desperate need of sophisticated medical support which they cannot get in ghouta. the syrian red crescent says last night's evacuations took a long time to negotiate. the first of 29 critical cases approved by syrian authorities. the remainder will be evacuated to damascus over the coming days. it may seem just a drop in the ocean in the plight of so many, but it's perhaps a small change in what has been an unforgiving ordeal for the people of eastern ghouta. the company that ran grenfell tower

is handing back control of its other properties to the local council, saying it can no longer give tenants the service they expect. the kensington and chelsea tenant management organisation has responsibility for nine thousand properties, as andy moore reports. g re nfell tower grenfell tower is owned by the local council, but it was run by one of the largest tenant management organisations in the country. this body manages thousands of properties in the area. it was this management organisation that made the now controversial decision to refurbish g re nfell tower controversial decision to refurbish grenfell tower in cladding suspected of fuelling the fire. both it and the local council are now under investigation by the police over possible corporate manslaughter charges. the organisation has sent out a letter saying it would be in the best interests of all residents that the services which the tenant management organisation currently

provides are handed back to the council. the handover, which will start at the end of next month means the royal borough of kensington & chelsea will take over repairs and day—to—day running. but a resident on the grenfell recovery scrutiny committee says the council isn't up to thejob of committee says the council isn't up to the job of running a committee says the council isn't up to thejob of running a large housing stock, when he claims it has failed to deal effectively with the aftermath of the fire. there's also aftermath of the fire. there's also a fear the tenant management organisation could escape criminal responsibility if it ceases to be a functioning company. the organisation said that wouldn't happen. the royal borough of kensington & chelsea said it saw this as a temporary measure and residents would ultimately decide how they wanted their homes managed. for the survivors of grenfell, who recently attended a memorial at st paul's cathedral, this comes as a further complication after reported delays in special christmas payments. britain's workers could see

another year without a pay rise, that's according to the resolution foundation think—tank, which looks at living standards in the uk. it said a year—on—year rise in real pay wouldn't be noticeable until december next year. the government says it is cutting taxes for millions and raising pay through the national living wage. princer require has praised his fiance during an interview with the bbc. they spent christmas with the royal family in norfolk. the prince has been guest editing the today programme, featuring an interview with former us president, president 0bama. when asked if he would invite mr0bama to the 0bama. when asked if he would invite mr 0bama to the wedding, prince harry, remained tight lipped. we haven't put the invites or the guest list together yet, so who knows whether he's going to be invited or not. wouldn't want to ruin that surprise. that must be a major headache? i think once you get married you go through that process. but for me, today, post christmas,

looking forward to new year, ijust hope that everybody out there has had a chance to just think about the things that really matter and the difference that every single one of us can difference that every single one of us can make. turning me away - it's not necessarily your decision either. your fiance often has a big say this things of course, 100 ( either. your fiance often has a big say this things of course, 100 (96. so christmas. it was your future wife's first christmas with the in—laws. how was it? wife's first christmas with the in-laws. how was it? it was fantastic. she really enjoyed. it the family loved having her there. yeah, there's always that family pa rt yeah, there's always that family part of christmas is that work element as well. i think together we had an amazing time, great fun staying with my brother and sister—in—law. and running around with the kids. christmas was fantastic. as i said, we're really looking forward to new year and looking forward to new year and looking forward to 2018 because, you know, i'm determined to make sure that myself and the young generation

and everybody else the pendulum is going to swing and 2018 is going to bea going to swing and 2018 is going to be a fantastic year. we all need to play our part. that was prince harry. he did an interview with barack obama, on a podcast available on bbc radio 4 website. it's worth listening to. parts of the united states are receiving a full dose of winter with northern states in a deep freeze. penceling vaina has declared —— pennsylvania has declared a state of emergency. winter white out. trees buckling under the snow, streets choked with ice. all the hallmarks of winter and then some, with a record—breaking snow dump of 53 inches — that's nearly 1.3 metres — in erie, pennsylvania. at four times the city's previous all—time christmas record, it is the snowiest day on record for what is already one of america's snowiest cities. and the white stuff isn't making it easy for motorists. outside the city, it forced

