this is bbc news. the headlines at five: weather warnings are in place for parts of northern england and scotland today after heavy snow and blizzard conditions. glasgow airport reopens after snow caused it to suspend all flights. passengers are advised to check with their airlines. 12 people including four children have died in a blaze at an apartment block in the bronx. new york's fire commissioner says it was caused by a child playing with a stove. it started from a young boy, three and a half years old, playing with the burners on his stove. the fire got started, the mother was not aware of it, and was alerted by the young man screaming. scientists hail a medical breakthrough as bone tissue is re—grown in a lab, saving this dog's leg. trials will now see if the technique will work on humans. also: easing the impact of excessive drinking on

busy accident and emergency units. the nhs considers making mobile "drunk tanks" a permanent feature across england. and in half an hour, and in halfan hour, i and in half an hour, i will be looking back on a momentous year in politics that saw the brexit negotiations getting under way, and, oh, yeah, that general snap election. that is the year in politics with me, ellie price. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. weather warnings are in place for parts of northern england and scotland today after heavy snow and blizzard conditions affected large parts of the uk. glasgow airport was closed for a few hours, with flights suspended, but has now reopened. the temperature plunged to —12c

in the scottish highlands overnight and forecasters say driving conditions will remain difficult for the rest of the day. judith moritz reports. grounded at glasgow, flights at the city's airport were suspended after snow settled quickly overnight. the airport reopened by mid—morning, but managers have apologised for the knock—on disruption which was caused. temperatures plummeted in scotland. heavy snow fell in glasgow city centre, and in the highlands the mercury fell to —12 celsius. gritters have been covering the major routes, with everyone keeping an eye on the forecast. conditions are constantly changing at this time of the year. even with the detailed forecasts we get, we can't always get it 100% right. in daylight, the gritting continued. although some pennine routes were closed, the motorways remained free—flowing. the snow has been falling steadily all morning across swathes of northern england.

as predicted, it's been settling most in areas like this just outside huddersfield, up here on the higher ground. in cumbria, hazardous conditions left some vehicles stranded on the a590. there were also delays on other main roads. but with schools closed and many off work anyway for the holidays, disruption hasn't been too bad, and there has been plenty of opportunity for snow—themed entertainment. the mayor of new york says a fire which killed 12 people at an apartment building in the bronx district of new york was started by a three—year—old child playing with a stove. the victims, including four children, died on various floors of the five—storey building. it's the worst fire of its kind in the city in 25 years. last night's tragic fire, other than 9/11, was the worst loss

of life from fire in our city in almost 28 years, the fire which occurred in 1990. so we're in the midst right now of the worst month for loss of life in our city forfire in the past ten years. 12 people tragically died here, seven women, five men, five children, seven adults. four other people remain hospitalised with critical injuries and are seriously fighting for their lives right now. so this fire is...i said last night, historic. it certainly is in our city to have a situation like this.

fire marshals have been here all night trying to determine the cause, and we have determined it. we found that this fire started in a kitchen on the first floor. it started from a young boy, three and a half years old, playing with the burners on the stove. the fire got started, the mother was not aware of it, was alerted by the young man screaming. she exited her apartment with her two—year—old and three—year—old and left the door open. so this fire quickly spread up the stairs. fire travels up, the stairway acted like a chimney, it took the fire so quickly upstairs that people had very little time to react, they couldn't get back down the stairs, those that tried. a few that tried perished. others escaped, were helped out on to the fire escapes and taken down by our members. so although our members got here in a little over three minutes

and bravely entered the building and did everything they could, and did save a number of residents, this loss is unprecedented. we can speak now to rosie taravella. she's the chief executive of the red cross in the central new york region. i understand your organisation has been helping look after some of those who escaped from that fire? yes. of the 25 families, we were able to register 1a families so far for red cross assistance. we anticipate there will be more. tell us more anticipate there will be more. tell us more about your role and how some of the survivors have been. it must have been a traumatic experience. of the survivors have been. it must have been a traumatic experiencem was incredibly traumatic. sadly, we have seen a lot of these fires over the past several weeks in greater new york. with temperatures dropping and people trying to heat their homes, sometimes mistakes are made. in this case, a child was playing

with the stove. these things happen. so the red cross try to get to the scene as quickly as possible. while first responders are putting out the fire, many people are displaced and are not sure what to do. so when we are on the scene, we immediately try to find a warm place for them. in this case, we opened up pa rt for them. in this case, we opened up part of a reception centre where people who were displaced had somewhere to go and stay warm. then we started to work with the families who have lost loved ones. thank god for our volunteers. we have many mental health volunteers who are trained in helping people during this kind of tragedy. so we did a lot of that work as well. it was a combination of providing people with immediate resources, working with other agencies for long term support

and taking care of those suffering right now. these are families who have been left homeless at a time of year when so many are enjoying celebrations together. that's exactly right. we see it a lot at this time of year. fortunately, most of the families did have a place to go. of the 1a families we have helped so far, just four needed to be put up in hotels. now we are looking forward to long term housing solutions for them. we are also encouraging people in the area to have smoke alarms. we have tables set up where people can register to get free smoke alarm installation and instructions on what to do to prevent fires in the first place. rosie taravella, many thanks. the independent police complaints commission says a former surrey police officer who investigated jimmy savile would have faced questions of professional misconduct over his role, had he still been a serving officer.

savile, who died in 2011, was revealed to have abused hundreds of mainly women and girls. the report into surrey police's investigation of allegations of sexual offences byjimmy savile at duncroft school in the 1970s found that the officer had failed to pass on details of an alleged indecent assault by the star at stoke mandeville hospital. researchers in scotland have saved the leg of a dog using a new technique to grow bones in the laboratory. the dog, eva, would have had her leg amputated, were it not for this new approach — and the treatment on her is a world first. the team from glasgow university now wants to try the technique on humans. 0ur science correspondent pallab ghosh has this exclusive report. there's no holding her back, but last year eva's front right leg was broken in a road accident. her vet tried everything, but nothing worked. her entire leg was going to be amputated. she had not been able to get out

for nine, ten months, other than to the toilet. but to fiona kirkland's delight, her dog was saved by an experimental bone growing technique. it is absolutely fantastic, we're so pleased to have our dog back and fit and healthy. eva's vet showed me the problem. the blood supply to the edge of the bones has failed, so it was not able to heal the break. the scientists coated the dead areas with artificial bone and afterjust six weeks, it was completely mended. the artificial bone mix was made at glasgow university. it consists of sterilised chips that are coated with bone cells and the chemicals that make them grow, like a fertiliser. we want to look at treating more dogs and cats who have had broken bones and other areas we can help these veterinary patients,

things likejoint fusion where they've had a tendon injury sojoints can be held together to walk properly. the researchers here are so amazed at the success they have had in treating eva that they want to try out their technique on people. they plan to be the first researchers in the world to grow bone in the lab and put it into a patient in three years' time. these are the people that could be most helped. it is 20 years since princess diana brought the issue of landmine victims to the world's attention. their limbs usually have to be amputated. landmine campaigners are funding the new research so it can be used to grow some bone back and attach an artificial leg. if they are able to have a prosthetic limb, it would make all the difference to their life, being able to provide for the family instead of having to be a burden on the family. it has been a happy outcome for eva and her owners.

thousands of people could soon benefit from a technology that has put a spring back in her step. earlier, i spoke to eva and her owner fiona kirkland — and began by asking what it was like when it was feared that eva may lose her leg. she was a young dog, a dog that liked jumping and going through the undergrowth and the thought of her being on three legs, because she'd already sometimes when she'd been out in the garden to toilet, she'd trip and fall and i had visions of a three—legged dog, you know, constantly colliding with the ground. so it was quite upsetting, to be honest. at the same time, she would adapt to it, but you would rather not have to put your dog through that experience. this was after an accident she'd had? yes, she chased a fox and ended up getting hit by a car.

how did you then find out about this potential new technique which eventually did save her leg? william marshall, the orthopaedic surgeon at the vet hospital, told me that this was at the point in time when normally there would be no option but to take her leg off, but because they were a research facility attached to glasgow university, there was this possibility of some research that could be used to help eva. he did emphasise that it had only been used in labs at this point in time, but it was the only option for eva, otherwise she would be three—legged. and we have seen those pictures of her leaping around, apparently completely sound in all four legs. how swiftly did she recover after having this treatment? oh, it was absolutely fantastic because, you know, the accident happened injuly.

then the following march she'd had this surgery and when she went back for her check—up six weeks later towards the end of april, her leg was to all intents and purposes clinically healed. it wasjust phenomenal, all that time with her injured leg and then within six weeks it was healed. having taken a risk with an untried and untested technique, how surprised were you? surprised and very, very relieved. at the time that the research was being offered up, i didn't actually understand what was going on, what was involved in it. william had said that initially there might be a bit of a delay because the engineers were having trouble and i was thinking, is it some sort of metal that they are putting in her leg? i really didn't understand, it was only post—surgery that i found out more that it was

sir bobby charlton's charity, find a better way, that funded the research and the team at the university that had been involved in devising the technique. so it's absolutely brilliant for everybody, but most of all for me, eva's got four legs. a pioneering dog clearly deserves every single one of those treats! it must be quite something to know that she has paved the way for research that could now help humans who are suffering possibly life—changing injuries? yes, that's the whole thing about it, you know, we are delighted to have our dog with four legs again. if you just think of all those poor people who've survived landmine blast attacks, what it can do to help them, as well as other people with different types of injuries. it's phenomenal where it might all lead. ijust can't believe it. the more i hear about it through talking with people, it's wonderful for everyone. problem with sound.