the festive traffic to a standstill on christmas day. officials have since declared a snow emergency, with some roads deemed dangerous and impassable. but for those at home with nowhere to go, there was only one thing to do. head out and enjoy the winter magic. scenes like this are likely to continue for several days, with the snow still falling thick and fast, erie could receive another foot of it in the next day. 0n the west coast, hopes for a white christmas were granted when seattle had its first snow in nine years. portland had its sixth since 1884. in boston, icy conditions sent a plane skidding down a taxiway. heavy snowfall put a freeze on arrivals and departures at logan international for close to an hour. few ski resorts in the alps can completely depend on natural

snowfall these days. but one resort in italy has developed a simple way to ensure snowy slopes throughout the season. it's better for the environment — and saves money — as bethany bell reports from south tyrol. the slopes are white, the tourists can ski. but very little of the snow on the ski slopes here is natural. many resorts in the alps depend on artificial snow. the snow conditions are great today and the slope behind me is also used for world cup races. but skiing is a sport which takes a toll on the environment, making artificial snow uses up a lot of water and a lot of electricity, which means big energy bills. but skiing is also crucial to the local economy and this resort here has figured out a way of reducing the use of snow guns and cutting energy costs. this man came up with the

idea to cover the entire resort with artificial snow very early in the season,in artificial snow very early in the season, in november, when the temperatures plunged to minus ten degrees. that way the snow lasts much longer, half a season or more. the snow‘s regularly spread around to ensure it doesn't melt, a process known as snow grooming. with the grooming machine we saved about 20% of the gasoline, that means 20% less working hours on the machines. with the snow making, very saved more than between 20% and 30% of energy. the process guarantees skiing from december to easter. some studies say the alps could lose significant snow cover by the end of the century. does that concern the skiers here?|j like does that concern the skiers here?” like to come here in the mountains, but i know that this type of tourism

is not always sustainable. so i think that someone had to think to something different to — for the mountain. i'm not worried too much because i love skiing, so ijust think about it. children enjoying the slopes. more sustainable ski resorts could mean there'll be skiing for years to come. coming up to 9. 9.15. the headlines on bbc news: motorists are warned of dangerous conditions because of snow and ice. 14,000 properties are without electricity in the midlands, south—west england and parts of wales. a small number of critically ill syrian children are allowed to leave a rebel—held area of damascus. the company that ran grenfell tower gives up control of thousands of other properties, saying it can't guarantee tenants the service they expect. ( news of some better

england cricket playing. morning, calm yourself now. at last we can say england are on top in australia, after day two of the fourth ashes test. an assured century from former captain alastair cook, ended the longest run drought of his career, as england closed on 192—2. that came after stuart broad had helped spark an australia collapse — he took fourfor 51, with the hosts all out for 327. patrick gearey was watching. this wasn't the day we we were expected. we thought we would see steve smith, the australian captain, make a huge score on a scorching day. after all, he hadn't been out on this ground in three years. so imagine everyone's surprise when smith played one onto his stumps after half an hour. that gave tom curran his first test wicket. mitchell marsh went next to chris woks. from there stuart broad and jimmy anderson, england's most successful bowling partnership of all time, took charge. broad bowled

with great skill for his four wickets in. answer to those who called for him to be dropped. australia were out for 327. in reply, england did lose mark stoneman to a superb caught and bowl. james vince went to lbw, he should have reviewed. the evening session was all about alastair cook, scoring his first 50 of the series. he was dropped by steve smith on 66 and ended up scoring his searchingery in the last over —— century in the last over of the day. australia frustrated in the sweltering heat. it may be too little too late for the ashes, but england have had their best day of the series so far. they are still fighting. we created quite a lot of pressure yesterday that we were rewarded with wickets today. i think we were very patient yesterday. when it reversed a little bit, things could have gone slightly different for us. and then,

today we got lucky with a couple of chop ones and a couple —— chop—ons. yeah, i mean, it's been a pretty tough couple of weeks really. it makes playing and taking wickets very rewarding. harry kane says he can keep getting better, after he broke the record for the most premier league goals in a calendar year. he moved past alan shearer‘s mark with yet another hat—trick, in tottenham's 5—2 win over southampton, taking his tally to 39. and that's 56 goals for club and country — two more than lionel messi. joe lynskey has more on that and the best of the rest of the action from yesterday. they are the england strikers who set their own bar. but 2017 is when harry made history. he's done it. it has been a very harry christmas. he's been unstoppable but kane knows how to take a ball. it's been a fantastic year, one i'm proud of.