unfortunately, i think that eva might havejust had a bit of a swipe at your microphone, so we lost the end of it, but it's great to see both you and eva in such good shape and i hope you enjoy many long walks together. thanks a lot for talking to us. thank you. the headlines on bbc news: thousands of homes are without power and road and air travel have been disrupted, after heavy snow and blizzard conditions across scotland and northern england. officials in new york say a fire at a block of flats in which 12 people died was caused by a three—year—old boy playing with a stove. four children were among the victims. scientists at glasgow university are to begin trials to see if a new technique for regrowing bone tissue in this dog will work on humans. sport now, and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's james pearce.

england's cricketers still have a chance of winning the fourth ashes test in melbourne, but they will have to hope that the weather is kinder to them tonight than it was today. rain stopped play on day four with australia 103—2 in their second innings, trailing england by 61 runs. patrick gearey reports from melbourne. at last, for england, some hope. a chance to cheer without lurking fear. to read and not weep. why isn't alastair cook on the front cover? that score remained correct. cook's third day of batting lasted one ball. he watched it, jimmy anderson hit it, cameron bancroft caught it. cook carried his bat unbeaten, a lesson in focus and patience. england needed to bowl in a similarfashion. waiting worked initially. they removed cameron bancroft, then produced enough movement to tempt usman khawaja. england were still nearly 100 ahead and making the best of a wearing ball. they, like australia, were warned about stuffing the ball on the pitch.

but some on australian television made more serious accusations, to england's obvious irritation. as soon as i saw the headlines, i raced into the umpires. that was their words, actually — "nothing to worry about, absolutely fine". england's next obstacle was australia's rock, steve smith. he reached the boundary only occasionally. england shut off the taps. but they couldn't dry everything up. showers turned to storms, play finished at three. england denied by very english conditions at the mcg. they are the only side with a realistic chance of winning this test. and the weather on the final day looks far clearer. but the continuing presence of the australian captain steve smith at the crease is a dark cloud still looming over them. patrick geary, bbc news, melbourne. andy murray has made his long awaited comeback from a hip injury, playing a one set exhibition match in abu dhabi against spain's roberto bautista agut. the briton was a last minute replacement for novak djokovic who has had to delay his return from an elbow problem. murray lost the first four games,

never looked at his physical best and ended up losing the set 6—2. this was murray's first competitive match since wimbledon. djokovic, meanwhile, could be a doubt for the australian open. liverpool managerjurgen klopp says it was "not nice" paying £75 million for the southampton defender virgil van dijk, but there was little choice. the dutchman will become the world's most expensive defender when the transfer window opens next month. klopp emphasised how much prices have spiralled over the past six months. it doesn't mean that all transfers will now be in this category, but it's the same like it was before. half a year ago, i think it was a big transfer for an offensive player. now we have a big transfer for a defensive player and it's around about a third of it as it always was. and that's it. it's not nice, it's not nice, but that's the market, that's the world and we have to adapt.

that's how it is. another sensational performance from the qualifier, jamie lewis, at the pdc world darts championships at alexandra palace. he's through to the semi—finals after whitewashing darren webster 5—0. he had already beaten second seed peter wright to get to the quarterfinals and will now face either phil taylor or gary anderson in the last four. that's all the sport for now. i'll have more for you in the next hour. the head of the nhs says he is considering the continuing deployment of mobile alcohol recovery units or drunk tank to reduce admissions to a&e. 70% of admissions on friday and saturday nights are linked to excessive drinking. joining me now is professor simon moore from cardiff university, who is carrying out a study into the impact of different types of drunk tanks. do you think these specialised

vehicles are really worth deploying to try to ease the pressure on a&e departments? i think they are a very good idea. the simple idea is, if you can take people who have drunk too much out of the unscheduled care system, it will free up resources for other patients. theirjourney through the health—care system will improve. so it is a good. one big question is what service fits what type of city. but don't these units themselves have to be staffed by medically trained personnel? there isa medically trained personnel? there is a range. some of them, yes, they have nurse practitioners and paramedics. there are some services that are staffed purely by volunteers. it is probably those services that have that level of professionalism which will be most

successful and will be able to spot problems that need to be referred to a&e, but also spot people who can stay behind and just recover and go home on their own steam. is there a danger that deploying these drunk ta nks danger that deploying these drunk tanks then almost encourages irresponsible behaviour, because people think, there will be somebody there to sort things out if i go over the top? you are assuming that behaviour could get any more irresponsible than it is at the moment. i would also bear in mind that there is a safety net for people which is provided by our police, ambulance and health care services. that is not the big issue. that is something of a diversion. i do feel that prevention should be key. u nfortu nately, do feel that prevention should be key. unfortunately, that hasn't happened, so we need these services. but there is still going to be a cost for providing a new service like this, which is simply there to help people who have had too much to

drink. aren't many local taxpayers going to be reluctant to fork out for the irresponsible behaviour of a few? it is a question of whether it is cost—effective. if you can take one nurse out of a&e and put them in a city centre location, does the benefits outweigh the loss of that person in the unit? this is critical. in terms of who pays for it, whether it's the taxpayer or the alcohol industry, is a question for debate. we should certainly look at using things like late—night levies to help fund these services. part of the reason why people are thinking about these sorts of solutions is simply the sheer scale of the problem and the effect that that has on a&e departments, with sometimes 70% of cases going into emergency units being caused by people who have had too much to drink. absolutely. i have had e—mails from patients who have talked about

sitting in on a&e waiting room with a young family watching people fight and vomit over themselves and defecate. it isn't pleasant. it is worth bearing in mind that it is a small number of drinkers, not the majority. it is just that they are so majority. it is just that they are so disruptive and difficult to manage in so so disruptive and difficult to manage in so many cases. so disruptive and difficult to manage in so many cases. i have seen one gentleman become so aggressive that it took two police officers, a nurse and a health care system to control him. they take up a lot of time and effort and they cause problems. we are talking about a small minority that is very disruptive. are there particular towns or cities where these units have made a real difference?” towns or cities where these units have made a real difference? i have had a lot of experience with the one in cardiff. i spent a lot of time there. preliminary results from the data that does suggest it has an effect. but evaluating these services properly does take time and effort. it is a complex thing to

look at. the results do point in a positive direction, but we will not know until next year whether that is actually the case. do you sense that the government is now seriously considering using more of these units in order to ease the pressure on the nhs? i think it's great. it speaks to prudent health care. if you put services into a community and make them more accessible, you can better use the resources you have available. but i would also say that prevention has to be foremost in people's minds. it is one thing to reallocate resources for efficiency, but if you can stop people drinking to this extent, and it isa people drinking to this extent, and it is a minority of people, that is the better focus. professor simon moore, many thanks. police say a woman found murdered in north london had been stabbed and beaten. the body of iuliana tudos — who was 22 and originally from moscow, but had lived in london for some years — was discovered

on wednesday in finsbury park. it's thought she might have been attacked on christmas eve. two men have been charged with terrorism offences by police who had been investigating a suspected christmas attack plot. 31—year—old andi sami star, from chesterfield, and 22—year—old farhad salah from sheffield have been detained by detectives on charges of engaging in the preparation of an act of terrorism. they appeared by video—link before london's westminster magistrates' court. apple has apologised to its customers after it admitted slowing down older iphones — it says, in order to protect their batteries. the company said it would never intentionally shorten the life of any apple product, and that it will now offer replacement batteries at a discounted price. newly—released national archives files have revealed that margaret thatcher once refused to share a flight to washington with london zoo's giant panda. lord zuckerman, president of the london zoological society, suggested that chia chia the panda could share the prime minister's

concorde flight in 1981. washington's smithsonian institution had asked to borrow chia chia, to mate it with us—based ching ching. but mrs thatcher said pandas were not " happy omens" for politicians. and the weather has been causing all kinds of problems, particularly across the north of england. things have calmed down a lot through the afternoon. across the south—west, they are starting to see a change again, with another weather system moving from the south—west overnight, which will bring wet and windy weather. initially, there could be snow over the higher ground. it will revert back to reign

as milderair ground. it will revert back to reign as milder air moves up from the south. it will be cold, with a risk of ice to watch out for. during the weekend, the mild air remains in place across england and wales, but it will be cold across scotland and northern ireland. plenty of isobars on the weather map through saturday and sunday, meaning it will be windy. and lots of rain in store. we could be looking at localised flooding across southern and western parts of the country by the end of sunday. on saturday, it is looking decent foremost. there will be snow over the higher ground and maybe some sleet at lower levels, but there will be sunshine for northern ireland and the central belt of scotla nd ireland and the central belt of scotland towards northern england. for england and wales, much milder than of late. and a lot of sunshine, but things will turn wet across

cornwall and devon. that will take place because of this area of low pressure which will be moving up from the south—west. this is a named storm by the irish meteorological service. they have called it storm dyla n service. they have called it storm dylan as it will be affecting most of the republic of ireland. it will bring a spell of gales across northern ireland and western scotla nd northern ireland and western scotland through new year's eve. further south, it will be wet and windy, with quite a lot of rain, but very mild. across the north, it will be cold again with snow over the hills. a wet start to new year's eve across the north and the south. plenty of sunshine again for england and wales by a few showers across the north and west. mild in the south and cool in the north. for the big night, it is an east—west split. the eastern areas stay dry with clear spells. the further west you are, the greater the chance of seeing some showers, so take waterproofs if you are heading