compared to those players, the messis and shearers, it is what it's all about. it's come from persistence. some thought he would fade after one season, but he is now an icon. shearer set that in 1995, but there are more recent compare sons. at spurs they call him one of their own. in europe, harry kane is out on his own. kane's team won't win but second place could be in reach. commentator: manchester united 0, burnley 2. united found a way back to a draw but their december has seen a loss of points. is this a sticky spell? what's that? it is a difficult spell for you. why? the team deserved to win both matches. there was a more clinical edge to liverpool. swansea would need the reds at their most ruthless. five goals including

one to the local boy, trent alexander arnold. for swansea, these aren't the games that define their season, it is facing teams around you that matters. it is why west ham thought this was priceless. they thought they had seen at bournemouth. but controversy was coming. it won't count. the flag is up! did wilson get a touch? the discussions are long and involved. it is a goal! a referee's chance to transform emotions. in the premier league, joy can turn to heartache. it is why when records come, it's best to save them. ‘ ‘ savour —— savourthem. celtic have extended their lead at the top of the scottish premiership to 11 points, thanks to a 2—0 win at dundee — james forrest and leigh griffiths with the goals. aberdeen can narrow the gap again this evening, when they take on partick thistle — next for celtic is the visit of old firm rivals rangers on saturday. that's all the sport for now.

i'll have more for you in the next hour. let's get more now on the severe weather and travel disruption today. more on prince harry. he featured an interview with president 0bama. he asked barack interview with president 0bama. he asked ba rack 0bama interview with president 0bama. he asked barack 0bama to reflect on president trump's inauguration. she was as good as a first lady as there has been. she did this largely in support of my decision to run and for us to be able to come out of that intact. 0ur marriage was strong. we're still each other‘s best friends. our daughters turning into amazing girls, amazing young

women. you know, the sense that there was a completion and that we had done the work in a way that preserved or integrity and left us whole and that we hadn't fundamentally changed, i think, was a satisfying feeling. now, that was mixed with all the work that was still undone and concerns about how the country moves forward. but there was a serenity there, more than i would have expected. many of us wouldn't mind spending a few extra pennies on our pets, to make sure that they're

warm and cosy. but imagine the cost of doing that for hundreds of animals. now one zoo is using new technology to cut its bills while keeping the animals happy, as zoe kleinman reports. these graceful creatures are a type of antelope called nyala. originally from southern africa, they are used to a warmer climate than marwell zoo in hampshire, and keeping them warm, especially at this time time of year, is dear. these nyala, like a lot of antelope species, are active at dawn and dusk. 0ur total electricity bill for the zoo is very high and we think a third of that is from animal houses serve our point of view, this electric heating of animal stalls is a big part of our carbon footprint and bill that we are trying to tackle. wild animals, plunging temperatures and no front door. so how do you keep this herd warm? you might think with the thermostat on the wall, that would do the job but the thermostat would turn the heating on when it was cold regardless of whether or not

an animal was there. they also tried motion sensors but when animals are sleeping, they don't move much and heating could turn off. one solution is an algorithm using data from an infrared sensor. following a chance meeting, tech company ibm stepped in to help and that is how artificial intelligence ended up here in the natural world. what we got was some sense of that. it is looking down on the nyalas to detect whether they are there or not and next to that is a little computer with an infrared camera to take a photo to see if the algorithm is devised. as we can see on the little display, the moment it shows that there are animals there, it is detecting that nyalas are present and it would have turned the heat on. now, it's an experiment but the algorithm is making the right decision 96% of the time.

the next stage is to connect it to the heater and see how the animals behave when heating is turned on and off. will they behave as they normally do and sleep in their normal positions or will they wander off and look for warm patches somewhere else? but now, the nyalas are in bed with technology and they seem to be warming to it. back now to the snow and high winds causing disruption in england and wales and here to chat is phil avery from the bbc‘s weather centre. it was forecast, but as ever, i just thought i'd say that because i know how touchy you are about these things? i like to be precise. it is it the bbc, simon! and you were precise. this was always on the cards. we had an area of low pressure that was always lining us