outside. keep tuned to the forecast. protests are being staged across iran in what's being described as the most serious and widespread expression of public discontent in the country since disputed election results eight years ago. a small number of people have reportedly been arrested in the capital, tehran, and protests have since spread to other parts of the country. joining me in the studio is kasra naji from the bbc‘s persian service thank you forjoining us. it is quite unusual in such a repressive country as iran to see these protests. can you explain what is going on? the demonstrations started yesterday in north—east iran in mashhad, and it was supposed to be a demonstration against rising prices, against the government of the president, not being able to control these prices and the cost of living, but they quickly got out of control, the demonstrations, becoming very

political in nature, shouting slogans against the regime and against iran's supreme leader, which we have not had for many years. the demonstrations continued today and spread to other cities, big cities around the country, and smaller towns, but let me add that these demonstrations remain small in terms of numbers, 5000 there, 500 beer, a few under there, but they remain across the country and the nature of them is very political. people are calling for the freedom of political prisoners —— 500 there. protesting against the regime, against the supreme against the regime, against the supreme leader, they say that the money iran is spending on wars abroad for example should be spent at home, war is in syria, iraq and yemen, and supportive of hezbollah

in southern lebanon on so these are very political issues and people are also is shouting slogans in support of the former regime, the resume of the shah, shouting slogans demanding a return to the monarchy, if you like. certainly one to watch for the future, and we will have to stop that they are, but thank you very much indeed forjoining us, kasra naji. now on bbc news ellie price reviews the year in british politics. the headlines this morning: theresa may's decision to call a general election appears to have backfired. it was with reluctance that i decided the country needs... the prime minister spells out her strategic goals. the conversatives are the largest party. history has been made. article 50 has been triggered. brexit negotiations in a shambles! hear, hear!

sighs music: i was born under a wandering star 2017 was shaped by what happened when a pretty influential person went for a nice, long walk in the countryside and had a little think about things. that was, of course, theresa may, who went on a hike with her husband in april and came back thinking it would be a jolly good idea to call a general election. the decision made on that little stroll defined the year. the 2017 journey started, as we all expected, with brexit. are we going to get a detailed plan, prime minister? only a few days shy of the eu referendum's six—month anniversary, theresa may made a speech at lancaster house. it became known as the lancaster house speech. setting out a blueprint of her main

objectives for brexit negotiations. as a priority, we will pursue a bold and ambitious free trade agreement with the european union. the days of britain making vast contributions to the european union every year will end. no dealfor britain is better than a bad dealfor britain. the pm confirmed britain would come out of the eu single market but there would be a transition period from eu membership to whatever is agreed after. and she said parliament would be given a vote on a final deal. but it was parliament getting a say on the start of negotiating that deal which was the big news a few days later. gina miller! the government got taken to court for wanting to trigger article 50, the mechanism to leave the eu, without having to ask mps first. by a majority of 8—3, the supreme court rules that the government cannot trigger article 50 without an act of parliament authorising it to do so. no prime minister, no government, can expect to be unanswerable or unchallenged.

parliament alone is sovereign! and parliament was given that very vote a few weeks later. the ayes to the right, 494. the noes to the left, 122. hear, hear! an historic vote today. and it got through by a large majority at every turn. it has carried out the will of the british people. the stage was set, then, and on the 29th of march, article 50 was triggered. this is an historic moment from which there can be no turning back. and all it took was a short letter delivered by hand to brussels, signed by theresa may — though you might not know it from that signature. so, here it is. six pages. we already miss you. thank you and goodbye. now it was time for

the difficult bit to start — negotiating the terms. we were all doggedly talking about brexit, but other things happened, too. the conservative party candidate —13,748. in february, the tories won the copeland by—election — the first such win by a government party over its opposition in 35 years, and in a place that had been labour since 1935. on the same night, labour held onto their stoke—on—trent seat... you going to resign, paul? ...seeing off a challenge from ukip. it was a message that hope triumphs over fear! there were elections, too, for the northern ireland assembly. sinn fein came within one seat of drawing level with the dup after a bitterly divisive campaign. applause just a few weeks later, the death of sinn fein's martin mcguinness, northern ireland's former deputy first minister. martin mcguinness was a freedom fighter!

even now, there's still no sign of a breakthrough so that power—sharing can be restored at stormont. saving for a rainy day, chancellor? back in london, philip hammond gave the first of his two budgets this year. theresa may was really looking forward to it, as the chancellor said it would prepare britain for brexit. it provides a strong and stable platform for those negotiations. strong and stable — the phrase we'd all get bored of. on the 22nd of march, a terrorist ploughed through pedestrians on westminster bridge, killing four and injuring 50. he then stabbed to death a policeman just outside the houses of parliament. he was later shot dead. the first three months of the year in westminster and beyond had already provided plenty to fill the airwaves and the newspapers. and then, a surprise announcement no—one saw coming. i have just chaired a meeting of the cabinet, where we agreed

that the government should call a general election to be held on the 8th ofjune. every vote for the conservatives will make me stronger when i negotiate for britain with the prime ministers, presidents and chancellors of the european union. every vote for the conservatives will mean we can stick to our plan for a stronger britain, and take the right long—term decisions for a more secure future. general election? you're jokin'! not another one! # i was born under a wanderin' star. go on, go on! the path ahead seemed pretty clear for theresa may and the tories could almost smell victory — or so they thought. the local elections saw the conservatives make big gains across the country at the expense of ukip, whose vote collapsed, and labour. we have had very disappointing results in other

parts of the country. yes, we have to go out there in the next four weeks and get a message out. there were recriminations, too, among some labour mps. it's a pretty disastrous picture. it's simply not good enough for a party that has been in opposition for seven years, that's heading towards a general election in five weeks, to not be picking up seats and not making forward progress. but so much progress was made on labour's election manifesto that it was finished five days early and promptly leaked to the press. when it was formally lodged, it called for the renationalisation of the water companies and an end to tuition fees. this is a programme of hope. the tory campaign, by contrast, is built on one word — fear. applause the tories, meanwhile, unveiled a document that included scrapping free school lunches

for children in england, and a shake—up of the social care system. and with confidence in ourselves and a unity of purpose in our country, let us all go forward together. applause # mud can make you prisoner and the plains can bake you dry... but then, theresa may seemed to lose her way. the direction unclear... # but only people make you cry. ...in what were a series of unforced errors. # ...dreams of going to # which, with any luck, will never come true. there was that u—turn on social care. you have just announced a significant change to what was offered in your manifesto, saying there will now be the possibility of a cap on social care — that was not in the plans that were announced just four days ago. our social care system will collapse unless we address this problem. nothing has changed! nothing has changed. then she refused to take part in any head—to—head televised debate. the prime minister

is not here tonight. she can't be bothered, so why should you? in fact, bake off is on bbc two next. it wasn't bake off, but she did go on the tv to talk about the bins, and it all seemed a bit cringy. well, there is give and take in every marriage, isn't there? of course. i get to decide when i take the bins out, not if i take the bins out. there are boyjobs and girljobs, you see. there's boyjobs and girljobs? and then there was that weird time that the prime minister was asked what was the naughtiest thing she ever done as a child. she said it was to run through a field of wheat. come on, ed! come on, ed! # the hills are alive with the sound of music #. meanwhile, jeremy corbyn was positively frolicking out on the campaign trail... all chant: corbyn! corbyn! corbyn! ...greeted like a rock star at his well attended rallies. i never was into politics

because i never thought politicians were, like, normal people, until now. you won't say whether you think having gay sex is a sin. elsewhere, the lib dem leader tim farron, a devoted christian, kept being asked the same question. i don't believe gay sex is a sin. i take the view that as a political leader, though, myjob is not to pontificate on theological matters. and in a lighter moment, he also provided one of the best catchphrases of the campaign. smell my spaniel, maybe. not everyone liked it. meanwhile, the snp seemed pretty cool about their challenge ahead. winning those 56 seats will be a huge challenge for nicola sturgeon's party. ruth davidson has predicted we've hit peak nat, that the only way is down. this party...

hello! ukip's manifesto was memorable for its proposed ban on burqas in public, but its leader paul nuttall had trouble with his own memory. i think that natalie's absolutely right. what we need to do... i'm not natalie! leanne, i'm sorry. thank you. my fault. sorry. women's names. he's done it twice now. have i? oh, i'm sorry about that. but politics was overtaken by tragedy not once, but twice. 23 people, including the attacker, were killed after a bomb went off at a pop concert at the manchester arena. this was amongst the worst terrorist incidents we have ever experienced in the united kingdom. clear the area now! less than two weeks later, and five days before the election, a second terror attack, this time on london bridge. eight people were killed and the three attackers shot dead by police. on both occasions, the campaign was suspended for several days. we are saying the conservatives are the largest party,

although they do not have a majority at this stage. in fact, overall, the conservatives lost 12 seats, creating a hung parliament. they were the biggest party, but did not have a majority. surprising even themselves, they regained an extra 30 seats. the snp lost 21, including that of their former leader alex salmond. former lib dem leader nick clegg also lost his seat. theresa may stayed on as prime minister, but onlyjust. i'm sorry for all those hard—working candidates and party workers who were not successful. with their majority gone, a vocal number of tory mps thought it stank, and theresa may would have to clean up her mess. and that's what she promised to do, but there was still pressure on her to resign, from a former colleague, who had got close colleague, who had got

a newjob as the editor of the london evening standard. i mean, theresa may is a dead woman walking. it's just how long she's going to remain on death row. tim farron did decide it was time to go even though the lib dems had regained an extra eight seats. to be the leader of a progressive, liberal party in 2017 and to live as a committed christian to the bible's teaching has felt impossible for me. watching on was the man who took over was vince cable. the ukip leader paul nuttall who failed to win a seat also resigned. for us, although the tide may be out at this present moment in time, i am convinced it will return. deal or no deal, mrs foster? to get enough mps in parliament to be able to pass any laws, theresa may needed the dup's ten mps from northern ireland on side. those discussions obviously are still going on.