up pressure that was always lining us up and because it is so cold across northern and western parts of britain at the moment, as the cold airdug into this, britain at the moment, as the cold air dug into this, this is where we ended up. our weather watchers as ever, bless them, i think mostly through their living room windows have captured the scene and why wouldn't you ? leicestershire have captured the scene and why wouldn't you? leicestershire down to hampshirejust wouldn't you? leicestershire down to hampshire just there and these are the snow depths. it really mounted up the snow depths. it really mounted up in the snow depths. it really mounted upina the snow depths. it really mounted up in a number of locations. of course, it being britain it doesn't ta ke course, it being britain it doesn't take a lot before we have had the sort of litany of disruption that you have been highlighting this morning. there, the rain and snow radar shows you that the whole situation has moved now a good deal further to the east and outside the window here, if you could afford a window! i logical tell you what, window here, if you could afford a window! i logicaltell you what, i will show you a window. and not only that, i'm going to cue the wiper that, i'm going to cue the wiper that will clear this image. can you tell me what else you got for

christmas? in the northern part of britain, ice is an issue. you will see here as we get on into the early pa rt see here as we get on into the early part of the afternoon the whole weather system has dragged it's over towards east anglia and the south east. a round—up, because we get carried away. the big weather story is it is a really nice day elsewhere, but you will notice the temperatures where a few days ago in the run—up to christmas, we were ten 01’ the run—up to christmas, we were ten or 11 celsius. some wintriness across the high ground and particularly across wales and the south—west. i noticed you slipped the wind in your introduction. the wind is a player here. towards the eastern end of kent, we are looking ata mean eastern end of kent, we are looking at a mean speed of 40mph. i have seen at a mean speed of 40mph. i have seen gusts this morning at the needles, exposed on the western end of the isle of wight... needles, exposed on the western end of the isle of wight. .. when you say you have seen gusts down at the needles, what do you mean? we have

got a team at the weather centre, peter, who told me he has been over the stats. he has been a whiz. 60mph, 70mph. it has been a miserable start to the day and as i say, here we are up to around about mid—afternoon and it is still there in east anglia and because the cold airand the in east anglia and because the cold air and the moisture interact on the western flank that's why we are seeing the winterness there. you know as well as i do, people watch oui’ know as well as i do, people watch our forecast in places like north of scotland, the north of england and as soon scotland, the north of england and as soon as scotland, the north of england and as soon as london get mentioned we seem as soon as london get mentioned we seem to lose our as soon as london get mentioned we seem to lose our sense as soon as london get mentioned we seem to lose our sense of prospective! but the importance, of course, is we are looking at people trying to get home today after the holiday period. and it's affecting roads that are going to be very busy. i think that's one of the major differences. we do not under play what goes on across scotland and northern ireland and the north of england. we get panned because we happen to be based in the south east, but the situation is, that

many, east, but the situation is, that any east, but the situation is, that many, many millions of people are using the road network that have been badly affected. anywhere across the midlands, if you tried to use the midlands, if you tried to use the motorways at the best of times, it is busy. here, across the heart of the british isles, across the southern half of the british isles that's where you have got tens of millions of people who could be on their way to the sales, etcetera, to sporting fixtures yesterday, that's why we have such heightened concern. we have got the second city, manchester there. these are major connobations with millions of people, many of whom will have been affected by the snow. so no over reaction. people are about to go and fire up the snow plough. what's in store ? fire up the snow plough. what's in store? you are a man for a drama, you really are! let me take you on, no extra charge, into tonight where the skies will clear and you end up with a good deal of ice. particularly where you've had the showers and the wind is noticeable across the north—eastern quarter.

there you see the extent of the icy regime. that's in the towns and cities. it will be colder where we have got the lying snow and again, thursday, yes, there you have your wintry showers across northern hills, a run of showers coming out of the irish sea, and back down towards the north—east of wales and into the midlands. another cold day despite the amount of sunshine and just when you thought you had got this weather forecasting nailed, just when you thought you had got this weatherforecasting nailed, i'm going to change things radically. i know you are a frustrated forecaster because there we have that major weather system coming in. there is a combination of wet, windy, but milder weather. temperatures, 12 or 13 celsius. we are back almost to where we were in the run—up to christmas. and new year, is it too early to say? it is that sort of week. i've lost track of dates. saturday, is that new year's eve. you're right, new year's eve is saturday. no,

sorry, sunday is new year's eve.