norman, what can you tell us? you keep looking over your shoulder in case she comes out the door. in and tell us so far? —— what can you tell us so far? actually i was looking at a much more interesting fight about to erupt between palmerston and larry, who is lying on his back in the street. a serious clash could be about to unfold, i don't know whether i should intervene! don't worry, there was no fight. they came to an arrangement, as did the dup and the government 18 days after the election. today we have reached an outcome that is good for the united kingdom. then remember the guy who was treated like a rock star? yeah — jeremy corbyn went to glastonbury. # 0h, jeremy corbyn. ..# plenty to digest. it was onlyjune, but the issue of brexit hadn't gone away. time for the eu and uk to get stuck in. a hugely important decision

was taken by the remaining 27 countries in the eu at the end of april. to start with, negotiators would only talk about three subjects: the border between northern ireland and the republic of ireland, the rights of eu citizens living in britain and vice versa, and how much britain owed the eu, the so—called divorce bill. only when sufficient progress was made in those areas could talks move on to the nitty—gritty of trade deals. we all want a close and strong future relationship with the uk. there's absolutely no question about it. but before discussing the future, we have to sort out our past. the very next day, a german newspaper published details of a meeting between the eu commission president jean—claude juncker and the pm. it alleged the meeting had been frosty and mrjuncker had left 10 times more sceptical. theresa may dismissed the report as gossip. byjune, it was time to get on with it. i'm here in brussels today,

like michel, to begin the next phase of our work to build a new deep and special partnership with the european union. that obviously wouldn't be easy. translation: the uk decided to leave the eu, not the other way round, and the consequences are substantial. we come bearing gifts. enterjeremy corbyn to mix things up a bit. he met the eu chief negotiator to discuss labour's brexit position, which may not have been as obvious as his football allegiance. here's a football shirt.. barnier! you now play for arsenal. over the summer the british government published a series of papers clarifying its position on a range of issues. but by the end of august, the eu seemed to suggest it wasn't enough. to be honest, i'm concerned.

time passes quickly. with the clock ticking, theresa may made another speech, this time in florence. she said there should be a transition period of about two years after brexit, and that britain was prepared to pay a financial settlement. clearly people, businesses and public services should only have to plan for one set of changes in the relationship between the uk and eu. the uk will honour commitments we've made during the period of our membership. let us be creative as well as practical in designing an ambitious economic partnership that respects the freedoms and principles of the eu and the wishes of the british people. a month later, another dinner, another kiss with jean—claude juncker. another german newspaper report. this time it said the pm had "begged for help" when they met, and she seemed tired and politically weak. he denied the account. she was in good shape, she was not tired, she was fighting. as is her duty.

everything for me was ok. ss she didn't plead with you for help? no, no. but still, by december, no decision on whether sufficient progress had been made. a deal was so near. quite literally — theresa may was even in brussels. but the sticking point was the dup who said they weren't happy with proposals for northern ireland. we will not accept any form of regulatory divergence which separates northern ireland economically or politically from the rest of the uk. the a dramatic intervention and back to stalemate. after more late—night talks, finally, a breakthrough. for now at least. sufficient progress has now been made on the strict terms of the divorce. this was a difficult negotiation for the european union as well as for the united kingdom. you can say that again, jean—claude.

that is what this was all about. i very much welcome the prospect of moving ahead to the next phase. will you be celebrating, mr barnier, cracking open the champagne? we're still working, no. the chief negotiator wasn't quite jumping for joy. ultimate arbiter, put about in your pipe and smoke it. back home, critics like him weren't celebrating either. amazing isn't it, british pm has to fly through the middle of the night to meet some unelected bureaucrats who patted her on ahead —— the head and said you've met all our demands, made sufficient progress, we can move onto the next stage, the whole thing is a humiliation. there is little doubt it did come as some relief to the pm. even if less than one week later... the ayes to the right, 309, nos to the left, 305. ...she was defeated in the commons when rebel tory and opposition mps forced the government to give a legal guarantee of a vote on the final brexit deal. overall, a year of brexit negotiations ended with agreement. at least the first bit did. the realfun starts making a deal on the future relationship. is theresa may's goal of a full

agreement by march 2019 realistic? still realistic and, of course, dramatically difficult. # i was born under a wandering star... #. with the election over and brexit dominating the whole of 2017, it was a long slog. keeping control of her own party has been an uphill struggle for the pm. # oh, jeremy corbyn...# not least when you compare it to jeremy corbyn's fortunes. they may have lost the election but labour's party conference felt a bit more like a victory parade. it wasn't like this last year. thank you so much for that wonderful welcome and this incredible feeling and spirit of unity and love and affection we have here. why are you making the pm sweat?

the run—up to the tory conference was less than harmonious. borisjohnson hit the headlines for an article he wrote outlining his own red lines in brexit negotiations. they seemed to go further than that of the prime minister and what was agreed by the cabinet. once again there were whispers about his leadership aspirations. a little taste of italy. as there were about this man, jacob rees—mogg, though he told me he wants theresa may to stay on as leader. for everand ever, eternity, even eternity is too short to extol her. you don't fancy it yourself? no, of course not, i want mrs may to go on for ever and ever. in the end, it was theresa may's conference speech that went on and on. it started with a prankster. and prepare for a run on the ground... boris, job done, given her the p45. of course it had nothing to do with the foreign secretary. i was about to talk about somebody i would like to give a pas to, and that'sjeremy corbyn.

and then came the frog in the throat. she coughs excuse me — the deficit is back to precrisis levels... sounds as if my voice isn't on track. as if it couldn't get any worse, even the scenery started falling down. as if it couldn't get any worse, even the scenery started falling down. the pm put on a brave face and was supported by her husband and, in the coming days, after some whisperings about her leadership, her cabinet. by the end of october, scandal once again hit westminster, this time about sexual harassment. very quickly it became clear it was not party political, with various mps implicated. and then a cabinet minister. in recent days allegations have been made about mps' conduct, including my own.

many of these allegations have been false. but i realise that in the past i may have fallen below the high standards that we require of the armed forces that i have the honour to represent. i have reflected now on my position in government and i am therefore resigning as defence secretary. a week later, jetting back this time from an official ministerial trip, priti patel, the international development secretary, was called into downing street and also resigned. this time over unauthorised meetings she'd had with israeli officials while on holiday. in her resignation letter, ms patel said her actions "fell below the standards of transparency and openness." losing two cabinet ministers in a week was unlucky, losing a third the following month was, well, awkward, but damian green resigned after it was found that he made misleading statements over claims of pornography on his office computer. it wasn't just troublesome

friends at home. injanuary the pm and donald trump had got on so well when she went to washington they even held hands. and mrs may invited the president over for a state visit at some stage. that didn't go down well with some people back home. so when the president retweeted some unsubstantiated posts from a british far—right group called britain first, it was, at best, a bit awkward. theresa may said he was wrong to do it. he told her, "don't focus on me." the year didn't end as friendly as it had started, but is the president still coming over? an invitation for a state visit has been extended and has been accepted. we have yet to set a date. thank you. something to look forward to next year. so much going on, little sign of things slowing down.

but politics aside, there was one more important moment in westminster this year — the silencing of an old friend. bong big ben stopped bonging. apart from events like remembrance sunday and new year's eve, the nearly 14—tonne bell will stay silent as repair works go on, forfour years. even the prime minister is a bit upset about it, as are other mps. it means something, it really does. these are the chimes of freedom and they have to be respected. we've got to keep them bonging. it really has been all about timing this year. # whe i get to heaven

tie me to a tree #. an election and all the fallout, brexit and the ongoing negotiations, and scandals at westminster. it's been quite a year. next year couldn't possibly be so frantic, could it? hello. a quiet start to this evening but another batch of rain will be spreading from the south—west into the first part of the night, mainly of rain but is it encounters the

cooler air of the hills of wales into northern ireland and also briefly the pennines, there will be a little transient snow but that will return to rain as it moves northward. cold across scotland for the showers and a risk of ice but much milderfurther south, 5—8d. this male heir of lingering across england and wales for saturday and into sunday. further north you can see the blue colours, remaining on the poolside —— this mild air lingering across. we will continue to see some wintering is across scotland, snow certainly in the hills and some rain into the south—west of england later on saturday but a good slice of the central uk will see plenty of dry weather, sunny spells around. a very mild 10—13d in the south and cooler than that in the north. a similar picture on new year's eve. this is bbc news. the headlines at six:

weather warnings are in place for parts of northern england and scotland today after heavy snow and blizzard conditions. glasgow airport reopens after snow caused it to suspend all flights. passengers are advised to check with their airlines. 12 people including four children have died in a blaze at an apartment block in the bronx. new york's fire commissioner says it was caused by a child playing with a stove. it started from a young boy, three and a half years old, playing with the burners on his stove. the fire got started, the mother was not aware of it, and was alerted by the young man screaming. labour peer, lord adonis resigns as the government's infrastructure chief — with a scathing attack on theresa may for her handling of brexit. anti—government protests spread to several cities in iran,